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Page last updated on 2019 December 31

This page was created in 2009 as an outgrowth of the section entitled "Books Read or Heard" in my personal page. The rapid expansion of the list of books warranted devoting a separate page to it. Given that the book introductions and reviews constituted a form of personal blog, I decided to title this page "Blog & Books," to also allow discussion of interesting topics unrelated to books from time to time. Lately, non-book items (such as political news, tech news, puzzles, oddities, trivia, humor, art, and music) have formed the vast majority of the entries.

Entries in each section appear in reverse chronological order.

Blog entries for 2019
Blog entries for 2018
Blog entries for 2017
Blog entries for 2016
Archived blogs for 2015
Archived blogs for 2014
Archived blogs for 2012-13
Archived blogs up to 2011

Blog Entries for 2019

2019/12/31 (Tuesday): On this last day of the year and the decade, I offer a single course review, dedicated to writers among my blog's readers. May the coming year be healthy, joyous, and productive for all.
Sample sentence 1 from the course 'Building Great Sentences' Cover image for the course 'Building Great Sentences' Sample sentence 2 from the course 'Building Great Sentences' Course review: Landon, Professor Brooks (U. Iowa), Building Great Sentences: Exploring the Writer's Craft, 24 lectures in the "Great Courses" series (12 CDs + guidebook), The Teaching Company, 2008.
[My 5-star review of this course on GoodReads]
The best way to describe the contents of this magical course is to begin by listing the lecture titles: 1 A Sequence of Words; 2 Grammar and Rhetoric; 3 Propositions and Meaning; 4 How Sentences Grow; 5 Adjectival Steps; 6 The Rhythm for Cumulative Syntax; 7 Direction of Modification; 8 Coordinate, Subordinate, and Mixed Patterns; 9 Coordinate Cumulative Sentences; 10 Subordinate and Mixed Cumulatives; 11 Prompts of Comparison; 12 Prompts of Explanation; 13 The Riddle of Prose Rhythm; 14 Cumulative Syntax to Create Suspense; 15 Degrees of Suspensiveness; 16 The Mechanics of Delay; 17 Prefab Patterns for Suspense; 18 Balanced Sentences and Balanced Forms; 19 The Rhythm of Twos; 20 The Rhythm of Threes; 21 Balanced Series and Serial Balances; 22 Master Sentences; 23 Sentences in Sequence; 24 Sentences and Prose Style.
The guidebook ends with a glossary, bibliographical notes, and bibliography (23 pages in all).
The first question one might ask is why an entire course with focus on sentences is needed. Here's Brooks' answer: "The sentence is where we must start if we hope to understand why some writing captivates us and other writing leaves us unmoved."
As an aside, this is the umpteenth time I have stepped outside my areas of expertise and comfort to learn something new, each time returning amazed of the rich variety of areas of scholarship I could not have imagined and the myriad of researchers who work in those areas, agreeing and disagreeing with each other, unbeknownst to me!
A key take-away from this course is that bad sentences are usually long, but not all long sentences are bad. In fact, while there are examples of brilliant short sentences in the works of masters, beautiful sentences tend to be long. So, it's not the length of a sentence that make it bad but how the sentence grows to become long. There are but three ways to grow a kernel sentence such as "She raised the flag": Connective ("She raised the flag, and she ..."); Subordinative ("Realizing she was the lone survivor, she raised the flag"), and adjectival ("She raised the flag which was tattered by bullets").
One of the most effective ways of building compelling long sentences is through cumulative syntax. According to Francis Christensen, an English professor at USC, who defied conventional wisdom of his time about effective writing and began looking at what great writers actually wrote, a cumulative sentence tends to develop by downshifting through increasingly detailed levels of generality, replacing the previously-advocated simplicity with a textured presentation, in which adjectives and adverbs, not just nouns and verbs, play key roles by introducing movement.
Let me clarify the concept of a cumulative sentence by means of two examples, both beginning with a base clause which is followed by modifying phrases. In the first example, the modifying phrases are all at the same secondary level, so they can be reordered, put before or after, or even in the middle of, the base clause.
"The elated Girl Scout went home, having sold all her boxes of cookies, having knocked on every door in her neighborhood, so proud of her accomplishment she immediately wanted more cookies to sell."
The second example has modifying cluases at multiple levels, with tertiary clauses modifying secondary ones.
"The elated Girl Scout went home, having sold all her boxes of cookies, those inescapable icons of capitalism, having knocked on every door in her neighborhood, recognizing some who came to their doors as friends of her parents."
Of course, it's quite easy to overdo this by adding less-compelling details that turn the cumulative sentence into a mess, rather than an object of beauty. Also, cumulative sentences tend to be loners: string several of them together, and you are bound to lose your reader's patience and interest.
Once we have read and written enough cumulative sentences, they come to us quite naturally. In fact, one of the most effective ways to test a cumulative sentence is to read it aloud and listen to the flow of the sentence. Having been exposed to and practiced writing cumulative sentences, we develop an intuition for spotting problematic syntax or less-than-compelling rhythm.
Cumulative sentences can also be used to create suspense by delaying the delivery of the most important or surprising pieces of information. Here's an example sentence with an unexpected ending:
"He drove the car carefully, his shaggy hair whipped by the wind, his eyes hidden behind wraparound mirror shades, his mouth set in a grim smile, a .38 Police Special on the seat beside him, the corpse stuffed in the trunk."
Good prose has a rhythm, and cumulative sentences provide an excellent mechanism for supplying such a rhythm. Landon recommends quite a few sources that have inspired work in this area or that would form good sources for additional study. They include George Orwell's 1946 essay "Politics and the English Language" and Carl Klause's 1968 essay "Reflections on Prose Style." I could find no on-line version of Klause's essay.
Let me end my review with three examples of cumulative sentences from great writers.
"The radiators put out lots of heat, too much, in fact, and old-fashioned sounds and smells came with it, exhalations of the matter that composes our own mortality, and reminiscent of the intimate gases we all diffuse." ~ Saul Bellow
"The San Bernardino Valley lies only an hour east of Los Angeles by the San Bernardino Freeway but is in certain ways an alien place: not the coastal California of the subtropical twilights and the soft westerlies off the Pacific but a harsher California, haunted by the Mojave just beyond the mountains, devastated by the hot dry Santa Ana wind that comes down through the passes at 100 miles an hour and whines through the eucalyptus windbreaks and works on the nerves." ~ Joan Didion
"When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation." ~ Thomas Jefferson, US Declaration of Independence

2019/12/30 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for 'The Torchlight List: Around the World in 200 Books' (1) Images of the day: [Left & Right] Page images from the forthieth-anniversary issue of Computer Report (see the next two items below). [Center] Book introduction: A friend recommended Jim Flynn's The Torchlight List: Around the World in 200 Books (Awa Press, 2010) to me. It provides the titles and summaries for 200 must-read books from which one can learn much about the world we live in and the human condition.
(2) Fortieth anniversary issue of Computer Report: Published last summer, I have just received a PDF copy of the special issue (Vol. 41, No. 2, Serial No. 243, p. 91, June/July 2019), from which I am posting a couple of items. On the left above is my message to officers and members of Informatics Society of Iran, on the occasion of the 40th-anniversary of the publication of Computer Report, ISI's flagship journal.
(3) Article entitled "Skyrmionic Technology for Atomic-Scale and Neuromorphic Computing": I wrote an article, part of whose first page appears on the right above, at the invitation of the Editor-in-Chief of Computer Report to help celebrate that journal's 40th anniversary of publication. [English PDF] [Persian PDF]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The Chinese scientist who created the first baby with edited genes sentenced to 3 years in jail.
- Anti-Semitic attacks captured by surveillance cameras: When will politicians go beyond lip service?
- The number of generations it takes for low-income individuals to reach their society's mean income. [Chart]
- The 10 most important math breakthroughs of 2019: Items 1-3 made news as they were reported.
- Science Daily: Discovery of brain circuit linked to food impulsivity may lead to therapeutics for overeating.
- Ford's canopy windshield patent application imagines more sunshine for drivers: But is it safe?
- Laughter is said to be contagious: Here is another proof. [Video]
- Iran's first glass bridge is a tourist attraction in Ardebil area of the Azerbaijan Province.
(5) A sane leader would say something about the horrors of anti-Semitic attacks: A narcissist uses the attacks to pump himself up. [Tweet image]
(6) Persian poetry and music: Kurdish feminist and musician Rojan Feyz performs her beautiful anthem "Mothers' Scream" in this stylized video of Iran's civil unrest and street protests. Humorist Hadi Khorsandi put his serious hat on to write the poem "Iranian Woman" especially for Rojan's use.

2019/12/29 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Meme of the day: Reading sets you free! (Lady Liberty reading) Persian poetry: A couple of verses from a patriotic poem entitled 'Vatan' by Mostafa Badkoobei. Cartoon: The role of an orchestra conductor
Photos I took today on SB's Stearns Wharf and the nearby Cabrillo Blvd., 4 Photos I took today on SB's Stearns Wharf and the nearby Cabrillo Blvd., 6 Photos I took today on SB's Stearns Wharf and the nearby Cabrillo Blvd., 5 (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Meme of the day: Reading sets you free (fREADom). [Top center] Persian poetry: A couple of verses from a patriotic poem entitled 'Vatan' by Mostafa Badkoobei (Video recitation by the poet). [Top right] Cartoon of the day: "Wave the stick until the music stops, then turn around and bow." [Bottom left, center, & right] Photos I took today on SB's Stearns Wharf and the nearby Cabrillo Blvd.
(2) Russian propaganda: Today's "Meet the Press" (NBC) focused on "alternative facts." It contained a wealth of information about Russian propaganda techniques. For example, the cybersecurity company CrowdStrike, which is one of the prime defenses of our country against cyberwarfare from Russia and other agents (and whose services RNC uses to protect their own servers and databases), is smeared by claiming that it is owned by a Ukranian. Trump propagating this very dangerous bit of misinformation makes him either a Russian operative or an unwitting fool. A must-watch for all Americans! [I could not find a video link to the full program and will post later if full video becomes available.]
(3) Five people stabbed in NYC during Hanukkah celebration: Suspect has been arrested in this 13th anti-Semitic incident in New York in the past 3 weeks.
(4) Computers and the challenges of writing in Persian: The PDF of my Persian-language article entitled "Computers and Writing in Persian: A Review of Challenges and Solutions" (Iran Namag, Vol. 4, No. 2, pp. 3-32, Summer 2019) is now available on-line. Here is a link to the English version of the article, which is longer and contains more details in certain areas. It was recently revised for publication.
(5) Acquired musical savant syndrome: This story is old, but I heard about it today on NPR. Derek Amato didn't know much about music, except that he watched his mom play at church when he was a boy. He jumps into the shallow part of a pool during horseplay, suffers a concussion from head injury, and immediately becomes a master pianist. If you ask him to play a certain simple tune, he can't, but he creates/improvises the most amazing music when he sits at a piano.

2019/12/28 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Nayereh Tohidi's Facebook post about abuse of women dissidents in Iran, 2 Nayereh Tohidi's Facebook post about abuse of women dissidents in Iran, 1 DW Persian news story about pressing charges against Ayatollah Khamenei at the International Criminal Court (1) Crackdown on dissent continues in Iran: There are rampant new arrests, mistreatment and torture in prisons, forced TV confessions, threatening and detaining family members, and blocking or throttling Internet access. Women leaders are particularly abused. Several formerly-arrested activists who expressed support for the November protests have been moved to solitary confinement or to unknown locations. Meawhile, pursuing international criminal charges against Supreme Leader Khamanei, who personally ordered the shooting of protesters, is being discussed. The International Crimimal Court has pursued similar cases in the past.
(2) One the of top-100 National Geographic photos for 2019: The photo depicts school kids in one of the regions of Nigeria where boys and girls must be separated by a wall/partition in the classroom and girls must wear full hijab, including a face cover.
(3) A heart-warming story for the holidays: Slaughterhouse owner in Yazd, Iran, goes out of his way to befriend and employ 500 ex-convicts and druggies. [3-minute video, narrated in Persian]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- With his unhinged tweetstorms, Trump seems to be going for an insanity defense in his Senate trial!
- Donald Quixote renews his attacks on windmills by repeating several dubious and debunked claims.
- You haven't seen jump-rope until you see this. [Video]
- Azeri music: A group of young artists perform classic and folk Azeri songs. Wonderful! [9-minute video]
- Humor: Nine-year-old disappears with no trace after using facial cream that makes you 10 years younger.
(5) Newseum, a private museum dedicated to free press, closes its doors after 11 years: The paid museum on Pennsylvania Ave. fell victim to a sea of free museums and other attractions in DC's National Mall area.
(6) Russia rolls out its national Internet: Russia's Ministry of Commuication claims that users did not detect any changes during the switchover, which aims to restrict the connection points between the national network and its international counterpart, thus increasing government control.

2019/12/27 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Democrats have a real shot at flipping the Senate in 2020 by ousting Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Graham, Martha McSally, and Susan Collins Mirror puzzles: Example and three easy-to-difficult puzzles Cover image for Sue Grafton's 'Y Is for Yesterday' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Democrats have a real shot at flipping the Senate in 2020: Doing this would be particularly satisfying via the ouster of Moscow Mitch McConnell, hypocrite Lindsey Graham, already-lagging-in-the-polls Martha McSally, and anti-feminist Susan Collins. [Center] Mirror puzzles (see the next item below). [Right] Cover image for Sue Grafton's Y Is for Yesterday (see the last item below).
(2) Mirror puzzles: Consider a grid in which each square contains either a person or a diagonal mirror. See the example above, where the numbers along rows and columns indicate how many people can be seen if one looks in that direction. For example, the number 3 to the right of the last row indicates that one can see three people looking leftward from there: One person through reflection in the first mirror and 2 people via the second reflection (the green light path). In the following easy-to-difficult puzzles, the number of people that can be seen is given for some rows/columns and you are asked to derive the locations of people and mirrors in the grids. More puzzles and the answers can be found in this Web page.
(3) Book review: Grafton, Sue, Y is for Yesterday, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Judy Kaye, Random House Audio, 2017. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Fellow Santa Barbara resident Sue Grafton died in December 2017, before reaching the end of the line in her "Kinsey Millhone Alphabet Series," which began with A Is for Alibi in 1982. Each of the books is different, sharing only the protagonist Kinsey Millhone, a twice-married, childless, and adventurous Southern-California private detective in her 30s, through whom the introvert Grafton lived a life of action and danger, without any consequences.
A few years ago, I promised to myself that I would read the 26th book in the series, but now it seems that the series has ended with 25 books. Grafton had the working title Z Is for Zero for the final book in the series but had not made any progress on it, given her struggles with cancer. According to her family, Grafton had a distaste for using ghost-writers, and was also against licensing her books for films, so having the Z book published posthoumously seems to be out of the question. Accordingly, I decided to fulfill my self-promise by reading the Y book.
Grafton has an easy, but gripping style. She is a master of plots and plot twists and of intricate story-telling. Her readers often comment on the freshness of her stories and the hard work she puts into researching the psychological and legal aspects of her stories. Once I began listening to the audiobook, I found it hard to quit, until some urgent task or deadline pulled me away.
The story of Y begins in 1989, with flashbacks to 1979, when four teenage boys sexually assault a 14-year-old-classmate, while filming the incident. The tape goes missing and the suspected thief ends up dead. One of the four culprits turns state's evidence and two are convicted of murder, but the ring-leader disappears without a trace. The well-to-do parents of one of the convicted boys, who is released by law upon turning 25, receive a copy of the tape, along with a ransom demand. Not sure if paying up would make the problem go away, they hire Kinsey Millhone, who sets upon the task of solving the mystery, while concurrently dealing with threats from a personal stalker.
Years ago, I had read one of Grafton's books, somewhere near the middle of the alphabet, although I don't remember which one. I don't recall being as impressed with that book as I was with this one, which I highly recommend to mystery buffs.

2019/12/26 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. Persian poetry: Selected verses from a Mowlavi (Rumi) poem The succulent plant known as 'mother of thousands'
Persian poetry: Selected verses from a poem by Iraj Mirza
Tweets about Iran in the aftermath of the killings of street protesters, 1 Persian poetry: Selected verses from a Hafez poem Tweets about Iran in the aftermath of the killings of street protesters, 2 (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Persian poetry: The first and final verses from a poem by Mowlavi (Rumi). [Top center] The succulent plant known as "mother of thousands": Every petal that falls grows into a new plant. [Top right] Persian poetry: Selected verses from a poem by Iraj Mirza, a poet who wrote much political satire. [Bottom left & right] Three Persian tweets about Iran in the aftermath of the November bloody street protests (see the next item below). [Bottom center] Persian poetry: Selected verses from a Hafez poem.
(2) Iran, in the aftermath of the killings of street protesters: As families and friends mark the 40th day (an Islamic tradition) after the killing of their loved ones during Iran's November protests, security forces are preventing people from going to grave sites and memorial gatherings. Despite the crackdown, mourners chant anti-regime slogans, including several directed at the Supreme Leader himself.
(3) Alarming trend: Many Americans are retiring to Vietnam, because their own country won't provide them with affordable healthcare and a decent standard of living.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- A Christmas to remember: Typhoon devastates the Philippines, killing at least 20 and displacing 1000s.
- Judging by the low volume of posts from Iran, there must be Internet blockage or throttling in effect.
- US Army officer returns home to San Diego to say goodbye to his mother before her deportation.
- The Grinch: Trump's post-Christmas tweetstorm targets Nancy Pelosi and the impeachment process.
- Mathematical magic: Coincidence, or is there more to these "mirror" equalities? [Image]
- Actress Halle Berry tones up her abs for her role in an upcoming boxing movie. [Photo]
(5) Quote of the day: "The only index by which to judge a government or a way of life is by the quality of the people it acts upon. No matter how noble the objectives of a government, if it blurs decency and kindness, cheapens human life, and breeds ill will and suspicion—it is an evil government." ~ Eric Hoffer

2019/12/25 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photographer Angela Pan's fantastic capture of the Vietnam veterans' memorial wall in Washington, DC (2012) Tehran, city of contradictions, preparing for Christmas Cicely Tyson on the cover of Time magazine
Church board sign: 'At the end of the day, I'd rather be excluded for who I include, than be included for who I exclude!' Meme: Trumpspeak about wind energy
Church board sign: 'Trump or God. Pick one. You can't follow both.' (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Photographer Angela Pan's fantastic capture of the Vietnam veterans' memorial wall in Washington, DC (2012). [Top center] Tehran, city of contradictions, preparing for Christmas. [Top right] At age 94, actress Cicely Tyson graced the cover of Time magazine (issue of February 18/25, 2019), 45 years after receiving an Academy Award. [Bottom left] Church board sign: "At the end of the day, I'd rather be excluded for who I include, than be included for who I exclude!" [Bottom center] Trumpspeak: I think the assessment of fourth-grade language ability is overly generous! [Bottom right] Church board sign: "Trump or God. Pick one. You can't follow both."
(2) Trump, the savior of Jews: Much is often made of the fact that Trump's son-in-law and daughter are Jewish. Now we learn that his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, is "more Jewish than George Soros," which is very Jewish indeed, given that Soros is a Holocaust survivor.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The fascinating history and political lives of Jews in Iran.
- Persian music: Sonbol Taefi sings "Parvaneh-vash" ("Like a Butterfly").
- The ultimate kabob-e koobideh (ground-beef kabob) to feed an entire party! [1-minute video]
- I set these goodies up for breakfast today, but there were no takers!
(4) Chinese restaurants are closing: I thought this was something specific to Goleta, where we have lost three restaurants in 2019, including a cozy family joint that was our favorite, but the trend is nationwide. In 5 years, the share of Chinese restaurants in US metropolitan areas has fallen from 7.3% to 6.5%. A combination of owners getting old (retiring) and their children pursuing education, and more lucrative careers, is at work.
P.S.: We finally made it to a Chinese restaurant for Christmas-Day lunch, today. Meet Up has just opened on Las Positas, in lieu of the now defunct Empress Palace. Great food! [Photos] [Memories]

2019/12/24 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy holidays: Yalda Night, Hanukkah, Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve Cartoon: Kid writing a letter to Santa Four tweets: Post-street-protests developments in Iran (1) Images of the day: [Left] Yalda Night is behind us, Hanukkah is in progress, Christmas eve is here, and New Year's Eve is around the corner. May your holiday celebrations be merry and may the year 2020 bring you the best in everything, including the joys of close and strong friendships. Wishing patience and strength for all those who are dealing with losses this holiday season, including many citizens of Iran. [Center] New Yorker cartoon: "Dear Santa: Last year I wrote to Robert Mueller, but I think we all know how that worked out. So, here we are ..." [Right] Post-street-protests developments in Iran: Families of some of the 1500 killed are being arrested and charged with national-security offenses for speaking up and holding public mourning ceremonies.
(2) Disinformation campaign by Epoch Media Group and BL Media: Facebook has removed a campaign, consisting of 610 Facebook accounts, 89 Pages, 156 Groups, and 72 Instagram accounts (over $9 million in advertising), that used computer-generated faces to spread pro-Trump and anti-Chinese government content. Telltales like distorted backgrounds and misshapen ears helped spot the fakes.
(3) The White House requested that aid to Ukraine be held just 91 minutes after Trump's infamous July 25 call with President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to a new round of emails. The official who made the request asked that the "sensitive" information be "closely held."
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Saudis dole out 5 death sentences, clear royal aides, in Khashoggi murder case: How convenient for MBS!
- Federal minimum age for buying tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, is now 21: What about guns?
- FBI is probing ex-governor of Kentucky Matt Bevin for a controversial flood of pardons before he resigned.
- The genome of a hunter-gatherer has been sequenced from DNA found in 5700-year-old "chewing gum."
(5) California man pleads guilty to federal charges in $65M student-loan scam: Brandon Frere admitted to wire fraud and money laundering through three companies (Ameritech Financial, American Financial Benefits Center, and Financial Education Benefits Center), which offered to do the paperwork for borrowers who wanted to apply for federal student loan reduction and forgiveness programs.
(6) Nancy Pelosi on Trump, who stonewalled the House impeachment inquiry on account of disliking the process, now doing the same in the Senate, where his pals set the rules and dictate the process. [Tweet]
(7) Reuters cites Iranian officials as giving the death toll of 1500 in recent street protests: Iran's Supreme Leader personally ordered the crackdown on protests, saying "Do whatever it takes to end it." Khamenei's days are numbered, and he seems to know it!

2019/12/23 (Monday): Today, I present two book reviews from my extensive backlog of books read, but not yet reviewed. The middle image contains a few graphic designs depicting the benefits of books and reading.
Cover image of Malcolm Gladwell's 'Talking to Strangers' A few graphic designs about the benefits of books and reading Cover image for Michael Lewis' 'Bommerang' (1) Book review: Gladwell, Malcolm, Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Hachette Audio, 2019.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This is a typically wonderful book from the explaining master, Malcom Gladwell. The audiobook is a special treat, because it features audio clips, such as interview segments, from the actual people discussed and, when genuine audio is unavailable, reenactments by voice actors. This is what an audiobook should be like, although I suspect that such productions would be too expensive for most books.
The main take-away from the book is that we humans have evolved to be trusting rather than paranoid, what psychologist Tim Levine calls "default to truth." Suspicion and fear have their places, but if we distrusted everyone, the human race would not have gotten very far. The feature makes it difficult for us to detect lies. Gladwell elaborates on the difficulty and its impact on our lives through numerous examples, from Bernie Madoff's ponzie scheme, through the interrogation of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Muhammed (KSM), to the sexual assault of Chanel Miller by Brock Turner.
A particularly troubling case-study reveals how poorly judges do (a tiny bit better than chance) in deciding to grant bail to defendants: A computer program has been shown to be much better at this task, although it operates based solely on the facts of the case, with no possibility of looking into the defendant's eyes or benefiting from his/her body language during hearings. If an experienced judge can be fooled, you can imagine the challenge of finding our dream mate through dating!
The flip side of our weakness in reading evil intentions of apparently benevolent individuals is our automatic assumption of guilt or ill intent based on weird or inappropriate behavior. This side of the coin, combined with our inflated opinion of our ability to read people, leads to many misunderstandings, as in a police officer's encounter with a suspect.
Although Gladwell doesn't tell us how we can improve in the area of talking to strangers and doing better in sizing-up their thoughts and motives, the negative examples where humans have failed in the past do provide us with some insight about trouble spots and why our instincts may be unreliable guides.
(2) Book review: Lewis, Michael, Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World, W. W. Norton & Company, 2011.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Michael Lewis, whose previous books include The Blind Side, The Big Short, Flash Boys, and The Undoing Project (my 4-star review on Goodreads), strikes again with his knack for storytelling and explaining complicated subjects to non-experts. He takes us on a grand tour of bubbles, whose bursting brought the global financial system to its knees in 2008, giving us a glimpse of what might happen to the US if we continue with greed and excess, as we accumulate debt.
From 2002 to 2008, the world experimented with making credit widely available, and we saw what happened when entire countries went under, with the United States coming close to another Great Depression. In this sequel to The Big Short, which focused on men who made fortunes on the backs of lower-middle-class borrowers, the so-called "subprime mortgage" takers, Lewis goes to the next, and way more dangerous, level of the global debt crisis.
Beginning with Iceland, a tiny country whose banking system suffered losses of 8.5 times its GDP, amounting to $33,000 for each of the country's 300,000 citizens, Lewis discusses how the global crisis unfolded in four different countries (the other three being Greece, Ireland, and Germany) and one US state (California). Iceland's president would go around the world, delivering speeches about why Icelanders were banking prodigies, as many reasonable people warned the country about its imminent downfall, counseling that they should stop banking and go back to fishing!
With 11 million citizens, Greece is much bigger than Iceland, but so was its debt of $1.2 trillion, comparable to India's GDP. Add to this debt rampant corruption, tax evasion, and overpaid government employees, and the country's collapse in 2009 comes as no surprise. As ABC News put it, in Greece, the banks didn't sink the country; the country sank the banks.
Riding an unsustainable construction boom, Ireland went from a poor country in the 1980s to one of the richest by 2007. Then the country's budget deficit and unemployment rate shot up when the housing bubble burst.
So, why is Germany included in this mix of countries affected by the subprime crisis? Germans were victimized because they bought bonds like crazy, always trusting the ratings assigned to them by their Wall-Street issuers. A big difference with the US is that some German banking execs went to jail for playing fast and loose.
Among US states, California suffered most from the subprime crisis. The city of Vallejo went bankrupt and other cities saw huge financial impacts. A key lesson, which does not seem to have been learnt, is that financial markets cannot, and should not be allowed to, self-regulate.
US investment banks are directly implicated in causing the 2008 financial crisis, but no executive was reprimanded and the banks themselves received mere slaps on the wrists in terms of fines. What happened is a good example of mob mentality, where no one is considered guilty because everyone is! At the international level, too, countries follow other countries when they prosper from reckless risk-taking.

2019/12/22 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Hanukkah: I am using a battery-operated LED menorah assembled from a kit by my daughter several years ago Sonbol Taefi's wonderful song and album 'Man Iranam' Ready for a rainy week with this new canopy
'New Yorker' cartoon: Three impeached presidents 'The do-nothing Democrats' have actually done quite a lot in the House, but their work is stuck on Moscow Mitch's desk Cartoon: Trump believes that nobody has been treated so unfairly (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Happy Hanukkah: I am using a battery-operated LED menorah assembled from a kit by my daughter several years ago. [Top center] Sonbol Taefi's wonderful song and album (see the last item below). [Top right] Ready for a rainy week with this new canopy, which will provide dry living space for my daughter's cats when she comes home for Christmas/Hanukkah tonight. [Bottom left] New Yorker cartoon of the day: "Three's a party!" [Bottom center] "The do-nothing Democrats" have actually done quite a lot in the US House of Representatives, but their work is stuck on Moscow Mitch's desk. [Bottom right] Reuters: "Trump slams House's impeachment delay as 'so unfair'."
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Computer scientist Sethuraman Panchanathan nominated to head the National Science Foundation.
- Building a giant Rubik's Cube.
- Fusion Arabic/new-age music: Violin performance, along with synchronized dance moves. [4-minute video]
- Persian music: "Sang-e Khara," performed by Saman Ehteshami (piano) and Babak Shahraki (violin).
- Persian music: A dance song performed by old-time singer Aref.
- Persian music: "Owj-e Aasemaan," performed at the 17th Int'l Music Festival in Moscow on Dec. 5, 2019.
(3) Persian/Kurdish music: Sonbol Taefi performs "Man Iranam" ("I Am Iran"), featuring her own music and a poem by Houshang Mahmoudi, an Iranian Baha'i who was executed in the 1980s. Kudos to Ms. Taefi and her performance group for creating superb beauty out of a wonderful poem and the extreme ugliness surrounding it. You can find more of Sonbol Taefi's music on YouTube.

2019/12/21 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Iranian Shab-e Yalda (Winter Solstice) Festival! Maxims from the past, worth re-sharing at this somber time after only the third presidential impeachment in US history The Jewish festival of Hanukkah begins tomorrow night, 2019/12/22
Today's ECE Department's holiday party at UCSB Iranwire.com news images: Heartbreaking stories about Iran Photos from my afternoon stroll along Goleta's San Jose Creek (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Happy Iranian Shab-e Yalda Festival, marking the Winter Solstice! (See the next item below.) [Top center] Maxims from the past, worth re-sharing at this somber time after only the third presidential impeachment in US history. [Top right] Lights of remembrance, for Hanukkah (see item 3 below). [Bottom left] Yesterday's ECE Department holiday party at UCSB: One of the photos shows a clear view of the SB Channel Islands from the engineering area of the UCSB campus. See if you can decode the message on my nerdy T-shirt. [Bottom center] Four heartbreaking and infuriating stories about Iran, from Iranwire.com. [Bottom right] My afternoon stroll of yesterday along Goleta's San Jose Creek: The creek starts to the east of North Patterson Avenue, crosses the street, and goes by the shopping area on Calle Real, between Fairview and Patterson Avenues, before heading to the ocean. A brand-new bike path and a couple of bridges over the creek connect the neighborhood shown on the map to nearby communities.
(2) About the Iranian Shab-e Yalda (Winter Solstice) Festival: This year's Yalda/Chelleh, winter solstice or longest night of the year, is on Saturday evening, 12/21. The eve of the first day of winter is celebrated by Iranians as the night when forces of evil (darkness) have reached their maximum strength and the Sun begins its offensive as the days get longer. Poets have written about this festival, at times likening a loved one's dark hair or a long period of separation to Yalda. Here my English translation of a verse from Sa'adi, with my English translatison of a verse from Sa'adi:
The sight of your face each morning is like Norooz / Any night away from you is the eve of Yalda
(3) Lights of remembrance (Jewish families celebrating Hanukkah during World War II in the Netherlands, 1943): Like the Iranian festival of Yalda, longest night of the year, Hanukkah (always occurring in the proximity of Yalda Night, but fluctuating due to the Hebrew calendar being lunar; it begins on 12/22 this year) celebrates light overcoming darkness.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- AP fact-checks Trump's 6-page letter to Congressional Democrats and history, on impeachment's eve.
- Collision of two Carnival cruise ships in Mexico leaves 6 passengers injured.
- Hit-and-run driver, who deliberately ran over a 14-year-old because she looked Mexican, confesses.
- Iran's President Rouhani visits Japan, a country trying to fill the space left vacant by a lack of US leadership.
(5) Brains and beauty: The new Miss America, Virginia biochemist Camille Schrier, performed a science experiment in the talent portion of the beauty pageant.
(6) Persian music: Dozens of versions of the song "Shab-e Toolani" ("Long Night") are being shared on social media, as we prepare to celebrate the Iranian festival of Shab-e Yalda (Winter Solstice) tonight. Here are a couple of samples. [Version 1] [Version 2] This third version features a dance routine at what appears to be a Tehran shopping mall. Every four years, as elections approach in Iran, the morality police loosens restrictions, in this case allowing the depiction of a woman dancer at a public venue, only to resume its crackdown after the election. Interestingly, the woman figurine is operated by a man! How's that for male dominationof women? Reminds me of medieval times, when all characters, including women and blacks, were played by white men.
And here are two more examples of Persian songs composed for Shab-e Yalda. [Video 1] [Video 2]

2019/12/19 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Meme: Record highs for the stock market will not help the hungry and the homeless Newsweek magazine cover depicting Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei Meme: Removing Trump will not remove the racism that brought him to power (1) Images of the day: [Left & Right] Memes of the day: It's not the stock market we Americans care about most, but compassion, decency, fairness, and human dignity. [Center] Iran's mullahs are likely elated with this Newsweek magazine cover, which confirms their fear-mongering.
(2) US college enrollment continues to fall: The total decline is 11% over the past 8 years. Big universities and small colleges, public and private institutions, are all affected.
(3) Gender differences in reporting research results: According to a paper published in British Medical J., male authors are more likely to sprinkle words like 'novel,' 'unique' and 'excellent' into their abstracts. Such positively-framed findings generate citations by peers, a key measure of the influence of a person's research.
(4) The United Nations General Assembly calls on Iran to end its ongoing human rights violations: The resolution passed on December 18, 2019, with a vote of 81 to 30 (70 abstentions). The fairly weak vote is a reflection of the world's distrust of the US.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Women's March is returning on Sat., Jan. 18, 2020 (1:00 PM, Santa Barbara County Courthouse). [Image]
- Scientific observation: "You can kiss yourself in the mirror, but only on the lips." ~ Neil DeGrasse Tyson
- "Debugging is like being the detective in a crime movie where you're also the murderer." ~ Filipe Fortes
- Shab-e Yalda (Winter Solstice) parade in an unspecified Iranian city. [2-minute video]
- Nostalgic photo: The soccer team of Iranian cinema's pre-Islamic-Revolution actors and entertainers.
- A simple puzzle: Find the 3-digit code that opens this lock, given the five constraints underneath.
(6) Final post for the day: Shortly after midnight, I returned from Los Angeles, where I spent all day helping my daughter with chores and errands after she broke her left foot in a fall. She is doing okay, but will need at least a couple of weeks to set aside her crutches and a few more weeks after that to return to normal. We ordered dinner delivery from Naab Cafe and ate in the company of her roommate Sally and visiting friend Sara. I took this selfie at UCLA, during one of the said errand runs.

2019/12/18 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Panoramic photo for Dennis Horwitz's December 18, 2019, talk (Mulligan's Cafe) (1) Tonight's end-of-year technical meeting of IEEE Central Coast Section, joint with ASME Channel Islands Chapter: In a talk held at Mulligan's Cafe, Santa Barbara Golf Club, and attended by 36 IEEE/ASME members & guests, Mr. Dennis Horwitz (Co-founder and VP Sales & Marketing, Micronor Inc.) spoke under the title "Awesome Photons—A Fiber Optic Technology Update." The gathering doubled as CCS Section's holiday banquet, where end-of-year award certificates were given out by the Section Chair and small gifts were presented to several attendees via random drawings.
Fiber optics has revolutionized the world of communications since its commercial inception nearly 4 decades ago. The technology is about more than pushing data over long distances at bandwidth many thousands of times greater than possible with copper wires. It has been used to create unique sensors and is being applied in manufacturing, energy, aerospace, transportation, medicine, infrastrucure, consumer goods, and art. The cost of applying the technology is still problematic in some cases, but that may change over time. This entertaining and informative talk included an explanation of how fiber optics works and an overview of the technology's current status. Many example applications were cited and described. [More photos] [Speaker's slides]
(2) The Lincoln Project to defeat Trumpism: George Conway, husband of senior White House adviser Kellyanne Conway, and other Republicans launch a political action committee to oust Donald Trump and lawmakers who support him from office in 2020.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Three schools in Los Angeles, not far from a vandalized synagogue, defaced with anti-Semitic graffiti.
- Russian spy ship spotted near military installations, as it traveled south along the US East Coast.
- Australia experiences hottest day on record: Average nationwide temperature reaches 105 F.
- Amnesty International reports on vicious post-protest crackdown in Iran; confirmed deaths now at 304.
- Suicides and "honor" killings afflict women in Iran's Kurdish regions: Arranged marriages to blame.
(4) Final post for the day: I was honored to receive this award at tonight's IEEE CCS technical meeting in recognition of my services as IEEE Central Coast Section's Education Chair. In this position, I recruited 11 technical speakers for 2019, February through December, and have already scheduled 10 monthly tech events for 2020, with another 3 speakers confirmed, but as yet not scheduled. [IEEE CCS Technical Talks]

2019/12/17 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Good for a chuckle: Leaders in Finland and in Iran Cartoon: Christmas at the US Congres Trump supporter wearing a T-shirt with names of Trump family members as consecutive presidents (1) Images of the day: [Left] Good for a chuckle: Leaders in Finland and in Iran (no need to specify which is which)! [Center] Cartoon of the day: Christmas at the US Congress. [Right] Trump Dynasty: This Trump supporter thinks the entire Trump family (other than Melania, who isn't eligible) should rule this country. He also seems to be math-challenged, because the dates do not reflect his intention that each member should be a two-term president! I guess by 2060 there will be other Trumps to continue the dynasty.
(2) A few tweets about Iran, for my Persian-speaking readers (tweet images).
In other news from Iran, Minister of the Interior, when asked about why security forces shot the protestors in the head, responded that the reports were untrue, because they also shot at the protesters' legs!
(3) Iran's recent street protests: Multiple sources report that more bodies of street protesters are being found in lakes and reservoirs where they were dumped and that the casualty estimates are going up.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Pakistan's former leader Pervez Musharraf sentenced to death in absentia for treason. [BBC, CNN]
- A clever 1-minute video clip about 3D painting.
- The world's oldest living couple, 105 and 106, celebrates 80 years of marriage.
- An article on the musical style and philosophy of Koorosh Yazdani, along with sample videos of his work.
- Persian music: The song, "Morgh-e Sahar," is old and oft-posted, but this young boy's rendition is special.
- Persian music: Salar Aghili spots a group of street musicians and joins them in performing one of his songs.
(5) Movie news: "Star Wars, Episode 9" (the final film and third in the sequels trilogy, following the original trilogy and 3 prequels) is out, as is the long-awaited movie version of Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Cats," featuring a new song jointly written by Taylor Swift.
(6) Trump's letter to Nancy Pelosi about his impeachment is an embarrassment that will live in history. Here is a gem from the letter: "You have cheapened the importance of the very ugly word, impeachment!"

2019/12/16 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Puzzle: Right-angled triangle Meme: Former US President Barack Obama, on the desirability of women ruling the world Puzzle: A square, with part of its area shaded (1) Images of the day: [Left & Right] Math puzzles: Ed Southall has a book entitled Geometry Snacks, which is full of bite-size geometric puzzles. Here are two. The big triangle is right-angled. What is the length of the two equal-length yellow segments? What fraction of the area of the square is shaded? Tick marks indicate equal line segments. [Center] Former US President Barack Obama, on the desirability of women ruling the world.
(2) Persian music: Homayoun Shajarian (vocals) and Sohrab Pournazeri perform Pouria Souri's hopeful and wistful poem "Iran-e Man" ("My Iran"). Here is the complete album containing, and named after, the song.
(3) Beautiful music arising from the Holocaust: An Italian composer and pianist revives the music written by Jews as a temporary escape from the horrors of Nazi concentration camps. [CBS "60 Minutes" report]
(4) Brief science and technology stories of the day.
- December is the time for year-end reviews: Here are sciencenews.com's top 10 science stories of 2019.
- Tony Booker dead at 94: He designed Autocode, believed to be the first-ever programming language.
- As grounding of the 737 MAX stretches into 2020, Boeing considers scrapping the plane.
- Institution of Engineering and Technology presents its Young Women Engineers of the Year Awards.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi asks European countries to recall their ambassadors from Iran.
- Anti-Semitic attack in Southern California: Nessah Synagogue in Beverly Hills vandalized.
- Challenger Jaime Harrison trails Lindsey Graham by only 2 points in SC, a state Trump won by 15 points.
- SNL puts Kellyanne and George Conway in a spoof of "Marriage Story," a critically-acclaimed new film.
- If you always wanted to own a newspaper, here's your chance: An Alaskan newspaper is being sold for $0!
- Hallmark channel apologizes and reinstates Zola's same-sex marriage ads after facing backlash.
(6) New sanctions against Iran will impact food, medicine, and other humanitarian aid: Included in the new sanctions are Mahan Airlines and several shipping companies, which will impede the delivery of crucial supplies. What a way to support the Iranian people! [Cartoon]

2019/12/14 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: The lenghty process of scrolling down to one's year of birth A sample of Michelle Obama's many magazine cover photos Solving a physics problem: Handwritten solution, in Persian (1) Images of the day: [Left] Cartoon of the day: I can identify with the challenge of scrolling down to your year of birth! [Center] A sample of Michelle Obama's many magazine-cover photos, most recently on Life magazine. [Right] Solving a physics problem: In a WhatsApp group discussion about the tallest steel column one can build so that it won't collapse under its own weight, I submitted this solution (with idealized assumptions) that given a base area A, the height can reach (ln A)/p, where p is the ratio of the material's stress-bearing strength to its density. The derivation is self-explanatory, even if you can't read Persian.
(2) The charity that buys and forgives medical debt: Once they have given up on collecing, hospitals and other medical service providers sell their unpaid bills to debt collectors for pennies on the dollar. The collectors then try to collect the full amount, often using inhumane methods, such as threatening and shaming the debtors. Now, there is a charity which approaches hospitals, buys their unpaid bills, and then forgives them.
(3) Historical fire map of Santa Barbara County and vicinity: This map, generated at databasin.org, is color-coded by the fires' age. Legend: 1898-1950 Red; 1951-1975 Orange; 1976-2000 Neon; 2001-2018 Green
The trend toward larger fires in recent decades is quite visible.
(4) Persian music: "Sarzamin-e Man" ("My Homeland"), a song about Iran performed by Jaana Ensemble, featuring vocalist Mandana Khazraei (music by Ali Akbar Ghorbani, lyrics by Esmaeil Farzaneh).
(5) Early Shab-e Yalda (Winter Solstice) celebration at UCLA: Held at Schoenberg Hall, the Farhang-Foundation-sponsored event featured music by Kooban Ensemble, poetry-reading and story-telling by Gordafarid, and performances by a dance troop. Our group began by dining at Attari in Westwood. Upon arriving at UCLA, we ran into several acquaintances, including two Parvanehs, a cousin and a family friend. The program began with a 30-minute delay, which is on the low side for Iranian/Persian gatherings!
[Video 1, Azeri] [Video 2, Azeri] [Video 3, Kurdish] [Video 4, Kurdish] [Video 5] [Video 6]
P.S.: The 50th graduation anniversary trophy in one of these photos went from Georgia (the Republic) to Nice, France, and was recently brought to Los Angeles by my old friend Joseph Salimpour's brother, seen in the other photo. I made a short side trip of a few blocks from UCLA to exchange the trophy that was mistakenly given to me but had Joseph's name engraved on it. The other trophy's path was Georgia to Santa Barbara, and now it will go to its rightful owner in Nice!

2019/12/13 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Persian calligraphic art: Sample 1 Persian calligraphic art: Sample 2 Persian calligraphic art: Sample 3
Minimalist graphic design by Mohsen Valihi: Behrangi Minimalist graphic design by Mohsen Valihi: Etesami Minimalist graphic design by Mohsen Valihi: Hedayat (1) Three samples of Persian calligraphic art from the Web site of Anjoman-e Khoshnevisan-e Iran, and three examples of minimalist graphic designs by Mohsen Valihi depicting Iranian celebrities (more designs).
(2) Chilean military plane crashes at sea: All 38 on board are presumed dead.
(3) US government agencies graded on IT modernization and security: The State Department and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission scored the lowest grades as part of a biannual review of information technology management. No agency received an overall failing grade on IT modernization efforts, but Departments of Commerce and Health and Human Services both were given an F on cybersecurity.
(4) Persian music: Bahar Choir, featuring tenor Vahid Taj, performs "Aan Yar Mi-Ayad" ("The Lover Will Be Here"), a piece composed and conducted by Arash Fouladvand, using a poem of Mowlavi (Rumi).
And here's another Bahar Choir performance, "Khoun-e Arghavanha" ("Blood of Judas-Trees"), composed and conducted by Mehrdad Baran, lyrics by Saeid Soltanpour.
(5) A piece of Santa Barbara history: Carpinteria is a small town located ~10 miles to the south of Santa Barbara. Copies of The Carpinteria Chronicle from the 1930s, discovered in a basement, have been digitized and made available to the public at the UCSB Library, making parts of the area's history accessible to all.
(6) A 50th-anniversary celebration: Today, I was super-busy with finishing a conference paper that was due by midnight. I submitted it with a full hour to spare! The conference, Dependable Systems and Networks, is holding its 50th edition in Valencia, Spain, from June 29 to July 2, 2020. I was present at the very first conference in the series, held in Pasadena, CA, in 1971. As a UCLA grad student, I helped run that first conference, making sure that attendees were taken care of and audio-visual equipment (overhead-transparency and 35-mm slide projectors, in those days) ran smoothly. I have attended quite a few editions of the conference over the years and am looking forward to the 50th-anniversary celebration in Valencia! Very few conferences boast a 50-year tradition! [DSN 2020 logo]

2019/12/12 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Autumn in Palo Alto, California Last night's full moon in Santa Barbara This morning's sunrise in Santa Barbara (1) Images of the day: [Left] Autumn in Palo Alto, California (courtesy of Farrokh Elmieh). [Center] Last night's full moon in Santa Barbara. [Right] This morning's sunrise in Santa Barbara.
(2) Once a crook, always a crook: Trump settles lawsuit accusing him of misuse of funds at his family foundation by donating $2 million to 8 charities. Nothing to see here, folks; it was all perfect! Let's investigate the Clinton Foundation and put crooked Hillary in jail!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Jersey City's kosher market shootings (2 attackers and 4 others dead) deemed anti-Semitic hate crime.
- Wow! Amazing Boogie Woogie piano playing by a poor old man at the mall captivates the shoppers.
- Kurdish music: Jamshid performs "Gulnar" (accompanied by modern and Kurdish dancing).
- Persian music: Performance of a song based on a Molavi (Rumi) poem on the street. [1-minute video]
Number chart for the 3x + 1 (Collatz) problem (4) The simplest unsolved math problem: There is a simple-looking conjecture that has gobbled up countless mathematicians' hours without yielding. There is even a book that summarizes some of the effort in attacking the problem: The Ultimate Challenge: The 3x + 1 Problem, by Jeffrey Lagarias, 2010.
Consider the sequence 25, 76, 38, 19, 58, 29, 88, 44, 22, 11, 34, 17, 52, 26, 13, 40, 20, 10, 5, 16, 8, 4, 2, 1. Starting from the arbitrary number 25, each term of the sequence is obtained from the previous one by multiplying it by 3 and adding 1 if it's odd (25 × 3 + 1 = 76) or dividing it by 2 if it's even (76 / 2 = 38). In the 1930s, Lothar Collatz conjectured that no matter what number you start with, you will always reach 1 in a finite number of steps. I discuss Collatz sequences in the very first lecture of my ECE 1B freshman seminar, "Ten Puzzling Problems in Computer Engineering" at UCSB.
While the conjecture has been verified up to some astronomically large numbers using computer programs, no one has been able to prove that it is true in general. Recently, Terrence Tao of UCLA made a dent in the tough problem by proving that the conjecture is true for almost all numbers. Tao's result constitutes the most significant advance in tackling the problem in decades.
(5) Mina Khanlarzadeh's blog post criticizes a petition being circulated on-line as using anti-imperialism sentiments to prop up the Islamic regime in Iran: "Despite the petition's old-fashioned claims of standing with 'the oppressed of the world' ... it ends up exonerating the IRI (Islamic Republic of Iran) from its corruption and politics of killing and impoverishment, and supporting the status quo until further notice. According to the petition, under current global circumstances the downfall of the IRI would lead to 'catastrophic losses' for the Iranian people, and the regime replacing the current one would be 'far more violent and destructive'."

2019/12/11 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Thousands of scientists (11,258, to be exact) warn about a clear and unequivocal climate emergency Young leader: Person of the Year Greta Thunberg Young leader: Finland's 34-year-old PM Sanna Marin (1) Images of the day: [Left] Thousands of scientists (11,258, to be exact) warn about a clear and unequivocal climate emergency. [Center & Right] Letting young ones lead: The choice of Greta Thunberg as Time magazine's youngest-ever Person of the Year and the election of Sanna Marin as Finland's (and world's) youngest prime-minister may be omens of a movement to let young women newcomers try their hands at leadership, perhaps solving some of the problems created for us by "experienced" old men.
(2) Quote of the day: "To see ourselves as others see us is a most salutary gift. Hardly less important is the capacity to see others as they see themselves." ~ Aldous Huxley, British author (1894-1963)
(3) Iranian-regime critic Sadegh Zibakalam has a hard time explaining the inconsistencies in his views: On the one hand, he says there are no viable alternatives to the current regime, so it must be protected to avoid chaos. On the other hand, he claims that he won't participate in the upcoming elections because of the regime's murderous suppression of last month's street protests.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- NAKHSA (Persian for "Spontaneous Forces of Islamic Lands") claims credit for crushing Iran's protests.
- Geographic distribution of the 160 confirmed deaths during Iran's November 2019 street protests. [Map]
- Cartoon of the day: The real prisoner in Iran. [Image source: Iranwire.com]
- Santa and climate change: Harboring second thoughts about giving coal, Santa switches to solar panels.
- Christmas is just around the corner: Let's get in the mood with a Persian-style rendition of "Jingle Bells."
- Selected verses from a Mowlavi (Rumi) poem: Cheh booyast in, cheh booyast in ...
- Modern Persian music: Niaz Nawab performs "Naghsh-e To" ("Your Image") based on a Hafez poem.
(5) "A Case Against Indirect Jumps for Secure Programs": This is the title of a new paper by A. Gonzalvez and R. Lashermes. Jumps (or go-to statements) have been known to lead to unreadable and hard-to-verify code. Indirect jumps are much worse in this regard. Indirect jumps also make it difficult to use a common integrity-assurance tool: control-flow checking. To achieve fine-grained control-flow integrity, one is required to extract a precise control flow graph describing how instructions are chained together. This is next to impossible, unless some restrictions are placed on the instruction-set-architecture semantics. Forbidding indirect jumps is one way of providing security-friendly semantics.
Citation: A. Gonzalvez and R. Lashermes, "A Case Against Indirect Jumps for Secure Programs," Proc. 9th Software Security, Protection, and Reverse Engineering Workshop, San Juan, United States, 2019, pp. 1-10.

2019/12/10 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Facebook's face-recognition algorithm just exploded! Cartoon: Melania Trump clarifies her 'Don't Bully' initiative by offering a list of exceptions Protesters hold an image of Aung San Suu Kyi, who will be defending Myanmar against charges of genocide at the International Court of Justice in The Hague (1) Images of the day: [Left] Facebook's face-recognition algorithm just exploded! [Center] Melania Trump clarifies her "Don't Bully" initiative by offering a list of exceptions. [Right] From Nobel Prize to charges of genocide: On December 10, 1991, Aung San Suu Kyi was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize. Today, exactly 28 years later, the de facto head of Myanmar's government is headed to the International Court of Justice in The Hague to defend her country against charges of genocide, brought by the African nation of Gambia.
(2) Today's big events: This year's Nobel Prize winners will all receive their awards today. For nearly 120 years, the prizes have been handed out on December 10 to mark the anniversary of Alfred Nobel's death.
December 10 is also World Human Rights Day.
(3) The Palestinian who went from throwing rocks at Israelis to building a modern city on the West Bank: The city of Rawabi is the largest construction project in modern Palestinian history. [CBS "60 Minutes" report]
(4) Several of my Republican friends and acquaintances routinely share posts from Russia Today, now going by the name RT to hide its Russia connection: How anyone claiming to be patriotic and US-flag-worshiping can disseminate Russian propaganda is beyond me.
(5) Trump reserves his biggest smiles for the occasions when he meets the Russians: Today's meeting with Sergey Lavrov (photo) to deflect attention from articles of impeachment.
(6) A win-win proposal from the Iranian people to the country's officials: Sell us as slaves to other countries. You get the much-needed foreign exchange and we get to leave! [Meme]
(7) Quotes of the day: From Michael Lewis's Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World. The first quote below is from pp. 203-205; The second quote in this image, the book's final paragraph, is from p. 216.
"... human beings are neurologically ill-designed to be modern Americans. The human brain evolved over hundreds of thousands of years in an environment defined by scarcity. ... We are set up to acquire as much as we can of things we perceive as scarce, particularly sex, safety, and food. ... When faced with abundance, the brain's ancient rewards pathways are difficult to suppress ... We cannot think down the road when we are faced with the chocolate cake. ... What we're doing is minimizing the use of the brain that lizards don't have."

2019/12/08 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Mathematician Julia Robinson was born on December 8, 1919 My bedroom wall cut open to find the reason for a corner crack Hadi Labbaf's calligraphic rendering of a poem by Hazin Lahiji (1692-1766) (1) Images of the day: [Left] Mathematician Julia Robinson was born on December 8, 1919 (see the next item below). [Center] My bedroom wall cut open to find the reason for a corner crack (see the last item below). [Right] Hadi Labbaf's calligraphic rendering of a verse by Hazin Lahiji (1692-1766): "If I can't be united with you | I will embrace my desire to do so."
(2) The story of mathematician Julia Robinson: The first woman to be elected to the mathematics section of the National Academy of Sciences, Robinson was born on December 8, 100 years ago. She contributed to the solution of Hilbert's 10th problem (How to tell whether a Diophantine equation has integer solutions) by formulating a conjecture, which was eventually proven true by Soviet mathematician Yuri Matiyasevich, who was a toddler when Robinson first started thinking about the problem.
(3) Quote of the day: "Your morality is deeply lacking if all you want is a child born, not a child fed, not a child educated, not a child housed." ~ Sister Joan Chittister, on some pro-lifers
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Multi-year effort: Trump pressured Ukraine to do investigations in 2017, 2018, before being caught this year.
- The Trump-Ukraine Impeachment Inquiry Report: Executive summary; PDF of the full 300-page report
- A Saudi kills 3 Americans, while two Saudis watch/film the incident: Why the hesitation to call it terrorism?
- Open letter on the unbelievable story of Iranian women and their fight against oppression and injustice.
(6) Hitting the nail right on the head: This open letter (in Persian) of film director Mohsen Makhmalbaf to Reza Pahlavi, the late Shah's son, is nearly two years old, but I had not seen it before. In it, Makhmalbaf asks the prince to put all his eggs in one basket, either clearly denouncing hereditary monarchy, and working alongside democratic forces that oppose Iran's Islamic regime, or embracing it, and paying the political price. One cannot believe in both royal blood and people's right to choose.
(7) Uncovering a construction defect after 30+ years: About a year ago, I noticed a crack opening up at the corner of my bedroom, where two walls joined. The crack grew wider over time, so I have been talking to the Homeowners Association and its management company to do something about it. After much delay, someone came to cut the wall open to see what the problem was. It turns out that my unit's builders forgot to nail the two walls together, so, for 30+ years, the two walls were just standing next to each other, whithout being connected. Woodframe houses are built with everything solidly connected to everything else, so that the entire structure moves as one piece and deformities are avoided during earthquakes, water intrusion, and the like. When connections are less than solid, there is no telling what would happen in the event of land movement or other natural disasters. Now, I am awaiting an engineering inspection, followed by corrective action.

2019/12/07 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Arithmetic industrial complex Beyond the Veil: Discrimination Against Women in Iran (cover image of report) Cartoon: Letters for Santa (1) Images of the day: [Left] Cartoon: Arithmetic industrial complex. [Center] "Beyond the Veil: Discrimination Against Women in Iran" (see the last item below). [Right] Cartoon: Letters for Santa.
(2) Saudi military trainee kills 3 and injures 8 at Pensacola, Florida, naval air station: Strangely, US authorities are reluctant to call it terrorism, even though other Saudi nationals were seen filming the attacks.
(3) An Iranian expresses doubts that he will participate in the country's next election, an act that would legitimize a government which shoots at its people. [Tweet]
(4) ISS reaches drinking age: On December 7, 1998, the first two International Space Station modules (Unity and Zarya) were joined together, beginning the assembly of the orbital lab.
(5) Dirty trick of on-line shopping sites exposed: Princeton and U. Chicago researchers found "dark patterns," or deceptive practices employed by user interfaces of popular on-line retailers. A Web-crawling tool analyzed over 50,000 product pages from 11,000 shopping sites, and captured text so the researchers could find dark patterns, and quantify how often they appeared. More than 1,800 cases of dark pattern usage turned up on 1,254 sites, which is likely a conservative estimate; a subset of 183 sites exhibited outright deception, including recurring low-stock or high-demand alerts and messages pressuring consumers to buy more expensive products. The researchers analyzed the underlying computer code to unearth third-party services that provide these options to shopping sites, facilitating the spread of dark patterns as plug-ins.
(6) "Beyond the Veil: Discrimination Against Women in Iran": This is the title of a 48-page September 2019 report by Minority Rights Group International and Ceasefire Center for Civilian Rights that enumerates obstacles faced by women in Iran under Islamic rule. [English report] [Persian report] [Fact sheet]
Here are the report's five recommnedations in brief:
- Revise domestic legislation, in line with international standards on gender equality and other human rights.
- Eliminate criminal provisions which discriminate based on gender or provide exemptions for men's crimes.
- Release all prisoners detained solely for peacefully protesting and advocating for women's human rights.
- Improve gender balance in distributing civil-service posts and increase access to employment opportunities.
- Remove discriminatory provisions that prevent women from passing on nationality rights to their children.

2019/12/06 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
My minimalist holiday decorations at home Goleta's Maria Ygnacio Creek Controversial excavations reveal ancient mazes and many layers of history under Jerusalem (1) Images of the day: [Left] Like the past couple of years, this year too I am going with minimalist holiday decorations at home. [Center] Goleta's Maria Ygnacio Creek (see the last item below). [Right] Controversial excavations reveal ancient mazes and many layers of history under Jerusalem.
(2) Trumpian hypocrisy: Putting poor kids in cages, stripping healthcare away from them, and befriending their rapists are all okay, but don't you even dare to mention the name of a privileged child!
(3) Two other instances of Trump's hypocrisy: On anonymous sources and religious beliefs. [Tweet images]
(4) Justice, Islamic Republic of Iran style: Kill young protesters, imprison their mothers who speak up, shed crocodile tears on TV for mistakes made and offer blood money to victims' families. [Tweet image]
(5) Michelle Bachelet, UN Human Rights Chief, citing verified video footage: "Iranian security forces have shot at protesters from helicopters and a rooftop and have aimed at peoples' heads in using 'severe violence' to quell anti-government unrest last month ... They have also fired at protesters as they were running away."
(6) British Computer Society sponsors "European Women in Tech 2019" in Amsterdam: Research published by Microsoft (2017) suggests girls across 12 European countries lose interest in STEM around the age of 15. This unfortunate loss of potential contributors comes at a time when the computer industry is growing faster than many others, creating a severe workforce shortage.
(7) If one's blood sugar spikes but the doctor doesn't see it, is it still harmful? Asking for a friend, who treated himself to a donut after doing an A1C blood test prior to a doctor's visit.
(8) Refreshing morning walk along Goleta's Maria Ygnacio Creek: I had an hour to kill between a blood test and the opening of the Post Office, where I had to pick up a package. So, I walked in the Patterson-Hollister intersection area, discovering an extensive network of creek-side bike paths just to the east of Patterson Avenue, extending from Hollister Avenue on the south to Cathedral Oaks (Foothill School) on the north, and connecting to various side streets. The paths have bridges over the creek and solar-powered lights; one branch goes under the 101 Freeway. I returned via Patterson Avenue. [More photos]

2019/12/05 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Benghazi and Clinton e-mails probes vs. Russia probe Kamala Harris responds to Donald Trump America should not be led by a king, nor by a drama queen
An example of many photos/videos that show Iranian security forces destroying property to blame the protesters Tweet by Shahnaz Akmali, a mother who lost a son in Iran's 2009 street protests and was told to keep quite about it Baha'i young women Kiana Rezvani and Kimia Mostafavi have been sentenced to 6 monhts in prison each (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Benghazi and Clinton e-mails probes vs. Russia probe. [Top center] Kamala Harris responds to Donald Trump. [Top right] America should not be led by a king, nor by a drama queen. [Bottom left] An example of many photos/videos that show Iranian security forces destroying property to blame the protesters. [Bottom center] A mother who can't be bullied into silence: Shahnaz Akmali, the mother of Mostafa Karim Beigi, a young man who was killed in Iran's 2009 street protests, was told by her interrrogators to forget she ever had a son. Her "crime" is stated as "publicitiy against the regime and causing public anxiety" through social-media posts. She writes that she lost a son, but has gained numerous sons and daughters throughout Iran. [Bottom right] Persecution of Iranian Baha'is continues: Kiana Rezvani and Kimia Mostafavi have been sentenced to 6 monhts in prison each (reduced on appeal from 6 years) for their activities on behalf of the Baha'i faith and "publicity against the regime."
(2) UCSB men's soccer team in the NCAA quarterfinals: Following a 1-0 double-overtime victory over the 5th-seeded Indiana in the third round (Sweet 16), the Gauchos will face the 4th-seeded Wake Forest at 2:00 PM on Saturday, December 7, 2019, to earn a spot in the Final Four. Go Gauchos!
(3) Quote of the day: "Defending Trump by saying 'all politicians lie' is like defending Jeffrey Dahmer by saying 'everyone eats things they shouldn't'." ~ Anonymous
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Outrage in India over violence against women: Indian rape victim set ablaze by a gang of men.
- US Navy seizes suspected Iranian missile parts headed to Yemen.
- Introducing IEEE SIGHT (Special-Interest Group on Humanitarian Technology).
- Cartoon of the day (involving Zuckerberg, Facebook, and Putin): "I had nothing to do with this!" [Image]
(5) California Assembly Bill 5 may discourage faculty members from serving as editors of scholarly journals: Currently, such activities are encouraged by universities, which, in the case of University of California, are exempted from reporting requirements (category-3 activities, in the parlance of the UC bureaucracy). AB5, to go into effect in January, will convert these activities to category-1, which require prior approval and annual reporting, and will also subject them to the 39-day limit on all outside activities, including industrial consulting, which is common for engineering faculty.

2019/12/04 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A resilient computer, with waterproof casing, made for the end of the world My daughter and I, with our accidentally coordinated T-shirts, on Friday 11/29 Clever street art: TeacH PeacE (1) Images of the day: [Left] A resilient computer, with waterproof casing, made for the end of the world. [Center] My daughter and I, with our accidentally coordinated T-shirts. [Right] Clever street art: TeacH PeacE.
(2) Senator Kamala Harris drops out: She had qualified for the December 19 Democratic debate, which is now left with 6 white candidates, 4 men and 2 women.
(3) Add one more competent, knowledgeable woman to Fiona Hill and Marie Yovanovitch: Stanford Law Professor Pamela Karlan, who had a mail-order turkey for Thanksgiving so as to have time to prepare for her testimony by reading all the pertinent reports and transcripts, strengthens the case for impeachment.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- IBM experts detect a new form of destructive malware deployed by Iran to target Mid-Eastern companies.
- Black "thug" vs. "white teen": Stories in the same newspaper, two pages apart. [Images]
- Bill Nye challenges Tucker Carlson on climate change: Carlson screams & interrupts; Nye argues calmly.
- I'm sure glad that "Giving Tuesday" is over; some charities sent me more than 10 e-mails during one day!
- Fire at your discretion: This is one way used to kill people in the recent Iranian street protests. [Photo]
- Persian music: "Bread, Work, Freedom," lyrics by Mahtab Ghorbani, performed by Kimia Ghorbani.
(5) Today's "World Music Series" noon concert: The rain gave us enough of a break for UCSB Son Jarocho Ensemble to perform at the Music Bowl, instead of at a nearby room. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]
(6) Touring the facilities of Seymour Duncan in Goleta: Tonight, we had the IEEE Central Coast Section's Executive Committee meeting at the workplace of one of the committee members (workers for the second shift were present). After the meeting, we were treated to a tour of the company's facilities, whose main business is making pick-ups for electric guitars. Electric-guitar strings do not produce easily-audible sound and thus need amplification. Pick-ups are 2-3 sets of magnets installed under the strings, so that when each string moves, the change in the magnetic field is detected and the pertinent information is sent to the amplifier. The design and manufacture of these pick-ups is quite intricate and challenging. Seymour Duncan makes pick-ups for guitar manufacturers (OEM), for music shops to allow replacements and upgrades, and, occasionally, one-of-a-kind custom-made devices for famous guitarists. A fascinating tour and a unique learning experience! [Photos]

2019/12/02 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Mana Neyestani, on the brutality of Iran's security forces in the recent street protests Shah-goli Park: A promenade and recreational venue in Tabriz, Iran Cartoon: Stupidity-testing machine: Insert 100 euros (1) Images of the day: [Left] Cartoon of the day: Mana Neyestani, on the brutality of Iran's security forces in the recent street protests, following major fuel price hikes. [Center] Shah-goli Park: A promenade and recreational venue in Tabriz, Iran. [Right] French cartoon of the day: "Test your stupidity. Insert 100 euros."
(2) Surprise news of the day: After all the rainfall and even a snow blanket at higher elevations, Santa Barbara's Cave Fire is only 90% contained, with 54 firefighters still working on it.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- America's small farmers in crisis: Trump's tariffs and other missteps are taking their toll.
- As Everest's snow-cover melts, garbage and human bodies are exposed.
- Victory for women: Sudanese women celebrate the repeal of the law restricting their behavior and clothing.
- Health benefits of commonly-used herbs and spices. [Image]
- Group Friday prayers: Yes, business is down everywhere! [Photo]
- Persian poetry: Unnamed poet recites his overtly political poem. [2-minute video]
- Persian music: Lovely song, played by pianist Anoushiravan Rohani and violinist Homayoun Khorram.
- You have heard of a 7-passenger SUV or minivan: Here is a 9-passenger motorcycle!
(4) IEEE Standard 754-2019: With a 40-year history, the latest revision of the standard for floating-point arithmetic was accepted by the IEEE Standards Board in June 2019.
An IEEE standard which is not revised after 10 years is withdrawn. Following the IEEE Standard 754-2008, a new revision was due in 2018, but work on the many proposed bug fixes, clarifications, and enhancements, which began in 2015, extended into 2019. In all, 50 drafts were produced before balloting in early 2019.
This article by David G. Hough (IEEE Computer, Dec. 2019) overviews the IEEE Standard 754, its various revisions through the years, and a sneak preview of 2029 and beyond.
"The most interesting new feature of IEEE Standard 754-2019 is the augmented arithmetic operations. These provide the exact result of an addition, subtraction, or multiplication in two parts that add up to the exact result. These operations were added because hardware implementations of similar functionality appeared imminent, and we hoped to have them work identically and provide the most useful functionality."
(5) Final thought for the day: Over the past few days, friends and other sources have been posting photos of (mostly young) victims of Iran's street protests, many of them shot in the heart or head by sharpshooters. There are too many instances for me to repost them all. Hoping that by signing a petition sent to Michelle Bachelet, UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights, an international investigarion begins and an official list of the ~300 victims and how they died is compiled. [Signable on-line petition, with text in English and Persian]

2019/12/01 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Alabama has named December 1 'Rosa Parks Day': A statue of the civil-rights icon was unveiled in Montgomery today Single-authored scientific papers are going the way of dinosaurs: According to the journal Nature, the number of papers with authors from a single country are also declining in favor of multi-national collaborations Heavenly fruit plate: Pomegranates, persimmons, tangerines (1) Images of the day: [Left] Alabama has named December 1 "Rosa Parks Day": A statue of the civil-rights icon was unveiled in Montgomery today. [Center] Single-authored papers are going the way of dinosaurs: According to the journal Nature, the number of papers with authors from a single country are also declining in favor of multi-national collaborations. [Right] Heavenly fruit plate: Pomegranates, persimmons, tangerines.
(2) Kamala Harris, a once-promising woman of color viewed as polar-opposite of Trump, isn't gaining a foothold among Democratic candidates due to numerous mis-steps by her campaign.
(3) Trump derangement syndrome: Seeing Trump do crazy things, admitting privately that, yes, it's embarrassing, but continuing to support him publicly. Of course, Republicans think Democrats have TDS, but as Bill Maher notes, TDS is like body odor: If you smell it all the time, it's probably yours!
(4) Republicans care about the veterans: Yeah, right! As of Veterans Day, 56 bills had passed the House to help veterans. All have been blocked by Moscow Mitch McConnel.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Deutsche Welle News (Persian): Casualties of Iran's recent street protests now stand at 366.
- Apparently, tanks, other armored vehicles, and machine guns have been deployed in some areas of Iran.
- Iranian ER doctors: Protesters' heads and hearts were targeted by security forces and sharpshooters.
- Iran's rulers use the recent street protests as an excuse to intensify the abuse and arrest of Bahais.
(6) Statement by Iranian artists: A group of prominent artists have issued a statement, asking Iran's government for what sin it massacred young protesters who took to the streets because they had run out of options to express their distress. [Story in Persian]
(7) Moore's Law is a hard act to follow: The exponential improvement trend for semiconductors, known as Moore's Law, was bound to come to an end. Erik P. DeBenedictis, writing in IEEE Computer (December 2019, pp. 114-117) argues that three trends will allow exponential performance/capability improvements to continue.
- Hardware specialization—Auto-accelerations are dead, long live speed-ups with greater design effort.
- Artificial intelligence—Deep learning will improve efficiency, while also slashing personnel costs.
- Quantum computing—Hybrid quantum/classical computing can lead to orders-of-magnitude speed-up.

2019/11/30 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Vending machines with veggie mixes in recyclable glass jars, returned to the machine itself, are being deployed in test markets World GDP has been rising steadily, but genuine progress indicator has been declining (Time magazine chart) Twitter goes wild with responses after Trump posts a PhotoShopped image of himself as the fictional boxer Rocky Balboa
Obama's grace under fire: A relic of the past on the current political scene in America Memory, from November 30, 2018: Time magazine cover said 'Time for Trump to go,' but why is it taking so long? Get to know FDR, a democratic socialist who helped define the American way of life, after saving us from the Great Depression (1) Images of the day: [Top left] No chips for you: Vending machines with veggie mixes in recyclable jars, returned to the machine itself, are being deployed in test markets. [Top center] Genuine Progress Indicator: The use of GDP as a measure of national and global well-being is highly misleading. When quality-of-life factors are used to adjust the GDP, the resulting GPI tells a different story (source: Time magazine). [Top right] Twitter goes wild with responses after Trump posts a PhotoShopped image of himself as the fictional boxer Rocky Balboa. [Bottom left] Obama's grace under fire: A relic of the past on the current political scene in America. [Bottom center] Memory, from November 30, 2018: Why is it taking so long? [Bottom right] Get to know FDR, a democratic socialist who helped define the American way of life, after saving us from the Great Depression.
(2) When you have no defense, you resort to lying and smearing: Picture of Adam Schiff with his 90-year-old dad is photoshopped to replace his dad's face with Jeffrey Epstein's, and this by the supporters of a man who really partied and took photos/videos with the child molester! [Images]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- NASA's giant transport plane delivers the space capsule Orion to Ohio, where it will undergo tests.
- Giant black hole, discovered in our galaxy by the Chinese, shouldn't exist according to current theories.
- Iranian lawyers honored with 2019 human rights award by Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe.
- Persian poetry: Young poetess Mahzad Razi recites one of her poems. [Video]
- Humor: Making do in the age of communications, with blocked Internet access. [3-minute cartoon clip]
(4) America moving towards greatness: Life expectancy in the US has been declining since 2014, after 6 decades of steady rise. The driving force is in middle-aged deaths from drug overdoses, suicides, and organ system diseases. Youth deaths have also been on the rise.
(5) The real thugs: Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei has called street protesters, objecting to rising prices and political oppression, "thugs," because they set fire to and destroyed property, conveniently forgetting that he and his ilk came to power using similar tactics, when Ayatollah Khomeini declared banks and government offices sources of injustice and oppression that must be destroyed.

2019/11/28 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Angelic face icon of Iran's 2009 protests: Neda Agha-Soltan Happy Thanksgiving Day! Angelic face of Iran's 2019 protests: Nikta Esfandani
UNICEF 2019 photo of the year: Selected by popular vote (1) Images of the day: [Left & Right] Nikta and Neda: Another angelic face comes to represent the ire of Iranian women and youth against the brutal Islamic regime. Neda Agha-Soltan (right), then 26, became the face of the June 2009 protests against a fraudulent presidential election, after she was shot dead by a sniper. Now, the face of 14-year-old Nikta Esfandani, who was shot in the head by Iran's security forces, has become iconic for the gas-price-hike protests of November 2019. [Center] A very happy Thanksgiving Day to my beloved family and friends! I am grateful for having you all in my life. [Bottom] UNICEF 2019 photo of the year.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Ousted US Navy Secretary Richard Spencer lashes out at Trump in his resignation letter.
- Mafia mentality: Rudy Giuliani threatens the release of Biden documents if he somehow disappears!
- A group of UPS employees ran a drug-smuggling operation for a decade before being arrested.
- Song celebrates Trump changing his permanent residence address from NYC to Palm Beach, FL. [Video]
- Persian music: Mahdieh Mohammadkhani sings a poem of Sa'adi, accompanied by the Delban Ensemble.
- For my Persian-speaking readers: One might laugh or cry watching this 2-minute comedy routine.
(3) Do you know any of these celebrities? Don't think too hard, because you likely don't know them. These are fake, high-resolution celeb photos generated by the CelebA-HQ training dataset. [Source: Communications of the ACM, issue of December 2019]
(4) Thanksgiving pro tip of the day (from George Takei): If you are having MAGA-hat-wearing relatives over for Thanksgiving, change your WiFi password to IMPEACH45, forcing them to type that in.

2019/11/26 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Nothing to see here! Logo: UN Convention on the Rights of the Child Cave fire began around 4:00 PM on 11/25 in Santa Barbara and spread quickly (1) Images of the day: [Left] Nothing to see here: Attempts to hide atrocities via a total Internet blackout exposed the uglier parts of the Islamic regime in Iran (from Iranwire.com). [Center] Children's Bill of Rights: Our Founding Fathers were blind to many issues, including childhood and its challenges. So, our Constitution includes no provisions for children. After the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted 30 years ago, countries added legal protections for children by accepting the convention. Alas, not the United States! [Right] Cave fire began at 4:15 PM on 11/25 in Santa Barbara and spread quickly (see the last item below).
(2) Preference for arms sales and other trade over human rights: Resolutions recognizing the Armenian genocide and condemning China's atrocities in Hong Kong were blocked by Trump's allies in the US Senate.
(3) Forbes ranks world's best universities: Other lists include only US institutions or have a North-American bias. Oxford and Cambridge top Forbes' list, with the always-present Stanford appearing as #3. Among University of California campuses, Berkeley, UCLA, and UCSD make the list at #15, #17, and #30, respectively.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- CNN Special Report "All the President's Lies" aired on 11/24 and will air again on 11/27.
- Sacha Baron Cohen criticizes social-media companies for their reluctance to fact-check political ads.
- For Trump supporters: A subscription service that sends you Trump excuses and lies as they evolve.
- Mythical company valuations encounter reality after IPO. [Chart from Time magazine, Dec. 2/9, 2019]
- Shooting at a protester in Shahriar, Iran, as security forces flee: Shame on the Iranian authorities!
- Two of the youngest victims, 13 and 14, of Iran's street protests: Shame on the Iranian authorities!
- The world turned its back on Iran during the recent street protests. [Cartoon from Iranwire.com]
(5) Hotbeds of fuel protests in Iran: At least 106 protesters (perhaps up to 250) have been killed, with many more injured. The highest casualties were suffered in Khuzistan, Kermanshah, Kurdistan, and Fars provinces.
(6) Cave fire in Santa Barbara and Goleta: The fire has burned 4100 acres as of this morning. The mandatory evacuation area is on both sides of Highway 154, extending to Fairview Ave. on the west and Cathedral Oaks from the south. Ten air tankers and 9 helicopters started working today. Help is on the way in the form of less wind, more humidity, and an inch of rain, beginning tonight. UCSB and Santa Barbara City College classes have been cancelled for the rest of this week. [edhat SB report] [LA Times report]

2019/11/25 (Monday): Book review: Petroski, Henry, The Evolution of Useful Things: How Everyday Artifacts—From Forks and Pins to Paper Clips and Zippers—Came to Be as They Are, Vintage Books, 1994.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Images for Petroski's 'The Evolution of Useful Things': Cover image Images for Petroski's 'The Evolution of Useful Things': Johan Vaaler's first American patent (p. 61) Images for Petroski's 'The Evolution of Useful Things': Webster's definition of clip (p. 67)
Images for Petroski's 'The Evolution of Useful Things': Henry Lankenau's paper clips (p. 72) Images for Petroski's 'The Evolution of Useful Things': Types of nails and spikes (p. 128) Images for Petroski's 'The Evolution of Useful Things': Collection of forks (p. 135) From Petroski's The Evolution of Useful Things: [Top left] Cover image. [Top center] Johan Vaaler's first American patent (p. 61). [Top right] Webster's definition of clip (p. 67). [Bottom left] Henry Lankenau's paper clips (p. 72). [Bottom center] Types of nails and spikes (p. 128). [Bottom right] Collection of forks (p. 135).
This gem of a book contains 250 pages of text, followed by 11 pages of notes, 9 pages of references, a 2-page list of illustrations and associated credits, and a 12-page index. It contains many diagrams, mostly from patent filings, exemplified by the six figures I have included in this review.
We are all curious to learn how invention and innovation processes work. It is extremely difficult to discuss these processes for complicated technologies, such as computers and spacecraft. So, Petroski focuses on simple things that everyone can understand. For example, tracing the evolution of utensils, such as the lowly fork, can teach us a great deal about the evolution of technology. The shape of a fork, the number of its tines, and other physical features all came about gradually and in response to perceived problems with earlier variants.
Far from designs converging to an optimal configuration, variations tend to persist. In fact, the most useful and widespread a gadget or tool, the greater the number of design variations: There were some 500 different kinds of hammer in 1867. The many variants of each implement come about for various reasons. Broad usage can create many variations, as in the case of hammers. Petroski tells us that saws and axes developed many different varieties, because of the effort needed to operate them [p. 125].
We talk about evolving designs, but unlike nature's evolutionary processes, design evolution occurs mostly through purposeful change, rather than random mutation [p. 24]. Inventors are essentially critics, who find faults with existing gadgets/processes and are also equipped to do something about it [p. 34].
One can call the process above "innovation by failure." In fact, Petroski has written widely on the importance of learning from failures. In his book To Engineer Is Human: The Role of Failure in Successful Design, Petroski focuses on what engineers learn from failures. The story goes something like this: We build a new kind of structure (say, an ocean liner), factoring in a great deal of redundancy because of our uncertainty and lack of confidence in our knowledge of how it will fare during use. We then build additional versions of the structure, gaining greater confidence with each, shaving a bit off the overdesign or safety factor as a result. Until, eventually, the nth structure becomes too streamlined, and it fails (think of the Titanic). We then go back and see where we erred and how we might eliminate the causes of failure. These failures are part of the learning process for the engineering profession, so they should be taught as case studies in regular engineering courses. As Petroski puts it in another one of his books, Success Through Failure, "When a complex system succeeds, that success masks its proximity to failure. ... Thus, the failure of the Titanic contributed much more to the design of safe ocean liners than would have her success. That is the paradox of engineering and design."
Another interesting history reviewed by Petroski in this book is that of the paper-clip, which gradually came about from pins used to fasten stacks of paper. The disadvantages of pricking users' fingers and leaving unsighly holes in the paper were the driving forces for innovation [p. 58]. Following the lengthy history is quite fascinating. The 1901 American patent by Johan Vaaler shows variations in paper clips, including in Fig. 12, which is quite similar to today's steel variant [p. 61]. More paper-clip designs appear in the 1934 patent filed by Henry Lankenau [p. 72]. Over time, the meaning of the word "clip" changed as new variants were introduced. Accordingly, Webster Dictionary's definition of clip was updated over time [p. 67].
Of course, not all inventions and innovations come about as a result of purposeful meddling to correct perceived flaws. In a third interesting history, that of sticky notes, Petroski shows us how a failed adhesive that wasn't sticky enough turned into a feature in sticky notes [p. 85].
The ubiquitous zipper gives us a fourth fascinating example. Again, Petroski presents a complete review of the history of fasteners for clothing (buttons, hooks, and so on), outlining the perceived problems of each kind. "Zipper" was originally a trade-mark of B. F. Goodrich Company's "Zipper Boots," which were advertised as being easy to put on and take off, but it later came to be used as a common name for "slide fastener" [p. 112].
Sometimes, initially successful innovations turn into later failures. For example, the polystyrene-foam clamshell berger package of McDonald's was at first hailed as brilliant, but then it became an environmental nightmare [p. 222]. The evolution of the modern soda can, and the opener tab on top of it [pp. 194-208], also led to environmental concerns, which were eventually mitigated by the emergence of aluminum cans.
I think every engineer should read this book. I will keep my copy and read it from time to time to draw inspiration.

2019/11/24 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A simple comparison of how protesters have been treated by three dictatorial regimes: Hong Kong, Lebanon, Iran Iranian women will crush anyone who blocks them from achieving their goals of equality and freedom A beautiful day for strolling along the UCSB West Campus Beach and the Coal Oil Point nature preserve at low tide, with two of my children (1) Images of the day: [Left] A simple comparison of how protesters have been treated by three dictatorial regimes: Given that news of the Hong Kong protests is all over the US media and Lebanon's is also covered from time to time, the near-total silence on the Iran street protests is mind-boggling! [Center] Iranian women will crush anyone who blocks them from achieving their goals of equality and freedom. [Right] A beautiful day for strolling along the UCSB West Campus Beach and the Coal Oil Point nature preserve at low tide, with two of my children. [More photos] [Video]
(2) Iran's Internet blackout is only partially removed: A friend reports from Iran that the five provinces of Alborz, Fars, Kermanshahan, Khuzistan, and Kurdistan (sites of the heaviest street protests) are still disconnected from the Internet.
(3) NCAA men's soccer: In an impressive showing, UCSB defeated the 12th-seeded Saint Mary's 4-0 in a second-round match, moving to the a Sweet-16 match against 5th-seeded Indiana on December 1, 2019.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- This week's Newsweek and Time magazine covers: Impeachment and fall of America's ruling class.
- Next impeachment step: Convincing 67 Senators to convict Trump will be tough, but not impossible.
- Adam Schiff: "Trump's 'death penalty' threat was one reason we didn't have the whistleblower testify."
- Ousted US Navy Secretary Richard Spencer lashes out at Trump in his resignation letter.
- Mob mentality: Rudy Giuliani threatens the release of Biden documents if he somehow disappears!
- The moment a car falls off a highway overpass in southern India, killing several people. [Video]
(5) Extended quote of the day: Michael Lewis, writing in Boomerang (a book I am now reading) on women being notably absent among those who caused the 2008 financial crisis.
(6) The Internet blackout and restoration in Iran reminded me of this Persian joke: A poor villager went to the village leader (kadkhoda) to complain about his terrible living conditions, with his large family confined to a single room, and to ask for advice. The kadkhoda told him to bring a couple of goats into the room. The next time, the kadkhoda inquired whether things have improved. The villager indicated that the situation had gotten much worse. The kadkhoda recommended patience and repeated the same advice on the next few visits. The villager returned the next time, screaming that he couldn't take it any more. The kadkhoda told him to remove the goats from the living quarters and to return in a couple of days to report on his situation. When the villager returned, he smiled broadly and kissed the kadkhoda's feet for helping solve his problem. [Cartoon]

2019/11/23 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Shining examples of female authority: Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch and Dr. Fiona Hill Several compelling testimonies during the US House impeachment hearings came from first-generation immigrants Meme related to the current unrest and murder of protesters in Iran
Scenes from around Goleta Beach Park Retirement party at Goleta Beach Park on Friday, November 22 Goleta Beach Park, near Goleta Pier (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch and Dr. Fiona Hill gave us wonderful examples of female authority, and it sounded great! (Image credit: WP) [Top center] Immigrants save America: Several compelling testimonies during the US House impeachment hearings came from first-generation immigrants, who looked highly competent and patriotic. American values and way of life were on full display during the hearings, interrupted intermittently by screaming Republicans, who pontificated instead of asking questions. [Top right] Meme related to the current unrest and murder of protesters in Iran. [Bottom left] Walking around Goleta Beach Park: Capturing scenes from a beautiful day with mostly blue skies, as well as an empty-threat sign that warns of severe tire damage for those who enter a parking lot the wrong way, but the spikes that cause the said tire damage are nowhere to be seen (much like "security protection" signs in front of houses that in fact have no security system)! [Bottom center] Yesterday afternoon, I attended a Hawaii-themed bash at Goleta Beach Park for a departmental colleague who is walking into the sunset after 40 years at UCSB. Happy retirement, Avery! [Bottom right] Photos from Goleta Beach Park, in the vicinity of Goleta Pier.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Cheers to those who can change their minds when presented with information that contradicts their beliefs.
- "Montage 2019": UCSB Music Department's "celebration of genres" held today at Marjorie Luke Theater.
- MIT is under federal investigation for failing to disclose foreign funding sources.
- Thoughts on the ways in which society sabotages girls' interest in science and math.
(3) Ranking colleges based on how well they do in enrolling and graduating women computer scientists: Salisbury U., with 36% women, tops the list of public institutions, followed closely by U. Washington (35%). The following colleges score around or above 30%: CUNY Bernard M. Baruch College, U. Washington at Bothell, Penn State at University Park, U. Virginia, and U. South Carolina Upstate. At #15 (26%), Berkeley is the only UC campus in the top 50. Cal State LA appears at #39 (21%). Among private nonprofit institutions, Wellesley tops the list with 100%, followed by New School (75%). Two other private schools with percentages in the 50s are Touro College, NY, and Creighton U. The top 10 colleges on this second list all do better than Salisbury U. at the top of the first list.
(4) NSCI: White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, headed by Michael Kratsios, has updated the National Strategic Computing Initiative, with the goal of keeping pace with and fueling innovation.
(5) Men's college soccer: UCSB beat UC Berkeley 3-1 to advance to the second round of the NCAA tournament, where the Gauchos will face the 12th-seeded Saint Mary's (CA) on Sunday 11/24, 1:00 PM PST. [Bracket]

2019/11/22 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Professor Fazllolah Reza, Iranian scholar, dead at 104 Telegraphy cable souvenir: Tiffany tried to market pieces of an 1858 trans-Atlantic cable as souvenirs, but the cable was a flop Internet blackout: Iran shows as a black area on this symbolic rendering of the worldwide Internet traffic
Cartoon: 'Enhanced branding metrics drive robust solutions for scalable monetization of jargon' Meme of the day: Bob and Sally are friends, even though they vote with different parties Cartoon: Protection for Mitch McConnell, so that the noise of school shootings and kids being killed do not damage his ears (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Fazllolah Reza, 1915-2019 (see the last item below). [Top center] Telegraphy cable souvenir (see the next item below). [Top right] Internet blackout: Iran shows as a black area on this symbolic rendering of worldwide Internet traffic. [Bottom left] Cartoon: "Enhanced branding metrics drive robust solutions for scalable monetization of jargon." [Bottom center] Meme of the day: This is Bob. He votes Republican. This is Bob's friend, Sally. Sally votes Democratic. Bob and Sally are still friends, because Bob and Sally are both adults. Be like Bob and Sally. [Bottom right] Cartoon: Protection for Mitch McConnell, so that the noise of school shootings and kids being killed do not damage his ears.
(2) Promising souvenirs that did not sell as expected: On August 16, 1858, Queen Victoria and US president James Buchanan said hello through the first trans-Atlantic telegraph cable, which connected Newfoundland with Ireland across some 3200 kilometers. The jeweler Tiffany and Co. sought to celebrate (and cash in on) what was touted as the communications event of the century. And so it bought up surplus cable from the project and turned it into souvenirs. Each 4-inch segment retailed for 50 cents (about US $15 today). Sadly, though, the cable itself was a flop. The queen's 98-word message took almost 16 hours to transmit. The quality of the transmission quickly degraded, and the cable failed entirely after just a few weeks. Tiffany was left with unsellable stock commemorating a failure, and trans-Atlantic communication would wait another eight years for a new, more robust cable to be laid. [From IEEE Spectrum, issue of November 2019]
(3) Iranian scholar Professor Fazlollah Reza, who served as chancellor of two universities in Iran and had a number of other administrative and diplomatic positions, passed away at 104 in Ottawa, Canada. Besides his contributions to science and engineering, he was an avid fan of, and very knowledgeable in, Persian literature.

2019/11/21 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Time cover 1 Time cover 2 Time cover 3
Time cover 4 Time cover 5 Time cover 6 (1) Time magazine's main and alternate covers for the issue of November 25, 2019, featuring "The Next 100."
(2) Heliogen, Bill Gates's just-revealed clean energy company, has discovered a way to use artificial intelligence and a field of mirrors to generate extreme heat above 1,000 degrees Celsius from sunlight.
(3) Internet blackout in Iran hits the 100-hour mark: A new black stain that sinks the Islamic Republic even below the other dictatorial regimes in the region. [Chart]
(4) I was very impressed with the testimony of Dr. Fiona Hill: Partially heard her statement and responses today, finding her knowledgeable and articulate. Wish we had more people like her in our government.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Israel's Attorney General has charged Benjamin Netanyahu with bribery, breach of trust, and fraud.
- Security forces in the western Iranian city of Kermanshah shoot at protesters. [Video]
- Murdering Iranian protesters behind a veil of secrecy by shutting down the Internet.
- Six Iranian environmentalists have been given prison sentences of 6-10 years.
(6) Bogus argument: "Let people decide in the next election, instead of impeaching."
On what basis will the voters be deciding? The extent of Trump administration's corruption and treason (acting in the interest of Russia) was revealed only because of the impeachment hearing.
(7) Search-results ranking isn't all that new: The April-June 2019 issue of IEEE Annals of the History of Computing identifies the 1960 J. ACM paper "On Relevance Probabilistic Indexing and Information Retrieval," by M. E. Maron and J. L. Kuhns, as containing the first proposal for a system of ranking.

2019/11/20 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Tonight's technical meeting of IEEE Central Coast Section Persian poetry: Selected verses from a ghazal by Sa'adi Four examples of many memes on the Internet about the isolation and massacre of the people of Iran by a dictatorial regime (1) Images of the day: [Left] Tonight's technical meeting of IEEE Central Coast Section (see the last item below). [Center] Persian poetry: Selected verses from a ghazal by Sa'adi. [Right] Four examples of many memes on the Internet about the isolation and massacre of the people of Iran by a dictatorial regime that thinks about nothing but its own survival.
(2) Gordon Sondland's opening statement at the impeachment hearing: Sondland makes it clear that Rudy Giuliani's involvement and his insistence on aid/support for Ukraine being conditional on publicly-announced investigations were based on direct orders from Trump.
(3) Iran is under siege: Internet access, cut off for citizens, is available to regime officials to blame the unrest on foreigners and to spread other disinformation. Exiled journalist Masih Alinejad has called on Iranians to apply pressure on Twitter to block the account of Supreme Leader Khamenei until Internet service is fully restored in the country. [Meme]
(4) Iran is under siege (part 2): Both Supreme Leader Khamenei and President Rouhani characterize Iran's protesters as agents of foreign powers and threats to national security, ordering security forces to confront and punish them. There is very little difference between the two dictators, the big boss and his servant!
(5) Today's "World Music Series" noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: UCSB Gospel Choir offered an enjoyable performance. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]
(6) Tonight's IEEE Central Coast Section technical meeting: In a sparsely-attended talk (due to glitches in IEEE's e-mail notification and reminder system), Dr. Roger Helkey (Assoc. Director of UCSB Center for Energy Efficiency, and West-Coast Assoc. Director of AIM Photonics) spoke under the title "Using Photonics to Make More Energy Efficient Data Centers & Communication." [Photos]
Advantages of photonics are twofold: (1) Increasing the interconnect bandwidth density, and (2) Reducing energy consumption in communication, which is emerging as a bigger limitation than the energy used for computation within logic circuits. Without reducing the energy used per communicated bit, the exponential growth in data usage, which drives our information society, would not be sustainable. The use of photonics brings with it the promise of communication over distances from 1 mm to 1 km with the same energy (20 fJ/bit) and simplicity as local electrical wires on a chip.
A focus of research by Dr. Helkey and his co-workers is on using quantum-dot lasers and integration on silicon for low-threshold, high-efficiency sources, capability for operation at higher temperatures, isolator-free implementation, and superior mode-locking.
This talk ties in nicely with our December 18, 2019, talk by Dennis Horwitz, entitled "Awesome Photons—A Fiber Optic Technology Update." Announcements for the latter talk will be coming shortly.

2019/11/19 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
T-shirt: 'The Supremes,' three women now on the US Supreme Court, plus the first ever woman SCOTUS Justice, now retired Women are too emotional to be trusted with important decisions. Yeah, right! Statues for Equality: Jane Goodall (1) Images of the day: [Left] Inspired by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's My Own Words, which I recently reviewed: "The Supremes," three women now on the US Supreme Court, plus the first ever woman SCOTUS Justice, now retired. [Center] Women are too emotional to be trusted with important decisions. Yeah, right! [Right] Statues for Equality: A project from internationally renowned artists and equality activists Gillie and Marc, aiming to balance gender representation in public art worldwide; shown is the statue of Jane Goodall.
(2) Cool prime minister: Stephen Colbert goes to New Zealand, is picked up at the airport by PM Jacinda Ardern, and has a fun day with the PM and her fiance. [Video]
(3) Political humor from Stephen Colbert's "The Late Show": The doctor who examined Trump during his recent unannounced visit indicates that the problem was an obstruction in the rectum. Further checks found and dislogdged the heads of several GOP Congressmen and Senators!
(4) Declining number of international students at US universities is a tragedy: These students provide a steady stream of talent for our high-tech industries and those among them that return to their home countries generate much good will toward the US around the world.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Amnesty Int'l reports more than 100 killed in Iran, as security forces are green-lighted to use deadly force.
- While the Hong Kong protests are all over the news, very little mention is made of the unrest in Iran.
- Nerdy humor: Approximations, according to physicists, engineers, and cosmologists. [Cartoon strip]
- Italian song: "Lasciate Mi Cantare," featuring a playful video.
(6) Final thought for the day: I hope feminists take action against people like Tucker Carlson, who asserts that "feminism is insincere," and Clarence Mason Weaver, a member of "Black Voices for Trump" coalition, who has stated in many forums that women should be "handmaidens" and "submissive."

2019/11/18 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Memes of the day: Iranians in diaspora and people of Iranian origins are thinking of those fighting in Iran against a dictatorial regime Protest sign: According to US gun laws, geese have more protections than children Taking the long way home from UCSB to enjoy views of the ocean and the lagoon (1) Images of the day: [Left] Iranians in diaspora and people of Iranian origins are thinking of those fighting in Iran against a dictatorial regime that has brought nothing but repression, isolation, and hardship to our motherland. [Center] Great observation about our gun-crazy nation! [Right] A gorgeous day in Santa Barbara: Blue skies, bluer waters, and 80-degree temps led me to take the long path home along UCSB's eastern (the Pacific Ocean) and southern (the campus lagoon) boundaries, instead of cutting straight across the campus.
(2) There is an eerie silence on Telegram and WhatsApp channels coming from Iran. When a scared dictatorial regime blocks Internet access and threatens journalists who file reports on protests and casualties, now in the hundreds, it is definitely up to no good.
(3) Queen Elizabeth II defends Prince Andrew, who gave a disaterous interview about his ties to child molester Jeffery Epstein, calling Epstein's behavior "unbecoming" and the partying photos with multiple young women fake. Really, just unbecoming, not criminal?
(4) Trump wants to jail anyone who has ever spoken against him! [Tweet]
(5) Archaeological discovery: Traps containing the remains of at least 14 mammoths, unearthed in Mexico, are estimated to be 15,000 years old. [Source: Time magazine, issue of November 25, 2019]
(6) Corruption begets corruption: Russian talent show "The Voice Kids" annulled the result of its May 2019 voting, after it was discovered that the daughter of a wealthy businessman won because of thousands of fraudulent automated votes. [Source: Time magazine, issue of November 25, 2019]
(7) Medical errors kill: A 1999 study by the Institute of Medicine reported about 100,000 annual deaths in the US from medical errors. Twenty years later, things don't seem to have improved at all. [Source: Time magazine, issue of November 25, 2019]
(8) Why did NFL players kneeling become such a big story? Yes, some Americans were passionate about it, but social-media posts and commentary were 10-to-1 from Russian-sponsored bots, according to Senator Mark Warner, VC of US Senate Intellligence Committee, interviewed on the PBS program "Firing Line" this week.

2019/11/17 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Chart: Internet disruptions and blackout in Iran, mid-November 2019 This dome in the Marshall Islands, where the US stashes away its nuclear waste, is likely to crack open due to climate change Cartoon: Islamization of Persian-lit textbooks (1) Images of the day: [Left] Internet blackout in Iran: Internet access has been shut down in retaliation for street protests against a sharp rise in gas prices, which turned violent, when security forces shot at and killed several protesters. [Center] A nuclear disaster in the making: This dome in the Marshall Islands, where the US stashes away its nuclear waste, is likely to crack open due to climate change. [Right] Cartoon of the day: Islamization of curricula and textbooks continue in Iran, this time by removing works of disfavored poets (surprisingly also including some poems of Hafez and Mowlavi/Rumi) from persian-literature textbooks to make room for those more receptive to the Dear Leader's world view.
(2) Rabid dog: Taking a cue from Trump, who calls anyone he doesn't like "a dog," North Korea's official news agency calls Joe Biden "a rabid dog [who] must be beaten to death with a stick." Trump tweets in "defense" of his rival, writing, "Joe Biden may be Sleepy and Very Slow, but he is not a 'rabid dog.' He is actually somewhat better than that ..." By the way, North Koreans had previously called Trump himself a rabid dog and a dotard!
(3) Persian music: Bahar Choir performs "Meyzadeh" ("Intoxicated"), a composition by Parviz Yahaghi, with lyrics by Bijan Taraghi, orchestration and conduction by Arash Fouladvand, vocals by Sara Hamidi. And here is Bahar Choir's "Dar Arezou-ye to Basham" ("I Desire You, Till My Last Breath"), a composition by Arash Fouladvand, who also conducts, with vocals by Vahid Taj and tar solo by Keivan Saket.
(4) Street protests in Iran turn deadly: Fearfully fleeing security forces fire at protesters. Despite near-total Internet shutdown, photos and videos are making their way out. Chants of "We don't want an Isalmic Republic" and "Down with Khamenei" are dominant.
(5) Anti-terrorism in our nation's biggest terror target: NYC has an elaborate terror hotline center, where tips about terrorism are taken and processed. For New Year's Eve, a special anti-sniper unit is being deployed in Times Square (where tall buildings present dangers), using lessons learned from the Las Vegas mass shooting.
(6) Shocking revelations in partially-unsealed documents: One of the Boston Marathon bombers was involved with a friend in a 2011 Waltham, MA, triple-homicide, two years before the Marathon killings.

2019/11/16 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Ellwood Mesa Open Space photos: California's long drought has taken its toll on the trees in this area Ellwood Mesa Open Space photos: My walk took me to the ocean on an overcast, but otherwise pleasant, day Ellwood Mesa Open Space photos: Ellwood Butterfly Grove is dormant now, but it will be buzzing with life when monarch butterflies arrive in a couple of weeks (1) A series of photos I took Friday afternoon during my walk in the Ellwood Mesa Open Space to the west of Goleta: [Left] California's long drought has taken its toll on the trees in this area. [Center] My walk took me to the ocean on an overcast, but otherwise pleasant, day. [Right] Ellwood Butterfly Grove is dormant now, but it will be buzzing with life when monarch butterflies arrive in a couple of weeks.
(2) Abrupt increase in fuel prices, as temperatures dip, sparks massive protests across Iran: There are reports of security forces shooting at street demonstrators and of multiple deaths, particularly in Kermanshah.
(3) Making America Ignorant: Ohio House of Representatives passes "Student Religious Liberties Act" that allows freedom of religious expression, including religiously-based wrong answers.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Ignoring Pentagon advice, Trump pardons US service members accused of war crimes.
- Fake-news bots meet their match: Data science and artificial intelligence! Several accounts suspended.
- Why our calorie intake, and thus weight, peaks in winter: Blame it on evolution!
- Persian mystical music: "Motreb-e Tanboor" ("Tanboor Entertainer") performed by Ranaei Family Ensemble.
(5) Planning for my winter 2020 UCSB graduate course ECE 254B (Parallel Processing): April 22, 2020, marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, inaugurated a year after the Santa Barbara oil spill of winter 1969, which remains the largest spill off the coast of California (it is now the all-time third largest, including the subsequent Exxon Valdez and Deepwater Horizon incidents).
Winter is also the quarter during which our campus engages in "UCSB Reads," a program that began in 2007 and has chosen the book Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore, by acclaimed author Elizabeth Rush, for campus perusal and discussion during 2020. The author will give a talk in UCSB's Campbell Hall on Monday, May 4, 2020, beginning at 7:30 PM.
Accordingly, I have decided to use four micro-projects as part of homework assignments for ECE 254B during winter 2020. Enrolled students will get free copies of Rising from UCSB Library. The micro-projects will explore the role of high-performance computing in modeling various aspects of climate change.
uP1: From Weather Forecasting to Climate Modeling
uP2: Ocean-Temperature Modeling: Monster Storms
uP3: Modeling of Sea-Level Rise: Disappearing Lands
uP4: Extreme-Weather Projections from Climate Data
Each micro-project entails studying the types of computer models involved, computational requirements of the models, how the computations are performed on top-of-the-line supercomputers, and data sets that allow drawing various conclusions from the modeling results.

2019/11/15 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Front-page story of an Iranian weekly makes fun of official efforts to promote polygamy through advertising posters Trends in digital integrated circuits: Density, processor performance, clock speed, power consumption, and multiplicity of cores on a chip This 'selfie' of NASA's Mars Curiosity rover was synthesized from images it collected on May 13, 2019 (1) Images of the day: [Left] And suddenly, polygamy: Front-page story of an Iranian weekly makes fun of official efforts to promote polygamy through advertising posters. [Center] Trends in digital integrated circuits: Density ("Moore's Law"), processor performance, clock speed, power consumption, and multiplicity of cores on a chip. Original data up to 2010 collected and plotted by M. Horowitz, F. Labonte, O. Shacham, K. Olukotun, L. Hammond, and C. Batten; Data for new plot, also covering 2010-2017, collected by K. Rupp. [Right] This "selfie" of NASA's Mars Curiosity rover was synthesized from images it collected on May 13, 2019.
(2) Erdogan outmaneuvers Trump: Turkish press and officials praise Erdogan for standing up to Trump by returning the harsh letter he had received right after invading Syria back to Trump during his US visit.
(3) Quote of the day (Trump mantra): "And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became truth." ~ George Orwell, 1984
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump live-tweets intimidating words against former ambassador Marie Yovanovitch as she testifies.
- Trump associate Roger Stone convicted of all seven counts of perjury, obstruction, and witness tempering.
- Persian music: Bahar Choir performs "Roud" ("River"), a composition by Mehrdad Baran, who also conducts.
- Persian music: A wonderful instrumental piece by tar and tonbak. [5-minute video]
- The Kurdish song "Brindaram" performed by Tara Yousefi (vocals), Zahed Mansouri (piano), and others.
(5) UCLA Health publishes results of ongoing review of sexual misconduct in clinical setting: "Our ongoing review extends beyond the institution's response to complaints against former UCLA physician Dr. James Heaps, who was charged with sexual battery. We are looking more broadly at allegations of sexual misconduct and inappropriate patterns of behavior in the clinical setting. Our goal is to ensure the institution is following best practices and reflecting the highest standard of care for all patients of UCLA hospitals, clinics and student health services." The report ends with a call for information from all stakeholders via the third-party Praesidium Hotline, 888-961-9273.
(6) [On wildfires in California] Trump: "The Governor of California, @GavinNewsom, has done a terrible job of forest management. I told him from the first day we met that he must 'clean' his forest floors regardless of what his bosses, the environmentalists, DEMAND of him. Must also do burns and cut fire stoppers."
Fact check: Of the 33M acres of forest in California, 57% is owned and managed by the federal government, 40% by private landowners, and 3% by the state (source: UC Forest Research and Outreach Center). So, Trump himself bears the bulk of responsibility for California forests. Furthermore, many of the recent wildfires did not burn forests, but shrubbery, agricultural land, and grasslands, where forest management isn't an issue.

2019/11/14 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Anita Hill being sowrn in Meme: Senator Lindsey Graham wins first prize in hypocrisy, hands down! Dr. Yangying Zhu's talk today at UCSB's Elings Hall (1) Images of the day: [Left] Tonight's documentary film screened at UCSB's Campbell Hall (see the last item below). [Center] Senator Lindsey Graham wins first prize in hypocrisy, hands down! [Right] Dr. Yangying Zhu's talk today at UCSB (see the next to the last item below).
(2) Notorious executioner nabbed: Sweden has arrested and charged Hamid Nouri (Abbasi), a prosecutor who, as a member of the 1980s "death panel" in Iran's Rajaei Shahr (Gohardasht) prison, is responsible for mass executions of political prisoners. Iran is hard at work to save him. Let's hope he doesn't escape justice.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Shooting in Saugus High School: Two dead, 3 injured in Santa Clarita incident, off Interstate 5 in SoCal.
- Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps live by illegal financial schemes and money laundering.
- On polygamy in Iran: "If polygamy is good, it should be permitted for women too." ~ Faezeh Hashemi
- Despite the Islamic regime's propaganda, Iranians scorn polygamy.
(4) "Microscale Thermal-Fluids Engineering for Next-Generation Energy and Electronic Systems": This was the title of an interesting talk by UCSB Mechnical Engineering Assistant Professor, Dr. Yangying Zhu.
Heat is one of the focal points of both the production and consumption of energy. As system sizes shrink, heat concentration presents very difficult challenges. Thermal energy densities on the order of 1000 W/cm^2 are observed in power electronics, which is only a factor of about 6 less than what exists on the surface of the Sun. So, efficiency in using and disposing of heat has significant practical implications.
Sponsored by UCSB's Institute for Energy Efficiency, the talk covered how micro-scale modeling, fabrication, and characterization provide new insights into thermal effects in lithium-based batteries and achieve aggressive cooling of electronics.
Specific topics presented included the discovery of a microscopic heat-triggered battery failure mechanism through in situ local temperature sensing and the development of a two-phase microchannel heat sink that significantly enhances temperature stability and enhances heat flux dissipation for electronics.
[Photos/Slides] [The speaker's Web site (Thermofluid Energy Research Lab)]
(5) "Anita: Speaking Truth to Power": This was the title of a documentary film by Oscar-winning filmmaker Freida Mock, screened in UCSB's Campbell Hall tonight. The film is part of one thread of this year's "Thematic Learning Initiative" at UCSB ("We Can Do It: A Century of Empowerment," commemorating the centenary of woman gaining the right to vote in the US), the second thread having to do with the environment, as we approach the 50th anniversary of Earth Day in 2020. I watched the confirmation hearings for Justice Clarence Thomas live, but revisiting those hearings, in which a bunch of old white men on the Senate committee struggled to understand the relatively novel notion of sexual harassment, was eye-opening. In the end, Thomas played the race card, presenting himself as a victim of a high-tech lynching! [Video clip from near the end of the film] [Part of the hearings coverage by C-SPAN]

2019/11/13 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Venice, Italy, is coping with the worst flooding in 50 years Images from Danish String Quartet, performing at UCSB Aerial view of the city of Amasra in Turkey (1) Images of the day: [Left] Venice, Italy, is coping with the worst flooding in 50 years. [Center] Classical-music concert at UCSB's Campbell Hall tonight: On its second night in Santa Barbara, Danish String Quartet (sans Danish National Girls' Choir, which appeared with them at Granada Theater last night) performed music from Bach and Beethoven before the intermission and Mendelssohn afterwards. In the introduction, the group explained that the alternate order is more natural, given that Beethoven was influenced by Bach and in turn acted as a model for Mendelssohn. A very enjoyable night out! [Right] The city of Amasra, Turkey: Amasra takes its name from Amastris, a niece of Dariush III, the last monarch of Persia's Achaemenid dynasty.
(2) Expanding options for cutting the cord: In this chart, from Time magazine's issue of November 18, 2019, the most important subscription-based entertainment services are listed. Those in red (Philo, Sling, huluLiveTV, YouTubeTV, FuboTV, AT&TtvNow, ranging from $20 to $65 in monthly fees) also offer live TV programs, while the ones in blue (AppleTV+, hulu, Disney+, prime, Netflix, HBO, with lower $5-$15 monthly fees) include movies, older shows, and original programming.
(3) The puzzle of lung cancer in American women: About a quarter of women diagnosed with lung cancer are nonsmokers. The share of such diagnoses for the entire population is 15%. [Source: Time magazine, 11/18]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump is a big fan of Turkey's Erdogan and has rewarded him with an invitation to the White House.
- US State Department official faked her resume and accomplishments to land a high-level job.
- The deaths of 9 students during fall semester at University of Southern California are being investigated.
- Question about time zones: Is there a US state that observes more than one time zone? [Answer map]
- Persian music: "Khoosheh Chin" ("Cluster Picker"), lyrics by Karim Fakour. [5-minute video].
(5) "Sesame Street" turns 50: The curricular focus of the show's 50th season is "Oops and Aha: Embracing the Power of Possibilities." An intersection in NYC has been renamed "Sesame Street" and the show will become the first-ever TV program to receive a Kennedy Center Honor. [Source: Time magazine, November 18, 2019]
(6) Persian music: Bahar Choir performs "Shiveh-ye Noushin Laban" ("The Way of the Sweet-Lipped"), a composition by Ali Akbar Sheyda, with lyrics based on a poem by Foroughi Bastami, orchestration and conduction by Arash Fouladvand, vocals by Niaz Nawab. Wonderful!

2019/11/12 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Image: #YesAllWomen (1) Tweet by Karin Robinson, May 25, 2014, a couple of days after the Isla Vista mass-shooting by misogynist and male-rights-activist Elliot Rodger, killing 6 people and himself: "No, #NotAllMen are violent against women, but #YesAllWomen have to navigate a world where those who are look the same as those who aren't."
(2) Quote of the day: "Let's put it this way: if the Russians aren't paying him, they should have, because he's torn this country in two." ~ Author Stephen King, asked about his thoughts on Donald Trump
(3) The impact of Hafez on classical music: The Persian mystic poet was venerated by philosophers and composers, Goethe, Nietzsche, Brahms, and Wagner, among other Europeans.
(4) Kurdish music: The song "Gol Nishan" is performed in this 7-minute video by Kamkaran Ensemble. And here's a different version of the song performed by Tara Yousefi (vocals) and Zahed Mansouri (piano).
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Leaked e-mails connect White House adviser Stephen Miller to White Nationalists. [Tweet image]
- Tweet of the day: Yet one more form of misogyny in Iran. [For my Persian-speaking readers] [Image]
- Our beautiful and artful nature: Flight of the starlings. [2-minute video]
- Kurdish music: "Yawaran Masem" performed by Ranaei Family Ensemble. [10-minute video]
- Kurdish music: The song "Azizam to Gulakami" performed by Kamkaran Ensemble. [6-minute video]
- Music of Abdolhamid Barjasteh, a national treasure from Shushtar, a city in Iran's Khuzistan province.
(6) Billionaires and tax cuts: When Trump's tax cut for the rich was implemented, many in the top 0.1% claimed they disagreed with the cuts, once the extra money was safely in their pockets. Now, with a real chance of the cuts being reversed after 2020, they opine that tax increases are dangerous!
(7) If you got a Valentine's text message on November 7, you're not alone: The culprit is a company that provides texting service to some carriers. I hate to think how many fights started as a result of the unsent messages! "You forgot Valentine's Day?" "But, honey, I sent you a beautiful message, with photo and stickers!"
(8) Airbnb scam: You book a nice-looking unit that doesn't exist. Minutes before you are due to arrive at the place, the owner calls you about the unit being flooded due to plumbing problems and offers to put you up somewhere else, promising to move you into the original unit as soon as it is fixed. You stay at a flophouse and never get a refund. Details differ, but the scam, allowed by Airbnb's lax rules, is about misrepresentation (including fake reviews and multiple aliases for the same owners) along with lack of oversight.

2019/11/11 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Meme for Veterans' Day, featuring the US flag Cartoon about Mitch McConnell: 'Do-nothing Dems need to stop passing all these bills for me to ignore. I can't find my desk' The impeachment of Donald Trump: Cover feature of Time magazine's November 18, 2019, issue (1) Images of the day: [Left] Happy Veterans' Day! On this day, we honor the service and sacrifice of those who defend our country and our freedoms during war and peace. This morning, I attended special ceremonies for this momentous day at Santa Barbara Cemetery (photos), while taking advantage of the occasion to visit the graves of my father and ex-wife (see the last two items below). [Center] Moscow Mitch: "Do-nothing Dems need to stop passing all these bills for me to ignore. I can't find my desk." [Right] The impeachment of Donald Trump: Cover feature of Time magazine's November 18, 2019, issue.
(2) A beautiful day in Santa Barbara: The sun finally came out around 11:00 AM, too late to allow me to watch Mercury transit 2019, but just in time to head from the cemetery to Santa Barbara waterfront's Shorline Park for a long, invigorating walk. [Photos] From Shorline Park, I headed to Stearns Wharf for more walking, some people-watching (mostly tourists), and enjoyment of music performed by an older gentleman, the quality of its recording adversely affected by a howling wind. [Photos] [Sample music]
(3) Today is Singles' Day in China: Chinese Singles' or Bachelors' Day originated at Nanjing University in 1993. Singles' Day celebrations spread to several other universities in Nanjing during the 1990s. The holiday was named "Singles' Day" because its date, 11/11, consists of four 1s, representing four singles.
(4) While at Santa Barbara Cemetery today, I visited my father's grave: Here is a wonderful poem entitled "Father" (from Delights & Shadows, by Ted Kooser, Copper Canyon Press, 2004), which I noted during Yom Kippur service at Hillel in Isla Vista, and later pursued on-line to get the full text. Interestingly, my own father would have been 97 today, although he passed away 27 years ago, not 20.
Today you would be ninety-seven | if you had lived, and we would all be | miserable, you and your children, | driving from clinic to clinic, | an ancient fearful hypochondriac | and his fretful son and daughter, | asking directions, trying to read | the complicated, fading map of cures.
But with your dignity intact | you have been gone for twenty years, | and I am glad for all of us, although | I miss you every day—the heartbeat | under your necktie, the hand cupped | on the back of my neck, Old Spice | in the air, your voice delighted with stories.
On this day each year you loved to relate| that the moment of your birth| your mother glanced out the window| and saw lilacs in bloom. Well, today | lilacs are blooming in side yards | all over Iowa, still welcoming you.
(5) While at Santa Barbara Cemetery, I also visited the grave of my ex-wife, who passed at a relatively young age, relinquising her two hats of mother and computer software engineer: Here's a wonderful poem entitled "The Courage that My Mother Had," by Edna St. Vincent Millay [1892-1950], which I noted during Yom Kippur service at Hillel in Isla Vista, and later pursued on-line to get the full text. Luckily, at 90, my own mother is still with us, but the poem does make me think of her as well.
The courage that my mother had | Went with her, and is with her still: | Rock from New England quarried; | Now granite in a granite hill.
The golden brooch my mother wore | She left behind for me to wear; | I have nothing I treasure more: | Yet, it is something I could spare.
Oh, if instead she'd left to me | The thing she took into the grave!— | That courage like a rock, which she | Has no more need of, and I have.

2019/11/10 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The Berlin Wall fell 30 years ago, on November 10, 1989 Regular, infinite grid of identical resistors Cover image of Chanel Miller's 'Know My Name: A Memoir' (1) Images of the day: [Left] The Berlin Wall fell 30 years ago today (on November 10, 1989). [Center] Physics puzzle: This regular grid of identical resistors extends to infinity from all sides (if you are a practical person, consider it to be extremely large). What is the equivalent resistance between the two ends of a resistor? Once you have given the puzzle a try, refer to this complete analysis. [Right] Cover image of Chanel Miller's Know My Name: A Memoir (see my review in the last item below).
(2) Republicans keep stating that the impeachment inquiry is an attempt to overturn the result of the 2016 election: The latest to parrot this line is Ivanka Trump. Yes, that's exactly what impeachment is designed for; to get rid of a president, before he does further irrevocable damage to our country and its reputation.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Mercury will begin its 5.5-hour transit across the Sun tomorrow, Monday 11/11, beginning at 7:35 AM EST.
- Jailed activist lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh opines that in jail or out of jail, Iranians are in one big prison.
- This 1-minute video purportedly shows the gassing of Armenians in 1915, using car-exhaust fumes.
- Joke of the day: On the quick wit of older women. [Link]
- Azeri music: Based on a poem by tri-lingual mystic poet Imadaddin Nasimi. [7-minute video]
(4) If you think Trump has reversed himself too many times, take a look at his detractor-turned-defender Lindsey Graham: The fall of this hypocrite, who says he can't be bothered to read the transcripts from the impeachment inquiry, would be just as satisfying as Trump's!
(5) Book review: Miller, Chanel, Know My Name: A Memoir, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Penguin Audio, 2019. [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Rape victim Chanel Miller, known at the time of the trial of her assailant, Stanford University swim-team member Brock Turner, as "Emily Doe," has come forward with her memoir to claim her position as an icon of the #MeToo movement and to let sexual-assault victims around the world know that she is with them. Miller studied literature at UCSB's College of Creative Studies, so she was uniquely equipped to write her compelling true story, creating a modern classic.
Despite Miller's powerful and eloquent victim impact statement, that went viral worldwide and was translated into many different languages, the judge, citing Turner's "good character" and the already-harsh impact of the conviction on his once-promising future, sentenced him to only 6 months in prison, with the possibility of getting out in 3 months. The judge later lost his job due to a recall campaign.
This is a must-read/listen for anyone wanting to get a first-hand account of how it feels to be sexually assaulted and, then, be victim-shamed for getting drunk, subjected to detailed examination of your sex life, spend many hours in court (and outside the court, shopping for just-right court outfits, knowing that you'll be judged on them), shun intimacy, and experience loneliness, because you find it hard to trust others or even your own feelings. This CBS "60 Minutes" segment on Chanel Miller's ordeal is effectively put together.

2019/11/09 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Moshe Y. Vardi speaking at UCSB: Slide 1 Moshe Y. Vardi speaking at UCSB: Slide 2 Moshe Y. Vardi speaking at UCSB: Slide 3 (1) Slides from CS Distinguished Lecture by Moshe Vardi on Friday, November 8 (see the last item below).
(2) It's amazing how childish tweets and other idiocies are distracting us from the plight of Kurds in Syria: Killings by Turks continue, despite a supposed "cease fire." There is no report of even one American soldier returning home from Syria. Rather, troops are redeployed in the region. So, all the deaths were for nothing!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Vitamin E Acetate identified as likely culprit in vaping-related illnesses and deaths.
- A few celebs with big 7-Oh and 8-Oh birthdays in October and November. [Image source: AARP Magazine]
- On pitfalls of statistics: If Bill Gates walks into a room, on average, everyone in the room will be a billionaire!
- Event of possible interest to my SoCal readers: Farhang Foundation's Shab-e Yalda celebration.
(4) Computer Science Distinguished Lecture at UCSB: Moshe Y. Vardi (Distinguished Professor and Director of the Ken Kennedy Institute for Information Technology at Rice U.) spoke yesterday afternoon under the title "An Ethical Crisis in Computing?" Vardi argued that technology "brings with it not only societal benefits, but also significant costs, such as labor polarization, disinformation, and smart-phone addiction. ... The real issue is how to deal with technology's impact on society. Technology is driving the future, but who is doing the steering?"
An important aspect of the ethical crisis we face is the power big technology companies have over us. The current situation was created by our embrace of "free" services, that is, the illusion of "free lunch," while agreeing to provide personal data in return, under user agreements that were quite short at the beginning, but grew to book length over time. No one really reads these agreements, allowing big tech to hide behind their complexity. Vardi mentioned in the Q&A period that some of these companies do offer tools for you to control your data, but use of these tools is so cumbersome that few can take advantage of them.
In the course of his talk, Vardi used a number of interesting quotations from techies, journalists, and others, some of which are shown in the accompanying slide images. He also referred to several relevant books, including Cathy O'Neil's Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy and Shoshana Zuboff's The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power.
The excessive power of big tech, with the top five companies having $4 trillion in market capitalization, has dire consequences. Why don't we have any public policy in such an important sector of the economy? Tech products and services are designed to be addictive. It is alarming that many tech execs restrict the use of screens for their own children, while pushing them on our kids. It's no coincidence that youth suicide rates increased markedly in the decade immediately following the release of iPhone in 2007 and Facebook app for it in 2008.
What is at the center of these problems is lack of social responsibility. Ethics is what guides our personal behavior and key decisions, whereas acting on behalf of collective good requires following laws and considering ourselves bound by the social benefits/harms of our actions. A good example of where laws and regulations have helped is the steady decline in fatalities caused by motor vehicles, as measured by deaths per mile driven, over the past century. Safety equipment, driver-assistance features, crashworthiness tests, traffic engineering, and comprehensive traffic laws are the main reasons for the improved safety.
Decision-making by AI systems is another trouble spot. One should not trust any decision coming out of an opaque system, where the decision process is not explained or plainly visible. As a case in point, there is software marketed by Northpointe that predicts future criminals, and it has a strong bias against blacks.
So, how should we, as computing professionals, address these problems? First, we must recognize that the problems are very complex and not doing anything about them because we don't have a perfect solution is foolhardy. We can start by establishing plain-language requirements for terms-of-use and license agreements, devising rules for automated decision-making systems, mandating timely disclosure of data breaches, and requiring that Internet companies provide a paid, subscription-based, ads-free service option in exchange for not collecting data about users for the sake of targeting ads at them.
Vardi ended his talk by referring to Rice University's "Technology, Culture, and Society" initiative, which stands on the three legs of research/scholarship, education, and outreach. BMW's slogan "Don't be driven by technology—Drive it!" is equally applicable to information technology professionals.
Vardi is quite active on social media and has a large following on both Facebook and Twitter.

2019/11/08 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image of the audiobook 'White Trash' by Nancy Isenberg My T-shirt purchases inspired by Ruth Bader Ginsburg's book 'My Own Words' Costco-size assortment of baklavas: Yummy! (1) Images of the day: [Left] Cover image of the audiobook White Trash by Nancy Isenberg (see my review in the last item below). [Center] My T-shirt purchases inspired by RBG's book My Own Words, which I reviewed on November 5, 2019. The one on the left depicts the only four women to ever serve on the US Supreme Court, including the current three. [Right] Costco-size assortment of baklavas: Yummy!
(2) Bully is what bully does: Only Donald Trump would settle a lawsuit against his now-defunct "charitable" foundation for $2 million, essentially admitting guilt in abusing funds, and then rant about how awful New York state prosecutors are for accusing him of fraud. And this from a guy who has repeatedly boasted that he never settles a lawsuit!
(3) Begging for Trump's endorsement: Trump punching bag Jeff Sessions praises Trump's leadership as he embarks on a Senate run to reclaim his old seat.
(4) Two Twitter ex-employees charged with stealing the private data of users critical of the Saudi regime and sending the information to someone in the office of MBS.
(5) Book review: Isenberg, Nancy, White Trash: The 400-Year History of Class in America, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Kirsten Potter, Tantor Audio, 2016. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
America is often referred to as a class-free society. Nothing can be further from the truth. The terms "white trash" and "trailer trash" (alternately, "waste people," "rubbish," "rascals," "lazy lubbers," "clay eaters," or "sandhillers") are used by the elite to refer to uneducated or under-educated poor Americans. These wretched and landless poor folks have been looked down upon since the earliest colonial settlements. I have always despised these terms and don't use them in my own speech or writing, as I view them on par with other expressions of sexism and racism in the US.
Isenberg, a professor of history at Louisiana State University, meticulously lays down the travails of the American underclass, upending the assumptions of the class-free society and available-to-all upward mobility, the latter actually being an oxymoron in a class-free society!
In fact, the American Civil War was fought in equal parts over class conflicts and slavery. Once slaves were freed, they found themselves pitted against poor whites, who were also socially marginalized and even targeted for sterilization under the eugenics movement. It wasn't until LBJ's New Deal reforms that marginalized populations found a voice and started to weigh in as a political force.
Interestingly, some of this underclass was planted here by the British, in their eagerness to get rid of their most destitute city dwellers, who had become a drag on the British economy. Looking at these dwellers as "disposable property," England sought to convert them into economic assets to facilitate colonialization. So, many of the tales of the Puritans and Plymouth Rock are myths created to put lipstick on this pig.
I highly recommend Isenberg's book to anyone who wants to gain the requisite knowledge about America's underclass as a first step in the struggle to remove this ugly stain (perhaps as ugly as slavery) from our nation's history, a stain that has unfortunately darkened and expanded under Trump's presidency.

2019/11/07 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Dr. Marian Diamond [1926-2017] Upside-down image of an oriental girl Bar installed in the shower (1) Images of the day: [Left] "My Love Affair with the Brain": Subtitled "The Life & Science of Dr. Marian Diamond" (1926-2017), this award-winning documentary is about a woman scientist who worked behind the scenes for six decades as one of the founders of modern neuroscience and discoverer of neuroplasticity, shunning publicity while shattering the glass ceiling. She has a widely-viewed lecture series on YouTube. [Center] Turn your screen upside down: Can you explain what happens? [Right] Following the doctor's advice: This senior citizen's doctor told him it was time to install a bar in his shower.
(2) The mystery of the last missing person in California's Camp Fire: Sara Martinez-Fabila's last address on record was a PO Pox in Paradise, but no one is sure she was actually there at the time of the fire, and her family hasn't heard from her since.
(3) Holocaust survivor Liliana Segre assigned police protection in Italy: She was subjected to a barrage of anti-Semitic messages and death threats after she helped pass an anti-hate law opposed by right-wing groups.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Women are at the forefront of the fight for rights throughout the Middle East, not just in Iran.
- New Yorker cartoon of the day: Who gets thrown under the bus next? [Image]
- Impressive juggling act using hands and feet. [4-minute video]
- Persian music. [3-minute video]
(5) A Century of Empowerment: Looking forward to attending several events of UCSB's Thematic Learning Initiative, particularly "Anita: Speaking Truth to Power," a documentary film by Oscar-winning filmmaker Freida Mock, to be screened on Thursday, November 14, 2019, 7:30 PM, in UCSB's Campbell Hall. A related public lecture by Dr. Anita Hill will occur on Wednesday, February 19, 2020 (Campbell Hall, 7:30 PM).
(6) Today, I celebrated at Starbucks after passing written and vision tests at the DMV: Because I was getting Real ID, I had to present a bunch of documents, including my actual Social Security card. This one belongs in a museum; it was issued in 1969 during my graduate-student days in the US. The signature on it is also museum-quality! The DMV now has touch-sensitive computer screens for administering the written test. It wasn't much of a surprise when the fingerprint scanner attached to the computer screen didn't work and I had to take the old-fashioned paper test. The staff at the Goleta DMV office was quite helpful, though.

2019/11/06 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Martin Scorsese's mob masterpiece 'The Irishman' stars Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, both de-aged with help from technology Photos of Jennifer Aniston, Steve Carell, and Reese Witherspoon Flyer for Moshe Y. Vardi's Distinguished computer science lecture, 'An Ethical Crisis in Computing?' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Is movie make-up a thing of the past? Martin Scorsese's mob masterpiece "The Irishman" stars Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, both de-aged (made to look younger) with help from technology. [Center] Apple's much-anticipated #MeToo drama series: The series "Morning Show," based on Brian Stetler's 2013 non-fiction book Top of the Morning, was green-lighted before the Matt Lauer scandal at NBC broke, so creators Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon took a cue and reoriented the show's story to focus on a sexual misconduct scandal involving a male anchor (played by Steve Carell). [Right] Computer Science Distinguished Lecture at UCSB: Moshe Y. Vardi (Distinguished Professor and Director of the Ken Kennedy Institute for Information Technology at Rice University) will speak under the title "An Ethical Crisis in Computing?" (November 8, 2019, Life Sciences 1001, reception at 3:00 PM, talk at 3:30). Vardi will argue that technology "brings with it not only societal benefits, but also significant costs, such as labor polarization, disinformation, and smart-phone addiction. ... The real issue is how to deal with technology's impact on society. Technology is driving the future, but who is doing the steering?"
(2) The boat stuck near Niagara Falls: Lodged amid rocks in the upper rapids, about 600 meters from the brink of the Horseshoe Falls, the boat shifts in severe storms but has stayed in place for 101 years.
(3) Noon concert at the UCSB Music Bowl: Today's "World Music Series" concert featured jazz with the SBLASLO Trio. Here's a sample tune entitled "Segment" (by Charlie Parker).
(4) Grad school fair: Today, a quarter-mile stretch of a main UCSB walkway hosted tables from various universities who sent reps to our campus to advertise their graduate programs and recruit students. Not all tables had been set up yet when I walked through the area this morning on the way to my 10:00 AM class.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The incompetence defense: Sen. Graham says Trump administration too dumb to execute a quid pro quo.
- Trump asked AG Barr to hold a news conference, clearing him of wrongdoing on Ukraine, but he refused.
- Fortune cookie (image): Awaiting loud screams from family and friends!
- This 4000-year-old cedar in Yazd, Iran, is one of only 26 trees dating back to the time before Christ.
(6) You cannot mess with people's survival instinct: A growing number of Trump cronies are jumping ship. You can block the path of rats trying to run from a sinking ship, but they'll find a way around any obstacle.
(7) DeepMind beats humans at deciphering damaged ancient Greek tablets: Researchers at DeepMind trained an AI algorithm to guess missing words or characters from 2600-year-old Greek inscriptions.

2019/11/05 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's 'My Own Words' Nobel Prizes awarded women over 12 decades (total 52; 20 in the sciences) Communication skills for polygamist families: New educational workshop being offered in Iran (1) Images of the day: [Left] Cover image of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's My Own Words (see my review in the last item below). [Center] Nobel Prizes awarded women over 12 decades (total 52): I have added the number of prizes that were in science fields within the white square boxes to the figure provided by the Nobel Prize Org. The data shows that women are honored quite infrequently and mostly in literature and peace categories. [Right] Communication skills for polygamist families: New educational workshop being offered in Iran.
(2) Nine Americans dead in northern Mexico: Drug-cartel gunmen ambushed a convoy of SUVs carrying a religious group, killing three women and six children and then setting them alight, in what may have been a case of mistaken identity.
(3) "Is Politics Our New Religion?": This was the title of a thought-provoking and well-attended talk by Dr. Ann Taves (UCSB Professor of Religious Studies) this afternoon in the Pacific View Speaker Series, held, appropriately, in the Pacific View room on the eighth floor of UCSB Library. [Photos/Slides]
Religion and politics are defined in many different ways, so the answer to the titular question isn't at all obvious. Taves avoids the definitional challenges by viewing both religion and politics as different ways of answering the big questions (who we are, the situation in which we find ourselves, and the goals toward which we strive) that structure of worldviews.
Dr. Taves began by quoting from two rather controversial opinions, one by Andrew Sullivan, an essay in New York Magazine, December 7, 2018, and a speech on religious liberty at U. Notre Dame by AG William Barr. Sullivan asserts that political cults are filling the space left by the decline of organized faiths. Barr laments that the secular project has itself become a religion.
Dr. Taves then asserted that religion and politics are similar in that they both can/may:
- provide a sense of identity, meaning, and purpose
- involve strongly-held views
- support overlapping or conflicting views
- become disconnected from science or other evidence
Among methods advocated by Dr. Taves are "generous listening," bearing in mind that the answers provided to big questions by religion and politics are often not explicit, but embedded in ways of life.
At the end, Dr. Taves pointed to a November 3, 2019, piece in New York Times, bearing the title "How to Get Trump Voters and Liberals to Talk: Don't Make Anyone Sit in a Circle."
(4) Book review: Ginsburg, Ruth Bader, with Mary Hartnett and Wendy W. Williams, My Own Words, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Ginsburg and Linda Lavin, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2016.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
There have been several books by and about the "Notorious RBG," but this is her very first book since becoming a Supreme Court Justice in 1993. This book was planned for publication after another book by Hartnett and Williams, RBG's official biography, but the publication order was flipped to allow the inclusion of a more complete record of her still-ongoing work on the Supreme Court in the official biography.
My Own Words consists of a fascinating collection of RBG's speeches and writings. A few of the pieces that use archival recordings suffer from poor audio quality, but, I guess, this is the price one pays for greater authenticity. One speech about RBG, by her late husband Martin D. Ginsburg [1954-2010], is particularly touching and funny. The pieces were selected by RBG, with background and biographical context for each piece provided by the other two authors.
The speeches and writings in this book are just the tip of the iceberg that represents RBG's contributions to the legal landscape in the US, particularly with regards to women's rights and equality. In making her case to the court, she proceeded methodically and with care, yet forcefully. Her legal approach comes across in several opinions that are included in this collection. Particularly noteworthy are her writings (some of which were read from the bench for greater effect) when dissenting with the Court's majority opinion.
RBG describes her unlikely friendship with Chief Justice Antonin Scalia fondly and touchingly. They both loved opera and once participated in a musical production that referred to them as "The Supremes." Here is a wonderful 10-minute TEDx talk by composer Derick Wang about the funny/affectionate opera entitled "Scalia/Ginsburg"! Here are a few snippets of the opera.
As influential as RBG has been in shaping and advancing the struggle for women's rights in the US, she is very aware of the fact that she stands on the shoulders of many women before her, including Sandra Day O'Connor, her "sister in law" and the very first woman on the US Supreme Court. Before O'Connor broke the barrier of women's membership on the SCOTUS in 1981, spouses of Supreme Court Justices played key roles in softening the Court's male domination, and RBG pays tribute to several of them.
This is a must-read/listen for anyone interested in women's rights and RBG's role in advancing them. The Supreme Court will not be the same when she decides to retire!

2019/11/04 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Fall foliage on Kolakchal Mountain, Tehran, Iran: Photo 2 Fall foliage on Kolakchal Mountain, Tehran, Iran: Photo 3 Fall foliage on Kolakchal Mountain, Tehran, Iran: Photo 4 (1) Fall foliage, Kolakchal Mountain, Tehran, Iran. [Thanks to my avid hiker/mountaineer friend Ahmad Asfia]
(2) Persian poetry: Mostafa Badkoobei, who served a prison term for criticizing the Iranian regime, recites one of the patriotic poems for which he is famous. [12-minute video]
(3) The crime-fighter turned criminal: Rudi Giuliani used his shady contacts and access to Trump to line his pockets and damage Trump by association, but Trump wouldn't let go of him, yet!
(4) Reversing the trend of people avoiding walking: Boston-based robotics firm Piaggio Fast Forward will soon deploy a bipedal wheeled robot that hauls up to 40 lbs of the owners' belongings as it follows behind them.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Car bomb in the Syrian border town of Tal Abyad kills at least 13, said to be civilians and Turkish soldiers.
- FBI undercover work leads to the arrest of a White Supremacist with detailed plans to bomb a synagogue.
- A Frenchwoman sold a painting she had in her kitchem for $26.6 million! [Source: Time magazine]
- Ghost residential towers of Tehran are built in the middle of nowhere, with no support infrastructure.
- Being alone with yourself is different from loneliness: One helps in many different ways, the other hurts.
- A colorful and nicely-designed flower park in Dubai. [3-minute video] [Overhead photo]
(6) Charlie Chaplin received an honorary Oscar in 1972: The award and the audience's 12-minute standing ovation were nice gestures, but hardly enough to erase the bitterness of the talented artist and a major force in American cinema living in exile for years because of accusations of communism.
(7) The mysterious X-37B space plane: The secret US Air Force unmanned plane landed on 10/27, after spending 780 days in Earth's orbit. [Source: Time magazine, issue of November 11, 2019]
(8) Russian trolls are becoming more sophisticated: During their operations leading to the 2016 US election, frequent grammatical and spelling errors gave their identity away. Now, they are using mostly screenshots of other people's posts or tweets, with no commentary. There are also reports that Russians have hacked into Iran's cyber-spying network to make their posts appear to be coming from Iran.
(9) Spent some time yesterday, including the extra hour I gained from fall-back, working at a Starbucks in Goleta and listening to the wonderful music of David Tovar (sax, flute, vocals). [Video 1] [Video 2]

2019/11/03 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
'Montage 2019,' UCSB Department of Music's sixth annual showcase free concert at 4:00 PM on Saturday 11/23 Sixty pairs of iron shoes line the bank of Danube in Budapest You have heard of tornado chasers: Now meet wildfire chasers! (1) Images of the day: [Left] Marjorie Luke Theater at Santa Barbara Junior High will host "Montage 2019": Curated by Professor of Flute Jill Felber, UCSB Department of Music's sixth annual free concert at 4:00 PM on Saturday 11/23 will feature performances by outstanding faculty, students, and alumni. [Center] Sixty pairs of iron shoes line the bank of Danube in Budapest: Here, during World War II, Jews were brought to the water's edge, ordered to remove their shoes, and shot, falling into the water below. [Right] You have heard of tornado chasers: Now meet wildfire chasers!
(2) Brain drain: A Baha'i young man, who was banned from attending university in Iran, is part of Google's quantum-computing team, which recently announced a breakthrough known as "quantum supermacy."
(3) Ukranian President Zelenski faces a major dilemma: Today, he has to deal with Donald Trump, who wants Joe Biden investigated, but he may have to deal with President Biden next year, when the US government may well be investigating Trump!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- There are no white people in the Bible, so nothing in it justifies White Supremacy. [Meme of the day]
- A capsule history of Tehran, including how names of various neighborhoods and buildings came about.
- Persian music: A nice song, performed as part of a cheesy Iranian movie of many decades ago.
- Classical Persian music: Wonderful instrumental performance on piano and kamancheh. [3-minute video]
(5) UCLA Iranian Studies Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran, 2019-2020 (partial) schedule:
Sun. 11/17, Soroush Dabbagh, "Civil Marriage from an Ethical Perspective" (in Persian, Dodd Hall 78, 4 PM)
Wed. 12/04, Yann Richard, "Persian Collective Memory and the Writing of History" (Royce Hall 306, 4 PM)
Sun. 1/26, Ahmad Kiarostami, "Case No. 1, Case No. 2" (Persian film with English subtitles, 4 PM)
Sun. 2/09, Narges Bajoghli, "Iran Reframed: Anxieties of Power in the Islamic Republic" (in Persian, 4 PM)
Mon. 2/10, Narges Bajoghli (English version of the 2/09 talk)
Sun. 4/26, Roxanne Varzi, "Tehran Tourist" (Persian film with English subtitles, 4 PM)
Mon. 5/18, Claudia Yaghoobi, "Embodiment, Power, and Politics in Farahbakhsh's Zendegi-ye Khosusi" (4 PM)
(6) Now, let me tell you about Pakistan (a Persian joke): Kellyanne Conway and other Republicans defending Trump on Sunday-morning news shows remind me of this Persian joke. A student had an oral geography test the next day, but he did not have time to learn about all the countries in his textbook. So, he focused on Pakistan, and learned all there was to know about the country. When he was asked about Turkey, he responded thus: Turkey is a neighbor of Iran and Iran is a neighbor of Pakistan. Now, let me tell you about Pakistan ...

2019/11/02 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Magazine covers this week: Time Lost in translation: 'Do not rely on train door' Magazine covers this week: Newsweek (1) Images of the day: [Left & Right] Magazine covers this week: Time designates Giuliani as "Secretary of Offense"; Newsweek features Andrew Yang, in conjunction with stories on top STEM schools and math jobs. [Center] Lost in translation: "Do not rely on train door." It is not trustworthy and may break your heart!
(2) The Spectator Index ranks countries by the quality of their research institutions: As expected, the US and China top the list at #1 and #2, respectively. The top-5 spots are completed by France, Germany, and UK, again will little surprise. What's surprising is the appearance of Iran at #16, right after Taiwan and ahead of Netherlands, Poland, Turkey, and Switzerland.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Holocaust survivor's daughter Sophie Wilmes, mother of four, is Belgium's first female and first Jewish PM.
- Santa Barbara City College has a new President: Dr. Utpal K. Gowsami will begin his new role in 2020.
- Clinical psychologist Dr. Maria Sirois answers questions on happiness and positivity. [6-minute video]
- The life story of Mohammad Reza Shajarian, perhaps the most-loved musician in modern-day Iran.
- Iranian regional music: Homeyra Esfahani sings. [2-minute video]
(4) The driver who caused the 3-fatality crash on Santa Barbara's Highway 154 was a ticking time bomb: He was recently arrested on gun and stalking charges and had been involuntarily committed to a psychiatric hospital. He essentially murdered a woman and two children by reckless driving.
(5) A wonderful poem entitled "Father" (from Delights & Shadows, by Ted Kooser, Copper Canyon Press, 2004), which I noted during Yom Kippur service at Hillel in Isla Vista, and later pursued on-line to get the full text. Interestingly, my own father would have been 97 today, although he passed away 27 years ago, not 20.
Today you would be ninety-seven | if you had lived, and we would all be | miserable, you and your children, | driving from clinic to clinic, | an ancient fearful hypochondriac | and his fretful son and daughter, | asking directions, trying to read | the complicated, fading map of cures. | But with your dignity intact | you have been gone for twenty years, | and I am glad for all of us, although | I miss you every day—the heartbeat | under your necktie, the hand cupped | on the back of my neck, Old Spice | in the air, your voice delighted with stories. | On this day each year you loved to relate | that the moment of your birth | your mother glanced out the window | and saw lilacs in bloom. Well, today | lilacs are blooming in side yards | all over Iowa, still welcoming you.

2019/11/01 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Sea gulls are changing their habitat on Santa Barbara Channel Islands, Photo 1 Contrast: How a Kurdish fighter deals with an injured ISIS prisoner vs. treatment of a captured Kurdish woman by ISIS-like Turks Sea gulls are changing their habitat on Santa Barbara Channel Islands, Photo 2 (1) Images of the day: [Left & Right] Sea gulls are changing their habitat on Santa Barbara Channel Islands (see the last item below). [Center] Contrast: How a Kurdish fighter deals with an injured ISIS prisoner vs. treatment of a captured Kurdish woman by ISIS-like Turkish soldiers.
(2) Boeing's new troubles: Qantas grounds three 737 NG jets due to cracks. Elsewhere in the news, a union representing American Airlines' flight attendants sent a letter to Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg highlighting concerns with the safety of the Boeing 737 MAX.
(3) Citing poor treatment by public officials in New York, Donald Trump switches his residence from NYC to Florida's Palm Beach. Florida does not have a state income tax or inheritance tax, making it a refuge for the wealthy to escape the higher taxes of the Northeast.
(4) Unbelievable news from Iran: Islamic Revolutionary Guards officials pay tribute to Jewish martyrs of the 8-year Iran-Iraq war. [The story, in French, includes a video]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Yet another fire in Southern California: Ventura County's Maria Fire expands near Santa Paula.
- Santa Barbara County has issued an air-quality warning due to the still-expanding Maria Fire
- Mass shooting in SF Bay Area: At least 4 dead, several injured at a Halloween party in Orinda, California.
- Today is Kobani Resistance Day. [1-minute video]
- An anthem composed for Efrin. [3-minute video]
- Iranian police roughs up women who remove their headscarves or are deemed to have improper hijab.
(6) "Towards Learning with Brain Efficiency": This was the title of a talk by Mohsen Imani (PhD candidate, UCSD) this afternoon, under the auspices of UCSB's Institute for Energy Efficiency. Mr. Imani's focus is on hyper-dimensional computing, an alternative method for computation which exploits key principles of brain functionality, that is, robustness to noise/error and intertwined memory and logic. Information representation is in terms of very long vectors (that is, very-high dimension), which allows combining information with massively-parallel bit-level processing. The human brain uses about 20 W of energy, with the entire body getting by with about 100 W. This is in stark contrast to megawatts of energy required by current supercomputers. Mr. Imani has devised learning algorithms that are resilient to hardware failures and exploit processing-in-memory schemes. He has also developed hardware designs to support his new algorithms.
(7) How sea gull poop is changing the Channel Islands: UCSB graduate student Ana Sofia Guerra tracks sea gulls as they go back and forth between their homes on the Channel Islands archipelago and various eateries on the mainland. "She's tracked sea gulls on ventures from their pristine island home to an In-n-Out in El Segundo, a catering kitchen in Compton and the Roadium Open Air Market in Torrance. On one trip, a bird she monitored flew to a row of Vietnamese restaurants in Anaheim, then visited a bakery a few blocks away for dessert. In their natural habitat, gulls primarily eat squid, anchovies, crabs, barnacles and other marine life. But when it comes to people food, they are willing to try just about anything. Usually it's humans who are responsible for polluting natural ecosystems. But on Anacapa and Santa Barbara islands, gulls appear to be the ones spoiling the wild habitat with processed food and puked-up trash." [From: LA Times]

2019/10/31 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Halloween: New Yorker cartoon of a pumpkin Screenshot from the Web site 'Rising Star 2019: An Academic Career Workshop for Women in EECS' NSF Director, France A. Cardova, spoke at UCSB today (1) Images of the day: [Left] Happy Halloween (New Yorker cartoon): "Any resemblance to an actual person, living or dead, is unintended and purely coincidental." (My Halloween photos) [Center] Screenshot from the Web site "Rising Star 2019: An Academic Career Workshop for Women in EECS" (see the last item below). [Right] NSF Director, France A. Cardova, spoke at UCSB today (see the next to the last item below).
(2) Emoluments: Trump has promoted his properties on average once every 4-5 days since he became president, according to Newsweek. He used the occasion of announcing Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's elimination to rant about himself, his books, and everything else Trump, for 48 minutes, embellishing facts and inventing alternative facts as he went along!
(3) US House of Representatives votes to formalize the impeachment inquiry: Jeff Van Drew (NJ) and Collin Peterson (MN) were the only Democrats who joined all 194 Republicans to vote against the resolution.
(4) Obama vs. Trump: Jimmy Kimmel puts segments of the announcements of Osama bin Laden's elimination and Abu Bakr al-Baghadadi's elimination side by side for comic effect. [1-minute video]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- US House of Representatives overwhelmingly approves resolution recognizing the Armenian genocide.
- Massive train fire in the eastern Pakistani province of Punjab kills at least 73.
- Charges filed against a Missouri man who flew to California, lighted wildfires, and tried to fly back.
- Significant cooling in our area along with much less wind raise the hopes of bringing wildfires under control.
(6) US National Science Foundation Director spoke at UCSB today: Astrophysicist France A. Cordova has been heading the research-funding federal agency with an annual budget of $8.1 billion since 2013. She spoke under the title "Thinking Big: NSF's Vision for Research Investment." Cordova was formerly NASA Chief Scientist, Vice Chancellor for Research at UCSB, and Chancellor at UC Riverside. She spoke under the title "Thinking Big: NSF's Vision for Research Investment." Among Cordova's observations were the facts that NSF funds a significant fraction of all US research, particularly in computer science, and that research directions are set both in a bottom-up fashion (researchers submitting proposals) and a top-down style (NSF setting priorities and announcing special programs).
(7) Recruiting women to EECS faculty positions: The Web site "Rising Stars 2019: An Academic Career Workshop for Women in EECS" constitutes an invaluable resource for identifying promising women faculty candidates in electrical engineering and computer science. The workshop is being held at U. Illinois and rumor has it that a number of department chairs have converged on Urbana-Champaign to get a head-start in recruiting these talents. I was delighted to see many Iranian names among the participants. These include Bahar Asgari (Georgia Tech), Forough Arabshahi (CMU), Samaneh Azadi (UC Berkeley), Najme Ebrahimi (U. Michigan), Pardis Emami Naeini (CMU), Yasaman Ghasempour (Rice U.), Bahar Haghighat (Harvard U.), Sahar Hashemgeloogerdi (U. Rochester), Hoda Heidari (ETH-Zurich), Reyhaneh Jabbarvand (UC Irvine), Faria Kalim (U. Illinois), Sepideh Mahabadi (Toyoto Technological Inst. Chicago), Nooshin Mohammadi Estakhri (U. Michigan), Elaheh Soltanaghaei (U. Virginia), Nazanin Takbiri (U. Mass. Amherst), and perhaps a couple more about whose national origins I wasn't sure.

2019/10/30 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Time magazine's cover feature for the November 4, 2019, issue deals with health innovation Last night's film screening at UCSB's Pollock Theater: 'Uncovered' Newsweek cover feature: Can we trust the increasing number of Internet-connected devices that surround us? (1) Images of the day: [Left] Time magazine's cover feature on health innovation: From 70% reduction in cardiovascular deaths over 5 decades to a variety of technological issues and solutions such as robotics, gene editing, the biggest big data, artificial intelligence, and electrification. [Center] Last night's film screening at UCSB's Pollock Theater: 'Uncovered' (see the last item below). [Right] Newsweek cover feature: Can we trust the increasing number of Internet-connected devices that surround us?
(2) Trump booed at the stadium: Fox & Friends cuts out the booing of spectators at Game 5 of the World Series, and Trump later claims that fake-news "liberals" had digitally added the booing in their versions of the video clips. Another example of alternative facts!
(3) SoCal fire woes continue: The new "Easy Fire" in Simi Valley, near Reagan Presidential Library, is being spread by hurricane-force winds of up to 70 miles per hour. Route 23, from Thousand Oaks to Moorpark, is closed, as are many schools and colleges in the area. Brentwood's Getty Fire continues to rage. Stay safe!
(4) "World Music Series" noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl today: A subset of UCSB Middle East Ensemble performed. [Video 1] [Video 2, Latin-Arabic fusion music and dance] [Video 3, Lebanese music and dance] [Video 4, a Sephardic song, from Jews who fled Spain and took refuge in the Ottoman Empire, where their music fused with Turks, Armenians, and other natives of the region]
(5) "Uncovered: Health Care Conversations with Ady Barkan": This is the title of a documentary feature film due for release in 2020, in time to shape discussions of health care in the 2020 US elections. Snippets of the film, consisting of conversations with Democratic presidential candidates Cory Booker, Bernie Sanders, Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, and Pete Buttigieg were shown at UCSB's Pollock Theater last night (Joe Biden declined the invitation to participate).
The 60-minute short-film screenings were followed by a conversation with activist Ady Barkan (who, along with his family, have struggled to keep up with insurance paperwork since his ALS diagnosis in 2016), Liz Jaff (series creator and President of Be a Hero PAC), and director Nick Bruckman (Founder of People's Television).
Barkan and his group strive to help overhaul the healthcare system in the US by sharing personal stories that highlight ordinary Americans' encounters with the system. In fact, all the candidates interviewed in the various segments were asked to relate their experiences with the healthcare system for their own or a loved one's medical problems.
One important point made is that whereas nurses are supportive of more accessible healthcare under plans such as Medicare-for-All, physicians and AMA represent major obstacles to reform. ["Uncovered" Web site] [Interview segments: Cory Booker; Pete Buttigieg; Kamala Harris; Bernie Sanders; Elizabeth Warren] [Video of Ady Barkan speaking last night]

2019/10/29 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Steven Pinker's 'Enlightenment Now' A collage of photos from fires raging in California (1) Images of the day: [Left] Cover image for Steven Pinker's Enlightenment Now (see the last item below for my review). [Center] A collage of photos from fires raging in California: Please stay safe! [Right] Two of my selfies taken over the past week, wearing T-shirts with Persian calligraphic art.
(2) A controversial new discovery traces the roots of all Homo sapiens to a vast wetland south of Africa's Zambezi river which was their home for 70,000 years of their 200,000-year existence.
(3) How today's packed passenger planes affect evacuation time and thus chances of survival in emergency situations: FAA will embark on experiments, using 720 volunteers. [Source: Time magazine]
(4) Water, the precious resource: Matt Damon reminds us that while we Westerners take easy, 24/7 access to clean water for granted, in some areas of the world, people spend up to 6 hours a day to secure water. So, for some, it's education/job or access to water; they can't have both.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Environmentalist/entrepreneur makes Kermanshah a model Iranian city for recycling and green living.
- French tourists drive to Isfahan on Citroens to mark the iconic car's 100th birthday. [Video]
- Moshir-ol-molk Ansari's historical residence in Isfahan, central Iran. [Video]
- Persian music: Short snippet of the oldie song "Shaanah" ("Comb"). [1-minute video]
(6) Illegal appropriation of Iranian artists' works: This pre-Islamic-Revolution Persian song is now used in religious mourning ceremonies by individuals who had no role in its creation. Many artists, particularly women, were persecuted, forced into retirement, or fled the country after the Islamic Revolution, because their works were deemed deviant or sinful by Islamic hardliners.
(7) Shamelessly defending Trump: It's getting harder and harder to watch Mike Pence (interviewed on PBS) and other cowardly Republicans defend Donald Trump, without feeling the urge to smash your TV!
(8) Book review: Pinker, Steven, Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Arthur Morey, Penguin Audio, 2018.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The thesis of this book is that things are improving in our world at a rapid pace, but if you listen to the news, you'll be left with the impression that everything is falling apart. A case in point is the fact that every cell phone adds $3000 to the GDP of a developing country, an improvement we rarely, if ever, hear about on the news.
With this book, Pinker opens our eyes to realities that are pushed to the side in favor of sensational stories of doom and gloom. Even such horror stories, though not their coverage, are on the decline. Crime rates are going down. Terrorists kill fewer people. Deaths from traffic accidents are at an all-time low. Poverty is shrinking worldwide. Clean drinking water is becoming widely available, though we have a long way to go in this regard.
At times, Pinker's ultra-optimism leaves you aghast, but, by and large, he is right. When we complain upon returning from a trip about the 40 minutes the plane sat on the tarmac, we are forgetting that cross-country travel used to take months and had a non-neligible probability of leading to death

2019/10/28 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Dr. Kaveh Madani's UCLA lecture on Iran Discovered Brexit post of the day: The new British Vauxhaul model Fortune cookie message telling me that prosperity will soon knock on my door (1) Images of the day: [Left] UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran: Yesterday afternoon's talk by Dr. Kaveh Madani (see the last item below). [Center] Brexit post: The new British Vauxhaul model. [Right] Which door will prosperity knock on? Should I stay home or go to work this week? Need a second fortune cookie!
(2) I think advertisers have given up on me dying: I no longer receive weekly Neptune Society ads (for creamation services), but do get frequent offers of Medicare supplemental insurance plans!
(3) Money can buy anything: Parents who put their children's lives in limbo by trying to bribe their way into elite colleges are now hiring high-priced law firms to make sure their actions will not lead to unfavorable admission decisions at other colleges.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Getty Fire (west of I405, north of Sunset Blvd.) leads to mandatory evacuations in LA's Brentwood area.
- Ice, ice, baby! And lots of snow too! [3-minute video]
- Blinded acid-attack victim in Iran continues life with hope and determination: Feminism defined!
- Persian music and spiritual dance: Based on a poem by Rahi Moayeri. [Video]
- Watch this 73-year-old Shanghai women, dancing with her 28-year-old grandson, amaze the audience.
- Cute and fashionable Kurdish kids: To make us wipe away our tears briefly over Turkish atrocities.
(5) The first 2019-2020 talk in UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran: Dr. Kaveh Madani (The MacMillan Center, Dept. Political Science, Yale U.) spoke in Persian at 4:00 PM yesterday in Dodd Hall 78 under the title "Water Bankruptcy and Environmental Politics in Iran." The same lecture was to be delivered in English today at 2:00 PM, but it was postponed owing to the Getty Fire near UCLA.
Dr. Madani began by telling the story of how he got to work as part of President Rouhani's government. To his surprise, he was contacted in England two years ago and offered the job of Deputy Head of Iran's Department of Environment; within a week, he was in Iran, where he was promptly detained and interrogated upon entry! From the very beginning, conservative officials and extra-governmental centers of power worked against him, spreading unfounded accusations and making his job more difficult than it already was due to Iran's serious environmental challenges. He lasted in this position only until April 2018!
Iran is known as a dry country. Average percepitation is low to begin with, and 75% of it comes during the off-season for agriculture. Available fresh-water resources are estimated in the 100 BCM (billions of cubic meters) neighborhood. Estimates vary from a high of 130 BCM to a low of 70 BCM, with the latter low figure used by some as a fig leaf to hide misguided policies and mismanagement.
City dwellers account for 70% of Iran's population, and 20% of the workforce is engaged in farming, albeit rather inefficiently. Given the above figures, it is rather remarkable that cities have nearly perfect coverage in their clean-water distribution systems. Water supply in the rural areas is more problematic. The sewer infrastructure is weak throughout the country, with the age-old method of digging sewer-wells creating water contamination in densely-populated mega-cities.
Undue emphasis on development, as well as promoting agriculture in areas that do not have adequate water resources, led first to depletion of surface water (Lake Urmia being the most visible example) and then to the depletion of undergraound reservoirs. Dr. Madani likened this situation to spending the money in our savings account, without replenishing the funds for future emergencies. The drop in the underground water levels has led to many sinkholes, a phenomenon that was rather rare before the current overuse.
To say that water shortage in Iran represent a crisis would be an understatement; bankruptcy is a more apt term. We need to acknowledge this situation and understand its causes, before we can think about solutions. This bankruptcy is not the work of this or that president but has resulted from decades of neglect and mismanagement. Given the large number of stakeholders, including farms dying from lack of water, addressing the problem requires political boldness and courage.
A step in the direction of solving these problems is to value expert opinion and not propagate myths and falsehoods, such the nonsensical statement that drought "will increase 11-fold" by a given date or that NASA studies have predicted doom and gloom for Iran's climate.
The three key reasons for the aforementioned bankruptcy are:
- Rapid increase in population (from 24M in 1961, through 66M in 2001, to 80M in 2018) and dense mega-cities, holding 70% of the population and thus exerting disproportionate influence on policies.
- Inefficient agriculture, where crops do not match local resources and multi-year planning is all but non-existent. Iran's share of GDP due to agriculture is around 10%, utilizing some 90% of water resources.
- Thirst for development (over-building of dams, towers, and highways, viewed as prestige symbols, a la Dubai, without attendant environmental evaluation), along with mismanagement and corruption at all levels.
In the end, Dr. Madani outlined some solution strategies, defined by the acronym DARE: Diversify the economy; Adapt to new situation; Raise awareness; Empower the farmers. Among Dr. Madani's contributions to promoting awareness in this regard is the documentary film, "Iran's Water Crisis."
A lively Q&A session ended this well-attended 2-hour lecture.
[Facebook post with photos and images of some slides, as well as a Persian version of this report.] [Tweet]

2019/10/27 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
My Persian rendition of the tender Luri love poem 'Beheshti Besazam' Fragrant beauties, picked today from one of my rose bushes Some verses of the Luri love poem 'Beheshti Besazam,' by Gholamreza Sabzali (1) My Persian rendition [Left] of the tender Luri love poem "Beheshti Besazam" [Right] by Gholamreza Sabzali, alongside fragrant beauties from one of my rose bushes [Center]: The words aren't exactly the same, and my version covers only parts of a longer poem, but the sentiment is preserved. Luri is a dialect spoken in Iran's Luristan province.
(2) Butt-dials can be more than a mild embarrassment: Rudi Giuliani butt-dials a reporter with whom he had spoken earlier and reveals part of a private conversation with a friend in a 3-minute inadvertently-recorded voice message. The reporter should seriously consider removing the 3-minute limit on voice messages!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi believed to have been killed in a US raid in northwestern Syria.
- Elijah Cummings' son refuses to shake hands with Mitch McConnell during his father's memorial service.
- Elijah Cummings' widow brings the crowd to their feet with powerful, zinging eulogy: Bravo!
- Internal messages show that Boeing employees were aware of issues with 737 MAX years before crashes.
- Exposing Senator Lindsey Graham's extreme hypocrisy regarding impeachment.
- Only 10 students were invited to Trump's speech at Benedict, a historically-black college.
(4) This wonderful song entitled "Do It Now" (also known as "The Climate Song") is from seven years ago: Still worth listening to and sharing. The lyrics follow. [Version sung by Belgian children]
We need to wake up | We need to wise up | We need to open our eyes | And do it now now now
We need to build a better future | And we need to start right now
We're on a planet | That has a problem | We've got to solve it, get involved | And do it now now now
We need to build a better future | And we need to start right now
Make it greener | Make it cleaner | Make it last, make it fast | And do it now now now
We need to build a better future | And we need to start right now
No point in waiting | Or hesitating | We must get wise, take no more lies | And do it now now-now
We need to build a better future | And we need to start right now

2019/10/26 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The French 2024 Olympics logo 195-gigapixel photo taken over 2 months by the BigPixel company from atop Shanghai's Oriental Pearl Tower At the height of the #MeToo movement, women at Ernst & Young were instructed to dress and act nicely around men! (1) Images of the day: [Left] The French 2024 Olympics logo: The ambiguous image brings to mind the Olympics torch flame or a Parisian woman. Rather sexist, in my view! [Center] This 195-gigapixel photo was taken over 2 months by the BigPixel company from atop Shanghai's Oriental Pearl Tower. Pan and zoom to see everything in Shanghai, even cars' license plates, a boat's registration number, and many other details on the streets. Enjoy! [Right] At the height of the #MeToo movement, women at Ernst & Young were instructed to dress and act nicely around men!
(2) Misogyny to the extreme: Parnian Yeganeh, "White Wednesdays" campaigner against compulsory hijab in Iran, threatened with rape if she doesn't stop her activities.
(3) Digging up history in the Holy Land: Excavations for building a new neighborhood in Bet Shemesh have unearthed the remains of a 6th-century Byzantine church dedicated to an unnamed "glorious martyr."
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- As many as 2 million Californians, mostly in the north, may lose power this weekend, as wildfires rage.
- The Ukrainian leader felt pressure from Trump even before he took office, according to his aides.
- Republicans putting aside that pesky morality thing to support an inept Commander-in-Cheat!
- Rudy Giuliani has disappeared from public view, but John Lithgow's impersonation of him is here for laughs.
- Tiny satellites are the new workhorses of space exploration. [NPR report]
- Words in other languages that have no English equivalents: Although I disagree in a couple of instances.
- Maryam Hashemi, an Iranian Kurdish woman, wins gold in international wushu competition in China.
(5) International kidnapping: Dissident Iranian journalist Ruhollah Zam was kidnapped from Iraq and taken to Iran by cooperating Iraqi and Iranian intelligence agents.
(6) Iran's judo athletes banned from the Olympics: The reason is the Iranian government's political meddling in the sport (forcing the athletes not to compete against Israeli opponents).
(7) Help save the children in northern Syria: An estimated 200,000 people who have been forcefully relocated are facing severe shortages of all kinds. [Video] [UNICEF USA donation site]
(8) Iranian regional music from Lorestan Province: Majid Azizi's wonderful love song "Beheshti Besazam" ("I Will Build a Heaven"), accompanied by Homayoun Poshtdar on kamancheh, based on a poem by Gholamreza Sabzali. The YouTube video identifies the song as "Maryam," which may be an alternate title. [6-minute video]
(9) US forces will stay in Syria and reinforced with more tanks to defend the oil fields against ISIS: So, no withdrawals, because the same ISIS that was "totally defeated" according to our Commander-in-Cheat is alive and well! The whole charade was just to allow Turkey to kill some Kurds and turn tens of thousands homeless, while making the Assad regime stronger and allow Russia to gain the upper hand in the region.

2019/10/25 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Yesterday's talk on the Electoral College by Dr. Rosemarie Zagarri UCSB, back when it was a sleepy liberal-arts college Yesterday's beautiful sunset, photographed as I was walking home from UCSB at the end of a hot and eventful day (1) Images of the day: [Left] Yesterday's talk on the Electoral College by Dr. Rosemarie Zagarri (see the last item below). [Center] Opening reception for the "Campus by the Sea" exhibition at UCSB, marking the 75th anniversary of the institution as a UC campus (see the next item below). [Right] Yesterday's beautiful sunset, photographed as I was walking home from UCSB at the end of a hot and eventful day.
(2) Campus by the Sea: This is the title of an exhibition at UCSB Library's Special Research Collections that celebrates the 75th anniversary of Santa Barbara becoming a UC campus (prior to that, there was the Anna S. C. Blake Manual Training School, dating back to 1891, when it began in a downtown basement). This evening's opening reception for the exhibition was attended by Chancellor Henry Yang, UCSB Librarian Kristin Antelman, and curator Matt Stahl (all three of whom spoke), campus deans, members of UCSB's Board of Trustees, and a large number of faculty and staff. The exhibition is divided into sections representing "Pre-1960s," "1960s," "1970s," "1980s-2000s," and "Voices of the Future."
[The on-line "Campus by the Sea" exhibition] [Daily Nexus story] [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2]
(3) "The Murky Past and Contested Future of the Electoral College": This was the title of yesterday's informative and well-attended talk at UCSB by Rosmarie Zagarri (University Professor of US History, George Mason University). [Photos]
Dr. Zagarri began by reviewing how the Electoral College System came about. It was a compromise forged at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 between advocates of state rights and those favoring representative democracy. No one was really satisfied with the resulting system, and its flaws became evident soon after it went into effect. The emergence of the two-party system further accentuated the weaknesses, yet the system survived sporadic efforts to reform or abolish it.
Recent discrepancies between the Electoral College outcome and popular vote, has brought the problem into the forefront, but given that one party disproportionately benefits from the status quo, it is difficult to envisage agreement on reforming it. State rights aren't as important a factor now as they were in the early days of the republic, when the three branches of government did not yet exist; there was a Congress (which had a "President"), but no executive or judicial branch existed, so the states ruled supreme.
Remedies being considered for the problems posed by the Electoral College System include return to district or proportional voting (a la Nebraska and Maine), instead of winner-take-all schemes at the state level, National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (adopted by states holding 196 electoral votes, 72.6% of the 270 required), by which states agree to bind their delegates to the winner of the national popular vote, and amendment through Congress or a second Constitutional Convention.
My commentary: Dr. Zagarri showed a US map (a cartogram) in which the size of each state was adjusted to reflect its population and thus influence, if presidential elections were decided by popular vote. An attendee correctly observed that state boundaries become meaningless if elections were by national popular vote, according to the principle "one person, one vote." This is indeed correct. In fact, such a cartogram is a tool used by those who want to keep the Electroal College System, because it scares the residents of smaller states into believing that California and New York would take over control of presidential elections if national popular vote were used to elect our president, given their large populations. This is misleading, because if a similar cartogram were drawn in which state areas were proportional to the number of their electoral votes, the result would not be much different.

2019/10/24 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Never again! But genocide happens again and again Opening reception for the 'Campus by the Sea' exhibition at UCSB Pomegranate successfully cut according to the method of instructional video (1) Images of the day: [Left] Never again! But genocide happens again and again (See the last item below). [Center] Campus by the Sea: This is the title of a special exhibit at UCSB Library highlighting UCSB's transformation from a sleepy liberal-arts college to a world-class research university, as it celebrates its 75th anniversary as a UC campus. The exhibit kicked off today with an opening reception (full report tomorrow). [Right] Successful application of a method to cut a pomegranate, which appeared in a video I had posted!
(2) Having completed the wall at the US-Mexico border, Trump has shifted his attention to a wall in Colorado: And New Mexico will pay for it!
(3) Quantum supremacy? Not so fast! Google has claimed the achievement of quantum supremacy, citing a computation that can be completed in less than 4 minutes on the tech giant's quantum computer but which would occupy the largest of today's conventional supercomputers at least 10,000 years. IBM, a competitor of Google in the field of quantum computing, has disputed Google's statement, arguing that a current computer system could theoretically perform the calculation in less than two and a half days.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Iran's economy shrank by 9.5% last year, the worst GDP contraction in three decades.
- Cartoon of the day: Forced confessions in Iran. [Image source: Iranwire.com]
- A new photo of old-time Iranian singer Parvin (Nourivand), best known for the song "Gho'gha-ye Setaregan."
- A number of Iranian celebrities have been summoned to Islamic Guidance Courts for their attire. [Iranwire]
(5) Russia and Turkey will set up patrols in northern Syria to keep the Kurds out of the border region: If Trump were a Russian asset, he couldn't have handed his master a bigger gift!
(6) California's wildfires: In the northern part of the state, the fast-moving Kincade Fire threatens Sonoma County, leading to evacuations. In the southern region, more than 308,000 Southern California Edison customers could face blackouts starting Wednesday night and into Thursday. PG&E's shut-off is expected to affect 179,000 customers, and SDG&E's, 24,000.
(7) In declaring victory, Trump thinks that the genocide of Syrian Kurds was a favor to them: The number of Kurds actually killed in the Turkish offensive does not rise to the level of other genocides in history, but genocide encompasses more than just physical elimination. One of several definitions of genocide cited by Wikipedia includes: "destruction of an ethnic group. ... Generally speaking, genocide does not necessarily mean the immediate destruction of a nation, except when accomplished by mass killings of all members of a nation. It is intended rather to signify a coordinated plan of different actions aiming at the destruction of essential foundations of the life of national groups, with the aim of annihilating the groups themselves. The objectives of such a plan would be disintegration of the political and social institutions, of culture, language, national feelings, religion, and the economic existence of national groups, and the destruction of the personal security, liberty, health, dignity, and even the lives of the individuals belonging to such groups ..."

2019/10/23 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of Donald Trump, Mike Pence, and Nancy Pelosi A painting that honors Kurdish leader Hevrin Khalaf recently murdered by Turkish forces in cold blood Trump's Hollywood (1) Images of the day: [Left] Republicans are secretly hoping for President Mike Pence, but given Pence's involvement in Trump's lies and cover-ups, President Nancy Pelosi is more likely (she is third in the line of succession, according to the US Constitution). [Center] Painting honoring Kurdish leader Hevrin Khalaf, murdered by Turkish forces in cold blood. [Right] Trump's Hollywood "Walk of Fame" star is put behind bars.
(2) I am disappointed with Hillary Clinton's public attacks on Tulsi Gabbard: Any concerns with Russia promoting her for US presidency should have been pursued through official channels, not in the media. Having been a victim of media sensationalism herself, she should know better.
(3) Mystery traders made $1.8 billion from stock bet placed hours before Trump tweeted that talks with China were back on track: This is just the most spectacular example of many suspicious gains in the market as a result of Trump's seemingly-erratic behavior.
(4) The Russians and Iranians are coming! The Russians and Iranians are coming! Facebook reports that it has removed Russia- and Iran-based pages that sought to influence the 2020 US elections. One Iran-based network included four Instagram accounts and 93 Facebook accounts.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump's staunchest supporters in Congress are products of gerrymandered districts.
- Trump lied repeatedly in his angry monologue at a "cabinet meeting," while his yes-men silently looked on.
- Trump slams US Constitution's "phony Emoluments Clause": He views his impeachment as "lynching"!
- Humor: JFK's letter to Khrushchev, recently dug up from the archives. [Tweeted by Hillary Clinton]
- Machines don't just read filled-in bubbles on test answer sheets: They now grade essays in 21 US states!
- Today's UCSB "World Music Series" noon concert: Mariachi Las Olas De SB [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]
(6) Environmental challenges in Iran: This report (in Persian) about the release of raw sewage into an Iranian river, because there is no treatment facility, makes Kaveh Madani's UCLA lecture, "Water Bankruptcy and Environmental Politics in Iran" (Sunday 10/27, 4:00 PM, Dodd Hall 78), even more important.
(7) Scam message tries to make you log on to fake Facebook or YouTube site by telling you that you appear in a viral video: Do not click on such links or log on to the Web sites they offer.
(8) Quid pro quo: Chris Wallace of Fox News makes Mick Mulvaney regret trying to clean up his own and Trump's quid-pro-quo mess on what he thought would be a softball interview on a friendly network.
(9) [Final thought for the day] The tragedy of human trafficking: A truck container with 39 dead bodies inside has been discovered in southeast England. The driver is in custody.

2019/10/22 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
My typical lunch, at home or on the go: Sandwich, salad, and Doritos Scenes from the streets of Isla Vista, California The bobcat that has been roaming in the wilderness around my housing complex for the past few weeks (1) Images of the day: [Left] My typical lunch, at home or on the go: Sandwich, salad, and Doritos. [Center] Scenes from the streets of Isla Vista, California (see the last item below). [Right] Our bobcat and mountain lion: This is the bobcat that has been roaming in the wilderness around my housing complex for the past few weeks. A neighbor snapped the photo yesterday afternoon. No one has been able to photograph a mountain lion which has been seen in the same area half-dozen times.
(2) Why Bridges Collapse: This is the title of a scary, but must-watch, episode of Nova, the wonderful PBS science program. [53-minute video]
P.S.: I have asked my students in the graduate course on fault-tolerant computing (now in progress) to watch this video, because the sudden way in which a seemingly sound bridge collapses isn't unlike the failure of complex hardware and software systems.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Persian poetry: Recitation of a love poem by Afshin Yadollahi, with subtitles. [2-minute video]
- In this 5-minute clip, Mahdieh Mohammadkhani says no one can take music & singing away from women.
- Persian music: A piece on tar and tombak, commemorating Jalil Shahnaz's sixth anniversary of passing.
- Azeri music: A beautiful love song, performed by a duo with tar, guitar, and vocals. [5-minute video]
(4) A very brief history of Isla Vista, the student town adjacent to UCSB: The 1-square-mile tract of land overlooking the Pacific Ocean was named in 1925, when its four streets closest to the bluff also got their names that remain today: Del Playa, Sabado Tarde, Trigo, and Pasado.
With the current UCSB campus coming into being in the 1950s, land values in Isla Vista skyrocketed, leading to a development frenzy that turned the small community into one of the densest residential areas in the world.
In the 1960s and early 1970s, Isla Vista became a center for druggies and celebrities who used drugs. It also became a hotbed for student activism, like other US college towns of that period. A Bank of America branch was torched in 1970, leading to banks avoiding the area for decades, with two banks returning in recent years.
Although crime in Isla Vista is likely not worse than similarly dense urban areas in the US, a couple of notorious crime sprees, unruly Halloween festivals, and well-publicized cases of rape in frat parties and elsewhere, have given it a terrible reputation.
UCSB is working on expanding its presence in Isla Vista and implementing community projects to help with improving both the reality of life in Isla Vista and the terrible external image, which also hurts the campus, now a prestigious research university regularly appearing on top-10 lists.

2019/10/21 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Undoing Trump, the great mistake of 2016 -Silicon-interconnect fabric does away with chiplet packaging and PC-board interconnects Beautiful life springs in the desert of Atacama, Chile (1) Images of the day: [Left] Los Angeles Times: Undoing the great mistake of 2016. [Center] Goodbye, Motherboard—Hello, Silicon-Interconnect Fabric: This is the title of an article in the October 2019 issue of IEEE Spectrum about methods of connecting chiplets on a silicon wafer, rather than packaging them separately and connecting the packages on a PC board. The chiplets can be placed closer to each other, thus leading to smaller, faster, and more energy-efficient designs. [Right] Beautiful life springs in the desert of Atacama, Chile.
(2) Math puzzle (one of many having to do with isosceles triangles): The isosceles triangle ABC has the 20-degree angle BAC. With the other info given on this diagram, what is the measure of the angle MNB?
(3) A historic photograph: Taken at Tehran's Darolfonoon School in 1935, this photo depicts key Iranian scholars and historians of the day, alongside visiting Iranologists and Orientalists from around the world, gathered for poet Abolghassem Ferdowsi's millennial celebration.
(4) The law-and-order President: Bloomberg News reports that Trump asked his then Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to stop the Justice Department from prosecuting Reza Zarrab, a Turkish-Iranian businessman who had made billions from skirting US sanctions on Iran and had ties to Erdogan.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Thought bubbles for some Trump allies in their meeting with Congressional leaders. [Meme]
- Best-selling smartphones, 2004-2019: Apple's iPhone arrives on the scene in 2010. [4-minute video]
- The New Science of Bioball: Smart sleeves can tell baseball pitchers when it's time to get off the mound.
- Color coordination: I don't know whether this mosque image is an actual shot or a PhotoShopped one.
- Natural beauties: The ocean and its majestic creatures. [4-minute video]
- Irish dancing: Impressive athleticism and precision. [2-minute video]
(6) A Belgian startup has designed small, light, and powerful axial-flux motors for EVs: The magnetic fields used to operate the motor are parallel to the axle rather than being radial. This change leads to a clean, compact design that fits in the wheel assembly. The same principle leads to thinner generators for wind turbines. [Source: IEEE Spectrum, October 2019] [Images]
(7) Ayatollah Tabrizian, hailed as the father of Islamic medicine, has said that there is no such thing as sports in Islam: Intense physical activity is harmful and shortens one's life. Turtles and snakes have long lives because they move very slowly. [Listen to the first 3 minutes of this 11-minute audio clip, in Persian]

2019/10/20 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
 Vice President Mike Pence on the cover of Newsweek magazine Cartoon showing Iranian women breaking stadium walls to get in Results of napalm bombing in Vietnam, 1968, and Kurdistan, 2019 (1) Images of the day: [Left] The puzzle of Mike Pence: As many Republicans struggle with supporting Trump in the wake of his Syria troop withdrawal and decision to hold the G-7 summit at his golf course, Mike Pence is seemingly quite comfortable standing by the con-man-in-chief's side. He deserves to be humiliated by being replaced on Trump's 2020 ticket. [Center] Hijacking women's victory: Iranian officials are trying to take credit for "allowing women into soccer stadiums," despite the fact that they gave in only after intense pressure from FIFA and women's-rights movements (cartoon from Iranwire.com). [Right] Trump dodged the draft and didn't go to Vietnam, but his fingerprints are all over the Turkish atrocities in Kurdistan.
(2) Dumb and dumber: Mick Mulvaney's confession during a news conference that Trump withheld aid from Ukraine until that country agreed to dig up dirt on the Democrats (i.e., quid pro quo) can never be erased, no matter how hard the White House tries.
(3) Santa Barbara's first full-size Target store opened today: It's a good sign for our area and a welcome addition for restaurants and other small businesses nearby, particularly since the only Sears and K-mart stores in Santa Barbara closed some time ago. [Photos]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Blood on Trump's hands: Turkish soldiers execute two Kurdish women on the spot. [Graphic video]
- Trump starts the #StopTheCoup Twitter hashtag but others counter with #StopTheCon!
- At least 69 killed in mosque explosions in eastern Afghanistan: The death toll is expected to rise.
- Jim Mattis says he's "the Meryl Streep of generals" after Trump calls him as the most-over-rated general!
(5) Special carillon recital by Wesley Arai on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the dedication of UCSB's Storke Tower and its carillon: The recital was live-streamed by our Department of Music (recital starts at the 20:00 mark of the video), and there is a link on the site to the program, which includes historic photos and facts about Storke Tower. Two special musical pieces were commissioned for this event. The following are inscriptions on three of the carillon bells. [More photos]
- Bell #2 (C-sharp, 4028 lbs): "These bells ring for the freedom of the press and in tribute to editor-publisher Thomas More Storke whose affection for the university made this building possible.'
- Bell #3 (D, 3216 lbs), a quote from Clark Kerr, UC President, 1958-1967: "The University is not engaged in making ideas safe for students. It is engaged in making ideas safe for ideas."
- Bell #4 (E-flat, 2764 lbs), a quote from Vernon I. Cheadle, UCSB Chancellor, 1962-1977: "Our purpose is to seek the truth and seek boldly, and to stand dedicated to the cause of freedom and justice."
[P.S.: There are some 70 carillons at American universities, three of which are at UC campuses, Berkeley and Riverside being the other two.]

2019/10/18 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image of Eileen Boris's new book Cover image for Cixin Liu's 'The Three-Body Problem' More than 400 million children live in war zones, according to UNICEF USA (1) Images of the day: [Left] A new book by Eileen Boris (see item 2 below). [Center] Cover image for Cixin Liu's 'The Three-Body Problem' (see the last item below). [Right] More than 400 million children live in war zones, according to UNICEF USA. That proximity to violence put over 24,000 kids in harm's way last year. See item 3 for my musings on the ongoing ethnic cleansing of Kurds by Turkish forces in northern Syria.
(2) Today's book talk at UCSB: Dr. Eileen Boris, Professor of Feminist Studies, spoke at 2:00 PM today on "How Did an Americanist End Up Writing Transnational History?" The talk was based on the speaker's new book, Making the Woman Worker: Precarious Labor and the Fight for Global Standards, 1919-2019.
In the book, Boris maintains that worries about the 'gig economy' pushing workers from full-time jobs into occupations offering no guarantees and scant benefits appear to be new, until we realize that women have been working under such conditions for a very long time.
Dr. Boris chose a one-century span for her study so that she could observe how things have evolved over time. The book isn't a social history but looks at organizations, primarily ILO, and their initiatives. One problem of this approach is that ILO is composed of representatives of nation-states with varying views and priorities. For example, rights of LGBTQ workers are never explicitly mentioned, because some countries would object, yet one can take the positive view that such rights are actually included, because they are not explicitly excluded. Another example is nation-states influencing policies and actions during conventions, while at the end not ratifying the final result (a la the Paris Climate Accord).
Historically, much of the early efforts in this direction led to women-specific standards, which aimed to protect women in the name of morality, policing sexual behavior, and the like. However, special treatment, by definition, leads to inequality. Also, early conventions accommodated forced labor (slavery, in essence), but tried to set rules: Men could be separated from their families, but were expected to feed them, and they could not spend their earnings on prostitutes and the like.
Interestingly, allowing or even facilitating women's pursuit of careers outside their homes has created the underclass of domestic workers. This is like saying that, yes, women can work outside the home, as long as their traditional family roles are delegated to others, typically underpaid women with few rights and almost no benefits. So, one category of women is liberated to the detriment of another category. A different challenge is to spread the view that women who do home-work, exclusively or partially, should be given workers' rights and associated benefits.
There was just too much material in the talk and the discussion period that followed for me to list all the key observations in this brief report. I will read Boris's book at the earliest opportunity and recommend that my readers with interests at the intersection of women's rights and labor rights do the same. [Photos]
(3) The latest gift from an unstable President: Trump's ineptitude triggered a war between two of our allies. Now the con man wants us to believe that a 5-day pause in hostilities constitutes a major victory for his administration. He then insults our intelligence by claiming that war is sometimes good, because it makes the two sides realize its futility and hardships. And this gem of an insight comes from someone who has always lived in the lap of luxury and who fraudulently avoided military service when it was compulsory in the US. If Trump read books, he would know even without serving in the military that Kurds and other oppressed groups have never lived in peace and have been assaulted from all sides, including when thousands of them were killed or maimed by Saddam's chemical attacks. And now reports are emerging that Turkey has attacked them with phosphorus bombs. Shame on Trump, his administration of spineless yes-men, and his Republican enablers!
(4) Book review: Liu, Cixin (translated by Ken Liu), The Three-Body Problem, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Luke Daniels, Macmillan Audio, 2014 (originally published in China in 2006).
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This first novel in the "Remembrance of Earth's Past" trilogy by China's most-prominent sci-fi writer provides a window into the Asian giant's sci/tech community during and after the Cultural Revolution, when speaking of the Big Bang theory and Einstein's general relativity were considered reactionary.
The book's main characters are Ye Wenjie, a female astrophysicist who witnessed the execution of her physicist father during the Cultural Revolution, and Wang Miao, a nanotechnology engineer consumed by "Three-Body," a virtual-reality on-line video game, with a cult-like following, based on the well-known physics problem in which one seeks to determine the future motions of three point-masses from their initial conditions. The venues, such as top-ranked Tsinghua University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, are familiar to academics worldwide.
While the characters and their interactions are grounded in reality, and thus quite relatable, the story goes into less familiar domains, such as supernatural phemomena, philosophical conundrums, moral dilemmas, plots of an alien race, and quite a bit of Chinese history and culture.
Despite the last trait, which makes the novel exotic, Cixin Liu [b. 1963] is believed to have been influenced by Isaac Asimov [1920-1992] and Arthur C. Clark [1917-2008].
The many characters and scientific elements comprising the story may make the reader disoriented at first, but things eventually start coming together in an interesting and rewarding way. A must-read for sci-fi aficionados!

2019/10/17 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Children suffer from the type of war Turkey is waging in northern Syria, even when they aren't killed or injured Persian moods and personality types associated with some commonly-used emojis Flyer for Rosemarie Zagarri's talk about the electoral college (1) Images of the day: [Left] Children suffer from the type of war Turkey is waging in northern Syria, even when they aren't killed or injured. [Center] For my Persian-speaking readers: Moods and personality types associated with some commonly-used emojis. Please note that the labels are meant to be humorous and are different from the common emoji meanings. [Right] Interesting talk at UCSB: Rosemarie Zagarri will talk about "The Murky Past and Contested Future of the Electoral College" (Thu. 10/24, 4:00 PM, HSSB 4080).
(2) In an Independent Persian article, Nasim Basiri argues that Turkey is deliberately targeting and killing Kurdish women leaders because it is terrified of the most successful feminist movement in the Middle East.
(3) Going from maddening to horrifying: Trump mocks the brave Kurds facing ethnic cleansing in an existential battle by inexplicably saying they have a lot of sand to play with. MAGA by disposing of this trash!
(4) Science news: Margaret Martonosi, CS Professor at Princeton University, selected as the next head of National Science Foundation's Computer and Information Science and Engineering Directorate.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Congressman Elijah Cummings, civil rights icon and key figure in Trump's impeachment inquiry, dead at 68.
- California to unveil MyShake cell-phone app today, on the 30th anniversary of the 1989 Loma Prieta quake.
- Magnitude-4.7 California quake near Hollister made whales leap out of the water en masse.
- Submerged Alaskan volcano is producing giant explosive gas bubbles, according to a just-published study.
- Ancient Assyrian tablets tell of huge solar storms 2700 years ago.
- Persian music: An oldie song, presented with the backdrop of Iran's historical sites and museums.
(6) Our clueless president: Trump has awarded a contract for holding the next G-7 Summit to his National Doral Miami golf resort: Forgetting about profiting from his presidency for the moment, it will be really awkward is he is no longer president at that time!
(7) Quote of the day: "Let's have a great day! I have worked hard to send you a daily newsletter. Don't let the world down. You can make a great day out of this. History will look upon you favorably if you get this done. Don't be a tough reader. Don't be a fool! I will email you again tomorrow." ~ Newsweek magazine's e-mail newsletter mocking Trump's childish letter to Erdogan [Trump's letter]

2019/10/16 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Tea served Iranian style: With sugar cube Tea served Iranian style: With cake Tea served Iranian style: With rock candy (1) Images of the day: Tea served Iranian style, with sugar cube, cake, or rock candy.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- US House resolution rebuking Trump over pull-out from Syria passes 354-60.
- Young Kurdish girl pleads with everyone to stop the war and to help her reclaim a normal childhood.
- Cartoon of the day: Satirists are imprisoned in Iran. [Image]
- An Irish man pre-recorded a voice message and asked his family to play it at his funeral. Here it is!
- Persian music: A nice rendition of "Emshab Shab-e Mahtaabeh" with santoor, tombak or daf, and vocals.
- Some surprising examples of English words that have Arabic roots. [Story]
(3) Today's noon concert at UCSB's Muic Bowl: An enjoyable performance by Los Catanes del Norte as part of the "World Music Series" program. I was particularly intrigued by the accordion in this 4-piece band, so I zoomed in on it in the second video. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4] [Video 5]
Image for Mahnoosh Alizadh's October 16, 2019, talk (Rusty's Pizza) (4) Tonight's IEEE Central Coast Section technical meeting: In a well-attended general talk that generated much spirited discussion, Dr. Mahnoosh Alizadeh (UCSB Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering; PhD 2014, UC Davis) outlined the challenges and some solutions in directing our society "Towards Sustainable Electric Transportation Systems."
Everyone agrees that electric vehicles, preferably charged using renewable energy sources, are the way to go. But several challenges remain to be addressed if this worthy goal is to become realizable. While we have come a long way in mitigating the old problem of limited range for electric vehicles, we still need to resolve long wait times at popular charging locations, shifting the charging load to more desirable times of day (e.g., by providing price incentives), upgrading the electric grid infrastructure to support the added load and the changing profile, and coming up with reasonably accurate models for human behavior in the face of varying transportation needs and price incentives.
Professor Alizadeh discussed some parts of her research program, which aims to guide the EV population to use transportation, charging, and power-system infrastructure more efficiently. Her work addresses both long term behavioral and structural modifications, as well as short-term strategies to make the best use of currently-available resoruces. [More images] f22-191015-making-the-woman-worker-cover

2019/10/15 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Kurdish fighter keeping watch from her lookout Poster (by unknown artist) honoring Iran's 'Blue Girl' 'Blue Girl' image on which the colorful poster in the center seems to be based (1) Images of brave women in blue: [Left] Kurdish fighter keeping watch from her lookout. [Center] Poster (by unknown artist) honoring Iran's "Blue Girl" whose sacrifice was the straw that broke the back of hardliner ruling mullahs, forcing them to open the gates of sports stadiums to women spectators, after years of activism by Iranian women. [Right] Here is an image on which the colorful poster in the center seems to be based.
(2) Moon mission: Fedor, the Russian humanoid robot, which recently spent some time on the International Space Station, will be sent to the moon after substituting wheels for its legs.
(3) The cheapening of the American military: By saying that "Saudi Arabia at my request has agreed to pay us for everything we are doing," Trump has converted the patriotic men and women in uniform from defenders of our national security to paid mercenaries working for a corrupt, authoritarian regime.
(4) Voting out vs. kicking out: I don't understand those who say Trump's fate should be decided at the ballot box, not by impeachment. Making Trump a one-term president isn't punishment enough, because it would equate criminal behavior with ineffective leadership, a la Jimmy Carter and G. H. W. Bush.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Both the US FAA and Boeing found at fault over their problematic certification of the 737 Max.
- Apt Persian saying for the Syria situation: "A lunatic throws a rock in the well that 100 sages can't take out."
- Cartoon of the day: The beginnings of a rift among Senate Republicans. [Image]
- Chris Wallace's interview with the Iranian womens-rights activist Masih Alinejad.
- Opening statement by Marie Yovanovitch, former US Ambassador to Ukraine, in testifying before Congress.
- One must be a phenomenal actor to play polar-opposite roles: The toughest bully and the meekest victim!
(6) "If we have to choose between compromise and genocide, we will choose our people": Writing in Foreign Policy, the Kurd's Commander in Chief explains why his forces are ready to partner with Assad and Putin.
(7) The 64th Annual Faculty Research Lecture at UCSB: Nelson Lichtenstein (Distinguished Professor of History, and a historian of labor) spoke this afternoon under the title "A Fabulous Failure: Bill Clinton, American Capitalism, and the Origins of Our Troubled Times." UCSB's Faculty Research Lecturer is a distinguished member of the faculty chosen annually by the Academic Senate and charged with the task of addressing the campus on his/her field of expertise. Professor Lichtenstein has written many books, the last one being the 2016 title Achieving Workers' Rights in the Global Economy, and he is now working on a history of economic thought and policymaking in the administration of Bill Clinton. In today's talk, Professor Lichtenstein argued that neoliberal globalization, which was in no small part responsible for the rise of Donald Trump, was likely avoidable in the early 1990s. Clinton arrived in Washington with no shortage of ideas on reorganizing American capitalism, while using managed trade to help areas such as Detroit and Pittsburgh and to solve the vexing healthcare problem before it got further out of hand. Clinton failed because he did not appreciate the extent to which corporate and financial power had already escaped the control of nation-states. [Images/Slides]

2019/10/14 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The Field of Light at Sensorio, in Paso Robles wine country, California: Photo 1 Alexandr Milov 2015 sculpture of children trapped inside feuding adult bodies The Field of Light at Sensorio, in Paso Robles wine country, California: Photo 2 (1) Artful images: [Left & Right] Solar-powered light spectacle: The Field of Light at Sensorio, in Paso Robles wine country, California's Central Coast. [Center] This 2015 Alexandr Milov sculpture of children trapped inside feuding adult bodies shows that love always shines through.
(2) Please, please check your sources before posting: A video has gone viral, with the caption that a brave Kurdish girl in Italy gave Mike Pompeo a package of dog food, so that he can eat it and learn to be loyal like dogs. This explanation has been debunked. The scene actually shows an Italian woman giving Pompeo a wedge of parmesan cheese, explaining that they make it "with their hearts," begging him to take it to President Trump, as a statement regarding looming tariffs on European exports.
(3) Kurds strike a deal with Syria to escape genocide: Decades of influence lost with a single impulsive (treasonous?) action by Trump. As predicted, the big winners are Syria, Iran, and Russia.
(4) She persists: Elizabeth Warren submitted a false ad to Facebook, claiming that Mark Zuckerberg supports Trump's re-election bid, to make the point that FB's monetary motives make it reluctant to fact-check ads. The Trump campaign has been guilty of posting many false or misleading ads on Facebook. [Tweet 1] [Tweet 2]
(5) The Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for 2019: The Prize was awarded in equal shares to to Abhijit Banerjee (MIT), Esther Duflo (MIT; only the second women to win in Economics), and Michael Kremer (Harvard) "for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty."
(6) Two versions of the cover of Time magazine's latest issue, making the point that some soldiers now being deployed to Afghanistan are younger than the war there. [Images]
(7) In case you have forgotten over the past ~3 years what a presidential speech sounds like: Here is one by former President Barack Obama, delivered in Illinois. [65-minute video]
(8) UC and UCSB's top-paid employees: Based on the public database of UC salary data, UCSB's student newspaper has constructed these charts for UC as a whole (top earners being athletic coaches for the most part) and UCSB (lower payroll than most other campuses, with top earners including three Nobel Laureates).
P.S.: Note that the two similar-looking graphs have different scales, going to $3.3M for UC, $0.5M for UCSB.
(9) Presidential mass murder: Fictional video showing Trump entering a church and shooting news-media reps and other perceived foes gathered there was shown at a Florida pro-Trump meeting! And the man who is quick to tweet about every happening, large or small, has not yet condemned the video.

2019/10/13 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of Syrian Kurds fleeing attacks en masse Nepotism: Ivanka Trump vs. Hunter Biden Poster advocating the saving of Rojava (1) Memes of the day: [Left] Syrian Kurds fleeing attacks. [Center] Nepotism: Ivanka Trump vs. Hunter Biden. [Right] Poster advocating the saving of Rojava. [Not shown] Fire-related road closures in SoCal.
(2) Video containing disturbing images from Syria, but the world should know what is happening to the Kurds and be shamed into acting. Please add complicity in genocide to articles of impeachment.
(3) Kurdish music: At the end of his concert in London, master kamancheh player Kayhan Kalhor announced the cancellation of his Istanbul concert to protest Turkey's attacks on the Kurds in Syria. He then dedicated this beautiful Kurdish lullaby (Facebook post, with Kurdish lyrics and Persian translation) to the suffering Kurdish children. Here's a second, unrelated, music video: "With You, Kobani"
(4) Major advance in algorithms and signal processing: A more efficient version of the Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) that had eluded researchers for 50 years. [Full story]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Harvin Khalaf, senior Kurdish politician and women's-rights leader, killed in northeastern Syria.
- At least 35 dead in Japan after widespread flooding due to typhoon.
- Trevor Noah's "The Fantastic, Absolutely Tremendous Road to Impeachment" [Video]
- The plight of the Kurds living in northern Syria, near the border with Turkey [42-minute documentary]
- Smuggling dozens of smartphones in a pair of pants. [2-minute video]
- Persian music: A cheerful tune, sung by passengers on a tour bus; a diversion from the day's bad news.
(6) CNN's Jake Tapper exposes the stunning hypocrisy of Mike Pompeo, Lindsey Graham, and Rudi Giuliani regarding impeachment, using their own words from the Clinton and Obama eras.
(7) Leather shoe from 5500 years ago: This is an old story from 2010, but still worth sharing. A well-preseved cowhide shoe from 5500 years ago was discovered in southeastern Armenia. It was made from a single piece of leather, shaped to fit the wearer's foot.
(8) Saturday night's concert at Libbey Bowl in Ojai: The program, entitled "An Evening of Denim and Diamonds with the Spazmatics and the Boogie Knights" (two bands), featured high-energy dance music, notably from the 1980s. [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Visit to world-famous Bart's Books before the concert]

2019/10/12 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
'New Yorker' cartoon, showing Trump string puppet manipulated by four despots Cartoon: The wall that Trump has built 'New Yorker' cartoon: The king was just kidding (1) Images of the day: [Left] New Yorker cartoon: "Me next!" [Center] The wall that Trump has been building. [Right] Another New Yorker cartoon: "If anyone asks, he was just kidding."
(2) Trevor Noah's "The Fantastic, Absolutely Tremendous Road to Impeachment": Trump seems to be acting to ensure that his impeachment is like no other before, the most spectacular ever!
(3) Recent developments on the women's-rights front: Western countries should take note.
- At 67% of the seats, Rwanda holds the world record in women's parliamentary representation.
- Girls study for free, from pre-school all the way to the doctoral level, in Pakistan's Punjab province.
(4) Of interest to Santa Barbara area residents: A conversation with two soccer superstars. Main event at Arlington Theater, Tuesday, October 15, 2019, 7:00 PM, with free simulcast for UCSB students at Campbell Hall.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Tax data from 2018: For the first time in history, US billionaires paid a lower tax rate than the working class.
- Betsy DeVos is protecting the interests of defunct for-profit colleges which swindled numerous students.
- Persian music and dance: Performed on Tehran metro, right under the mullahs' noses!
- Persian music: An oldie song from Javad Badi'zadeh [1902-1979]. [3-minute video]
(6) Vanity and stupidity make for a deadly combination: According to Washington Post, Trump has renewed his attacks on energy-efficient lightbulbs because they make him look bad. I hope that someday he is put away in a cell with a huge mirror and energy-efficient lighting!
(7) Dealing with students' food insecurity: I have come across the little-known CalFresh program at UCSB, designed to connect college students to food and financial resources. Those of you who are in contact with students may wish to explore the existence of similar programs on other campuses.
(8) Book-burning incident deemed disturbing: A group of students at Georgia Southern University burned copies of a book by Jennine Capo Crucet, who spoke there and invoked the notion of "White Privilege" in her speech. It is unfortunate that students and universities are moving in the direction of "comfort" (removing anything that disturbs or offends anyone) rather then "challenge" (bringing out different viewpoints that challenge our views and assumptions). I am listening to the audiobook The Coddling of the American Mind (by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt), which deals with this subject. The authors believe that human beings are anti-fragile, which means that not only they are not fragile, breaking at slightest physical/mental discomfort, but they are literally rendered stronger by what doesn't kill them. My book review will be coming soon.

2019/10/11 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Kurdish fighters smile and dance, as they fight to protect their homeland Photos showing Kurdish women who are fighting alongside men to protect their homeland Kurdish women fleeing a Turkish air raid (1) Images of the day: [Left] Kurdish fighters smile and dance, as they fight to protect their homeland: The dancing-around-bonfire footage is from Kobani (Video 1, Video 2). [Center] The northeast Syrian border with Turkey is on fire as Turkish forces intensify their attacks on Kurds (Reuters): Photos show Kurdish women who are fighting alongside men to protect their homeland. [Right] Kurdish women fleeing a Turkish air strike: A humanitarian crisis in the making, courtesy of the most corrupt president in US history.
(2) Quote of the day: "Reading at the deepest levels may provide one part of the antidote to the noted trend away from empathy. But make no mistake: empathy is not solely about being compassionate toward others; its importance goes further. For it is also about a more in-depth understanding of the Other, an essential skill in a world of increasing connectedness." ~ Maryanne Wolf, in her book Reader Come Home
(3) The 2019 Nobel Peace Prize: Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali was honored "for his efforts to achieve peace and international cooperation, and in particular for his decisive initiative to resolve the border conflict with neighbouring Eritrea."
(4) While publicly supporting climate-change action, Google makes substantial contributions to some of the most notorious climate deniers behind the scenes.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- As feared by observers, the chaos in northern Syria has allowed some ISIS detainees to escape prisons.
- The plot thickens: Giuliani, like his two arrested associates, was heading to Vienna. [Elaina Plott tweet]
- Karma: Ukraine is reportedly investigating Rudi Giuliani and his ties to shady figures in Ukraine and Russia!
- Fueled by strong winds and dry conditions, three SoCal wildfires erupt and lead to mass evacuations.
- Iranian oil tanker struck by two missiles in the Red Sea, leading to a 2% spike in oil prices.
(6) Tonight's community concert, organized by "Viva el Arte de Santa Barbara": Cimarron, featuring Joropo music and dance from the plains of the Orinoco River, performed at Isla Vista Elementary School in Goleta. The ensemble (led by founder and harpist Carlos "Cuco" Rojas) includes a four-stringed cuatro, harp, maracas, Peruvian-flamenco cajon, Brazilian surdo, and Afro-Colombian tambura. The unique jazz-like music, wonderful beats, and masterful solo performances are captured in the following samples. The program will repeat at Santa Barbara Junior High School's Marjorie Luke Theater, on Sunday, October 13 (7:00 PM). [Video 1 and Video 2, from YouTube] [Video 3, recorded tonight]
[P.S.: I walked to/from Isla Vista School. On the way back, it was dark and I suddenly remembered that a mountain lion, spotted several times over the past few weeks, is still loose in the wilderness, with warning signs posted throughout our neighborhood. Needless to say, I walked briskly, while glancing all around!]

2019/10/10 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Excited about and looking forward to reading the 2020 selection of 'UCSB Reads' That purple speck showing women's seating at Tehran's Azadi Stadium is also an apt graphical representation of women's place in the eyes of Islamists Cover image of IEEE Computer, issue of October 2019 (1) Images of the day: [Left] Excited about and looking forward to reading the 2020 selection of "UCSB Reads": Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore, described by Chicago Tribune as "the book on climate change and sea levels that was missing." [Center] Mina Akbari's tweet: That purple speck showing women's seating at Tehran's Azadi Stadium is also an apt graphical representation of women's place in the eyes of the Islamic Republic of Iran. [Right] The October 2019 issue of IEEE Computer contains a special cover feature entitled "50 Years of Networking."
(2) International soccer: Iran humiliated Cambodia 14-0 in a match made even more historic by the fact that Iranian women were allowed to attend for the first time in decades.
(3) Two associates of Trump's personal attorney Rudi Giuliani arrested at the airport: Trying to flee the US with one-way tickets, they have been indicted for conspiring to funnel foreign money to US political candidates. Seems like Giuliani is about to be bestowed the title of "coffee boy"!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The final season of "The UK": Comedy routine about the 3-centuries-old drama series. "The US" is next!
- It's pomegranate season and I am a big fan: Here is how to serve the amazing fruit. [3-minute video]
- Arabic group dance: Amazing precision, with wonderful results. [3-minute video]
- Cartoon of the day: Women trying to enter a soccer stadium in Iran. [Image] [Source: Iranwire.com]
- For my Persian-speaking readers: Interesting tweet of the day. [Tweet image]
- Listen to Joyce Carol Oates read her "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." [Audio file]
(5) Nobel Prizes in Literature: The 2018 and 2019 Prizes were awarded, respectively, to Polish writer Olga Tokarczuk "for a narrative imagination that with encyclopedic passion represents the crossing of boundaries as a form of life" and Austrian playwright/novelist/poet Peter Handke for "an influential work that with linguistic ingenuity has explored the periphery and the specificity of human experience." Last year's Prize was postponed due to a sex scancal affecting the Committee.
(6) Direct from the horse's mouth: The twin Trump Towers in Turkey can help explain the love-fest between him and Erdogan. As US comedians have pointed out, Kurds have two options to bring Trump back to their side: Offer a Trump-Tower deal in the Kurdish territories or dig up dirt on the Biden family!

2019/10/09 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Mural with images of Khamenei and Khomeini 'World Music Series' concert by Jamie Fox 'The Economist' cover cartoon: Twitterdum and Twaddledee (1) Images of the day: [Left] The unfriendly despot: According to Karim Sadjadpour, writing in Time magazine (issue of October 14, 2019), Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is one despot Trump might not be able to win over. [Center] Today's "World Music Series" noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl (see the last item below). [Right] The Economist cover image: Twitterdum and Twaddledee.
(2) The 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to John B. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham, and Akira Yoshino for their work on lithium-ion batteries, a main power source for our digital world.
(3) Another teenage girl who scares old men with rigid minds: Malala got a bullet through her head and a Nobel Peace Prize. Greta's effigy was hung from a bridge in Rome, and there's buzz about a Peace Prize for her.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Yom Kippur attack at a German synagogue results in multiple casualties.
- Nearly 800,000 PG&E customers in California to lose electric power as a wildfire prevention measure.
- Under the guise of fighting terrorism, Turkey launches offensive into Kurdish areas in Syria. [Erdogan tweet]
- Persecution of Baha'is has intensified in Iran: Over the past 6 months, 65 Baha'is have been tried.
(5) Could Trump's concessions to Erdogan, allowing him to obliterate the Kurds in northern Syria, have something to do with the con-man's current and planned business dealings in Turkey? And, did he ask Erdogan to investigate the Bidens? Just asking!
(6) At the end of Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of atonement: Here is Alive, one of the many inspirational pieces and/or poems that were interspersed with standard Hebrew prayers during this evening's Yom Kippur service at the Hillel Synagogue in Isla Vista.
(7) Today's noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: Jamie Fox, a Metis (mixed-blood) fiddler, performed music from her Native-American Reservation that spans northern US (Montana) and southern Canada. She is in our area for Santa Barbara Old-Time Fiddlers' Festival, happening this weekend at Goleta's Stow House. Fiddles and fiddle music were introduced to Native Americans by the Irish, Scots, and other Europeans during the fur-trade period. Here are a few samples of her music. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]

2019/10/08 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Haaj-Mirza Tea House in Isfahan, Iran Bluest Santa Barbara skies and ocean early yesterday afternoon, in Isla Vista and UCSB West Campus Columbia University's rendering of the magnificent Alamut Castle in Qazvin, Iran, at its prime (1) Images of the day: [Left] Haaj-Mirza Tea House in Isfahan, Iran. [Center] Bluest Santa Barbara skies and ocean early yesterday afternoon, in Isla Vista and UCSB West Campus. [Right] Columbia University's rendering of the magnificent Alamut Castle in Qazvin, Iran, at its prime.
(2) My camera is my weapon: Thanks to cell phones, Iranian women are capturing and reporting previously hidden incidents of open and unabashed sexual harassment, yet the perpetrators escape unpunished or get only a slap on the wrist.
(3) The puzzle of women's rights in Iran and its Arab neighbors: In the Middle East, women have been doing everything to break through the glass ceiling, including earning more STEM degrees than their Western sisters. Yet, the system of patriarchy has blocked their progress at every step.
(4) Compulsory hijab is the most visible symbol of women's oppression, not just an inconvenience that must be tolerated in favor of attending to "bigger problems."
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- FBI confirms that Samuel Little did kill at least 50 women, more than any other serial killer in US history.
- Top US military officers abhor Trump's impulsiveness and his disdain for expertise.
- Even if he ever was a stable genius, now he is nothing but an unstable halfwit!
- Quote of the day: "Are you sure you want to post this?" ~ Instagram's new anti-bullying prompt to users
- Caught red-handed stealing billions in Iran? No problem. Just grow a beard or put on a chador at your trial!
(6) Nobel Prize in Physics recognizes work on dark matter and exoplanets: The 2019 winners contributed to our understanding of the evolution of the universe and Earth's place in the cosmos. Half of the prize went to James Peebles and the other half jointly to Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz.
(7) The money behind climate-change denial: Made of 91 think tanks, advocacy organizations, and trade associations, the American climate-change denial industry pulls down just shy of a billion dollars each year.
(8) Lindsey Graham has opined that betraying the Kurds would be a stain on America's honor and a virtual surrender to the terrorists: Hey, Lindsey: The biggest stain on our honor is your friend in the White House!

2019/10/07 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Statues of four Persian medieval scholars in Vienna Amazing fall colors (part 2): Diverse samples, selected from Google images Images related to the 1812 tsunami in Santa Barbara (1) Images of the day: [Left] Scholars Pavilion: These statues of four Persian medieval scholars, donated by Iran for display at the UN office in Vienna, include Omar Khayyam, Biruni, Razi, and Ibn-Sina. [Center] Amazing fall colors (part 2): Diverse samples, selected from Google images. [Right] The legend of the 1812 tsunami in Santa Barbara (see the last item below).
(2) William Kaelin Jr., Sir Peter Ratcliffe, and Gregg Semenza have been awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine along with its $9 million prize money, in equal shares, for figuring out how our cells adapt to different oxygen levels, such as at altitude or when we exercise.
(3) Betraying the Kurds once again: Trump withdraws US troops from northern Syria, allowing Turkey to execute a cross-border offensive against the Kurds. No ally will ever trust the US again!
(4) Yay, Iranian women will be allowed into soccer stadiums! But, wait, don't be too giddy: After repeated threats from FIFA about punishing Iran and its soccer federation, the purple speck in this diagram is the segregated section of Tehran's 100,000-seat Azadi Stadium which has been allocated to women for an upcoming soccer match.
(5) Trump needs a better joke-writer: His apologists now claim that his suggestion that China investigate the Bidens was meant as a joke. I watched that comment on video several times and, if meant as a joke, it was poorly written and delivered!
(6) The legend of the 1812 tsunami in Santa Barbara: According to the account from the March 16, 1864, issue of San Francisco Bulletin (see the image above), the December 1812 earthquake in Santa Barbara was accompanied by a devastating tsunami, the largest-ever for California. However, there is little evidence to confirm this account. Because of the presence of Channel Islands 30 miles off the coast, as well as the coastal bluffs, Santa Barbara is largely protected from tsunamis coming from distant places, the only danger being from one produced by a strong quake within the Channel. The 1812 quake did orginate within the Channel and its intensity is thought to have been 10 on the Rossi/Forrel scale of 10 grades (estimated as 7.5 on the Richter Scale, which was not developed until 1935). However, various accounts of the tsunami are highly inconsistent.

2019/10/06 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The latest Newsweek magazine cover Amazing fall colors: 4 photos The latest Time magazine cover (1) Images of the day: [Left & Right] The latest Newsweek and Time covers. [Center] Amazing fall colors.
(2) Just a small victory, not worth celebrating yet: Under intense pressure from FIFA, Iran reverses its ban on women entering soccer stadiums, but they will be seated separately from men in a small section of the stadium comprising about 3% of the total capacity. [Photo]
(3) Music and dance: See if you recognize the Persian oldie song whose music was copied from this song. There are many examples of Persian songs which were illicit copies, with no credit to the original song/artist.
(4) Generation gap: A generation of learned old men, who sat on their behinds as our precious Earth was pilfered by the ignorant and short-sighted profiteers, is now criticizing teenage environmental activists for speaking without the prerequisite knowledge and expertise!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump 2020 campaign banners are being produced in China: MCGA!
- Renovated Safavid-style mineral-water baths near Isfahan, Iran, turn the area into a tourist haven.
- Persian music, with lyrics: A 4-minute video, with precious scenes of old Tehran.
- Persian music: An interesting 8-minute remix of the song "Shab Bood" (by Hani Niroo).
- Persian poetry: A love poem, written and recited by Houshang Ebtehaj. [1-minute video]
(6) Science and politics: Nobel Laureate theoretical physicist Max Planck said, "An important scientific innovation rarely makes its way by gradually winning over and converting its opponents. What does happen is that its opponents gradually die out, and that the growing generation is familiarized with the ideas from the beginning." It seems that in politics too we won't make much progress until dinosaurs like Mitch McConnell and Lindsay Graham leave the scene.

2019/10/05 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
In seventh grade, with my precious bike Breakfast in the courtyard, Iranian style! Yesterday, with my 10th-anniversary T-shirt for the 'UC Walks' program (1) Images of the day: [Left] In 7th grade, with my precious bike (see the last item below). [Center] Breakfast in the courtyard, Iranian style! [Right] With my 10th-anniversary T-shirt for the "UC Walks" program on 10/3.
(2) Trump keeps complaining that by impeaching him, the Democrats want to undo the 2016 election. Well, isn't correctin of an election error exactly what impeachment was designed for?
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Melinda Gates announces $1 billion commitment to gender equality.
- Today, I watched "The Wizard of Oz" at UCSB's Pollock Theater as part of the "Special Effects" film series.
- Today, I spent a couple of hours at California Avocado Festival in Carpinteria. [Photos] [Music video]
- College soccer: Eighteenth-ranked UCSB men defeated arch-rival Cal Poly 3-1. [Photos] [Halftime video]
- Tons of potato, crates of egg, barrels of drinks: Logistics of feeding passengers on monstrous cruise ships.
- Persian music: The oldie song "Jaan-e Maryam," performed by the cutest duo ever. [3-minute video]
(4) The year I failed a high-school course in drawing: Inspired by the story of a Facebook friend writing about how she failed a course in composition, being forced to retake the final exam at the end of summer, I decided to share my story of failing a high-school drawing course in 7th grade.
In the friend's case, she was asked to write an essay on "mothers," which she did in a minimalist, direct manner, with no "branches and leaves," as the Persian saying goes, because she thought she could not add much to what everyone already knew about how wonderful mothers are. For her very brief essay, she received a grade in single digits, which is deemed a "fail" in the 0-20 grading scale of the day.
In my youth, Iran's elementary and high-school classes went on for the entire acadmic year and you had to perform well in a final exam in June to pass a subject. In order to avoid having to repeat a full year of instruction, a student with non-passing grades in a handful of subjects would be given a chance to take make-up exams at the end of summer, the thinking being that s/he could use the summer months to study. This scheme was known as "tajdid" or "tajdidi" ("renewal").
And, now, my story. I was riding my bike (a luxury possession for me in those days) near our house in Vanak, a suburb of Tehran, when I lost track of time. By the time I remembered that I had a final exam for my drawing course that afternoon, it was already too late to take the bus to school.
The following day, after explaining to my family what had happened and being scolded for my carelessness, I took my dad along to school to talk the drawing teacher, Mr. Khodabandeh, into some sort of accommodation, but he would not budge. Non-science courses used to be second-class citizens in the curriculm, and teachers of arts and other subjects suffering from this indignity were very sensitive when students and their parents did not take such courses seriously.
The drawing teacher scolded me for not paying due attention to his course and insisted that I retake the exam in September, implying that I needed the summer to study for the exam. The irony is that I was pretty good in my calligraphy and drawing courses and I was always at or near the top of the class in every subject. Yet, the perception on the part of the drawing teacher that I cared only about math and science courses led to his decision to teach me a lesson.
I went to the venue for "renewal" exams in September, where I was the only student retaking the drawing test (repeating math and science exams was much more common). I passed with flying colors, but the incident discouraged me and left a blemish on my high-school record; who knows, I could have been a successful artist now! Repeating exams was for the loafing, truant students, not for academically serious ones!
[Facebook post, with Persian text

2019/10/04 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey, NYT reporters who broke the Harvey Weinstein sexual misconduct case will be coming to UCSB on October 12, 7:30 PM Gender equity: Balance, with man and woman on the two sides Mattel has introduced gender-neutral dolls for a generation that demands inclusivity and equity (1) Images of the day: [Left] She Said: Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey, the New York Times reporters, who broke the Harvey Weinstein sexual misconduct case and thereby helped start a movement, will be coming to UCSB's Campbell Hall on Saturday, October 12, 2019, 7:30 PM. [Center] Gender equity (see the last two items below). [Right] Mattel has introduced gender-neutral dolls for a generation that demands inclusivity and equity (image credit: Time magazine).
(2) Men Advocating for Gender Equity: I attended this follow-up workshop yesterday and today, as a next step to my May 9, 2019, attendance at the introductory workshop, "Men Allies for Gender Equity" (Facebook post).
The group of 10-12 men who attended the new workshop at various times are committed to helping women in their efforts to achieve gender equity at UCSB. The workshop was organized by Barbara Walker (UCSB) and led by Robert Gordon (Auburn U.) and Roger Green (ND State U.).
We crafted a mission statement (appended to the end of this post), made a list of objectives, devised our group's structure, activites, and activity timeline, and met with the Women's Advisory Board, which constitutes the primary campus entity working in the area of gender equity (and women's issues more generally).
I will post about this workshop, related challenges/strategies, and my personal action plan over the coming days and weeks. Immediately after this post, I will begin with an informative post about patriarchy, its causes and consequences.
Mission statement (draft of October 4, 2019): Men Advocating for Gender Equity is an interdisciplinary group of men-identified staff and faculty at UCSB committed to personal action and working with men in support of women on campus. Recognizing the existence of gender inequity, we will actively engage in targeted activities to measurably improve the climate for women across all units on campus, while maintaining accountability to women through the Women's Advisory Board.
(3) What is patriarchy? In the introductory chapter of his book, The Gender Knot: Unraveling Our Patriarchal Legacy (Temple Univ. Press, revised ed., 2005), Allan G. Johnson defines a patriarchal society as promoting male privilege by being male-dominated, male-identified, and male-centered, and organized around an obcession with control.
- Male domination: Positions of political, economic, legal, religious, ... authority generally reserved for men.
- Male identification: Core cultural ideas (what's good/desirable/preferable/normal) tied to men/masculinity.
- Male centeredness: Focus of attention in news, movies, and all else is primarily on men and what they do.
- Obcession with control: Men control women and anyone else who might threaten their privilege.
A key insight is the distinction between men and women as social classes and as individuals. There may be male domination and female oppression in a society, even though individual men may not feel dominant and some women may be shielded from oppression and objectification by factors such as class and personal accomplishments.
Most of us go about our lives without any ongoing awareness of the underlying structures and understandings that define social norms. Thus, a first step in achieving gender equity is to acknowledge the roots of patriarchy and male privilege.
Let me end this essay with a couple of quotes from The Gender Knot. On page 33, we read: "If a society is oppressive, then people who grow up and live in it will tend to accept, identify with, and participate in it as 'normal' and unremarkable life. ... When privilege and oppression are woven into the fabric of everyday life, we don't need to go out of our way to be overtly oppressive for a system of privilege to produce oppressive consequences, for, as Edmund Burke tells us, evil requires only that good people do nothing."
And on page 50, we read: "Ultimately, the choice is about empowering ourselves to take our share of responsibility for the patriarchal legacy that we've all inherited."

2019/10/03 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
San Francisco mural celebrates Iranian women imprisoned for their beliefs and political activism Mobile usability issues for my UCSB faculty Web site Someone thought that this hallway clock in UCSB's Harold Frank Hall should be given a personality! (1) Images of the day: [Left] San Francisco mural celebrates Iranian women imprisoned for their beliefs and defense of human rights. [Center] Mobile usability issues for my UCSB Web site (see the last item below). [Right] Someone thought that this hallway clock in UCSB's Harold Frank Hall should be given a personality!
(2) The Subway Soprano: Homeless opera singer receives an outpouring of support, including a recording contract, after a Los Angeles cop posted a video of her on-line. [Video report]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Doctor sentenced to 40-year jail term for illegally prescribing more than half a million doses of opioids.
- Knife-attacker shot dead after killing 4 at the police headquarters in Paris.
- All 87 paratroopers jumping out of a US military plane missed the target, landing atop trees; 23 injured.
- An Indian Mars orbiter is still working perfectly 5 years after it got there.
- I love this weather forecast for my hometown: But, it's fire season and the dry weather can spell disaster.
- Research of Prof. Yasamin Mostofi (my UCSB ECE colleague) on identifying a person from behind a wall.
(4) "Men Advocates for Gender Equity" workshop: This is a follow-up to an introductory workshop I had attended in spring. Look for the full report tomorrow. For now, chew on the following quotation.
"Discrimination isn't a thunderbolt, it isn't an abrupt slap in the face. It's the slow drumbeat of being underappreciated, feeling uncomfortable, and encountering roadblocks along the path to success. These subtle distinctions help make women feel out of place." ~ Meg Urry
(5) New mobile usability issues detected for site http://www.ece.ucsb.edu/~parhami/: This is the title of an unsolicited message I received from Google, pointing out three problems with my Web site when accessed via mobile devices: Viewpoint not set; Text too small to read; Clickable elements too close together. This was a necessary reminder, given that the template I have been using for my Web pages is designed for desktop/laptop access. It seems that a vast majority of users nowadays access Web sites using smartphones and tablets. I have to find some time to reassess the design of my Web site.

2019/10/02 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Carpet in a carpet: Clever and eerie Persian carpet design Time magazine cover: Trump has painted himself into a corner Winning entry in the 2019 'Westways' photo contest (1) Images of the day: [Left] Carpet in a carpet: Clever and eerie Persian carpet design. [Center] Trump seems to have painted himself into a corner. [Right] Westways (AAA magazine) photo contest: Here is the top pick for 2019, photographed from the hard-copy magazine. I could not find the top-winning images on-line, but the equally amazing runners-up are available on this Web page.
(2) Baha'is in Iran: In this Independent Persian article, Nasim Basiri writes about the mistreatment of Baha'is in Iran over the centuries, particularly their near-genocidal treatment after the Islamic Revolution.
(3) You would think that the Islamic Republic of Iran would be the least likely place for sex tapes and sexual scandals, but you'd be wrong: Infighting among those in power, revelations by those forced out of power, and dirty tricks by a variety of "intelligence agencies" subject to no oversight are producing a steady stream of fodder for social-media accusations and counter-accusations.
(4) Social-media humor: A guy finally asks a girl he got to know on Facebook to send him a photo. Upon receiving this photo, he asks: "Which one is you?" She answers: "The one eating Cheetos!"
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Mark Zuckerberg threatens to sue if Elizabeth Warren's administration tries to break up Facebook.
- In the largest gift of its kind, Cal Tech receives $750 million for sustainability research.
- Armenia-Iran joint stamp issue bears photos of Yerevan's Blue Mosque & Isfahan's Vank Church. [Image]
- Persian music: Old-time singer Iraj performs "Aavaa-ye Iran" ("Sound of Iran") with Salar Aghili.
(6) Disapproval voting: When we have a large number of candidates in an election, polls that force each participant to pick one and only one candidate may distort the results. Suppose that 75% of participants are almost equally comfortable with Biden, Sanders, and Warren. Forcing these voters to choose one candidate may lead to 25% support for each of the three candidates, say. If a fourth candidate gets 20%, s/he may appear to be pretty close to the leading candidates in terms of support level.
In approval voting, participants do not choose one candidate but select a subset that they would be comfortable with. In the hypothetical scenario above, each of the top three candidates would get 75% approval, which is a more accurate reflection of how the voters feel about them relative to the fourth candidate's 20%.
The opposite of approval voting is disapproval voting, reflected in this poll, which indicates Biden's selection as the Democratic candidate would disappoint twice as many voters (22%) as Buttigieg's (11%).

2019/09/30 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Teenagers' climate activism has old men in Washington running scared, viciously attacking and smearing the movement Selfie taken on Sunday 2019/09/29 en route to Goleta Lemon Festival Yesterday at Goleta Lemon Festival: Entrance to Girsh Park (1) Images of the day: [Left] Teenagers' climate activism has old men in Washington running scared, viciously attacking and smearing the movement: Make America Greta Again! [Center] Ready to greet a busy week of classes, office hours, and meetings: UCSB's fall quarter began last Thursday (selfie is from yesterday, en route to California Lemon Festival). [Right] Yesterday at Lemon Festival in Goleta (see the last item below).
(2) Mathematical puzzle: Two mathematically-talented sisters inherit 1 kg of gold dust and are instructed in the parents' will to divide it up in the following way. The older sister divides the gold dust into two piles A and B. She then divides pile A into A1 and A2. The younger sister is given a chance to take A1 or A2 or to decline either one. If she chooses one, then the other one plus pile B go to the older sister. If she declines, then she is given one of them (presumably the smaller one) and her choice of B1 or B2, after the older sister divides pile B into two parts. What is the optimal strategy for the older sister and what is the minimum amount of gold dust she will get with this strategy? [Source: Communications of the ACM, issue of October 2019]
Example: Suppose A1 = A2 = 1/4 kg and B = 1/2 kg. The younger sister will decline to choose A1 or A2 (because she would get just 1/4 kg, with the remaing 3/4 kg going to the older sister) and is given the smaller of the two (in this case 1/4 kg). Now the older sister must divide pile B and give the younger sister a chance to pick. The best she can do is to divide equally, giving the younger sister another 1/4 kg, for a total of 1/2 kg. The strategy above isn't optimal, because the older sister could get more.
(3) Trump says he wants to meet the whistle-blower who accused him of mob-like behavior: "If he wants to meet face to face with his accusers, there are about 25 women waiting ..." ~ @seraphinaspang
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- "Forever 21" is 21 no more: The chain has filed for bankruptcy and will close hundreds of its stores.
- Quote: "Rampant consumerism is not really that attractive to younger generations." ~ Rose Marcario
- UCSB's iconic Storke Tower turns 50. [Daily Nexus front page story]
- Nice performance of "Sway" by an Iranian a-cappella group. [2-minute video]
(5) California Lemon Festival, Girsh Park, Goleta, CA: I attended the Festival for a couple of hours on Sunday afternoon. Here are a few photos of the venue, kids activities, safety exhibits, and food court, where all things lemony were sold, from the obvious lemonade and lemon pie to the exotic lemon-flavored churro and lemon ale. The local rock/pop band Out of the Blue (OutOfThebBlueSB on Facebook) was performing on the main stage when I visited. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4]

2019/09/29 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, to all who observe it! Humor: Donald and Melania Trump in Iran Cover image of 'The Mirror of My Heart: A Thousand Years of Persian Poetry by Women' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Happy Rosh Hashanah to all those who observe it! The new Hebrew calendar year 5780 will start tomorrow and, like all Jewish holidays, is celebrated beginning with the night before. Jewish traditional celebration of Rosh Hashanah involves several fruits and vegetables. For example, apple dipped in honey represents sweetness and pomegranate signifies fruitfulness. [Center] Humor: Iran reciprocates US's sanctions on political figures by banning the Trumps from entering Iran! [Right] Book introduction: The Mirror of My Heart: A Thousand Years of Persian Poetry by Women, introduced and translated by Dick Davis. I look forward to reading this book. From on-line sources, I couldn't determine whether the original Persian poems are included in the book. I hope they are. (List of poets)
(2) Visas revoked: The visas of a dozen Iranian students set to begin graduate programs in engineering and CS at American universities were abruptly canceled and the students barred from traveling to the United States.
(3) Physical and psychological scars of violence victims: In this 10-minute TEDx talk (in Persian), Marzieh Ebrahimi, an acid-spraying victim, wonders about the pent-up anger that led to her assailant's action and says that the psychological damage suffered by victims of violence are always worse than the physical wounds.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Facebook removes the pro-Trump "I Love America" page, because it was run from Ukraine.
- IEEE Central Coast Section talk: Professor Mahnoosh Alizadeh will speak on Wed. 10/16, 6:00 PM. [Details]
- A song that brings back fond memories from my youth: "Till the End of Time" performed by Earl Grant.
- College soccer: Last night, UCSB men's soccer team tied the top-ranked Stanford 3-3 after two overtimes.
(5) Persian music: A group of young students from Bushehr perform the oldie song "Majnoon-e To" ("Crazy for You") at Tehran's Vahdat Concert Hall. [5-minute video]
(6) Persian music: This wonderful oldie song entitled "Saraab" ("Mirage," music by Anoushirvan Rohani, lyricist unknown to me) is my absolute favorite. This 2-minute rendition, by an unnamed singer in a talent-competition show, is nice. Its original singers were Hayedeh and Hooshmand Aghili. [YouTube video]
(7) Saint Whisky: At this holy site in India, worshipers bring bottles of whisky, pouring part of the contents next to the grave and dividing the rest among the poor lined up at the entrance, bowls in hand!

2019/09/28 (Saturday): Book review: Sykes, Bryan, The Seven Daughters of Eve: The Science that Reveals Our Genetic Ancestry, W. W. Norton & Company, 2001. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Named Helena, Jasmine, Kathrine, Tara, Ursula, Velda, and Xenia, the seven daughters of the book’s title are women who lived some 10,000 to 45,000 years ago, with nearly every European genetically linked to one of them. Figure 6 of the book, reproduced here, depicts the seven daughters (dark circles), along with their age and relationships. The map (not from the book) shows where the seven women lived and what percentage of modern Europeans are descendants of each.
Tracing of a human's female ancestors is easier than male ancestors, because of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) being passed from a mother to her daughters with very little error or modification. Because of this reliable and relatively error-free transmission of genes, it is possible to verify genetic relatedness over hundreds or even thousands of generations of maternal succession with near certainty. Mutations along this line of succession are rare, occuring roughtly once every 200+ generations, a fact that can be used to date mtDNA samples in a probabilistic sense. Through this method, all human beings in the world have been linked to the so-called "mitochondrial Eve," a female ancestor of all of humanity who lived 150,000 years ago.
Before the research described in this book, the prevailing theory about the ancestery of Europeans was the so-called "wave of advance" [p. 153], which suggests that Europeans are by and large descendants of Near-Eastern farmers who moved westward and dominated (genetically) the former residents of the continent. The first known domestication occurred about 11,000 years ago in the Near East [p. 135]. So, if the wave-of-advance theory were correct, nearly all European genes should be traceable to ancestors living after the end of the last Ice Age. Yet, only Jasmine, the maternal ancestor of 17% of Europeans, supports this theory. Ancestors of a vast majority of Europeans were already living in Europe well before the advent of farming [p. 184].
Sykes got a lucky break that helped him prove his theory regarding the reliable transmission of mtDNA. When the frozen remains of a 5000-year-old Ice Man were discovered in Italy in the 1990s, Sykes was called to examine them. He was able to extract genetic material from the long-dead body and eventually located one of his living descendants in Great Britain. An amazing feat, when one thinks about it. Many of us struggle to find our ancestors of a few generations ago, and this woman by sheer luck, found her Ice-Man ancestor from some 200 generations ago!
In studying the human pre-history, genetics is only one of the available tools. Genetic deductions can be combined with linguistic and archaeological discoveries to make more accurate connections. The developments in genetics are exciting, but there are also down sides. A vigorous battle is raging among corporations to patent genes in order to facilitate and attract investments. This is very troubling, as such patents may impede scientific research.
An unfortunate roadblock in tracing a person's female ancestery, which would lead to a maternal family tree [p. 291], is the practice of women adopting their husbands' surnames. So, when going generations back, it is common to lose the thread due to name changes. If we had the complementary practice of passing a woman's surname (what we now call maiden name) to children, following the lineage via mtDNA would have been much simpler [p. 291].
More than two dozen other daughters of eve have been discovered that are responsible for populations on other continents. While the author focuses on mtDNA, there is also a parallel paternal pathway through past generations via the SRY gene that one might say leads to "sons of Adam" [p. 187].
In the book's penultimate paragraph [pp. 296-297], the author philosophizes thus: "An electronic board in the lobby continuously flashed up the DNA sequences as they came off the machines. Before my very eyes the details of the genome that had been hidden for the whole of evolution were marching across the screen. Was this, the reduction of the human condition to a string of chemical letters, the ultimate expression of the Age of Reason that first began to separate our minds from our intuition and to distance us from nature and our ancestors? How ironic that DNA should also be the very instrument that reconnects us to the mysteries of our deep past and enhances rather than diminishes our sense of self."
Let me end my review by relating a few interesting tidbits from the book.
- Two fishermen on a small island in Scotland had ancestors in Portugal and Finland, respectively, with those ancestors related through someone in Siberia [p. 295]. The magic of genetics discovered this relationship that would have remained hidden otherwise.
- The world's most prolific male was Moulay Ismail, Emperor of Morocco, father to 700 sons at age 49 in 1721 (and perhaps as many daughters, but in those days, daughters weren't all that important, so no one kept track of the numbers). Moulay Ismail died in 1727, so he may have had many more children.
- The world's most prolific female was Mrs. Fedora Vassilyev of Russia who produced 69 children from 1725 to 1765. They were all multiple births: 6 pairs of twins, 7 sets of triplets, and 4 lots of quadruplets.

2019/09/27 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Space launch, photographed from space Washington State's newly introduced apple variety, 'Cosmic Crisp' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Space launch, photographed from space: This stunning photo, taken from the International Space Station by NASA astronaut Christina Koch, shows the launch of the ISS-bound spacecraft Soyuz MS-15, which carries her best friend, NASA flight engineer Jessica Meir, alongside Oleg Skripochka, from the Roscosmos (Russian space agency), and Hazzaa Ali Almansoori, the first UAE astronaut to go into space. [Center] Introducing a new apple: No, not an iPhone or another electronic device, but an actual apple you can sink your teeth into! After two decades of research, Washington State has introduced "Cosmic Crisp," in an attempt to diversify from "Red Delicious," now constituting 70% of its production (source: Time magazine, issue of September 30, 2019). [Right] The document known as "The Whistle-Blower Complaint," which has dominated the news over the past couple of days, is now available in both text and audio formats.
(2) Are hotel-room safes safe? Not really. Some of them are inadequately secured and light enough to be carried away. This video describes another reason.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Our stable genius with the best education and oversized brain thinks an apostrophe is a hyphen! [Tweet]
- The Ukraine-phone-call whistle-blower has overshadowed another one dealing with Trump's taxes.
- Brother and mother of exiled women's/human-rights activist Masih Alinejad have been arrested in Iran.
- Director Annie Dorsen to receive a $625,000 MacArthur Fellowship for her "algorithmic theater" work.
- People on the street were asked if we should let homo sapiens go extinct. Here are the hilarious results.
(4) Sustainable computing: Nobel-Laureate physicist Richard Feynman challenged computer scientists to make computing more energy-efficient. Now, with top-of-the-line supercomputers and data-center installations dissipating multi-megawatts of energy each, and ever-slimmer mobile devices running energy-hungry apps, his challenge takes on a greater significance. Stochastic computing, dealing with probabilistic rather than deterministic bits, is one of the promising ways for computing with less energy. [Nature: Editorial; Article]
[Citation: W. A. Borders, A. Z. Pervaiz, S. Fukami, K. Y. Camsari, H. Ohno, and S. Datta, "Integer Factorization Using Stochastic Magnetic Tunnel Junctions," Nature, Vol. 573, pp. 390-393, 2019.]
(5) Is it true that base 3 (ternary) is more efficient than base 2 (binary) for number representation? Base 3 is more efficient in the following sense, per one study in the early days of building digital computers. Suppose the cost of building an s-state device is linear in s. Then, a 3-bit register and a 2-trit register would cost the same (2 × 1.5 = 3), the former being capable of representing 8 states to the latter's 9. Base 4 comes out even with base 2, and it goes downhill from there. The linear-cost assumption is problematic. And the analysis ignores stability and noise-immunity considerations.

2019/09/26 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photos taken this afternoon at West Campus Beach and Coal Oil Point, batch 1 Sign warning about mountain-lion sightings at Coal Oil Point Photos taken this afternoon at West Campus Beach and Coal Oil Point, batch 2 (1) Images of the day: Walking on the UCSB West Campus Beach, Coal Oil Point, and Devereux Slough on a cloudy but pleasant afternoon, along with warning sign where one or more mountain lions have been sighted.
(2) Flowcharting templates: Smithsonian's National Museum of American History has begun posting on-line descriptions of objects in its collections. One such collection holds flowcharting templates. Each of the early computer manufacturers made its own version of the template as a tool for users and programmers. Later on, stationaries and office-supply companies started offering such tools. The IBM flowcharting template shown along with its sleeve in this photo was one of my prized possessions in the 1970s.
(3) Quote of the day: "I did this for my human soul. For myself. I wanted to practice and compete with freedom, with peace of mind." ~ Saeid Mollaei, Iranian judo champ, on defying his government's directive to throw a match against an Israeli opponent
(4) Some facts from Time magazine's September 23, 2019, special issue on how earth can survive:
- Changing our diet is a big part of the solution.
- The hottest city on Earth is Jacobabad, Pakistan.
- Africa is poised to become a launchpad for clean energy.
- Women will play a major role in saving the Earth.
- Despite the grim situation, there are reasons for hope.
- Paper straws won't save us, but they carry symbolic significance.
- Cities should not be allowed to become climate sanctuaries for the rich.
- Some pension funds are doing good through their investments.
- The people of South Pacific are uniquely threatened by sea-level rise.
- There are bad ideas for green energy that must be weeded out.
- We can innovate our way out of this mess.
(5) UCSB's Sage Center for the Study of the Mind 2019-2020 lecture series (all lectures begin at 4:00 PM)
09/26 "Becoming Human: A Theory of Ontogeny" (Michael Tomasello, Duke U)
10/24 "The Organization and Evolution of Large-Scale Networks in Human Brain" (Randy Buckner, Harvard U)
10/28 "Faces" (Doris Tsao, Cal Tech)
11/04 "Objects" (Doris Tsao, Cal Tech)
11/21 "Making Predictions in the Social World" (Diana Tamir, Princeton U)
12/05 "W.E.I.R.D. Minds" (Joseph Henrich, Harvard U)
01/06 "The 1980s Biological Revolution in Psychiatry: What Really Happened" (Anne Harrington, Harvard U)
01/13 "The 1980s Biological Revolution in Psychiatry: What RH Next" (Anne Harrington, Harvard U)
02/13 "Straighten Up and Fly Right: Long Distance Dispersal and ..." (Michael Dickinson, Cal Tech)
02/27 "Recent Advances in the Neural Dust Platform: Can We Target ... ?" (Michel Maharbiz, UC Berkeley)
03/02 SAGE Center Lecture #1 by Michael Shadlen (Michael Shadlen, Columbia U)
03/09 SAGE Center Lecture #2 by Michael Shadlen (Michael Shadlen, Columbia U)
04/20 SAGE Center Lecture #1 by James DiCarlo (James DiCarlo, MIT)
04/27 SAGE Center Lecture #2 by James DiCarlo (James DiCarlo, MIT)
05/04 "The Essential Child: What Children Can Teach Us about the Human Mind" (Susan Gelman, U Michigan)
05/11 "Sharks Attack Humans, But Most Sharks Don't Attack Humans: ..." (Susan Gelman, U Michigan)
05/18 "How 'You' Makes Meaning" (Susan Gelman, U Michigan)
05/28 "Computational Neuroimaging of the Human Auditory Cortex" (Josh McDermott, MIT)
06/04 "The Beauty of Calculus" (Steven Strogatz, Cornell U)

2019/09/25 (Wednesday): Here are three book reviews, in an effort to make a dent in my huge backlog!
Cover image for 'I'll Be Gone in the Dark' Cover image for 'Becoming,' Michelle Obama's memoir Cover image for 'The Book of Rumi: 105 Stories and Fables that Illuminate, Delight, and Inform' (1) Book review: McNamara, Michelle, I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Gabra Zackman (introduction by Gillian Flynn; afterword by Patton Oswalt), Harper Audio, 2018. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The violent predator known at the Golden State Killer committed 50 sexual assaults in northern California during the 1970s, before moving south to commit 10 sadistic murders. He then disappeared with no trace in 1986, until his identification and capture in April 2018 (a couple of months after this book was published). Joseph James DeAngelo emerged as the sole suspect, based on DNA information obtained from genealogy companies that led to some of his family members.
The story hit home for me, as I encountered descriptions of crimes and locations in Goleta (northeast area, near San Jose Creek), Santa Barbara, and Ventura, and the police forces involved in investigating some of the crimes. In fact, at one point in the course of investigations, it was believed that the killer was from Goleta.
This book, which was in progress when Michelle McNamara, the tireless crime writer who pursued the killer, died in 2016, was finished by Mc Namara's lead researcher, Gillian Flynn. McNamara's husband Patton Oswalt provides an afterword.
McNamara's unwavering dedication to finding the killer is awe-inspiring, as is her detailed and systematic pursuit of even the smallest leads. It is unfortunate that she did not live to see the monster's capture and the administration of justice; he will either be sentenced to life in prison without parole or, more likely, death.
(2) Book review: Obama, Michelle, Becoming, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Random House Audio, 2018. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The book is divided into three roughly equal parts: Childhood and youth, as Michelle Robinson ("becoming me"), the early years with Barack Obama, until he was elected US president ("becoming us"), and life in the spotlight ("becoming more").
"Becoming me": Michelle had to overcome a lot of obstacles during her working-class childhood in South Chicago. Her father was a boiler operator and, growing up, Michelle was not expected to go far in life. She essentially lived in the shadow and under the protection of her brother Craig, a basketball star who went to Princeton on athletic scholarship. She managed to attend Princeton and Harvard Law, landing at the prestigious Chicago law firm of Sidley & Austin, where she met Barack.
"Becoming us": That Michelle and Barack became a couple is rather surprising. Her organized, rule-following nature clashed with the dreamy, audacious trajectory of her husband-to-be. When Barack would call to say "I'm on my way," it did not actually mean that he was moving but that he had the intention of going home once he had taken care of urgent stuff. Punctuality wasn't his thing. Once it became clear that Barack would enter the political arena, the couple had to go through marriage counseling to keep tensions in check.
"Becoming more": This is the part I was most interested in when I decided to read the book. Any political spouse is under intense pressure and has to sacrifice a great deal. S/he isn't really free to speak and must hold his/her tongue to avoid being criticized or, worse, hurting the spouse holding office. Maintaining a semblance of family life and near-normal childhood for the kids is an even bigger challenge. Years of practice in the White House seems to have paid off, for, even though Michelle does not spare her husband's successor, she criticizes him in measured terms.
This is a very personal and literate memoir, from a political spouse who has what it takes to be a political figure herself but preferred to table her own ambitions to play a supporting role. Barack, for his part, has expressed gratitude for Michelle's role and continues to praise her as "his rock" every chance he gets. It's easy to forget the enormity of Michelle's challenges in the White House as the first black First Lady. She does mention the unfair attacks on her looks, fashion sense, and so on, but chooses not to dwell on them, preferring to maintain her optimistic outlook for our country.
The reaction to this book, like opinions on everything the Obamas did, is bimodal: On Amazon.com, the average rating for the book based on ~15,000 reviews is the near-perfect 4.9 stars; there are many 1-star reviews, though, and these negative reviews are liked by thousands of people.
(3) Book review: Mowlavi/Rumi (Translated by Maryam Mafi), The Book of Rumi: 105 Stories and Fables that Illuminate, Delight, and Inform, unabridged audiobook on 4 CDs, read by Keith Szarabajka, Blackstone Audio, 2018. [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Stripped of their magnificient poetic forms, most of the translated stories in this book come across as banal and simple-minded. For someone like me, who has read Mowlavi's telling of the stories, they are eminently recognizable, but those being introduced to Rumi's musings for the first time (the book's apparent target audience), the tales are less than impressive.
The 105 stories chosen for the book are some of the shorter ones in the 6-volume Masnavi, Mowlavi's magnum opus. The classic and oft-told stories, such as "Moses and the Shepherd," fare better in this retelling, but the vast majority, particularly those with no clear "punch line" or moral conclusion, are literally left hanging.
Much like the tales of 1001 Nights, Masnavi is essentially a retelling of stories that come from various cultures around the world. One can't help but wonder whether this book and its translated stories constitute the best way of introducing Western audiences to Mowlavi's/Rumi's philosophy and magical writings.

2019/09/24 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Greta Thunberg at the UN, watching in disbelief as Donald Trump walks by Tehran University's College of Engineering 50th graduation anniversary memorabilia Time magazine cover image about the crisis of deaths from vaping in the US (1) Images of the day: [Left] Trump mocks teen climate activist Greta Thunberg in a tweet: What else can a demagogue do when he is incapable of reasoned exchange based on facts? (Photo shows Thunberg at the UN, watching in disbelief as Trump walks by.) [Center] Tehran University's College of Engineering 50th graduation anniversary memorabilia: Booklet printed with photos and bios of my classmates (cover and sample page), a trophy (which bears the name of another classmate and must be exchanged the next time I see him), and DVD collection from last year's ceremonies in Tehran. [Right] I hope we don't make the same mistake with vaping as we made with cigarettes: Let's admit to and counteract deaths from vaping while they number in the dozens, not after they reach millions!
(2) Profs at the Pub speaker series: Professor Juan Campo (UCSB Department of Religious Studies, and my next-door neighbor) will speak on "Understanding US-Iranian Confrontations in the Persian Gulf: Religion, Politics, and Oil" (Wed. 9/25, 5:30 PM, SB Cider Co., 325 Rutherford St., Suite D, Goleta). [Flyer]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Impeachment inquiry: Pelosi indicates that the House Democrats are ready to proceed with impeachment.
- Inside the quiet feud between Ivanka and Don Jr. for succeeding their father as MAGA Empire's ruler.
- Kurdish music and dance. [4-minute video]
- Space-elevator concept for transporting passengers and cargo to/from the moon deemed feasible.
(4) UCLA celebrates, as the Internet turns 50: When I arrived at UCLA in the summer of 1970 to pursue a PhD in computer science, a dedicated group of faculty members and graduate students had already laid the foundations of ARPANET, not quite knowing that they were destined to play a major role in the connectivity revolution that followed. A couple of the team's grad-student members were in the same office suite as mine, and the rest were just a few steps away along the corridor in Boelter Hall. Over the next 4 years, I had a court-side seat to witness exciting technical developments, as a long sequence of firsts unraveled right in front of my eyes. I proudly join in this celebration of the institution that made it all happen! [Announcement]

2019/09/23 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
UCSB campus in the vicinity of Campbell Hall, today Time magazine'sSeptember 23 double-issue on environmental challenges Cover of 'Know My Name,' a just-published book by the sexual assault survivor Chanel Miller (1) Images of the day: [Left] UCSB campus in the vicinity of Campbell Hall, today (see the last item below). [Center] Time magazine has published its September 23 double-issue on environmental challenges: Young citizens of the world create hope that once the anti-environmentalism geezers are gone, our precious Earth will be in good hands. [Right] Cover of Know My Name, a just-published book by the sexual assault survivor Chanel Miller (see the next to the last item below).
(2) Math puzzle/problem: A bag contains 7 red and 4 blue balls. If we draw a ball at random, the probability that it's red is 7/11. If we draw two balls at random, what is the probability that the second ball drawn is red?
(3) Representative and presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard hammers Trump for putting US military personnel and other assets at the disposal of Saudi Prince MBS.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Collapse of world's oldest travel firm, in business since 1841, strands 0.5 million vacationers worldwide.
- Drought uncovers Spanish 'Stonehenge' which had been submerged for decades.
- Shades of Atlantis: Lost continent found 1500 km under Europ reveals Earth's missing history.
- The symmetry and chaos of megacities captured by architectural photographer Ryan Koopmans. [Pictorial]
- Group photos from my Georgia trip, taken inside and at the gate of the historic Gonio-Apsarus Fort.
- Yet another batch of photos from my Georgia trip, sent to me by various friends.
(5) Know My Name: This is the title of a book by sexual assault survivor Chanel Miller, who at the time of the 2016 trial of her rapist, Stanford student-athlete Brock Turner, was known as "Emily Doe." Turner got a slap on the wrist, when the judge cited his "good character" to sentence him to 6 months in prison, with the possibility of getting out in 3. The 27-year-old, who studied literature at UCSB, has come forward with her story, hence the title of her book. Here is the must-see CBS "60 Minutes" report on this champion of the #MeToo movement who points out that the punishment for getting drunk shouldn't be rape. [28-minute video]
(6) A new academic year begins: Fall quarter officially started on Sunday at many UC campuses and classes will begin on Thursday 9/26. Today, our campus was abuzz with new undergraduate and graduate students trying to find their way to various offices and pre-instructional activities, and returning students resuming their academic plans a year closer to their goal. My own class (a graduate course on fault-tolerant computing), which kicks off my 47th year of teaching, begins on Monday 9/30. Welcome to the academic year 2019-2020!

2019/09/21 (Saturday): My journey back from Tbilisi to Santa Barbara, and some reflections on Georgia.
Returning home from Georgia, via Istanbul (miscellaneous images) A Persian couplet I wrote in celebration of our Georgia reunion Learning a few Turkish words from bilingual signs [Images: [Left] Returning home from Georgia, via Istanbul (see the description below). [Center] A Persian couplet I wrote in celebration of our Georgia reunion. The poem's half-verse initial letters spell the word "friend" in Persian ("rafigh"). [Right] Learning a few Turkish words from bilingual signs at Istanbul International Airport. Vague memories of Azeri from my grades 1-3 schooling in Tabriz were helpful.]
The 2.5-hour flight from Tbilisi to Istanbul began okay, but it soon turned into an elbow-fest when the largish guy in the middle seat next to me fell asleep. I seem to be getting more than my fair share of inconsiderate people on flights. This, however, turned out to be the smallest of my problems.
The plane had to circle the airport before landing, thus arriving 15 minutes late. I was seated near the tail of the completely-full plane, so, by the time I disembarked, 20 minutes of my 60-minute layover had been eaten up. I was happy with the short layover, given my 13-hour wait at IST en route to Tbilisi. In retrospect, the 60-minute inter-flight time was too short, given that I had to walk from one end of the world's largest airport to the other end and, much to my surprise, had to pass through security again (an unusual occurrence when transferring from one international flight to another).
Needless to say, I missed my LAX flight, given that nowadays, at many airports, they stop boarding and close the gates some 15 minutes before flight time, baggage security concerns and full flights with waiting lists being the main culprits. Where are all those flight delays when you need them?
Next, I had to find Turkish Airlines' service desk in the vast airport, based on incomplete and vague directions. Turks apparently aren't very good at giving directions. They are also unfamiliar with the notion of service (much like other Middle-Easterners), acting like bosses who are doing passengers big favors by talking to them. One young woman was playing with her phone, as I waited at a counter to ask a question, taking at least 5 minutes to acknowledge my presence.
Eventually, I was told that the earliest time I could leave Istanbul was 24 hours later (same flight, the next day) and was given a free hotel room for the night. To take advantage of this offer, I had to obtain a Turkish visa (not that I was given the info right there, but had to find out about it after going back and forth between various terminal exits). Given the rainy weather outside, I decided that I couldn't do much with an afternoon's stay in Istanbul, having to return to the airport around 9:00 AM the next day.
At any rate, my 1-hour layover turned into a 25-hour one. And I had a 13-hour layover at IST en route to Georgia. At one point, I remembered the Tom Hanks movie "The Terminal," as I went back and forth between coffee shops and restaurants in search of WiFi, having exhausted my 1-hour block of free Internet connection from Turkish Telecom's airport network. There was no way to buy more time, and my Verizon TravelPass service, announced with fanfare via an SMS as soon as I entered the airport, did not work. I was briefly connected to the Internet through a coffee shop's network, but that connection was soon lost, never to return. Next time I go to Starbucks, I will enjoy and appreciate their WiFi service even more!
Fortunately, the wonderful week-long Georgia reunion with classmates from Tehran University's College of Engineering and their families (25 people in all) made the troubles getting there and back worthwhile. It's amazing that friendships forged 51-55 years ago have remained so strong! It seems that high-school and college friendships are quite enduring.
Let me end this last installment of my "What I Did This Summer" essay (presented over the past 11 days) with some reflections on Georgia, an economically disadvantaged, but culturally rich, country, sandwiched between the Great Caucasus Mountains to its north and the Lesser Caucasus to its south. The Great Caucasus range extends between Caspian and Black Seas, but georgia itself is not connected to the Caspian (Azerbaijan sits between them). Georgia's nature is stunningly beautiful, both in its dry form to the east (Tbilisi region) and the lush greenery, reminiscent of Iran's Caspian coast, towards the Black Sea (where Batumi is located).
Georgians are erecting quite a few modern buildings, many with impressive architectures, but they remain sensitive to preserving their heritage. Historical sites are well-maintained and a source of pride. In some Tbilisi neighborhoods, building facades must be kept in their original forms by owners, limiting any renovations to the buildings' interiors, with exceptions granted for buildings that are deemed unsafe and must be razed. Transparency in government is another source of pride for Georgians.
For a country whose economy is heavily dependent on tourism (Batumi is known as the Las Vegas of the region), surprisingly few Georgians speak English or another Western language, and those who do, have very limited vocabularies. While I liked last year's visit to Armenia better, I do recommend a visit to Georgia to adventurous souls. Next year, the same group of friends may meet in Tajikistan.

2019/09/19 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
My photo with a couple of statues sitting on a bench in Tbilisi My photo in front of an 'I Heart Tbilisi' sign Part of our final group photo in Tbilisi (1) Images of the day (see the last two items below): [Left & Center] Photos taken during my last stroll in Tbilisi, Georgia. [Right] Part of our final group photo taken after dinner in our Tbilisi hotel.
(2) After years of officially denying that Baha'is and other "unofficial" minorities face education ban and other illegal curtailments of their civil rights, Iran makes the discriminatory policies public.
(3) UCSB becomes home to the nation's first NSF-funded Quantum Foundry: One of the two leaders of the $25 million center charged with developing materials for quantum information-based technologies, Professor Ania Bleszynski Jayich (Physics), is my next-door neighbor at UCSB's Faculty Housing.
(4) Another channel for the illegal data gathering: Northeastern University and UK's Imperial College London researchers have found that certain smart TVs transmit information like location and Internet Protocol (IP) addresses to Netflix, Facebook, and third-party services, in some cases even when the devices are turned off.
(5) Taking the train from Batumi back to Tbilisi: The train ride was quite pleasant and much more comfortable than the bus ride going to Batumi. [Photos and time-lapse videos] The two time-lapse videos were recorded right after leaving Batumi and just before arrival in Tbilisi. We happened to ride on the same train that carried a large group of musicians on their way to their respective home countries via Tbilisi, after attending a music festival in Batumi. A woman violinist from the group, along with our own Joseph Salimpour and the Fanni singers, entertained us en route to Tbilisi. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4] [Video 5] [Video 6]
(6) Last stroll in Tbilisi and our farewell dinner: After a late lunch in Tbilisi's city center [Photos] [Video], we walked through narrow streets lined with restaurants and gift shops and ended at the arts-and-crafts-rich Dry Bridge area. [Video] Back at the hotel, we had our farewell dinner [Video] and took several group photos with our reunion banner. [Sample photo]

2019/09/18 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo taken at one of Batumi's Botnaic Gardens' many vista points The walkway along the waterfront in Batumi Sample architecture along Batumi's waterfront (1) Images of the day (see the last item below): [Left] Photo taken at one of Batumi's Botnaic Gardens' many vista points. [Center & Right] Photos taken during my long walk along Batumi's waterfront.
(2) The homeless hurt property values: In case you were wondering why Trump suddenly became interested in the homelessness problem. Ditto, California's stricter clean-air standards
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Cokie Roberts, of ABC-News and PBS fame, dead at 75: The orange Grinch wishes her family well!
- Political humor: Sharpie-ing the US Constitution! [Tweet image]
- Cartoon of the day: Screaming "Death to America" (Iran) versus thinking it (Saudi Arabia). [Image]
- Iran suspended from judo competition for forcing athletes to withdraw rather than face Israeli opponents.
(4) Exploring western Georgia (day 2): The first and main stop today was Batumi's Botanical Gardens, a heavenly expanse of greenery and flowers atop rolling hills, right by the Black Sea. The park is divided into sections, with trees and shrubs from East Asia, Australia, North America, and nearly every other region of the world on display. The regional greenery areas are punctuated by flower gardens and vista points everywhere. Over a 3-hour period, we walked along the park's winding trails, from the upper (higher) entrance to the lower one, where we were picked up by our tour vans. Anyone interested in plant species can spend a full day at this wonderful park and still fall short of seeing everything. [Photos]
Our second stop today was for having lunch at Mimino Georgian Restaurant in Batumi's city center. Menu selections included a variety of local dishes. A few dogs were roaming around our tables, at times coming uncomfortably close to us. [Photos] [A video recorded around the lunch table; the jerky camera motions are due to having to walk carefully, so as not to step on several dogs resting on the floor, just behind our chairs.]
After lunch, we were on our own with regard to activities. Many went to get ice cream, others wanted to do some shopping downtown. A friend and I decided to walk to our hotel (Aqua Batumi) along the shore, thinking it was only 45 minutes away on foot. We ended up walking for more than 1.5 hours (7 km). On the way to the hotel, I photographed massive or architecturally interesting buildings (mostly hotels or condo/apartment complexes overlooking the Black Sea). With all these buildings already in place, much construction is still going on. We had already walked 3-4 km at the Botanic Gardens, so, just like my phone's battery, my own battery was drained shortly before we got to the hotel (last photo in this sequence). One of the photos shows a wide concrete walkway along the seashore that is designed to look like a wooden boardwalk.

2019/09/17 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The Batumi beach-park statue named 'Ali & Nino' Two photos of me, and their FaceApp-edited versions Group photo with the reunion banner, taken during out lunch on the river (1) Images of the day: [Left] The Batumi beach-park statue named 'Ali & Nino' (see the last item below). [Center] A friend, who likes to play with his FaceApp photo-editing software, created these portraits of me. [Right] Group photo with the reunion banner, taken during out lunch on the river (see the last item below).
(2) Ethics in research funding: Computer scientist Richard Stallman, who defended Jeffrey Epstein, resigns from MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab and the Free Software Foundation.
(3) Winds of war are ablowing: Iran denies involvement in the extensive bombing of Saudi oil facilities, said to have cut their production capacity in half, but it's hard to imagine a scenario where Iran isn't a target of retaliation by the US.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Looking at the Black Sea from my 5th-story hotel room in Batumi: Early morning and at sunset. [Photos]
- Group photos with reunion banner, taken at a waterfront park in Batumi. [Photos]
- With the Khan Afshar family at a beach park in Batumi, Georgia. [Photos]
- More photos taken on the beach in Batumi, courtesy of fellow-travelers. [Photos]
(5) Exploring western Georgia (day 1): We began this morning by visiting a waterfront park in Batumi. One of the most interesting sights there was a dynamic statue named "Ali & Nino." The man and woman statues are installed on bases that rotate around eccentric axes. As the bases rotate, the statues get closer and eventually pass through each other. [More photos]
In Georgia, fruits, such as these yummy Cornelian cherries, figs, mixed berries, as well as Georgian nuts and other kinds of nuts, are sold in plastic cups for about 5 laris (~ $1.50) by street vendors.
Next, we headed to the Gonio-Apsarus Fort in an area very close to Georgia's border with Turkey, where people have resided since the 13th century BCE. Within the fort itself, excavations have uncovered artifacts, spanning in age from the 3rd century BCE. The grave of Saint Matthias, one of the 12 apostles, is believed to be inside the fort. In the 2nd century CE, Gonio-Apsarus was a well-fortified Roman city, with areas devoted to warfare, economy, arts, and so on. [My photos] [More photos, courtesy of fellow travellers] [Video 1: Our travel-mates helping with food prep for today's lunch] [Video 2: Lunch, served on a raft] [Video 3: Floating on the river after lunch] [Video 4: Music and dancing on the raft]
A beautiful waterfall constituted our last stop before returning to our hotel. The short hike from where our tour vans parked to the base of the fall reminded me of Tehran's Darband region. [Photos] [Video]
We ended our day with a gathering at one of our hotel rooms for some bread, cheese, fruits, and nuts. Midway through our gathering, we were startled when the bed gave way with a big bang! [Video] [More photos]

2019/09/16 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Athletes around the world show solidarity with Iranian women athletes and spectators (1) Images of the day: [Left] Athletes around the world support Iranian women athletes and spectators. [Center & Right] At Sighnaghi, the City of Love: The restaurant where we had lunch served native dishes and had an adjoining traditional bakery that baked exquisite French-baguette-like bread. [More photos]
(2) Tensions in the Middle East: Yesterday morning, before leaving our hotel and thus being cut off from WiFi and world news, we heard about the troubling drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities. Checking the news, I see that there still isn't reliable info about the extent of damage done and its possible consequences. Hoping for better news when I wake up tomorrow morning.
(3) Bodbe Monastery: Yesterday's main stop en route to Sighnaghi was a 9th-Century Orthodox religious complex, which has been renovated several times. [Monastery photos] [On the minibus: Video 1, Video 2]
(4) Yesterday's alternate program: When we visited Sighnaghi, the City of Love, a second group of our fellow-travelers to Georgia went in the opposite direction from Tbilisi, toward Gori. Among interesting places they visited was Uplistsikhe, an area with a wide range of historical sites, dating from the Early Iron Age to the Late Middle Ages. [Image]
(5) Dinner time gathering: Upon our return from Sighnaghi (and Gori), we gathered at one of our hotel rooms to have a light dinner (with some of the items having been brought from Iran) and to enjoy the musical talents of our fellow travelers. [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4]
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Our tour group with reunion banner at Turtle Lake (Tbilisi's water storage reservoir), on 9/14. [Photo]
- The song "Beh Esfahan Ro" ("Go to Esfahan") by Taj Esfahani, performed by his daughter, Ms. Homa Taj.
- Music on the bus, en route from Tbilisi to Batumi. [Video]
- Yanni in concert: "For All Seasons"
(7) There wasn't much to report from Georgia today: We took a shared bus from Tbilisi to the modern and beautiful Black-Sea port of Batumi, nick-named the Las Vegas of the Black Sea, with two other groups. The trip took nearly the entire day. Traffic was awful at both ends. There are a lot of road closures and restrictions in Tbilisi, where the movie "Fast and Furious 9" is being filmed. The cross-country road consisted mostly of winding, very narrow, 2-lane segments, where getting stuck behind a slow-moving vehicle meant significant delays. There were several bathroom/snack stops and a lunch stop. Use of bathrooms is generally not free in Georgia and there is often an old lady sitting at the entrance to collect the 0.5 lari ($0.17) fee. One bathroom, more modern than the others, also insulted the male patrons with sexist murals. We passed by, but did not stop at, the Georgia History Monument on top of a hill overlooking Tbilisi Lake. [Photos/Images]

2019/09/14 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of me in front of the Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi Map of central Tbilisi, Georgia (1) Images of the day: [Left] Today's visit to the Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi: The Orthodox Georgians take their religion seriously. Women had to wear a headscarf and I was asked to cover my legs because I was wearing shorts! The main cathedral is surrounded by some 10 smaller structures that serve as religious schools. (More photos) (Video) [Center] Map of central Tbilisi. [Right] Part of today's tour in Tbilisi: Bath houses from the era of the Persian king Shah Abbas, a nearby waterfall, and the Bridge of Love. (More photos)
(2) FIFA's puzzling stance: Rather than penalize Iran's sports bodies, as previously indicated, FIFA just asks Iranian authorities to ensure the freedom and safety of women fighting Iran's stadium ban. So, it seems that FIFA is okay with the ban itself, as long as women are allowed to protest against it!
(3) Is he really joking? Every time Trump mentions or retweets the crazy idea that he should serve a third term, he says he meant it as a joke. I am not so sure! [Image]
(4) Part of Saturday 9/14 tour in Tbilisi, Georgia: The Peace Bridge and its vicinity, including the hill-top Presidential Palace with its glass dome, said to be a symbol for transparency in government. The current President of Georgia is a woman, Salome Zourabichvili. [Photos]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- UCSB in the top 10 again, deemed the 7th best public university in the US News & World Report ranking.
- A subset of our Tbilisi reunion group, as we were getting ready to depart on our tour this morning. [Video]
- Today's late lunch at the 1001 Nights Persian restaurant in Tbilisi, Georgia. [Photos]
- Music and dancing near the Bridge of Love in Tbilisi, Georgia. [1-minute video]
- Miscellaneous photos from today's tour of Tbilisi.
- Parts of Tbilisi from the bus window: The large bus carried other tour groups besides ours. [Video]
(6) Videos from dinner at a traditional Georgian restaurant with live entertainment: The meal was served over a couple of hours in the form of many shared plates, with a local wine in pitchers and a variety of soft drinks. Having had a big late lunch, I could only partake of some bread and cheese, along with fruit dessert, missing the sumptuous appetizers and kebobs. [Around the dinner table] [Music and dance from the Caucuses] [Performance of "Hava Nagila" with some of the diners dancing to it: According to one of our tour guides, Georgians are very fond of Israel, because it supported them in their conflicts with Russia] [3-minute video, courtesy of fellow-traveler Mostafa Joharifard]

2019/09/13 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Two interesting puzzles I encountered for the first time during my LAX-IST flight Selfie taken at Istanbul International Airport Cartoon of the day: Iranian men who go to sporting events seem to be indifferent to the plight of women fighting the unfair and ridiculous ban on their attendance at sports stadiums
Selfie taken at the park on the Roof of Tbilisi A few group photos taken on Tbilisi streets Selfie taken at the inclined tram taking us to the Roof of Tbilisi (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Two puzzles I encountered for the first time during my LAX-IST flight: A crossword puzzle with 0 or 2 letters in each box and a geometric puzzle, with an example given. (Solutions) [Top center] At Istanbul International Airport (see next to the last item below). [Top right] Cartoon of the day: Iranian men who go to sporting events seem to be indifferent to the plight of women fighting the unfair and ridiculous ban on their attendance at sports stadiums (credit: Iranwire.com) (See my poem in the next item). [Bottom left] At the park on the Roof of Tbilisi. [Bottom center] A few group photos on the streets of Tbilisi. [Bottom right] On the inclined tram taking us to the Roof of Tbilisi (see the last item below).
(2) My poem for Iranian women's equity struggles: "Colors of Division and Unity: For the Blue Girl"
[The girl who self-immolated to protest her prison sentence for sneaking into a soccer stadium against the law]
In America, | They divide us, | Into Blue and Red. | Colors meant to unite; | The flag's Sky and Stripe.
In Iran, | There's a Green tribe, | And one leaning Red. | Each filled with spite, | Except alongside White.
But today, | Two other shades, | Cover my aching heart. | A girl dressed in Blue, | Engulfed in Orangish hue.
(3) Travel story, Wednesday 9/11 at LAX: During the long wait to check in for my Turkish Airlines flight, as the line snaked ahead, I intermittently found myself next to two older Iranian women. One was singing the praises of her daughter (pretty, slim, tall, smart, in that order). The other one asked if she had a photo, which she did. You have heard of a match made in heaven. This one may end up being a match made in La La Land! So, I watched my Turkish serial even before getting on the plane!
(4) Half a day at Istanbul's International Airport: I had a 13-hour layover, with no WiFi access, at IST. First, the entire WiFi system was down. Then, I couldn't make the complex connection process work. The system was supposed to send me an SMS code for access, which never arrived, despite repeated attempts. Then I got a stream of 20 or so codes upon arriving at Tbilisi Airport! IST is an architecturally stunning brand-new Airport, half of which is covered with duty-free shops, having more employees than customers. There are also many restaurants and fashion boutiques. Not a single water fountain, though. Having missed my daily dose of news whoppers from you-know-who, I took a selfie in front of Burger King, home of the whopper. I also made good progress on writing a new paper, in part because of lack of WiFi access. [More photos] [My LAX-IST flight]
(5) Tbilisi, Georgia: A City with a rich history, built atop buried ancient civilizations, including those that date from 8000 or more years ago. You can get roughly 3 laris for one US dollar. A cab ride in the city costs 5-8 laris. Most cars are fairly old, and some have their steering wheels on the right. Sidewalks are uneven, some to the point of being dangerous. [Images] In the evening of our first day in Tbilisi, we took taxis downtown, walked up steep streets (a la San Francisco), and rode a tram on an inclined track to the Roof of Tbilisi, from where the entire city can be seen. [Photos] We ended the day by dining at a food court at a shopping center, trying some local favorites, including khinkali (stuffed dumplings), khachapuri (a pizza-like dish with egg on top), and a Georgia red wine. [Panoramic photo]

2019/09/11 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Abider Heights, a district within Iran's western city of Sanandaj Broiling corn on the cob, Iranian style (balaal) Nature's wonderful colors in Tehran, Iran: Purple flowers (1) Iran-related images of the day: [Left] Abider Heights, a district within Iran's western city of Sanandaj. [Center] Broiling corn on the cob, Iranian style (balaal): Traditionally, the corns are dipped in salt water before eating. [Right] Nature's wonderful colors on the Caspian shore, Iran (photo credit: Vida Vaziri).
(2) The 18th anniversary of 9/11 terrorist attacks: Today, we remember nearly 3000 Americans who died on September 11, 2001, as planes were crashed deliberately into both of the World Trade Center Twin Towers in New York City, the Pentagon Headquarters in Washington, DC, and, in an attempt thwarted by brave passengers, a field in southwestern Pennsylvania. The events that took shape on that fateful day 18 years ago led to the still-ongoing war in Afghanistan, where in the wee hours of Wednesday, a rocket exploded at the US Embassy in Kabul, apparently with no casualties.
(3) "And the Waltz Goes On": Andre Rieu conducts a piece composed by Anthony Hopkins some 50 years ago, before he became an actor. Hopkins' wife provided the notes to Rieu, who invited Hopkins to his concert and performed the waltz as a surprise to him. [6-minute video]
(4) Another look at the Mongols: They had a technology-rich civilization and military (put to bad use, of course). They adopted technology and cultural practices from the people they conquered, growing their empire to 12 million square miles during 162 years of aggressive expansion. The empire, which at its peak covered most of Eurasia (second-largest ever), lasted from 1206 until 1368. [Photos]
(5) Persian typography and Iran's first newspaper: Sharing info sent to me by Behnam Esfahbod, following our chat in Palo Alto during the 40th TUG Annual Conference. We share interests in the printing/display of Persian script (Persian computing, more generally) and have kept in touch after the conference.
[Timeline (history) of Persian computing] [Borna Izadpanah's article about the first Persian-language newspaper, Kaqaz-e Akhbar] [BBC Persian interview with Borna Izadpanah about Persian newspaper fonts] [Talk entitled "Early Persian Printing and Typography in Europe" (19-minute video)] [Brief information about Lalezar and two other typefaces developed by Borna Izadpanah]
(6) History of desktop publishing: IEEE Annals of the History of Computing has published two special issues (July-September 2018 and July-September 2019) on the history of desktop publishing, with a 2020 issue containing more articles on the topic in the pipeline. You can find the tables of contents for the two issues, along with a wealth of extra material (including oral-history interviews) on this Web page.
(7) No blog posts for more than a week: I will be visiting Georgia (the republic) until Friday 9/20, as part of a college reunion for our 51st graduation anniversary. I will fill the gap in my posts upon my return.

2019/09/10 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Image of Iran's first newspaper: Kaqaz-e Akhbar Group photo of first-year Democratic reps in US Congress showing their unity Lost in translation: The name 'Kamal Ghassemi' somehow changes to 'Kazem Ghassemi' in English on this street sign (1) Images of the day: [Left] Iran's first newspaper (see the last item below). [Center] First-year Democratic reps in US Congress, more than half of them women, send Trump a photo to show their unity. [Right] Lost in translation: The name "Kamal Ghassemi" somehow becomes "Kazem Ghassemi" in English on this street sign.
(2) Tainted money in research: MIT Media Lab Director resigns over accusations that he helped hide from public records donations made or facilitated by Jeffrey Epstein.
(3) Only Trump can claim credit for both scheduling secret talks with Islamists who have killed thousands in bombing of civilians and in government-sanctioned executions and for canceling the said talks because the group committed an act of terrorism!
(4) To Trump, "advice" means saying "yes sir" to all of your ideas: Everyone saw the firing of John Bolton as inevitable. Just another discarded sheet of soiled toilet paper! Fortunately for Trump, there seems to be an endless supply of toilet paper. Somewhat good news for Iran, though.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Powerful message on gun safety from the leading Democratic candidates for US presidency. [Video]
- The dinosaurs' last day on Earth: Interesting new details of what happened on that day, 66M years ago.
- Riddle: What is H2O4? Answer: Drinking!
- Bean ... James Bean: Mr. Bean, being hilarious, as usual! [Video]
- Humor: Medical terminology for the layman. [Image]
- Symphony of life: Iran's nature captured by a Panasonic Gh5s camera. [3-minute video]
- Art: Did Leonardo da Vinci paint a second 'Mona Lisa'? Some art historians believe that he did.
(6) "The Blue Girl" dies in Iran: Sahar Khodayari had set herself on fire to protest her jail term for sneaking into a stadium to watch soccer. FIFA and other international bodies are under intense pressure to boycott Iran for its rampant gender discrimination. Also, Iranian men are being urged not to attend sporting events, until the ban on women's attendance is lifted. Sadly, I don't believe that the latter will happen.
(7) 42 = (–80538738812075974)^3 + (80435758145817515)^3 + (12602123297335631)^3: This seemingly useless identity supplies the last piece of a longstanding math puzzle about whether all natural numbers up to 100 can be written as sums of 3 cubes. Two numbers proved particularly challenging in this regard; 33 & 42. The solution for 33 was discovered earlier this year, and now we can give a positive answer to the puzzle.
(8) Word puzzle: Fill in the blanks in the following sentence with spelled-out numbers ("one," "two," and so on) to make it true: In this sentence, there are ___ O's, ___ T's, and ___ N's.

2019/09/09 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image of 'The Moment of Lift,' by Melinda Gates Income inequality: The US gap between executive and worker compensations has grown 14-fold over the past 5 decades Zahra Mohammadi, a 29-year-old teacher of Kurdish language and literature, has not been heard of since she was arrested while eating dinner 2 months ago (1) Images of the day: [Left] Melinda Gates publishes a book: Looking forward to seeing what this highly influential woman has to say! [Center] Income inequality: The US gap between executive and worker compensations has grown 14-fold over the past 5 decades. [Right] Kurdish women face Iran regime's double wrath: Zahra Mohammadi, a 29-year-old teacher of Kurdish language and literature, has not been heard of since she was arrested while eating dinner 2 months ago (source: Iranwire.com).
(2) Science, conducted with tainted money: MIT Media Lab was aware of Jeffrey Epstein's status as a convicted sex offender and worked to hide from public records the full extent of his contributions to the Lab.
(3) Mandatory evacuation order issued for Buellton: Four separate brushfires are burning on California's Central Coast along Highway 101, whose northbound lanes are closed from Buellton northward to Highway 154.
(4) Outsourcing of college homework in the US: A global industry has developed that allows people in developing countries to bid on posted homework assignments and then provide solutions at the agreed-upon price. This has been going on for years, but, lately, the sites have grown in sophistication, offering customer service, money-back guarantees, and other perks of typical e-commerce sites.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Federal employees now risk being fired if they make statements contradicting the Dear Leader's lies.
- Jerry Falwell's aides break their silence about financial fraud and culture of fear at Liberty University.
- Three women activists in Iran sentenced to a total of 54 years for working on behalf of workers' rights.
- Mars was once a lush, ocean-covered planet with a thick atmosphere like Earth's.
- Cal State University wants to raise its admission bar by requiring greater preparation in math.
(6) Nightmare scenario: Trump campaign manager predicts that Trump will stay in power for a long time, through Presidents Ivanka, Jared, and Don Jr. Reportedly, Ivanka and Don Jr. are already at each other's throats about who will go first.
(7) Trump governs as if he is the President of 85% of Republicans (or ~35% of Americans who support him). What if we could let this group have him as President and elected another person for the remaining 65%?
(8) Quote of the day: "Imagine being president of a whole country and spending your Sunday night hate-watching MSNBC hoping somebody — ANYBODY — will praise you. Melania, please praise this man. He needs you." ~ Singer John Legend, who, along with his wife, was a target of Trump's tweet diarrhea on Sunday

2019/09/08 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. Child's drawing for Grandparents' Day Persian poetry: A couplet by Ghodratollah Bayat Sarmadi
Photos of UCSB's Harold Frank Hall and its lobby (1) Images of the day: [Left] Happy Grandparents' Day: "The reason grandchildren and grandparents get along so well is that they have a common enemy." ~ Sam Levenson [Center] Persian poetry: This wonderful couplet, that reads the same horizontally and vertically (with a small change in the word "digar"), is attributed to Sa'adi in some Internet posts. Becoming suspicious of the attribution, I dug a bit and discovered that it is due to contemporary poet Ghodratollah Bayat Sarmadi. View it as a symmetric 4 × 4 matrix! [Right] UCSB's Harold Frank Hall: Formerly known as "Engineering I," this is the oldest building in the engineering area of our campus and where my fifth-floor office is located. The very first engineering building is now part of UCSB's arts district. The photos show HFH's south entrance and its lobby.
(2) Patriarchy on full display: Brazil's Minister of Economy joins the country's President Jair Bolsonaro in calling France's First Lady Brigitte Macron "truly ugly." Even if true, the world stage is full of ugly men and no one ever comments on their looks.
(3) How did a fashion model qualify for a so-called "Einstein Visa"? [Normally, I don't question anyone's immigration status, but if Melania's husband chooses to demonize all immigrants, except for models from Russia and Eastern Europe, examining his family's immigrant background becomes fair game.] [Meme]
(4) Heartfelt speech by Iranian actress Gohar Kheirandish: Sad and humorous, the speech is about heroes, and the troubles she got into when she kissed one such hero to honor him. [4-minute video, in Persian]
(5) Turning recklessness and dishonesty into dollars: After selling plastic straws with a huge mark-up, thus profiting from its disregard for the environment, the Trump campaign is now selling $15 sharpies to fans of its truth-challenged Dear Leader.
(6) Our understanding of black holes may rest on shaky grounds: UCSD philosopher-of-science Craig Callender argues that laws of black-hole thermodynamics may be nothing more than a useful analogy stretched too far.
(7) UK-based Kurdish-Iranian mathematician Caucher Birkar adds a new major honor to his Fields Medal, sometimes referred to as the Nobel Prize of mathematics. He has been chosen as the world's top thinker from among 50 candidates. [Video report, in Persian]
(8) The Magic Wand Theorem: Alex Eskin wins a $3 million Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics for a theorem he proved jointly with the late Fields-Medal-winner Maryam Mirzakhani.

2019/09/07 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo from Friday's late-afternoon walk on the bluffs of UCSB West Campus Newsweek magazine's cover image about whether science can rewire our brains Sanctuary of Madonna Della Corona in the mountains of Italy (1) Images of the day: [Left] Photo from Friday's late-afternoon walk on the bluffs of UCSB West Campus during high tide (more photos). And here is a 3-minute video I took on the stairway leading from UCSB West Campus bluffs down to the beach: Watch for a banner-pulling plane, the moon, a group of students on a raft, Platform Holly, and the waves crashing on the bottom steps of the strairway. [Center] Newsweek magazine's cover story about whether science can rewire our brains. [Right] Sanctuary of Madonna Della Corona, Italy.
(2) [Important info for SoCal residents] SoCal Edison may preemptively shut off power to our area for periods of up to one week in case of elevated fire danger. This, I believe is to protect SCE's behind at our expense, given that electric utilities were found responsible for multiple fires last year because of outdated equipment that triggered or helped spread the fires. Friends outside SB should check with their utilities or monitor the news to see whether they will be similarly impacted. Having a large ice-box may help you survive for a few days, but you do need to reduce your freezer/fridge contents and stock up on non-perishable food.
(3) An American Airlines plane, scheduled to carry 150 passengers, was sabotaged by a mechanic, but the pilots detected the problem before taking off.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Building a $3 billion settlement on the moon is being pursued by a Silicon-Valley group.
- Sally Floyd, whose RED algorithm is essential to congestion control and stability on the Internet, dead at 69.
- Here's what would happen if we nuke a hurricane: Definitely a terrible idea!
- This week's Santa Barbara Independent reports on the tragic diving-boat fire that claimed 34 lives.
- The ultimate drum solo, by Neil Peart: Rush live in Frankfurt.
- Super-high-resolution photography: Amazing 25B-pixel panorama, taken at a beautiful beach in Thailand.
(5) Shiny objects: As Trump distracts us with sharpie-gate, our country's foreign policy is in disarray. We are giving Russia a pass on its aggressive behavior, negotiating with Taliban terrorists (who continue to kill Americans and our Afghan allies), alienating European allies, and so on. And now, just as new challenges develop, our top two national-security officials aren't on speaking terms!
(6) Mind-boggling: The Trump administration plans to sue four automakers (BMW, Ford, Honda, Volkswagen) that have decided to voluntarily abide by California's stricter emission standards, as opposed to the newly-relaxed EPA standards, and to force California to abandon its clean-air efforts.

2019/09/05 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Sharpie-gate: The original, and some of the memes spreading on the Internet The $86 trillion world economy, in one chart (2018 data) Vice-President Mike Pence looks at President Donald Trump adoringly (1) Images of the day: [Left] Sharpie-gate: The original, and some of the memes spreading on the Internet. [Center] The $86 trillion world economy, in one chart (2018 data). [Right] Vice-President Mike Pence looks at President Donald Trump adoringly (see the last item below).
(2) The magical pi: We always connect the number π to circles, but this versatile number turns up in many unexpected places in mathematics (so does its cousin e). One example is the sum-of-inverse-squares identity 1/1 + 1/4 + 1/9 + 1/16 + 1/25 + ... = (π^2)/6. So, what is π doing in this identity, and why is it squared? This 18-minute video provides an "enlightening" interpretation of the identity, which ties it back to a circle!
(3) Here we go again: Years ago, we watched in disbelief, as tobacco executives testified under oath that they were unaware of a link between smoking and lung cancer, even though their internal company memos said otherwise. Please don't let the vaping industry get away with similar lies. Devise regulations and enact legislation before it's too late! [Deaths from vaping]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Bahamas decimated: Hurricane Dorian's death toll is rising and 70,000 people need immediate relief.
- New fiction title: Sarah Huckabee Sanders is reportedly working on her memoir, due in 2020.
- Republicans change their views on deficit/debt, without offering one word in way of explanation. [Cartoon]
- A beautiful, and masterfully performed, Azeri folk song: "Lachin"
- How to solve a Rubik's cube: Easy-to-follow process, that with practice, can lead you to a quick solution.
(5) Trump-Pence tensions may define 2020: The POTUS and his VP maintain an outwardly cordial relationship, but there are consistent reports of problems, from Ivanka and Jared wanting to replace Pence on the ticket with a woman (Nikki Haley?) to Trump asking aides on several occasions about their opinion of Pence. Many Evangelicals will vote for Trump without Pence, but others support him because of Pence. Pence knows how to stay in Trump's good graces through adoring gazes when he speaks, frequent references to his leadership, and avoiding the limelight. It is an interesting relationship to watch!

2019/09/04 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The path of, and damage inflicted by, Hurricane Dorian Pillar of courage and resistance Nasrin Sotoudeh Four images pertaining to child marriages in Iran (1) Images of the day: [Left] Hurricane Dorian's wrath (see item 2 below). [Center] Pillar of courage and resistance Nasrin Sotoudeh (see the last item below). [Right] Child marriages in Iran (see item 4 below).
(2) Hurricane Dorian moves along the US coast: After decimating Bahamas, as it moved very slowly over the island nation at full strength, Hurricane Dorian weakened, picked up some speed, and pretty much spared Florida by turning northward. The Carolinas are now bracing for landfall.
(3) As storms get stronger due to climate change, a Category-6 storm designation may be needed: "While any hurricane with sustained winds above 155 mph is labeled Category 5 under the 1971 Saffir-Simpson scale, ... the progression between categories 1 and 5 suggest the next tier would start at 182 mph. Dorian's sustained wind speeds maxed out at 185 mph Sunday, tying a handful of other hurricanes for the second-strongest storm in the Atlantic since 1950. The strongest was 1980's Allen, with winds hitting 190 mph."
How to help Hurricane Dorian survivors in Bahamas: My go-to charity in such cases is Direct Relief International. Two years ago in September, they did a wonderful job in helping the victims of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria and the quakes in Mexico. This NYT article lists many more. The survivors require basic necessities at this point. Reconstruction, which takes years, will come later.
(4) Child marriages in Iran: The viral video of a 30-something man and a girl who looks 10 (definitely underage) on their wedding night, with family members laughing and cheering, has rekindled the discussion of Iranian regressive laws that sanction such marriages. Child marriages occur worldwide and Iran isn't even the worst offender. However, Iran does seem to be the only country where, under the guise of "family protection," laws are being taken backwards.
(5) Happy Climate-Change Discussion Day: As Bahamas and parts of the US East Coast struggle with the impact of Hurricane Dorian, we science buffs struggle to convince nay-sayers and deniers that the future of our chidren depends on responsible action today. Tonight, CNN is hosting a 7-hour-long Town Hall on Climate Change, featuring the 10 Democractic candidates who have qualified for the next week's debate.
(6) Final thought for the day: It has been more than a year since Iranian lawyer and human-rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh was imprisoned yet again. I placed this photo of hers on my haft-seen spread, holding seven items whose names begin with the sound 's,' for Norooz (Persian New Year) in March 2019. I have since kept the photo among the flowers near my desk for daily remembrance of Sotoudeh's courage and sacrifice on behalf of her clients and other Iranian citizens. Reminding the world of her cruel treatment by the so-called "justice system" in Iran is one thing we can do to honor her and to exert pressure on the Iranian dictatorial regime to free all political prisoners.

2019/09/03 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Challenger 2P: An early personal computer, circa 1980, with a huge 4KB RAM! Cartoon: Jeffrey Epstein finds himself on the Devil's private island Cover image for Dean Nelson's 'Talk to Me' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Challenger 2P: An early personal computer, circa 1980, with a huge 4KB RAM! [Center] Jeffrey Epstein finds himself on the Devil's private island in Hell. [Right] For my review of Dean Nelson's Talk to Me, see the last item below.
(2) Humor for Persian speakers: A mass wedding of 41 couples was held in Hashar, a township in Kangavar, a county within Iran's Kurdistan Province. This banner celebrates the marriage of 41 Hashari couples!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Look who's complaining about baseless claims, spread without fact-checking! [Trump tweet]
- Mass-casualty accident off the Santa Barbara Coast: All 34 passengers presumed dead in diving-boat fire.
- It's so sad that family members and guests cheer the temporary marriage of this 13-year-old child bride.
- First commercial space hotel: Earth-view rooms and low-gravity basketball court will be among the perks.
- Spectacular nature park in China (or Thailand?), seen from the ground and the air. [3-minute video]
- Persian fusion music: Kamancheh master Kayhan Kalhor shines in the 9-minute piece "Chaharpareh."
(4) Book review: Nelson, Dean (Journalism Professor, Point Loma Nazarene U., San Diego), Talk to Me: How to Ask Better Questions, Get Better Answers, and Interview Anyone Like a Pro, unabridged audiobook on 8 CDs, read by Michael David Axtell, HarperCollins, 2019. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This book is very useful to journalism students and aspiring reporters. However, in this age of connectivity and primacy of knowledge, everyone can benefit from it. We all ask questions in the course of performing our jobs and pursuing personal hobbies. A social worker or a psychiatrist is as much in need of questioning skills as a journalist. So is a professor, when a student stops by to discuss a personal challenge or (ethical) dilemma.
Choice of who to interview and what questions to ask are of course the most important elements of a successful interview. Nelson offers many practical suggestions, both on the details of interviewing techniques and on big-picture issues. For instance, as an interviewer, you should check your ego at the door. The interview isn't about you but about the subject. You should neither try to be super-friendly nor overtly hostile. Don't ask questions whose answers are already available in your subject's writings or prior interviews. Good interviews are the results of hard work and preparation, not rapport or luck.
From this book, I learned the exact definitions of terms such as "background interview," "off the record," "not for attribution," and many more. I also realized the importance of detailed note-taking (while not being so immersed in your note pad that you do not make eye contact with your subject) and recording the interview whenever possible (if agreed to by the subject). Nelson also offers useful tips on tools of the trade, such as always having enough pens or pencils and carrying a pre-tested recording device loaded with fresh batteries.
Several actual interviews, including Barbara Walters' now-classic interview with Mike Wallace, are used as case studies, with detailed discussion of what was right or wrong at each step.
A journalist's main asset is his/her reputation and trustworthiness. Unlike most other professions, no formal training or exam is needed to become a journalist. So, when a story appears inappropriate or iffy, it is better to lose the story than the reputation.

2019/09/02 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Labor Day greetings, with the US flag Cover image of the latest issue of the Persian-language journal Azadiye Andishe Time magazine's cover image, focusing on workers who live on tips, being paid as low as $2.13 per hour (1) Images of the day: [Left] Happy Labor Day! (see item 2 below) [Center] Cover image of Azadiye Andishe (see item 3 below). [Right] The left-behind economy: Time magazine's cover feature on workers who live on tips, being paid as low as $2.13 per hour (the federal minimum wage for tipped workers).
(2) Today is Labor Day in the US: The very first Labor Day Parade was held in New York City on September 5, 1882. On that day, 137 years ago, participants began from City Hall, marched past viewing stands at Union Square, and assembled in Wendel's Elm Park for a picnic, concert, and speeches. As in the past two years, this year's Labor Day celebration is marred by broad assaults on, and proposed curtailments of, labor rights, including restrictions on unionization, elimination or reduction of minimum wage, relaxation of safety regulations, stagnant wages, and arbitrary dismissals. Such assaults often come with misguided laws and misleading slogans, such as "Right to Work," which really means crushing labor unions to keep wages low.
Let me wish everyone a happy Labor Day with this wonderful quote from Indira Gandhi: "My grandfather once told me that there were two kinds of people: those who do the work and those who take the credit. He told me to try to be in the first group; there was much less competition."
(3) Journal special issue with focus on Iranian women: The 7th issue of the Persian-language journal Azadiye Andisheh (Freedom of Thought) has been published. This issue focuses on women, gender, and sexuality in Iran, with original contributions by several scholars inside and outside Iran. As seen on the cover, the issue includes a tribute to Prof./Dr. Mansoureh Etehadiyeh, a highly-regarded historian in Iran. [PDF]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Bahamas shocked by category-5 Hurricane Dorian's destruction, now headed toward Florida. [Image]
- The Chinese Lunar Rover finds weird, gel-like substance on the far side of the moon.
- Persian poetry: Simin Behbahani recites her wonderful poem entitled "You Want Me Not to Be." [Video]
- Humor: "I want the same thing he's having" (a la "When Harry Met Sally"). [1-minute video]
- Persian music: Bahar Choir presents a tar and zarb (tonbak) duet. [7-minute video]
- Paris-based choreographer Shahrokh Moshkin Ghalam and his dance partner perform a Persian dance.
(5) Rumi fan in the Trump family: Tiffany Trump posts a Rumi poem to her Instagram, which some believe to be a response to her father's disparaging remarks about her "weight" problem to his personal assistant.
Study me as much as you like, you will never know me.
For I differ a hundred ways from what you see me to be.
Put yourself behind my eyes, and see me as I see myself.
Because I have chosen to dwell in a place you cannot see.
(6) Science creates mass-shooters: "We've taught our kids that they come about by chance through primordial slime and then we're surprised that they treat their fellow Americans like dirt." ~ Tony Perkins, head of the Family Research Council, placing blame for mass shootings on 'not enough Jesus' in schools

2019/09/01 (Sunday): Here are three course/book reviews, in an effort to make a dent in my huge backlog!
Cover image of the audio course 'The Origin and Evolution of Earth: From the Big Bang to the Future of Human Existence' Cover image of Bob Woodward's 'Fear: Trump in the White House' Cover image of Benjamin Alire's 'Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe' (1) Course review: Hazen, Robert M. (Professor of Earth Sciences, George Mason U.), The Origin and Evolution of Earth: From the Big Bang to the Future of Human Existence, 48 lectures on 24 CDs, The Great Courses Series, 2013. [My 5-star review of this course on GoodReads]
Professor Hazen is a leading authority on earth sciences, having coined the term "mineral evolution" (focus of Lecture 11), perhaps the biggest take-away from this course. When we talk of evolution, we automatically think of animals and plants. Hazen makes it clear early on in this course that minerals have also evolved over billions of years, giving rise to new "species" and forms. In fact, the biosphere and geosphere have co-evolved, each affecting changes in the other. This co-evolution is the focus of the final or 48th lecture.
From this course, I understood for the first time how self-replicating molecules, the precursors to life, came about and how a combination of gravitational forces and plate tectonics shaped our Earth. Essentially, heavier materials sink and lighter materials rise under gravity, thus the presence of water on the Earth's surface and the atmosphere higher up. Another interesting fact is that our Earth has at least 80 times more water than what we see in the oceans. Water molecules exist in minerals and even in the Earth's mantle. Seemingly lifeless planets and their moons also contain much water.
I highly recommend this wonderful course to those with enough patience to listen to more than 24 hours of lectures (the average lecture length is 31 minutes). Professor Hazen makes it easy to persevere through the unusually-long course. A very helpful guidebook accompanies the 24 CDs, each holding 2 lectures. In addition to lecture summaries, the guidebook includes a timeline (pp. 326-327), a table of eras and stages of mineral evolution (p. 328), and a bibliography (pp. 329-335).
(2) Book review: Woodward, Bob, Fear: Trump in the White House, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Robert Petkoff, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2018. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
[This review was updated/augmented on September 25, 2019.]
This book complements the Isikoff-Corn account of Putin's interference in the 2016 US presidential election and the election of Donald Trump: Russian Roulette: The Inside Story of Putin's War on America and the Election of Donald Trump. The two books are perhaps the two best-researched accounts of Trump's rise to power (my 4-star review of Russian Roulette on GoodReads).
Woodward tells us about the events after Trump's election. The "Fear" of the title seemingly refers to US citizens being fearful of the consequences of Trump's thoughtless actions and pronouncements and those working for Trump fearing his ire and retaliation upon the smallest infraction. Trump recognizes just two groups of people: adoring fans and mortal enemies.
Woodward opens this book with one of the most explosive revelations about the Trump administration: National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn, in collaboarion with Staff Secretary Rob Porter, steal a memo about cutting security cooperation ties with South Korea, which was placed on Trump's desk for signature, and make sure that all existing copies of the memo were pulled, counting on Trump's poor memory and short attention span for their action to go undetected. Cohn believed that signing the memo, which had not gone through proper vetting channels, would be highly detrimental to US interests and our national security. Later on, Jim Mattis had to explain to Trump that we are spending $1 billion on missile defense in South Korea because it is vitally important to our security, not out of charity to that country.
As is typical of Woodward's reporting, the book is meticulously researched and engagingly presented. One might say that the treatment is too even-handed, paying the same attention to the most explosive events and the smallest procedural details. Somewhat surprisingly, alongside the negative portrayal of Trump as cruel, childish, and possessing a very short attention span, there are positive tidbits about his instincts and low tolerance for bullshit.
Woodward's observations are insightful for the most part. As usual, Woodward does not disclose all of his sources, some of which the reader can guess, while others remain enigmatic. Like several previous books, Woodward presents incontrovertible evidence that Trump isn't fit to be president.
I have read half-a-dozen other books on Trump, his administration, and the dysfunction in the White House, none of which comes close to Woodward's in terms of matter-of-fact reporting and refraining from passing judgment, although the judgment is really built into the numerous mind-boggling incidents and encounters that he describes. Rob Porter emerges as a heroic character, constantly trying to delay and derail Trump's inclination to withdraw from treaties or issue ill-thought-out dierctives. Was Porter the anonymous NYT op-ed writer who told of covert adult supervision of Trump in the White House? We don't learn the answer from Woodward's book, but he certainly seems to have performed the same functions that the op-ed writer described.
The so-called "adults in the room" have been ineffective in controlling Trump's worst impulses. Some of them burned out and left, while others were fired unceremoniously. It is unclear whether VP Mike Pence is one of those "adults," as his public role has been quite limited. Pence will have a lot of explaining to do when Trump's presidency comes to an end.
Many cabinet members and staffers, as well as Republicans outside the White House, are aware of Trump's tendency to lie, but seem to be unable to confront him directly. So, they talk behind his back, using terms such as "moron" and "idiot." Attorney John Dowd comes closest to pointing out the problem and its consequences, when he insists that Trump should not talk to Special Counsel Robert Mueller, because he will surely perjure himself. The book, which ends with Dowd's resignation when he sees no hope of being able to manage Trump, was completed before Michael Cohen's and Paul Manafort's indictments.
(3) Book review: Saenz, Benjamin Alire, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, unabridged audiobook, read by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2013. [My 4-star review on GoodReads]
Aristotle, a timid, angry teen with an imprisoned brother no one talks about, meets and befriends Dante, a gay young man who is confident and knowledgeable, and has a completely different take on life. Aristotle, the teller of the story in this young-adult title, is a Mexican-American who does his best not to look or sound like a Mexican, which includes calling himself "Ari."
Ari tries to fit in by pursuing girls and driving the truck he got as a birthday present from his parents. He admires his mom, who is very understanding of his challenges, but his dad, harboring inner wounds from Vietnam, isn't very communicative. Ari likes and enjoys the company of Dante's parents, who become a second family to him.
The novel, which explores problems faced by teenagers, ethnic minorities, and homosexuals in a refreshing way, has received universal acclaim.
Apparently, there are plans by Big Swing Productions to turn the novel into a movie.

2019/08/31 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of Donald Trump, with hair blowing in the wind Optical illusion: There are 12 black dots at the intersections in this image; it's impossible to see them all at once Marijuan benefits: Hype or science? (Newsweek magazine cover)
Sculpture of a woman, by Angus Van Zyl Taylor Cartoon of the day (scene at a beach in France): 'It's my ball!' Falcon: Inspiration for the B2 Stealth Bomber? (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Real political news (with humor): Trump's long-time personal assistant resigns abruptly after being accused of cozying up to the press. Perhaps she was responsible for releasing this photo! [Top center] Optical illusion: There are 12 black dots at the intersections in this image; it's impossible to see them all at once. [Top right] Is all the excitement about marijuana justified or are we witnessing just another business hype? [Bottom left] Sculpture by Angus Van Zyl Taylor. [Bottom center] Cartoon of the day (scene at a beach in France): "It's my ball!" (Bonus cartoon: "Mr. President, there's a farmer here to share his thoughts on your trade war with China ...") [Bottom right] Falcon: Inspiration for the B2 Stealth Bomber?
(2) Another fault-line for Angelinos to worry about: The hidden 12.4-mile Wilmington Fault, presumed to have sat quiet under southern Los Angeles for eons, is actually capable of producing quakes of magnitude 6+.
(3) Hurricane Dorian: The International Space Station passed directly over Hurricane Dorian's eye near The Bahamas, around 9:30 AM yesterday. The Independent showed the breathtaking live footage.
(4) Let's support this devastated mom: Mother of Saba Kord Afshari, the 20-year-old Iranian journalist recently sentenced to 24 years in prison, tries to inform the world of this dreadful injustice, while pointing her finger at Iranian officials and influential celebrities for remaining silent. #SabaKordafshari [Video via tweet]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Predicted path for category-4 Hurricane Dorian changes: They may have nuked it to change its course!
- A small cadre of women helped recruit victims to feed Jeffrey Epstein's insatiable appetite for young girls.
- Trump attacks the Justice Department, with his lapdog at the top, for clearing Comey of illegal acts.
- Trump's lie about Chinese phone calls asking to resume trade talks deemed illegal market manipulation.
- Trump is considering another tax cut for the rich: Adjusting capital gains downward to account for inflation.
- Persian music: Bahar Choir performs "Zanan-e Sarzaminam" ("Women of My Homeland"). [9-minute video]
(6) Math puzzle/problem: See if you can prove Viviani's Theorem, which states that "The sum of distances from any point inside an equilateral triangle to its three sides is the same."
(7) The real fake news: According to Bloomberg, US military unleashes the power of its research arm, DARPA, to create software for detecting fake news (disinformation, in military parlance). This type of fake news is truly harmful to national security, and is different from "fake news" according to Trump.

2019/08/30 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Math puzzle: How many triangles do you see among these 6 intersecting lines? Please behave like animals: On the beach, it means the opposite of what you think! Cartoon: Management puzzled that streamlining the work force did not improve performance (1) Images of the day: [Left] Math puzzle: We have six lines in the plane as shown, no two of them parallel and no three intersecting at the same point. How many triangles are formed by the lines? (One of the triangles is highlighted in the image.) [Center] Please behave like animals: Usually the advice goes the other way around, but not here on the beach! [Right] Cartoon of the day: "I don't get it ... After all the budget cuts to streamline the work force, why aren't we moving faster?"
(2) A Jewish leader reacts to Trump's divisive rhetoric: David Wolpe is an enlightened rabbi (based in Los Angeles), but I am still surprised that he stuck his neck out, knowing that he'd be attacked for calling Trump's "disloyalty" comment about American Jews "foolish and dangerous."
(3) Humorous Persian poetry: If I played a sound file of this 5-minute poetry recitation, you probably wouldn't think that the poem's composer and reciter is a cleric!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Advice: Live without pretending; Love without depending; Listen without defending; Speak without offending.
- NYT word puzzles: Fill in each grid to form four 8-letter words horizontally and four vertically. [Solutions]
- Here's an idea for all empty-nesters to help them not miss their kids. [Cat cartoon]
- Music: "Million Years Ago," a song by Adele, with lyrics and Persian translation. [2-minute video]
(5) On crowdfunding for healthcare: A new trend on social media is people asking for funds to help cure their own or their friends' loved ones of serious diseases, because they do not have health insurance or the required procedures are not covered by their health plan. On occasion, the requests are for patients in Iran and other Third-World countries, where the healthcare infrastructure is shaky or the needed medications aren't available.
As such requests grow in number, one experiences difficulty in choosing which ones to support or how not to fall prey to scams. Donation requests that I have seen came from well-meaning individuals who try to help someone with crushing healthcare costs. But the scheme is unsustainable and inherently unfair, because it favors people who are better-connected socially. Also, the fundraising goals seem arbitray (don't accompany any justification) or are occasionally adjusted upward once the initially-stated goal is met.
The fact that we have such requests in the US is one more reason to advocate for universal healthcare. No one's child, spouse, or parent should die of a disease because of the lack of (adequate) insurance, not having enough people in their social circles to raise funds, or being too modest to even ask for help on-line.

2019/08/29 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Group photo at TUG 2019 Conference, Palo Alto, CA
Photo of me with Donald Knuth at TUG 2019 Conference; Saba Kord Afshari; Spiral book stacks (1) Images of the day: [Top] Group photo at TUG 2019 Conference. And here is a 10-second pan-video. [Left] Photo of me with Donald Knuth at TUG 2019 Conference (see the last item below). [Center] Saba Kord Afshari is a 20-year-old Iranian journalist sentenced to 24 years by a regime of 70- and 80-year-old mullahs, who, after being in power for 40 years, are terrified of bright, feisty young women. [Right] Spiral book stacks.
(2) Quote of the day: "I did as well as I could for as long as I could." ~ James Mattis, on his service in the Trump White House, in a Wall Street Journal essay based on a forthcoming book
(3) A consequence of xenophobia and bullying: Even in normal times, graduate students are under a lot of pressure to make progress in research, get their results published, make ends meet as the graduation date slips further away, and lead a pseudo-normal social life. Add to this mix, for international graduate students or those from immigrant families, the xenophobic and racist attitudes perpeterated by our hater-in-chief, and the results could be explosive, as they were for Malaysian graduate student Jerusha Sanjeevi at Utah State.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Hurricane Dorian: After sparing Puerto Rico, Dorian is projected to hit Florida as a category-4 storm.
- Fire attributed to a gang dispute kills at least 23 at a bar in Mexico.
- A puzzle that occupied me as I waited at a red light: Statement on a bumper, c < rb. [Photo]
- Regional music from Iran: Young boy performs a song from the northeastern province of Khorasan. [Video]
(5) A farewell to summer: On the calendar, we still have 3.5 weeks of summer left, but all evidence of summer in my neck of the woods ("Concerts in the Park," "Cinema under the Stars") is gone and yesterday, I attended the last of "Concerts at the Gazebo" at Goleta Valley Community Center. Mezcal Martini performed a wonderful collection of songs in the "Latin-flavored jazz" genre, bringing a large number of the attendees to their feet. [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2]
(6) Musings on TeX and my work on printing and displaying the Persian script: My attendance at the 40th TeX Users Group (TUG) Conference in Palo Alto, California, August 9-11, 2019, was my first extensive interaction with the group dedicated to the study and use of the desktop publishing aid for mathematical manuscripts, which was invented in the late 1970s by Stanford University Professor Donald E. Knuth, who initially was looking for some help for himself and his secretary, as he worked on his magnum opus, The Art of Computer Programming book series, and technical manuscripts on algorithms.
I was encouraged to attend the TUG Conference and share my work on computerized rendering of the Persian script by Dave Walden, who has worked extensively on the history of computing. Recently, he shared with me a two-part article, written by Barbara Beeton, and Karl Berry, and him, which is full of interesting tidbits:
"TeX: A Branch in Desktop Publishing Evolution," Parts I and II, IEEE Annals of the History of Computing, Vol. 40, No. 3, pp. 78-93, July-September 2018, and Vol. 41, No. 2, pp. 29-41, April-June 2019.
I found the TUG gathering amazing, both because of presentations directly related to TeX and for several non-technical presentations dealing with history and the artistic aspects of typography. A special treat for me was Donald Knuth's attendance at my talk and an extended chat with him after the conference session in order to complete my answer to a question of his and to get a couple of pointers from him on people working on the Nastaliq script (he does have an extensive network of contacts due to the international scope of his TeX work).
I told Knuth that my work on typography was mostly a hobby and a social calling, my main research area being computer architecture, adding that one reason for the Persian-script work being in the background is that it could not help with my academic advancement, both in Iran and in the US. He expressed regrets that CS and CE departments do not value such practical work more highly. He confided that when he began work on typography and TeX, he faced a similar dilemma, but that as an already-tenured and highly-respected academic, he could afford to ignore such attitudes.
Let me conclude by providing you with the links to already published pieces of my work on the topic above and a comprehensive historical paper, which has been submitted for publication. All three versions are available on-line from my Publications Web page:
Persian version, to appear in the next issue of the Iranology journal, Iran Namag, summer 2019. [PDF]
Short English version, to appear in the next issue of TUGboat (TUG journal), 2019. [PDF]
Comprehensive "personal history" and survey (submitted for publication). [PDF]

2019/08/28 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Sunset photo 1 Sunset photo 2 Sunset photo 3 Sunset photo 4 Sunset photo 5 Sunset reflected on railroad tracks (1) Sunset/sunrise photos: [First five] Taken on Monday, as I walked around Goleta's Devereux Slough and Coal Oil Point Beach. [Bottom right] Posted by SciencePhile: "My dad waits every year for the day the sun rises just right and reflects along railroad tracks. Today was the day!" (Credit: Raymond Cunningham; Homer, IL)
(2) Pasta straws: Coming soon to the pasta aisle of your supermarket, right next to spaghetti, thick spaghetti, macaroni, fettuccine, and dozens of other products with the same taste but different shapes, will be pasta straws, claimed to be better than paper straws; they do not get soggy and are fully biodegradable. [Photo]
(3) Chinese restaurant closing: Ming Dynasty, a fixture in my neck of the woods for as long as I can remember, will be closing at the end of this week, allegedly because the owner has decided to retire. My son and I had one last buffet lunch there to bid farewell to one of our favorite local eateries. [Photo]
(4) Samples of dances from different periods of Iran's history, reconstructed from paintings, sculptures, and other art forms, performed at Tehran's Golestan Palace. [28-minute video]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- CNN fact-checks Trump's embarrassing string of lies on the world stage, at the G-7 Summit.
- Smooch diplomacy: After Trump greeted Macron's wife by kissing her, Melania got a better deal! [Photo]
- Cartoon of the day: That sneaky Emmanuel Macron! [Image]
- The fate of 9 prominent Baha'i leaders who were abducted in Iran 39 years ago is still unknown.
- That's not funny: Iranian satirist Keyomars Marzban gets 23+ years in prison for his writings.
- Iranian journalist Marzieh Amiri gets 10 years and 148 lashes for reporting on Int'l Workers' Day rallies.
- Many among you probably couldn't have guessed this video depicts Iran if I had not told you!
(6) Iran's summer of deception and cruelty: Lengthy jail terms for dual nationals (hostages, essentially), harsh crackdown on women activists opposing compulsory hijab, and a record number of prosecuted/jailed women reporters fly in the face of FM Javad Zarif's pretense of civility and dialogue with the West.
(7) Brazil's Bolsonaro says he would accept G-7's offer of help with Amazon fires only if Macron apologizes to him: It's not about Brazil's well-being or saving the environment, but about his bruised ego. In fact, Bolsonaro started the spat by insulting Macron's wife. Gee, who does Bolsonaro remind you of?
(8) The Miami property Trump is promoting as the G-7 summit site for 2020 was sued by a guest who suffered an extreme case of bedbug bites. The case was settled out of court just before Trump became president.

2019/08/27 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photos taken in and around UCSB's central library after Sunday's carillon recital Afternoon tea and sweets, Iranian style! Cover image and box, along with sample pages, of an English translation of 'Shahnameh' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Photos taken in and around UCSB's central library after Sunday's carillon recital. There were also a number of paintings depicting US West Coast's National Marine Sanctuaries on display at the campus library. [Center] Afternoon tea and sweets, Iranian style! [Right] Cover/box and sample pages of the English translation of Shahnameh, which I recently purchased and received in the mail yesterday.
(2) Nutty idea from our high-IQ stable genius: Stop hurricanes from entering the US by nuking them. I guess he is rearing to use our nukes, one way or another!
(3) My reply to a hateful meme which called liberals "lazy": Liberals have worked their butts off to help you earn all the rights that allow you to express your opinions freely, and you use those right to spew hatred and insults? The Western civilization of which you are proud is a product of liberal democracy.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Hilarious comedy routine: Teaching kids how to read an analog clock. [Video]
- Frank Tender Band performs "Rock-n-Roll Medley" (6-minute video).
- Not bad for a bunch of old men: Cliff Richard and the Shadows perform "Do You Wanna Dance."
- Instrumental movie theme music: The Shadows perform "Theme for Young Lovers" (live on final tour).
(5) Useful tip for Microsoft Word users: You can insert a non-breaking space (a space that is not stretched when justifying lines and stays with the characters on its two sides at line-break) by using control-shift-space.
(6) Can we get rid of time zones? In this age of worldwide travel, global social media, intercontinental phone calls, and teleconferencing, time zones have become a headache. Many people miss meetings or are otherwise confused when they travel internationally or cross-country. When I enter my travel plans on my Google calendar, I use local times, as they appear on my itinerary. During travel, Google "converts" the times to local time, creating a nuisance!
Setting the time independent of daylight is already in use. China, which would normally have 5 time zones, has chosen a unified national time. The International Pilots Union has mandated the use of Coordinated Universal Time on pilots' watches to avoid dangerous miscommunication.
The proposal to abolish time zones has been around for a long time. If adopted, we would all go to bed and rise according to the Sun's cycle, but will communicate according to Universal Time. A wonderful byproduct would be the disappearance of Daylight Savings Time and the designations AM and PM.

2019/08/26 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Meme: On the proposal that teachers should carry guns Meme: White Supremacy and demonizing of immigrants Meme: Mothers for gun control (1) Memes of the day: [Left] On the proposal that teachers should carry guns. [Center] On White Supremacy and demonizing of immigrants. [Right] Mothers for gun control.
(2) A biologically-plausible mathematical model of human vision: The vivid images of the world in our brains are reconstructed from scant data transmitted between the retina and the visual cortex. We are learning how the reconstruction is achieved.
(3) The US is slipping in R&D spending as a fraction of GDP: In absolute terms, US is still first, with $511 billion (2.74% of GDP) in research spending, but as a fraction of GDP, it's no longer first, ranking 10th behind: South Korea (4.29%), Finland (3.17%), Sweden (3.16%), Japan (3.15%), Austria (3.10%), Taiwan (3.10), Denmark (3.09%), Switzerland (2.97%), Germany (2.94%) [Source: Wikipedia]
(4) Articulate and informed: Watch Mayor Pete Buttigieg on Fox News speak intelligently, with complete sentences that have subjects and verbs. What a refreshing change over the past ~3 years!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- WSJ to Trump, on his ordering US companies to leave China: "This isn't the People's Republic of America."
- Twitter had a field day with Trump's oxymoronic claim that the media is destroying the free press!
- Job growth down in Trump's 2.5 years compared with last 2.5 years of Obama. [#ObamaOutdidTrump]
- Iran's FM Javad Zarif appears at the G-7 Summit site, fueling speculations on meetings with leaders.
- US Jews are less enthusiastic about traveling to Israel, but Evangelicals fuel a strong growth in tourism.
- UC Irvine tops Money magazine's list of the nation's best colleges: The first public college ever to top the list.
- Yesterday's carillon recital at UCSB by Professor Wesley Arai. [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2]
(6) SBPianoBoys two-pianos concert at Santa Barbara's First United Methodist Church, last night: The super-talented brothers Rhyan (14) and Zeyn (15) performed classical music selections from Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Haydn, Schubert, Brahms, Grieg, Bach, and Lecuona, ending with "Libertango" as their encore. [Photos] [Program/Bio] ["Hungarian Dance No. 1"] ["Malaguena"] ["Libertango"]

2019/08/25 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism aren't the same Beautiful garden at Museum of Tea History, Lahijan, Iran Sign reading 'Free Stuff' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism aren't the same (see the next item below). [Center] Beautiful garden at Museum of Tea History, Lahijan, Iran. [Right] The Republicans' claim that a Democratic administration will give everyone free stuff is patently false (see the last item below).
(2) On the distinction between Judaism and Zionism: The following is a comment I made on a discussion thread which raised the question of whether anti-Zionism is the same as anti-Semitism. I argued that it is not.
According to Wikipedia, Zionism is a nationalist movement, presumably begun when Jews were ousted from their original homeland, so it cannot be an integral part of Judaism. There are Jews who do not embrace Zionism and there are non-Jews who do. In way of analogy, consider the case of Native-Americans starting a nationalist movement to reclaim the lands from which they were ousted.
From Wikipedia: "Zionism ... is the nationalist movement of the Jewish people that espouses the re-establishment of and support for a Jewish state in the territory defined as the historic Land of Israel (roughly corresponding to Canaan, the Holy Land, or the region of Palestine)."
(3) What free stuff? The Republicans are foaming at the mouth, claiming that the Democrats will be giving free stuff to everyone, including illegal immigrants. This is just a scare tactic to mobilize the base.
Single-payer universal healthcare isn't really free. The premiums salaried workers and their employers now pay, as well as the amount the government already spends on healthcare, will fund universal coverage. Not only we won't need extra money, but we would save money by emulating the much-more-efficient healthcare systems of other developed countries, including insistence on and negotiating for reasonable prices for pharmaceuticals.
Tuition- or debt-free college education also isn't free. It just calls for redirecting our priorities from building more fighter-jets and aircraft-carriers to funding public colleges. How tax revenue is spent is a legitimate topic of discussion and having different priorities for allocating funds is par for the course in a democracy. We already have free primary and secondary education, programs that were put in place because we felt that people cannot function properly in a modern society without at least a high school education. Now, increasingly, college education or technical training is needed for most good-paying jobs, so it makes sense for us to move to the next step of expanding publicly-funded education.
Illegal immigrants are by law not eligible for any of these benefits. They pay taxes just like you and me but do not get public support (except in the case of charitable organizations offering such services, or states, within their rights to weigh the benefits and costs of public programs to the state's economy, deciding to provide some support), nor can they benefit from Medicare and Social Security, despite paying the taxes.
Go ahead and keep on screeming about "the free stuff" the Democrats will give away! Repeating these lies won't make them true!

2019/08/24 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: The pitchfork lobby advising a frightened medieval king to divide and rule! Cartoon: Back-to-school sale NY Daily News cover image: The Last Whopper (1) Cartoons of the day: [Left] The pitchfork lobby advising a frightened medieval king to divide and rule! [Center] Back-to-school sale: "Do they have to ruin a perfectly enjoyable summer vacation?" [Right] Nothing outrages the Republicans any more, except demands for human rights and a clean environment: New York's Daily News makes fun of Trump retweeting a far-right conspiracy nut's claim that "the Jewish people in Israel love him like he's the King of Israel. They love him like he is the second coming of God." Aargh!
(2) Voodoo economics: It's scary that Trump seems to be enjoying his power to move the market up or down with a tweet (like someone who has just discovered that voodoo dolls work). I wonder if his family or associates are cashing in on the movements via prior knowledge of the tweets. With electronic trading, all they would need is a few seconds of advance notice (as in the case of someone editing the tweet before sending it).
(3) Brilliant comedy: Bill Maher "flatters" the genius in the White House and says that he'd vote for Trump, in case he was watching the HBO show "accidentally," if he committed to saving the environment!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The US delegation criticizes Macron for G7 summit's focus on "niche issues" such as climate change.
- UCSB Professor Emeritus Bob Schrieffer, 1972 Nobel Laureate in Physics, dead at 88.
- Iranian-style omelette, tea, and setar music for your pleasure on this beautiful Saturday morning. [Video]
- Ode to simpler times: Cliff Richard and The Shadows perform "Sea Cruise" (4-minute video).
- Cliff Richard and the Shadows perform "The Young Ones" (from their final reunion DVD).
- Oldies but goodies: Cliff Richard and The Shadows, 50th Anniversary Concert, 2009. [45-minute video]
(5) Post-Trump Republican camps: Both Mike Pence and Nikki Haley have denied it, but there is much talk in Republican circles about their rivalry for possible 2024 White House run in the post-Trump GOP and becoming/remaining the VP candidate for Trump's 2020 run.
(6) Earliest-known human civilizations are in the Kurdish regions of the world: Archaeological discoveries in southern Turkey have doubled our estimate of the earliest human civilizations from 6000 to 12,000 years ago. In the unearthed ruins, there are hints of a "great flood" (subject of many subsequent myths/legends, including in the Bible) that may have actually been due to sea-level rise at the end of the last ice age. [8-minute Video, narrated in Persian] [P.S.: In case the video above is blocked for you due to copyright issues, here is a shorter English version from YouTube. And here is a 45-minute documentary from 'National Geographic.'

2019/08/23 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Symbols I proposed to represent the Iranian monetary units of rial and toman some four decades ago Meme: America the melting pot (1) Images of the day: [Left] The cliff-top Kurdish town of Amadia (Amedi in Kurdish, Emadieh in Arabic) in northern Iraq, with 1200 houses, is 5000 years old. [Center] Symbols I proposed to represent the Iranian monetary units of rial and toman some four decades ago (see the last item below). [Right] Meme of the day: Vote in 2020 to bring back the pride of this melting-pot nation of Native Americans and immigrants.
(2) Many of the raging Amazon rainforest fires were set by farmers and loggers to clear land for illegal use: The far-right government of Brazil is idly watching, as world leaders declare the situation an international crisis.
(3) Billionaire David Koch dead at 79. A friend's Facebook post of the news contained this quote from Clarence Darrow: "I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great pleasure."
(4) Humorous news: A truck loaded with thousands of copies of Roget's Thesaurus crashed yesterday losing its entire load. Witnesses were stunned, startled, aghast, taken aback, stupefied, confused, shocked, rattled, paralyzed, dazed, bewildered, mixed up, surprised, awed, dumbfounded, nonplussed, flabbergasted, astounded, amazed, confounded, astonished, overwhelmed, horrified, numbed, speechless, and perplexed.
(5) On Iran's forthcoming changes in monetary units: The current official unit is rial, introduced in the early 1800s and put into widespread use in 1932. Some five decades ago, the rial was very roughly equivalent to the American cent, as one US dollar sold for around 70 rials. For decades, the unit toman, equal to 10 rials, was the de-facto unit used by ordinary people, as they went about their financial transactions. Toman was also used informally to mean 1000 tomans or 10,000 rials for purchases of high-priced items, such as a car or a house (similar to the use of 1 grand in America).
Rial and toman lost much of their values under Iran's Islamic regime, so that in recent months, one US dollar cost around 10,000-14,000 tomans. Let's use the smaller, round value of 10,000 tomans for a US dollar. This means that a toman is worth 0.01 cent and a rial, 0.001 cent.
This devaluation has led to the government deciding to designate 1000 old tomans as a new toman, a proposal that is sometimes referred to as removing four 0s from the rial (one new toman = 10,000 old rials). The transition should be easy, as people are already referring to 1000 tomans as a toman (such as saying that a mid-range restaurant meal is 100 tomans).
With the new official monetary unit, a US dollar will cost 10-14 tomans, using exchange rates from recent months, a much more manageable number! The new toman will consist of 100 parsehs, each parseh being worth 10 old tomans or around 0.1 US cent.
P.S.: Some four decades ago, when I was working on the standardization of Persian print and display characters for computers, I proposed symbols for rial and toman (see the image above), while suggesting that the government officially switch to toman, the de facto standard unit. Neither symbol was adopted at the time!

2019/08/22 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Quote from Francois de la Rochefoucauld about how absence affects love, with Persian translation Pencil drawing of an old woman by 16-year-old artist Shania McDonagh Quote by Lord Byron about love and friendship, with Persian translation (1) Images of the day: [Left & Right] Quotes of the day about degrees of love and friendship, with Persian translations, from my Facebook posts. [Center] Pencil drawing by 16-year-old artist Shania McDonagh.
(2) Painful and hopeful at the same time: Iran's dire economic conditions are devastating the underclass, creating many criminals and drug addicts in the process. But amid hardships caused by suffocating sanctions, philanthropists are rising to the occasion. In this 19-minute talk (in Persian), one such angel of mercy outlines his programs to create jobs for the unemployable and tells several tales of redemption.
(3) Danny Cohen, pioneering computer scientist responsible for advancements in flight simulation, Internet telephony, teleconferencing, cloud computing, and on-line dating, dead at 81.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Amazon rainforest fires can be seen from space. [Story] [Satellite image]
- On moronic self-centered people who assume they know better what's good for Jews. [Facebook post]
- Where are Jewish WH Senior Advisors Ivanka and Jared hiding, as Trump is attacked for anti-Semitism?
- Star Wars Symphonic Suite: Solo performance by Jelani Eddington on a pipe organ. [7-minute video]
- A unique arts/archaeology museum in Iran: Donated private residence of Professor Mohsen Moghaddam.
- Old photos of Iran: City cabs in Iran's western city of Kermanshah more than 50 years ago. [Photos]
(5) Next month's IEEE Central Coast Section technical talk: Professor Yasamin Mostofi (UCSB) will speak under the title "Robotics Meets Wireless Communications: Opportunities and Challenges" (Wednesday 9/18, 6:00 PM, Rusty's Pizza, 5934 Calle Real, Goleta).
(6) New York Times "1619 Project": August 20 was the 400th anniversary of the first ship carrying slaves entering the US. NYT is marking the occasion with this conversation and other activities.

2019/08/21 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Heavenly flowers in four panels Heavenly flower: Single purple rose Heavenly flower: Single red rose (1) Heavenly flowers: Uncredited photos, chosen from various Internet sources.
(2) Animal abuse in Iran: Sharing this Facebook memory from 4 years ago, because animal rights have been front and center in the Iranian news this past week, with police attacking peaceful protesters who demand that animals not be abused by citizens and authorities.
(3) Very recent selfie photos of me: One in front of my home's maps wall and the other with a free T-shirt bearing Persian calligraphic art (courtesy of my daughter), after I bought a couple of others on-line.
(4) Recipe for UCLA admission: Pay $100K bribe; Get soccer scholarship; Attend school without even playing soccer. [Source: Tribune News Service]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump and Netanyahu have poisoned Israel's relations not only with Palestinians but also with America.
- Cindy McCain writes about her husband John as "a man of civility" a year after his passing.
- Jeffrey Epstein continued his sex-trafficking activities while on work-release during his incarceration!
- Why opposition to compulsory veiling is important: From Masih Alinejad's "My Stealthy Freedom" FB page.
- Oh, the charms of our beloved English language: I before E; Commas save lives. [Images]
- And now the charms of programming languages: Proper use of "while"! [Cartoon]
- A year of abuse: This woman took a selfie on each day of her first year of marriage and published them.
(6) Trump's anti-Semitism on full display: Calling 71% of American Jews who vote Democratic uninformed or disloyal is the ultimate in anti-Semitism. Jewish supporters of Trump should wake up and stop being pawns in his power grab and destructive foreign policy.
(7) Tonight's IEEE Central Coast Section technical talk: Dr. Tali Freed (Professor, Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering Department, Cal Poly SLO) spoke at Goleta's Flightline Restaurant and Lounge under the title "UAV-RFID for Outdoor Applications." In the first part of her talk, Dr. Freed introduced PolyGAIT (Cal Poly's Interdisciplinary Center for Global Automatic Identification Technologies, which she directs), including its mission, collaboraters, and ongoing projects. In the rest of her talk, Dr. Freed discussed two specific ongoing projects. The first project entails optimizing a UAV-RFID cattle search tour, with the goal of allowing a UAV with limited battery life to optimally scan a pasture for RFID-tagged cattle to determine their locations. The second project concerns the efficient management of oil-field equipment inventory. [Details on Facebook] [Tweet]

2019/08/19 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Teenagers whose photo was snapped by Ringo Starr nearly 50 years ago recreate the pose Cartoon (Garden of Eden) and sign (jack of all trades) These six Iranian women, who attended soccer matches disguised as men, have been arrested (1) Images of the day: [Left] Teenagers whose photo was snapped by Ringo Starr nearly 50 years ago, as they were returning from a disappointing trip in which they failed to see the Beatles arriving at the airport, recreate the pose. [Center] Cartoon (Garden of Eden under DAESH or Taliban) and funny sign (for my Persian-speaking readers). [Right] These six Iranian women, who attended soccer matches disguised as men, have been arrested (photos: My Stealthy Freedom Facebook page).
(2) Musings of a stable genius: What economic slowdown? What Russian election meddling? Ignore North Korea's missiles, because Kim sent me a beautiful letter! Khashoggi was cut into pieces? Says who?
(3) The US economy is doing great. So is the guy with $75K in credit-card debt, who just leased a luxury car and upgraded his house by using his line of credit.
(4) ShakeAlert: The phone app is being upgraded after it failed to provide warning of two July 2019 earthquakes in Los Angeles, although the system that feeds the app had a 49-second early warning.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Suicide bombing: The Afghan wedding with hundreds of guests that turned into a funeral for 63.
- How Iranian women influencers have evolved over the significance of restrictions on women in sports.
- Super-funny juggling act, from the era of Johnny Carson's "The Tonight Show."
- This children's book was banned, because Iranian censors didn't like the ant's Kurdish costume! [Image]
- Iranian music: The girls of Bushehr. [1-minute video]
- Mont-Saint-Michel Monastery in Normandy, France, is visited by 3 million tourists annually. [Photo]
(6) A bit of history for those who think genocide can't happen in the US: German concentration camps were not built for Jews. They had been operating since 1933 to hold socialists, communists, Jehovah's Witnesses, homosexuals, and other "social deviants." The camps weren't awful places in 1933. Guards abusing prisoners were disciplined and sometimes prosecuted. Even in 1944, those working at the camps did not consider themselves evil, but normal people who enjoyed breaks during "routine" daily work. [Read on]

2019/08/18 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Monarch butterfly: Surprise visitor on my front lawn late this Sunday morning Two T-shirts bearing Persian calligraphic art Beautiful sunset shots this evening on northbound US 101, between Thousand Oaks and Ventura (1) Images of the day: [Left] Surprise visitor on my front lawn late this Sunday morning. This male Monarch butterfly is definitely in the wrong place at the wrong time. Perhaps its malfunctioning GPS navigation led it to North America instead of South America! [Center] Google/Amazon ads 3, Behrooz 0: A few weeks ago, I was searching for images related to Persian script for possible use in my August 10 conference presentation about computers and the challenges of writing in Persian. Predictably, I was shown many ads, including several for T-shirts bearing Persian calligraphic art. These two purchases, along with an illustrated copy of Shahnameh, with English translation, were the results! [Right] I snapped these beautiful sunset shots on the way back from Los Angeles, where I had gone to help my daughter with bed-assembly and a couple of maintenance projects.
(2) Forced attendance at Trump events: This story reminds me of bussing of school children and factory workers in the 1970s Iran, whenever the Shah gave a speech or attended a public function.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The stock market (DJIA) has shown no gain over the past 12 months. [Chart]
- University of California faculty urge UC President to have the institution divested from fossil fuels.
- Christianity 2.0 and why its relationship with Jesus has grown to be inconvenient. [Video]
- Kurdish music: An old song of Nasser Razzazi. [5-minute video]
- Unbelievable performance by a 6-year-old drummer: "Wipe Out" (originally performed by The Ventures)
- Kurdish poetry: Recitation of a poem, with the backdrop of photos showing prominent Kurds. [Video]
(4) Looking forward to attending a concert by the super-talented SBPianoBoys at Santa Barbara's United Methodist Church (305 East Anapamu) on Sunday, August 25, 2019, 6:30-8:00 PM. [Videos]
(5) Brave young Iranian woman challenges the idiotic assertion that hijab is a candy-wrapper that protects women (chocolates) from flies (men). [Interview in Persian]
(6) Final thought for the day: Many who consider themselves pro-life are really pro-birth: They are against any form of support for children or their parents after birth. For them, life begins at conception and ends at birth.

2019/08/17 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Heavenly fruits and vegis. Portrait of me from August 2015 Heavenly Persian food (1) Images of the day: [Left/Right] Heavenly fruits/vegis and Persian foods. [Center] My portrait from 2015.
(2) The Ridgecrest quake, SoCal's strongest in the age of the Internet and smartphones, provided scientists with priceless data. For example, a Caltech network of sensing devices revealed that the top of an LA skyscraper swayed back and forth surprisingly long and far.
(3) Hypocrites: Ahmad Alamolhoda, a powerful mullah, praises the Shah's qualities and his contributions to the advancement of religion in Iran, in a speech he delivered three years before the Islamic Revolution.
(4) Trump predictably abandons his endorsement of expanded background checks under pressure from the gun lobby and focuses on red-flag laws, essentially blaming mental illness for mass-shootings.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Where to go, now that schools, malls, concerts, cinemas, and clubs are unsafe because of guns. [Cartoon]
- Dr. Bandy Lee analyzes Trump's mental capacity to make sound decisions, based on Mueller's report.
- Two kayakers in Alaska witness and record the collapse of a massive glacier.
- Useful tip: If a service dog without a person approaches you, follow it to where it leads you.
- Music from a talent competition: Wonderful rendition of "You Raise Me Up" by young boy and girl.
- Why Trump wants Greenland: To rename it Trumpland; Gift for Melania's BD; Thinks it's green (for golf).
(6) "Feathers of Fire": A shadow-theater play produced by Hamid Rahmanian, based on Shahnameh (The Book of Kings), to counteract the negative image of Iranians in the US.
(7) Be Best: Two senior political appointees at the State Department have been engaging in a campaign of harassment and retaliation against career staffers whom they perceived as independent or disloyal to President Trump, a report from the department's inspector general concluded on Thursday. [Source: Newsweek]
(8) A rare Trump apology: Confusing an overweight supporter for a protester, he said in New Hampshire, "That guy's got a serious weight problem. Go home. Start exercising." (Talk about a serious weight problem!)
(9) Misguided priorities: Only 20% of mass shooters are mentally ill. Only 3-5% of those with serious mental illness are violent (source: MentalHealth.gov). Yes, mental illness is a factor to be dealt with, but it isn't the primary cause of mass shootings. Hatred and hate-filled ideologies are the main culprits.

2019/08/16 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Interesting memes/quotes for the absurdities we face as we struggle to unseat an illegitimate president Painting of a famous Tehran landmark: Gate of the National Garden @realDonaldTrump is a real bigot who lies through his teeth (1) Images of the day: [Left] Interesting memes/quotes for the absurdities we face as we struggle to unseat an illegitimate president. [Center] Painting of a famous Tehran landmark: Gate of the National Garden (artist unknown). [Right] @realDonaldTrump is a real bigot who lies through his teeth.
(2) The widening pay gap: America's CEOs were paid an average of $17.2 million in 2018, that's up 1008% since 1978. Over the same 40-year period, pay for average workers grew just 12%. [Source: Newsweek]
(3) The new profile of terrorism in the US (chart from Time magazine, issue of August 19, 2019). [Red, right wing; Blue, left wing; Green, Islamist; Gray, unknown/other]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump pressures Israel to ban two US citizens holding elected public office from visiting that country.
- Cartoon of the day: RIP gun violence victims. RIP political will to stand up to the NRA. [Image]
- Persian music: Maryam Rashid Farrokhi performs a santoor solo. [Video]
- The polygraph machine was developed for monitoring of patients' vital signs, not for lie detection.
(5) Dayton mass-shooter's obituary is glowing with praise: It bears no mention of his murderous rampage or even the killing of his own sister.
(6) Rep. Steve King considers rape and incest necessary for population growth: "What if we went back through all the family trees and just pulled those people out that were products of rape and incest? Would there be any population of the world left if we did that?" [Please vote to kick such sickos out of public office!]
(7) Ken Cuccinelli's CNN interview: That statue of liberty poem ("Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!") was about people coming from Europe.
(8) Wednesday's Concert at the Gazebo (Goleta Valley Community Center): SoLuna, featuring a Janice-Joplin-soundalike vocalist, performed pop and country songs. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]
(9) Thursday's Concert in the Park: The fantastic-sounding, high-energy 8-member Blue Breeze Band performed Motown and R&B music at Santa Barbara's Chase Palm Park, bringing many of the audience members to their feet. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4] [Video 5]

2019/08/15 (Thursday): Here are three book reviews, in an effort to make a dent in my huge backlog!
(1) Book review: Rioux, Anne Boyd, Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women and Why It Still Matters, unabridged audiobook on 8 CDs, read by Kimberly Farr, HighBridge Audio, 2018.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Little Women, Louisa May Alcott's surprise hit, tells the story of four sisters in Civil-War-Era rural New England (loosely modeled after Alcott and her three sisters) is now viewed as a "girls' book," but when it was published in 1868, boys and adults also read and loved it. Professor Anne Boyd Rioux, who read Little Women in her twenties, tells us how Alcott came to write the book and its sequel, Good Wives. The latter volume was published under several different titles and was eventually combined with the first volume under the title Little Women. Little Men and Jo's Boys can also be considered as sequels.
We learn, among many other behind-the-scenes details, about how Alcott had to make changes to the story at the request of her publisher, so as not to rock the boat too much, and how all four girls had to be married off to satisfy the period's social norms. Even though it isn't difficult to see why a story about the coming of age and resilience of young women would become a classic, the fact that a 1.5-century-old story resonates with 21st-century readers is still rather surprising.
Alcott is both praised and dissed by modern feminists. Some view Little Women as promoting feminism, because it depicts girls as having aspirations other than just getting married, a bold proposition for the 1800s, while others consider it anti-feminist, because even Jo, the most independent and daring of the girls, eventually gets married to a professor, abandoning her writing career and settling into domesticity.
Rioux also discusses the many film and television adaptations of the story, along with the strengths and shortcomings of each version. The iconic 1994 film adaptation that starred Winona Ryder as Jo, alongside Kirsten Dunst and Christian Bale, is praised as the best version, even though the petite, super-feminine Ryder is often viewed as a poor choice to portray the tom-boyish Jo.
(2) Book review: Wolitzer, Meg, The Female Persuasion, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Rebecca Lowman, Penguin Audio, 2018. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This is Meg Wolitzer's 11th novel and the second one that I have read recently, the other one being The Wife, the basis for a successful movie with Glenn Close in the title character (my review). The Female Persuation is a timely novel for the age of #MeToo, boasting a number of strong female characters coping with the challenges of feminism, when many of the barriers to women's progress have been broken in principle, but not quite in practice. Men still get only a slap on the wrist for sexually aggressive behavior, and they endorse women's equality half-heartedly at best. A world in which women are expected to use their "indoors voice" when conversing with men feeling no such inhibition.
Faith Frank, the feminist role model of Greer Kadetsky, considers women not succumbing to society's idea of womanhood as an ongoing challenge. She views feminism not only as empowerment and equal rights, but also as a sisterhood organized around connectedness rather than competition. Honoring the said sisterhood isn't always easy, as it may require personal sacrifice to achieve a collective good; even the most dedicated feminists may fail on occasion in this respect.
The idealist Kadetsky eventually clashes with the pragmatic Frank, who seemingly compromises her principles to acquire funding for her causes from an unscrupulous business tycoon. Wolitzer exposes the moral failings of all the "heroic" characters and the basic decency of the less flashy types in her story. A key part of feminism is accepting such failings and understanding that one does not have to be perfect to be useful to society or even an esteemed role model.
Wolitzer's richly detailed and nuanced story ends in the present time, with the current US president in the White House and feminists outraged by the seeming loss of earlier gains. It has become extremely difficult for people like Faith Frank, who believe in affecting change by working within the system, to maintain hope. In the end, we are left with the open question of whether changing the system from within is even possible.
(3) Book review: Comey, James, A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Macmillan Audio, 2018. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
It's difficult to read this book without taking sides in the clash between the former FBI Director and President Donald Trump, although the book also contains a lot about Comey's service under George W. Bush and Barack Obama, when he had similar, though less intense, conflicts with members of the administration. There is also much about Comey's personal struggles, the main one being his family's dealing with the loss of a son.
Autobiographies tend to be self-serving, and this book is no exception. Comey's description of why he treated the Clinton e-mails investigation the way he did appears artificial and reeks of after-the-fact justification. Still, he comes across as a rather ethical, compassionate, reflective, and capable leader; and that's in absolute terms and not just relative to his amoral nemesis who fired him from a job he loved and excelled at.
Comey's credentials include prosecuting the Mafia and Martha Stewart (he provides a bitter-sweet reflection about the latter case, which amounts to dealing with small fish in a world of many nasty big fishes) and helping change the Bush administration's policies on torture and electronic surveillance.
Comey is a literate man who writes surprisingly well. Going in, I was ambivalent about reading his book. But I am glad I did, because it provided me with a good understanding of the workings of the US Justice Department and FBI, including how they interact with the rest of the executive branch.

2019/08/14 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for the book 'Dividing America' (1) Dividing America: This e-book, released by presidential candidate Michael Bennett, exposes the extent of Russia's interference in our 2016 election that the US Government seemingly does not care about.
(2) A 78-year-old conjecture in number theory is finally proven correct by two 30-something mathematicians: The conjecture has to do with the approximation of real numbers with rational numbers. For example, the number pi can be approximated as 3.142 = 1571/500, but we also have the very old approximation 22/7, which is more appealing, because it uses a smaller denominator. It's impossible to explain the conjecture in non-technical terms, but it essentially says that if one excludes a relatively small set of numbers from the list of possible denominators, then many numbers won't have accurate approximations.
(3) Jeffrey Epstein had dirt on powerful people: This explains the source of his wealth (up to now a mystery) and his "suicide," which was either carried out by others or was a pre-emptive action, knowing that a fate similar to Jamal Khashoggi awaited him.
(4) Hostage negotiations between France and Iran: The fate of Fariba Adelkhah, the dual French/Iranian national jailed by the Revolutionary Guards, hangs in the balance.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Recession fears and global turmoil caused by trade wars lead to ~3% drop in the stock market.
- Drug bust in Philadelphia results in a shoot-out: Six officers injured in a possible hostage situation.
- North Korea's cyberattacks on banks and other institutions net it billions, which it spends on weapons.
- Cray awarded $600M contract to build US DoE's first exascale computer for nuclear security applications.
- Goleta's Lemon Festival and Carpinteria's Avocado Festival are considering extra security measures.
- Lady Liberty's 2019 redacted poem. [New Yorker cartoon]
(6) The man sees everyone's faults but his own: "Trump, commander in chief and president of the world's only superpower, thinks he is the world's most picked-upon person. The man who victimizes others insists that he is the biggest victim of all. And the greatest indignity? His critics (sometimes a majority of Americans) keep calling him racist and misogynistic, fiscally irresponsible, lazy, corrupt, authoritarian, impulsive and erratic based on his racist and misogynistic, fiscally irresponsible, lazy, corrupt, authoritarian, impulsive and erratic rhetoric and actions. The unfairness of it all!"
(7) The story of Zari Khanoom: In this real story (in Persian), Zari, a young girl who seems pregnant, is tortured and almost killed by her brother. Others in the household and neighborhood either join in the abuse or watch passively, day after day. Long story short, Zari ends up attending medical school, becomes a prominent doctor, and, with her husband, emigrates to the United States, where she chairs a department and leads a large research team working on AIDS. She is also active in charity and helps several members of her family in Iran financially. This one woman was saved by circumstances and sheer luck, but many others are never allowed to achieve their full potential because of antiquated notions of a woman's place and family honor.
[P.S.: Reprinting of the book bearing this real story has been banned in Iran.]

2019/08/13 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Coasters with Persian designs, from an ad A persian couplet by Rahi Mo'ayyeri Four old photos of Tehran (1) Some Iran-related images: [Left] Coasters with Persian designs, from an ad: A Google search reveals many other calligraphic, rug, fabric, and miniature designs. [Center] A couple of Persian verses by Rahi Mo'ayyeri. [Right] A few old photos of Tehran (source: "Old Photos of Iran" Facebook page).
(2) Chernobyl 2: The stupid nuclear arms race, restarted by Trump and Putin, has claimed the lives of at least seven Russian scientists who died when a nuclear-powered cruise missile exploded during testing.
(3) Iran's FM Javad Zarif is just a puppet: Even his boss, President Hassan Rouhani, has only a very small share of the power, which is concentrated in the hands of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his cronies.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Best memes of the day, showing the two ends of the decency spectrum. [Image]
- Hackers challenged to break into US voting machines did so with ease.
- Nvidia touts its language-understanding tech, claiming new performance records for conversational AI.
- "Rise" and others: Persian poems by Parvaneh Forouhar, translated into English by Nasim Basiri.
- Hilarious tweets about the Moon-landing hoax, pulled off 50 years ago and about to be repeated!
(5) Facebook has users' audio chats recorded and transcribed for use in targeted ads: In a segment on tonight's PBS Newshour, a gambling addict complained about losing tons of money because of Facebook ads that targeted her. Shame on Facebook and other tyrannical/immoral tech companies!
(6) Multiple investigations have been opened on charges of sexual misconduct against Placido Domingo: Several of the world-famous tenor's performances have already been cancelled. Is there a famous/powerful man who hasn't abused his power over young underlings?
[Postscript: True that powerful men attract many women and that kind of attention may be what causes their downfall: Such a man may think that because some women vie for his attention, he has a license to take advantage of all women. I realize that this is a slippery slope and have no solution for how to deal with the problem. Does someone's brilliant painting, wonderful poem, musical masterpiece, or scientific discovery suddenly become worthless if s/he is found to be guilty of sexual misconduct or murder? Many women enjoy their relationships with such men, getting lots of attention socially and all the perks financially, and then decide, in middle age or old age, that they really did not want that attention and perhaps it was forced on them.]

2019/08/12 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon of the day: Guns stink even more than garlic! Cartoons: Food for thought: How things have changed over the past few decades People are demanding action on curbing gun violence, while politicians have retreated into their holes to avoid talking about it (1) Images of the day: [Left] Guns stink even more than garlic! [Center] Food for thought: How things have changed over the past few decades. [Right] People are demanding action on curbing gun violence, while politicians have retreated into their holes to avoid talking about it.
(2) How the American music scene has changed: In the 1970s, nearly all Billboard 200 top albums were rock (orange tiles in this chart from Wall Street Journal). The ratio of rock top albums dropped in each decade, giving way to pop, R&B/Hip-hop, and Country/Folk.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Child rapist Jeffrey Epstein did not deserve an easy death by suicide, before facing his victims in court.
- Trump says the Clintons are pedophile murderers: Whatever happened to strengthening libel laws?
- The current rate of increase in US national debt is unprecedented when the economy is booming.
- Regarding Trump's criticism of Beto O'Rourke that he moves his hands and body too much! [Tweet]
- Gymnast Simon Biles put her name into record books with her triple-double: Here is the move's physics.
- Several of the 14 Iranian women activists who had called for Khamenei's resignation have been arrested.
- Persian jazz music: Ziba Shirazi sings "Untold Love." [Video]
- Persian piano music: A memorable composition by Anoushiravan Rohani, made famous by Marzieh. [Video]
- Persian music: A wonderful song based on a spiritual/patriotic poem by Soroush Esfahani. [Video]
- An unusual 16-by-16 hexadecimal Sudoku puzzle, from Sunday's San Francisco Chronicle. [Image]
(4) Brave Iranian women activists have crossed a major red line of the Islamic regime, and the consequences may be dire: The Supreme Leader is viewed as God's representative on Earth, and is thus not subject to the usual checks and balances. Khamenei effectively heads all three branches of the government in Iran and issues directives to all of them. He has not given an interview to domestic or international reporters in decades and there isn't a way of asking him questions. His communications are one-way affairs, where he pontificates and the attendees cheer or chant in approval. He can be for a particular policy or initiative in one speech and against it in another. There is no channel for calling him out on the inconsistencies. Through extra-judicial arrests and allegations of acting against national security, which come with long prison terms, the press has been repeatedly warned against criticizing him, and, thus, has chosen self-censorship. It is thus quite significant that a number of women activists have called for Khamenei's resignation and dissolution of Iran's Islamic form of government in favor of a democratic system.

2019/08/11 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photos from my lecture and with other attendees The art of lettering: Typography contrasted with Graffiti Random snapshots from the TUG 2019 Conference (1) Photos from the TUG conference: [Left] Me during my Saturday lecture, with Dr. Mostafa Mortezaie, and both of us with Dr. Donald Knuth. [Center] Art in lettering (see item 4 below). [Right] Random snapshots.
(2) TUG Conference attendance: On Fraiday, I drove from Goleta to Palo Alto to attend the 40th TeX Users Group Conference, held August 9-11 at Sheraton Palo Alto. On the way there, I passed through Gilroy, home of the Garlic Festival. I arrived in Palo Alto just in time for lunch and the ensuing afternoon sessions. My talk, entitled "Evolutionary Changes in Persian and Arabic Scripts to Accommodate the Printing Press, Typewriting, and Computerized Word Processing" was on Saturday at 3:45 PM [Paper] [Slides] [Program], and, to my delight, it was attended by Donald Knuth, the Grand Wizard of scientific typesetting and the inventor of TeX (pronounced "tek"). At the end of the afternoon session, I had a discussion with Knuth on the Nastaliq script and the history of Arabic typesetting, about which he gave me a couple of important leads. At the end of Saturday, I drove to Fremont to attend my sister's birthday party, where my son Sepand was also present. I also attended the morning sessions of the Conference on Sunday, before starting my southward drive to Goleta.
(3) Quote of the day: "Science is what we understand well enough to explain to a computer. Art is everything else we do." ~ Donald E. Knuth, Stanford Emeritus Professor and inventor of TeX
(4) Art in lettering: One of the more interesting events at the conference on Saturday was a non-technical talk by high school teacher Jennifer Claudio, entitled "A Brief Exploration of Artistic Elements in Lettering," in which she contrasted the rather rigid rules of typography (regarding how the letters should look) with the free forms and rule-breaking styles we see in graffiti and other street-art forms.
(5) In the margins: My small (Tokyo-hotel-size) Palo Alto hotel room had a very Silicon-Valley-like feature: A glass panel and a set of dry-erase markers for impromptu discussions about the next start-up idea!
(6) Heading back to Santa Barbara: Farewell TUG Conference! Farewell Palo Alto! Farewell University Avenue, with its many restaurants and sidewalk dining areas, excellent for strolling and people-watching! [Photos]

2019/08/10 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Persian poetry: A couplet from Anvari Persian poetry: Selected verses from a poem by Sa'adi Persian poetry: A couplet from Abou-Saeid Abolkheir (1) Persian poems by Anvari (left), Sa'adi (selected verses, center), and Abu-Saeid Abolkheir (right).
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Woman with no medical training who ran a children's care center in Africa responsible for 100+ deaths.
- Trump's big grin and thumbs-up in photo-op with the baby who lost both parents in the El Paso massacre.
- Biden said poor kids are just as smart as white kids: Dems need a candidate with feet outside mouth!
- Third debate for Democratic candidates: Who's in, who's out, who still has a shot. [Chart]
- A group of laid off Kentucky miners blocked a train loaded with $1 million in coal to protest owed back pay.
- We have said "Enough" before: Do we mean it this time? Will we oust politicians who don't act? [Image]
(3) Book review: Blight, David W., Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom, unabridged audiobook, read by Prentice Onayemi, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2018. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image of 'Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom' This book turns the myth of Frederick Douglass into the biography of a real person, who was born into slavery but went on to become a wise public figure, a skilled and effective orator, and a man of distinction. Life on "Great House Farm," the southern plantation where Douglass was born to a slave mother and a white man in the early 1800s, was brutal. Slaves were beaten or whipped, given little food, and were routinely over-worked.
As a child, Douglass was exempted from the harshest treatment, but what he saw on the planataion shaped his personality and world view for the rest of his life. He was separated from his mother at age 7, when he was given to a relative of his father, who took him to Baltimore.
City slaves received much better treatment, because of the owners' fear of appearing cruel in the eyes of non-slave-owning neighbors. The new owner's wife was particularly kind to Douglass, but her behavior changed under extreme pressure from her husband, who believed that education made the slaves unmanageable. Over the succeeding years, Douglass was "rented" to various masters, with different tempers and attitudes toward slaves.
Still, Douglass managed to teach himself to read with the help of local boys. Through reading, he became aware of the evils of slavery and learned of the abolitionist movement. Eventually, after saving money from extra work, Douglass escaped to New York, where he changed his name from Bailey to Douglass for fear of recapture. He devoted the rest of his life until his death at age 77 to the anti-slavery movement as a writer/preacher/orator and to educating slaves.
Besides writing three autobiographies, Douglass accomplished much during his life. He is recognized as the most distinguished African-American of the 19th century. He was a fierce advocate of equality for all human beings (blacks, women, immigrants, and all other groups) and of social causes (peace, land reform, free public education, and abolition of capital punishment).

2019/08/08 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
UCSB's Storke Tower and campus lagoon Professor Shokoufeh Shahrabi of U. Tennessee's Health Science Center displays her pride in working at a hate-free campus Cartoon: On Russia swindling Iran's rights to the resources of the Caspian Sea (1) Images of the day: [Left] Reflections on UCSB (last item below). [Center] Professor Shokoufeh Shahrabi of U. Tennessee's Health Science Center displays her pride in working at a hate-free campus. [Right] Cartoon of the day: On Russia swindling Iran's rights to Caspian-Sea resources (credit: Iranwire.com).
(2) Wine-making in Iran and the roots of Shiraz wine: This 45-minute documentary, narrated in Persian, traces the history of wine-making from early human civilizations in Georgia to points further south in Iran.
(3) Brotherhood among criminals: Trump is considering pardoning the corrupt-to-the-core former Governor of Illinois Rod Blagojevich, who appeared with him on season 9 of "The Celebrity Apprentice." Trump blames James Comey and his pals for Blagojevich's harsh 18-year sentence. Blagojevich was caught red-handed soliciting bribes, using the powers of his office, and was convicted in 2011 on multiple corruption charges.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Robberies and hate/anger-filled attacks by a 33-year-old leave 4 dead and 2 injured in Southern California.
- Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner are said to be harboring ambitions of aging in the White House! [Image]
- Beautiful moving image: Earth reflections. [Video]
- Dutch artist Ard Gelinck PhotoShops celebrities next to their younger selves, with amazing results.
(5) Concert in the park: The blues band Lightnin' Willie and the Poorboys performed at Santa Barbara's Chase Palm Park this evening. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4] Before the concert, I had a refreshingly long walk along Santa Barbara's waterfront that took me to SB Zoo's Bird Refuge and SB Cemetery [Photos]. Got to the Cemetery shortly after it had closed, so couldn't go in to pay respects. I needed the walk, given several busy days preparing for a 3-day conference trip to Palo Alto (Stanford U.), beginning early tomorrow morning.
(6) The perils of an aging campus: When I joined UCSB 31 years ago, it was nearly a century old in all its shapes and forms and 44 years old as a UC campus, but the faculty and staff were mostly young. Over the past three decades, the campus has become grayer. The rising prestige of UCSB (with many top-10 or otherwise honored programs in recent years) has meant that more people stay around and retire here, rather than jump ship for greener pastures. A consequence of this aging is the regular arrival of e-mail messages from our Chancellor, bearing the subject line "Sad News," informing us of the passing of an emeritus (or, occasionally, an active) colleague. The impressive academic bios that accompany such messages are signs that our sadness in losing a colleague should be accompanied by much pride for having come such a long way!

2019/08/07 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
UCSB campus, as seen from the other side of Santa Barbara Airport Meme: Putting the carnage caused by assault rifles in the hands of domestic terrorists into perspective Meme: How come no one says contaminated lettuce doesn't kill people, it's the fault of those who eat it? (1) Images of the day: [Left] UCSB Campus, as seen from the other side of SB Airport: Today, before an IEEE Central Coast Section meeting at Flightline Restaurant and Lounge (former Elephant Bar), I walked alongside Goleta's Firestone Road to the north of the airport, learning about the area and its businesses and photographing the UCSB Campus beyond many small planes parked inside the Airport property. You have to look hard to spot the Storke Tower and other UCSB landmarks. [Center] Putting the carnage caused by assault rifles in the hands of domestic terrorists into perspective. [Right] Meme of the day: How come no one says contaminated lettuce doesn't kill people, it's the fault of those who eat it?
(2) Three physicists awarded $3-million prize for their highly influential 'supergravity' theory, even though 40 years after its introduction, the theory remains speculative.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Calbright College, California's new on-line community college, will open "its doors" on October 1.
- A scientist created this shadow sculpture of Trump bearing overt and hidden messages.
- A cookbook author and a food critic tried out as many Persian restaurants in LA as they could over 2.5 days.
- Kurdish/Azeri music: Hassan Zirak, the legendary Kurdish singer performs a duet with an Azeri singer.
(4) Tehran's architecture: How faculty members, students, and graduates of Tehran University's School of Fine Arts created the city's post-modern architectural gems. [7-minute video, narrated in Persian]
(5) Funny in mathematics (with apologies to Firoozeh Dumas): There is a fairly long story, involving knights and squires, with the punchline, "And it just goes to prove, the squire of the high pot and noose is equal to the sum of the squires of the other two sides," which you might enjoy.
(6) Everything Trump and his cronies dislike or are criticized for is a hoax: First it was climate change, then the Russian election interference, and now, according to Tucker Carlson, it's the problem of White Supremacy.

2019/08/06 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photos of Trump with three brutal dictators Tweet that indicates 9 US Senators received $3-7 million each in campaign contributions from the NRA New business-class seat designs for airplanes (1) Images of the day: [Left] Impaired judgement: These brutal dictators are "strong leaders," but American war heroes and civil-rights icons are terrible people! [Center] Mitch McConnell has an A+ rating from the NRA, which gave him $1.3M in campaign donations as of last year, according to Newsweek. Here is the rest of the story. [Right] Airlines' quest to come up with the most-efficient business-class seat (more photos).
(2) Trade-war escalation: China lets its currency tumble to the lowest value in a decade and halts purchases of US agricultural products in response to Trump's tariff threats.
(3) Another day, another mass shooting in the US: Chicago shootings at a playground and elsewhere in the city overwhelm the emergency room of Mt. Sinai Hospital.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Nobel-Prize winner Toni Morrison, a transformative figure in American literature, dead at 88.
- Wonderful read, from New Yorker: How Toni Morrison fostered a generation of black writers.
- After Sandy Hook massacre, we said "never again." What do we say 2191 mass-shootings later?
- GOP explanations for recent mass shootings: Mental illness; Video games; Trans people and gay marriage.
- Former President Barack Obama sends a Twitter message about mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton.
- Barbra Streisand's hilarious parody at Madison Square Garden: "Send in the Clowns," rewritten for Trump!
- This isn't a scene out of the 1800s: Texas police arrests a black man and leads him on a leash in 2019!
- Basketball star tried to fake his drug test, but the urine sample he provided bore signs of pregnancy!
(5) Persian piano music: Anoushiravan Rohani's talented son, Reza, composed and dedicated this beautiful melody entitled "As Sweet as You" to his dad on the occasion of his 80th birthday.
(6) Quote of the day: "A book is the only place in which you can examine a fragile thought without breaking it, or explore an explosive idea without fear it will go off in your face. It is one of the few havens remaining where a man's mind can get both provocation and privacy." ~ Edward P. Morgan
(7) Math puzzle: ABC is an isosceles triangle with its BAC angle being 20 degrees. Point E is located on the side AB, such that AE = BC. What is the measure of the angle BEC? [Puzzle image] [Various solutions]

2019/08/04 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photos of Iran from the 1960s, Batch 1 Photos of Iran from the 1960s, Batch 2 Photos of Iran from the 1960s, Batch 3 (1) Iran in the 1960s: A dozen photos from The Guardian archives. [Link to the full pictorial]
(2) Poignant comedy: Bill Maher ridicules Evangelicals' likening of Trump to the ancient Persian King Cyrus, whose name and deeds in saving Jews appears in Isaiah 45! (45, get it?)
(3) Mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio: We don't even get a day between mass shootings, nowadays: There have been more shootings in 2019 than we've had days so far, thanks in large part to the bozos in the White House and Congress. Send them back!
(4) Evaluate this arithmetic expression, 8 / 2 × (2 + 2): Problems of this kind have been around on the Internet for years. This particular one has caused quite a stir recently.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The republicans are hiding from reporters after the latest mass-shooting in Dayton, Ohio.
- An opinion poll indicates that Americans favor/oppose returning to the Moon by a 2-to-1 ratio.
- Social isolation in the age of constant connectivity: One in five millennials has no friend.
- Voice of America's Persian program honors the legendary Kurdish poet Sherko Bekas [1940-2013].
- Amid all the ugliness that surrounds us, sometimes a beautiful soccer move awes us or makes us smile.
(6) More on the fish-pond puzzle: In the puzzle, we had a pond holding n fish, 99% of which are goldfish. The question was how many goldfish we need to remove to be left with a pond holding 98% goldfish. The counter-intuitive answer was that we had to remove 0.5n goldfish, that is, a tad more than half of the original 0.99n goldfish, to reduce the percentage by 1 point. The justification consists of setting up the equation (0.99nx) / (nx) = 0.98, which yields x = 0.5n for the number of goldfish to be removed.
On a discussion forum with friends, someone noted that the number n of fish must be a multiple of 100 (he took the 99% and 98% ratios to be exact). Setting n = 100k, the equation becomes (99kx) / (100kx) = 0.98, leading to x = 50k. As an engineer, I take the ratios to be non-exact, so that if there are 102 fish with 101 goldfish, the ratio is still 99% (though the exact value is 101/102 = 99.02%). The answer still is to remove 102/2 = 51 goldfish, with the new ratio becoming 50/51 = 98% (98.04%, to be exact). Percentage is a statistical concept and is often not meant as an exact number. For example, if we say that 50% of Iranian-Americans support Trump, this does not imply that the number of Iranian-Americans is necessarily even!
Then, someone else wondered what the answer would be if we were to remove both goldfish and other fish. Denoting the number of other fish to be removed by y, the new equation becomes (0.99 – x) / (nxy) = 0.98, which simplifies to x = 49y + 0.5n. For y = 0, we get x = 0.5n, the answer to the original puzzle. If we remove 1 non-goldfish, we must remove x = 49 + n/2 goldfish. In general, for each non-goldfish removed, we must remove 49 additional goldfish to reach the desired 98% ratio.
(7) Final thought for the day: Trump blames mental illness for mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton. He is absolutely right. These hate crimes are incited by a mentally-ill leader!

2019/08/03 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Poignant photograph: 'A beautiful future awaits you' Architect Ronald Rael installs seesaws along the US-Mexico border wall for children on the two sides to play together From entering big time with the release of C64 in 1982 to declaring bankruptcy in 1994, Commodore was a most-beloved computer company (1) Images of the day: [Left] Poignant photograph: The bank ad on the back of the bus reads, "A beautiful future awaits you!" [Center] Architect Ronald Rael installs seesaws along the US-Mexico border wall for children on the two sides to play together. [Right] A bit of nostalgia for older geeks: From entering big time with the release of C64 in 1982 to declaring bankruptcy in 1994, Commodore was a most-beloved computer company.
(2) Math puzzle: A pond contains a very large number n of fish, 99% of which are goldfish. How many goldfish should you remove from the pond so that 98% of the remaining fish are goldfish?
(3) Touching musical performance: Professor Maryam Mirzakhani's husband and their daughter, Anahita, honor her memory on the anniversary of her passing. [3-minute video]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Remembering Charlottesville, the starting point of Trump's descent into overt racism 2 years ago. [Image]
- Another mass shooting, thoughts/prayers sent, all forgotten tomorrow, until the next mass shootings.
- A modern automobile being built: This is where most manufacturing jobs have gone, not overseas!
- How the use of lasers is producing many new archaeological discoveries in both urban and rural areas.
- The joy of baking cookies can make long space journeys to distant worlds bearable for astronauts.
- Centenarian fish: What does a 112-year-old fish tell the youngsters in the sea? "When I was your age, ..."
- Some very interesting magic tricks. [3-minute video]
- Persian music: Artoosh sings his signature song to honor another old-timer, Viguen. [5-minute video]
(5) Seasonal fruit: Yesterday, I bought a mini-watermelon and a cantaloupe at the bargain price of $1.25 each. Given their roughly equal sizes, here is how I decided to present them for today's family gathering.

2019/08/02 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Bisheh Waterfall: A major tourist attraction in Iran's Luristan Province Cartoon: Iran's Islamic regime has renewed its ruthless attacks on artists Hayghar Canyon in Fars Province: Iran's little-known 'Grand Canyon' (1) Iran-related images of the day: [Left] Bisheh Waterfall, a tourism fixture in Iran's Luristan Province. [Center] We have seen this movie before: Iran's Islamic regime has renewed its ruthless attacks on artists (credit: Iranwire.com). [Right] Hayghar Canyon in Fars Province: Iran's little-known "Grand Canyon."
(2) Tucker Carlson wanted to discuss the topic of tax avoidance by the super-rich, but he didn't like what his guest had to say: That Fox commentators are millionaires funded by dirty money from billionaires.
(3) Misogyny in Iran: Women's-rights activists Yasaman Aryani, Monireh Arabshahi, and Mojan Keshavarz, have been sentenced to a total of 55 years in prison by Iran's Islamic regime.
(4) Oh, the joys of being an author! Firoozeh Dumas is puzzled by the appearance of an unauthorized Arabic version of her book, Funny in Farsi. [Image]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Humorous quote of the day: "Donald Trump is 72. The 7 is silent." ~ Anonymous
- After its revenue fell, Pearson recognized that the $300 textbook is no longer a lucrative business model.
- Persian poetry and music: Verses by Iranian poet Taleb Amoli [1586-1627]. [4-minute video]
- Joan Baez sings "Nasty Man," about a certain president. [Words and music by Joan Baez] [Video]
(6) Quote of the day: "Every cell phone adds $3000 to the GDP of a developing country." ~ Steven Pinker, Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress, a book I am perusing now
(7) One-dimensional random walk: Imagine a drunk at point S along a straight horizontal line. The drunk takes one random step per second, with the step being equally likely to take him left or right. After 2N seconds, the drunk is most likely to be at the starting point S, but he can also be far from S with non-intuitively large probabilities, as shown in this table, where rows are labeled by the number of steps taken and columns are headed by the drunk's distance from S.
Now, about why I reviewed the notion of random walk. Trump is sometimes described as playing 3D-chess politically, the implication being that he has a sophisticated strategy to win re-election. The truth is that he is playing 1D chess like the random-walking drunk. The fact that he seems to be progressing in some direction is totally random, as he tweets and throws tantrums depending on what he just heared on Fox News, his mood at the moment, and what people are saying about him, not according to some grand strategy.

2019/08/01 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Putin on the cover of Newsweek magazine, issue of August 2, 2019 Time magazine's cover image, issue of August 5, 2019 An Indian boy's 526 extra teeth (1) Newsworthy images of the day: [Left] Despite warnings from multiple fronts that Putin continues to meddle in our elections, "Moscow Mitch" refuses to put election security bills to vote in the US Senate, on grounds that they are "partisan." [Center] Time magazine's cover feature, issue of August 5, 2019: Who ends up controlling the Democrats' 2020 message will determine Trump's fate. [Right] An Indian boy went to the hospital with a swollen jaw, which turned out to be due to 526 extra teeth in a sac underneath!
(2) A couple of quotes from last night's CNN Democratic presidential debate in Detroit, Michigan:
- "The first thing I'm going to do when I'm president is ... to Clorox the Oval Office." ~ Kirsten Gillibrand
- "The opposite of Donald Trump is an Asian who likes math." ~ Andrew Yang
(3) Notes on last night's Democratic presidential debate: Tulsi Gabbard did well with her methodical attack on the prosecutorial record of Kamala Harris. Biden continued to show his age by a clumsy closing statement in which he referred to "8 more years of Trump."
(4) What do Russia, North Korea, and Saudi Arabia have in common, other than being loved by Trump? Their "enemies of the state" disappear or are murdered in the most gruesome ways! [Story on Saudi Arabia]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Was Trump exonerated and completely vindicated by a conflicted, angry man on a witch hunt? [Cartoon]
- Trump re-tweets this post from a fake account that was subsequently suspended by Twitter.
- Quote of the day: "Donald Trump is 72. The 7 is silent." ~ Anonymous
- An amazing sight: The Earth rising over the Moon's horizon. [1-minute video]
- Interesting neighborhood sign, from people who are tired of cleaning up after irresponsible pet owners.
- In Goleta, we welcome August with 10 days of mostly-sunny weather, featuring high temps in the 70s.
(6) The return of the Taliban: They oppressed and killed the dreams of an entire generation of Afghan women. They held public executions of both men and women who disobeyed their antiquated laws. They continue to kill and maim innocent civilians via road-side bombs, suicide attacks, and other terror tactics. Now the US is negotiating to return them to power when our forces leave. Shame on us! [A young woman's story]
(7) Yasaman Aryani, the young woman who walked the streets unveiled to protest Iran's compulsory hijab law, got a 16-year prison term, along with her mother. [Video]

2019/07/31 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Historical photos of La Fiesta, batch 1 Poster for Old Spanish Days (La Fiesta) in Santa Barbara Historical photos of La Fiesta, batch 2 (1) Old Spanish Days (La Fiesta) begins today: The 95th annual festival, which includes a street parade, music and dance performances, food, arts and crafts, and much more, will continue until August 4. The B&W historical photos, ca. 1940, are from Santa Barbara Public Library's collection.
(2) Iranian music and dance: Shahrokh Moshkin Ghalam, a Paris-based choreographer and dancer, dances with his Spanish partner to a tune made famous by folk singer Sima Bina. A young woman from the audience joins them mid-way through the performance. [9-minute video]
(3) Reagan, viewed as a champion for immigrants, also had a racist side: In a newly-released audio clip of a 1971 call between the then-California-Governor and President Nixon, Reagan refers to "monkeys from those African countries" to show his displeasure over how they voted to recognize China as a UN member.
(4) Quote of the day: "For politicians, including my fellow candidates who themselves have taken tens of thousands and, in some cases, hundreds of thousands of dollars from these same corporate donors, to think that they now have the moral authority to say, 'We're going to take them on,' I don't think the Democratic Party should be surprised that so many Americans believe 'yadda, yadda, yadda'." ~ Democratic presidential candidate Marianne Williamson
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Taliban roadside bomb kills at least 32 on a bus: Why is the US negotiating with these murderers?
- Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof speaks out on his interrogation, censorship, and prison sentence.
- Persian love poetry at its best: A beautiful couplet by Abou-Saeid Abolkheir. [Image]
- Tetris turned 35 on June 6: Human fondness for tidying up is one reason the game is so appealing to us.
(6) Old Spanish Days (Fiesta) kicked off at Santa Barbara's de la Guerra Plaza this afternoon: The formal opening was at the SB Mission, beginning at 8:00 PM, which I watched on TV. Upon arrival, I shot this video along de la Guerra Street, with Fiesta merchants on both sides, and de la Guerra Plaza, with its food booths and performance stage. Next, I watched mariachis perform at the entrance to the Paseo Nuevo Shopping Center. I took in some of the music at de la Guerra Plaza's performance stage. On the way back home from Fiesta events, I stopped by at Goleta Valley Community Center to watch part of today's installment of the "Concerts at the Gazebo" series, held on Wednesdays. Cadillac Angels (swing, Americana, R&R) performed for a surprisingly small crowd; Fiesta refugees, as the band leader joked about us! [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]

2019/07/30 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Facebook memories: A few photos originally posted on July 30 of years past A very recent selfie Some of the currently featured photos on my Facebook page (1) Images of the day: [Left] Facebook memories: A few photos originally posted on July 30 of years past, including one with my daughter, one in front of the Freedom Sculpture in Century City, a couple with friends, and one showing support for Iranian women's fight against compulsory hijab. [Center] And here is a very recent selfie. [Right] Some of the currently featured photos on my Facebook page.
(2) Capital-One data breach affected 100 million customers: A tip from someone who noticed data with names, DOBs, and SSNs stored on GitHub led to the arrest of Paige Thompson, a former Amazon employee.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Death toll in the Brazil prison brawl between gangs rises to 57, with 16 the victims decapitated.
- Amazon Prime Air's MK27 drone cleared by FAA for package deliveries.
- One of these men, who boasted about his "German blood" and "good genes," deems the other a racist!
- Remember Trump asking black voters "What have you got to lose?" Well, he's providing the answer now!
- Trump uses everyone for personal gain, then discards them like soiled toilet paper when done. [Photo]
- Trump's first of 19 tweets bashing Cummings came just after Fox News aired a segment on Baltimore.
- You know what is infested with rodents? Thousands of rental units that Jared Kushner owns in Baltimore!
- Persian Music: A wonderful rendition of the oldie song "Bahar-e Delkash." [2-minute video, with lyrics]
(4) My discovery stroll in a Goleta neighborhood: I don't live far from Goleta's Cabrillo Business Park, a partially-developed area bounded by Hollister Avenue on the north and Los Carneros Road on the east. This afternoon, beginning from what used to be K-mart Plaza (soon to be Target Plaza, I suppose), I walked on Hollister Avenue, turning right into the Park at Coromar Drive, which becomes Discovery Drive (lined on its entire north side by the huge Extra-Space storage facility), as it turns toward Los Carneros Road. Another major business on the Hollister side of the Park is Deckers Outdoor Corporation. Signs on the property tell of plans to erect many new buildings within a couple of years in the undeveloped area of the Park immediately behind the US Postal Service's large regional sorting facility. There is a long trail, beginning and ending on Los Carneros Road, which goes around a nature preserve within the Park. It is marked as private, but that is mostly to limit their legal liabilities toward visitors, I suppose. Smack in the middle of the nature preserve one can see a row of communications towers which help planes land at the adjacent Santa Barbara Airport. [Map/photos]

2019/07/29 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Evening photography: Sunset photo 3 Evening photography: Sunset photo 1 Evening photography: Sunset photo 2 (1) Evening photography: Magnificent sunset shots, from a tweet by @NIGAR01030789.
(2) The final adult on the way out: Dan Coats, Trump's Director of National Intelligence, seems to have had enough. He is being ousted after repeatedly and openly disagreeing with Trump's statements and decisions. Texas Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe is mentioned as a possible replacement.
(3) Active shooter(s) at Gilroy, the garlic capital of California: I pass by Gilroy on the US 101 each time I drive to the SF Bay Area. A dozen people are down at the small, sleepy town's Garlic Festival, but because the situation is still active, no official police report about fatalities and injuries was available as of late Sunday.
[Monday morning update: Three of those shot, and the shooter, are dead. Fifteen individuals suffered injuries.]
(4) Talk about rats: Trump bashed Baltimore's poor neighborhoods, but he made no mention of "slumlord" Jared Kushner who owns a large number of decrepit rental units in the city.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Extreme, unusual, dangerous: An amazing compilation of video clips, set to music. [3-minute video]
- Willie Nelson sings "Immigrant Eyes" from his new album "Ride Me Back Home."
- The popular Azeri song "Reyhan" performed by the legendary Rashid Behbudov. [Another rendition]
- Earth's deserts are expanding, and that's very dangerous. [National Geographic report]
(6) Jennifer Lawrence delivers a highly effective message on behalf of Represent.US, advocating changes in our corrupt political system. Right now, the probability that Congress passes a law is virtually independent of the level of public support for it. [13-minute video]
(7) Assyrian Jews' Neo-Aramaic Language: This 5-minute video clip, containing samples of spoken Neo-Aramaic, the language of Iranian Kurdish Jews, is my latest discovery in the course of studying the culture of my Kurdish ancestors. The clip has no reference citation, but it is likely from one of the researchers of Neo-Aramaic who have recorded native speakers as part of their studies.

2019/07/28 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo showing lemons and avocados Photos showing closed stores at Santa Barbara's La Cumbre Plaza The Pacific Plate has been inordinately active in recent weeks, leading to multiple earthquates on both sides (1) Images of the day: [Left] Annual California Lemon and Avocado Festivals: The 28th edition of the Lemom Festival will be held at Goleta's Girsh Park, September 28-29, 2019. The 33rd edition of the Avocado Festival will be held along Carpinteria's Linden Avenue, October 4-6, 2019. [Center] Economic woes: The once-bustling La Cumbre Shopping Center, located near the east end of Santa Barbara, has become a ghost town. It lost Sears, one its two anchor stores, months ago, and now, it seams, nearly half of its stores are closed or in transition (photos taken on July 25, 2019). [Right] Three earthquakes, measuring 5.5, 5.9, and 5.7 rocked the Philippines: The quakes killed 8 and injured dozens, because they hit in remote areas. The Pacific Plate has been inordinately active in recent weeks. A 4.7-magnitude quake shook California's Ridgecrest region on the other side of the Plate on July 25, preceded and followed by several smaller quakes.
(2) Quote of the day: "Each one has to find his peace from within. And peace to be real must be unaffected by outside circumstances." ~ Mahatma Gandhi
(3) Someone has to tell Trump that if parts of Baltimore are rat-infested, he as the president of this country should care and do something about it, instead of complaining and pointing fingers!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- In one of the biggest crackdowns in years, Moscow security forces arrest 1000 protesters.
- Today's Baltimore Sun editorial: "Better to have some vermin living in your neighborhood than to be one."
- Child-like adult brothers, admiring each other's divisive politics from across the Atlantic. [Image]
- People are leaving certain regions of the US and moving to others. [Map source: Forbes]
(5) Trailer for the soon-to-be-released film "Soeurs d'Armes" ("Sisters of Weapons"), by French filmmaker Caroline Fourest, about the plight of Kurdish women fighting IS/DAESH. [2-minute video]
(6) More than 20,000 people have signed a petition in support of film director Mohammad Rasoulof's right to free expression. He has been banned from working and traveling by the Iranian government.
(7) Cadaveric spasms: For up to a few days after death, animal corpses can exhibit spontaneous movement. In this spooky video, whose varacity has not been confirmed, raw chicken meat is shown crawling off the plate.

2019/07/27 (Saturday): Here are three book reviews, in an effort to make a dent in my huge backlog!
Cover image of Stephen Hawking's 'Brief Answers to the Big Questions' Cover image of Lev Grossman's 'The Magicians' Cover image of Alafair Burke's 'The Ex: A Novel' (1) Book review: Hawking, Stephen, Brief Answers to the Big Questions, MP3 audiobook read by Ben Whishaw, Random House Audio, 2018. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Hawking was repeatedly asked the same set of questions everywhere he went. In this slender volume, written in the final year before his March 2018 death at age 76, Hawking sums up his contemporary writings in a concise format. Origins of the universe, the Big Bang, and, of course, black holes, are all featured in the book. He also tackles more contemporary topics such as shaping our future and climate change, which he judges to be more likely to spell our doom than an asteroid collision.
Hawking maintains that rising temperatures, melting ice caps, deforestation, overpopulation, species extinction, disease, war, famine, and dearth of water resources are all solvable problems that remain unsolved due to a lack of political will. But he is optimistic that humans will eventually rally to solve all these challenging problems. One reason for Hawking's optimism is artificial intelligence, which, despite his earlier warnings about the dangers it poses, is among the bright spots.
This unfinished book was completed by Hawking's family and academic colleagues, with help from material in his vast personal archive to answer these ten big questions: Is there a God? How did it all begin? What is inside a black hole? Can we predict the future? Is time travel possible? Will we survive on Earth? Is there other intelligent life in the universe? Should we colonize space? Will artificial intelligence outsmart us? How do we shape the future?
I am just as curious as the next person about black holes and other incredible features of our universe. Not being a theoretical physicist, however, I find it difficult to believe many of Hawking's arguments, which amount to hand-waving in my view. Sure, the universe could have emerged from nothing if you hypothesize the exsistence of particles and anti-particles, which cancel each other out, but then, what does it mean to have an "explosion" amidst that nothingness? Nevertheless, I will keep on reading about these notions in the hopes that someday it will all click!
(2) Book review: Grossman, Lev, The Magicians, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Mark Bramhall, Penguin Audio, 2009. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
A young man, wandering around in an urban field, suddenly finds himself in a different location and a different season, amid the grounds of a secret college of magic. He is admitted to the college, thinking that his dreams have come true and behaving cautionsly for fear that he might be thrown out back into the miserable real world. Though proving fairly good at the craft, he finds that magic is more difficult than he imagined and that, like other forms of power, it comes with a terrible burden.
Grossman's characters and other depictions are vivid and quite believable, despite the far-fetched premise of the story. Predictably, there is The Beast, a powerful evil character a la Lord Valdemort, who is eventually defeated with much sacrifice. Magic acts and magical events aside, the interactions and concerns of the story's characters are very much like those of any other coming-of-age story, the main themes being love, sex, alchohol, and boredom.
This 2009 Harry-Potter-like fantasy was followed by two sequels, The Magician King (2011) and The Magician's Land (2014). Syfy channel produced a TV series based on Grossman's trilogy in 2015.
(3) Book review: Burke, Alafair, The Ex: A Novel, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Xe Sands, Harper Audio, 2016. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The titular "ex," the story's narrator, is a former fiancee of a man with a teen-aged daughter from a wife who died in a mass-shooting, while trying to help other victims. The ex, a top criminal defense attorney in New York City, carries deep guilt over the way she had treated the man, so when the opportunity arises for her to represent him after he is charged with a triple homicide, she jumps at the chance to make it up to him. Having known the man for years, she is absolutely certain of his innocence, but is puzzled by why anyone would go to great lengths to frame him.
One of the three murder victims is the unapologetic father of the 15-year-old mass-shooter who killed the man's wife, turning him into a celibate bachelor while raising his daughter, so there is apparent motive (there had been a lawsuit and threats). However, it is unclear which of the three victims, if any, was the primaty target of the killer(s). As evidence mounts against the accused, the ex begins to doubt her judgment and whether she really ever knew him.
Burke's well-constructed story keeps the reader on edge and interested, as she methodically untangles the mystery, until the final plot twist. I had previously read Burke's The Wife, giving it 4 stars. So, when this title came up on the availability list of my library, I did not hesitate to borrow it. And I wasn't disappointed!

2019/07/26 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Side-by-side photos, taken at the same spot 68 years apart, 1 Side-by-side photos, taken at the same spot 68 years apart, 2 Side-by-side photos, taken at the same spot 68 years apart, 3 Side-by-side photos, taken at the same spot 68 years apart, 4 Side-by-side photos, taken at the same spot 68 years apart, 5 Side-by-side photos, taken at the same spot 68 years apart, 6 (1) Side-by-side placement of photos taken at the same spots, 68 years apart, magically changing black-and-white to color, suits to casual-wear, and film cameras to digital. [Credit: New York Times]
(2) New Yorker humor: Archaeologists discover the long-sought-after racist bone. Funding request for additional exploration denied by the White House.
(3) Very presidential: Donald Trump was once eager to appear on SNL to get free publicity, but when the show started making fun of him, it became "unfunny"! [Video]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- As more countries and US states ban the death penalty, the US government is set to resume executions.
- Crime of passion: Woman kills two Israeli men at a Chinese restaurant in Mexico City.
- An amazing set of clips (with some deep fakes?) imagining Fox News giving Trump the Obama treatment!
- Trump suggests that investigators should look into book deals by Barack and Michelle Obama!
- Neat mathematical facts: 365 (days in a year) = 10^2 + 11^2 + 12^2 = 13^2 + 14^2
- Omid Djalili's stand-up comedy routine, with jokes about his Iranian roots, Brexit, and Prince Charles.
(5) Quote of the day: "If you don't follow medical teachings from hundreds of years ago, why would you follow moral teachings from thousands of years ago?" ~ Anonymous
(6) [Final thought for the day] Be suspicious of apps that need access to your full personal data on Facebook or elsewhere to do something trivial: To paraphrase a New Yorker cartoon caption, "There is this amazing app that generates a photo of you in old age, if you give it a photo, your name, and Social Security Number!" In reality, the app, if legit, would only need a photo, not full access to your photos and personal data.

2019/07/25 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of an Alaskan glacier that is melting fast Cover image for the August 2019 issue of 'Communications of the ACM' Trump spoke in front of a prankster's fake Presidential Seal (1) Images of the day: [Left] Alaskan glaciers melting 100x faster than previously thought. [Center] Cover image for the August 2019 issue of Communications of the ACM (see the last item below). [Right] Audiovisual prankster fired: "As the President took the stage Tuesday morning before a sea of 1,500 teenage cell phones, a screen behind him showed a fake presidential seal featuring a two-headed eagle—which bore similarity to the state seal of the Russian Federation—clutching a set of golf clubs in its talons" (CNN).
(2) Beautiful weather in Santa Barbara and Goleta for the next 10 days: Spoiled as we are here in heaven, we think of high temperatures in the high-70s as hot weather, but recent heat waves worldwide, including in the US, Europe, and southern/western Iran, with 100+ temps and high humidity, tell us otherwise.
(3) Next IEEE Central Coast Section technical talk: Dr. Tali Freed (Cal Poly) will speak on "UAV-RFID Outdoor Applications" (Wednesday, August 21, 2019, Flightline Restaurant and Lounge, 521 Firestone Rd., Goleta, buffet-style dinner 6:00 PM, talk 6:30 PM). [Flyer]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Note passed by woman to a Domino's employee when she picked up a pizza led to her rescue in NM.
- Financier and child rapist Jeffrey Epstein found injured in his jail cell from apparent suicide attempt.
- Cartoon of the day: Epitomes of un-American behavior accusing others of being un-American! [Image]
- Picture of me, in 40 years: I didn't need any app to produce this image that shows me 4 decades hence!
(6) Integrating ethics broadly across CS education: This is the cover feature of CACM's August 2019 issue. I have written on several occasions about the importance of teaching ethics and ethical decision-making to students in computer science and engineering. However, as I routinely mention to my students in a graduate-level course on dependable computing, teaching dependability issues in a separate course is akin to teaching structural engineers about bridge-building in one course and about bridge reliability and integrity in a different course that they may or may not take. Every computer science and engineering course has to have dependability concerns built in. The same goes for ethics. Taking a stand-alone course on ethics during the senior year, after students have been exposed to many science and engineering concepts, creates the impression that ethical considerations are optional add-ons. The truth is that no algorithm should be developed and no system designed without explicitly thinking about ethical issues. Ethical reasoning should be an integral part of every single course our students take. The CACM feature points out that CS and philosophy experts working together on improving CS curricula has the dual benefit of introducing ethical reasoning to computing professionals, while bringing technology awareness to philosophy experts.

2019/07/24 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Sign for 'Zzyzx Rd' Salads for a week: Mixed-greens and Iranian-style Shirazi (cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, dry-herbs seasoning, lime juice) Mt. Squad, featuring four freshmen Congresswomen (1) Images of the day: [Left] The name of this road is bound to be last on any alphabetical list: Try to guess where it is located. Hint: It isn't in Eastern Europe! [Center] Salads for a week: Mixed-greens and Iranian-style Shirazi (cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, dry-herbs seasoning, lime juice). [Right] Mt. Squad: This is just a joke. Please don't get too riled up about it or go into a tweetstorm lambasting socialism and communism!
(2) Criminal law-professor (not criminal-law professor): The esteemed law professor who was an inmate a decade ago (on bank robbery conviction) and taught himself law while in prison. [CBS "60 Minutes" report]
(3) Meet me in Georgia (the republic): A revised poster to mark the occasion of Fanni graduates' 51st anniversary reunion in Tbilisi and Batumi, Georgia, September 13-20, 2019. A group photo from the previous gathering in Yerevan, Armenia, has been pasted over an image of the Peace Pedestrian Bridge in Tbilisi.
(4) iPhone 11, due later this year, may be the last model to use the Lightning port: There goes my investment in half-dozen iPhone/iPad charging cables for home, office, car, and backpack!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- UK elects Trump-like Boris Johnson as prime minister. God save the Queen! [CNN report]
- Can women's rights and religious freedom co-exist or are the two contradictory notions?
- Neshat Jahandari flies as certified captain after earning her commercial-pilot credentials.
- Cartoon of the day: Islamic Revolutionary Pirates Corps. [Image source: Iranwire.com]
(6) Meme of the day: Those who can't tolerate criticism of the US government are free to move to another country where such criticisms are illegal. [Meme]
(7) Losing a former colleague: My former Sharif University of Technology departmental colleague, mathematician Dr. Ali-Akbar Jafarian, passed away a couple of days ago in Connecticut. RIP.
(8) UCSB Emeritus Professor Alan G. Konheim [1934-2019]: He joined our Computer Science Department in 1982, after 22 years at IBM, retiring in 2005. He thought courses in discrete mathematics, computer networks, and cryptography, wrote three outstanding books, including the 2010 volume Hashing in Computer Science, and served as a mentor to several current CS faculty members. RIP. Link to CV]

2019/07/22 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
My mom (right), her mom (middle), and her look-alike younger sister, in a photo dating back around 60 years Meme of the day: Women will spell the downfall of our racist and sexist president! 'New Yorker' cartoon of the day: 'You will not use presidential language in this house, young man!' (1) Images of the day: [Left] My mom (right), her mom (middle), and her look-alike younger sister, in a photo dating back around 60 years. [Center] Meme of the day: Women will spell the downfall of our racist and sexist president! [Right] New Yorker cartoon of the day: "You will not use presidential language in this house!"
(2) Say it three times and it becomes a fact: Republicans are now embracing what they used to criticize (e.g., deficit spending) and attacking what they used to represent (e.g., fiscal conservatism).
(3) The man who built his political brand by saying "America is going to HELL" now claims that criticizing America is unpatriotic as long as he is president!
(4) The humongous Persian underground city that was accidentally discovered in Turkey when excavating for a new building in 1963. [Video narrated in Persian]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- India launches an ambitious lunar-landing mission on the heels of Apollo 11's 50th anniversary.
- Pitted against each other, veiled and unveiled Iranian women join forces in opposing compulsory hijab.
- Muslim US Marine says he is staying to Make America Great Again, just not the way Trump means it.
- Hunters in Mongolia partner with golden eagles to increase their efficiency. [CBS "60 Minutes" report]
- Persian music: Song by Koorosh Yazdani, based on a poem by Siavash Kasrai, honors political prisoners.
(6) Meet me in Tbilisi: A poster to mark the occasion of Fanni graduates' 51st anniversary reunion in Tbilisi, Georgia, September 13-20, 2019. A group photo from the previous gathering in Yerevan, Armenia, has been pasted over an image of Tbilisi's Holy Trinity Cathedral.
(7) It's amazing how little money is needed to make people look the other way: Jeffrey Epstein employees are now saying that they saw him fly young girls to his private island. Why didn't they talk before? Apparently, he tipped well! Now that he isn't in a position to tip them, they are selling their stories to the highest bidder.

2019/07/20 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Fiftieth anniversary of Moon landing: Poster Fiftieth anniversary of Moon landing: NYT front page Fiftieth anniversary of Moon landing: Crew Fiftieth anniversary of Moon landing: American flag Cartoon: Women who support Trump Close the camps: Holding people in concentration camps is un-American! (1) Images of the day: [Top row & bottom left] Fiftieth anniversary of Moon landing: On July 20, 1969, 4:17 PM PDT, Apollo 11's Landing Module touched down on the surface of the Moon, allowing humans to step on the surface of a celestial boday for the first time. [Bottom center] Unlike the token number of African Americans in his camp, Trump actually does have a sizable group of women supporters, which is truly mind boggling. [Bottom right] Close the camps: Holding people in concentration camps is un-American!
(2) New Congresswoman Katie Porter isn't part of "The Squad" but she is giving bank executives and administration officials a hard time by exposing hypocrisy and incompetence.
(3) Belt with two pouches: This belt is ideal for travelers and joggers: The two zippered pouches expand to securely hold items such as cell phone, wallet, and passport.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Records are being shattered, as the US Midwest and East Coast deal with a brutal heat wave.
- Hateful speech has consequences: Louisiana police officer suggests on Facebook that AOC should be shot.
- Hackers steal 5 million tax files with personal information in Bulgaria (population ~7 million).
- How did a 30-something with a bachelor's degree become the most-influential presidential adviser? [Meme]
- When Nazi supporters gathered in NYC 80 years ago, they packaged and sold it as a patriotic rally.
- Creating 3D sculptures via 2D imaging and robotics technology. [Video]
- Undated film (mid-1900s?), showing streets in Iran, with pedestrians, shops, and street vendors. [Video]
(5) Iranians, regardless of their ethnicity and political views, are united by their love for certain kinds of food: Chelow-kabob is at the top of the commonly-loved food list. From this video, we also learn that rice is a recent addition to the country's diet, aash having been the most common before then. This explains the word "aashpaz" ("cooker of aash") for a cook/chef and "lebaas-e polow-khori" ("clothes for eating rice"), fancy clothes that people used to put on for special occasions when rice/polow was on the menu.
(6) Why is a man, a billionaire himself, supported by a substantial number of other billionaires, holding the world's most powerful office, and having 62 million Twitter followers, so afraid of a new 29-year-old congresswoman?

2019/07/19 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Michelle Obama tops the list of most-admired woman in the world Map showing recent incidents in and around Strait of Hormuz Melania Trump and her 'Be Best' program/cause Cartoon by Michael de Adder, comparing McCain and Trump Wondrous patterns of nature: Cacti in Mexico, posted by Orgullo Wixarika Cartoon for the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing: Louis/Neil/Lance Armstrong (1) Images of the day: [Top left] Michelle Obama tops the list of most-admired woman in the world, according to the latest annual YouGov.com poll. [Top center] Conflicts around Strait of Hormuz: An Iranian drone allegedly downed by the US through electronic jamming and two British cargo ships seized by Iran confound an already tense situation. [Top right] All these women with foreign-sounding names, who try to tell us how to behave: Let's send them home! [Bottom left] Cartoon by Michael de Adder. [Bottem center] Wondrous patterns of nature: Cacti in Mexico, posted by Orgullo Wixarika. [Bottom right] Cartoon for the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing.
(2) Trump admits on camera to kissing a married TV host, while her husband had his back turned: Not that such revelations would cost him any support, including among evangelical Christians and the so-called "values voters." He is a despicable person, but so are the women like this host who have enabled him for decades!
(3) Trump and his ilk, to Americans: If you don't like your government, you should leave!
To asylum seekers: If you don't like your government, you should stay and fix it!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Mastaneh, singing in this video, has the great Iranian singer Marzieh as her maternal grandmother.
- Persian Music: The warm voice of Fatemeh Mehlaban. [2-minute video]
- Modern Persian dance: This little girl kicks up a storm! [3-minute video]
- A vary talented chicken, indeed! [1-minute video]
- Humor: Remember never to swallow your bubblegum! [Photo]
- The Internet is abuzz with so-called "iPad magic tricks," but this one is particularly impressive.
(5) Women scholars often not given due credit: Professor Sarah Milov gave an interview to a male journalist. When the article was published, she found that her ideas were used widely, without any mention of her name or even a single link to her contributions to the field.

2019/07/18 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Persian calligraphy: Hafez poetry rendered with a ball-point pen by Ali Farahani Four portraits of me from years past, collected from recent Facebook memories Poster: Iran's Municipality of Northern Savad-Kooh bans colorful clothing for women (1) Images of the day: [Left] Persian calligraphy: Hafez poetry rendered with a ball-point pen by Ali Farahani. [Center] Four portraits of me from years past, collected from Facebook memories. [Right] Meme of the day: Iran's Municipality of Northern Savad-Kooh bans colorful clothing for women, even when visiting their brothers!
(2) Just another hypocrite: Today, I watched a video in which Paul Ryan praises Trump's "exquisite leadership"! Ryan is now trying to rewrite history by claiming that he supported Trump in order to have some influence on his crazy decisions. Too late, Mr. Ryan. The damage you did to our country may be irreversible!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Man kills 33 by setting fire to an anime studio in Japan, while shouting "You die!"
- This huge chart lists every attempt to go to the moon by the US, the Soviet Union, and other countries.
- Preparing cold yogurt soup ("aabdoogh-Khiaar"). [Video]
- The best place to be an AI entrepreneur is communist China! [CBS "60 Minutes" report]
- Serving 3-course meals to the poor: The celebrity chef who is giving back. [CBS "60 Minutes" report]
(4) Yesterday's IEEE Central Coast Section technical talk: Dr. Dmitri Strukov (Professor, UCSB, and Distinguished Lecturer, IEEE Nanotechnology Council) spoke at Goleta Valley Public Library under the title "Alternative Computing with Memristors." Dr. Strukov is one of the pioneers of memristive (resistive switching) technology and its applications. Memristors offer two key properties that are essential to brain-inspired or neuromorphic computing: High device density and nonvolatile storage. Dr. Strukov's recent focus has been on metal-oxide memristors, whose 3D version resolves Feynman grand challenge of implementing an 8-bit adder in 50-nm cube. Dr. Strukov covered the application of memristors to neuromorphic and alternative-style computing. He also planned to discuss work on memristor-based security primitives, but there was insufficient time to do so. Slides for Dr. Strukov's talk will be posted to the IEEE CCS Tech Talks Web page for those who could not attend and interested individuals who would like to review the material not covered. [Photos]
(5) Concert in the park: Having caught up with the backlog of work due to a couple of recent trips, I decided to spend the evening at Santa Barbara's Chase Palm Park, enjoying music, breathing clean air, reading a book, and being energized by young & old dancing their worries away. The band Pop Gun Rerun played memorable 80s tunes. [Video 1, upon my arrival] [Video 2, just before the intermission] Both before and after the concert, I strolled along Santa Barbara's beautiful waterfront. [Panoramic photo] [360-degree video]

2019/07/16 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Memes for our beloved country, currently diseased by a bigoted, racist president #1 Memes for our beloved country, currently diseased by a bigoted, racist president #2 Memes for our beloved country, currently diseased by a bigoted, racist president #3 (1) Memes for our beloved country, currently diseased by a bigoted, racist president.
(2) Untangling Iran's economic corruption: In this 6-minute video (in Persian), an investigative reporter exposes corrupt officials who enable and benefit from multi-million-dollar scams in the private sector.
(3) NASA's Apollo 11 mission was launched on July 16, 1969, landing astronauts on the Moon on July 20. Many 50th-anniversary observances are planned for July 20, 2019. Here's a video to celebrate the launch.
(4) Iranian Oral History Project: This 1-hour interview with Karim Sanjabi is part of Harvard University's archive, which includes both audio files and transcripts of interviews with individuals involved in Iran's political scene from the 1920s to the 1980s.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Video shows Trump having a good time with child-rapist Jeffrey Epstein, as they ogle young women.
- Meme of the day: We should actually be thankful to Trump for exposing all the racists in our midst! [Image]
- Rep. Mark Meadows, who claims he isn't a racist, once vowed to send President Obama home to Kenya.
- Aras Amiri, a student serving 10 years on charges of espionage, writes to Iran's Head of the Judiciary.
- Fariba Adelkhah, a Paris-based political scientist, has been arrested in Iran on charges of espionage.
- Cartoon of the day: Five stages of White House unemployment. [Image]
(6) Memorable photo from last year's gathering with my college buddies in Yerevan, Armenia: This year, we are planning a get-together in Tbilisi, Georgia, in mid-September.
(7) Two 2020 Granada Theater programs of possible interest to Santa Barbara area residents.
February 05-06: "Beautiful" (Carole King musical); May16-17: Beethoven's 250th birthday celebration
(8) UCSB Emeritus Professor Ian B. Rhodes dead at 78: He was a long-time member of our ECE Department (control systems specialty) and once served as its Chair. Although our technical interests were different, we exchanged ideas frequently on educational and administrative matters, particularly with regard to our service on the campus Committee on Academic Personnel, charged with the evaluation of merits & promotions. RIP!

2019/07/15 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Sights from Tehran, Iran: An underpass, with Milad Tower in the background Sights from Tehran, Iran: A traditional chelow-kabob meal, with yogurt drink and condiments A couple of photos of mine from recent Facebook memory reminders (1) Images of the day: [Left & Center] Sights from Tehran, Iran: An underpass, with Milad Tower in the background, and a traditional chelow-kabob meal, with yogurt drink and condiments. [Right] A couple of photos of mine from recent Facebook memory reminders.
(2) Republicans are either shunning the media or like Congressman Andy Harris offer this explanation for Trump's racist tweets: "He could have meant go back to the district they came from—to the neighborhood they came from." Since when do districts and neighborhoods have governments?
(3) Supporting Trump is becoming harder by the hour: British PM Theresa May joins the chorus of voices criticizing Trump for his overtly racist and xenophobic "love the US or leave it" tweets targeting brown-skinned Congresswomen who have criticized him.
(4) Trump now says that what he meant by his tweets was that anyone who complains or is unhappy can leave the country. Make sure to remind him of this option the next time he whines about witch hunt, deep state, stupid judges, fake news, and a host of other ills in our country!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Turing-Award winner Fernando Corbato, father of time-sharing, Multics, and user passwords, dead at 93.
- Pioneering code-breaker and computer scientist Alan Turing unveiled as face of new £50 note.
- She got a shiner for telling a man who followed her she was not interested.
- Extraordinary art: Stunning sand-and-gold paintings. [1-minute video]
- Watch the labor-intensive process of preparing the famous Yookhe bread in Shiraz, Iran.
(6) The squabbling between several Democratic Congresswomen and the House Speaker should be a cause for joy, not panic: It shows, perhaps even to the Republicans, that in a democracy, party members do not have to blindly follow the "Dear Leader."
(7) Iranian woman tells off a man who insults her for not wearing a headscarf: This is the proverbial "tooth-shattering" response. Hats off to this brave woman! [1-minute video]
(8) Six women photographers explore the complexities of life inside and outside Iran: Smithsonian Museum of Asian Art's exhibit of works by Newsha Tavakolian, Malekeh Nayiny, Shadi Ghadirian, Gohar Dashti, and Mitra Tabrizian (running from August 10, 2019, to February 9, 2020; Washington, DC, National Mall).
(9) Iran has been arresting quite a few visitors with dual citizenship on charges of "spying": Most of these dual citizens are social scientists or environmental activists whose studies reveal systemic social ills and environmental mismanagement/abuse. A clear case of punishing the messenger when the message isn't to one's liking! A term favored by regime elements in such cases is "siaah-namaaee" ("showing blackness"), referring to the activities of such individuals painting an unfairly dark picture of the social/environmental conditions in Iran. Those whose antiquated ideas and misguided policies have brought black days to Iran, now punish others who honestly portray the darkness!

2019/07/14 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Image from the sci-fi short story 'To Serve Man' Antique Persian typewriter belonging to Mozaffar al-Din Shah Qajar, currently on display at Tehran's Golestan Palace Museum 'Musica Italiana' organ/vocals concert (1) Visuals for today: [Left] Image from the sci-fi short story 'To Serve Man' (see the next to the last item below). [Center] Antique Persian typewriter belonging to Mozaffar al-Din Shah Qajar, currently on display at Tehran's Golestan Palace Museum. [Right] "Musica Italiana" organ/vocals concert (see the last item below).
(2) I enjoy serving fruits and vegetables in interesting and artistic ways and find some on-line videos helpful in this regard. But videos like this one are rather discouraging to us mere mortals!
(3) Trump outdoes his previous racism and sexism: He tells four progressive congresswomen to "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested [countries] from which they came." He did not realize that they are doing exactly that, because all four come from the US! Any Republicans have a problem with this unashamedly racist tweetstorm from Trump?
(4) VP Mike Pence's ice-cold stare and lack of compassion as he visits overcrowded and filthy migrant detention camps at the US-Mexico border fuels the #FakeChristian trend on-line.
(5) The night sky last night had Jupiter, the brightest planet in the Solar System next to the Moon.
(6) The Iranian police stops a woman for violating a ban on women riding motorcycles: She flashes her international motocross credentials to no avail! [1-minute video] Along the same lines, Iranian women will soon be banned from eating ice cream in public, according to a new law!
(7) Yet another manisfestation of rampant corruption in Iran: This 10-minute expose, narrated in Persian, shows BastiHills, a walled community with mansions that put those in Beverly Hills to shame.
(8) "To Serve Man": This is the title of a 1950 sci-fi short story by Damon Knight, which formed the basis of a 1962 episode of the TV program "The Twilight Zone." The title is a double-entendre, with "serve" meaning "to assist" or "to provide as a meal." In fact, within the story, "How to Serve Man" is the title of a cookbook! (Info from Moshe Vardi's "Insight" column in the July 2019 issue of Communications of the ACM, Vol. 62, No. 7, p. 7)
(9) "Musica Italiana": This afternoon, I attended an enjoyable concert by "Minister of Keyboard Music" Thomas Joyce, accompanied by soprano Adriana Ruiz, at Santa Barbara's Trinity Episcopal Church. Dr. Joyce performed solo organ pieces and transcriptions of Italian orchestral works spanning four centuries, concluding with Rossini's "William Tell" overture. What made the concert even more impressive were detailed and witty introductions to the selected works. [Photos and Program]

2019/07/13 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Fruits at a Tehran market Forest wedding reception in Washington State Fruits on an Iranian-style serving plate (1) Natural wonders: [Left] Fruits at a Tehran market. [Center] Forest wedding reception in Washington State. [Right] Fruits on an Iranian-style serving plate.
(2) I don't feel one bit sorry for Paul Ryan: He deserves all the insults Trump is throwing at him (again) for his comments in a forthcoming book: Ryan is trying to justify the unjustifiable, that is, his support for Trump's policies, including deficit-funded tax cuts for the rich, after building his political career as a deficit hawk.
(3) Azalia Mirhoseini, is a Google scientist who uses artificial intelligence to design better chips for doing AI: The Rice University PhD is on MIT's list of "35 Innovators Under 35."
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Coast Guard leaps onto and seizes submarine carrying 17,000 pounds of cocaine.
- Labor Secretary resigns after exposure of his role in a sweetheart plea deal for child rapist Jeff Epstein.
- Two Trump campaign chairs in jail for child sex trafficking: But they have been fantastic campaign chairs!
- UCLA adjunct professor Yi Chi Shih convicted for illegal attempts to send dual-use microchips to China.
- Today's "big brother": Google employees listen to private audio played on its home-speaker systems.
- Instrumental version of "The Phantom of the Opera" by Prague Cello Quartet.
- In-nature design by Marentes Partners. [Photo]
- Quote of the day: "People may hear your words, but they feel your attitude." ~ John C. Maxwell
(5) Best uses of Moon's real estate for doing science: The dark side of the Moon from which you cannot see or hear Earth would be an ideal location for installing a radio telescope, because it would be shielded by the bulk of the Moon from human-made electromagnetic noise and other Earth-related phenomenon. [From an article entitled "Project Moon Base Science," IEEE Spectrum, Vol. 56, No. 7, pp. 38-39, July 2019, special issue on "The Coming Moon Rush"]
(6) Will floating-point numbers and computations ever be replaced? The short answer is "no." A somewhat longer answer is "rather unlikely." Here's why.
Alternatives to floating-point have been around for decades. Logarithmic number representation, proposed in the 1970s, has superior error characteristics and relative ease of multiplication and division, which are converted to addition and subtraction. Similarly, squaring and square-rooting simplify to doubling and halving of the logarithms (shifting). However, addition and subtraction become more difficult, dooming the scheme for high-precision computations and relegating its applications to low-precision domains (which are increasingly important). [See pp. 366-367 & 386-387 in the second (2010) edition of my book on computer arithmetic.]
Unified schemes have been proposed over the years to represent all numbers within a single variable-length format for integer and real-valued numbers, while also avoiding overflow and other undesirable exceptions.
One such scheme was championed by John L. Gustafson in his book The End of Error: Unum Computing (CRC Press, 2015). The name "unum" (you'-num) stands for "universal number." The latest incarnation of this approach is called "posits," in which a number is represented by a sign bit, several "regime bits," denoting the kind of number represented, zero or more exponent bits, and zero or more fractional bits. For details, see Gustafson"s 2017 article, "Posit Arithmetic." With this scheme, many commonly-encountered numbers are representable with only a few bits, saving on storage, memory-access, and data transmission costs.
Here is an example of a 16-bit posit: 0 | 0 0 0 1 | 1 0 1 | 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 1
The fields from left to right represent the sign (positive), regime bits indicating 256 to the negative-third power (in a kind of unary representation), exponent bits indicating 2 to the fifth power, and fractional part of the significand 1.11011101 (1 + 221/256).
Acceptance of new ideas does not rest solely on technical merit but is affected by social and economic factors. Imagine that you have invented a new programming language that is provably better (more consistent and complete) than any existing language. If you try to force others to come to the same conclusion and adopt your language, you will encounter serious resistance, given the extent of investment in software written in old languages and the vast amount of human expertise built around those languages.
In the case of floating point, hardware implementations and associated skills will constitute a barrier to entry for alternative representations. Billions of dollars have been invested in existing floating-point hardware and the tools and expertise that continue to create them. And there are many thousands of people who earn a living because they know how to do floating-point hardware design and software implementation.

2019/07/12 (Friday): Book review: Silver, Nate, The Signal and the Noise: Why So Many Predictions Fail—But Some Don't, Penguin, 2012. [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Figure 5-7B in Nate Silver's 'The Singal and the Noise' Cover image of Nate Silver's 'The Singal and the Noise' Figure 12-11 in Nate Silver's 'The Singal and the Noise' It has been a long time since I was so impressed with a book. Given the arrival of the age of "big data" (whatever that is) and the rise to prominence of "data science," every literate person should read this book and heed Silver's warnings.
A statistician and founder of NYT's political blog FiveThirtyEight.com (the blog's name comes from the number of electors in the US), Silver rose to prominence by his baseball and election analyses and was named by Time magazine as one of the world's 100 Most Influential People. The FiveThirtyEight blog began with a forecasting model based on averaging many polls, each weighted according to its past accuracy. It then evolved to include more sophisticated forecasting techniques.
Early in the book (pp. 12-14), we learn of bias as a human defense mechanism against information overload. The human brain is remarkable; it can store several terabytes of information, according to Robert Birge of Syracuse University, yet this is only one-millionth of the information produced in the world each day, as estimated by IBM. So, we have to be extremely selective about the information we choose to remember. In his 1970 book, Future Shock, Alvin Tofler hypothesized that one way of dealing with information overload is to simplify the world in ways that confirm our biases, shedding nuances and key details in the process. As a result, rather than serving to bring us together, more information tends to push us into the familiar confines of our biases.
Also relevant to the notions above is a view of judgment as lazy thinking. When you see something new, your brain goes into overdrive until you identify it and assign a noun to it ("Oh, that's a fork"); you then relax and stop thinking. The same is true with regard to people ("Oh, that's a Latino/feminist/Republican"). Stoppage of thinking at this point makes you miss all the nuances.
This lust for detecting patterns according to our biases is also what makes us bad at predictions. Yet, predictions are also essential to our decision-making and achieving favorable outcomes for ourselves and those we love. It turns out that the more extreme our beliefs, the less accurate our predictions. Carrying an extreme position makes us less likely to use all the information that is available to us and more likely to make our predictions emotionally, rather than logically.
It's scary to think that we can never make objective predictions, as they will always be tainted by our subjective beliefs. However, just being aware of the problem and believing in the pursuit of objective truth (regardless of our ability to find it) go a long way toward making better predictions.
The noise of the title refers to all the inessential or irrelevant information that prevents us from focusing on what is important. We read on pp. 60-65, for example, that "Political news, and especially the important news that really affects the campaign, proceeds at an irregular pace. But news coverage is produced every day. Most of it is filler, packaged in the form of stories that are designed to obscure [their] unimportance." "Rooting for the story," that is, hoping for a more dramatic turn, is the classic form of media bias. "Candidates, strategists, and television commentators—who have some vested interest in making the race seem closer than it really is—might focus on outlier polls."
The book has a two-part structure: The first 7 chapters, 231 pp., deal with diagnosing the prediction problem (prediction pitfalls, ch. 1-3; dynamic systems such as weather, ch. 4-7) and the last 6 chapters deal with applying the Bayes' fix (Bayes theorem to the rescue, ch. 8-10; examples, ch. 11-13). A concluding section (9 pp.), acknowledgments (3 pp.), notes (56 pp.), and index (20 pp.) end the book. Here are the chapter titles:
Chapter 1: "A Catastrophic Failure of Prediction" (the 2008 financial crisis)
Chapter 2: "Are You Smarter than a Television Pundit?"
Chapter 3: "All I Care About Is W's and L's" (success of predictions in baseball)
Chapter 4: "For Years You Have Been Telling Us that Rain is Green"
Chapter 5: "Desparately Seeking Signal"
Chapter 6: "How to Drawn in Three Feet of Water"
Chapter 7: "Role Models"
Chapter 8: "Less and Less and Less Wrong"
Chapter 9: "Rage Against the Machines"
Chapter 10: "The Poker Bubble"
Chapter 11: "If You Can't Beat'em" (global warming)
Chapter 12: "A Climate of Healthy Skepticism" (terrorism)
Chapter 13: "What You Don't Know Can Hurt You" (market bubbles)
Every chapter is jam-packed with interesting observations, often accompanied by mind-opening visuals (graphics). In the rest of this review, I will cite just a few examples, in the interest of keeping my review shorter than the book itself!
Figure 10-9 (p. 321) is a scatter-plot of batting averages for a number of baseball players during the months of April and May, 2011. The two variables show almost no correlation, highlighting the role of chance in batting success. A similar lack of correlation is seen in Figure 11-3 (p. 340) for stock-market fund performance from year to year. Figure 11-4 (p. 341) stresses the point that market index trends are almost indistinguishable from random walks!
Silver repeatedly stresses the well-known distinction between mere correlation and causation, something that can baffle even experts. Here is one of the most bizarre examples. For three decades, between Super Bowls I and XXXI, stock market rise and fall in the US showed near-perfect correlation with whether the Super Bowl winner was from the National League or the American League (p. 185).
The importance of communicating uncertainties is another key point. For example, there may be a prediction that the water level in a river with 51'-high levees will rise to 49' (p. 178). With these numbers, area residents may feel relieved and safe. However, the prediction may have an uncertainty of plus-or-minus 9'. Knowing this uncertaintly makes a big difference in how people prepare for the upcoming storm.
Another cautionary tale pertains to the dangers of overfitting. Fitting a curve through the data showing frequencies of earthquakes of various magnitudes in Japan (Figure 5-7C, p. 170) might lead to the conclusion that a magnitude-9.5 quake is nearly impossible and that magnitude-9.0 quakes occur once every 10,000 years. A more reasonable extrapolation (Fig. 5-7B, p. 169) puts the frequency of magnitude-9.5 quakes at once every 1000 years. There is a very big difference between these two forecasts! In fact, we have never observed a magnitude-10.0 quake and don't know whether it is even possible.
Predicting rare events is one of the major challenges of forecasting. In predicting quakes, we have gotten pretty good at forecasting long-term trends (Tehran, the capital of Iran, will have one major quake every 300 years) and, more recently, very-short-term trends (a quake will be coming to Los Angeles within minutes). Filling the gap between these two extreme time frames isn't easy! Predicting terrorism is quite similar to earthquakes. Is the one-off event of September 11, 2001, really the worst that can happen (p. 432) or do still more calamitous terror attacks await us?
Complexity does not necessarily make the models better. If you performed linear regression on global temperature records and the levels of CO2, you would get a near-precise prediction (within microseconds, on a laptop) of the trend of 1.5 degrees Celcius warming per century since 1990 (p. 401), even though your model ignored sunspots, the level of sulfur, el-nino effect, and a host of other parameters (whose inclusion would have required hours to run the model on a supercomputer).
Mistaking short-term variations for long-term trends is another pitfall. Global temperatures since 1900 (Figure 12-11, p. 405) show an unmistakable rising trend, but within that trend, there are multiple flatlines (e.g., during the 2000s) and even downshifts (e.g., 1930s-1940s). Some people have a hard time wrapping their head around the notion that such a long-term problem might need immediate (short-term) action, even if the rising trend eases for a decade or two!
Let me end my review with a final example which many of us experienced first-hand. The economic crash of 2008 resulting from a housing bubble was said to have taken analysts by surprise. However, the crash came as a "surprise" because many of them had closed their eyes to warning signs (p. 22). Quite a few people saw the said signs, but their opinions were dismissed, a classic case of skirting inconvenient truths! Similarly, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was a "surprise" because people missed or dismissed a large number of warning signs (p. 413).

2019/07/11 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. Poster for Santa Barbara Fiesta (Old Spanish Days)
The Mississippi is already at dangerously high levels, with another 20 inches of rain expected from Hurricane Barry Iran's culture of hand-kissing: A culture built on servitude and idol worship will never achieve greatness (1) Images of the day: [Left] Looking forward to Santa Barbara Fiesta (Old Spanish Days), July 31 to August 4. [Center] Katrina II? The Mississippi is already at dangerously high levels, with another 20" of rain expected from Hurricane Barry. [Right] A culture built on servitude and idol worship will never achieve greatness.
(2) Let's not sugar-coat the allegations against Jeffrey Epstein: A 14-year-old girl isn't an "underage woman" or "woman on the younger side." She is a child. You can't have sex with a child. The proper expression is "raping a child." [Composite from various Internet sources]
(3) Quote of the day: "It makes perfect sense that Trump kicked off his re-election campaign in Orlando, home of Disney World, because his ideas are Goofy and his base is Snow White." ~ Comedian Stephen Colbert
(4) The top-10 things executives should know about software: From an article by Thomas A. Limoncelli in the July 2019 issue of Communications of the ACM (Vol. 62, No. 7, pp. 34-40). "DevOps" means removing the wall between developers and operation (IT). 1. Software is not magic; 2. Software is never "done"; 3. Software is a team effort—nobody can do it all; 4. Design isn't how something looks—it is how it works; 5. Security is everyone's responsibility; 6. Feature size does not predict developer time; 7. Greatness comes from thousands of small improvements; 8. Technical debt is bad but unavoidable; 9. Software doesn't run itself; 10. Complex systems need DevOps to run well.
(5) Persistent memory: Many new non-volatile memory technologies have emerged over the past few years. Using such technologies effectively requires that we develop suitable abstractions across memory hardware and file systems, according to Yan Solihin (U. Central Florida), writing in IEEE Micro magazine, issue of January/February 2019 (Vol. 39, No. 1, pp. 65-66).

2019/07/10 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Astronaut Harrison Schmitt near Tracy's Rock, 3 km from the Moon landing site of Apollo 17 mission (1) Moon landing is back in fashion: NASA's plans for a 2024 Moon landing has led to renewed interest in past landings and future activities there. This photo shows astronaut Harrison Schmitt near Tracy's Rock, 3 km from the Moon landing site of Apollo 17 mission in December 1972.
(2) More power to this wonderful woman: Investigative journalist Julie K. Brown of Miami Herald got victims of a cold case involving sexual abuse and human trafficking to speak up, thus bringing down Jeffrey Epstein, a most powerful sexual predator, who may have had support from other powerful men in escaping just punishment via a sweetheart plea deal in 2008.
(3) Iran's war on women: Nasim Basiri's insightful article, in Persian, about how Iran's mullahs try to realize their misogynistic goals by smear campaigns against prominent women, both activists living in Iran and, through their paid agents and apologists, those living in exile.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump has the best medical knowledge, not just among all US presidents, but in the entire universe. [Tweet]
- Borowitz Report (humor): UK unable to find replacement ambassador who does not think Trump is an idiot.
- Travel destination within Iran for experiencing winter (including a snow tunnel) in the middle of summer.
- Iranian regional music and dance from the Caspian province of Guilan. [2-minute video]
- Impressive medical complex opens in Isfahan, Iran, to serve the region and to promote health tourism.
(5) Confusing political activism with treason: See the entire Fox News team freak out over the political activism of the US women's national soccer team! They equate criticism of Trump with being unpatriotic.
(6) Santa Barbara's "Concerts in the Park" program is back for 2019 (Thursdays, 6:00 PM, Chase Palm Park).
7/11, Area 51 (dance band); 7/18, Pop Gun Rerun (80s music); 7/25, Captain Cardiac and the Coronaries (50s/60s rock n' roll); 8/01, no concert (Fiesta); 8/08, Lightnin' Willie and the Poorboys (blues); 8/15, The Blue Breeze Band (Motown/R&B)
(7) The edge of computational photography: This is the title of an interesting article by Keith Kirkpartick in the July 2019 issue of Communications of the ACM (Vol. 62, No. 7, pp. 14-16). Modern digital cameras use hardware to capture image data and software to adjust image parameters to yield a final image. Even though the best computational techniques still fall short of professional photographers with pro-grade equipment, there is no reason to believe that they won't catch up soon, in a manner similar to chess-playing programs.

2019/07/09 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
E&T magazine's June 2019 cover image: Celebrating Leonardo da Vinci's contributions 500 years after his death Among eight other all-round geniuses listed in the June 2019 issue of E&T magazine, commemorating Leonardo, is the Iranian scholar, poet, and polymath, Omar Khayyam Skyrmions have been in the limelight over the past decade as candidates for building atomic-scale magnetic memory devices and processing logic in combination, as parts of neuromorphic computing structures (1) Images of the day: [Left] E&T magazine's June 2019 cover feature celebrates Leonardo da Vinci's broad contributions to multiple engineering disciplines, in addition to arts and architecture, 500 years after his death. [Center] Among eight other all-round geniuses listed in the June 2019 issue of E&T magazine, commemorating Leonardo, is the Iranian scholar, poet, and polymath, Omar Khayyam. [Right] Skyrmions, discovered in the 1960s by theoretical physicist Tony Skyrme, have been in the limelight over the past decade as candidates for building atomic-scale magnetic memory devices and processing logic in combination, as parts of neuromorphic computing structures (image credit: E&T magazine, issue of June 2019).
(2) The courts are baffled by emojis: "Can a knife emoji double as a threat to kill someone? Does a heart emoji from a manager constitute sexual harassment?"
(3) Ivanka Trump wants to be the first female US president: Having grown up with privilege, she probably thinks that her dad can appoint her US president or buy the presidency for her!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- H. Ross Perot, entrepreneur and former presidential contender who ran on a populist platform, dead at 89.
- Trump's tax reform has reduced charitable donations by $54 billion, doubly hurting the poor.
- Trump once praised Jeffery Epstein, accused child molester, for liking women "on the younger side."
- Trump claims credit for cleaner air and water by citing improvements made over the last 49 years!
- Trump retweets a false quote about himself, attributed to Ronald Reagan, originating from a fake account!
- Leaks expose widespread corruption and sex scandals in Iran's judiciary and Revolutionary Guards.
- Wonderful street art being created. [1-minute video]
- USA Today reports that Melania Trump was an undocumented working model in 1996.
(5) Iran's Islamic regime spends a lot of money on attacking its critics, but it only loses legitimacy by focusing on women's head coverings instead of rampant corruption and sex scandals among its own officials.
(6) World's most-dangerous travel destinations for 2019: Pakistan, Afghanistan, Central African Republic, and Iraq top the list (at positions 1-4), with Norway, Luxembourg, and Switzerland at the bottom (184-182).

2019/07/07 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Family cruise: Departing Long Beach, California, USA Family cruise: My mom at her 90th birthday celebration Family cruise: In Ensenada, Mexico, in front of a huge Mexican flag (1) Today, I returned from a family-reunion cruise to Ensenada, Mexico, during which we had a belated celebration of my mother's 90th birthday.
- Long Beach departure photos, including glimpses of the Queen Mary luxury liner, now a museum/hotel.
- Some photos of activities taken aboard the Carnival Imagination cruise ship during our July 4-7 trip.
- Family group photos on board the Carnival Imagination cruise ship.
- Photos taken during the cruise ship's stop and our walking tour in Ensenada, Mexico.
- Independence Day celebrations aboard the cruise ship: Video 1, Video 2
- Mary performed solo guitar songs at the cruise ship's atrium lounge: Video 1, Video 2
- Latin music performances aboard the cruise ship: Video 1, Video 2
- The piano-bar's piano man accepted song requests and led the audience in sing-alongs: Video 1, Video 2
(2) Today's soccer news: The US women's national team claimed its fourth World Cup trophy, after beating Netherlands 2-0, on second-half scores by Megan Rapinoe (PK) and Rose Lavelle (a solo-effort goal). The US men's national team, on the other hand, was dealt a 0-1 loss by its arch-rival Mexico in the championship match of CANCACAF Gold Cup.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Amazon asks for FCC's permission to lauch 3236 communications satellites for consumer broadband.
- Saudi Arabia funneled $650 million to US universities to gain benefits from America's top brain trusts. [NYT]
- Fund manager Jeffrey Epstein is charged with human trafficking and sexually abusing dozens of young girls.
- US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman helped Trump ditch 70 years of US diplomacy.
- What appeared to be an exotic bird was actually a seagull who had somehow doused himself in curry!
- Persian Music: Homayoun Khorram's legacy in creating memorable songs for generations of Iranians.
- Musician/lyricist Homayoun Khorram in his last concert, playing "Saagharam Shekast Ey Saaghi."
(4) The US supposedly has a zero-tolerance policy against terrorism: Yet we are negotiating with the Taliban, who have just blown up 17 people and wounded around 200 in central Afghanistan via a suicide car-bombing.
(5) Unbelievably high temperatures in Iran's Khuzestan Province: ~50 C = 122 F. Some reports put the temperature at 65 C = 149 F, but these reports may have rehashed stories from the heat wave of August 2015.

2019/07/05 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Enemies of the People calling their critics 'Enemies of the People'! Meme: You'll never have enough resources if you don't learn to use them properly Cover image of Ron Stallworth's 'Black Klansman' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Cartoon of the day: Enemies of the People calling their critics "Enemies of the People"! [Center] Meme of the day: You'll never have enough resources if you don't learn to use them properly. [Right] See the review of Ron Stallworth's Black Klansman under the last item below.
(2) Ronald Reagan's final thought in his last speech as President: "If we ever closed our door to new Americans, our leadership in the world would soon be lost."
(3) Nasim Basiri's article (in Persian) about the misogynistic work environment of Iran's women lawyers: Head of Iran's Supreme Court warns judges to not fall for coquettish female defense attorneys!
(4) After he "fell in love" with Kim Jong Un and his spectacular military parades, Trump changes his relationship status on Facebook!
(5) Book review: Stallworth, Ron, Black Klansman: Race, Hate, and the Undercover Investigation of a Lifetime, unabridged audiobook on 5 CDs, read by the author, Macmillan Audio, 2018.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The first black detective in Colorado Springs thinks of infilterating the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) in order to understand its methods and to prevent crimes, if possible. Obviously, conventional infiltration is impossible, given the detective's skin color. So, he teams up with a white detective, of similar build and features, who would do the face-to-face meetings when needed.
As daring and unusual as the plan was, the book does not deliver the typical action and intrigue associated with undercover detective work. Instead, it is a methodical, and somewhat dry, account of the project and its challenges. In the course of his investigation, Stallworth carried out regular phone conversations with the KKK Grand Wizard David Duke, and, ironically, he was assigned as a bodyguard to Duke, during his visit to Colorado Springs.
Stallworth had orders to destroy all records of the undercover investigation, but he kept many of the documents, including his KKK membership card. Hence, he was able to reconstruct much of the operation's details in writing the book.
Director Spike Lee turned Stallworth's 2014 memoir into the critically-acclaimed 2018 movie "BlacKkKlansman," which was nominated for six Academy Awards and won in the "Best Adapted Screenplay" category.

2019/07/04 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) Happy Independence Day: On this day, we Americans celebrate the freedoms that our forefathers fought hard to secure and other generations since then sacrificed to maintain. We do not celebrate our flag, but the ideals that are behind it. We do not celebrate our military might, but how it is used to safeguard our freedoms and help others protect theirs. There is a reason that Lady Liberty is holding a torch and not a gun!
(2) A widespread problem with social media, affecting Facebook and WhatsApp: Images and videos were not displayed or clickable yesterday. As usual, users were kept in the dark, rather than being provided with a clear explanation of the troubles.
(3) University of Florida PhD student commits suicide: There are suspicions that academic bullying (pressure to publish in a highly selective computer architecture conference) may have played a role. University authorities, as well as ACM's and IEEE's Computer Architecture Technical Groups, are looking into the matter.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- One of these people isn't like all the others; one of these people doesn't belong. Actually, make that two!
- Draft-Dodger-in-Chief wants his toys on July 4th, the toys he wouldn't look at during the Vietnam War!
- Part of ESPN Magazine's feature on Megan Rapinoe and her basketball-star girlfriend Sue Bird. [Photo]
- Mouth-watering fruits and vegetables, presented with beautiful guitar music (3-minute video).
(5) Use of lotus rhizomes in Asia: They are fried or cooked (mostly in soups), soaked in syrup, or pickled in vinegar. I learned about this interesting (both in looks and taste) vegetable during my Taiwan trip and dug up information about it with help from my host/guide.
(6) US national soccer teams will compete on Sunday: The US women will play in the final match of the World Cup on Sunday 7/07 (8:00 AM PDT, Fox). Their opponent is Netherlands, 1-0 victors in overtime against Sweden on 7/03. The US men will play against Mexico (which edged past a surprisingly tough Haiti 1-0) in the CONCACAF Gold Cup championship game, Sunday 7/07 (6:00 PM PDT, FS1) having prevailed yesterday 3-1 against Jamaica (the team that eliminated them from competing in World Cup 2018).

2019/07/02 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The five Democratic women who are running for US presidency Ivanka Trump with Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin Ivanka Trump with Jack and Rose, as The Titanic sinks (1) Images of the day: [Left] Women rule in 2020: Lost in the shuffle of two-dozen Democrats running for US presidency is the fact that there are five highly qualified women contenders. Our civil rights in general, and women's rights in particular, are being threatened by a Grabber-in-Chief, who keeps setting new records in ignorance and dishonesty. Let's give these women serious consideration! [Center & Right] The Internet is having fun with inserting Ivanka Trump in historic settings where she does not belong!
(2) Women's Soccer World Cup: USA squeaked by England 2-1 to advance to the finals against the winner of the Sweden-Netherlands match, to be played tomorrow. The US goalie saved what appeared to be a sure goal late in the first half and a poorly-taken PK in the second half to cement the win. [7-minute highlights]
(3) ARM processors find their way into supercomputers: NVIDIA is promoting ARM CPUs, alongside its own GPUs, for building compact, energy-efficient supercomputers with open-architecture designs. ARM is known for control-oriented embedded applications, not for raw processing power, so the move comes as a surprise.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Jimmy Carter does not mince his words in calling Trump an illegitimate president.
- Borowitz Report (humor): Trump praises Kim on Immigrtation. "No one is trying to get into your country."
- Underwater dance: I have no idea how this is feasible, but it's graceful and mesmerizing. [7-minute video]
- Quote of the day: "The love that you withhold is the pain that you carry." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
(5) UCSB Arts & Lectures "Cinema Under the Stars" program of free movies at the Courthouse Sunken Garden focuses on "Those Fabulous Fifties" in its summer-2019 incarnation (Fridays, 8:30 PM).
7/05 "Roman Holiday"; 7/12 "North by Northwest"; 7/19 "Rebel Without a Cause"; 7/26 "Some Like It Hot"; 8/02 No movie (Fiesta SB); 8/09 "On the Waterfront"; 8/16 "High Noon"; 8/23 "Sunset Boulevard"
(6) When is a soccer score an own goal? If the shot isn't on frame but is deflected into the net, it's an own goal, otherwise (when it is on target but deflected), it is a regular goal credited to the player taking the shot.
(7) Be safe tomorrow: "A statistician made a few calculations and discovered that since the birth of our nation, more lives had been lost in celebrating independence than in winning it." ~ Curtis Billings

2019/07/01 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Flag of Canada A fake 'Best Teacher' magazine cover that would make Trump proud! Cartoon of the day: USS Bone Spurs avoiding rough waters! (1) Images of the day: [Left] Happy Canada Day: Honoring a country that has just added White-Supremacist and Neo-Nazi groups to its list of terror organizations. [Center] A fake Best Teacher magazine cover that would make Trump proud! [Right] Cartoon of the day: USS Bone Spurs avoiding rough waters!
(2) Trump brings his daughter to work: Handbag designer, with absolutely no qualifications to be a "senior" presidential adviser, finds herself conversing with world leaders at the G20 Summit! Try to imagine all the other world leaders also bringing their kids along to the Summit: What an embarrassment!
(3) Hypocrisy to the extreme: Fox News bashed candidate Obama for his willingness to meet with heads of "terrorist nations" like Iran and North Korea. Now that Trump has met one of those leaders multiple times and has offered to meet the other (it hasn't happened only because the other side has declined his offer), "the world is a safer place" and he deserves a Nobel Peace Prize!
(4) CONCACAF Gold Cup: Analysts were concerned that the US men's national soccer team might succumb to over-confidence in its match against the tiny nation of Curacao (population 160,000). The exact opposite, under-confidence, happened! In a barely-good-enough performance the US team edged past Curacao with a score of 1-0 to advance to a semifinals match against Jamaica, to be played on Wednesday 7/03.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Birtherism 2.0, targeting Senator Kamala Harris, spread by the son of the perpetrator of Birtherism 1.0!
- Financial Times editorial title ("No, Mr. Putin, ...") and op-ed page cartoon. [Images]
- AMA sets aside its neutrality stance on abortion rights and begins suing states over their new restrictions.
- Computer Engineering at UCSB: An updated Web site is up and running. Here is its research section.
- Viral video: Young man saves a child's life by catching her, as she falls from a building in Istanbul, Turkey.
- "Happiness does not depend on what you have or who you are. It solely relies on what you think." ~ Buddha
(6) Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweet: On the irony of people coming to America as immigrants, facing hardships and discrimination, and perhaps going as far as changing their names for protection against bigots, now acting as staunch anti-immigrants.
(7) Oppressing the Baha'is: Iranian authorities tried to shutter an assisted-living facility for the Baha'i community, but were forced to retreat when some residents refused to follow orders to leave.
(8) Persian cuisine and music: This 9-minute video shows the environment and live-music performance at Sara-ye Aryaee, a restaurant established by the son of a college classmate of mine in Tehran.

2019/06/30 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) Women's Soccer World Cup continues with excitement and controversy: USA beat Spain 2-1 on two PKs, the award of the second of which seemed rather sketchy. USA then faced the host team France, which labored to beat Brazil in extra time. It is heartbreaking that the tournament's top two teams met in the quarterfinals (round of 8 teams), which also included England, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Netherlands, and Italy. France dominated in terms of possession (60%) and had more scoring chances, but co-captain Megan Rapinoe scored a goal in each half to give the US team a 2-1 victory and a chance to play England in the semifinals round on Tuesday 7/02. Sweden and Netherlands will play the other semifinals match. The top 3 teams in this tournament will get automatic bids to the Olympics.
(2) Leader of the MAGA movement: Putin says that liberalism is obsolete. If you agree with him, remember that you'll be judged by the company you keep.
(3) Day 6 of my visit to Taiwan (June 29): We headed back from Hualien to Kaohsiung via the same route. So, there isn't much to report. A space-suit-like cat backpack, seen in an elevator at Hualien's Zhixue Train Station, was the only interesting/new sight! I shot this video from the side window of the train, in a region that features agriculture and light industry, en route from Hualien to Kaohsiung, along Taiwan's east coast.
(4) Returning home: After landing at Hong Kong Airport, I was amused by the prospects of time travel en route to Los Angeles: HKG departure 12:55 PM; LAX arrival 11:35 AM; Gaining 80 minutes! After a grueling 26-hour day that began at 5:30 AM in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, I arrived in Santa Barbara. My body's time was 7:30 AM, Monday 7/01, whereas the local time was 4:30 PM Sunday 6/30. I managed to hang on and not sleep until midnight, in order to put myself back on the normal schedule, and it worked like a charm!

2019/06/28 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
I was surprised about the extent to which women are objectified in Taiwanese ad campaigns Happy Tau Day! Megan Rapinoe, co-captain of the US women national soccer team (1) Images of the day: [Left] A surprise during my Taiwan trip: The extent to which women are objectified in ad campaigns. I took this photo on a Kaohsiung metro ride. [Center] Happy tau day (6/28): Most people know about Pi Day, celebrated on 3/14. However, 2 x pi, or tau, is a more fundamental scientific constant, because it represents the ratio of a circle's circumference to its radius (The Tau Manifesto). [Right] Megan Rapinoe, co-captain of the US women national soccer team: New target of attack by Trump for saying she would not go to the White House if her team wins the World Cup.
(2) Day 5 of my visit to Taiwan (June 28): Today was devoted to a day-trip from Hualien to Taroko National Park and the amazing Taroko Gorge within it (think Grand Canyon, but only 20-100 meters, or 60-300 feet, wide). I will get to details of our trip soon, but first a few mind-boggling facts about Taiwan (formerly Formosa).
The island of Taiwan is only 5 million years old whereas the Earth as a whole is about 1000 times older. Collision of the Pacific Plate and the Eurasia Plate created the island and pushed the Eurasia Plate up, shaping the formidable mountain range that splits the island down the middle, from its northern tip to its southern tip. The range has an average height of 2000 meters, with scores of peaks that are 3000+ meters high. There are thus only a couple of roads connecting the island's west and east coasts. One of these roads goes through Taroko Gorge and reaches an elevation of about 3200 meters along the way.
Even more amazing is the fact that Taiwan has been inhabited for only about 600 years. The first aborigines arrived here from the Philippines and certain Pacific Islands, likely because ocean currents carried them off their daily fishing routes. Taroko National Park used to be inhabited by a tribe of aborigines, whose members were offered generous benefits to resettle elsewhere, so as to allow the National Park's establishment. Today, there are some 0.5 million aborigines in Taiwan, who belong to many different tribes (maps).
Driving up the east coast of Taiwan, one is impressed by the very high mountains nearby, extending all the way to the coast in places. When this happens, as seen in some of these photos, building roads becomes very challenging. The Japanese built the first road in the area, cutting extremely hard, steep rocks in the process. The current modern north-south highway and the train track make it through the area via long tunnels and impressive bridges.
The Taroko National Park's Visitors Center provided maps and also housed exhibits on the region's plants and animals. Scale models of houses and lifestyles of Taroko aborigines and a 3D model of parts of the enormous park were also on display. [Photo]
Lunch at one of the Park's hotels, that features an adjacent musesum, included beef steak, rice cooked within a bamboo shoot, several side items, and a special wine that one would drink by kissing the pig that contained it. The museum exhibited statues and sample living quarters of the area's aborigines. Because these tribes collected heads as trophies, they used facial tattoos to identify themselves to fellow tribesmen. Men also would get a special tattoo as a sign of maturity and heroism upon acquiring the first head. Women's facial tattoos indicated possession of desirable domestic skills. These facial tattoos created a class system in which men with no bravery tattoos were barred from marrying "desirable" women. Given a lack of proper hygiene in those days, imprinting tattoos sometimes led to infections and permanent facial disfigurement.
One of my photos shows the elderly man, perhaps retired, who served as our driver/guide, dropping us off at various points of interest and picking us up at the same location or at the other end of a trail. He provided much of the historical narrative that appears in this and other posts of mine.
A good part of our day was spent walking along scenic trails (~1 km each) to take in the impressive beauty of the gorge. The grayish water flowing at the bottom likely takes its color from minerals in the rocks. Wearing hard hats, provided to visitors free of charge, is strongly recommended in some areas. Of course, the car-size and, occasionally, house-size boulders strewn all around left little confidence that the hard hats would protect us from falling rocks!
The system of tunnels constructed in the area for both roadways and trails is a sight to behold. Building the Park's roadway system began decades ago by army veterans, using only very primitive tools (no heavy equipment and no machinery). Some of the original roadways and tunnels are still in use, but most of them have been widened or replaced. The Eternal Spring Shrine (closed to visitors today due to a heightened danger of rock slides from recent rains) commemorates dozens of workers who perished during the project. [Photos]
A small section of one of the scenic trails along Taroko Gorge, including its elaborate tunnels and concrete covers that protect visitors from falling rocks, is shown in this video. Toroko National Park is a hikers' paradise, with trailheads at virtually every turn. The scenic trails featured in my posts are easy hikes, thanks, in part, to their paved paths and tunnel/bridge shortcuts, but there are quite a few challenging trails for the serious hiker.
On the way back from our day-trip, we stopped at the historic arch-gate marking the east entrance to Taroko National Park, now spanning only part of the much-widened roadway. The Chinese writings on the nearby marker rock identifies the entrance and also states that it is the beginning of an east-west highway to Taiwan's west coast. At a prior stop, I photographed one of the monkeys moving freely on the trees, seemingly unafraid of the visitors walking by. I also photographed one of the local buses, which along with a large number of tour buses, constitute much of the area's traffic. [Photos]
Given how tired we were, we bought some food (dumplings, steamed in stacked bamboo containers) from a road-side joint and drinks from a 7-Eleven store, to take back to our hotel in lieu of going out to dinner. Apparently, 7-Eleven stores are quite prominent in Taiwan, forming important hubs of activities, such as paying bills, transferring money, mailing letters, and, of course, buying food, snacks, and drinks.

2019/06/27 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Father and daughter drown, as they try to cross the Rio Grande in desperation (1) Two examples of rapists and drug dealers crossing our southern border: Father and daughter drown, as they try to cross the Rio Grande in desperation. Shame on us!
(2) After hiding for 2.5 years behind White House fences, we learn that Jared Kushner can actually talk, and he speaks the same language of deception and deflection as his father-in-law, but with better vocabulary and grammar!
(3) One-liners: News headlines, happenings, memes, and other interesting items.
- Dotard May meet Little Rocket Man at the DMZ between the Koreas.
- Saturn's moon Titan is reportedly NASA's next destination.
- Google maps leads dozens of drivers using GPS navigation into a mud pit, where they get stuck!
- Dutch Rail has agreed to pay 50 million euros to the families of Jews transported to concentration camps.
- Humor for today: The problem with small change! [1-minute video]
- Very touching sign-language performance of a father at his daughter's wedding!
(4) Day 4 of my visit to Taiwan (June 27): I had another wonderful breakfast (my last in Tainan's Zenda Suites), before heading, via a 5-hour train ride between Kaohsiung City and Hualien, to Taiwan's east coast, where a tour of Taroko Gorge is part of my schedule. This morning's Taipei Times features two big stories: A Women's World Cup quarterfinals dominated by Europeans (plus USA, no Asian team) and the years-long state-sponsored hacking of telecom and other tech companies for gaining access to their customers' data and trade secrets, with the said customers having no inkling about the thefts.
After a 25-minute train ride from Tainan to Kaohsiung, I and my graduate-student host/guide boarded a long-distance train to Hualien. The beautiful route of 5+ hours along Taiwan's east coast has high mountains on the left and ocean on the right. We passed through dozens of tunnels of various lengths, including several multi-kilometer ones. [Photos]
Riding the train up the east coast of the island reminded me of driving along Iran's Caspian coast: Greenery as far as the eyes can see, rice paddies and other crop fields stretching all the way to the mountains, and a continuous gentle rain or mist. [Photos] My host and I walked around the enormous and stunning campus of Hualien's National Dong Hwa University, in the vicinity of University Guest House (where we are staying), before going out to dinner in downtown Hualien. [Photos] [Video of super-loud cicada insects on the campus of National Dong Hwa University]
My host's dining choice for tonight was a restaurant in downtown Hualien, which is known for its wonderful beef noodles dish. It also has a mini-museum on its second floor. [Photos]
After dinner, my host and I strolled in downtown Hualien, going into a temple, visiting a night market, and buying a boba dessert to take back to our hotel. [Photos]

2019/06/26 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) Interesting observation by Dan Rather: Several of the Democrats running for US presidency speak Spanish more fluently than Donald Trump speaks English!
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump attacks everyone and everything in phone call to Maria Bartiromo at Fox Business.
- Europe has been burning under extreme heat.
- Iranian girls attacked brutally by the police for playing with water guns in a park.
- The exquisite traditional cuisine of Isfahan, Iran. [3-minute video]
- Iranian woman walks/dances on the street without a headscarf, in defiance of the mandatory hijab law.
- Meme of the day: Don't blame a clown for acting like a clown. Ask yourself why you keep going to the circus.
(3) Day 3 of my visit to Taiwan (June 26): Having delivered both of my lectures over the past two days, today was my turn to listen to NCKU graduate students, with the aim of learning about the research programs here, providing feedback, and identifying possible collaboration themes. The morning program began with three network-related presentations.
- Dun-Wei Cheng spoke under the title "Hub Location Problem," the combinatorial problem of identifying a number of nodes in a network such that increasing their resources, such as communication or transportation speed/bandwidth, would help achieve good system performance in a cost-effective manner. [Images]
- Chih-Ten Chen spoke under the title "Construction of Independent Spanning Trees on Pancake Networks," showing that an n-pancake network embeds n – 1 edge-disjoint spanning trees, which is the maximum possible, given the node degree of n – 1.
- Chien-Fu Lin spoke under the title "Constructing Independent Spanning Trees on Transposition Networks," defined as networks with n! nodes, labeled by permutations of 123...n, such that two nodes are neighbors if the label of one can be obtained by transposing two adjacent symbols in the other node's label. The presenter showed that n different node-disjoint spanning trees can be embedded in a transposition network of order n.
After a short break, the session continued with two presentations having healthcare informatics themes.
- Hung-Yu Yan: "Prediction of Recurrence of Colorectal Cancer Patients by Clustering Algorithm."
- Tzu-Hsuan Vu: "Analyzing Protein Stability with Rosetta and 3D HP Model to Predict Pathogenic SNP."
I took this photo of part of NCKU campus from the 8th floor of the building housing Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering.
After the morning presentations, a group of NCKU graduate students and staff had took me to have lunch at a traditional Taiwanese restaurant, with too many dishes served (family style) for me to even sample all of them. The food photos show fewer than half of the items served. I asked to be excused from tonight's planned dinner outing, given how much food I have consumed over the past two days! [Photos] Behind us in a glass display case is a 100-year-old lantern.
After lunch we had a half-visit to Chimei Museum. This private museum, built by Shi Wen-long of Chi Mei Corporation, boasts impressive collections in fine arts, musical instruments, natural history & fossils, arms & armor, and antiquities & artifacts. We were supposed to have visited the museum yesterday, but last-minute schedule changes postponed the visit to today, the day the museum is closed. Instead, I and two graduate-student companions walked within the gorgeous grounds and took some interesting photos of the natural and architectural marvels therein.
Student presentations with health informatics themes continued in the late afternoon. [Photos]
- Yun Li spoke under the title "Development of Tunable Dielectrophoresis Enabled Microfluidic System Based on L-Shaped Electrodes for Size-Based Particle Sorting," a system with the goal of separating particles of various sizes on the order of a few micrometers.
- Tsorng Haw Chen: "Atrioventicular Reentrant Tachycardia Detection with Convolutional Neural Network."
After a short break, I engaged in exchange of ideas, offering some suggestions on how to advance the research on edge-disjoint spanning trees by considering implications to edge and node fault tolerance.

2019/06/25 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) Rise in the global sea levels has brought island nations to the front line of the fight against climate change: UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on the cover of Time magazine, issue of June 24, 2019.
(2) Iran's sports policies questioned: FIFA gives Iran a final ultimatum to allow women into all sports stadiums unconditionally, or face being banned from international competition. FIFA has made it clear that show admission of small numbers of women, with many restrictions, will not do.
(3) Day 2 of my visit to Taiwan (June 25): Began the day by enjoying breakfast at Zenda Suites, the hotel where I was based during my stay in Tainan. The buffet featured a large variety of items, including super-fresh fruits and vegetables. Taipei Times' top story was about Taiwan's new, highly-advanced weather satellite, to be launched later today from Florida, on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy Rocket. [Photo]
I had a couple of free hours between breakfast and my 10:30 AM technical talk, so I set out to explore parts of Tainan, the city of scooters and hybrid architecture. I had to limit the walk to much less than my normal routine, given the extreme heat and humidity. Half an hour after I ended my walk, a downpour started that lasted for a couple of hours. [Photos]
Next, I delivered my second talk entitled "Neurophysiological Discoveries of the 2014 Nobel Prize Winners in Medicine from a Computer Arithmetic Perspective" at NCKU's International Conference Room. The audience was smaller than yesterday, both due to the more specialized nature of the talk and a heavy downpour (not to mention the fact that the talk included discussion of rats at times)! [Links to slides: PPT, PDF] [Photos]
After the talk, I had lunch with a group of NCKU graduate students at a traditional Taiwanese restaurant. The delightful meal, served family-style, included many items that were new to me. And there was the ever-present fountain, which represents good luck (flow of water = flow of customers) for business owners. [Photos]
After taking a short break at the Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering, I met with Dr. Chi-Chuan Hwang, Chair Professor at Department of Engineering Science, and some members of his research team. The group has invented a new class of interconnection networks based on chordal rings and is pursuing plans to include it in the design of an actual supercomputer. After a video presentation of their work, we engaged in a discussion of various approaches to the design of interconnection networks, during which I described some of my work on periodically-regular chordal rings (IEEE Trans. Parallel and Distributed Systems, Vol. 10, No. 6, June 1999). We parted with promises of future contacts and possible collaboration. [Photos]
Later, we had dinner at a traditional Taiwanese restaurant, with my host and his adorable children, Lucy and Ray, to whom I am "Uncle Parhami." The dinner was wonderful, although most of the items (including a "dessert soup") and their ingredients had to be explained to me! [Photos] [Lucy and Ray, when I first met them three years ago and today, as fourth-graders]

2019/06/24 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The eruption of Raikoke Volcano (Kuril Islands in the northwest Pacific Ocean), as seen from the International Space Station Actress portraying the plight of an acid-attack victim This is Donald Trump's vision for a newly-great America: Migrant children in detention camps, with no soap, toothbrush, medical care, or even a place to sleep! (1) Images of the day: [Left] The eruption of Raikoke Volcano (Kuril Islands in the northwest Pacific Ocean), as seen from the International Space Station. [Center] Actress portraying the plight of an acid-attack victim (see item 2 below). [Right] This is Donald Trump's vision for a newly-great America: Migrant children in detention camps, with no soap, toothbrush, medical care, or even a place to sleep!
(2) Acid attacks and other forms of violence against women: The photo above is a dramatization, but real acid-attacks exist, are abhorrent, and should be condemned in the strongest possible terms, no matter where they occur, the perpetrators' motives, and statistical distribution of the attacks (geographically or relative to other forms of violence against women). Acid attacks, "honor" killings (which aren't honorable at all), and other forms of punishing a woman for what she does (or is suspected of having done), and sometimes for what others do, arise from the extreme patriarchal sense of ownership of women by men. It is also rooted in religious brainwashing that "sinners" should be confronted at all cost to help them avoid punishment in Hell, even if this requires killing them. In a religious fanatic's mind, killing such people is tantamount to doing them a favor. Furthermore, such punishments serve to warn others about dire consequences of "sinning." Violence against women is rampant in Islamic-majority countries (Afghanistan being perhaps the most extreme example), even though official stats may not show it due to most cases going unreported for fear of revenge or being shamed. But the problem is by no means limited to Islam. In my home region of Southern California, there are many reports of women (particularly Latinas) being beaten, shot, or killed by (ex-)husbands or (ex-)boyfriends, their "sin" being dumping a man or violating the "property rights" of the offender by carrying on a relationship with someone else. Patriarchy is at the root of these evils, and religious dogmas are enablers of patriarchy.
(3) Day 1 of my visit to Taiwan (June 24): I flew over the vast Pacific Ocean to Hong Kong and back to Kaohsiung, the international airport at the south tip of Taiwan. Which is a 1-hour drive away from Tainan City and NCKU. Ironically, my 14-hour LAX-HKG flight went right over Kaohsiung and Tainan! [Images]
In the late afternoon, I delivered my first talk entitled "Eight Key Ideas in Computer Architecture from Eight Decades of Innovation" at NCKU's International Conference Room. [Links to slides: PPT, PDF] [Photos]
After the technical talk, I was treated to a sumptuous 8-course Taiwanese dinner at Far Eastern Plaza Hotel's Shanghai Pavilion, boasting a fantastic view of the NCKU campus and Tainan City. [Photos]

2019/06/23 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The Beatles, in one of their good-natured, mischievous poses Part of a bigger poster, which suggests that reading changes one's life journey For those who continue to use logic and arguments with MAGA folk (T-shirt with insults and foul language) (1) Images of the day: [Left] The Beatles, in one of their good-natured, mischievous poses. [Center] Part of a bigger poster, which suggests that reading changes one's life journey. [Right] For those who continue to use logic and arguments with MAGA folk: This is the level of their discourse and language ability. Good luck!
(2) A most-surprising finding about honesty: Scientists drop 17,000 wallets in 40 countries around the world. Economics theories predict that a wallet with more cash is less likely to be returned to its owner. The findings, published in the journal Science, showed the exact opposite. Read on for many more interesting results.
(3) A very revealing and accusatory speech (in Persian) by the late Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani, who clarifies that the nuclear deal was sought and directly approved by the Supreme Leader, who was terrified of the possibility of an oil-for-food program similar to what the UN imposed on Iraq.
(4) Persian music: The song "Morgh-e Sahar," performed with lyrics that are taken from a different part of the same poem by Malek-ol-Shoara-ye Bahar used in the standard version. [4-minute video]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump and Iran's mullahs just need some favorable headlines that show they are winning. [Cartoon]
- What ails Iran's economic and educational systems. [7-minute video, in Persian]
- Toddlers react to experiencing rain for the first time. [1-minute video]
- Adorable baby, kissing and enjoying being kissed while asleep. [Video]
- Persian poetry: Recitation and interpretation of a poem by Mowlavi (Rumi). [4-minute video]
- Persian music: The song "Bahaar-e Delkash," with its history and various performances. [3-minute video]
- Persian Music: School children, offering their wonderful rendition of the popular oldie "Jaan-e Maryam."
(6) Day 0 of my visit to Taiwan: I boarded my flight to Hong Kong at LAX, with the final destination being Tainan, Taiwan, in the wee hours of this Sunday morning. I will be in Taiwan from Monday through Saturday, June 24-29 (Days 1-6), about which I will report in the coming days. I am traveling very light, with only a smallish checked bag and a tiny backpack; highly recommended, if feasible. [Selfies]

2019/06/22 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren on a flight to Miami Meme of the day: Wars are started by rich old men but kill poor young men New stores at Goleta's Fairview Center (1) Images of the day: [Left] Bernie Sanders (seat 15A) and Elizabeth Warren (seat 16A) flying to Miami: There were no reports of Warren kicking Sanders' seatback or otherwise disturbing him (source: Tweet by Steve Clemons). [Center] Meme of the day: Wars are started by rich old men but kill poor young men. (No need to be gender-neutral here, it has been predominantly men in both cases.) [Right] New look for a local shopping center in Goleta: When a Vons supermarket closed at Fairview Center, a Sprouts Farmers Market moved in, but the new store used only about 70% of the space. The remaining space is being renovated for a new mystery business, with no signs or other indications regarding its nature. The closed OSH store will soon be replaced by another hardware store (Miner's/Ace). The Radio Shack store, located between the Fairview Center sign and Starbucks, is now a T-Mobil store.
(2) The next IEEE Central Coast Section technical talk: Professor Dmitri Strukov (UCSB) will speak under the title "Alternative Computing with Memristors" (Goleta Valley Public Library, 500 N. Fairview Ave., Wednesday, July 17, 2019, 6:00 PM; free admission). [Flyer]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Some interesting facts about Northern Summer Solstice, which occurred at 8:54 AM (PDT) yesterday.
- One of these 12 women astronauts will go on a NASA Moon mission soon. [Photo]
- Wonders of nature, set to music. [3-minute video]
- Santa Barbara has an elaborate Summer Solstice festival, including a parade along State Street. [Poster]
(4) The atoms in our bodies come from distant stars: Neil deGrasse Tyson narrates this amazing video (bearing Persian subtitles) about how the universe is in each of us.
(5) Soccer puzzle: Teams 1-4 in a round-robin group have played two matches each. Here are the stats for the four teams, in order from 1 to 4: Wins, 2, 1, 0, 0; Draws, 0, 1, 1, 0; Losses, 0, 0, 1, 2; Goals for, 3, 2, 2, 0; Goals against, 1, 1, 3, 2. Can you determine the matches that have been played and their scores?

2019/06/20 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Logo for Top 500 Spercomputers site (1) World's most-powerful supercomputers: For the first time, every entry on the top-500 supercomputers list has a performance of at least 1 petaflops. The performance range is from 1 to ~150 petaflops. The top two machines are US-based. China has 219 computers in the top 500.
(2) IEEE Floating-Point Standard 754-2019: The new version of the standard, first issued in 1985 and last updated in 2008, is now up and running after years of discussion and more than a year in the final stages of fine-tuning and voting.
(3) Humorous Persian poetry (with some Arabic thrown in): Well, it appears that even some mullahs have turned critical of ineptitude, corruption, and despotism in Iran's government! [Video]
(4) My souvenir magnets display board: Just completed one more deferred project during the week I took off between the end of the academic year and my upcoming research trip to Taiwan, starting on Sunday 6/23.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Scores of police officers are under investigation for racist and misogynistic posts on social media.
- Women's Soccer World Cup: USA beat Sweden 2-0, scoring one goal early in each half. [Highlights]
- The US women's soccer team will face Spain on 6/24 in the round-of-16, potentially facing France after that.
- "Love takes off masks that we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within." ~ J. A. Baldwin
(6) How the Democrats and the liberal elites failed to tell the four stories on which America stands: Two stories based on hope (the triumphant individual, the benevolent community) and two based on fear (the rot at the top, the mob at the gates). Failing to use some of these real stories, they left the political scene open to fake stories which produced Trump. [16-minute commentary by Robert Reich]
(7) War is dangerously close: Trump reportedly ordered air strikes against Iranian targets but pulled back at the last minute. This may not represent a reversal but a delay, due to various conditions such as low visibility or giving time to the Saudis and other Persian Gulf countries to prepare for possible retaliatory strikes. Trump has painted himself into a corner and may not have any way out other than starting a war.
(8) Final thought for the day: Some conservatives counter every argument I make against Trump and his policies with "You say that because you're consumed by a hatred for Trump." Guilty as charged! I wear my liberalism and Trump-hatred as badges of honor.

2019/06/19 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Some of my certificates of appreciation and awards 'New Yorker' cartoon for the caption contest (1) Images of the day: [Left] Some of my certificates of appreciation and awards: These photos, taken at different times today, show the completion of another long-postponed project, thanks to the week-long break I took after the end of the academic year 2018-2019. [Center] I entered New Yorker's latest cartoon caption contest with this caption: "The good thing about a do-it-yourself maze is that we can place the cheese right at the entry." [Right] This evening's IEEE Central Coast Section technical talk (see the last item below).
(2) Beating/dragging of a woman by Iran's security forces: I don't know what this woman is accused of, but the police brutality and the nonchalant behavior of the bystanders are very troubling.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Iran-aligned Yemeni Houthi rebels strike a power station in Saudi Arabia with a cruise missile.
- Mother of a young Iranian political prisoner who was stabbed to death while in custody speaks up.
- Small colleges across the US are closing down because of lack of funding and low enrollments.
- Persian poetry: Little girl recites a Hafez poem. [1-minute video]
(4) Today's IEEE Central Coast Section technical talk: Professor B. S. Manjunth (Distinguished Professor of ECE, and Director, Center for Multimodal Big-Data Science and Healthcare, UCSB; Co-Founder and CEO, Mayachitra, Inc.) spoke under the title "Computer Vision, Deep Learning and Big Data: Opportunities and Challenges." The AI revolution, fueled by the resurgence of neural networks, has affected all areas of computing, and computer vision is no exception. The amount of visual data available is growing exponentially and the number of important applications that rely on visual data is rising correspondingly. Cameras are being put everywhere for reasons ranging from security to quality control and traffic-flow analysis, to name just a few areas. The Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) alone has some 5000 cameras. Robotics, medical imaging, and self-driving cars are but a few of the emerging applications.
Professor Manjunath gave an overview of his lab's current work on computer vision that spans a broad range of applications, from cybersecurity and media forensics to camera networks and activity recognition. The fundamental problems that cut across these applications are feature extraction and matching, and one can train neural networks to learn these effectively when large amounts of data is available. At the same time, these neural networks are quite brittle, and could be easily fooled. A well-known example is provided by strategic alteration of a small number of pixels in the image of a stop sign to cause a computer vision system to interpret it as a speed-limit sign. The presentation also included an overview of BisQue, an open-source scalable platform for scientific image analysis developed by Professor Manjunath's research team. Evolved as part of work on microscopy imaging, BisQue is now used in applications ranging from life science and medicine to marine sciences and materials science.

2019/06/18 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Old photos of my sons Humor: Being in tune with nature Old and new photos of my daughter (and some of her handicrafts) (1) Images of the day: [Left] Old photos of my sons, which I organized over the past week to display on our foyer wall. [Center] Humor: Being in tune with nature. [Right] My daughter and some of her handicrafts.
(2) Shameless hypocrisy: Mitch McConnell, tobacco industry's "special friend" who benefited from millions in campaign contributions in exchange for promoting the industry's talking points, now pretends to care about the high rate of lung cancer in Kentucky!
(3) Ratcheting up hate for 2020: "Next week ICE will begin the process of removing the millions of illegal aliens who have illicitly found their way into the United States. They will be removed as fast as they come in." ~ Donald Trump, in a tweet
(4) Behind in the polls for even his second term, Trump keeps "joking" about serving more than two terms as president. Apparently, that's the only plan he can muster to stay out of jail!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- An environmental activist becomes Slovakia's first female president.
- Writing in The Atlantic, Peter Wehner exposes Trump's sinister assault on truth.
- I didn't know about these sign-offs: Play it safe and never end a professional e-mail with Xs and Os!
- News of the weird: Missing Indonesian woman was swallowed whole by a 23-foot python. [Graphic video]
(6) A loss for right-wing conspiracy theorists: Father of a Sandy Hook Elementary School victim wins defamation lawsuit against conspiracy theorists who claimed in a book that the mass-shooting never happened. The book's publisher has apologized and indicated that it will withdraw the book.
(7) The very first national anthem of Iran: Alfred Jean Baptiste Lemaire composed this anthem, entitled "Vatanam" or "Salam-e Shah" ("My Homeland" or "The King's Salute") in 1873 on orders from Naser al-Din Shah Qajar. The music was arranged by Siavash Beizai, with lyrics attributed to Bijan Taraghi. The signer is Shaghayegh Kamali. Lately, "Ey Iran" has become Iran's de-facto national anthem, in defiance of the mullahs' regime, which prefers its own version.
(8) Tweet of the day: "Call it a concentration camp or call it something else. What's happening on our southern border is moral stain on the US. Cruelty as policy means these children are in impossible and inhumane situations, and a for profit company is making 750 bucks per day per person." ~ Brian Schatz

2019/06/17 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Satellite image of the Caspian Sea Cover image of Robert Galbraith's 'Career of Evil' Trump tweets that his contacts with foreigners, such as 'Prince of Whales' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Satellite image of the Caspian Sea (see item 2 below). [Center] Cover image of Robert Galbraith's Career of Evil, reviewed under item 5 below. [Right] Trump tweets that his contacts with foreigners, such as 'Prince of Whales,' present no problem whatsoever and, thus, need not be reported to FBI.
(2) The Caspian Sea: When seen from space, it's hard to imagine that it takes 10 hours to drive across the giant lake's south edge, from Gorgan on the right, through Sari, Amol, Chalus, Ramsar, Lahijan, and Rasht, to Bandar-Anzali, east to west, and then turning northwest to Talesh and Astara. Lately, the Caspian has been shrinking, but over the past few decades, it has gone up and down. As a closed system, the water level is a function of three factors: Percepitation (variable and unpredictable), river inflow (mostly from Volga, but also Ural and smaller rivers), and evaporation (rising, due to global warming). So far, the net effect has not been worrisome. There was an average rise of 13 cm/year in sea level from 1979 to 1995 and an average decline of about 7 cm/year from 1996 until now.
(3) My Sunday hike on More Mesa bluffs: More Mesa is a huge open-space/nature-preserve by the beach, between Goleta and Santa Barbara. The weather was ideal for hiking. [Selfie] [Panorama] [Video]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- US women's soccer team generates more revenue than men's, yet women players are paid much less.
- Hackers that shut down a Saudi oil facility in 2017 are now targeting electric utilities in the US and Asia.
- Trump discussing his favorite author and the book he is reading in this 1987 interview!
- The flying fish: Tweet, with 1-minute video recorded at Sistan Dam, Iran.
- Underwater artist: The fish that creates amazing art on the sea-floor to attract females.
(5) Book review: Galbraith, Robert (pen name for J. K. Rowling), Career of Evil, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Robert Glenister, Hachette Audio, 2015. [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
I did not realize, until I had finished the novel, that it was the work of J. K. Rowling, writing under a pseudonym about private detective Strike and his secretary/business-partner Robin Ellacott. It is the third volume in the Cormoran Strike series. Each chapter begins with a song lyrics segment from the band Blue Oyster Cult, and "Career of Evil" is the title of a song by the band.
Early in the story, Ellacott receives a package that contains a woman's severed leg. Strike, a former military policeman and an amputee, has several theories about why Ellacott was targeted to send a message to him. He thinks that one of four people from his past could be the culprit, and he and Ellacott pursue leads throughout the rest of the story, as the police also conduct their own investigation.
The writing in this crime-mystery is quite absorbing, particularly where it concerns the personal lives of the two main characters and the affection and sexual tension between them. Ellacott is about to get married, but isn't sure whether she should proceed, and Strike in involved in a half-hearted relationship, so he too is wary of letting his feelings mar the business partnership.
To add to the intrigue, Strike is impressed with Ellacott's wit and investigative abilities, but sometimes gives her a hard time, when he acts in an overly protective manner, because he doesn't want her get hurt by nefarious characters from his past.
The book, rich in detail and character development, is sure to appeal to those with more-than-minimalist taste in crime-mysteries.

2019/06/16 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Fathers' Day greeting One more year's gone by and I am relieved I didn't get a tie as Fathers' Day present. Congratulations to UCSB Gauchos, class of 2019 (1) Images of the day: [Left] Happy Fathers' Day! [Center] One more year's gone by and I am relieved I didn't get a tie as Fathers' Day present. The message and coffee-club subscription (with a bag to keep me going until the first shipment arrives) are both very thoughtful! [Right] Congratulations to UCSB Gauchos, class of 2019!
(2) At today's Fathers' Day lunch, my fortune cookie (reading "A sense of humor is one of your greatest assets") vindicated me, although the kids think it was meant as humor!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- On this Fathers' Day: Seven dads describe the onset of fatherhood.
- Trump campaign upset over leak of internal polling data to Americans (leak to Russians would be okay).
- Tens of millions of subscribers affected by massive power outage in two Latin-American countries.
- Power of civic engagement: Hong Kong's leader nixes unpopular extradition law after massive protests.
- Pandering, to the extreme: Israel unveils a new town called "Trump Heights."
- NASA news: First female astronaut to walk on the Moon by 2024.
(4) Winds of war are blowing: The chess game in the Persian-Gulf region continues to baffle ordinary observers. The US and Saudi Arabia insist that Iran is to blame for attacks on oil tankers near Strait of Hormuz. Neither country has credibility with the international community, given US's fake intelligence data that led to the Iraq war and the Saudis' less-than-subtle approach to attacking and eliminating their opponents (remember Khashoggi?). Europeans are cautioning against a rush to assigning blame. Iran, meanwhile, has accused the US of instigating the tanker attacks to create an excuse for starting a war with Iran. Again, the Islamic regime has zero credibility with much of the world. It also has ample motivations for stirring the pot, given serious economic hardships it faces as a result of sanctions and the easing of economic woes that rising oil prices would provide. The Israeli government is acting as a cheerleader for the US and the Saudis, in continuation of its long-term stance against Iran as an existential threat to Israel. [Photo]
(5) A whole lot of soccer's going on: The Under-20 men's World Cup just ended, with Ukraine claiming the championship. The Gold Cup (which includes the US men's team) is in progress, with Mexico beating Cuba 7-0 yesterday. And the US women just played their second preliminary-round match in the Women's World Cup against Chile, having beaten Thailand 13-0. After leading 3-0 at halftime, the US failed to score in the second half, thanks to world-class goalkeeping on the part of Chile, a missed PK, and a lot of help from the crossbar and goalposts. The US team now occupies the top spot in Group F, as it awaits the 6/20 match against the second-place Sweden. [10-minute highlights]

2019/06/15 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image of Mehrnoosh Mazarei's 'Madam X' (1) Book review: Mazarei, Mehrnoosh, Madam X: Collection of Stories (in Persian), Baran Press, 2008 (2nd printing, 2018).
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads] [ISBN: 978-91-85463-19-0]
Written from 2003 to 2007, this collection of short stories, whose titles and very brief descriptions are given below, does not seem to have a unifying theme. Some of the stories happen in the US, others, in Iran; some appear to be autobiographical, others, works of fiction. I liked Mazarei's English-language novel, Mina's Revolution, better. The writing isn't as good in this volume and there are quite a few typos and a glaring factual error (where, on p. 63, San Pedro in California is described as being an Atlantic port).
- "A Great Movie": Husband, the narrator, and wife have good chemistry, but can't seem to agree on the movie they've just seen.
- "The Road Behind the Orange Grove": Adventures of a woman, apparently married or otherwise attached, on a solo get-away.
- "The Day My Brother Was Born": A girl's mom gives birth to her brother, amid the traditions (and anti-Semitism) of rural Iran.
- "Can One Clean All Stains?": Story of a woman who's obsessed with removing stains from all household items and surfaces.
- "Madam X": In this farce (or is it a farce?), the female narrator decides to pre-emptively cheat on her husband, because he'll eventually cheat on her, but her inhibitions are too great to overcome.
- "Trip to the North": Family drives to a long-awaited vacation at the Caspian shores, only to experience heartbreak upon arrival.
- "Can You Imagine Nooshin at the Moment of ...": A battered women in hiding reflects on her own and her daughter's fate.
[Side note: Persian writing is from right to left and book pages also go in the opposite direction of English. So, the GoodReads entry for the book shows the image of its back cover, instead of its front cover!]
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump warns of epic stock market crash if he's not re-elected in 2020.
- Shooting inside a Costco store in Corona, Southern California, leaves 1 dead, 3 injured.
- It's alarming that the Chair of US Federal Election Commission felt compelled to issue this statement!
- The five biggest whoppers by the departing WH Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
- An inspired Ukraine came from behind to beat Korea 3-1 and win its first U-20 Soccer World championship.
- On whether it's okay to have liquids with your meal: It is, if you believe this 7-minute video.
- Vittorio Monti's "Czardas" played by a military band, featuring wonderful violin and mandolin solos.
- A group of my college friends gathered in Tehran, at a restaurant founded by the son of a classmate.
(3) On Iran's opposition groups: This article divides them into anti-sanctions/war (including reformists, religious-nationalists, secular leftists, labor groups, human-rights activists) and pro-sanctions/war (including monarchists, MEK, some ethnic groups).
(4) The authoritarian regime: Tweet about how an Islamic Republic of Iran official ended the career of Shabnam Tolouei with a confidential memo decreeing that she be banned from all artistic activities.
(5) Dining with my children on the patio of Kyle's Kitchen Restaurant: The beautiful afternoon weather and the ongoing UCSB graduation weekend are good for Santa Barbara's and Goleta's food joints, which are all jam-packed. Other than great soup and salad, we enjoyed live music by a talented duo. [Video 1] [Video 2]

2019/06/14 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Locations of the two oil tankers attacked near Strait of Hormuz (map) Photos of kids of different races hugging Persian calligraphy: A verse from Mowlavi (Rumi), rendered by unknown artist (1) Images of the day: [Left] Locations of oil tankers attacked near Strait of Hormuz: There are conflicting accounts on who did it and how. [Center] Children deem racial differences unimportant: They have to be taught by adults to hate. [Right] Persian calligraphy: A verse from Mowlavi (Rumi), rendered by an unknown artist.
(2) A humorous Persian poem about the perils of being single ("azab" in Persian): The poem is quite funny and nicely written, but I am less impressed with the setting where the poet recites his work.
(3) First NBA championship for Toronto: It was a close game, 114-110, but that's all the Toronto Raptors needed to win the NBA finals series 4-2 over the defending champs, the Golden State Warriors.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- NASA honors women computer scientists by renaming its headquarters street "Hidden Figures Way."
- Now's the time to graduate with an IT degree: Information technology unemployment rate stands at 1.3%.
- NIH Director pledges not to participate in all-male panels and urges other science leaders to do the same.
- Women's Soccer World Cup: Australia comes back from a 0-2 deficit to defeat Brazil 3-2.
- Impressive flash-mob dance in Belgium to "Do Re Mi" from "Sound of Music."
- New Yorker cartoon caption: "Says here he leaves behind a wife, two children, and 47 Tweeter followers."
(5) Persian music: A variety of genres, mostly oldies composed/written in the pre-Islamic-Revolution Iran.
- Duet performance of the old song "Shaaneh" (unknown artists and venue).
- The old song "Omid-e Jaanam," performed by Leyla Marvdashti and a band of female players.
- The old song "Bordi az Yaadam," performed by Leyla Mavdashti and her dad. [5-minute video]
- The old song "Raghs-e Guisoo" ("Dance of Locks"), made famous by Delkash.
- Tajik's performance of the very old, popular song "Rud-e Karun" ("Karun River").
- The little master-tombak-player: He really feels the instrument and the music! [1-minute video]
(6) Equal Rights Amendment (ERA): John Oliver reminds us that even though Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment to the US Constitution decades ago, we are still one state short of the 38 states required to ratify it. The 13 hold-out states that do not believe in women's equality include Arizona and Florida.
(7) An interesting article (in Persian) about the Persian script: Hamid Sahebjami, writes in Iran Namag (Vol. 3, No. 3, Fall 2018, pp. 45-61) under the title "The Persian Script and Iranian Temperament." [PDF]

2019/06/13 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Goleta Beach pier at the end of a summer day (1) Goleta Beach pier at the end of a summer day: Having completed my spring teaching, exams, and grading, I eagerly await the arrival of summer and will be transitioning into summer research mode after a brief break.
(2) George Orwell's service to humanity: Seventy years ago, he delayed crucial medical care to finish 1984, because he believed so much was at stake. Half a year later, he was dead. [Source: Time magazine]
(3) Prospects of war in the Persian Gulf: With oil tankers hit by torpedoes in the Gulf of Oman, the odds of war in the Persian Gulf region have risen. All it takes is an error or a deliberate provocation from those itching for war on either side to start armed conflict. Ironically, the two oil tankers hit had Japan-related cargo, as Japan's Prime Minister Abe is in Iran trying to ease Iran-US tensions. [WSJ report] [Japan Today report]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Cartoon of the day: "I don't know how much more of this Mexico can take." [Image]
- Three months after protesting unsafe conditions, Iranian political activist is stabbed to death in prison.
- Iranian police forces assault women peacefully gathered in front of a sports stadium.
- Artificial intelligence used to construct human faces based on their voices.
(5) Sarah Huckabee Sanders will leave the White House at the end of June, and Kellyanne Convey has been recommended for dismissal by a federal watchdog because of repeately violating the Hatch Act (meddling in elections as a federal employee).
(6) Jews of Iran's Kurdistan in Israel: In the years after the end of World War II, Iranian Jews in Kurdistan felt insecure, given the inability of the central government to quell cessation-seeking insurgents who also had anti-Semitic tendencies. As a result, many Jews were provided with assistance from the newly formed nation to emigrate to Israel. The flow of Jews from Iran to Israel has continued since then, with a second peak occurring around the time of the Islamic Revolution (both before and after). Some 200,000 Kurdish Jews from Iraq and Iran live in Israel, about half of them in Jerusalem and the rest scattered throughout the country. I learned from a cousin living in Israel that Iranian Kurdish Jews have begun an effort to document the lives of members of their community, in particular publishing their names and photos as they pass. The 8-page newsletter captured in these images is one example. I don't read Hebrew, so will ask my bilingual friends to help me with understanding the contents of this newsletter, including a more accurate transcription of names.

2019/06/12 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The number of hyphens used in a paper's title significantly affects its citation count Plant growth seems ad-hoc, but much of it can be predicted by precise mathematical models A collaborative robot system automatically treats back, neck and head pain caused by soft tissue injury (1) Today's illustrated science posts: [Left] Our scientific ranking system based on the number of citations is broken: In a bizarre new finding, researchers from Hong Kong and Australia investigated the world's two leading citation indexing systems, Scopus and Web of Science, and found that the number of hyphens used in a paper's title significantly affects its citation count, with more hyphens being detrimental to the paper's influence. [Center] Plant growth seems ad-hoc, but much of it can be predicted by precise mathematical models: The influence of the Fibonacci sequence on spiral patterns in sunflowers and pine cones is well-known. Generally speaking, leaves protect their personal space, thus preventing new leaves from growing nearby. It is now believed that movements of the growth hormone auxin and the proteins that transport it throughout a plant are responsible for such patterns. [Right] Robotic laser therapy: A collaborative robot system treats back, neck and head pain caused by soft tissue injury. Based on an analysis of the patient by a thermal camera, the system uses a collaborative robot to apply targeted laser therapy to identified pain hot-spots.
(2) A Swiss billionaire, who had formerly given $125 million to Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University, adds another $131 million to his support.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Nancy Pelosi reacts to Trump calling her a 'nasty ... horrible person': "I'm done with him!"
- Trump claims that China's $13 trillion economy has lost $15-$20 trillion in value since his election!
- The little master-painter: Unbelievable skill and talent! [4-minute video]
- Instrumental harp music: Talented harp player performs "Despacito." [3-minute video]
(4) Quote of the day: "You don't build a business telling people not to eat what they love. You build a business helping people to eat what they love, and more of it. It's about separating meat from animals. When you think of meat in terms of its components, it's five things—amino acids, lipids, trace minerals, vitamins, and water. None of that is exclusive to animals. Animals spend massive amounts of energy consuming plants to make protein. We start directly from the plant material [pea protein] and build from that." ~ Ethan Brown, founder of Beyond Meat, in Time magazine interview, issue of June 17, 2019

2019/06/11 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Area being set up near the UCSB lagoon for graduation ceremonies Meme of the day: The wall that's falling apart and must be rebuilt (separation of church and state) Senator Bernie Sanders on the cover of 'Time' magazine, issue of June 17, 2019 (1) Images of the day: [Left] End of the academic year: We are only on the second day of the finals week at UCSB, but work on setting up the seats and stage for graduation ceremonies has already begun, moving vans are seen near student residences, and graduation photo shoots are going on across the campus. [Center] Meme of the day: The wall that's falling apart and must be rebuilt. [Right] Bernie Sanders 2.0: Seeking a balance between plain Bernie, who participates in taking selfies and cracks jokes, and Senator Sanders, who recites facts and figures in support of his arguments.
(2) Hats off to Jon Stewart: Speaking on behalf of the 9/11 first-responders with serious health problems, Stewart blasts Congress for not showing up to the hearing.
(3) 'Seinfeld' fans, rejoice: Seth Meyers calls Trump 'The Kramer of International Diplomacy'! He barges into a room and says the most inappropriate thing possible!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Some Chinese exporters are dodging US tariffs with fake "Made in Vietnam" labels.
- A $120 billion aerospace/defense giant will be created by merger of United Technologies and Raytheon.
- Trump's bull-in-the-china-shop approach to foreign policy has led to closer ties between Russia and China.
- A new astronomical discovery, by the greatest president ever: The Moon is part of Mars. [Tweet]
- Musical performances from the 2019 Tony Awards ceremeony: Eight YouTube videos, all in one place.
- Duck dancing to Azeri music! [1-minute video]
- Kurdish music: Dina performs a beautiful dance tune, "Destu Desmal" (4-minute video).
(5) Zelle, the digital payment service included in banking apps, has made it easier for scammers to divert funds from personal checking and savings accounts.
(6) NBA finals: The Golden State Warriors pulled off a miraculous 106-105 come-from-behind victory over the Toronto Raptors to avoid elimination, but they lost Kevin Durant to injury and still face the nearly-impossible task of winning the two remaining games in the 2-3 series.
(7) A record-breaking performance in women's Soccer World Cup: After taking a comfortable 3-0 lead in the first half, USA demolished Thailand 13-0, with Alex Morgan scoring 5 goals. [5-minute highlights]

2019/06/09 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Religiosity seems to hamper innovation (from 'The Economist') Number of researchers per million inhabitants in different countries (from ChartsBin.com) (1) Two science/tech-related charts: [Left] Religiosity seems to hamper innovation (from The Economist). [Right] Number of researchers per million inhabitants in different countries (from ChartsBin.com).
(2) Director Abbas Kiarostami's old interview about the recently-disgraced former minister/mayor Mohammad-Ali Najafi shows that he was never the man he is made out to be.
(3) Exploration of a mountain cave in the western Iranian province of Luristan, hiding treasures from 2700 years ago. [3-minute video, narrated in Persian]
(4) Bad news and good news: An earlier story I posted told of a group of London teenagers who savagely beat up a lesbian couple, because they would not kiss for the teens' entertainment. The teenagers in this story rushed into a burning house to save a 90-year-old woman they did not know!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Despite incontrovertible evidence that the Earth is round, the Flat-Earth movement keeps growing!
- Here come the 2019 wildfires in the western United States! [ABC News report]
- Little-known facts about the great Persian poet Khayyam. [4-minute video]
- The Practicing Atheist: Hilarious sit-down comedy routine! [5-minute video]
- Put a Woman in Charge: A wonderful song, in English, with Persian subtitles. [4-minute video]
- Kurdish music: A song performed in the setting of a fabric/handicrafts shop with colorful offerings.
(6) Senator Chuck Schumer's sarcastic response to Trump's declaration of victory in the negotiations about illegal immigration with Mexico. [Tweet]
(7) Misplaced priorities: In this Persian tweet, a member of Iran's parliament from Tehran laments that people had celebrated Eid-e Fitr in the recreation area behind a dam in ways that he characterizes as norm-shattering (apparently, they engaged in swimming and dancing). I read around 100 of the comments under his post and did not see even one endorsement or positive reply. There are several comments to the effect that his very existence is norm-shattering, as are the parliament's ignoring many cases of corruption, while getting riled up about people enjoying themselves.
(8) Today's family gathering at my late-uncle Nouri's: More than a year after Nourollah Parhami's passing, my extended family got together with his family to reminisce and enjoy each other's company. A couple of verses of a longer poem I wrote for him (modified to be self-contained) appear on his gravestone. After dinner, my talented niece Mina played several pieces on the piano.

2019/06/08 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Quote of the day: US Congresswoman Mazie Hirono (D-HI) to AG William Barr Cartoon of the day: Visiting Mueller Island in some distant future Senator Chuck Schumer's sarcastic response to Trump's declaration of victory in the negotiations about illegal immigration with Mexico (1) Images of the day: [Left] Quote of the day: US Congresswoman Mazie Hirono (D-HI) to AG William Barr. [Center] Cartoon of the day: Visiting Mueller Island in some distant future. [Right] Senator Chuck Schumer's sarcastic response to Trump's declaration of victory in the negotiations about illegal immigration with Mexico.
(2) Can the Golden State Warriors, masters of come-backs, recover from a 1-3 NBA finals deficit by beating the inspired Toronto Raptors in three straight games? Historical data predicts that it's unlikely.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Ohio doctor is accused of killing 25 patients: His motive is unknown at this time.
- Faux-News masterpiece: Laura Ingraham denies what Trump told her in front of millions of witnesses!
- Gay couple beaten up on a bus after they refuse to kiss for the sake of entertaining their male assailants.
- Borowitz Report (humor): Mexico agrees to pay for Trump's psychiatric care.
- On-line archive preserves Iranian women's lives and quiet resistance in late 19th & early 20th century.
- The joy of graduation: Photo taken at Goleta's San Marcos High School. (Credit: Santa Barbara News Press)
(4) At the end of spring-quarter classes: Pretty good weather ahead, as we head into the final-exams week, followed by graduation ceremonies and Fathers' Day, before greeting summer. [10-day weather forecast]
(5) The enigma of Mohammad Nourizad (my Facebook post, with Farsi text): He is a journalist who relentlessly criticizes the Iranian regime and the mullahs leading it. In this 8-minute video (in Persian), he goes further than before and directly accuses the ayatollahs of corruption and dirty deeds for preventing the Baha'i residents of a village in Kashan from producing and selling rose-water, their primary business and source of income for decades, if not centuries, confiscating their means of production and shuttering their primitive workshops/warehouses, with no explanation or accountability. Over the years, multiple religious leaders in Iran have issued fatwas that Baha'is are filthy and thus Muslims should not consume or even touch anything that they produce. Nourizad maintains that it is the mullahs who are filthy, because they oppress Iran's poor citizens and confiscate their property, while sending billions of dollars to Palestinians and Muslims in other countries. The "enigma" in my title arises from not understanding how such harsh criticisms go unpunished by the mullahs, who are more than happy to prescribe multi-decade prison terms for attorneys, journalists, and others engaged in much milder acts of opposition or civil disobedience. Some believe that Nourizad has immunized himself by becoming notorious, so that assassinating or imprisoning him will cause more trouble than letting him vent (he has been imprisoned before, though). Others consider him a tool that serves the regime by providing a safety valve or, worse, helping identify those who favor toppling the mullahs.

2019/06/07 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The tube-shaped endangered Mexican amphibian, the axolotl, which looks like a smiling fish with four legs A city council member in Shiraz, Iran, was arrested and sentenced to one year in prison for defending two Baha'is in this tweet Tweet by Marzieh Ebrahimi about Iranian women's resistance (1) Images of the day: [Left] The ultimate self-healer: Those studying regenerative medicine are looking to a tube-shaped endangered Mexican amphibian, the axolotl, which looks like a smiling fish with four legs. It can regenerate a nearly-perfect replica of almost any body part it loses, including up to half its brain. (Source: ASEE Prism magazine, summer 2019) [Center] A city council member in Shiraz, Iran, was arrested and sentenced to one year in prison for defending two Baha'is in this tweet. [Right] Tweet by Marzieh Ebrahimi: "I still walk in this city. I still pedal in Isfahan's beautiful Chahar-Bagh Avenue. And I laugh. Women have not been, are not, and will never be erasable."
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Who's benefiting from the US-China feud over Huawei? Samsung, for one!
- A dormant Russian volcano has woken up: A massive eruption may be in the offing.
- Google's doodle honoring the first day of women's 2019 Soccer World Cup. [Image]
- Is GPS ruining our brains? This Washington Post article argues that it is.
(3) Senior project presentations at UCSB Engineering Design Expo: The all-day program began with Computer Engineering project presentations in ESB 1001, 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM. The seven projects are listed below, in order of their presentation. Drones ruled this year, accounting for 4 of the 7 projects. [Photos] [The projects]
- 9:15 AM: Hands-On Flight (Oscar Wang, Alex Berlanga, Eduardo Olmos, Juan Reyes, Miguel Berlanga) Glove used to control the flight of a drone in an intuitive manner
- 9:35 AM: IEA Linguistics (Ryan Kirkpatrick, Dali Xiao, Dang Nguyen, Min Yang) Speech recognition and natural-language processing for user interface with an IC-manufacturing system
- 10:05 AM: Cloud Control (Andrew Thompson, Anna Lee, Brent Morada, Jair Carranza, Reed Taylor) Flying a drone over a target person, such as a distressed surfer, to maintain contact until help arrives
- 10:30: Drone Scout (Austin Hwang, Anthony Chen, Maga Kim, Sung In Kim) Collecting data on drones (e.g., size and speed) within a targeted area
- 10:50 AM: BLiPS (Matt Speck, Ahmed Saied, Amber Du, Kevin La) Tracking the movements of doctors and nurses in the operating-room environment
- 11:15 AM: Watchdog (Ryan Lorica, Anzhe Ye, Jiacheng Liu, Jingzhe Chen, Liqiang Mei) Use of AI to track and guide astronauts' actions when they are too far away for Earth-based tracking and control
- 11:30 AM: Eternal Flight (Aditya Wadaskar, Kyle Douglas, Richard Boone, Sang Min Oh, Sayali Kakade) System to allow in-flight swapping of drone batteries to extend flight time for remote missions
- 1:30 PM: Poster session, held in the open space between Campbell and Cheadle Halls: As the session was winding down, a group of students arrived to protest against Northrop-Grumman, one of the project sponsors, on account of its close ties with Saudi Arabia and other human-rights abusers around the world. [Photos]
- 3:30 PM: Two of the CE projects were chosen in the morning session for top awards. "Eternal Flight" won first prize ($2000) and "Hands-on Flight" came in second ($1250). I was charged with choosing one of the remaining projects for the "Best-Poster Award." The award went to "Cloud Control." In these photos, you see the winning poster & team, yours truly, capstone project course instructor, Dr. Yogananda (Yoga) Isukapalli, and one of the two TAs, Brandon Pon. The other TA was Carrie Segal.
- 4:00 PM: Brief EDx-style project pitches, video presentations, musical interludes, and presentation of awards concluded today's senior-projects day. [Photos]
- 5:00 PM: Isla Vista Elementary School students were excited to participate in the presentation of dancing robots as the finale of today's Engineering Design Showcase. [Video]

2019/06/06 (Thursday): Book review: Beard, Mary, S.P.Q.R.: A History of Ancient Rome, unabridged audiobook, read by Phyllida Nash, Recorded Books, 2015. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image of Mary Beard's 'S.P.Q.R.: A History of Ancient Rome' I first came across the abbreviation SPQR when I was setting up my research Web page, in which the four key aspects of my research program, that is, performance, quality, reliability, and scalability, as applied to the design of computer systems, was represented by the abbreviation PQRS. Doing an image search for 'PQRS' to find something to use for illustrating my Web page, I became aware that ancient Romans used SPQR as an abbreviation for "Senatus Populusque Romanus," which means "The Senate and People of Rome." So, when I saw the title of Beard's book, I had to peruse it!
Mary Beard is a well-known scholar in the UK. She is a professor of classics at Cambridge University, author of numerous books, and a regular commentator on TV and radio programs. In this book, which is both scholarly and accessible, Beard presents a nuanced historical perspective that pays attention to issues of class and the lives of various groups of people, aspects that are missing from other accounts of Roman history.
The history of Rome, that is, how a small township grew in influence until it dominated the entire Mediterranean region and beyond, has been told many times, from different perspectives. The duration of Rome's existence isn't totally clear. Many accounts trace the history for 10-12 centuries, from around 8th-7th century BCE to 3rd-4th century CE.
Beard begins with Rome's founding myth, involving the abandoned twins Romulus and Remus being fed by a lactating wolf, and continues through 212 CE, when Emperor Caracalla declared that all free inhabitants of the empire were considered Roman citizens. Beard's account includes the 2+ centuries of Rome being ruled by kings, before transforming into a republic for about 5 centuries, and, later, becoming the Roman Empire just before the Christian era.
Throughout the three phases of its existence, Rome came close to falling several times. Beard tells us about what caused the near-collapses and how Rome recovered from them. We need more of this kind of history book that tell us not just what happened but how the events were inter-related and what consequences they carried.

2019/06/05 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A beautiful, serene, and vastly underutilized outdoor area next to UCSB's Student Resource Building Persian poetry: A couplet from Khayyam on the futility of wishing someone ill This object, recently unearthed in Iran, is believed to be part of an Egyptian king's statue (1) Images of the day: [Left] A beautiful, serene, and vastly underutilized outdoor area next to UCSB's Student Resource Building. [Center] Persian poetry: A couplet from Khayyam on the futility of wishing someone ill. [Right] This object, unearthed in southwestern Iran, is believed to be part of an Egyptian king's statue.
(2) Quote of the day: "Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it." ~ Rumi
(3) IEEE issues guidelines to its members and volunteers on dealing with the updated US Bureau of Industry and Security's expanded "Entity List," which now includes Huawei and 68 of its affiliates. [PDF document]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Leader of the world's sole superpower picked a fight with Bette Midler during a major foreign trip.
- New Yorker cartoon: "Sorry, Mr. President. I'm afraid D Day has nothing to do with your name."
- UCLA Engineering is gifted $100 million by Henry and Susan Samueli for faculty/programs expansion.
- A month after arrest of 3 Baha'is in Semnan, Iran, there's no news about their conditions or whereabouts.
- The unbearable beauty of women singing for Iran's mullahs. Ole! [Cartoon] [Credit: Iranwire.com]
- Instrumental music: A couple of popular Italian oldies played by three people on a foot-keyboard piano.
- "The higher you climb in life, the more ridiculous your hats will become." ~ Charlie Day's words of wisdom
(5) Resources on the moon that are fueling a race among advanced countries to colonize it: Silicon; Rare earths; Titanium; Aluminum; Water; Precious metals; Helium-3.
(6) Talk about income redistribution (socialism): US individual taxpayers paid $93 billion more in taxes during 2018, while corporations got a tax break of $91 billion as a result of Trump's tax "reform."
(7) Royal gift: Queen Elizabeth II gave Trump an abridged (single-volume) first edition of Churchill's The Second World War: Was there a hidden message in her gift choice?
(8) Son Jarocho Ensemble: After missing spring quarter's series of noon music concerts (World Music Series) because of time conflict, I caught the tail end of the last performance for 2018-2019 due to my class ending early and the concert being longer than usual. [5-minute video]

2019/06/04 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Graffiti on a wall along Tehran's Vali-asr Street, in protest to mandatory hijab laws Queen Elizabeth II with Presidents Obama and Trump (1) Images of the day: [Left] Graffiti on a wall along Tehran's Vali-asr Street, in protest to forced veiling. [Center] Supply your own narrative: Two American presidents on state visits to the UK, presented side by side. (P.S.: QE II has met with 11 of the last 12 US presidents, Lyndon B. Johnson being the only one not to have visited her.) [Right] Street artist JR's installation on the southern side of the US-Mexico border wall.
(2) Quote of the day: "People have only as much liberty as they have the intelligence to want and the courage to take." ~ Emma Goldman
(3) Iranian music: This song is in a regional Iranian dialect that I don't understand, but it is reminiscent of Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire" in the way it recites names of politicians and other famous people.
(4) Shortsightedness to the extreme: Since Trump took office, there have been some 50 completed rollbacks of environmental regulations, with another three dozens in progress.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Today marks 30 years since Chinese troops opened fire on student demonstrators in Tiananmen Square.
- "Sleepy," "low-energy" Trump caught nodding off during Queen Elizabeth II's speech at a state dinner.
- Hope Hicks: The first former Trump aide to defy his non-compliance directive and offer to cooperate.
- Shostakovich's Waltz No. 2 (flashmob): 11 minutes of comedic build-up, followed by 5 minutes of music.
- Persian Music: A song by Gholam-Hossein Banan, accompanied by historic photographs of his life.
(6) Parallelism destruction and extraction: Mathematical problems often possess a great deal of explicit parallelism. Coding the problem in a conventional high-level language kills the parallelism by introducing artificial sequentiality. Compilers typically recover some of the parallelism when they build the computation's data-flow graph as an aid to translation. Again, the generated machine code kills the exposed parallelism. Finally, out-of-order CPUs salvage some of the destroyed parallelism by hardware-level dependence analysis within the instruction-issue logic. What a wasteful way to go about exploiting parallelism for performance enhancement! An article in Communications of the ACM, issue of June 2019 (by Tony Nowatzki, Vinay Gangadhar, and Karthikeyan Sankaralingam, with a synopsis/intro by Rishiyur S. Nikhil) proposes the design of a hybrid von-Neumann/dataflow microprocessor to preserve explicit parallelism, from the application domain to hardware environment. [Chart]

2019/06/03 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Meme on the problem of fake super-patriotism in the US Meme on those who think everyone lies but Trump Gilbert Hill: Mumbai's 66-million-year-old natural high-rise smack in the middle of a suburb (1) Images of the day: [Left] The problem of fake super-patriotism in the US had been diagnosed a long time ago. How can anyone love a country while hating 93% of its residents? [Center] It's sort of like the drunk wrong-way driver who thought everyone else was driving the wrong way! [Right] Gilbert Hill: Mumbai's 66-million-year-old natural high-rise smack in the middle of a suburb.
(2) This morning's local news in Santa Barbara: I received a Twitter alert this morning about KEYT News being broadcast live on Twitter and Facebook. They had audio problems in the studio, which they could not resolve immediately. So, the news crew took out their cell phones and began broadcasting the news and weather, along with some behind-the-scenes images and interviews. The weather person walked in front of the green screen she normally uses and went to her computer screens to present the forecast. [Screen shots]
(3) Campus Point at UCSB: This is my favorite spot on campus to have a bag-lunch or to take a rejuvenating break. The peace and quiet, along with views of the campus lagoon and the ocean, are wonderful. Today, I discovered an out-of-the-way equipment rental trailer, which is open on weekdays and weekends, including throughout the summer. And here is a panoramic photo, shot from UCSB's Campus Point parking lot, looking toward Goleta Beach Park and Goleta Pier. [Interactive] [Static]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Studying underground ant colonies, with their intricate architectures, ventilation routes, and superhighways.
- The amazing Lyrebird from Australia masters fairly complicated songs in its attempt to attract females.
- Old timers (photo, left to right): Dick Van Dyke, 93; Carl Reiner, 97; Mel Brooks, 92; Norman Lear, 96.
- An impressive 4-player performance of "Despacito" on a foot-keyboard piano. [3-minute video]
(5) UCSB students testing their drone outside the main Engineering Building: They are likely getting ready for Capstone Project Day on Friday, June 7, 2019. This particular drone has a battery hanging under its belly. It can land on a special platform, where a new battery slides in, pushing the old one out, so the drone can continue to fly around with no need for human intervention. [1-minute video]
(6) RIP, iTunes: Having defined music and helping Apple rise to most-valuable-company status, for all practical purposes iTunes is dead, becoming a victim of its uncontrolled expansion and cluttered design.

2019/06/02 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The US women's soccer team headed to the 2019 Women's Soccer World Cup: Time magazine cover The US women's soccer team headed to the 2019 Women's Soccer World Cup: Groups for preliminary round The US women's soccer team headed to the 2019 Women's Soccer World Cup: Ball and logo (1) The US women's soccer team is set to defend its 2015 world title in the upcoming Women's Soccer World Cup, to be held in France over a month, June 7 to July 7, 2019. US team's matches will be on Friday, June 11 (v. Thailand, 3:00 PM, on Fox), Sunday, June 16 (v. Chile, 12:00 PM, on Fox), Thursday, June 20 (v. Sweden, 3:00 PM, on Fox); and more, if the team advances past the preliminary rounds. All times are US Eastern.
(2) Child labor, child poverty, and other injustices are facts of life in our world today, but are we really powerless to do something about them? [2-minute video]
(3) College students running on empty: The summer 2019 issue of ASEE Prism magazine includes a cover feature about college students' food insecurity problem and engineering solutions to it. I will post a direct link to the story, if and when it becomes available on-line. [Cover image] [ASEE Prism on-line]
(4) University of California bans the use of the active ingredient found in Monsanto weed-killers Roundup and Ranger, and hundreds of other herbicides, on all of its 10 campuses.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Tweet of the week: Playing "Taboo," Mueller says "impeach" without using the word! [Tweet image]
- Humor: Trump rushed off stage after Secret Service spot man carrying photo of John McCain! [Photo]
- The Golden State Warriors beat the Toronto Raptors 109-104 to even up the NBA finals series 1-1.
- Eight kids were declared joint winners of Spelling Bee 2019, after the judges ran out of challenging words.
- Barack Obama has been the most admired man in the world for 11 straight years, 2008-2018.
- Journalist Maad al-Zekri, first from Yemen to be awarded a Pulitzer Prize, denied entry into the US.
(6) Despite an audio recording of Trump calling Meghan Markle "nasty," after learning that she will not meet with him during his visit to England, he claims he did not say it and blames the fake-news media!
(7) Scientific impact of trade wars: The China Computer Federation has suspended its collaboration with the publications division of IEEE over US-China disputes regarding Huawei Technologies.

2019/05/31 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
 Cartoon: Mr. Mueller teaches Logic 101 to Americans and their spineless representatives! Cartoon: A Turkish serial for cats! Cartoon: 'There was a concern that it was reminding the President of John McCain.' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Mr. Mueller teaches Logic 101 to Americans and their spineless representatives! [Center] Just out: A Turkish serial for cats! [Right] New Yorker cartoon of the day: "There was a concern that it was reminding the President of John McCain."
(2) Announcing the next IEEE Central Coast Section technical talk (free event): Dr. B. S. Manjunath (Distinguished Professor of ECE at UCSB) will speak about "Computer Vision, Deep Learning, and Big Data: Opportunities and Challenges" on Wednesday, June 19, 2019, at Rusty's Pizza (big meeting room, 5934 Calle Real, Goleta, CA 93117; food/beverages at 6:00 PM, talk at 6:30 PM). [Flyer]
(3) US businesses are against tariffs: They have developed highly-tuned markets and supply chains that keep them going. Trade isn't a set of abstract numbers that you can change at will. It's an intricate network of relationships with consumers, suppliers, and middlemen worldwide.
(4) A touching tribute to old-time Iranian musician Samin Baghtcheban and his wife Evelyn, major contributors to opera-style Persian music, both of whom died in self-imposed exile in Turkey. [12-minute video]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Mass shooting in Virginia Beach leaves 12 dead: Thoughts & prayers, or actions & legislation this time?
- Trump suggested in a March 2019 tweet that SNL is colluding with the Democrats and Russia!
- At Harvard, Angela Merkel speaks at length about Trump, without ever mentioning his name.
- America Ferrera's TED talk on her career obstacles, as she was forced into stereotypical Latina roles.
- First flying vehicle will use hydrogen fuel cells for powering its multiple rotors.
- SNL alum Nasim Pedrad is bringing the Iranian-American experience to TV in a new sitcom.
(6) Trump considers "impeachment," one of the safeguards thoughtfully included in the US Constitution, a filthy word. So are "checks" and "balances," I suppose!
(7) The roots of a Kurdish expression: An article entitled "The Eternal Fire at Baba Gurgur" caught my attention, because growing up, I had heard my parents (born and raised in Iran's Kurdistan region) use the expression "baba gurgur" to refer to a strong or resilient individual, who cannot be shaken by hardship or misfortune. A large oil field near the Iraqi city of Kirkuk, famous for the Eternal Fire burning at its center, Baba Gurgur (literally "Father of Fire") was the largest-known oil field in the world, from its discovery in 1927 until losing the title to Saudi Arabia's Ghawar Field in 1948. The estimated 4000-year lifespan of the Eternal Fire may be why "Baba Gurgur" is used as a metaphor for strength, resilience, and longevity.

2019/05/30 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Small section of a 107 x 16 ft. San Francisco mural by street artist JR Fashion design with help from nature 'New Yorker' cartoon of the day: 'I swear, if he continues to do that, I will strongly consider beginning proceedings to do something, as soon as it becomes politically tenable.' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Displayed on interconnected screens, this 107 × 16 ft. mural (only a small section shown here) by street artist JR portrays many layers of San Franciscans, from millionaires to the homeless, and how they have become invisible to each other. [Center] Fashion design with help from nature. [Right] New Yorker cartoon of the day: "I swear, if he continues to do that, I will strongly consider beginning proceedings to do something, as soon as it becomes politically tenable."
(2) Quote of the day: "When we honestly ask ourselves which person in our lives means the most to us, we often find that it is those who, instead of giving advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a warm and tender hand." ~ Henri Nouwen
(3) Putting profits ahead of public safety: Why can't a technologically advanced country with a stellar record of innovation eliminate the possibility of injuries from baseballs hitting spectators?
(4) The gender gap no one wants closed: Girls contemplate suicide more often, but boys die from suicide far more regularly. An annual increase of 13% in suicide rate among girls ages 10-14, is narrowing the gap. [Source: Time magazine, issue of June 3/10, 2019]
(5) The "Yes, ... but" defense: The story of a former Iranian minister/mayor, Mohammad-Ali Najafi, shooting his fairly young second wife to death in the bathroom is all over news and social-media headlines/posts about Iran. There are many speculations about every element of the story: The evils of polygamy; An apparently respected older official going mad over a passionate relationship; A gold-digger getting what was coming to her; Framing of a reformist politician by his hard-liner opponents; Najafi's "explanation" that he was only trying to scare his wife, when the gun accidentally went off; And many more. I am against trying offenders in the (social) media, so I leave the determination of Najafi's guilt and punishment to the judiciary (though I must add that I have zero respect for, and trust in, Iranian courts). What prompted me to write this post are many Iranian ex-pats taking the side of Najafi, because they knew him as a professor, colleague, or friend. The prototypical defense goes like this: "Yes, murder is bad, but ... " (e.g., the woman was no angel either). A murder victim is a victim, regardless of her moral character. Furthermore, killing a woman over her perceived wrongdoings is misogynistic, regardless of the circumstances, especially when she had suffered domestic violence as well. I have written in the past that terrorism should be condemned in no uncertain terms. Murder is the same. Other than in self-defense, there is no situation in which murder isn't an abhorrent crime. Please discuss your ifs/buts separately, if you must: Don't let them dilute your condemnation of the act of murder.

2019/05/29 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Iran's southern city of Khorramshahr, 37 years after it was reclaimed during the Iran-Iraq War Iranian women, young and old, continue their non-violent acts of civil disobedience against mandatory hijab laws How Iran's police treats people: A protesting worker and a murderous former minister/mayor (1) Iran-related images: [Left] Iran's southern city of Khorramshahr, 37 years after it was reclaimed during the Iran-Iraq War (Iranwire.com pictorial). [Center] Iranian women, young and old, continue their non-violent acts of civil disobedience against mandatory hijab laws. [Right] How Iran's police treats people: A protesting worker (top) and a former minister/mayor who has confessed to murdering his second wife (bottom).
(2) We are paying for Trump's tariff wars twice: Once through higher prices for products subject to tariffs and again through government handouts to businesses impacted by tariffs. [Source: Los Angeles Times]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- White House requested that the warship USS John S. McCain be out of sight during Trump's Japan visit!
- Mueller finally speaks: He is resigning from DoJ and will have nothing more to say on his Russia Probe.
- Former mayor of Tehran kills his second wife, who was on the verge of giving a damning interview.
- All-girls robotics team from Ghana wins the World Robofest Championship, held in Michigan in mid-May.
(4) "How to Win the Fight Against Gun Violence": This was the title of an interesting and important UCSB talk by Robyn Thomas, Executive Director of Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. [Images] [Web site]
Robyn Thomas, Executive Director of Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence Throughout the talk, Ms. Thomas presented interesting facts about gun violence and forces that support the status quo, making the US by far the worst country in terms of deaths caused by guns. Some 40,000 Americans died from gun violence in 2017, the highest number in nearly four decades. There are 350 million guns in private hands in the US. A gun in a home is 22 times more likely to be used against someone at that home than for self-defense. Women are five times more likely to be killed if their abuser has access to guns. American children are 16 times more likely to be killed by guns than children in any other developed country.
Interestingly, mass shootings, which get more media attention than other gun-related deaths, form a small part of the problem. Suicides, homicides by intimate partners, and urban gun violence account for many more deaths. The NRA, which was formed as a gun-safety and gun-education entity but has since become the mouthpiece of gun manufacturers, broadly opposes any kind of legislation, proposing instead that the solution is to arm more people.
Progress in enacting sensible gun laws (background checks, restrictions on military-style assault weapons, safety requirements, training, etc.) has been slow. Things are changing though. The second bill taken up by the new Congress was a gun-control bill. When Ms. Thomas testified in front of the Congress in February, she found the atmosphere much friendlier and supportive of gun legislation, in no small part due to the new crop of representatives who have become sensitized to the problem of gun violence by events in recent years (including shootings of and by police officers).
I end this report with a light aside: When a questioner asked whether Ms. Thomas agrees with the proposal to train and arm teachers (she does not), a gentleman jokingly interjected that in the university setting, arming of teaching assistants (many of whom were in attendance) should be considered instead!
[P.S.: In an embarrassment of riches, I had to choose between this talk and a concurrent one in an adjacent building, KITP's 73rd Annual Public Lecture, delivered by Wojciech Hubert Zurek under the title "Quantum Theory of the Classical," dealing with the question of why quantum theory that rules the nature results in a familiar "classical reality" we find quite persuasive, given the immediacy of our perceptions.]

2019/05/28 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image of 'Understanding Nanotechnology (1) Book review: Editors of Scientific American, Understanding Nanotechnology, Warner Books, 2002.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
In this imminently accessible book (even for younger readers), a number of scientists write chapters on scientific notions and technology topics comprising the important field of nanotechnology. Even though the field has come a long way since 2002, this book is still useful for learning about the fundamentals of a branch of technology that deals with dimensions and tolerances of less than 100 nanometers, which is 200-1000 times the diameter of an atom.
The book's table of contents follows.
Foreword: Understanding Nanotechnology; Introduction (p. 1); Little Big Science (p. 6); Plenty of Room, Indeed (p. 18); The Art of Building Small (p. 36); Less Is More in Medicine (p. 56); Making Molecules into Motors (p. 72); Nanobot Construction Crews (p. 86); The Incredible Shrinking Circuit (p. 92); Machine-Phase Nanotechnology (p. 104); Computing with Molecules (p. 110); Nanotubes for Electronics (p. 124); Conclusion (p. 139)
Cover image of 'Easy American Idioms (2) Course review: The Living Language Method, Easy American Idioms, Random House, 2008. [My 5-star review of this course on GoodReads]
Idioms such as "Bite the bullet" and "Don't fly off the handle" are used extensively in conversational American English. They make the language colorful and natural-sounding, but they can be quite confusing to non-native speakers. In this well-thought-out course, hundreds of idioms are presented in groups, by first having the students listen to a conversation that contains a particular group of idioms and then asking them to provide the appropriate idioms in particular contexts.
I found it interesting that, whereas I could understand nearly all of the idioms presented, I don't use very many of them in my own speech. This might be quite natural for someone who has learned English as the second language. However, hearing the idioms explicitly and collectively will no doubt help me in their application.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- In Japan, Trump downplays North Korea's missile launches and embraces their insult on Joe Biden.
- Overcrowded Mount Everest continues to take victims: Death toll for 2019 reaches 11.
- Mass-stabbing of school girls at a bus stop in Kawasaki, Japan, leaves 2 dead and 16 injured.
- Perfectly-timed photo: Cat with antlers. [Photo]
- Hybrid and other interesting fruit species. [4-minute video]
- Laminar flow: When water flows smoothly with no turbulence or interference, it looks like it's frozen.
(4) Quote of the day: "My hearings were not televised, and on the first morning, five minutes after I'd been introduced, they started asking questions. Now the first day is consumed by statements by the Senators about how important the hearings are." ~ Former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, 99, on SCOTUS confirmation hearings
(5) UCSB Computer Engineering Program Capstone Project Presentations: Friday, June 7, 2019 (talks at ESB Room 1001, 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM; posters at Campbell Hall Courtyard, 1:30-3:00 PM). I am looking forward to my role as the "best poster" judge.

2019/05/27 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Memorial Day: US flags installation at UCSB, next to Storke Tower Neo-Arameic-speaking region located in Iran, Iraq, and Turkey Arameic-speaking Kurdish women (1) Images of the day: [Left] Happy Memorial Day: UCSB observes this important day of courage and sacrifice with an installation that contains one flag for every 2000 of the 1.4 million individuals who have given their lives in service to our nation. [Center & Right] Professor Geoffrey Khan lecturing on Neo-Arameic language dialects and Neo-Arameic-speaking Kurdish women (see the last item below).
(2) Quote of the day: "I didn't mind explaining photosynthesis to you when you were 12. But you're adults now, and this is an actual crisis." ~ Bill Nye, urging everyone to take climate change more seriously
(3) It's sad that we find adversarial leaders' opinions more palpable than our own leaders': "If someone thinks their own race and civilization is superior and insists on remolding or replacing other civilizations, it would be a stupid idea and disastrous act." ~ Xi Jinping, President of China
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Severe weather in central US claims 10th victim in a week and causes billions in damage. [Image]
- Trump downplays North Korea's missile launches and embraces their insult on Joe Biden during Japan visit.
- An interesting upcoming lecture at UCSB: "How to Win the Fight Against Gun Violence in America" [Flyer]
- Playful whales and dolphins filmed in the Pacific Ocean. [1-minute video]
(5) Jews of Kurdistan and their language (continued): I have written before about my long-standing interest in tracing the roots of the Parhami family in Iran's Kurdistan region. This pursuit is currently on the back-burner due to many other projects, and I may have to wait for retirement to make progress! A chance meeting and conversation with a fellow Jewish Kurd at the UCLA film screening of 5/19 rekindled my interest and prompted me to pursue a few leads that she provided. Geoffrey Khan (U. Cambridge) has written a 4-volume book, The Neo-Aramaic Dialect of the Assyrian Christians of Urmi. The language of my ancestors in Iran's Kurdistan is one of the extinct or near-extinct dialects of Arameic. The existence of hundreds of dialects is a sign of the language's antiquity, according to Khan.
[81-minute lecture by Khan] [61-minute lecture by Yona Sabar and Ariel Sabar on Jews of Kurdistan]

2019/05/25 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Persian poetry: Sa'adi poem about a man needing two lives, one for gaining experience and one for using it The great Persian poet Sa'adi: Worry about matters that can create endless joy. It's silly to pursue pleasures that turn into sorrow Persian poetry: Sa'adi isn't the first name that comes to mind when thinking of love poems, but he has some of the most beautiful and tender romantic poems (1) Persian poetry: A few wonderful verses by Sa'adi, bearing life advice and praise for his beloved.
(2) On robot locomotion: This 3-minute video was suggested by my colleague, Dr. Katie Byl, who gave a very interesting talk entitled "Mesh-based Tools to Analyze Deep Reinforcement Learning Policies for Underactuated Biped Locomotion" for IEEE Central Coast Section on May 15, 2019. The video contains an enchanting set of animations from DeepMind linked to the ideas in the arXiv paper entitled "Emergence of Locomotion Bahviours in Rich Environments." [IEEE CCS Technical Talks Web page]
(3) Poetic justice: Merrick Garland (Obama nominee for SCOTUS, who never got a hearing for confirmation) has been assigned to handle Trump's appeal over his financial records.
(4) "Lock Her Up" 2.0: Trump rally crowds now chant "Lock Them Up," alluding to allegations of spying/treason against the FBI. Or, maybe, they are referring to the Trump family!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump's recent statements, fact-checked by Associated Press: Not that facts matter for his supporters!
- John Urschel, who carried a 4.0 GPA at Penn State, gave up his NFL career for a PhD, and life, in math.
- A Colorado road is closed due to rock slides bringing boulders the size of buildings onto the road.
- New York City's Times Square, as it was 107 years ago. [3-minute video]
- Architectural masterpiece by Zaha Hadid: Library and Learning Center at Vienna University of Economics.
(6) Iranian political prisoners are threatened with harsher sentences if they talk to the media and some dual-citizen hostages are offered leneancy if they agree to spy for Iran. [Source: Iranwire.com]
(7) Selling democracy: "Nearly three decades after the Cold War's end, it's no longer clear that American-style liberal democracy has carried the day." ~ Ian Bremmer, writing in Time magazine, issue of May 27, 2019
(8) Donald Trump Jr. has landed a book deal (a fiction title, I assume), so Twitter users are having fun with suggested book titles, such as: Pride and Extreme Prejudice; The Tax Man Cometh; Coward's End; A Fail in Two Cities; Malice in Blunderland; Collusion Runs Through It.
(9) The problem with news apps: Content creators are yet to recognize the problems caused by headlines being cut short due to limited screen space. This is reminiscent of "prefix codes" in computer science, that is, variable-length codes with no codeword being a prefix of any other codeword, ensuring correct decoding. Here, no misleading headline should be a prefix of the composed headline! In other words, the main point of the headline should be made with its first few words. Here are a few extreme examples of truncated headlines.

2019/05/24 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Beautiful nature: Jungle, seen from the ground up Chalk paintings: Santa Barbara will hold the 33rd edition of its iMadonnari Italian Street-Painting Festival on May 25-27, 2019 Brilliant art: Colorful pencil sculpture by Molly Gambardella (1) Images of the day: [Left] Beautiful nature: Jungle, seen from the ground up. [Center] Chalk paintings: Santa Barbara will hold the 33rd edition of its iMadonnari Italian Street-Painting Festival on May 25-27, 2019, at the historic Santa Barbara Mission. [Right] Brilliant art: Colorful pencil sculpture by Molly Gambardella.
(2) French mathematician Michael Rao completes the solution to century-old problem of classifying convex pentagons, and therefore all convex polygons, that tile the plane.
(3) Mile-wide asteroid and its tiny moon will zoom past Earth at a distance of 3 million miles this weekend.
[I had a concern that the asteroid's moon would tumble to our Earth, given the Earth's much larger gravity, so I did the following back-of-the-envelop calculation: Earth's diameter is about 8000 miles, so, assuming identical densities, it is 8000^3 = 0.5 × 10^12 times heavier than the asteroid. Animation in the news story shows the asteroid's moon to be at a distance of about 1 mile from it. The ratio of the distances squared is thus 3,000,000^2 = 9 × 10^12. The latter figure is much larger than the ratio of the masses, so we are safe! Had the asteroid been passing at a distance of 0.5 million miles, say, then a more precise calculation, involving exact distances and densities would have been warranted. For comparison, Earth's moon is about 0.25 × 10^6 miles from it. A related interesting question is whether Earth's gravity will slightly change the tiny moon's orbit around the asteroid.]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Parcel-bomb explosion in Lyon, France, injures 13. A cyclist was seen leaving the parcel outside a bakery.
- Cartoon of the day: "Not again, again. And again. And again. ... ad infinitum!" [Image]
- Most new GM cars will be able to download software upgrades over the Internet by 2023.
- Founders of Twitter likely didn't envisage it as a medium for countries threatening each other with war!
(5) SpaceX deploys 60 Starlink satellites: Launched on a single Falcon 9 rocket, whose reusable first stage was successfully recovered on a drone ship, the satellites form the beginning of a space-based worldwide broadband Internet service that will provide a steady funding source for the company.
(6) The problem of the last 50 feet: Use of driver-less delivery vehicles faces the final challenge of getting the package from the vehicle to the customer's door-step. Ford plans to solve this problem with an android capable of carrying a 40-pound load.

2019/05/23 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Funny-looking, but perfectly functional, engineering fixes to broken thingss: Example 7 Funny-looking, but perfectly functional, engineering fixes to broken things: Example 4 Funny-looking, but perfectly functional, engineering fixes to broken things: Example 1 Funny-looking, but perfectly functional, engineering fixes to broken things: Example 6 Funny-looking, but perfectly functional, engineering fixes to broken things: Example 8 Funny-looking, but perfectly functional, engineering fixes to broken things: Example 2 (1) Half-dozen funny-looking, but perfectly functional, engineering fixes to broken things.
(2) Temper tantrum: "I won't work with Democrats until they stop investigating me." How is that "putting America first"? It's more like taking American interests hostage to escape prosecution for fraud!
(3) Trump on Rex Tillerson, upon appointing him as SoS and after firing him in a tweet:
- "[Tillerson has] tenacity, broad experience and deep understanding of geopolitics ... one of the truly great business leaders of the world."
- "Tillerson, a man who is 'dumb as a rock' and totally ill prepared and ill equipped to be Secretary of State."
(4) News headline of the day: "Boeing officials suggest faulty sensor data unlikely to cause another 737 Max crash." Really? Unlikely? How reassuring!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Tornadoes cause serious damage in Missouri and other parts of the US Midwest.
- Movements to boycott states which enact ultra-restrictive abortion laws are afoot.
- Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocks efforts to pass election-security bills.
- Cartoon of the day: Iranians have to fight on two fronts. [Image]
- Did you know that Bulgaria, Chile, and Iraq guarantee paid maternal leave? [Source: Time magazine]
- Recent history of Iran, as played out on the cover of Time magazine. [2-minute video]
(6) "Men Allies for Gender Equity": I wrote about attending this workshop on May 9, 2019. I have now received two files, holding the workshop handouts (higher quality than what I had posted using cell-phone photos) and PowerPoint presentation slides by Roger Green and Robert Gordon (credit for both goes to NDSU).
(7) Fifth anniversary of the Isla Vista massacre: Five years ago today, six UCSB students became the victims of what is sometimes referred to as "toxic masculinity." A young man, who was distraught over not being able to get dates and also harbored White-Supremacist tendencies, killed three male friends (engineering students) and three other students, two women and one man, and injured more than a dozen. I wore the T-shirt I was given on the first anniversary of this dark event and visited a memorial next to Storke Tower that celebrates the lives of the six victims and displays photos and notes. [Photos]

2019/05/22 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Gray is okay: Women taking pride in their roots A family's sculptures made of stones The selfie craze does not recognize political, cultural, or age differences (1) Images of the day: [Left] Gray is okay: Martha Truslow Smith, whose first gray strands showed up at age 14, urges women to take pride in their roots (image from AARP Magazine, May 2019). [Center] Stone family (source: Sculplovers). [Right] The selfie craze does not recognize political, cultural, or age differences.
(2) For my Persian-speaking readers: A heartfelt and well-written essay, by Dr. Hossein Kamaly, about the meanings of Iran and Iranophilia, as Iranians face oppression from inside and saber-rattling from outside.
(3) I was planning to see Jafar Panahi's "This Is Not a Film" tomorrow night at UCSB's Pollock Theater, but the screening was abruptly cancelled, with no explanation. I wonder if it was sanctions-related.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump's plan to pardon US troops accused of war crimes is opposed by senior military leaders.
- NK's official news agency attacks Joe Biden as 'fool of low IQ,' seeming to side with the real dumb fool!
- US House bill seeks to preserve NASA's legacy Earth-science programs facing elimination.
- A passionate defense of tech, despite all its excesses and mistakes.
- Activists continuing the work of Jamal Khashoggi targeted by the Saudi regime. [Source: Time magazine]
- Sign at SB rally against abortion restrictions: "If you cut off my Reproductive Choice, can I cut off yours?"
- Meanwhile, in one of those every-life-is-precious states. [Meme about hypocrisy]
- New Yorker cartoon of the day: "Just refuse to step down. That's how I'd do it." [Image]
- Giant-Impact Hypothesis: A Mars-size body struck the proto-Earth, giving it water and creating the Moon.
- The singer at this wonderful street concert in the Iranian town of Abyaneh has been summoned to court!
- Cartoon of the day about Iran: "As I was saying, it's a sin for women to ride bicycles ..." [Image]
- "Ancient Iran and the Classical World": May 29 (at UCLA) and May 30 (at Getty Villa). [Poster] [Program]
(5) Extreme heat-shielding: The Parker Solar Probe is on a 7-year mission to collect massive amounts of data about our Sun. It has completed its second fly-by at a distance of 6M km (the previous-closest had been 43M km). Heat-shielding to protect the Probe and its on-board equipment, including solar cells that provide it with power, is of utmost importance. The probe got its energy from solar cells in the normal way when it was far from the sun, but now that it is so close, it protects the cells by tilting them so that most of the cells are behind its heat shield. Only a small patch of cells, that is well-cooled, remains exposed to the sun. [Images]

2019/05/21 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Showcasing our planet's amazing nature: Example 3 Showcasing our planet's amazing nature: Example 1 Showcasing our planet's amazing nature: Example 2 Showcasing our planet's amazing nature: Example 5 Showcasing our planet's amazing nature: Example 4 Showcasing our planet's amazing nature: Example 6 (1) Half-dozen photos showcasing our planet's amazing nature.
(2) The Art of Science: Exhibit at SB Museum of Art, May 20 to June 20, 2019, with Artists Reception on Wednesday, May 22, 5:00-7:00 PM.
(3) Iranian women shine in Karate at the world level: They win two gold medals, despite the fact that they have to fight on two fronts (against the mullahs and on the mat). In this Facebook post, Mehdi Fallahi presents a sample of religious edicts against women competing in sports (in Persian).
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump very upset over his lover (Fox News) cheating with Dems (Sanders, Buttigieg)!
- Book introduction and announcement of book talk at UCLA on May 22, 2019, from 4:00 to 6:00 PM.
- Continued fall of Iran's currency has led to the doubling of prices for basic goods.
- Nothing riles the joyless Iranian mullahs as much as people, stressed as they are these days, dancing!
- Iran, according to two-dozen photos from a Bosnian tourist. [Pictorial]
- WhatsApp has urged updating apps ASAP due to possible injected into it by exploiting a security flaw.
Graphic designs showing showing the possibility of armed conflict between the US and Iran (5) Iranian-Americans are more divided than ever: The prospects of the US waging war on Iran has widened the gap, already significant due to incompatible political views, to alarming levels. Most Iranian-Americans are anti-war, although their involvement remains at the "empty pacifism" level, to borrow a phrase from journalist Roya Hakakian, consisting of changing their profile pictures and posting "No War with Iran" memes. Others think that war is the only way of getting rid of the mullahs, who have grown thick roots after being in power for four decades. This group seems unconcerned that along with the mullahs (the most prominent of whom may actually go into hiding with their billions of dollars in personal wealth), tens of thousands of innocent Iranians may be killed. They view such deaths as a necessary sacrifice on the road to a free Iran, although, residing comfortably in the West and away from the conflict zone, they aren't the ones to make the sacrifice. Civil disobedience, from street music/dance performances to walking hijab-less in public, is at an all-time high, which gives one hope of toppling the regime without a blood-bath. Regardless of the fate of the brutal regime, I wonder if we will ever recover from the discord that it has caused among us.
(6) A stroll in Old-Town Goleta: As I awaited the completion of routine service on my car this morning (they now text you when the work is done or to seek authorization for extra work), I walked on Hollister Avenue, toward Fairview. This area is home to the very first Hamburger Habit and many shuttered businesses. My favorite Chinese restaurant, the family-run Red Pepper, located just off Hollister, has also announced permanent closure due to health problems. [Photos]

2019/05/20 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The seeds of continued resistance to mandatory hijab law have been sown! A waterfall in Iran Persian-style courtyard and fish pond (1) Iran-related images: [Left] The seeds of continued resistance to mandatory hijab law have been sown! [Center] A waterfall in Iran. [Right] Persian-style courtyard and fish pond.
(2) An anniversary of sorts: The book Guns of August by Barbara W. Tuchman traces the beginning of World War I to events occurring in the morning of May 20, 1910 (109 years ago). [Facebook post, in Persian]
(3) I thought my daughter and future granddaughters will have it easy, because we fought for women's rights, but they may have to start from square one. [Meme]
(4) Suspicious financial transactions: "Anti-money-laundering specialists at Deutsche Bank recommended in 2016 and 2017 that multiple transactions involving legal entities controlled by Donald J. Trump and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, be reported to a federal financial-crimes watchdog. The transactions, some of which involved Mr. Trump's now-defunct foundation, set off alerts in a computer system designed to detect illicit activity." [New York Times story]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- This is America, nearly two decades into the 21st century! [Photos]
- The "life-valuing" Alabama is near-worst in infant survival and child development. [Meme]
- Finally, a Republican Congressman (Justin Amash) calls for Trump's impeachment. [Tweet]
- Does the Earth have a heartbeat? Yes, it does: Billions and billions, actually! [Meme]
- On women having a choice: The notorious Ruth Bader Ginsburg always says it best. [Meme/Quote]
- Artist Alex Gordon at work: Portrait in black and white. [1-minute video]
(6) Quote of the day: "I think the dialogue has gotten so caught up on where you draw the line that we've gotten away from the fundamental question of who gets to draw the line and I trust women to draw the line when it's their own health." ~ Pete Buttigieg, on how late an abortion should be allowed
(7) "Emoji: Lingua Franca or Passing Fancy?": This is the title of an interesting article in the May 2019 issue of IT Professional. The author, George F. Hurlburt provides a timeline of how emojis came about in the course of human communication (we all know that the very first one was the smiley icon in 1963). Among the more interesting facets are the facts that there is a Unicode Emoji Standard, an Emoji Encyclopedia, and the entire Moby Dick written in emoji (Emoji Dick).

2019/05/19 (Sunday): Following is my report on a film screening and discussion at UCLA this afternoon.
Screening of the documentary film 'Poets of Life' at UCLA: Rakhshan Banietemad, with Nayereh Tohidi Screening of the documentary film 'Poets of Life' at UCLA: Flyer Screening of the documentary film 'Poets of Life' at UCLA: A shot of the audience Held in Room 121 of Dodd Hall on the UCLA campus this afternoon, the screening of "Poets of Life" and the subsequent discussion with the film's artistic consultant, Rakhshan Banietemad, moderated by Dr. Nayereh Tohidi (CSUN), was well-attended. The list of film director Banietemad's honors is extensive and includes recognitions by more than 50 international film festivals. As a side note, this event ended the 15th year of UCLA's wonderful lecture series on Iran.
To me, this event was more than just the screening of a single film; it was exposure to an important film series that not only portrays independent and self-made job creators in Iran but also introduces a new model of independent film-making. Banietemad mentioned that more than two-dozen individuals had been identified for portrayal (from among a much larger pool of candidates), but that only seven documentaries have been made so far: three 90-minute feature films and four 45-minute films (see the list and 9-minute video at the end of this report). She also noted that the Karestan project is itself a fine example of the job-creating endeavors portrayed in its documentaries.
Today's film, "Poets of Life" (90 minutes, in Persian, with English subtitles; directed by Shirin Barghnavard and produced by Mojtaba Mirtahmasb) portrays agricultural entrepreneur Shirin Parsi, who upon inheriting some land from her father-in-law, decided to return home from France to pursue her passions of organic farming and living off the land. The farm, she established with her husband, is near the small town of Rezvanshahr on the Caspian shore. The "Poets" of the title alludes to the husband-and-wife's love of poetry, which they recite in parts of the film.
The main crop of Parsi's farm is rice, which she grows using sustainable, organic methods. Lower-quality rice, imported from other countries, is more affordable to the masses, in the same way that in the US, say, many lower-income households cannot afford organically-produced vegetables, fruits, dairy, and meat. Parsi isn't just an entrepreneur but also an environmentalist and social activist. In one of the film's scenes, speaking in front of what appears to be a symposium or official hearing, Parsi laments about lack of financial rewards for women farmers, who constitute more than half of the country's agricultural workers. They are perceived as working to contribute to their families, so the financial rewards of their labor go to the man of the household.
Originally, it had been announced that another Karestan documentary film, "Mother of the Earth," would be screened, but the program was later changed. In the course of the post-screening discussion, Banietemad suggested that perhaps the entire set of Karestan documentaries should be screened as part of a cultural gathering or mini-festival. Here are the films' titles, along with links to 2-minute trailers:
- "Puzzleys" (A group of four IT students set out to establish their own business) [Trailer]
- "Flax to Fire" (Life and work of industrialist/entrepreneur Aliasghar Hajibaba) [Trailer]
- "Poets of Life" (Shirin Parsi: rice farmer, environmentalist, and social activist) [Trailer]
- "Friends at Work" (Building a steel foundry in war-torn post-revolutionary Iran) [Trailer]
- "Mother of the Earth" (A couple's efforts to end the dumping of urban garbage) [Trailer]
- "Mahak: A World She Founded" (Saideh Ghods' crusade to help cancer sufferers) [Trailer]
Shirin Barghnavard is now working on a new documentary film about the Keep Children in School (KCIS) Foundation. Jila Kashef, Founder and President of KCIS (known by its Persian name, "Anjoman-e Yaaraan-e Daanesh o Mehr," in Iran), who was in attendance, spoke very briefly about her Foundation and offered assistance to attendees for ordering DVDs of "Poets of Life" to help with spreading its message and to support Karestan's culture-building programs.
A few more links: Karestans Web site; About Karestan documentary film series [9-minute video];
Rakhshan Banietemad on Wikipedia and on IMDB; More photos from today's event (Thanks to Jila Kashef)
Facebook post of this report, which also includes a Persian version; Tweet about this report

2019/05/18 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The Bell Labs' Belle computer was the first to achieve master-level chess play (1983) Cartoon: John Bolton, Trump administration's War-Monger-in-Chief and puppet-master, who has been wanting a war with Iran for decades E&T magazine's review of 'The Gendered Brain,' by Gina Rippon (1) Images of the day: [Left] The Bell Labs' Belle computer was the first to achieve master-level chess play (1983). [Center] John Bolton, Trump administration's War-Monger-in-Chief and puppet-master, who has been wanting a war with Iran for decades. [Right] The Gendered Brain is the title of an important book by Gina Rippon that bears the subtitle "The New Neuroscience that Shatters the Myth of the Female Brain." [Review]
(2) German engineering: Every techie should want to own this compact charging cable that gives you USB A, C, and Micro, as well as Apple Lightning in a size/form that you can carry with you on a key chain. It is made by Vonmaehlen, but, the last I checked, isn't available on Amazon.
(3) Memes about the hottest issues of the day: Rescinding women's rights ("I dream women will one day have the same rights as guns") and war-mongering in the Middle East ("Iran wants war: Look how close they put their country to our military bases"). [Images]
(4) The Republicans have just invented the phrase "Consensual rape": "Consensual scam" (a la Trump University) and "Consensual murder" (NRA's favorite) can't be far behind. Where have these men and women (yes, there are Republican women, some of them governors, who believe this) been over the past few decades of progress toward gender equality and women's rights? [Meme]
Cover image for 'The Road to Character,' by David Brooks (5) Book review: Brooks, David, The Road to Character, unabridged audiobook on 10 CDs, read by Arthur Morey and the author, Random House Audio, 2015. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Writing with his by-now-familiar wit and curiosity, Brooks focuses on deep values that should inform our lives but that have fallen by the side in our culture of "Big Me." He makes a distinction between attributes that bring external recognition and material success ("resume virtues") and those, such as kindness, courage, honesty, and faithfulness, that exist at our core ("eulogy virtues"). Building a strong inner character requires awareness of our limitations and willingness to exercise self-control in the service of a larger cause.
Perhaps the most important ingredients of eulogy virtues, and the joys they bring to our lives, are humility and moral depth. Brooks elaborates on the importance of eulogy virtues using a blend of psychology and spirituality, similar to what he used in his best-selling 2012 book, The Social Animal. In a way, by focusing on inner peace, as opposed to rewarding external connections, this book complements Brooks' 2012 book.
Brooks is an optimist, so in his eagerness to paint a rosy picture of our society, where hard work and competence rather than inherited money, shapes the new American upper class, he fails to note that study after study has indicated that social mobility in the US is much lower than in most other advanced countries.
On the positive side, Brooks takes many research results from the field of psychology and makes them accessible to everyone through his skill of communicating and relating the research to our daily lives. On the negative side, much personal opinion is mixed in with the science-based assertions. All in all, this is a good read/listen, but the reader must stay vigilant to separate supported facts from matters of opinion: Not always an easy task!

2019/05/17 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Penny Mordaunt, UK's new Secretary of Defense San Francisco becomes the first city to ban the use of facial-recognition technology for surveillance The face of a man living 1300 years ago, reconstructed from a skeleton discovered in 2014 (1) Faces for today: [Left] This is Penny Mordaunt, UK's new Secretary of Defense: VP Mike Pence is terrified that he may have to meet with her (alone, for security reasons) some day soon. Iran's President Rouhani and FM Zarif are similarly worried that some future photo op with her might rile their conservative foes and state-supported, PhotoShop-loving press. (The new Secretary of Defense is real; the rest of the story is satire.) [Center] San Francisco becomes the first city to ban the use of facial recognition technology for surveillance purposes by police and other agencies. [Right] The face of a man living 1300 years ago, reconstructed from a skeleton discovered in 2014 (National Geographic).
(2) Marching backwards: Not just "Roe v. Wade" (women's choice) but also "Brown v. Board of Education" (segregation), which was decided 65 years ago today, may be overturned by the US Supreme Court.
(3) Today's technical magazine arrivals: Interesting articles about the state of quantum computing (IEE E&T, May 2019) and life-saving applications of drones in Africa (IEEE Spectrum, May 2019).
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Donald Trump pardons Conrad Black, a fraudster who has just published a glowing biography of him.
- Manufacturing facilities moving out of China owing to Trump's trade war will go to Mexico, not the US.
- The recent measles case at UCLA prompted UCSB Student Health to issue an alert to campus denizens.
- Six months after California's Camp Fire, the area's water remains undrinkable due to contamination.
- Thought-provoking cover cartoon of The New Yorker, issue of May 20, 2019.
- Prison riots by criminals and the ensuing clashes have put the lives of Iran's political prisoners in danger.
- Iranian students continue to challenge the autocratic Islamic regime. [Cartoon source: Iranwire.com]
- Kurdish music: An all-female ensemble performs the song "Kermashan, Kermashan." [6-minute video].
- Islamic Andy: A Persian dance tune, similar to pop singer Andy's songs, sanctioned by Iran's mullahs!
(5) "Public Interest Technology Research and Education": This was the title of a CS Distinguished Lecture at UCSB this afternoon. The speaker, Ellen W. Zegura (CS Professor and Co-Director of the Center for Serve Learn Sustain at Georgia Tech), has research interests in computer networking and computing for social good, which she has brought together in a set of projects in collaboration with Elizabeth Belding at UCSB to study and expand Internet access on Native American tribal lands.
We science/technology researchers often focus on the questions of "Why?" and "How?" in studying challenging problems. Speakers like Zegura remind us to also pay attention to "So what?" Ford Foundation's and New America's Public Interest Technology (PIT) network of universities, of which Georgia Tech is a charter member, was launched to advance the intersection of technology and public problem solving.
In her talk, Zegura highlighted 3 Georgia Tech efforts, one in education (a course entitled "Civic Data Science"), one in research (challenges of universal Internet access), and one in research about education (how to instill professional and social responsibility in students, who come in with public-service experience from high school, but their interest declines over their time as undergraduates). She also made suggestions on how all computer scientists can connect to public problem solving.
[Photo/slides] [Zegura's faculty Web page] [ACM COMPASS Conferences: First-2018; Second-2019]

2019/05/16 (Thursday): Report on today's UCSB IEE symposium "Emerging Technologies Review 2019"
UCSB IEE 'Emerging Technology Review': Poster UCSB IEE 'Emerging Technology Review': Program UCSB's Dean of Engineering Rod Alferness opened the Symposium by welcoming the attendees and discussing the importance of energy efficiency to the future of our state, country, and planet. He also reviewed the mission and accomplishments of UCSBs Institute for Energy Efficiency (IEE), the day-long symposium's sponsor, over its decade of existence. IEE Director John Bowers then described IEE goals and activities in greater detail, provided information on the soon-to-be-completed campus building that will house the Institute, and concluded with future plans, or what he called "IEE 2.0." [Images]
(1) Gary Barsley from Southern California Edison, a utility company with 15 million customers, outlined SCE's consumer-side programs for improving energy efficiency. There are parallel programs on the grid/distribution side that he did not discuss. SCE no longer has power generation facilities, which have moved to the private sector. Impressively, despite population growth and increase in the kinds of usage (such as EVs), power consumption has remained flat. Differential time-of-day pricing and other measures are expected to lower the peak consumption in future. [Images]
(2) Hydrogen is a clean source of energy and it is abundant in nature, not just in water, but also in methane (CH4). Speaking under the title "Transitioning to a Hydrogen Energy Economy with the Help of Natural Gas," Eric McFarland (UCSB) outlined his research team's efforts, supported by US DoE and several industry partners, in low-emission production of hydrogen for varied uses. This approach forms a bridging step in transitioning from fossil fuels to cleaner alternative technologies that aren't economically attainable yet. [Images]
(3) The Symposium's keynote lecture, entitled "New Compute Models to Power the Data Revolution," was delivered by Rich Uhlig (Intel). The shifting nature of data, from numerical values, through multimedia content, to IoT sensing/control, has motivated Intel to start thinking differently about the design of computing resources. Uhlig outlined three key aspects of the new technologies that Intel is pursuing, that is, in order of immediacy (likelihood of bearing fruit in the near future), graph analytics, neuromorphic computing, and quantum computing. Uhlig outlined the key challenges of each of the three technologies. [Images]
(4) Brent Gorda (ARM) spoke under the title "ARM Entering the Data Center Business—What to Expect." Lately, ARM has operated primarily as an IP company. It's processor ISA effectively dominates the embedded-systems market, and thus IoT. More ARM processors are put on silicon than all other processors combined. ARM has strict policies to ensure that diverse realizations of its ISA remain consistent and software-compatible. Fujitsu's super-high-performance implementation of the ARM architecture has opened the way for its use in high-performance computing and data-center applications. [Images]
(5) VMware is a software virtualization company devoted to offering easy-to-use cloud computing services. Speaking under the title "Compute Inefficiency: The Low Hanging, Costly, and Overlooked Fruit," VMware's Mark Honer discussed energy-efficiency advantages of cloud-based services. He maintained that customers value and demand sustainability. That's why tech giants are striving for zero carbon footprint (Microsoft achieved it in 2012). Our goal shouldn't just be to pursue enabling technologies that maintain planetary health at the current level, but to regenerate/improve its health. A growing number of major companies have made a commitment to go 100% renewable. [Images]
(6) Chandra Krintz (CS, UCSB) addressed the topic of "Energy-Efficient Software Development for the Internet of Things (IoT)." She advocated leveraging cloud and big-data analytics in order to release end-users from the burden of figuring out how to achieve their desired results. Rather, they should be allowed to express, in high-level terms, what they need, with the hardware and software infrastructure figuring out how to satisfy those needs through appropriate and energy-efficient use of local (edge), regional, and global (cloud) resources. This approach leads to the development of short, portable programs/scripts by end-users. [Images]
(7) Energy considerations are intimately linked to food and water resources. Speaking under the title "Coastal Water Security with Distributed Offshore Reverse Osmosis," Peter Stricker (Ecomerit) described a patented reverse-osmosis system to address climate-driven drought. Like desalination plants, the system can be used as part of the permanent water-supply infrastructure, if desired. While California's water-shortage problem has been solved for now due to above-average rainfall, drought-caused problems are here to stay in the long term. Stricker claimed that water from the proposed RO system would cost less than what our area pays to get state water. [Images]
(8) Brian Tarroja (UC Irvine) spoke under the title "Navigating the Design Space of Trajectories Toward Low/Zero Carbon Energy Systems in California," citing the dual motivations of environmental sustainability and resource security. Following a description of the problems and goals, Tarroja focused on two specific examples, viz., electrification of transportation (problems with increased load on the electric grid and increase in peak demand, if everyone charges the EVs at about the same time) and large-scale energy storage deployment (which helps match the supply to demand, but comes with environmental impacts of battery production and disposal). [Images]
(9) "Cutting-Edge Modeling Tools to Enable Low Carbon Grids" was the title of a talk by Ranjit Deshmukh (UCSB). He described open-source investment and operational cost models that he helped develop and has used successfully in parts of Africa and India to help assess the cost-effectiveness of various placement options for renewable energy sources versus the space and time distribution of consumption. [Images]

2019/05/15 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Perfectly-timed photos: Example 3 Perfectly-timed photos: Example 5 Perfectly-timed photos: Example 4 Perfectly-timed photos: Example 7 Perfectly-timed photos: Example 6 Perfectly-timed photos: Example 8 (1) Half-dozen very interesting examples of perfectly-timed photos.
(2) Distinguished CS PhD graduates: Chelsea Finn (UC Berkeley) was awarded the 2018 ACM Doctoral Dissertation Award for "Learning to Learn with Gradients," which introduces algorithms for meta-learning that enable deep networks to solve new tasks from small datasets. Honorable mentions went to Ryan Beckett and Tengyu Ma, both from Princeton. [Photos]
(3) Early this morning on the beach: Before embarking on 11 straight hours of classes, office hours, meetings, and seminars, I walked for about an hour in Goleta Beach Park, where a normally-wide UCSB beach had all but disappeared due to high tide and the birds sat lazily between a tide-pool and the ocean. [Photos] [Video]
(4) "Mesh-Based Tools to Analyze Deep Reinforcement Learning Policies for Underactuated Biped Locomotion": This was the title of an interesting and well-attended technical talk by Dr. Katie Byl (UCSB), given at a meeting of IEEE Central Coast Section today. [Images] [Schedule of the remaining IEEE CCS talks for 2019, held on the third Wednesday of each month]
Robots come in many shapes and forms and use a variety of methods for locomotion. Among challenges being addressed in the field of robotics, control of biped robots is arguably one the most difficult. The dynamics of biped robots are nonlinear, hybrid, and underactuated, and they must operate in stochastic environments, without falling (an occurrence that is all too common, if you look at YouTube videos of such robots in various tests and competitions). Ideally, robots should be robust, agile, and energy-efficient, and there are trade-offs among these three desirable attributes.
Recently, deep learning has been applied to generate successful control policies for a variety of simulated and real legged robots. Intuitively, one would expect that including perturbations and/or other types of noise during training of a deep learning policy would likely result in more robustness of the resulting control policy. However, one would like to have a quantitative and computationally-efficient means of evaluating the degree to which this might be so. Rather than relying on Monte Carlo simulations, Dr. Byl's goal is to provide more sophisticated tools to assess robustness properties of such policies.
Dr. Byl presented a mesh-based approach to analyzing stability and robustness of the policies obtained via deep reinforcement learning for various biped gaits of a five-link planar model. Dr. Byl's presentation was punctuated with video clips showing her own work as well as work by other research teams.
Additional information and learning resources: [Speaker's personal home page] [UCSB Robotics page] [UCSB Robotics on YouTube] [Guide to deep reinforcement learning] [A beginner's guide to Reinforcement Learning] [Not-so-deep reinforcement learning for dummies] [Speaker-supplied videos of interest: forthcoming]

2019/05/14 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon showing the impact of China tariff on Middle-America Cartoon about the need to move some works of fiction to the non-fiction department Cartoon about AG Bill Barr's campaign of spin and obfuscation (1) Cartoons of the day: [Left] The tariffs imposed on China are hurting farmers and other low/middle-income Americans. [Center] From New Yorker: "Can you give me a hand moving these?" [Right] Bill Barr prepares for a lucrative post-AG career of spin and obfuscation in Washington.
(2) Automatic text-generation tools advance to the next age: If you provide the start of a made-up news article to this Web app, it will finish it for you.
(3) John Bolton, a chief architect of the Iraq War, and one of the few people worldwide who still think it was a good idea, is at it again, promoting a war with Iran, that is sure to take longer and cause more casualties than his previous disaster.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- We'll pay for the tariffs on Chinese goods, not China. Just as we're paying for Trump's wall, not Mexico.
- India was the first of the world's great democracies to fall to populism: Can it survive the political division?
- Pregnant 11-year-old rape victim in Ohio won't be allowed to have an abortion under new state law: MAGA!
- Tech2Peace is an initiative to bring Israeli and Palestinian youth together via technology partnerships.
- Magnificent 3D painting of a bird.
- One in four US homes is now all-electric: The trend is particularly notwworthy in the South and Midwest.
- Quote of the day: "Everyone is so happy on social media. It's depressing." ~ Actress Meg Ryan, 57
- A rather sassy performance of one my favorite songs, "Sway."
- A popular Spanish song: "La Paloma" ("No More") wonderfully performed by Placido Domingo.
(5) A proposal to geeks who love Persian poetry (this Facebook post contains my proposal's Persian version): Poetry Web sites have vastly simplified the task of finding the works of great Persian-speaking poets. Search capabilities, however, remain at a primitive level. For instance, ganjoor.net allows searching of its database for poems containing a given keyword (such as 'love' or 'Farhad'). But if you are interested in poems containing both 'love' and 'Farhad,' you are stuck with the unpleasant task on manually searching the results of one keyword search for the occurrence of the other keyword. Google searches are sometimes helpful, but they tend to return many blog posts and other Web content with incomplete or incorrect versions of the poems. And you still have to examine the hits one by one. Adding such a capability to ganjoor.net, or designing a post-processor that works based on the results returned by ganjoor.net, shouldn't be too difficult. The tool can be made even more useful by employing machine-learning methods to handle alternate spellings and typographical variations.

2019/05/13 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A young Doris Day Cover image of Armistead Maupin's 'Logical Family: A Memoir' Michelle Obama in a stunning purple outfit (1) Images of the day: [Left] Que sera, sera: Doris Day, an icon of Hollywood's glamour years with the girl-next-door image, has died at 97. Here's a video showing Doris Day's transformation, as she aged from 1 to 96. [Center] Armistead Maupin's Logical Family: A Memoir, reviewed in the last item below. [Right] A woman who's comfortable in her skin: Michelle Obama's purple outfit has turned some heads.
(2) Cliff erosion is Isla Vista: My bluff-top walk of Sunday afternoon coincided with extreme high tide, bringing the water all the way to the base of the cliffs. This condition has eroded the cliffs over the years, leading to the installation of fencing in some areas to prevent people from getting too close to the bluffs' edges. [Photos] And here are a couple of selfies taken earlier that same afternoon at Coal Oil Point Nature Reserve.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- World markets lose $1 trillion in value as US-China tariff war heats up.
- Tension continues to build up in the Persian-Gulf region: Two Saudi oil tankers targeted with sabotage.
- This police-misconduct story, from Santa Barbara Independent is about UCSB, so it hit close to home.
- The deepest-ever submarine dive finds plastic waste on the Pacific Ocean floor.
- Persian music: An oldie song performed by the legendary late singer Gholam-Hossein Banan.
- Iranian music: This kamancheh-koobeh duet sounds like Kurdish music, but I'm not sure.
- Cartoon of the day: "They keep sending us their 'thoughts and prayers' ..."; "... And their kids." [Image]
- Cartoon caption of the day: "This is the true MIRACLE drug; it costs less this year than it cost last year!"
(4) Book review: Maupin, Armistead, Logical Family: A Memoir, unabridged audiobook on 7 CDs, read by the author, Harper Audio, 2017. [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Maupin, best known for his Tales of the City series, was raised in North Carolina among conservative, racist, and Confederate-nostalgist Republicans. The law-school dropout served in the US Navy in Vietnam and, after he discovered the joy of gay sex in the early 1970s, was offered a job as a journalist in San Francisco. "Logical Family" presumably refers to his close circle of friends and lovers in San Francisco, which replaced his real, illogical/biological family. Among his "friends with benefits" was actor Rock Hudson, who remained in the closet until he was afflicted with AIDS, when he was ousted by Maupin.
This 300-page memoir covers six decades, so, many of the author's life events are left out. The focus is on Maupin's transformation from his conservative, chaste, and intolerant background to the exact opposite: Liberal, promiscuous, and advocating diversity/equality, and the joy he found as a result. Maupin is considered an influential writer, particularly in regards to gay rights. His life and work are featured in the documentary film "The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin."
Maupin writes passionately and skillfully about his triumphs and misadventures, but many of stories in the book, while entertaining as you read them, are utterly forgettable.

2019/05/12 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A waterfall in Amol, Mazandaran Province, Iran Happy Mothers' Day! The winning entry at Texas Sand Sculpture Festival, 2019 (1) Images of the day: [Left] A waterfall in Amol, Mazandaran Province, Iran. [Center] Honoring Mothers' Day (see item 2 below). [Right] The winning entry at Texas Sand Sculpture Festival, 2019.
(2) A happy Mothers' Day to my precious mom and to all the wonderful mothers who nurture our youth and serve as role models in every important aspect of life. As I write this note, mothers are imprisoned in Iran for behavior that not only isn't criminal but represents noble resistance against backward-looking patriarchy, making their children and everyone else proud. And here are some flowers and a Persian poem (by the contemporary Iranian poet Fereydoon Moshiri) honoring mothers.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Afghan journalist Mina Mangal shot and killed in broad daylight en route to work.
- Okay, climate-change deniers: How much more evidence do you need? [Chart, atmospheric carbon]
- Here's what happens to a plane wing when hit by a small drone: Result of experiment at U. Dayton, Ohio.
- The devastating consequences of deforestation. [4-minute video]
- Persian music and dance: A 3-minute video from foroozan.dance.
- Nostalgic Kermanshah II: Music, with the backdrop of a family outing in the 1960s. [Grainy video]
(4) An often-misused Persian idiom: Some people spell the idiom "kaj daar o mariz" so that it ends with the word for "sick," which sounds the same as the word for "don't spill," the correct usage. The idiom means to carry a wineglass or bowl in tilted position, while taking care not to spill the contents, that is, being deliberate or diplomatic. A couple of verses from a Persian poem, whose poet I was unable to find, are often cited as evidence for the correct form. [Facebook post, with the Persian poem and related text]
(5) Satire? No, it's, at least in part, serious: An unnamed person dares Iran's mullahs to take advantage of the Great Satan bringing forces to the Persian Gulf to show their military might, heretofore used only against cardboard mock-ups of fighter jets and aircraft carriers, not to mention to suppress and jail unarmed women's and labor rights activists. As the Persian saying goes, the sheep has walked into the slaughterhouse on its own volition, the writer continues. Show that you can turn the burning of the American flag and chants of "Death to America" into a military victory! [Facebook post]

2019/05/11 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Agha Bozorg Mosque in Kashan, Iran Unnamed shrine in Iran (from Navid Fatehpour's Instagram) Shah-e-Cheragh Shrine in Shiraz, Iran (Photographed by Nora Piero) (1) Iran's amazing mosques/shrines: [Left] Agha Bozorg Mosque in Kashan, Iran. [Center] Unnamed shrine in Iran (from Navid Fatehpour's Instagram). [Right] Shah-e-Cheragh Shrine in Shiraz, Iran (Photo by Nora Piero).
(2) Talk about infrastructure: China's ambitious projects to redirect water from its south to drought-stricken areas hundreds of miles to the north. [5-minute video, narrated in Persian]
(3) Big meeting in Tehran: This is the first color (colorized?) film I have seen of the late-1943 Tehran Conference attended by Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Joseph Stalin. [2-minute video]
(4) How a teen fought her school's discriminatory dress code for graduating women and won: She had nothing against dresses or skirts, but thought that the no-pants-for-girls policy was outdated. After failing to convince school authorities of the need to update the dress code for the 21st century, she took her fight to the school board and gave an impassioned speech during the comments period. Now, the policy reads "professional attire" for both men and women.
(5) Egyptians laugh at veiling of women (I wish Iranians had done the same 4 decades ago): Gamal Abdel Nasser relates how he could not reach a deal with Muslim Brotherhood, because they demanded that he veil all 10 million Egyptian women. [2-minute video, in Arabic, with Persian and English subtitles]
(6) My daughter Sepideh's 25th birthday celebration, today: The party was a hit, thanks to the presence and food/work contributions of our extended family and a visit from a cousin who is here from Israel, along with her daughter's US-based family. Our celebration also included honoring mothers a day early, an apt combination, given that Sepideh was born on Mothers' Day. [Photos: Batch 1; Batch 2, including Video 1]
The very talented duo SBPianoBoys provided live musical entertainment at our party. [Video 2] [Video 3]
They took turns playing and later joined together for several wonderful duet performances, including two Hungarian dances by Brahms. Bravo! [Video 4] [Video 5] [Video 6] [Playlist]

2019/05/10 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Trump and Barr make a mockery of our justice system and separation of powers Universal healthcare is not a radical idea but mainstream throughout the free world Historic site in Kashan, Iran (1) Images of the day: [Left] Trump and Barr make a mockery of our justice system and separation of powers. [Center] Universal healthcare is not a radical idea but mainstream throughout the free world. [Right] Historic site in Kashan, Iran (credit: Navid Fatehpour's Instagram).
(2) Quote of the day: "It's time to go back to the moon, this time to stay." ~ Jeff Bezos, upon revealing a new moon lander, Blue Moon, along with a smaller rover
(3) It would be great if we could retire the misogynistic Persian terms "gheirat" and "namoos," which have had no use over the centuries other than curtailing women's freedom. [Persian translation]
(4) Exaflops milestone to come in 2021: The $600M supercomputer being developed by the the US Energy Department will offer a performance of 1.5 × 10^18 floating-point operations per second or 1.5 exaflops.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- IranWire journalist target of fatwa and death threat for writing a poem against extremist/irrational Islam.
- Iran's Minister of Intelligence is worried that Christianity is spreading in parts of the country.
- Humorous breaking news for my Persian-speaking readers. [Image]
- Kurdish music, with the backdrop of old (grainy) late-1950s/early-1960s film clips from the region.
- Flowers are everywhere around my home in southwestern oceanfront area of Goleta. [Photos]
- Climate-change song: We need to build a better future, and we need to start right now! [Video]
- This one's for my Persian-speaking readers: The themes of death and dying in Persian idioms and slang.
(6) Persian comedy routine: In this video clip, the humorist known as "Mr. Haloo" pretends to ask a cleric for religious guidance on whether it is permissible to show a woman wearing a wig in a film he his making. The cleric answers that it's okay, provided the woman's own hair is well hidden under the wig. Follow-up questions: Can the wig be made from natural hair? Can one woman's natural hair be made into a wig for another woman? Can we cut a woman's hair and make it into a wig for that same woman? The answer is "yes" in all cases. Punch-line question: Isn't it stupid to cut a woman's hair and put it back on her head, when it is already there?
(7) I have been preparing for tomorrow's major quarter-of-a-century birthday party and celebration of Mothers' Day (a day early). Part of the prep is putting together a platter of Persian-style fresh herbs.

2019/05/09 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
UCSB's West Campus Beach this afternoon, with one of the clearest views of Platform Holly UCSB's Faculty Club, where today's 'Men Allies for Gender Equity' workshop was held This afternoon at Goleta's Coal Oil Point Natural Reserve, not far from UCSB's West Campus Beach (1) Images of the day: [Left] UCSB's West Campus Beach this afternoon, with one of the clearest views of Platform Holly. [Center] UCSB's Faculty Club, where today's workshop (see the last item below) was held. [Right] This afternoon at Goleta's Coal Oil Point Natural Reserve, not far from UCSB's West Campus Beach.
(2) Alert to tomato lovers: New tariff on imported tomatoes from Mexico will lead to price increases at US supermarkets and Mexican restaurants, which use lots of tomatoes.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Roya Hakakian's Facebook post about a teen's bravery during Colorado's STEM school mass-shooting.
- Iranian-American mother and daughter graduate with University of Arizona engineering degrees.
- Today's English lesson: The word "Dangerous"! [Video]
- Cleaning advice: How to remove different kinds of stain. [Meme]
(4) Men Allies for Gender Equity: This was the title of a 2-hour workshop taught by Professors Roger Green (EE, NDSU) and Robert Gordon (Psychology, Auburn) at UCSB's Faculty Club today. The workshop was conducted in separate sessions for men and women participants, so as to allow honest and open exchange of ideas and to optimize the presentations to the different awareness levels and information needs.
As my friends know, I am an advocate for complete and unconditional gender equality and am quite active in the domain of women's rights, so I wasn't sure whether I would gain anything from the workshop. I was mistaken in this belief, especially in the area of recognizing and dealing with unintentional or unconscious bias. One recurring theme in the workshop was the need for men to speak up when they see gender bias and not leave the entire burden to women colleagues. Examples include acting when they see women interrupted during meetings, making sure that women are nominated for awards and honors, and keeping both men and women in mind in all endeavors (NASA's lack of suitable space suits for women comes to mind).
It's impossible for me to even mention all the key ideas and strategies presented in the workshop, which focused on understanding the challenges faced by women in disciplines, such as sciences and engineering, where they are significantly under-represented. Instead, I will share the comprehensive and highly informative presentation slides. Here, I just reiterate the 5 quick and easy actions that will get you started on the way to becoming a gender-equity advocate:
- Attend an Advocate FORWARD Ally Workshop, if you get an opportunity to do so.
- Take a few Implicit Association Tests.
- Watch the 10-minute video "5 Ways Men Can Help End Sexism."
- Read these 14 Advocacy Tips.
- Begin a Personal Action Plan and write down the first action you will take to promote gender equity.
The workshop was organized at the invitation of UCSB's Deans of Science and of Engineering, who should be commended for their initiative.
[Selected workshop handouts: Male privilege; References, Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4]
[NDSU's FORWARD Resource Page] [Presentation slides for today's UCSB workshop (forthcoming)]

2019/05/08 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover of the latest issue of 'National Geographic': Leonardo, a Renaissance man for the 21st Century Cartoon: How the Republicans represent the Democrats' plan Cover of Newsweek magazine, issue of May 10, 2019 (1) Images of the day: [Left] Cover of the latest issue of National Geographic: Leonardo, a Renaissance man for the 21st Century. [Center] Republicans' strategy to smear Democrats: Placing a noble, patriotic, and morally right action (impeaching Trump) alongside four falsehoods to make the former also seem undesirable or wrong. [Right] Those who dismissed China are realizing their mistake: But Trump continues on his trade-war path.
(2) The tectonic plate off the coast of Portugal is peeling: This phenomenon, which Is being detected for the first time, can shrink the Atlantic Ocean and send Europe toward Canada.
(3) Stereotyping STEM women: Despite much progress toward gender equality, STEM women are still portrayed in stereotypical ways in the popular media. Fay Cobb Payton and Eleni Berki discuss the consequences of stereotyping and other sociocultural gender barriers in their insightful May 2019 article, published in Communications of the ACM, Vol. 62, No. 5, pp. 56-63.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- What was Donald saying about freeloaders not paying income tax despite crippling government debt?
- Felon-in-Chief bought stocks and pretended to be a corporate raider to boost prices, before selling off.
- Can't eliminate poverty? Move the goalpost by redefining it, as Trump admimistration is doing! [Newsweek]
- CIA warns an Arab pro-democracy activist in Norway about Saudi threat against him.
- Texas bartender faces jail time for serving drinks to an intoxicated, armed man, who later killed 8 people.
- Private jet that disappeared en route from Las Vegas to Monrerrey found with all 13 occupants dead.
- Iranian school girls say no to mandatory hijab law and the regressive mindset that produced it. [Photos]
- Low-tech gadgets, with big impacts on worker comfort and productivity. [3-minute video]
- Emergency patient transport, when every second counts. [Video]
- Persian music: Three players, one of whom doubles as a singer, play two instruments (a tar and a tonbak)!
- Persian music: Mahsa Vahdat sings. [3-minute video]
- Quote: "When you shoot a zebra in the black stripe, the white stripe dies too." ~ African proverb
(5) I snapped these photos on campus today, on the way to my 12:00 PM class: Yes, I get my share of sleepy/exhausted (8:00 AM, 6:00 PM) and hungry students!

2019/05/07 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photos taken during a pleasant campus walk on May 6, 2019 Old-time college friends, photographed in a restaurant on their last day of touring Kurdistan Photos I took during a stroll through UCSB's arts building on May 6, 2019 (1) Images from yesterday: [Left] Photos taken during a pleasant campus walk, between my 12:00-2:00 class and 3:00-4:30 office hours on May 6, 2019. The Lagoon Island, a piece of land between the C-shaped campus lagoon and the Pacific Ocean, and mountains on Santa Barbara Channel Islands are seen in one of the photos. [Center] Good to see old-time college friends in this photo, as they end their tour of Kurdistan, but the restaurant's chair design choice isn't the best for a bunch of older diners! [Right] Photos I took during a stroll through UCSB's arts building on May 6, 2019, where even the courtyard benches are artsy!
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Study finds that Americans cross structurally-deficient bridges 178 million times per day.
- Microbots, which move due to different expansion characteristics of various materials, are coming.
- Deep-sea drones help discover seafloor habitats, volcanoes, faults, and tsunami-triggering slopes.
- Bird's-eye view of Orkney is Scotland: Natural-drone videography! [3-minute video]
- The Seven Wonders of the World, as they look today and if they had survived. [Pictorial]
- Afghan boy dances for joy in the hospital after being outfitted with an artificial leg. [Video]
- Japanese ensemble performs "Morgh-e Sahar" to honor Mohammad-Reza Shajarian. [8-minute video]
- Kurdish music: Sadigh Ta'rif sings, accompanied by the Norooz Ensemble.
- Persian poetry: A few verses from Mowlavi (Rumi). [Facebook post]
- Celebrating Iran's national soccer team with Hooshmand Aghili at a Tehran park before the Revolution.
(3) My afternoon stroll at Goleta's Lake Los Carneros Park: I had not been to the Park for a couple of years, so decided to go back for a walk on this overcast spring day. The large, serene park is less than 1/2 mile to the north of the US 101, but if it weren't for the sound of cars traveling on the 101, it would feel like an isolated wilderness area. The beautiful lake and its surrounding areas, with their birds and wildflowers, are wonderful resources in the middle of a rapidly-developing urban region. [Photos: Batch 1; Batch 2; Batch 3; Batch 4]
(4) Police closed Highway 101 in Goleta mid-day today, May 7, 2019: The closure in both directions between Patterson and Turnpike was due to a standoff with an armed suspect while executing a high-risk search warrant at an apartment complex just to the south of the freeway on Turnpike. The area, which includes San Marcos High School, was evacuated. Nightmare traffic on Hollister Avenue ensued. The suspect was found dead from a (self-inflicted?) gunshot wound.

2019/05/06 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Satellite image of western United States NASA satellite image of the Iranian Plateau: Night NASA satellite image of the Iranian Plateau: Day (1) Satellite images: [Left] This satellite image of western United States reminds me that on maps and satellite images, oceans (and bodies of water in general) are under-represented. There is much going on in terms of topography and vegetation under the featureless light-blue color in maps or bluish-gray texture in satellite images. [Center & Right] Night and day NASA satellite images of the Iranian Plateau, with exaggerated topographical features for greater clarity.
(2) Happy Teachers' Day: Sharing a Facebook post from May 5, 2015, in honor of teacher appreciation day in the US and its Iranian counterpart, which was 3 days earlier.
(3) Trump's tax returns: It is not the Dems that have weaponized the IRS but cheating taxpayers in high places who are hiding their criminal activities behind noble causes such as privacy and personal liberties.
(4) ACLU excesses may give us a second Trump term: The organization's attempt to get Democratic candidates on record on issues such as abortion rights and voting by criminals is giving ammunition to Trump.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The fragile Israel-Gaza truce, brokered by Egypt, has fallen apart with renewed hostilities.
- Russian plane bursts into flame upon emergency landing, killing more than half of the 78 on board.
- Taliban kill 13 in attack on Afghan police headquarters: And the US is negotiating with these terrorists?
- Boeing knew about and ignored problems with its 737 Max plane the year before Lion Air crash.
- Nurse sets world record in London Marathon but is denied recognition because she wore trousers!
- Stocks-friendly US presidency may end: A few mentions of Medicare-for-all has hurt healthcare stocks.
- Artists are turning the US-Mexico border wall into a monument for peace.
- World's 10 best destinations for flower lovers, according to National Geographic.
(6) The United States, China, India, and an expanding field of smaller players are planning moon-landing missions in search of opportunities to exploit resources on the surface of the moon.
(7) Breaking news: Royal baby boy arrives through the same path taken by all babies and makes the exact same crying sound, but more will be said and written about him than all other babies combined!
(8) The Borowitz Report (humor): Trump claims Mueller called to say that "[I am] the most innocent person he'd ever come across, and maybe in history."
(9) Quote of the day: "There could be a powerful international women's rights movement if only philanthropists would donate as much to real women as to paintings and sculptures of women." ~ Nicholas D. Kristof

2019/05/04 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Two multi-panel paintings representing the four seasons (likely by the same artist, unknown to me) March for Science 2019: My T-shirt inscription reads 'Science Is Not a Liberal Conspiracy' Goleta Valley Public Library in the 1960s, when it was located on South Fairview Avenue (1) Images of the day: [Left] Two multi-panel paintings representing the four seasons (likely by the same artist, unknown to me). [Center] March for Science 2019: I couldn't be at today's Washington DC march and there was no march in Santa Barbara this year, so I did my own solo march in the wilderness near my home (more photos). [Right] Goleta Public Library in the 1960s, when it was located on South Fairview Avenue.
(2) We are at a defining moment in sports: Can/should we regulate natural variations in bodily functions? The answer appears to be "yes" for a black African woman and "no" for a white American man. [Meme]
(3) A Trump supporter lamented on Facebook about how she misses the days when our president was honored, not attacked. Personally, I miss the days when our president was honorable, not a felon!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Racism is nothing new in America: After a period of dormancy, it has reared its ugly head under Trump.
- Someone who once called Trump a kook and unfit for office shown criticizing others for doing the same!
- Pink Floyd's "The Wall," wonderfully performed in Middle-Eastern style.
- A couple of humorous memes for my Persian-speaking readers. [Images]
- Azeri dance: Taking a break from research work in the lab! [3-minute video]
- The amazing gap between the ultra-rich and ordinary people in Tehran, Iran. [11-minute video]
- The bridges of Isfahan, Iran: An informative 15-minute travelogue.
- Quote of the day: "A man is incomplete until he is married. After that, he is finished." ~ Anonymous
(5) On economic indicators: GDP doesn't measure the well-being of the average American. Building a yacht and selling it to a rich person contributes more to the GDP than all economic activities in a small urban neighborhood. And unemployment rate isn't a good indicator by itself. As Kamala Harris points out in The Truths We Hold, which I am now reading, yes, people have jobs but many two-income families still have to decide whether to pay for their meds or their children's education; forget about saving for retirement! In some cases, their choice is between food and meds. A country can have near-full employment and starving citizens. A recent study by Temple University's Hope Center for College, Community and Justice has revealed that nearly half of all college students face food insecurity, because they have to give priority to paying their tuition and fees to stay in college. To these college students, and to graduates facing a similar situation due to the burden of eductional debt, GDP growth and low unemployment rate mean very little.

2019/05/03 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Amazing coastal sunsets: Photo 1 Amazing coastal sunsets: Photo 2 Amazing coastal sunsets: Painting (1) Amazing coastal sunsets: Two photos and a painting.
(2) Quote of the day: "I realized that it was necessary, once in the course of my life, to demolish everything completely and start again right from the foundations if I wanted to establish anything at all in the sciences that was stable and likely to last." ~ Rene Descartes
(3) Politics with random numbers: Headlines read that Trump and Dem leaders have agreed on a $2 trillion infrastructure plan. But the "plan" is just that number and nothing else; no agreement or even discussion on where the money will come from or how it will be spent. Along the same lines, I have a $10 trillion "plan" to deal with climate change. No, make that a $15 trillion "plan"!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump just gave Putin the green light to interfere in our 2020 presidential election.
- New York Times apologizes for publishing an anti-Semitic cartoon in its international edition.
- Patricia Arquette urged Congress to pass the Equal-Rights Amendment, ending 232 years of inequality.
- Journalist Roya Hakakian on rising anti-Semitism globally and its counter-intuitive receding in Iran.
- The dark side of hi-tech and how Facebook was an accessory to election-meddling. [4-minute video]
- Let's begin the countdown to a new president in 2020 and NASA's new moon landing in 2024!
- Meme of the day: An insightful characterization of our news diet lately! [Pie chart]
- I hope you keep on dancing, regardless of your circumstances! [Photo]
- Sanctions have hit Iran hard on the currency exchange market. [Photo]
- Five things invented by Iranians (2-minute video): Refrigerator; Postal service; Algebra; Guitar; Chess.
(5) On fake Twitter followers: "Twitter is trash, Facebook's the devil, I bought a million followers for like $400. None of this shit matters. Antarctica is melting." ~ Comedian Joe Mande, who has 1.01 million Twitter followers
(6) March for Science returns tomorrow, Saturday, May 4, 2019: Among protest topics is Trump administration's proposed removal of any mention of climate change from its Arctic policy statement.
(7) On May 2nd, Holocaust Remembrance Day in Israel, everyone stops and reflects for 2 minutes, as sirens wail nationwide. Well, almost everyone! [Video]

2019/05/02 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Perfectly-timed photo: Lightning bolt strikes a Delta passenger jet FedEx van driving/parking on UCSB walkways My college classmates during their tour of Iran's Kurdistan region (1) Images of the day: [Left] Lightning bolt strikes near the tail of a Delta passenger jet and exits through its landing gear below. [Center] UCSB walkways are being used as roads (see item 2 below). [Right] My college classmates during their tour of Iran's Kurdistan region (see item 3 below).
(2) Vehicles invading campus walkways at UCSB: The photos above, taken in mid-afternoon of May 1, 2019, show a large FedEx van parked in front of Ellison Hall (near Campbell Hall) and later driving past Cheadle Hall, on its way to University Plaza. Since many years ago, when I started tracking such violations, FedEx and UPS have been told that their delivery vehicles should not use campus walkways. But lack of enforcement has led to recurring violations, which endanger the safety of students and staff.
(3) Wish I could have been there: A number of my Tehran University College of Engineering (Fanni) classmates, with whom I celebrated the 50th anniversary of our graduation in Armenia last year, are touring Iran's Kurdistan region. They have been sending me photos and got in touch this morning through a video call from Mahabad to say that I am missed. The bottom photo above was taken at the Central Square in Saqqez, the birthplace of both of my parents.
(4) Compressive sensing: In this excellent 74-minute lecture, given at Microsoft Research, Professor Richard Baraniuk (Rice U) explains the modern tool that helps us mitigate data explosion in a variety of applications.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Possible defeat of AIDS: Broad study finds the effectiveness of drugs in stoping the transmission of AIDS.
- While the nation was fixated on AG Barr's testimony, Trump took a further step to dismantle Obamacare.
- An overview of quantum computing and its significance, in 10 minutes.
- Amnesty International demands the release of labor-rights activists detained in Iran.
- Iran still uses child soldiers: And it proudly advertises this policy for propaganda and in recruitment ads.
(6) "A Roadmap for Reverse-Architecting the Brain's Neocortex": This was the title of today's talk by Dr. James E. Smith, Emiritus Professor of U. Wisconsin and Adjunct Professor of CMU Silicon Valley, under the auspices of UCSB's Institute for Energy Efficiency. Smith has made seminal contributions to the field of computer architecture and was honored by the prestigious ACM/IEEE Eckert-Mauchly Award in 1999. Of late, he has been developing neuron-based computing paradigms at his Montana home.
It has been a dream of researchers in computer science and engineering to understand and replicate the computing paradigm(s) used in the brain's neocortex. The first milestone along the road is the development of feed-forward biologically plausible neural networks capable of unsupervised, continual learning, and with energy-efficient implementations. Recent results in neuroscience provide a foundation for this first step.
The next step moves from plausible primitives to functional building blocks that may be combined to achieve the milestone neural network. Here, there is much less experimental support, and the problem becomes more challenging. This also means that the research space is wide-open, with many opportunities for architectural innovation for decades to come. [Images]

2019/04/30 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Why you don't see crocodiles in the orchestra! Cartoon: Modern family at the dinner table Cartoon: Soldiers going to war and returning home (1) Cartoons of the day: [Left] Why you don't see crocodiles in the orchestra! [Center] Modern family praying at the dinner table. [Right] Soldiers going to war and returning home.
(2) Quote of the day: "We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people." ~ John F. Kennedy
(3) US presidential candidates for 2020, by the numbers: 23 Candidates; 13 White men; 6 Women; 6 Senators; 6 People of color; 4 Would be youngest president; 3 Would be oldest president; 3 Veterans; 2 Obama officials; 2 Have never held office; 1 Out gay man.
(4) "Ecosystems of Oil at the Ocean's Floor and Other Secrets of the Santa Barbara Channel": This was the title of an interesting talk in the "Pacific Views Lecture Series," held in UCSB Library's 8th-floor conference room today. The speaker, Dr. David Valentine, Professor of Earth Science and Biology at UCSB, focused on three basins off the coasts of Santa Barbara, Santa Monica, and Long Beach (San Pedro). These are deep, bowl-like areas of coastal waters (~2000-3000 feet at their deepest points) that have fairly unique ecosystems, because of the dearth of oxygen at the isolated depths. Seepage of gas/oil and, in San Pedro Basin's case, large-scale deposits of waste from a now-defunct DDT plant nearby, have created varied life forms that shape and are shaped by the available nutrients. And yes, some life forms survive without oxygen, by adapting to what is available. The tools used by Dr. Valentine's group to investigate the aforementioned basins include a fully-equipped research vessel, a 3-passenger submarine, and an autonomous underwater vehicle. Dr. Valentine's presentation relied heavily on showing videos taken at the ocean floor, but, unfortunately, technical difficulties with the projection system did not allow the screening of all but a handful of videos (at the end of the presentation, after technical problems had been resolved). [Photo] [Dr. Valentine's Web page]
(5) A final thought for today, as we end the National Poetry Month: Saying "I don't like poetry" makes no sense, just as claiming "I don't like music" is nonsensical. There are so many different kinds of poetry that everyone is bound to like some of it. Try to find your kind!

2019/04/29 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The 5 different covers of the Time-100 special issue Selfie from the Time-100 gala (1) Time-100: [Left] The 4/29-5/06 special double-issue of Time magazine about "The 100 Most-Influential People" has 5 different covers, one for each of the 5 categories of pioneers, artists, leaders, titans, and icons. [Right] Comedian Trevor Noah takes a selfie at the Time-100 Gala.
(2) One death and multiple injuries are still heart-wrenching, but had the San Diego synagogue gunman's weapon not jammed, we'd be looking at a different scale of carnage.
(3) Would-be terrorist, who wanted to avenge the mosque murders in New Zealand by launching mass-casualty attacks against synagogues, churches, and other targets, has been arrested in Los Angeles.
(4) Quote of the day: "I wish my stove came with a 'Save As' button like Word has. That way I could experiment with my cooking and not fear ruining my dinner." ~ Jarod Kintz
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Are we too dazed to be shocked by an unhinged president who deems his critics 'scum' and 'stupid'?
- Trump on Easter: It means something very special ... And it really represents family and get-together ...
- Top general resurrects the threat of closing down the Strait of Hormuz if Iran faces increased hostility.
- This humorous Persian poem about a donkey's advice to his son led to the closure of Ghaanoon Newspaper.
(6) Apple doesn't like apps that fight iPhone addiction: Over the past year, Apple has removed or restricted at least 11 of the 17 most downloaded screen-time and parental-control apps. In some cases, Apple forced companies to remove features that allowed parents to control their children's devices or that blocked children's access to certain content, while other apps were simply pulled from the App Store. [From: New York Times]
(7) Oh, the irony: This letter is said to have been written by Khamenei some 42 years ago, when he was imprisoned by the Shah's regime. In it, he asks that prison guards obey the law that a prisoner is entitled to making phone calls. Quite funny, given what goes on in Iranian prisons nowadays!

2019/04/28 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
'New Yorker' cartoon: 'It's take-your-child-to-work day!' The way Putin looks at Trump is reminiscent of the Persian idiom 'a wise person's glance at a fool'! School-girls in Iran, then and now (1) Images of the day: [Left] New Yorker cartoon: "It's take-your-child-to-work day!" [Center] The way Putin looks at Trump is reminiscent of the Persian idiom "a wise person's glance at a fool"! [Right] Iranians' dilemma: Trying to explain to their kids that the top photo shows their mom's generation at school and the bottom photo shows their grandma's.
(2) Historian Ron Chernow's speech at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner: There was no comedian for 2019, because "they wanted to try boring at this year's dinner"!
(3) Dr. Shokufeh Taghi on bi-gender governance and civil religion: In this Persian article, Dr. Taghi draws on Shahnameh's examples to demonstrate that order prevails in a society only when both the masculine and feminine elements influence all aspects of governance.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Continuing the journey toward "greatness": Trump pulls back Obama-era workplace protections for women.
- Exhuastion of vote-counters in the 10 days following the Indonesian election leads to 272 deaths
- Why do men find it hard to apologize? A psychotherapist responds in Psychology Today.
- This afternoon, on Santa Barbara's Stearns Wharf, after dining with old-time friend Faramarz Davarian.
(5) Robert Mueller's scientific method: Having come to the conclusion that he cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Trump obstructed justice, Mueller sets out to falsify the null hypothesis that obstruction did not occur.
(6) Santa Barbara Earth Day Festival: Held in Alameda Park, the festival spanned May 26-28. There were many different booths and activities. [Photos] Among the main attractions were exhibits of electric and "green" autos and bicycles. [Photos] There was also a pictorial display about Santa Barbara's 1969 oil spill of 50 years ago that spurred environmental activism and led to the establishment of Earth Day. [Photos] Musical performances ran on two different stages, and a special stage in the children's area. [Video 1] [Video 2]

2019/04/27 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Perfectly-timed photos: Example 1 Dr. Dale Clark, who passed away on March 8, 2019 Perfectly-timed photos: Example 2 (1) Images of the day: [Left & Right] Perfectly-timed photos. [Center] Dr. Dale Clark, who passed away on March 8, 2019 (see item 2 below).
(2) Dr. Dale Clark [1943-2019]: This morning, I attended a memorial service for a former (retired) UCSB colleague at the Goleta Presbyterian Church. Quite a unique and talented individual, Dale unfortunately retired before I got to know him well. Today, through heartfelt comments and remembrances of several of his friends, including one who came all the way from Denmark to be at the service, I learned much about him, such as his love for music and poetry. Memorable lines from what his friends shared (related here from my memory) included "One was never sure whether dale was smiling" and "To say that his sense of humor was dry is an understatement." May he Rest In Peace! Among survivors is his wife Margie, another retired UCSB colleague, who managed our Student Affairs Office for several years. Warm condolences to her and other survivors!
(3) "Ashraf-e makhlooghaat": This Persian/Arabic expression means "the noblest of all creatures," referring to us humans, who do the following to a bull before a bullfight! [Meme]
(4) US law actually does allow charging someone with obstruction of justice, even when there is no underlying crime: Comedian Trevor Noah provides the clearest explanation of why this makes sense. Imagine your mom accusing you of eating all the cookies. You deny doing that, but when she wants to go into the kitchen to show you the empty jar, you block her way, as you continue to scream your denial. You know what your mom will do!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump's 3-part tweet of Thursday, 2019/04/25 contained 6 demonstrably wrong statements.
- Is something wrong with this WH tweet about the First Lady's birthday, or is it just me?
- Kurdish Music and dance: Celebrating Sanandaj Day. [Video 1] [Video 2]
- This Norooz 2020 program may be of interest to my readers om the San Francisco Bay Area.
(6) Quote of the day: "When the thieves who robbed your house start fighting among themselves, don't raise your hopes that the winner will give part of your property back." ~ Anonymous (alluding to the infighting among Islamic Republic of Iran officials)
(7) IEEE Central Coast Section technical talks: Here's the latest update to IEEE CCS schedule of lectures (with some details of the forthcoming lecture by Dr. Katie Byl on May 15, 2019). We now have all third-Wednesdays of the month covered for 2019 and there are 3 speakers listed for early 2020 (2 confirmed and to be scheduled; 1 willing but not committed yet). [Web page]
(8) Goleta Valley Public Library: This under-used and under-appreciated community resource on North Fairview Avenue is my favorite place for browsing and reading books/periodicals. I use the library heavily, borrowing many audiobooks on CDs and in electronic form. [Photos]

2019/04/26 (Friday): Review of Thi Bui's remarkable and highly personal graphic memoir.
Table of contents for Thi Bui's graphic memoir Announcement of Thi Bui's April 25 lecture at UCSB Sample panels from Thi Bui's graphic memoir Book review: Bui, Thi, The Best We Could Do: An Illustrated Memoir, Harry N. Abrams, 2017.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This is only the second graphic novel that I have read. I found the first one, Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis, a tad disappointing, even though it has received broad international acclaim and was made into a feature film.
Bui's book was the 2019 selection for the "UCSB Reads" program, now in its 13th year, so I was able to get a free copy on campus, in a book-sharing bin where campus denizens deposit their unneeded books. I attended Bui's UCSB lecture of April 25, 2019, and had the book signed by her. I will incorporate the notes I took during the lecture into my review. [Photos/Images]
Bui's graphic memoir, which has garnered many awards and honors, tells the story of an immigrant family from Vietnam (part of the so-called "Boat People"), including their lives during various stages of the Vietnam War, their daring escape after the fall of Saigon, and the challenges they faced in their new American surroundings. Bui left Vietnam when she was 3, so she had to piece together much of her early family history through long interviews with her parents and others.
Beautifully illustrated and poetically told, the book relates the universal story of the need for belonging and the challenges faced by many of us, immigrants or otherwise, having to act simultaneously as children and parents. "A book to break your heart and heal it," opines the Pulitzer-Prize-winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen.
Like many war-ravaged countries, corruption and injustice prevailed in Vietnam during the war. I can very much relate to this aspect of Bui's story, which I also experienced after Iran's Islamic Revolution, and particularly, during the 8-year Iran-Iraq War. "People with access bought goods at a low price ... then sold them at a profit to relatives and middlemen ... who in turn sold them at an even higher price." [p. 201] Everyone was under suspicion: "[In school, we learned] about heroes such as Le-Ninh and how to report suspicious behavior. They said we should even report our parents!" [p. 225] Again, this is very similar to my first-hand observations in the post-Revolution Iran.
The parts of the memoir that describe the family's life in the United States are more predictable, as immigrants from many different countries face very similar challenges in terms of harassment, stereotyping, and lack of a sense of belonging, not to mention the difficulties of adapting to a new language and culture. This shared aspect is perhaps a tad more intense for the Vietnamese, given the US media's negative portrayals, both during and after the War.
Rather than simply read from the book during her UCSB talk, Bui chose to get several audience members engaged by giving them microphones and speaking parts, moving the volunteers to the front of the auditorium (she joked that she worked as a teacher for many years and thus likes to rearrange furniture and people in the room). The result was a very entertaining 20 minutes or so at the start of the lecture, especially when a very young boy spoke as several of the characters in Bui's story.
During a fairly long Q&A period, I asked Bui if the occasionally conflicting recollections from her parents (who were divorced and did not quite see the events in the same way) resulted in a need for guesswork or extrapolation to produce a complete narrative, and whether she has gone back to Vietnam for a first-hand look at the locations and settings of the early parts of her story. I learned that she has indeed gone back to Vietnam multiple times to get valuable insights about the country and its culture, although much has changed since those events occurred. She also showed the initial drafts of her drawings and text to her parents, thus giving them a chance to smooth things out or "veto" any part of the story they did not want told, although she reserved the right to make the final decision in each case.
Bui is now working on a number of projects, which include her next book, Nowhereland, and a sci-fi story about climate change, told from the perspective of the world's poor and disadvantaged people. Bui indicated that the number of people displaced as a result of climate change already exceeds displacements due to conflicts, and things will only get worse.

2019/04/25 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Italian artist plows a 10-square-miles portrait of Leonardo Da Vinci on a field, using a tractor, to honor the 500th anniversary of his death White House Correspondents Dinner: Washington's glamour night Throwback Thursday: Five years ago, on April 25, I came out of the Stone Age of digital gadgets and replaced my Blackberry with an iPhone! (1) Images of the day: [Left] Italian artist plows a 10-square-miles portrait of Leonardo Da Vinci on a field, using a tractor, to honor the 500th anniversary of his death (video). [Center] White House Correspondents Dinner: With Trump skipping Washington's glamour night for the third straight year, his staff ordered not to attend, and A-list celebrities increasingly fearful of showing up, the event's future looks grim (image: Politico). [Right] Throwback Thursday: Five years ago, on April 25, I came out of the Stone Age of digital gadgets and replaced my Blackberry with an iPhone!
(2) Survivors of natural disasters need more than food and shelter to cope: Jila Mcvandi tweets that when she said she wanted to make dolls for kids in the flood-stricken areas of Iran, she was ridiculed. When she went there with a few dolls, she regretted that she had not made and distributed more dolls. [Tweet, in Persian]
(3) Community activism in Iran: Retired teacher Safura Ghallehzari helps build libraries for the Caspian port city of Bandar Anzali by collecting trash and discarded paper.
(4) Kim Jong Un demands $2 million for the care of comatose US citizen, Otto Warmbier, who died days after being released from imprisonment in North Korea.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump obstructs Congressional investigations, likely driving the Democrats toward impeachment: His plan?
- Trump repeatedly asked former Attorney General Jeff Sessions to prosecute Hillary Clinton.
- US measles outbreak (about 700 confirmed cases so far) leads to quarantines at UCLA and Cal State LA.
- Driver whose semi plowed into stopped traffic near Denver faces multiple counts of vehicular homicide.
(6) You're having too much fun: Iran's state-owned TV cancels a game show modeled after "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" in view of objections by Khamenei that such shows go against the culture of hard work and creativity, and a fatwa from a senior cleric against all game shows with cash prizes.
(7) Modern network vulnerabilities: In the afternoon of April 24, 2019, UCSB experienced a campus-wide disruption of its computer network for more than 3 hours, and, even though service was restored before the end of the day, sporadic problems persisted for another day. The disruption was traced to a misconfigured departmental virtual machine, which caused a network loop that overloaded UCSB's core router. And all of this occurred despite modern security and operational controls on the campus network. It is like a whole bunch of careful drivers being endangered by a single wrong-way driver. In other words, it's not enough for you to obey traffic laws; you have to also watch out for careless drivers around you.
My 3:30 PM class was disrupted, because there was no Internet access in the classroom. Luckily, I had the PDF file of my lecture slides on my iPad, which had to do for the day, despite the fact that all slide animations and video clips were lost. My lecture topic was cryptography, which relied heavily on animation.

2019/04/24 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Trump's portrait, rendered with spaghetti Passwords will soon become things of the past: Gone but not forgotten! Cover image of Meg Wolitzer's 'The Wife' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Sorry, not a pleasant image to see, but it's artistically interesting! [Center] Passwords will soon become things of the past: Gone but not forgotten! [Right] Cover image of Meg Wolitzer's The Wife, reviewed below (see item 6).
(2) Professional sports bettor James Holzhauer wins for the 14th straight time on "Jeopardy!" to become the 2nd player ever to top $1 million during a run on the game show.
(3) What a propaganda piece by Glenn Beck! Racists and White-Supremacists always wrap themselves in the American flag to claim legitimacy. Saying that attacking Kate Smith for racism is an attack on 'God Bless America' makes as much sense as saying that an attack on a racist US President is an attack on US presidency, because he once occupied that position.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- After thrashing US intelligence agencies, Trump accuses UK intelligence of helping Obama spy on him.
- Alphabet-owned Wing Aviation gets the first FAA approval for deliveries by drones.
- Supreme Leader Khamenei asserts that Iran can export as much oil as it needs, despite US sanctions.
- Sri Lankan suicide bombers were highly educated and financially independent; more terror attacks feared.
(6) Book review: Wolitzer, Meg, The Wife, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Dawn Harvey, Blackstone Audio, 201. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Having listened to and enjoyed The Wife: A Novel, by Alafair Burke, which I had mistaken to be this book, I decided to go after my original intent and read the book on which the 2017 Sony Pictures film "The Wife," featuring the award-winning performance of Glenn Close in the title role, was based.
[My GoodReads review of Alafair Burke's book, The Wife: A Novel]
Wolitzer opens her book with the title character reflecting upon her unsatisfactory life as the devoted wife of a successful American novelist, at 35,000 feet above the ocean en route to Helsinki, where her husband is to receive a major literary honor. Reviewing all the compromises she made, infidelities she ignored, and dreams she left unfulfilled, the wife thinks that she has reached a breaking point and wants to end her marriage.
The author then flashes back to decades earlier, when the couple's relationship began; he was then an unhappily-married professor and she was his super-talented student. The decades-long relationship is explored in the rest of the novel, with wonderful writing and keen observations about life and its challenges, particularly the question of whether an ambitious woman has a place in a world dominated by men.
The couple's marital troubles are accompanied by a secret, which I won't reveal in my review. During his acceptance speech for the Helsinki Prize, the honoree thanks his wife profusely, which upsets her. She had asked not to be mentioned in the speech, because she did not cherish the fact that she had tossed aside her own writing projects, to be a comforter and server.
An ambitious young writer, who was snubbed by the honored novelist, when he revealed that he aspired to be his authorized biographer, befriends the wife and gains some useful insights. Being forced into writing an unauthorized biography, the young writer also gathers morsels of information from other sources, most of which are unflattering.
Wolitzer's The Wife is generally viewed as an assault against the literary establishment and its misogyny in assuming that only men can write the Great American Novel. Wolitzer's Great American Novel is a highly enjoyable read, and a page-turner to boot!

2019/04/23 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Blossoming trees in rural Kurdistan, Iran: Photo 1 Blossoming trees in rural Kurdistan, Iran: Photo 2 Photo showing the center of Singapore Changi Airport's Jewel dome (1) Natural and artificial beauty: [Left & Center] Blossoming trees in rural Kurdistan, Iran, are threatened by expected snow from an approaching cold front. [Right] Singapore Changi Airport's Jewel dome, a mega-structure that houses an impressive array of recreational and shopping options (4-minute video).
(2) Persian Music: Anoushirvan Rohani is known as a master composer and piano player. In this video clip, from a concert at UCLA's Royce Hall, he demonstrates his mastery of the accordion.
(3) UCLA Bilingual Lectures on Iran: On Sunday, May 19, 2019, at 3:30 PM, a Karestan documentary film entitled "Poets of Life" will be screened (UCLA Dodd Hall 121; in Persian, with English subtitles). The film highlights the sustainability efforts of Hayedeh Shirzadi and her husband, whose work has led to 100% of the city of Kermanshah's garbage being recycled and its biowaste converted into organic fertilizers. The film's artistic consultant Rakhsan Banietemad and producer Mojtaba Mirtahmasb will participate in a post-screening discussion, in Persian, moderated by Dr. Nayereh Tohidi. [Corrected flyer] [This is the corrected version of a post from Sunday, 4/21]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Three-dozen Saudis beheaded on terrorism charges and another one both beheaded and crucified.
- Human rights organizations condemn Saudi Arabia's mass execution of prisoners on terrorism charges.
- Quote of the day: "Anger is a wind which blows out the lamp of mind." ~ Robert G. Ingersoll
- Three young men dining in Alabama invited an elderly woman who was eating alone to their table.
(5) The behind-the-scene puppet-master speaks: Emboldened by the administration's positive spin on the Mueller Report, Jared Kushner asserts that the report was more harmful to our democracy than Russia's interference. I really would like to see this parasite behind bars! That's why impeachment of Trump is so important. It may not lead to his removal, but it will expose a whole lot of lies and misinformation.
(6) Iranian's 2019 Norooz parade in NYC: Nice dances and floats, representing Iran's provinces and their diverse people. My only criticism is that they did not try to be more inclusive politically.
(7) Final thought for the day: The worst thing the Democrats can do is to send an old, white man, who lacks an understanding of women's issues and women's movement, to face Trump. The Democratic nominee should be as dissimilar to Trump as possible, which means a youngish woman with strong public-service credentials.

2019/04/22 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Earth Day! The future of humanity depends on the health of our planet, so let's stop abusing her My departmental colleague Dr. Mahnoosh Alizadeh has received two prestigious honors (1) Images of the day: [Left] Happy Earth Day! The future of humanity depends on the health of our planet, so let's stop abusing her. [Center] Congrats to an exceptional young scientist/engineer/educator! My departmental colleague Dr. Mahnoosh Alizadeh has received two prestigious honors: An NSF CAREER Award for 2019 and a Northrop Grumman Excellence-in-Teaching Award (co-recipient for 2018-19). [Right] A sample of Sri Lanka's beautiful nature, a point of attraction for foreign tourists, who may now shun the country.
(2) French game-maker, which created a digital model of Notre Dame for its "Assassin's Creed" video game, pledges $0.5 million for restoration efforts.
(3) A dinosaur poised to enter Trump's orbit: Stephen Moore once wrote that women should be banned from participating in March Madness basketball tournament in any role. Herman Cain, the other nominee, has already withdrawn from being considered for the job.
(4) Sri Lanka's government issues an apology for having failed to act on credible intelligence tips (in some cases with names and addresses of terrorists) from the US and other countries about planned suicide attacks.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Identities of the nearly 300 locals and tourists killed in Sri Lanka's suicide bombings are being released.
- Fake news about the Mueller report, being spread by the White House and AG Barr, according to Haaretz.
- Something to watch tonight: The Lyrid meteor shower at its peak!
- So you think you can drive: Try making this U-turn!
- Persian music performed by a group of talented young kids. [3-minute video]
- Persian music: Sepideh Raissadat performs a song composed by two band members accompanying her.
(6) The world's shortest commercial flight is scheduled for just 90 seconds: Loganair's 1.7-mile hop connects the Scottish islands of Westray (population: 640) and Papa Westray (population: 72) in the Orkneys. In reality, the flight takes anywhere from just under a minute to 2.5 minutes, depending on wind conditions.
(7) "Nand to Tetris": This is the name of a course and the title of today's talk by Shimon Shocken, Founding Dean of the Efi Arazi School of Computer Science at IDC Herzliya, Israel, and former faculty member at NYU. Shocken outlined the design of a project-based course in which the semester-long project of building a modern computer from the ground up and programming it to play Tetris is divided into 12 one- or two-week mini-projects. Many universities worldwide use the notions used in this course, which has guides, modules, data files, and even a textbook freely available on-line. [Images]

2019/04/21 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A restaurant in Kashan, Iran (photo by Navid Fatehpour) A food-truck owner is criticized for advertising a T-Shirt that says, 'I support LGBTQ. Liberty, guns, bible, Trump, BBQ' All smiles, while taking a shoe-selfie! (1) Images of the day: [Left] A restaurant in Kashan, Iran (photo by Navid Fatehpour). [Center] Insensitivity to the extreme: A food-truck owner is criticized for advertising a T-Shirt that says, "I support LGBTQ. Liberty, guns, bible, Trump, BBQ." [Right] All smiles, while taking a shoe-selfie!
(2) Santa Barbara Earth Day Festival 2019 (49th annual; Alameda Park): Friday 4/26, 5:00 PM, concert only (no booths); Saturday-Sunday 4/27-28, 11:00 AM, booths and various programs. [Image]
(3) UCLA Bilingual Lectures on Iran: On Sunday, May 19, 2019, at 3:30 PM, a Karestan documentary film entitled "Mother of the Earth" will be screened (UCLA Dodd Hall 121; in Persian, with English subtitles). The film highlights the sustainability efforts of Hayedeh Shirzadi and her husband, whose work has led to 100% of the city of Kermanshah's garbage being recycled and its biowaste converted into organic fertilizers. Film director Rakhsan Banietemad and film producer Mojtaba Mirtahmasb will participate in a post-screening discussion, in Persian, moderated by Dr. Nayereh Tohidi. [Flyer] [See the corrected version of this post on Tuesday, 4/23]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Easter attacks on churches and hotels in Sri Lanka leave more than 200 dead.
- It's not just the 737 Max: A second Boeing jet is under scrutiny for shoddy production.
- Which is it Donald? Does Mueller's report exonerate you or is it a bunch of bullshit? Can't have it both ways!
- Why does the media give Giuliani or Conway a platform for spreading lies on behalf of the big conman?
- Several late-night show hosts form exploratory committees after TV comedian is elected president of Ukraine.
- With clean-up efforts ongoing after the floods that affected 10M people, Iranians brace for more rain.
- Pakistan accuses Iran in deadly cross-border attack that killed 14; Pakistani PM in Iran for talks.
- Boxer Sadaf Khadem cancels plans for returning to Iran after authorities issue arrest warrant for her.
(5) A technical assessment of Mueller's report: The released PDF file isn't searchable and it has low quality, because it was not electronically redacted, but scanned after redaction.
(6) The boundary between Russia's government and the country's criminal gangs/hackers has all but disappeared: An eye-opening report from CBS' "60 Minutes," broadcast this evening.
(7) A beautiful and bright spring day on the UCSB campus, with the magical sound of the Storke Tower carillon: Recital by Wesley Arai, UCSB Department of Music. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]

2019/04/20 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Colossus firefighting robot (1) Paris firefighters' secret weapon during the Notre Dame fire: They used Colossus, an 1100-pound, tank-like robot to mitigate damage to the cathedral and prevent the conflagration from spreading further, by entering environments too hazardous for humans. The battery-powered robot has a motorized water cannon, is waterproof and fireproof, and tolerates thermal radiation. It also can crawl up stairs, and be outfitted with cameras, sensors, and a smoke-extracting fan.
(2) Trump's approval ratings in March-April 2019, according to Reuters. AG Barr circulates 4-page summary of Mueller's report, 43%; Mid-April 2019, 40%; AG Barr releases redacted form of Mueller's report, 37%.
(3) Isn't it ironic that the only person from the corrupt Trump Organization who will serve jail time is Michael Cohen? He is a liar no doubt, but his lies are dwarfed by Trump's and those of other members of his family.
(4) Boston Dynamics set to market its "SpotMini" robotic dog: The robot can be used for patrol duties within buildings. A recently released video shows a herd of such robots pulling a truck down the street with ease.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- be grateful for Robert Mueller and the unlikely heroes who stood up to Trump's illegal/immoral demands.
- This 3-minute video features people from all races and walks of life, aged 0 to 100.
- Life on Earth, seen through the lens of National Geographic. [Pictorial]
- Finally, fake videos are used to spread the message of love and unity, instead of hatred and division!
- The beloved Persian song "Ey Iran," performed wonderfully as a tribute to Mohammad Nouri.
(6) Senator Rand Paul schools Mike Pompeo: This 7-minute video clip from a Senate hearing is rather old, but its message remains fresh. Paul, with whom I disagree on many issues, reminds Pompeo that the US cannot expect Iran to disarm unilaterally, while we arm Saudi Arabia to the teeth. Similarly, it is bizarre to demand that Iran not meddle in Yemen, without also chiding Saudi Arabia for the humanitarian crisis it has created there through indiscriminate bombing.
(7) Ten instances that constitute obstruction of justice, according to Mueller's report: Here's a summary. * Campaign's response to reports on Russian support for Trump * Conduct involving Comey and Michael Flynn * Trump's reaction to the Russia investigation * Firing of Comey and attendant explanations * Efforts to remove Special Counsel Mueller * Efforts to prevent public disclosure of evidence * Asking the AG to take control of the investigation * Asking McGahn to deny attempted removal of Mueller * Conduct towards Flynn and Manafort * Conduct involving Michael Cohen
(8) A key step toward realizing biocomputers: ETH Zurich researchers have integrated two CRISPR-Cas9-based core processors into human cells, marking a significant advance toward creating powerful biocomputers. A special variant of the Cas9 protein forms the core of the processor. In response to input delivered by guide RNA sequences, the CPU regulates the expression of a specific gene, which then makes a particular protein. The method allows researchers to program scalable circuits in human cells, consisting of two inputs and two outputs that can add two single-digit binary numbers. The cell computer could be used to detect biological signals in the body, process them, and respond accordingly.

2019/04/19 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Books wrapped in barbed-wire: Art by Dusko Vukic A very happy Passover and Easter to everyone! AG Bill Barr redacts Dickens' 'A Tale of Two Cities' (1) Images of the day: [Left] Books wrapped in barbed-wire: Art by Dusko Vukic. [Center] A very happy Passover to all those who observe this Jewish holiday. Chag Sameach! And happy Easter to my Christian readers. (See item 2 below) [Right] Before tackling Mueller's report, Bill Barr practiced his redaction skills on Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities.
(2) Happy Passover! This year, Passover and Easter coincide. The two holidays have common roots and similar traditions, but they can be separated by up to a month in some years. Passover, a spring Jewish festival, is observed based on the lunar calendar. To ensure that the holiday is synchronized with spring, the Jewish calendar adds a 13th month, Adar 2, to some years in order to make up for the 11-day difference between the lengths of lunar and solar years. This article has a nice explanation of the pertinent calendar adjustments.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Weaponizing drones is quite dangerous, so we must be very cautious about what we allow in this domain.
- The frightening power of water in river-rapids and waterfalls. [3-minute video]
- Unusual art: Painting blind-folded, upside-down, or sideways. [4-minute video]
- Turning the lowly egg into many interesting meals. [5-minute video]
(4) Proud to be a member of the UCSB community: The focus of last Thursday's meeting of UCSBs Faculty Legislature was awards and honors (even in the Chancellor's report).
- Faculty Research Lecturer: Nelson Lichtenstein (History)
- Faculty Diversity Award: Diane C. Fujino (Asian American Studies)
- Distinguished Teaching Awards: Six faculty members, all women.
- Distinguished Teaching Awards: Four TAs, all women.
- Graduate Mentor Award: Three faculty members, all women.
[Note that in a stunning sweep, all 10 teaching awards and all 3 graduate mentorship awards went to women!]
In his report to the campus, Chancellor Yang mentioned a number of important UCSB faculty honors: A Pulitzer Prize won by Jeffrey C. Stewart (Black Studies) for his book The New Negro: The Life of Alain Locke, memberships in national academies, and many more.
(5) This afternoon's #UCSBGradSlam: Nine graduate-student finalists (7 of them women) presented 3-minute pitches describing their research for a chance to win a $5000 grand prize (George Degen) and a couple of $2500 runner-up prizes (Zachary Reitz; Taylor Heisley-Cook). The other 6 finalists got $750 each. [Photos] After the competition, there was a reception along with musical entertainment. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]

2019/04/18 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A woman carrying a child in a basket over her head during Iran's recent floods Iranian boxer Sadaf Khadem's victory on the world stage is a first for Iranian women Meme of the day on women's rights and gender equality (1) Images of the day about women: [Left] During Iran's recent floods, a member of "the weaker sex" proves that the term is an oxymoron! [Center] Iranian boxer Sadaf Khadem's victory on the world stage is a first for Iranian women. [Right] On women's rights and gender equality.
(2) Bernie Sanders was a hit with the crowd at Fox News' town hall: Trump's reaction was bizarre, as if Fox News were a spouse who had been unfaithful to him!
(3) Iran used the Red Crescent (a humanitarian relief organization, similar to the Red Cross) as cover for Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps operations in Europe, a retired Guards commander claims.
(4) I feel obligated to make a post about the redacted Mueller report released today, but I will wait for a day or two, until all the details have been analyzed and understood. [448-page document, accessible via this link]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Doctors in five US states charged with prescribing pain killers in exchange for cash and sex.
- Ivanka Trump says she declined World Bank job: She was considered because "she is good with numbers"!
- Canadians are advised to drink and not drive, now that beer is cheaper than gas! [Photo]
- Persian music: An old-style song whose lyrics also tell of a longing for the simpler, more joyful past.
(6) Last evening's technical meeting, sponsored by IEEE Central Coast Section: Dr. Pradeep Sen (UCSB) spoke under the title "Monte Carlo Denoising." Monte Carlo path-tracing replaces the very large number of computations, needed to determine the lighting of each image pixel by tracing all possible paths from different light sources to the pixel, by a random sampling of those paths. While this approach reduces the amount of computation significantly, it also makes the image quite noisy and thus unsuitable for "final frame" output. Even though Monte Carlo path-tracing was suggested as early as the 1980s, practical applications did not materialize until a few years ago, when effective and computationally efficient denoising techniques were devised. These new techniques had to overcome the difficulty of distinguishing random noise from scene details (such as texture) that can also look "noisy." The Monte Carlo denoising revolution is now recognized as one of two key enabling technologies that brought path-tracing to feature-film production at Disney and elsewhere. Despite significant improvements in the speed of denoising, which now allows rendering to occur in minutes rather than days or weeks, more work is still needed to bring rendering to real-time speed, which would be needed if virtual-reality exploration of buildings and other scenes, represented by 3D models, were to become possible. [IEEE Central Coast Section event page] [IEEE CCS calendar of lectures] [The speaker's home page]

2019/04/16 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Meme: A page from the redacted Mueller report! Meme: This is the US President! Humor: Suggested letter for requesting Trump's tax returns (1) Memes of the day: [Left] A page from the redacted Mueller report! [Center] This is the US President! [Right] Tax humor, a day after Tax Day: Comedian Seth Myers suggests that the Democrats might have a better chance of getting Trump's tax returns if they use his English syntax and vocabulary in their request.
(2) Joke circulating in Iran after the unprecedented flooding: If only all the officials and reporters interviewing while standing in floodwaters got out of the water, the water level would go back to normal!
(3) A report on academic research into the old Iranian radio program "Golha" ("Flowers") and its successors such as "Golha-ye Rangaarang" ("Flowers of Many Colors"), which featured poetry and music
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Notre Dame Cathedral burned intensely, but the damage, though substantial, was less than expected.
- Besides Notre Dame, three other major losses occurred on April 15 (and I'm not even counting Tax Day)!
- The announcements board outside my office, as recently updated. [Photo]
- Nostalgia: Tehran of 1980, a year after the Islamic Revolution. [6-minute video]
- Persian music: Old-time singer Aref performs "Donya Do Roozeh" ("Life Is Very Short").
- Azeri music & dance: Joyful, rhythmic tune brings about some impressive dance moves! [3-minute video]
(5) Concealed bribe: The father of a current Harvard student bought the $550K house of the school's fencing coach for $990K (a $440K bribe). Harvard is investigating. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 22, 2019]
(6) Displaying affection: Given that Joe Biden does not plant kisses on men's hair as a way of showing affection, his behavior toward women is at worst creepy, and at best, condescending.
(7) "Where Credit is Due": This is the title of an interesting feature in Time magazine (April 22, 2019) which deals with the achievements of female scientists being ignored or, even worse, wrongly credited to their male collaborators. Esther Lederberg (PhD in biochemistry, U. Wisconsin), is used as a case in point. She collaborated with and co-authored joint papers with her husband Joshua Lederberg, who eventually won a Nobel Prize for his work on upending the notion that bacteria always make identical copies of themselves when they reproduce.

2019/04/14 (Sunday): Reporting on today's lecture in the UCLA Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran.
Photo showing Lalehzar Street in its early days Photo of Dr. Ida Meftahi, today's speaker Map of today's central Tehran, showing Lalehzar Street and its vicinity [Images, from left to right: Lalehzar Street in its early days; Dr. Ida Meftahi; Map of today's central Tehran, showing Lalehzar Street (extending from the map's top-center to its bottom-center) and its vicinity. For more images, see my Facebook post of this report, which also includes a Persian version of what follows.]
"Film and Discussion on Lalehzar Street: A Socio-Historical View": This was the title of today's talk by Dr. Ida Meftahi (U. Maryland). [Flyer 1, for today's lecture] [Flyer 2, for tomorrow's English lecture by Dr. Meftahi on a different topic]
Dr. Meftahi, who earned her PhD from U. Toronto and does research at the intersections of politics, gender, and performance, is the author of Gender and Dance in Modern Iran: Biopolitics on Stage, and she is now working on another book, a geo-political reading of Tehran's Lalehzar district and its vicinity; in the latter area, she is also directing the Lalehzar Digital Project, introduced in this 4-minute video.
Lalehzar, a relatively narrow north-south street in central Tehran, which runs parallel to the broader Sa'adi and Ferdowsi Streets on its east and west, was known as a center of arts and culture for many decades. The name "Lalehzar" means "Tulip-Grove." Theaters, cinemas, cafes, and night clubs, as well as fashion boutiques and other businesses (many of them new to Iran) lined its two sides between Shahreza (now Enghelab) Street on the north, through its intersection with Naderi (now Jomhoori) Avenue, another center of entertainment and commerce, and continuing further to the south.
I remember walking on Lalehzar Street as a young man, window-shopping and people-watching, usually en route to other destinations further south, including an area where there was a concentration of shops specializing in electronics and other tech items. I also frequented the Gutenberg Bookshop in the same general area that offered low-cost English books, printed in Russia, including many titles on science and technology that interested me.
After a brief introduction, Dr. Meftahi screened a 20-minute film composed of footage from Lalehzar Street over the years and commentaries from individuals who worked there or are otherwise familiar with the district.
[Link to the video will be added here when it becomes publicly available.]
For many years, European fashions arrived in Lalehzar boutiques mere days after they were introduced in the West. The bars offered billiards and other games to visitors. Early in the history of Lalehzar district, upper-class Iranians, foreign diplomats, and other dignitaries lived there and foreign embassies were either located there or on nearby streets. Bar and liquor stores operated legally in the pre-Islamic-Revolution days, but, even then, there was always tension and conflict between sellers of liquor and the police.
The period 1941-1953 is characterized by some as the golden era of arts and culture in the Lalehzar district. Foreign governments were engaged in propaganda, often competing with each other in the cultural domain, offering, on occasion, free theater performances and film screenings. Particularly targeted were society and culture influencers who received invitations to lavish parties and were showered with other perks, so as to take advantage of what the foreigners had determined to be a weak spot among Iranians: Praise for Iran's rich culture. The Soviet-sponsored Toudeh Party was particularly active in this domain, although Americans later joined the push.
The presence of allied soldiers led to much negativity in the way Iranians viewed the foreigners. Dancing the tango at night clubs, only a few years after Iranian women were ordered to remove their hijabs, did not sit well with many locals, and law enforcement often gave the operators of such night clubs a hard time. There was much sensitivity among men on Iranian women dancing or going out with foreigners. After the "Bread Riots" and the sensitivities just mentioned, British and other foreign subjects were directed by their governments to lie low and avoid showing up in public.
I am looking forward to perusing the book version of this very interesting talk upon its completion.
Postscript 1: Here is a related 2015 article by Jane Lewisohn (U. London), entitled "The Rise and Fall of Lalehzar, Cultural Center of Tehran in the Mid-Twentieth Century."
Postscript 2: A pictorial, entitled "The Delicious Lalehzar," about food and cafes on the historic street.
Postscript 3: I took these photos on the way to Los Angeles (the hills at Malibu Canyon, my favorite rest stop), and at UCLA's Dickson Court, which is adjacent to Dodd Hall, the lecture venue.

2019/04/13 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A quatrain by Omar Khayyam, 1 A quatrain by Omar Khayyam, 2 A quatrain by Omar Khayyam, 3 (1) Three wonderful quatrains from Omar Khayyam: [Left] English translation from the Web page of Omar Khayyam Poetic-Society ('Parveen' is Persian for 'The Pleiades'): A bull there in the sky they call Parveen, | Another bull beneath the Earth unseen. | Come, open your inner eye like that old sage, | And see the droves of asses in between. [Center] English translation by Sahand Rabbani: Some contemplate the way of piety; | Others assume doubt with certainty. | Suddenly a herald cries from his lair: | "O ignorant souls! neither path is reality." [Right] My English translation: The material things that you eat or wear, | You can be forgiven to pursue or bear. | Beware that all else is worth nothing, | Don't trade your precious life to get a share.
(2) Quote of the day: "This guy thinks he's CEO of America and it's a family-owned company. He doesn't have to answer to anybody." ~ Maine Senator Angus King, on Donald Trump
(3) On-line trolls target Dr. Katie Bouman, the young female scientist whose algorithm helped produce the first-ever image of a black hole. On the positive side, Bouman explains in this video the black-hole image and its significance, as well as what's next on her research agenda.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Should the president we elect in 2020 meet with Trump to seek advice on how to run the country?
- Kim Jong Un gives the US until the end of 2019 to show more flexibility in order to meet with Trump!
- Heart-breaking images of flooding and mud-flow in Iran. [3-minute video]
- World's biggest airplane flies and lands for the first time. [Spece.com report, including a video]
(5) The 10 greatest minds in mathematics: You may prefer to replace some of the names on this list, but their greatness is uncontested. [Pythagoras; Euclid; Archimedes; Euler; Isaac Newton; Carl Friedrich Gauss; Blaise Pascal; John von Neumann; David Hilbert; Alan Turing]
(6) Cash-for-admission is old news to UCLA: A girl, with an unimpressive running speed, was recruited by UCLA's track-and-field program after her parents pledged a $100,000 donation.
(7) An important advance in computer arithmetic: We can all do addition in linear or O(k) time, where k is the number of digits in the operands. The pencil-and-paper algorithm we use for multiplication requires O(k^2) steps. Computers have been using variations of the same algorithm, which is good enough for the kinds of numbers we encounter in everyday life. However, if you need to multiply two 1M-digit numbers, an O(k^2) algorithm needs on the order of 1 trillion steps. Beginning with the work of Anatoly Karatsuba and continuing with Arnold Schonhage, Volker Strassen, and many others, the complexity of multiplication was reduced to O(k log k log log k) and even less. It was conjectured that one can reach O(k log k), but no one knew how to achieve this optimal lower bound. The status of the 5-decade-old open problem changed in March 2019, when an algorithm achieving the lower bound was demonstrated by David Harvey and Joris van der Hoeven. I happen to be teaching a graduate course on computer arithmetic this quarter and am excited to share this news with my students, when we reach the topic of multiplication next week!

2019/04/12 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Meme about the contributions of Dr. Katie Bouman to producing the first-ever image of a black hole Images of #WhiteWednesdays, when Iranian women wear white headscarves and remove them in public in the face of arrests and imprisonments for doing so Enjoying a pleasant spring day in my courtyard (1) Images of the day: [Left] Even when women are praised for their contributions, sexism and condescension prevail. Someone fixed this meme to show greater respect! [Center] Kudos to Iranian women, who continue to defy misogynistic norms and attitudes by wearing white headscarves on #WhiteWednesdays and removing them in public in the face of arrests and imprisonments for doing so. [Right] Enjoying a pleasant, though a tad windy, spring day in my courtyard: If you have a beat-up, discolored, round lawn/patio table, I recommend the tile-patterned plastic cover that I have used to renovate it at a fraction of the cost of buying a new one.
(2) Try to imagine the cruelty: Trump wanted to capture asylum-seekers and drop them off at sanctuary cities. That is, he wanted to release hardened criminals (his characterization) among Americans who happen to disagree with his policies.
(3) Here are a few riddles for you (Source: AARP Bulletin, issue of April 2019):
- Q: Why should you never date tennis players? A: Love means nothing to them.
- Q: How do you weigh a millennial? A: In Instagrams.
- Q: What do you call a bike that tries to run you down every single day? A: A vicious cycle!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Pope Francis kisses the shoes of warring leaders in South Sudan in hopes of easing the conflict.
- What happened to the draining of the swamp? [Meme credit: @Public_Citizen]
- Using virtual reality to overcome phobias: One example is fear of public speaking.
- If someone you know suffers from anemia (low count of red blood cells), you may find this article helpful.
- Considering going to this music/poetry event, featuring work by Mowlavi (Rumi), on May 11.
- Santa Barbara Independent celebrates UCSB's Arts and Lectures program. [Cover image]
(5) Our country's story reads like a mystery novel: Based on the initial plot line, we thought Robert Mueller will call out Trump for his illegal acts, but he punted, leaving everyone bemused. It seemed that Rod Rosenstein was on the verge of being fired by Trump multiple times, but now he is defending Trump and his stooge AG Bill Barr. In an earlier plot twist, Senator Lindsey Graham switched from a harsh Trump critic to a stern supporter. Stay tuned, it's not over!

2019/04/11 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Golestan Palace Museum, Tehran, Iran What do you think of the suggestion that Facebook should add a skeptical emoji? Horseshoe Bend on Colorado River, near Grand Canyon, Arizona (1) Images of the day: [Left] Golestan Palace Museum, Tehran. [Center] What do you think of the suggested skeptical emoji for Facebook? [Right] Horseshoe Bend on Colorado River, near Grand Canyon, Arizona.
(2) An Iranian official's emergency management approach in the wake of unprecedented flooding in vast areas of the country: Putting Karbala's dirt on floodwaters to blunt their impact!
(3) Yasaman Aryani, who dared to remove her headscarf in public and handed flowers to hijab-wearing women as a sign of solidarity, has been arrested in Iran.
(4) Julian Assange of WikiLeaks arrested in London after Ecuador pulled asylum protection from him: Assange did not leak info for transparency but had a political agenda. He leaked selectively, never exposed his allies, and timed the leaks to coincide with political events. I don't consider him a hero or a defender of free speech but an egotist who tried to play king-maker and lost.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Sudan's military takes over in a coup, ousting Omar al-Bashir in the wake of months of protests.
- Ex-Pope Benedict XVI blames the sexual revolution and liberals for the church's sex abuse troubles.
- Jessica Powell, former Communications Director at Google, pens novel about male ego in Silicon Valley.
- NASA announces three finalists in its Mars habitat design competition.
- Malware in hospital computer systems can create fake cancerous nodes in CT-scans. [Washington Post]
- Cartoon of the day: "I wish I could get out of this gym membership contract!" [Image]
- Iran's Petroleum Museum: From the first gas station to a variety of gas pumps and other implements.
- "For me, glamour is celebrating what we have instead of what we long for." ~ Actress Isabella Rossellini (66)
(6) Cameras everywhere: US-based airlines have been asked to respond to reports of cameras installed in airplane seat-backs, including whether airlines have used them to monitor passengers and whether passengers have been informed of this practice. The airlines say the cameras are not currently operational, but are part of a new generation of systems offered by Panasonic and Thales, two of the biggest airline entertainment system manufacturers. Panasonic Chief Technology Officer David Bartlett says the devices allow passengers to have the same kind of interactive technology on board the plane that they do on the ground. The Airline Passenger Experience Association, a non-profit whose membership includes airlines, industry suppliers, and media groups, said its members were committed to obtaining customer permission before using the cameras. [Source: NYT]
Elsewhere, there are reports of Tesla installing cameras on its cars' rear-view mirrors, again raising privacy concerns. Tesla has responded that it will use the cameras only for its planned Uber-like service.
(7) It's one thing to mock powerful opposition figures who have ample resources to get back at you and quite another to ridicule the unfortunate and the distraught. [Meme]

2019/04/10 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
CIA's spy pigeon, deployed in the 1970s First-ever picture of a black hole, produced by an array of telescopes The secret to a long, healthy, loving relationship is to continue to sleep together into old age! (1) Images of the day: [Left] Spy pigeons: In the 1970s, CIA developed small cameras, with a tiny motor to advance the film and click the shutter. The cameras were strapped to homing pigeons that would fly over the area of interest en route to their home. Because the pigeons flew much closer to earth than spy planes or satellites, they produced detailed, high-quality information. Details of the camera design and where the pigeons were deployed are still classified (image and info from: IEEE Spectrum, April 2019). [Center] An array of telescopes, dubbed Event Horizon, has brought us the first-ever image of a black hole. Here is an explanation of how the image was produced by the telescopes, each collecting massive amounts of data in 2017; it took 2 years to put the results together to produce an image. [Right] The secret to a long, healthy, loving relationship is to continue to sleep together into old age!
(2) IRGC and terrorism: Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps isn't just a military unit, but a Mafia-like organization with tentacles controlling every aspect of the country's affairs (see this infographic, in which you can enlarge each part to read the details). It functions under direct orders from the Supreme Leader and has its own intelligence and judicial arms (including prisons). Even ignoring its foreign entanglements, IRGC is indeed engaged in terrorism against the Iranian people. Regardless of Trump's motives in declaring IRGC a terrorist organization (and he certainly has no love for the Iranian people), the designation is a correct one.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Calling out a cruel, despicable, amoral Jew isn't anti-Semitism; it's anti-monstrosity!
- The notion that "America is full" is more absurd than all the absurd musings of our unhinged president.
- Let's bring compassion (and good English) back to our leader: Make the Presidency Great Again! [Video]
- Alzheimer's, the new gold mine for scammers: Most purported treatments are bogus. [From AARP Bulletin]
(4) "Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice that Shapes What We See, Think, and Do": This was the title of tonight's lecture at UCSB's Campbell Hall by Professor Jennifer L. Eberhardt (Stanford U.), based on her just-published book by the same title. Upon winning a MacArthur Genius Grant, Eberhardt decided to broaden the scope and increase the impact of her work by writing for the general public, rather than publishing in scientific journals, where each article garners a handful of readers. The result is her new book, which reports on her own research as well as findings by other scholars. Biases develop quite early in our lives. As early as 3-4 months old, babies exhibit a preference for people of their own race, which isn't surprising, because, in our segregated society, they see mostly people of their own race and learn to recognize and evaluate them better than those with unfamiliar faces. Given our cultural association of crime with blacks, in a setting where people were to decide very quickly whether to shoot at someone holding an object resembling a gun in a presented image, subjects tended to shoot at black suspects more often. And this is true even when the subject was black. Many other examples and case studies were presented throughout the talk and during an interesting Q&A period. The bottom line is that bias is real and very human. People exhibiting bias are not necessarily racist or morally deficient. Developing an awareness of such biases is the only way to remove them in the long run. [Images]

2019/04/09 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A flood-stricken house in Iran's Luristan Province Juicing lemons, with plans to use the juice on salads and to make lemonade Cover image of 'The Wife,' a novel by Alafair Burke (1) Images of the day: [Left] A flood-stricken house in Iran's Luristan Province: Cleaning up the mud that dries to cement-like hardness is a major undertaking. [Center] Juicing lemons, with plans to use the juice on salads and to make lemonade. [Right] Review of Alafair Burke's The Wife: A Novel (see below).
(2) Hate-Monger-in-Chief: An analysis by Washington Post found there was a 226 percent increase in hate crimes in counties that hosted a 2016 Trump campaign rally over those that didn't.
(3) Apologies issued for blocking Iranian scientists: NIH Director Francis Collins has apologized for new, unexplained security measures that blocked two Iranian graduate students from campus after they were asked to disclose their citizenship.
(4) "Towards Networks that Manage Themselves": This was the title of today's talk by Behnaz Arzani, post-doc scholar at Microsoft Research and UCSB CS faculty candidate (MS & PhD from U. Penn; BS from Sharif U. Tech, Tehran, Iran). Data center networks are massive and thus subject to failures. Dr. Arzani's research pursues a 2-step approach to network diagnostics. Her NetPoirot system identifies the type of subsystem responsible for the problem through monitoring coarse-grained TCP statistics. When the network is identified as the culprit, her 007 system pinpoints the device that is at the root of the problem, while quantifying the impact to various applications. An impressive topic and presentation! [Photos]
(5) Book review: Burke, Alafair, The Wife: A Novel, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Xe Sands, Harper Audio, 2018. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
I picked this book, thinking that is was the basis for the Oscar-contending film by the same title, with Glenn Close in the title role. It turns out that the film's script was adapted by Jane Anderson from a Meg Wolitzer novel. The two stories with the same title have little in common, except for their female protagonists questioning their life choices upon getting married to famous, highly successful men. Despite my initial mistake, I wasn't sorry to have picked the book.
This is a thriller/mystery with multiple layers. The husband is accused of sexual misconduct and is subsequently revealed to be a serial philanderer. The wife vacillates between believing her husband, whom she still loves, that he has been framed and trying to get out of the marriage with her share of their assets, before the entire fortune is gobbled up by legal liabilities.
The story is well-conceived and the narrative is absorbing. I listened to this audiobook during my walks between home and office. On multiple occasions, I found myself continuing to listen for a while after arriving at the destination to learn some detail that was unfolding. I really can't write more about this modern "Me Too" domestic thriller a la Gone Girl, without disclosing one of the plot twists that make the book a page-turner.

2019/04/08 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Street art extraordinaire: Photo 1 Street art extraordinaire: Photo 3 Street art extraordinaire: Photo 2
Street art extraordinaire: Photo 4 Street art extraordinaire: Photo 5 Street art extraordinaire: Photo 6 (1) Street art extraordinaire: Artists and locations unknown.
(2) Iranian women's-rights activists to hijab wearers: If you want others to respect you for choosing to wear the hijab, you should respect other women who prefer not to. [Washington Post opinion piece]
(3) The real infighting in the Democratic Party isn't among presidential candidates but between old-guard Nancy Pelosi (2.4M Twitter followers) and newcomer AOC (3.9M followers). [CNN report]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Jewish-Americans offended by Trump referring to Netanyahu as their prime minister.
- Heavenly violin music, featuring David Garrett. [4-minute video]
- Persian music: Shahkar Bineshpajooh performs oldies, with the backdrop of pre-Revolution Iran (CGI?).
- Persian music: Beautiful performance on the bank of Zayandeh-Rood, Isfahan, Iran.
- Kurdish Music: Hassan Zirak performs "Kermanshah, My Sweet Town." [5-minute audio file]
- Coming up in Santa Barbara on May 19, at the historic County Courthouse: CAMA's 100th BD bash
(5) The US has declared Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps a terrorist organization: As much as people of Iran want to defend their country against foreign pressure and intervention, they can't close their eyes to beatings, deportations, assassinations, oppression, and imprisonment carried out by IRGC. If these acts do not constitute terrorism, then what does? [Image of tweet by Masih Alinejad, in Persian]
(6) Shake-up at US Department of Homeland Security: Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, Secret Service Director Randolph Alles, and other top officials resign or are fired.

2019/04/07 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Grand opening: A Target store finally opens in Santa Barbara Cover image for Abbas Amanat's 'Iran: A Modern History' Photos taken at Beth Macy's lecture entitled 'Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors and the Drug Company that Addicted America' (1) Images of the day: [Left] A Target store finally opens in Santa Barbara: This one's a smallish 2-story outfit at the intersection of La Cumbre Road and State Street. A bigger one will soon open in Goleta to replace the recently-closed K-Mart. The nearby La Cumbre Plaza, where Santa Barbara's only Sears store has closed, is also undergoing changes: A Vons supermarket is being replaced by Bristol Farms; Macy's continues to anchor the shopping center. [Center] On my to-read list: Amanat, Abbas, Iran: A Modern History, Yale University Press, 2017. Audio version available from Tantor Audio, narrated by Derek Perkins. (Author's Web page at Yale) (Author's 143-minute interview with Iranian Republic Channel) [Right] Beth Macy's lecture (see item 4)
(2) Former Santa-Barbara-area Channel 3 news anchor Paula Lopez given jail time for drunken driving and other offenses: Lopez is married to retired SB Superior Court Judge Frank Ochoa, so, special arrangements had to be made to avoid conflict of interest.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Science in America: The most important words ever spoken by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson.
- "Our Planet" establishes director David Attenborough as a forceful voice on dangers of climate change.
- Flood victims in Iran go from living independent, even comfortable, lives to accepting handouts to survive.
- A criticism of Saudi Arabia's Iran International TV, personally funded by MBS. [4-minute video, in Persian]
(4) Today's public lecture, offered as part of the Thematic Learning Initiative: UCSB's Campbell Hall hosted a lecture by author Beth Macy, entitled "Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors and the Drug Company that Addicted America" (based on a book by the same title, that was provided free of charge to many attendees). Macy asserted that the opioid epidemic in the US is a multi-faceted problem that requires extensive cooperation at the federal, state, and local levels for its solution. The epidemic kills as many people as a jetliner crash every single day! We knew a long time ago that opioids are addictive, but this assessment was somehow overturned, leading to the promotion, over-prescription, and abuse of the drugs. Many parents remain unaware of their children abusing prescription painkillers or even shooting up heroin, until they find needles hidden in their closets. The federal government's response has largely been impotent: After promising to declare a national emergency over opioids, Trump declared only a public-health emergency, which provided no new funds or other resources for dealing with the problem. Ironically, the opioid overdose problem is worst in rural counties that are overwhelmingly pro-Trump. Raising awareness is the key. So, I will share my copy of the book with family members who care to learn about the issues.

2019/04/06 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Time magazine cover, showing Trump singin' in the rain in the aftermath of Mueller's report Time magazine cover: Uncle Joe's unforced error, yet again Time magazine cover: Climate change is transforming our planet, including Australia’s drought-impacted landscape (1) Recent Time magazine covers: [Left] Trump's "Singing in the Rain" celebration comes to an abrupt end. [Center] Uncle Joe's unforced error, yet again: Instead of moving on after his video pseudo-apology garnered positive reviews, he had to put his foot in his mouth again by joking about his physicality. We don't need another president who longs for simpler times and just doesn't get modern-day complexities. It's about making people uncomfortable, not about your intentions, uncle Joe! Here's another view on Joe Biden's recent woes, asserting that attacks on expressing affection promote toxic masculinity. [Right] Climate change is transforming our planet, including Australia's drought-impacted landscape.
(2) Flash mob atop Tehran's Nature Bridge: Keeping the true Iranian spirit in the face of sanctions, floods, and other natural/political disasters! [6-minute video]
(3) Anti-Science/Tech-in-Chief: Donald Quixote Trump declares war on wind turbines by claiming that they will leave you in the dark when the wind doesn't blow and that their sound causes cancer. Talk about hoaxes!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Report by Ethiopia points to software problem in airliner's crash, Boeing admits responsibility.
- Presidential selfie-stick: The Obama scandal that had Fox News foaming at the mouth.
- Backward-looking energy policies in a country that used to be technologically advanced. [Cartoon]
- Persian music, based on a melody by maestro Abolhassan Saba: "The Best Feeling"
- Scary that even the door-to-door religious crusaders know the languages you speak! [Persian pamphlet]
- Gorgeous day at UCSB and on West Campus beach, with unusually clear view on the SB Channel Islands.
(5) On rewriting history: An opposition journalist, who was jailed by the Islamic regime, tries to prevent the rewriting of Iran's history. By quoting from the diaries of Asadollah Alam, perhaps the late Shah's closest ally (Alam used to call himself a 'house-born' slave of his master), Akbar Ganji exposes the corruption and disarray that prevailed in the pre-Revolution Iran, something that Royalists and several other opposition groups sweep under the rug or, worse, whitewash by constructing an alternative history. Here's a review of Alam's diaries. [Disclaimer: I don't fully trust Ganji, but he does quote from Alam's diaries verbatim.]
(6) Attorney General William Barr's inaccurate 4-page summary of Mueller's 400-page report provided a favorable picture that Trump used to claim "complete and total exoneration." [Source: Time magazine]

2019/04/05 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Iranian officials are not worried about widespread devastation caused by floods Mueller's Report, depicted among best-selling books The panini generation: Sandwiched between obligations to children and parents (1) Today's cartoons: [Left] Iranian officials are not worried about widespread devastation caused by floods (from Iranwire). [Center] Publishers are scrambling to obtain the rights to publish Mueller's Report once it is released, hoping that it will become a best-seller like the Warren Commission Report. [Right] The panini generation: Sandwiched between obligations to children and parents (from Time magazine).
(2) Major US research universities are cutting ties with China's Huawei and ZTE because of security concerns. They are also exercising greater caution in their dealings with Russia and Saudi Arabia.
(3) A Muslim, a Jew, and a Christian walk on stage ... There is no joke here, just some prayers put to music and performed in front of the Pope during his visit to Morocco. [7-minute video]
(4) Who will be the next president of Ukraine: Yulia Tymoshenko, the seasoned politician who looks like a glamorous model, or Volodymyr Zelensky, the TV comedian whose unexpected rise took everyone by surprise? The incumbent Petro Poroshenko lags in the polls. [Source: Time magazine]
(5) Turing-Award-winning AI researcher Yoshua Bengio is speaking up about the perils of commercializing AI (face recognition, in particular) too soon. He also calls for more transparency in research and considers self-regulation quite dangerous.
(6) Software rejuvenation: It has been known for some time that like hardware, software also ages, in the sense of accumulating junk and ad-hoc patches that affect its reliability and performance. This is why returning the software to "factory settings" removes many common difficulties we encounter in day-to-day use. While the benefit of clean restarts isn't news to computing professionals and has been part of the field's folklore, it took a while to put this process of systematic and proactive rejuvenation on firm scientific footing. For their efforts in bringing about a better understanding of the software rejuvenation process in their seminal paper "Software Rejuvenation: Analysis, Module and Applications," Yennun Huang, Chandra Kintala, Nick Kolettis, and N. Dudley Fulton have been awarded the 2019 Jean-Claude Laprie Award in Dependable Computing.

2019/04/04 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Jake Shimabukuro performing on stage, Photo 1 Jake Shimabukuro autographing a skateboard after his performance at UCSB Jake Shimabukuro performing on stage, Photo 1 (1) Today's UCSB Arts & Lectures free noon concert: Jake Shimabukuro performed at the base of the Storke Tower, offering a combination of original song, Hawaiian favorites, and pop/rock classics. This super-talented artist does wonders with his 4-string ukulele. He said that he enjoys coming to UCSB and that he loves Santa Barbara. Like me, many of the attendees had brought their lunch to eat under the sun, while enjoying a wonderful concert. [Photos] [Opening song, an original composition] [The Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby"] [Original composition paying tribute to Carlos Montoya, the guitar genius that, early on, Shimabukuro says he thought to be a 3-piece band, given the diverse musical sounds he made with a guitar!] [Demonstrating his mastery by reproducing electric-guitar sounds on a ukulele] [Performing the song that made him a YouTube sensation and jump-started his career, George Harrison's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"] [Ending the hour-long concert with a Queen tribute, "Bohemian Rhapsody"]
(2) Today must be my lucky day: Besides being treated to a free concert by the super-talented ukulele player Jake Shimabukuro (see item 1 above), I received a compliment from a fortune cookie ("You have a charming way with words") that came with the to-go lunch I took with me to the concert and got a free copy of the "UCSB Reads" book for 2019, The Best We Could Do (by Thi Bui). Maybe I should go buy a lottery ticket!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Cartoon of the day: The prospect of space tourism frightens Martians! [Image]
- The family that created, and directly benefits from, the US opioid crisis. [Cartoon]
- Dentist joke: If only our sweet tooth would listen to our wisdom tooth!
- Persian music: Fatemeh Mehla sings a sad, romantic song with her super-sweet voice.
(4) "Addressing Challenges to a Large-Scale Transition to a Low-Carbon Energy Future": This was the title of today's interesting talk by Ranjit Deshmukh (Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies at UCSB) under the auspieces of UCSB's Institute for Energy Efficiency. Renewable energy (RE) sources are abundant and their costs are rapidly declining. So, cost incentive is being added to clean-air and other environmental incentives for using renewable energy sources. However, large-scale deployment of RE generation facilities introduces serious challenges in planning and operating electricity systems in terms of balancing technical concerns with social and environmental objectives. Using examples from his research in Africa and India, the speaker highlighted methods of addressing these challenges. He also outlined ongoing projects on an open-source electricity grid modeling platform and a field study to understand incentives for increasing adoption of energy-efficient appliances (which tend to be more expensive) in low-income households of developing countries. [Images]

2019/04/03 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Chart: USA's military budget vs. other big-spenders (1) Illegal budget re-allocation: On Trump's orders, the US military has begun spending money on the southern border wall, using what it calls unneeded or leftover funds from existing projects. These excess funds seriously undermine the military's arguments for needing even larger budgets. [Chart: America's military budget vs. other big-spenders]
(2) An early morning walk in Goleta Beach Park: To prepare and gather energy for 11 straight hours of classes, office hours, and meetings, I went for an invigorating walk at the beach park near UCSB. Nothing is more invigorating than a dose of nature and the sound of ocean waves. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4]
(3) Mixing vehicles with pedestrians on the UCSB campus: Walkways are generally out of bounds for motorized vehicles, although enforcement is sorely lacking at UCSB. This particular walkway has been designated as "mixed-use" so as to allow access to the parking lot behind the new Bioengineering Building. It is unbelievable that a modern, multi-million-dollar building was designed and built, without mitigating vehicular access to it, thus necessitating the mixed-use designation. Now, the entrance to the said parking lot is closed for repair work, causing vehicles to drive even further on walkways in order to gain access to the parking lot from its other side. I photographed a large FedEx truck doing this a couple of days ago (see April 1) and observed a sedan driving on a regular (not mixed-use) walkway yesterday. This situation is getting out of control!
(4) For my Persian-speaking readers: Humor as a coping mechanism for Iranians devastated by recent floods, after 40 years of oppression by a cruel and incompetent leadership. [Meme]
(5) Some good news, for a change: Greek and North Macedonian prime ministers pose for a historic selfie after ending a 30-year name dispute.
(6) March/April madness: Once again, talented college athletes are creating wonder and excitement on the basketball court, while NCAA, TV execs, and a bunch of others, who never set foot on the court or touch a basketball, pocket millions in proceeds. Isn't working for free while creating wealth for others a form of slave-labor? [Basketball-related cartoon from The New Yorker]

2019/04/02 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
pi vs. e: Are we over-valuing pi by celebrating it annually on 3/14? Meme of the day about Trump: Innocent or crook? Two more photos of spring 2019 in post-drought California's mountains and deserts (1) Images of the day: [Left] Are we over-valuing pi by celebrating it annually on 3/14? Some argue that the number e = 2.7182818... is even more important than pi, both scientifically and practically. Alas, there is no such date as 2/71 or 27/1! [Center] Meme of the day: Any reasonable person would pick option 2. [Right] Two more photos of spring 2019 in post-drought California's mountains and deserts.
(2) Today is Sizdah-Beh-Dar: Iranians celebrate the 13th day of Norooz, a day of communion with the Earth and nature (and, for the superstitious, getting rid of evil spirits by tossing them in the outdoors). Carrying out pranks (a la April Fool's) is one of the traditions on this day. When Sizdah-Beh-Dar falls on a weekday, it is often celebrated by Iranians in diaspora on a nearby weekend day (last Sunday, in the case of this year). [Image]
(3) Donating to flood relief efforts in Iran: US sanctions against Iran make some kinds of assistance impossible for Iranian-Americans. This article outlines what is and isn't allowed. In short, NGOs are exempted from the sanctions, whereas people acting individually are not. UNICEF USA is a top-rated charity that has a presence in Iran and has been helping. Before donating to other charities, please take a moment to research their goals, track record, and NGO status. [Flood photo]
(4) Comedy news trumps serious news: How Trump lied about supporting the Special Olympics and the Great Lakes (with amazing "deepness"), while cutting their fundings in his budget. [Seth Meyers' "A Closer Look"]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- I have checked out Moms Against Poverty's Iran Flood Relief and decided to donate to support them.
- Flood devastation continues in Iran: Kurdistan and Khuzestan are now in danger. [Aljazeera report]
- Scenes of flooding in the vicinity of Kermanshah and other parts of western Iran. [Three videos]
- Anonymous quote: Ignorance isn't lack of knowledge; it's resistance against knowledge.
- Expose about Lavasan, a playground near Tehran for Iran's richest people. [9-minute video, in Persian]
(6) Arguing for sex differences in IQ raises its ugly head again: The claim is that men are smarter than women, because in the upper IQ range of 130 or higher, men are more heavily represented than women. IQ and other tests are known to have gender and cultural biases. Given equal educational and economic opportunities, race and gender differences tend to vanish. American Psychological Association has concluded that women tend to be stronger on verbal abilities, while men perform better on visuospatial abilities, but there is no significant gender-related difference overall. Ditto for race.
[R. E. Nisbet, "Intelligence New Findings and Theoretical Developments," American Psychologist, 67(2), 2012]

2019/04/01 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Tomb of Hafez in Shiraz, after the flooding Forty years ago today (on April 1, 1979), Iranians went to the polls to approve the establishment of an Islamic Republic, knowing little about what it meant Vehicle violating pedestrian space at UCSB, today (1) Images of the day: [Left] Tomb of Hafez in Shiraz, after the flooding. [Center] Forty years ago today (on April 1, 1979), Iranians went to the polls and sealed their fates by approving the establishment of an Islamic Republic, which was ill-defined at the time. These modern women certainly would not have approved of a system of government that restricts their clothing and infringes upon many of their basic rights as human beings. [Right] Vehicle violating pedestrian space at UCSB, today: This FedEx truck has no business driving on the walkway connecting UCSB Library to Engineering Buildings. I have brought these violations to the attention of campus administration continuously over many years (as we say in Persian, my tongue has grown hair from repeated complaints), but, alas, I have not seen any action.
(2) Bringing back pieces of the Ice Age to combat climate change: A fascinating 14-minute segment on Sunday's "60 Minutes" covered Siberia's Pleistocene Park, in which genius/madman Sergey Zimov and his family have taken on the nearly impossible task of reversing the melting of permafrost, said to contain more harmful greenhouse gases than the entire remaining fossil fuel on earth.
(3) The next technical talk of IEEE Central Coast Section: On Wednesday, April 17, 2019, at 6:00 PM, Dr. Pradeep Sen will talk about "Monte Carlo Denoising." [Flyer]
(4) Child marriages aren't just a Third-World problem: A majority of US states allow 16- and 17-year-olds to marry and 17 states have no minimum marriage age. Opposition to establishing a minimum age for marriage comes from unexpected sources, such as ACLU.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- How many Mexican countries can you name? If your answer is "1," you should tune in to "Fox & Friends"!
- Plagiarism isn't a victimless crime, writes Adrian Bejan in the April 2019 issue of Prism magazine.
- Humor worth crying over: Islamic emergency management in Iran's regions devastated by floods!
- Persian music: Darya Dadvar sings a beautiful song about spring. [4-minute video]
(6) Persian music: On the 40th anniversary of the referendum that established the Islamic Republic in Iran, this song entitled "The Magic of Dancing" celebrates Iranian women who defy Islamic authorities and their absurd laws by dancing in public.
(7) At the end of April Fool's Day, and in anticipation of tomorrow's Sizdah-Beh-Dar (13th day of Norooz with its traditional lie), here is one of the best pranks of this year. [Image]

2019/03/31 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Proposed US Treasury bill bearing Trump's image 'New Yorker' cartoon of the day These two photos show a key reason for flood devastation in Shiraz, Iran (1) Images of the day: [Left] Proposed US Treasury bill bearing Trump's image, in anticipation of his complaint regarding why the greatest president in US history does not appear on any bill. [Center] New Yorker cartoon of the day: "While I appreciate that you've turned your book report in early, 'It's about war and peace' doesn't cut it." [Right] These two photos show a key reason for flood devastation in Shiraz, Iran, that is, the criminal removal of a flood basin next to the city's historic entry arch and its replacement by a road.
(2) Trump thinks that Mueller's report exonerates him. Here's comedian Bill Maher's analogy: "Yes, the pregnancy test came back negative, but that doesn't mean you are a virgin!"
(3) Letter to researchers from NSF's Director of Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE), James Kurose, 3/25/2019: "Last week, the President presented the FY 2020 Budget Request, proposing $7.066 billion for NSF in FY 2020—a 12% decrease with respect to the FY 2019 Congressional Appropriations for NSF."
(4) On being a role model: "What you really need to do is show students how imperfect people can be and still succeed." ~ Karen Uhlenbeck, who on March 19 became the first woman to win the Abel Prize, a top award in mathematics (recall that Maryam Mirzakhani broke math's glass ceiling in 2014 by winning the Fields Medal)
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- "Stop AOC PAC" is established: How scared are old, white men of this young, inexperienced representative?
- Many MENA countries put environmentalists in prison, as drought and natural disasters take giant tolls.
- Istanbul's beautiful Hagia Sophia has served as both church and mosque over its long history.
- Watch the dynamics of relationships, from the initial meeting to nearly 5 decades later: 1970s vs. 2010s
- Brooklyn Duo's rendition of "Can't Help Falling in Love" (made famous by Elvis).
- Zeyn and Rhyan Shweyk of the duo SBPianoBoys play "Malaguena" on a single keyboard.
(6) Yet another manifestation of gender bias: At a 2015 rare-books fair in NYC, American writer A. N. Devers noticed that rare books by women authors were selling at a small fraction of the prices set for books by comparably famous male authors. Three years later, upon moving to London and joining UK's thriving rare-books trade, she opened the red doors to her new bookstore, "Second Shelf," which almost exclusively stocks rare books by women. [Info from Time magazine, issue of April 1, 2019]
(7) So long, spring break: My brief one-week break is over and UCSB's spring quarter classes will begin in full force tomorrow. The first week of the quarter will be quite hectic, given intensive academic advising and organizational workload, not to mention the administration of our twice-a-year PhD screening exam. I will settle into my usual routine by mid-April and will start the countdown to summer!

2019/03/29 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Iranian human-rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh on a Paris poster, which calls for her release This spring, California emerged from its very long drought: And it's a sight to behold! Jasmines, with heavenly fragrance, on my carport trellis, photographed today (1) Images of the day: [Left] Iranian human-rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh on a Paris poster, which calls for her release. [Center] This spring, California emerged from its very long drought: And it's a sight to behold! [Right] Jasmines, with heavenly fragrance, on my carport trellis, photographed today.
(2) Humor, for my Persian-speaking readers: Flooding has devastated northern and central Iran. Over the past decades, the government opted to imprison environmental activists, rather than heed their warnings about such disasters. Humor is one of the few coping tools left to the oppressed people of Iran.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- A footnote in Barr's 4-page summary of Mueller's ~400-page report is causing some head-scratching.
- Iran spends 80 times more money on religious propaganda than on disaster relief. [Iranwire report]
- Scenes from flood damage in Luristan Province, western Iran. [1-minute video]
- Iranian civil-rights activist Sepideh Gholian writes a Norooz letter from prison. [Iranwire reposrt]
- Photographic art depicts contrasts in our world: Both horrifying and mesmerizing!
- The 2nd annual UCSB Arts Walk is coming during 3rd week of spring quarter (W 4/17, 4:30-8:00 PM).
- Extraordinary young musicians exhibit awe-inspiring skills on guitar (video 1) and pan-flute (video 2).
(4) New kids on the block: Today, near the Camino Real Marketplace Starbucks, a young man was playing the keyboard with skill and passion. I learned that he and his brother (Zein & Rhyan) form the SBPianoBoys duo (805-298-4009; sbpianoboys@gmail.com), which plays at events of various kinds. Today, they took turns playing. Here's the CD I got in exchange for a modest contribution. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]
(5) What I did on this last weekday of my spring break: I spent the day updating my spring 2019 course Web pages in preparation for classes beginning on Monday, April 1, 2019. Here are the links for the curious.
[ECE 1B] Freshman seminar, "Ten Puzzling Problems in Computer Engineering" (Wed., 3:30-4:50) [Image]
[ECE 252B] Graduate course, "Computer Arithmetic" (ECE 252B; Mon./Wed. 12:00-1:30) [Image]
(6) Final thought for the day: "There are three kinds of men. The one that learns by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence for themselves." ~ Will Rogers

2019/03/28 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Today's 'New Yorker' cartoon blocked by Mitch McConnell Uniting Afghanistan through street art Cartoon: Mueller report, with 300+ pages, as abridged by Trump pal, AG Bill Barr (1) Images of the day: [Left] New Yorker cartoon blocked by Mitch McConnell. [Center] Uniting Afghanistan through street art (Iranwire.com). [Right] Mueller report, with 300+ pages, as abridged by AG Bill Barr.
(2) Throwback Thursday: This week's cover feature of Santa Barbara Independent (issue of 3/28-4/04/2019) reminded me of many years ago, when we scrambled to find appropriate summer activities for the kids.
(3) Can't believe the US is negotiating with the Taliban, the same folks who put a bullet through Malala's head and routinely flogged women in public at sports stadiums during their rule!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Under intense pressure from all sides, Trump reverses Betsy DeVos on de-funding the Special Olympics.
- Political humor: Palestinians recognize Texas as part of Mexico and plan to move their consulate to Houston.
- Vehicle-friendly roads and driver distraction blamed for highest US pedestrian death rate in 30 years.
- Some articles in the April 2019 issue of Communications of the ACM, with a focus on computing in Europe.
(5) Mueller may have played it smart: Collusion charges are punishable only via impeachment, which is almost certain to fail in the current US Senate. Financial fraud and corruption are pursued by state courts, whose sentences are not influenced or pardonable by federal authorities. This is a quicker/surer way to get Trump.
(6) We will pay for the effects of climate change one way or another, whether we pass the Green New Deal and pay gradually or ignore the problem until we have to deal with the resulting trillion-dollar catastrophes.
(7) Jupiter, not Venus, is the planet closest to earth: Three researchers argue that determining closeness by the average distance between orbits isn't appropriate. Earth's orbit is closer to Venus's than Jupiter's, but the actual average distance from Earth to Venus is larger. Imagine two planets on the exact same orbital path, but always appearing at opposite ends of that path. Orbital distance between such planets would be 0, whereas their average distance may be quite large.
(8) What I did on my spring break 2019: It was going downhill from Monday's amazing visit to Huntington Library and Gardens in Pasadena. On Tuesday and Wednesday, I did my taxes and this morning, I had a dental appointment. So, I decided to turn things around by taking a long nature walk this afternoon. Windy conditions made the afternoon perfect for sail- and kite-surfers. The sun and clean air turned my mood around, as the numbness in my mouth faded away! [Photos]

2019/03/27 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez on the cover of 'Time' magazine, issue of April 1, 2019 Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez's tweet about the Mueller report (1) Images of the day: [Left & Center] Like any newcomer to politics, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will no doubt make mistakes and be attacked for them, but she seems to be a fast learner. Her tweet and Time magazines April 1, 2019, cover photo show her to be a rising star. [Right] Emerging alive from the torture-chamber of doing taxes: I was expecting to pay more compared with previous years, because of reduced withholding (Trump administration's way of creating the illusion that we are keeping a lot more of our hard-earned money), but the final outcome was unpleasant nonetheless! Having spent the third day of my week-long spring break as noted, I need to relax for the rest of the evening to get back to my normal self tomorrow!
(2) The 2019 puzzle: Each year, I try to use the digits in the year number, in their original order and without repetition, to form all the integers beginning with 0, using nothing but mathematical symbols and parentheses. I have neglected to do this for 2019, so here we go. The task was quite easy this year. In fact, I did not have to use parentheses, all the way up to 13. Here are my first five results, as examples. See if you can complete the list up to 24. In each case, try to use as few mathematical symbos as possible.
0 = 2 × 0 × 19    1 = 20 – 19   2 = 2 + 0 × 19   3 = 2 + 0 + 1^9  4 = 2 × 0 + 1 + √9
Try not to peek at these answers before giving the puzzle a serious try!
ACM's A. M. Turing Award winners for 2018: Geoffrey Hinton, Yann LeCun, and Yoshua Bengio (3) AI pioneers Geoffrey Hinton, Yann LeCun, and Yoshua Bengio are bestowed the highest honor in computing, Association for Computing Machinery's 2018 A. M. Turing Award, for "conceptual and engineering breakthroughs that have made deep neural networks a critical component of computing."
(4) Monica Lewinsky reacts to the Mueller report: Imagines how her life might have unfolded, had only a summary of Ken Starr's lurid report been released by the then Attorney General.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Republicans introduce a mock amendment to the Green New Deal legislation. Here is AOC's response.
- Trump administration launches a new all-out war on Obamacare, this time aiming to scrap the entire law.
- Remains of the world's biggest T-rex, weighing 9.8 tons, discovered at a fossil site in Canada.
- The list of ten oldest languages still spoken in the world includes Persian/Farsi.
- Italy's La Scala opera house is returning a $3.4 million donation to Saudi Arabia in protest.
- Forget about tree-houses: Go for 3D-printed concrete castles in your backyard! [6-minute video]
(6) A comprehensive and wide-ranging 144-minute interview (in Persian) with Dr. Nayereh Tohidi about the history and current status of women's rights in Iran, 40 years after the establishment of the Islamic Republic.

2019/03/26 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Street has turned into a river and cars have piled up in the central Iranian city of Shiraz Shirazis offering free lodging and food to flood victims The ancient drainage system of Persepolis fared better than those of the modern city of Shiraz in disposing of substantial rain water (1) Relentless downpours and flooding in Iran: [Left] The photo and this video show the central city of Shiraz, mere days into the Iranian new year. Here's another frightening scene of extreme flooding in Shiraz. And Tajrish, northern Tehran, faces scenes like these from some 3 decades ago. [Center] People of Shiraz are showing extreme compassion and generosity toward flood victims, including tourists trapped in the city due to road closures, by offering them free lodging and food. [Right] Forward-looking design: Underground canals at Persepolis, built 2500 years ago, drained all the water from sustained downpours remarkably well, as the city of Shiraz nearby suffered extensive damage from flash-floods and mud flows.
(2) Mueller's report is different from a 4-page summary of it, prepared by a Trump ally who believes a President cannot obstruct justice. Meanwhile, Trump has resumed his attacks on Obamacare as a way of deflecting attention from demands to release the full Mueller report. He isn't as clueless as many think!
(3) Eight-year-old Nigerian refugee becomes New York State's chess champion: Tanitoluwa Adewumi hopes to be able to move out of a NYC homeless shelter after a crowdfunding campaign raised $100,000 for his family.
(4) Four very likable women join the Apple team: Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Garner, and Rashida Jones have become "Apple Girls," slated to work on programming for Apple's media streaming outlet.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- A Russian-born American businessman made (perfectly legal) large contributions to the Trump campaign.
- First all-female spacewalk cancelled by NASA, because they couldn't find space-suits in proper sizes!
- Persian music on santoor and donbak, played by two unidentified women. [1-minute video]
- Toby the Devil directs people arriving in Hell: Hilarious 5-minute comedy routine by Rowan Atkinson.
(6) Here is a capsule summary of the proposed Green New Deal: Will America be brave enough and forward-looking enough to enact a program that our children and grandchildren will look back on with pride, as we now do for Medicare and Social Security? [Image credit: Time magazine]
(7) Today's bounty: I did some shopping at Santa Barbara's European Market, our area's inadequate substitute for a full-fledged Persian Market. Among the items I bought are healthy sweet lemons and a big jar of white mulberry jam (product of Armenia), which I have divided up for distribution among family members as treats.

2019/03/25 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
One of the entrances to the library at Huntington Estate Orbit Pavilion at Huntington Library and Gardens A tasteful combination of architecture and art at Huntington Library and Gardens (1) My excellent adventure at Huntington Library and Gardens: Here is how I spent the first day of my week-long spring break (images, 1). Setting out from Santa Barbara on a chartered Airbus, we arrived at the Library in Pasadena around 11:15 AM. After a short break, my group began a 1-hour docent-led tour of the grounds (images, 2), which did not entail entering any buildings or going to the far corners of the 120-acre estate.
We then had less than 2 hours to explore the magnificent estate on our own, before reconvening at the drop-off point for the return trip. With so much to see, I decided to skip lunch and to pick up a sandwich from the 1919 Cafe (that's the establishment year for the research institution, celebrating its centennial this year) just before returning to the bus.
I spent my remaining time at two special library exhibits: "Beautiful Science: Ideas that Changed the World," old science books and other artifacts in the main exhibit, along with newer books on display in a reading room (images, 3), and "Remarkable Works, Remarkable Times," an exhibit of old books, drafts, personal notes, and letters written by giants of the literary world, including a fascinating 6-foot-tall book containing life-size drawings of birds (images, 4). I could have spent three times as much time at this unique library, which is world-renowned for its collections accommodating 1700 scholars annually.
I also recorded two videos. Video 1 shows a stroll through Shakespeare Garden. Video 2 shows the Library's Orbit Pavilion, a NASA installation that represents the space Station and 19 science satellites with distinctive sounds (related to their missions) as they pass overhead. Because most visitors don't have the patience to wait for hours, the entire cycle is compressed into 2 minutes.
There are two other components to the estate. First, there are expansive botanical gardens, which include separate Chinese, Japanese, Australian, subtropical, rose, herb, jungle, palm, ranch, desert, and Shakespeare gardens. Second, there is an impressive art collection encompassing 36,000 works of art.
So, I will need 2-3 more visits to cover all areas of interest. The estate's Web site provides much useful information for learning about its resources, upcoming events, and visit planning. I saw quite a few cherry blossoms today. The Rose Garden will be in full bloom in April, for those who like roses.
If you live in Southern California or plan to visit here, put Huntington Library and Gardens on your to-see list!
(2) Many have opined that impeaching Trump is a bad idea, citing the potential for additional conflicts and divisions, compared with letting the voters decide in 2020. I'm fine with these reasonings, but where were these commentators when Clinton's impeachment was given the green light?
(3) Streamlining of regulations sounds great, until events such as Boeing 737 Max crashes occur. Congress repeatedly pressured FAA to speed up its certification process. Let's hope that the safety of our bridges, levees, dams, ports, and nuclear power plants has not been similarly compromised.

2019/03/24 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
On the mystery of gasoline prices in the Santa Barbara area: Mobil gas station at the intersection of Glen Annie Road and US 101 Hyacynth and other spring flowers Earth Hour: Turn off your lights for one hour, beginning at 8:30 PM local time, on Saturday, March 30, 2019 (1) Images of the day: [Left] Mobil gas station at the intersection of Glen Annie Road and US 101: See the last item below (photo from Santa Barbara Independent). [Center] Hyacynth and other spring flowers arrive with Norooz: I have added my latest Norooz poem to my poetry Web page, which now contains the entire collection of my Norooz poems since 2002, except for those of 2006 & 2012 (Norooz 1385 & 1391). I am trying to locate the missing two and will post them if/when I find them. [Right] Earth Hour: Turn off your lights for one hour, beginning at 8:30 PM local time, on Saturday, March 30, 2019.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- A prolific activist from Santa Barbara: Ady Barkan, a little-known hero for progressive causes, is dying.
- For youth who want to engage in summer jobs that make a difference, while gaining valuable experience.
- Islamic Iran: Watch what happens to an 8-year-old's beautiful smile upon being told she shouldn't dance!
- Persian music: This 4-decades-old video contains an hour of music from Norooz TV specials. Enjoy!
(3) [Musings of a curious mind] The mystery of gas prices in Santa Barbara: Whenever I return home via northbound US 101, I take the Storke/Glen-Annie exit and drive by a Mobil gas station at the end of the off-ramp. What is unique about this station is that its gas prices are routinely $1.50-2.00 per gallon higher than some other stations in the area.
Who'd buy gas at 50-70% higher price than other area stations? Desperate northbound motorists who are running low on gas and shortly before the Stork Road exit notice a sign on the side of the freeway warning them that there are no motorist services for the next 30 miles, that's who! As such motorists, often unfamiliar with the area, exit the Freeway to get gas, the Mobil station is the first thing they see, and no other station appears in sight.
This practice is despicable, but not illegal. There are no penalties for selling at unreasonably high prices in the US, except immediately after natural disasters. Competition is supposed to offer protection against price-gouging. You can buy gas at $2.50 per gallon and sell it for twice that price if you can find a buyer.
On purely economic grounds, a much higher price may be beneficial to the seller. Suppose gas costs $2.50 per gallon to station owners. If you sell it for $3.00, you make a $0.50 profit per gallon. If you sell it for $5.00, your profit is 5 times as much, so you come out ahead if the number of buyers exceeds 1/5 that of a typical station. And that sign on the freeway essentially guarantees that you have enough customers to turn a higher profit than other stations.
According to Santa Barbara Independent, issue of March 21-28, 2019, Jing Xu, a graduate student at UCSB who was similarly baffled by the huge price differences, decided to conduct a study of gas prices in the Santa Barbara area. He developed a model that allowed him to relate gas prices to various parameters, including location, nearby competition, crude oil market, transportation charges, proximity of businesses such as restaurants, land zoning, brand recognition, and the like.
In most cases, variations reasonably matched the predictions. In the Santa Barbara area, three stations were outliers (price gougers). In addition to the Mobile station at Glen Annie Road and US 101, mentioned above, the research exposes a Chevron station at the intersection of Highways 154 and 246 in Santa Ynez Valley (which has almost no competition) and a 76 station at the intersection of Carpinteria and Linden Avenues in Carpinteria (which enjoys proximity to restaurants, bars, and the beach).

2019/03/23 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Visually plelasing photos: Perfectly-aligned trucks Visually plelasing photos: Colorful fligt of stairs Visually plelasing photos: Perfect gift-wrapping (1) Visually pleasing photos that can make you smile: [Left] Perfectly-aligned trucks. [Center] Colorful fligt of stairs. [Right] Perfect gift-wrapping.
(2) On symmetry: While there are situations where symmetry becomes problematic, leading to the need for symmetry-breaking to resolve an impasse, it is predominantly a highly desirable attribute. In interconnection networks, for instance, symmetry leads to routing efficiency and greater robustness. In this journal article, Dr. Chenggui Zhao and I have used symmetry to improve the quality of virtual network embedding.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- University of California responds to Trump's executive order on free speech.
- The exact moment of spring equinox at the tomb of Hafez in Shiraz, Iran. [1-minute video]
- Abstract painting: "Life Bloom," Kamran Khavarani's 28" × 40" depiction of flowers. [Image]
- People of Kermanshah celebrate Norooz at the historic Tagh-e Bostan. [Photos]
- Norooz celebration at a village in Marivan, Kurdistan, Iran. [Photo]]
- Persian music: Darya Dadvar sings a beautiful song whose name I do not know. [5-minute video]
- Persian music: An a-cappella performance of "Waltz-e Noroozi" ("Norooz Waltz"). [2-minute video]
- Iranian music: A montage of songs and dances from several regions of Iran. [6-minute video]
(4) Ahmadinejad-like politicians in the US: Trump possibly sent by God to save Israel from Iran, according to Mike Pompeo, responding to a cue about Queen Esther saving Iranian Jews from a massacre.
(5) Mike Pomepo: Trump was sent by God to save Israel from Iran. [This God is pretty sneaky; he first sends Khamenei to destroy Israel and then Trump to protect it! Maybe He will send someone to save us from Trump!]
(6) The French will pay for the wall: Part of the $1.3 billion fine on Societe Generale, a French bank which has admitted to violating US sanctions on Cuba and Iran, to be funneled for funding Trump's wall.
(7) Far from paying for the wall, Mexico is stealing it, piece by piece: Barbed wire installed on the wall is showing up at Mexican homes. "I built a wall around my house and Trump paid for it!"
(8) Largest cities in the world, 1500-2018: The dynamic list begins with Beijing at the top, with Istanbul prevailing for more than a century, followed by Beijing, London, New York, and Tokyo. From Iran, Tabriz and Esfahan appear on the list for brief intervals, before falling off the list.

2019/03/22 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Visually pleasing photos that can make you smile: Watermelon square Visually pleasing photos that can make you smile: Perfect rows of flowers Visually pleasing photos that can make you smile: Roots between tiles (1) Visually pleasing photos that can make you smile: [Left] Watermelon square. [Center] Perfect rows of flowers. [Right] Roots between tiles.
(2) Freedom of (hate) speech: The President who exercises freedom of speech daily but turns blue when others do, signs executive order to protect freedom of speech on college campuses. It's easy to see why he has singled out college campuses, instead of supporting the basic freedom unequivocally.
(3) Money-saving decisions that turned deadly: The Boeing 737 Max aircraft involved in Ethiopian Airlines and Lion Air crashes were not equipped with two "premium" safety options offered by The Boeing Company.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- At least 70 die during Norooz celebrations when an amusement-park boat sinks on Iraq's Tigris River.
- Trump continues to sabotage Mid-East peace prospects: The US recognizes Golan Heights as part of Israel.
- Cartoon of the day: "Is it too early to start contributing to a college bribe fund?" [Image]
- Skydivers put on a spectacular show in LA to draw people's attention to the last supermoon of 2019.
(5) The Linda Problem: Also known as the conjunction fallacy, the problem is an illustration of how our minds are led astray during judgments/decisions by our expectations and what we deem to be representative of the situation. Here is the description of Linda given to participants in a psychology experiment: "Linda is 31 years old, single, outspoken, and very bright. She majored in philosophy. As a student, she was deeply concerned with issues of discrimination and social justice, and also participated in anti-nuclear demonstrations."
Then, participants were asked to rate the likelihood that Linda is one of eight possible kinds, including the two key types "bank teller" and "bank teller who is active in the feminist movement" (the other six types were there to camouflage the point of the experiment). Logically, the bank-teller option, which includes the latter as a special case, is at least as likely to be true as the more specific kind (conjunction of "bank teller" & "feminist"). However, most participants tended to choose the more specific description as more likely than the broader one.
Another example entailed asking policy experts to assess the probability of the US breaking off diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union versus the probability that the Soviet Union would invade Poland and the US will cut diplomatic ties. In this case, the more specific option was viewed as 4 times as likely (4% vs. 1%).
One take-away from these experiments is that we really do not choose between options but between descriptions or framings of options. Restating the Linda problem can reduce or even eliminate the fallacy altogether. Another take-away is that the rational human, assumed in older economics models, is nothing but a myth. We are emotional decision-makers.
By the way, problems like this one led to a psychologist (Daniel Kahneman) winning the 2002 Nobel Prize in economics. See my review of the book The Undoing Project, posted yesterday.

2019/03/21 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Michael Lewis' 'The Undoing Project' One of the few remaining large open spaces on the UCSB Campus, with majestic trees, which has, unfortunately, been designated as the site of a future building Congressman Steve King's social-media post about Civil War II (1) Images of the day: [Left] Cover image for Michael Lewis' The Undoing Project (see my review below). [Center] One of the few remaining large open spaces on the UCSB Campus, with majestic trees, which has, unfortunately, been designated as the site of a future building. [Right] Trump and his allies are promoting Civil War II, which they think they would win: This image is from a social-media post by Congressman Steve King.
(2) Book review: Lewis, Michael, The Undoing Project: A Friendship that Changed Our Minds, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Dennis Boutsikaris, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2016.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The friendship referred to in the subtitle is between Israeli psychologists Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky. And the title's 'Undoing' refers to changing prevalent theories of how the human mind works. The two friends bounced ideas off one another and constituted a story-like research team, although Tversky was later given a lion's share of the credit in terms of academic recognition and honors, leading to the eventual break-up of the team; Kahneman was eventually honored with a 2002 Nobel Prize in economics, after Tversky had died.
The groundbreaking collaborative research of the two friends also formed the basis of Lewis' previous best-seller Moneyball, which chronicled the Oakland A's data-driven approach to building a winning baseball team, but the work of Kahneman and Tversky wasn't properly credited in the earlier book. In this book, Lewis corrects the oversight by telling the rest of the story. Other books of Lewis include The Blind Side, The Big Short, and Flash Boys.
The key thesis of the two friends' work was that far from being rational players, as assumed in the then-common economic models, human beings tend to make irrational or emotion-driven decisions, even when they have hard facts at hand. And this irrationality is no less true of supposed experts in the field than of the person on the street. A lot of our bad decisions arise from projecting certainty, via justifications and story-telling, where there is none.
Notions elaborated upon in this book include 'confirmation bias,' 'law of small numbers,' 'regression to the mean,' and 'prospect theory,' the latter being a formalization of decision-making under uncertainty that incorporates relative as opposed to absolute values, while also accounting for human beings' tendency to be loss-averse or conservative.
Our weakness in estimating probabilities, key components in rational decision-making, prompted Tversky to describe his collaboration with Kahneman as a study of 'natural stupidity,' rather than 'artificial intelligence'! Learning about this weakness, a form of systematic bias, and other shortcomings of our brains, which have not evolved to deal with tricky or complicated situations, are eye-opening, making the book a must-read for all curious minds interested in ideas at the intersection of psychology and economics.
Also recommended are Michael Lewis' 6-minute interview with Stephen Colbert about The Undoing Project and his 7-minute interview with PBS about The Fifth Risk.

2019/03/20 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Norooz greetings in Persian calligraphy Wishing you a very happy Norooz My Persian poem honoring Norooz and Women's Day Farhang Foundation's banner art for Norooz (1) Happy Norooz/Nowruz and Iranian New Year to everyone: May you enjoy nature's renewal with the arrival of spring and may the new Iranian calendar year 1398 bring you and yours greater joy, health, and prosperity! Spring equinox (saal-tahveel) is today at 14:58:27 PDT. This article, by Davood N. Rahny, is a good source of information about the origins and traditions of Norooz. [Credit for banner images: Farhang Foundation]
[P.S.: I am including my poem honoring Women's Day and Norooz, which first appeared as a post on March 8.]
(2) Californian John Pierre Dupont, 80, has been arrested for scamming $250,000 from unwitting donors who believed they were sending money to various political candidates: So, instead of helping those who promised to confront the 1%, they were funding the lavish lifestyle of a millionaire-turned-criminal.
(3) Love in your 60s and 70s: "When you have that feeling, when you have a mad, passionate crush on someone, it's the same when you're 70 as when you're 13. You're awkward, and you're afraid you're doing the wrong thing, and you put yourself out there in ways you don't even think about. We stay who we are no matter how old we get," ~ Actress Sally Field
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Tonight's sky-watching treat for the Iranian New Year: The last supermoon of 2019 will be spectacular!
- After a week-long struggle with cough and congestion, this New Yorker cartoon resonated with me!
- New Zealand bans military-style rifles less than a week after the recent mass shooting: It can be done!
- T-shirt meme of the day: "Make Orwell Fiction Again" [Image]
- Ideas for decorative fruit arrangements: If you have the time and the inclination! [4-minute video]
(5) A win for Santa Barbara County environmentalists and UCSB: The historic Platform Holly, right off the coast of UCSB, has been inactive for a few years and is now owned by the State, following its owner's bankruptcy. Sealing of the wells is planned, but the platform's future is unknown. [Map] [LA Times story]
(6) IEEE Central Coast Section professional-development talk: Dr. Walter Whipple spoke today under the title "Job Shopping for Fun and Profit: A Step-by-Step Guide to Temporary Assignments in the Gig Economy." Dr. Whipple provided advice and resources on temporary assignments, from identification to completion. Comparisons were provided between the two types of temporary assignments, W-2 and 1099, and between such assignments and ordinary salaried jobs. [Event site] [IEEE CCS speakers line-up]

2019/03/19 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A group of people jumping on a protruding rock Salad, made with nine different ingredients: Lettuce, tomato, carrot, cucumber, celery, green pepper, red pepper, radish, strawberry Painting: Woman dancing next to a bonfire on the Iranian fire-jumping festival (1) Images of the day: [Left] A s an engineer, I wouldn't do that, if I were you! [Center] Salad, made with nine different ingredients: Lettuce, tomato, carrot, cucumber, celery, green pepper, red pepper, radish, strawberry. [Right] Anceint Iranian fire-jumping festival: Dating back to at least 1700 BCE, Chaharshanbeh-Suri, the fire-jumping festival held in the evening of the last Tuesday of the year in the Iranian calendar, is a joyous occasion when people make bonfires on the streets or in parks and jump over the flames, with ritual singing and dancing. This 1-minute video shows Chaharshanbeh-Suri rites at a historic mountainside Kurdish village.
(2) IEEE Central Coast Section technical talks: As Chair of the Education Committee for IEEE CCS, covering Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo, I invite everyone to the following technical talks, which begin at 6:00 PM on the third Wednesday of each month during 2019. Details, including info about venues, will be published on this Web page as we get closer to each talk. The next talk on Wed. 3/20 will be held at Rusty's Pizza, big meeting room, 5934 Calle Real, Goleta, CA 93117, with pizza, salad, and drinks served before the talk.
- 02/20 Dr. Behrooz Parhami, UCSB ("Promoting Technological Literacy through Mathematical/Logical Puzzles")
- 03/20 Dr. Walter L. Whipple, former Chair of IEEE CCS ("Job Shopping for Fun and Profit"), scheduled*
- 04/17 Dr. Pradeep Sen, UCSB (Area: Visualization/computer-vision), confirmed*
- 05/15 Dr. Katie Byl, UCSB (Area: Robot control and navigation), confirmed
- 06/19 Dr. B. S. Manjunath, UCSB (Area: Advances in deep learning), to be confirmed
- 07/17 Dr. Dmitri Strukov, UCSB (Area: Emerging technologies for alternative computing), confirmed
- 08/21 Dr. Tali Freed, Cal Poly SLO (Area: RFID technology and applications), confirmed*
- 09/18 Dr. Yasamin Mostofi, UCSB (Area: Advances in robotics), confirmed
- 10/16 Dr. Mahnoosh Alizadeh, UCSB (Area: Sustainable and resilient societal infrastructure systems)
- 11/20 Dr. John Bowers, UCSB ("Energy-Efficient Computing and Communications"), confirmed*
- 12/18 Stay tuned: Scheduling in progress
(3) "Enabling Ubiquitous Artificial Intelligence with Algorithm-Hardware Co-Design": This was the title of today's talk by faculty candidate Priyadarshini Panda, Graduate Research Assistant, Purdue University. Ms. Panda described methods for exploiting the inherent variability in the difficulty of input data to scale down the computational requirements of a deep learning network with minimal impact on performance. She also presented the advantages of a temporal learning scheme to address catastrophic forgetting in spiking neural networks. She concluded by discussing how algorithm-hardware co-design techniques hold promise for understanding the energy-accuracy tradeoff, as well as, gauging the robustness of learning systems. [Images]

2019/03/18 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Visually pleasing photo: Spiral book display Visually pleasing photo: Moroccan market spices Visually pleasing photo: Bowl of coins (1) Visually pleasing photos that can make you smile: [Left] Spiral book display. [Center] Moroccan market spices. [Right] Bowl of coins.
(2) Prospects for actual quantum computers: To the question of when quantum computers will be built and applied for real, optimists will reply with "in 5-10 years" and pessimists will cite a 20- to 30-year time frame. But these predictions have remained the same for a couple of decades! The number of papers published on quantum computing has risen dramatically (see chart), but progress towards putting together thousands of qubits (many millions, if errors are to be kept in check through redundancy) needed in a practical quantum computer has been slow. [Source: Article by physicist Mikhail Dyakonov, in IEEE Spectrum, March 2019]
(3) Talk about marital disagreement! Kellyanne Conway thinks of Trump as a superhero who can do no wrong. Her husband George Conway is on a mission to convince people that Trump is mentally ill.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- "Remember Goodness": Words seen at New Zealand mass murder site by a hate-filled White Nationalist.
- Attacking a dead national hero is a sign of cowardice and moral atrophy.
- Blaming the victims: The male-dominated Vatican blames nuns for seducing men of God! (#NunsToo)
- Daily low-dose Aspirin no longer recommended for healthy older people with no on-going heart problems.
- A new medal, the "Purple Broken Heart," awarded to military women raped by comrades-in-arms. [Cartoon]
- A new style of body painting: Artist paints a man's face and hand to create eerie 3D effects.
- Persian music: "Ey Iran" anthem, performed by adorable young kids, starting with a story-like narrative.
- Iranian music: Spring message from Rastak Ensemble, along with a medley of spring-related songs.
(5) Recent crashes of Boeing 737 MAX planes were caused by defects in an angle sensor, whose problems were known as far back as 2014. It is now clear the Ethiopian Airlines and Lion Air crashes were related.
(6) Final post for the day: At the end of an eventful day, when my mom underwent a heart procedure (she is in good shape and great spirits), I had my final exam, and my daughter came home after her final exam, I am posting a photo of my haft-seen with two main differences compared with previous postings: My hyacinth is now in full bloom and I have added an extra "seen" in the form of unjustly-convicted human-rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh, with the hopes that she will spend this and many future Norooz celebrations with her family!

2019/03/16 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Visually pleasing photo: Converse-ation circle Visually pleasing photo: Tomatoes on the vine Visually pleasing photo: Vortex frozen in time (1) Visually pleasing photos that can make you smile: [Left] Converse-ation circle. [Center] Tomatoes on the vine. [Right] Vortex frozen in time.
(2) ABC News' "20-20" special on Theranos and Elizabeth Holmes: Aired at 9:00 PM on Friday 3/15, the 2-hour program exposes how a Stanford drop-out, shaping herself in the mold of Steve Jobs, fooled investors and FDA by pretending that her company had the technology to do almost any blood test on a single drop of blood drawn from a patient's fingertip. Once the scam was exposed, the first self-made female billionaire crashed fast and her highly-valued company became worthless overnight. A cautionary tale about naked ambition, greed, and those who enable shameless behavior (much like what is happening in the US political arena today). [A series of ABC News videos, from different programs]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Parts of the Trump-Russia dossier verified by a company Buzzfeed hired to defend itself against a lawsuit.
- A nurse working for the late Stephen Hawking has been reprimanded for financial/medical misconduct.
- Do you see the difference between how radical Islamic terror and far-right Christian terror are reported?
- On feminism: Feminism isn't entirely about women; it's more about human dignity and freedom of choice.
- Persian music: Medley of several songs about Norooz, spring, and renewal of nature. [5-minute video]
- Persian Music: Another popular song about Norooz, performed beautifully on a rooftop.
(4) The Internet is more fragile than we thought: Facebook learned the hard way that the more tightly it integrates its various services (including Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger), the more vulnerable they become to the cascading effect of a technical glitch. This is what happened recently, when a problematic server configuration change triggered a 24-hour outage of many Facebook services.
(5) Advanced malware: As we continue to patch our software systems to reduce their vulnerabilities to hacking, hackers have moved to exploiting hardware-level vulnerabilities to infiltrate our systems in order to install malware. Spectre and Meltdown used an inherent feature of modern pipelined CPUs, that is, speculatively-executed instructions and what happens after misspeculation. The timing of instruction execution depends on the success or failure in branch prediction, creating a type of side channel (a feature that provides information about the system, without being intended to do so) to extract information about data access patterns and, eventually, the data values themselves. [Source: Article by N. Abu-Ghazaleh, D. Ponomarev, and D. Evtyushkin in IEEE Spectrum, March 2019]

2019/03/15 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
UCSB administration, faculty, staff, and students stand in solidarity with Muslims around the world and against hate-filled ideologies of all kinds My jasmines, up close and personal: Still not fully in bloom The ultimate invention for the couch potato is now on the market! (1) Images of the day: [Left] UCSB administration, faculty, staff, and students stand in solidarity with Muslims around the world and against hate-filled ideologies of all kinds; see item (2). [Center] My jasmines, up close and personal: Still not fully in bloom. [Right] The ultimate invention for the couch potato is now on the market!
(2) Terrorism in New Zealand: At least 49 dead and about the same number injured in mosque shootings, which the gunman live-streamed. The suspect, a self-identified White Nationalist, had posted hateful messages on social media. Trump does not see White Nationalism as a rising threat.
(3) Humorous Persian poetry: Mr. Haloo's message to now-dissident Dr. Abdolkarim Soroush, one of the hardliners in the early days of the Islamic Republic and someone who did much damage to Iranian universities by pushing his antiquated idea of making the curricula "Islamic."
(4) A young investigative reporter reveals how certain Iranian officials and individuals connected to political power centers embezzle many millions of dollars through chain investments, without putting in a single toman of their own money. [7-minute video, in Persian]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Tim Berners-Lee, father of Worldwide Web, is quite disappointed in what his brainchild has become at 30.
- Nike falls for Islamic-Republic propaganda and is condemned for depicting Maryam Mirzakhani with a hijab.
- Universities starting to take grad-student mental health challenges due to work pressures seriously.
- Cartoon of the day: "It's a great school, but it wasn't my first choice." [Image]
- Comical, though quite impressive, performance of classical music and other familiar tunes.
- Torn between two Persian sayings: Is silence "a sign of consent" or "the best response to fools"?
- Persian music: The beautiful "Norooz Waltz," superbly performed. [4-minute video]
- Persian music: Instrumental, big-orchestra performance of "Hamzaboonam Baash" ("Be My Companion").
(6) This is the extent of the knowledge of our President on science and technology: MIT scientists have made fun of his assertions, but, unfortunately, the tweets resonate with his base, because they are deeply suspicious of science and hi-tech. So, it seems, MAGA means going back to planes of the kinds the Wright Brothers flew! Or maybe ditch planes altogether and use horse-drawn carriages! In fact, the problem isn't in hi-tech but in greedy/amoral executives and engineering managers who opted for a lower-cost software work-around to a serious hardware problem. Ironically, this statement comes from a man who flies on the world's most advanced plane and helicopters in terms of control and communication technologies.

2019/03/14 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Pi Day! Beautiful handwriting Chart: Things that happen on the Internet every minute in 2019 (1) Miscellaneous images: [Left] Happy Pi Day! [Center] Beautiful handwriting. [Right] Things that happen on the Internet every minute in 2019.
(2) March 14 (3/14) is the International Pi Day: Google employee Emma Haruka Iwao has calculated a record-breaking 31.4 trillion decimal digits of pi. In case you are wondering how such high-precision versions of pi are obtained, there are essentially three methods.
- Use of the power series expansion of atan(x) = xx^3/3 + x^5/5 – ... together with formulas like pi = 16*atan(1/5) – 4*atan(1/239). This gives about 1.4 decimals per term.
- Use of formulas coming from Arithmetic-Geometric mean computations. They have the advantage of converging quadratically, i.e., you double the number of decimal digits per iteration. For instance, to obtain 1,000,000 decimals, around 20 iterations are sufficient. However, the required computations are complicated.
- Use of complex multiplication of elliptic curves, discovered by S. Ramanujan. Here is an example:
Set a = 545140134; b = 13591409; c = 640320; d = 100100025; e = 327843840; f = 53360;
Then, pi = f sqrt(c)/S, where S = sum_(n = 0 to infinity) (–1)^n ((6n)!(b + na))/(n!^3(3n)!(8de)^n)
This scheme converges linearly, but very fast (more than 14 decimal digits per term).
(3) [Book introduction] Not All Dead White Men: Classics and Misogyny in the Digital Age: Classicist Donna Zuckerberg, the only Zuckerberg sibling not to have worked in tech, explores the appropriation of the classics by misogynistic communities on-line. The author goes on to connect on-line misogyny to classics worship, particularly the interpretation of the works of authors such as Marcus Aurelius and Ovid to defend the idea that "white men are the guardians of intellectual authority." [Image] [Source: E&T magazine, February 2019]
(4) Fighting misogyny: Iranian women continue to fight mandatory hijab and other misogynistic laws, despite the Supreme Leader's musings: "A woman with hijab is like a framed masterpiece. A woman without hijab is a badly drawn image on a piece of paper." Forcibly-framed women are rebelling! [Cartoon]
(5) A group of my contemporaries from Tehran University's College of Engineering are planning a tour of Iran's Kurdistan region, much like our last year's gathering in Yerevan, Armenia, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of our graduation. The tour spans several cities, including Saqqez, the birthplace of my parents. I have always wanted to visit Kurdistan (Kermanshah and Saqqez, in particular), but never got a chance. Alas, I cannot join the group, but will be with them in spirit!
(6) Final thought for the day: Pointed open letter to a female Iranian official, congratulating her on being even more corrupt than her male counterparts, thus demonstrating on the occasion of International Women's Day that women can be equal to men!

2019/03/13 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
My mom's haft-seen spread for Norooz 2019 My haft-seen spread at home for Norooz 2019, close-up photo My haft-seen spread at home for Norooz 2019, wide-shot photo (1) Gearing up for Norooz and spring: Yesterday, I did some shopping to complete my mom's haft-seen spread and helped her set it up for Norooz. And I set up my own haft-seen at home, a week before Norooz and the Iranian New Year 1398. Wishing you a happy Norooz, a joyous renewal season, and a wonderful New Year!
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- With a dozen Republican defections, Trump's national emergency declaration is opposed by the US Senate. Veto is certain.
- Paul Manafort receives an additional 3.5 years in prison, and is immediately charged with additional crimes.
- Governor Newsom puts death penalty on hold in California, giving reprieves to 737 death-row inmates.
- Nasrin Sotoudeh will not be silenced by a cruelly-long and utterly unjust prison sentence. [Cartoon]
- Tehran billboard spreads the official message of the Islamic Republic to women: Stay home and multiply!
- Persian Music: An old performance by Parisa, for those who did not get to see her perform on Sunday.
(3) CS Summit at UCSB: After smelling my jasmines, which have bloomed just in time for Norooz, I walked to campus, where I had breakfast and began a full day of attendance at technical presentations (Photos). Immediately after the opening, 10 senior capstone projects were presented, in talks and posters. I was involved in assessing 2 of the senior capstone projects vis-a-vis compliance with ABET design requirements for computer engineering, and the CE students involved in them (each team also had CS students who do not appear in these photos). "NovaSight" provides solutions to problems created owing to data breaches and other security threats by helping users better manage their data and privacy parameters. Team members shown are Fernando Mendoza (left) and Blake Johnson. "Automatic/Intelligent Offer Categorizer" assists merchants with identifying special offers with greater likelihood of being of interest to a given customer. Team members shown are Haochen Shi, Xiao Sun, and Winfred Huang (left to right).
In the late afternoon, Distinguished Lecturer Lise Getoor (Professor, UCSC) spoke under the title "Responsible Data Science." Professor Getoor's talk consisted of three parts: A short introduction to data science, a description of her research contributions to the field, and cautions. Responsible data science addresses both the technical and societal aspects of emerging data-driven technologies, hence Professor Getoor's emphasis on the third part of her talk. Progress in this domain requires successful integration of algorithmic and statistical principles, social science theories, and basic humanist concepts. [Slides]
(4) World Music Series noon concert today: I spent part of my lunch break to attend a concert. The Music Bowl, where UCSB's San Jarocho Ensemble performed, was conveniently close to the CS Summit venue, UCen's Corwin Pavilion. A nice break from non-stop technical presentations! One of these photos shows a sample of the smallish guitars that are carved from a single block of wood. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4]

2019/03/12 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Madrid's city-scape Istanbul's Blue Mosque Quebec City's Quartier Petit Champlain (1) Architectural marvels from around the world: [Left] Madrid's city-scape. [Center] Istanbul's Blue Mosque. [Rignt] Quebec City's Quartier Petit Champlain.
(2) Math puzzle: Starting now, Bill can get to class at 3 PM if he rides his bike at 10 km/hr and at 1 PM if he rides at 15 km/hr. However, his class begins at 2 PM. He should ride at 12.5 km/hr, right?
(3) Deadly software failure: The two Boeing 737 Max 8 planes that crashed over the past 5 months had hardware problems that caused the plane to stall. Rather than modify the hardware, Boeing decided to install a software fix to go around the stalling problem, but failed to notify the pilots or train them to understand the fix. Several countries have grounded the planes but the US continues to insist that they are safe. [Images]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- GDP forecasts are usually too optimistic: The only exception over the past decade was 2018. [NYT chart]
- The many faces of Julia Louis Dryfus: Time magazine feature honoring her as "The Queen of Comedy."
- A mesmerizing, graceful, and athletic dance, using a ring. [5-minute video]
- Instrumental music: "Paola" theme from the movie "State of Siege" (1972), by Mikis Theodorakis.
(5) I am a proud Californian: As this sign, recently installed at the top of the stairs leading to UCSB's West Campus Beach, declares, California leads the way in ocean and coastline restoration and preservation. In my post of yesterday about the Plous Award Lecture, I wrote that the future of humanity depends on the health of our oceans and the lifeforms therein. We should do our best to avoid a repetition of the species extinction trend experienced on land within our oceans.
(6) Visiting the beach during my walk today: This 2-minute video captures the ocean's magnificence during high tide on a super-windy afternoon, which made the Sun's warm rays doubly enjoyable.
(7) College admission scandal: Actresses Felicity Hoffman and Lori Loughlin, along with a number of CEOs and other rich people, have been charged with illegal acts to get their children into elite colleges. The schemes included having stand-ins take tests, faking learning disabilities to get extra time on tests, and bribing athletic departments to recruit their kids for sports they never played.

2019/03/11 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The beautiful city of Lahijan on Iran's Caspian coast Herb-rice and fish is a staple of Norooz family gatherings among Iranians, at home and in diaspora The 3000-year-old village of Uraman Takht (Throne of Ahura Mazda) in eastern Kurdistan, Iran (1) Iran-related images: [Left] The beautiful city of Lahijan on Iran's Caspian coast. [Center] Herb-rice and fish is a staple of Norooz family gatherings among Iranians, at home and in diaspora. [Right] The 3000-year-old village of Uraman Takht (Throne of Ahura Mazda) in eastern Kurdistan, Iran.
(2) Here comes the hidden half of the GOP tax cuts: Significant cuts in Trump's proposed budget to reduce the deficit. Apparently, wealth redistribution is good when money goes from the 99% to the 1%! The budget includes deep cuts to science spending.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Disgusting case of data abuse: Florida cop tried to date 150 women, using the police database.
- Meme of the day: The very crooked balance of the US justice system. [Image]
- NYC will soon have a glass-bottom outdoors observation deck at a height of 1100 feet (100th floor).
- Tucker Carlson exposed as sexualizing underage girls and describing women as "extremely primitive."
- Dutch researcher discovers a personal-info database of women in China, listing their "Breed-Ready" status.
- Human rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh receives a final verdict of 38 years in jail and 148 lashes.
(4) The 62nd Annual Harold J. Plous Award Lecture: Douglas McCauley, Associate Professor of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology at UCSB, gave the prestigious annual lecture which honors a young researcher in humanities, social sciences, or natural sciences. Speaking under the title "The Past and Future of Wildlife Loss in Our Oceans," Dr. McCauley's theme was whether mass extinction on land and its acceleration after the Industrial Revolution will repeat in our oceans. So far, the oceans have fared better than land with regard to the extinction of animal species, but that may change rapidly, as we endeavor to farm, mine, and, more generally, industrialize our oceans.
Technology is changing our oceans, but the same technology, which brings us industrial-scale fishing, enormous container ships, and many other disruptive elements, provides us with tools to observe, measure, and develop theories of change and strategies for managing the change. Given how important the oceans are to the well-being of the human race, we must act to keep the marine-extinction trend line flat, as opposed to exponentially rising, as observed for land species following the Industrial Revolution. One strategy is to set aside areas as "ocean parks," as we have done on land in the form of National Parks, but there are many other options for international cooperation to avert disaster. [Slides]
P.S.: The beautiful Marine Science Building at UCSB and views from its second-floor terrace, where the reception following the Plous Award Lecture was held. [4 photos]

2019/03/10 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Costume parade in front of Royce Hall at UCLA's 2019 Norooz celebration Haft-seen spread at UCLA's 2019 Norooz celebration Performers posing with women in costumes at UCLA's 2019 Norooz celebration (1) Norooz celebration: The 11th annual celebration of Norooz by Farhang Foundation was held at UCLA's Dickson Court this afternoon. The program consisted of music, by UCLA Bruins Marching Band, LA Daf Ensemble, and Saaz o Dohol Musicians, and dance routines, by Djanbazian Dance Company and Firuze Dance Company, a costume parade, various activities for children/youth, and an evening concert by the renowned singer of classical Persian songs, Parisa, at Royce Hall (I did not attend the concert). Dickson Court held a haft-seen spread and various Norooz-related decorations. [Photos] [4 videos of the costume parade and music/dance performances] [4 videos from the event, where the UCLA Bruins Marching Band was involved]
(2) Shabbat elevators: Writing in the February 2019 issue of E&T magazine, columnist Vitali Vitaliev describes a visit to friends in Israel who live in a high-rise building, with an elevator devoted for use on Saturdays, when observant Jews shun pressing buttons. The elevator door opens automatically upon someone approaching, it closes after a few seconds, and the car stops on every floor! That's 21st-century religion for you!
(3) How long it takes to download an HD movie in various cell-phone technology generations:
1G, 1 month; 2G, 17 hours; 3G, 1 hour; 4G, 2 minutes; 5G, 4 seconds.
(4) Math puzzle: What is the missing number in the following sequence?
10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 22, 24, __, 100, 121, 10000
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Street art in Tehran: Paintings on a wall along Jomhouri Street. [Tweet image]
- A star is born: Dog sings when his master plays the guitar! [Video]
- Jasmines on a trellis: These aren't my jasmines, which have just begun to bloom. [Photo]
- Titans of tech: Tim Apple, Jeff Amazon, Mark Facebook, Elon Tesla (or is it Elon SpaceX? Elon Boring?).
(6) The first nuclear war ever may well be between India and Pakistan, as border tensions between the two nuclear powers rise over Kashmir and the United States' moderating influence in the region dwindles.
(7) An old friend visiting Santa Barbara: Ali Parsa, who was a grad student at Sharif University of Technology just before I left, edited Computer Report (technical magazine of Informatics Society of Iran, for which I was founding editor) for a few years, and, unknown to both of us, led a parallel life within a few hundreds of feet from my family's residence in Tehran's Vanak neighborhood, visited Santa Barbara on Saturday, along with the Sharifpour family. We had lunch at Fishouse waterfront restaurant. For a couple of hours, we reminisced about our lives in Vanak and our experiences since we last met four decades ago. [Photos]

Cover image for Professor Anne Curzan's course, 'The Secret Life of Words' 2019/03/09 (Saturday): Course review: Curzan, Professor Anne, "The Secret Life of Words: English Words and Their Origins," 36 lectures in "The Great Courses" series, 2012. [My 5-star review of this course on GoodReads]
This grand tour of the history of words in the English language is both enjoyable and highly informative. Professor Curzan combines her vast knowledge of English with a story-telling style that holds the listener's attention. The 18 CDs come in three boxes, with a 269-page guide book, which includes a 12-page bibliography.
This link takes you to the publisher's Web page for the course, where hovering over a lecture title gives you a synopsis of that lecture.
A listing of the wonderfully playful lecture titles is perhaps the best way to convey the vast scope and impressive organization of the course.
01 Winning Words, Banished Words    02 The Life of a Word, from Birth to Death
03 The Human Hands Behind Dictionaries    04 Treasure Houses, Theft, and Traps
05 Yarn and Clues—New Word Meanings    06 Smog, Mob, Bling—New Words
07 "Often" versus "Offen"—Pronunciation    08 Fighting over Zippers
09 Opening the Early English Word-Hoard    10 Safe and Sound—The French Invasion
11 Magnifical Dexterity—Latin and Learning    12 Chutzpah to Pajamas—World Borrowings
13 The Pop/Soda/Coke Divide    14 Maths, Wombats, and Les Bluejeans
15 Foot and Pedestrian—Word Cousins    16 Desultory Somersaults—Latin Roots
17 Analogous Prologues—Greek Roots    18 The Tough Stuff of English Spelling
19 The b in Debt—Meddling in Spelling    20 Of Mice, Men, and Y'All
21 I'm Good ... Or Am I Well?    22 How Snuck Sneaked In
23 Um, Well, Like, You Know    24 Wicked Cool—The Irreverence of Slang
25 Boy Toys and Bad Eggs—Slangy Wordplay    26 Spinster, Bachelor, Guy, Due
27 Firefighters and Freshpersons    28 A Slam Dunk—The Language of Sports
29 Fooling Around—The Language of Love    30 Gung Ho—The Language of War
31 Filibustering—The Language of Politics    32 LOL—The Language of the Internet
33 #$@%!—Forbidden Words    34 Couldn't (or Could) Care Less
35 Musquirt and Other Lexical Gaps    36 Playing Fast and Loose with Words
Perhaps the most important insight one gains from this course is that language is a living system that expands, shrinks, and changes as words are born and die and as old words assume new roles. New words are born all the time through various processes, including the introduction of names for new scientific/technological notions, borrowing, slang usage, combining, contraction, and so on.
One should not look down on such new words, even slang ones, as somehow being illegitimate or in violation of "pure language." English, which is predominantly made up of words borrowed from other languages anyway, is what its speakers decide it to be; it cannot or should not be protected against change by academics. Dictionary-makers are sometimes viewed as language arbiters, whereas their role is simply to monitor and explain usage and to track how things change over time.
Here is a snippet of the history of "woman" as a word, which I used on social-media posts on the 2019 International Women's Day (March 8). The word "mann" used to mean "person" in old English. It was later used to form the new word "wifmann" (meaning "female person"). The word "wif," whose counterpart "wer" for "male" somehow disappeared, later also gave rise to "wife."
I highly recommend this course. I will go back and listen to it a second time, before the library loan period expires. Listening once isn't enough to capture the wealth of information dispensed by Curzan.

2019/03/08 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Women's Day greeting, with abstract flowers Behrooz Parhami's Persian poem honoring Women's Day 2019 and Norooz 1398 A few images from March 8 of years past (1) Happy International Women's Day to my women readers and all others who believe in unconditional gender equality. The English word "woman" has an interesting history, which I learned from Professor Anne Curzan's wonderful course (in "The Great Courses" series), entitled "The Secret Life of Words: English Words and Their Origins" (I have finished the course and will write a review of it soon). The word "mann" used to mean "person" in old English. It was later used as the basis for the new word "wifmann" (meaning "female person"). The word "wif," whose counterpart "wer" for "male" somehow disappeared, later also gave rise to "wife." The Persian poem is explained under item (2) below. On the right is a collage of images from March 8 of years past.
(2) Persian poetry: Each year, just before Norooz, I compose a Persian poem that celebrates the arrival of spring and its bounties, challenging myself by having the initial letters of the poem's verses spell a cheerful or congratulatory message. For spring 2019 (Norooz 1398 in Persian calendar), I decided to take on an even greater challenge, composing my poem to celebrate Norooz in the first half-verses and women in the second halves, with the initials of the former spelling "Norooz" and the initials of the latter spelling "Women's Day" (in Persian). I am publishing the poem on International Women's Day, March 8, as my gift/message for this important occasion. I will repost the poem in a week or two in celebration of Norooz.
I love puzzles and such compositions are puzzle-like. Starting with the desired initial letters that spell my hidden message, and notions that I would like to include in the poem (spring, flowers, joy, renewal, growth, ... for Norooz, and equality, respect, rights, justice, ... for Women's Day), I go to work trying to put my sentiments into words, while observing the rhyming schemes that have made classical Persian poetry a joy to read/recite. This year, progress was slow in the first couple of days, but I eventually pulled everything together and finished the job. I hope you enjoy my poem! [Facebook post and tweet, both with Persian introductions]
[2-minute video of me reciting the poem on Facebook and on Twitter]
(3) Five crimes committed by women in Iran: Sharing their dance videos on social media, playing with water in the park, watching men play soccer, walking their dogs, and showing their hair in public. [Video]
(4) Violin recital: What better way to end this special day of honoring women than by listening to the exquisite violin music of Anne-Sophie Mutter (Santa Barbara Granada Theater, 7:00 PM). Both halves of the program began with Mozart's Violin Sonatas (K. 304, K. 454). The first half continued with Debussy's Violin Sonata and Ravel's Violin Sonata No. 2. The second half proceeded with Poulenc's Violin Sonata and was followed by a couple of shorter encore pieces. Pianist Lambert Orkis accompanied Mutter. Here are samples of the violin virtuoso's work from YouTube. [39-minute video] [141-minute video, Mozart] [Event flyer]

2019/03/07 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
This 4.5-decades-old photo shows me when I was a doctoral student at UCLA in the early 1970s Sharing a 20-year-old photo of my ex-wife Vida on this fifth anniversary of her passing Undated photo (1960s?), showing one of the metal folding beds my dad manufactured at his mini-factory/workshop in Vanak, Tehran (1) Throwback Thursday: [Left] This 4.5-decades-old photo is courtesy of Sharon Boyajian, who, along with her late husband Don, served as my host family while I was a doctoral student at UCLA. [Center] Sharing a 20-year-old photo of my ex-wife Vida on this fifth anniversary of her passing. RIP. [Right] Undated photo (1960s?), showing one of the metal folding beds my dad manufactured at his mini-factory/workshop in Vanak, Tehran. The frame was made out of iron tubes, bent to the desired shape, using a manual tube-bending implement. The diamond-mesh forming the bed's surface was assembled by hand, using short pieces of metal wire, with hook-like bends at both ends, connected together by putting four hooks through a washer.
(2) Relief from rain: We will be drying out in Santa Barbara and Goleta over the next week. Our rainfall total now stands at 114% of the average for a full water year and at 145% of normal-to-date. [Weather forecast]
(3) The organizer and sponsor of a fashion show in Lavasan, east of Tehran, have been summoned by the police for exhibiting "immoral" clothing without a permit.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Congresswoman Ilhan Omar has done Muslim-Americans a great disservice by speaking carelessly.
- China will launch the first module of its space station later this year, in an ambitious 3-year project.
- Execution of ethnic minorities rises in Iran, most cases occurring in border regions and in secret.
- Iranian teachers launch nationwide sit-in. [Iranwire story]
- No kabob for you: Soaring meat prices force many Tehran restaurants to close.
- A Kurdish Norooz song and dance.
- Alex Trebek, the most recognizable face of TV game shows, is diagnosed with stage-4 pancreatic cancer.
- Meme of the day: For fans of the game show "Wheel of Fortune." [Image]
(5) Technical talk sponsored by UCSB's Institute for Energy Efficiency: Adam R. Brendt (Professor, Stanford U.) spoke this afternoon under the title "Oil Production in a Climate-Constrained World: Reducing Impacts, Improving Efficiency." Some argue that the time for oil has passed and see no need to study it further. But oil currently provides about 35% of total primary energy supply and meets about 95% of our transportation energy needs. Models predict consumption of more than 1 trillion barrels of oil by the end of the century. Where will this oil come from? What are the impacts of producing, refining, and consuming it? Professor Brendt has spent more than a decade poring over data from the oil industry, which is itself energy-intensive, consuming 3-4% of the total human primary energy (divided nearly equally between production and refining). Understanding the impacts of oil production, as well as exploring the benefits of wise choices in resource prioritization, emissions management, and integration of renewables into oil sector operations are thus important. [Slides]

2019/03/06 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Spectacular lightning display, photographed over Stearns Wharf in Santa Barbara last night, Photo 1 Spectacular lightning display, photographed over Stearns Wharf in Santa Barbara last night, Photo 3 Spectacular lightning display, photographed over Stearns Wharf in Santa Barbara last night, Photo 2 (1) Spectacular lightning display, photographed over Stearns Wharf in Santa Barbara last night: Southern California saw more than 2000 pulses of lightning. In Goleta, we had an unusually intense and long thunderstorm in Goleta, CA, seen in this video, captured from behind a French door at my home.
(2) A number of new technologies on the hype cycle, beginning with inflated expectations, continuing with disillusionment, and ending with productive use. [Chart from: E&T magazine, issue of February 2019]
(3) Architecture heals nature: Following the collapse of Malta's famed natural arch in 2017, a team of architects plans to pay homage by replacing it with a landmark that preserves the arch's original size and proportions, while providing 5000 square meters of exhibition space over five spiral floors. [Images] [Source: E&T magazine, issue of February 2019]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The on-line world map, in which countries are scaled by the number of their registered Internet domains.
- Cartoon of the day: Trump hugs and fondles a US flag before starting his 2-hour CPAC speech. [Image]
- After Sadeq Larijani steps down as head of Iran's judiciary, another criminal (Ebrahim Raisi) is appointed.
- Why 'ji32k7au4a83' is a surprisingly common password, appearing in data breache cases 141 times.
- Live-action re-enactment of classic paintings. [4-minute video]
- The 74 km sightseeing railroad of Iran's Luristan Province. [3-minute video, narrated in Persian]
- The difference between doing nothing and doing a tiny bit each day for a year, expressed mathematically.
- Persian poetry: Mr. Haloo recites his humorous poem about the penniless man who kept thanking God.
- According to a Delta Dental survey, the average amount that the Tooth Fairy leaves kids per tooth is $3.70.
(5) World Music Series noon concert: A subset of UCSB's Gospel Choir performed in a nearby classroom instead of the fairly wet Music Bowl. [3-minute video]
(6) Contempt, not incivility or intolerance, tops the list of problems in America today: Our country is more divided now than any time since the Civil War. One in six Americans has stopped talking to a family member or close friend because of the 2016 election.
(7) Math puzzle: Two trains, each moving at 50 km/hr, were approaching each other on the same track. When the trains were 100 km apart, a bee on the front of one train started flying toward the other train at 60 km/hr. When the bee reached the front of the second train, it immediately started back toward the first train, and continued to go back and forth, until the trains collided. How far did the bee fly?

2019/03/05 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
An enlightening representation of the Great Lakes in northern United States and their relationships (1) An enlightening representation of the Great Lakes in the northern US and their relationships: Water level drops quite gradually (suddenly, at Niagara Falls) from 601 feet above sea level to sea level over ~1500 miles.
(2) Computing's environmental impact: We tend to think that computers help make everything more efficient, so they should have a net positive impact on the environment. Not so fast, say Andrew Chien in his CACM Editor's Letter (March 2019 issue). He elaborates that according to a rule known as "Jevons Paradox" (formulated by economist William Stanley Jevons), efficiency tends to increase consumption, so it may end up having a net negative impact. Chien concludes his letter thus: "Let's create technologies and systems that in their manufacture, construction, and operation approach the goal of 100% carbon-free and neutral environmental impact!" [Image]
(3) Lost in beautiful math: The title above is a combination of two attitudes toward mathematics. Some find it beautiful, while others are lost in it! Moshe Vardi's insightful column in CACM's March 2019 issue elaborates on this dichotomy. While seeking mathematical beauty has been the source of many discoveries in math and elsewhere, the lure of beauty can lead us astray. As noted by Nobel Laureate economist Paul Krugman in response to the question of how economists got it so wrong in the 2008 financial crisis, "the economics profession went astray because economists, as a group, mistook beauty clad in impressive-looking mathematics, for truth." [Image]
(4) Final thought for the day: Government does not give free stuff to anyone. People give free stuff to government in the form of paying for government salaries, benefits, and perks. In return, government provides services, using what is left of the tax money it collects. The Right calls this "socialism" when the services benefit ordinary citizens and "free enterprise" when corporations, the military-industrial complex, and the super-rich are subsidized. [Chart: US individual and corporate taxes as percent of GDP]

2019/03/04 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A beautiful spring-like day on the UCSB campus, Photo 1 A beautiful spring-like day on the UCSB campus, Photo 2 A beautiful spring-like day on the UCSB campus, Photo 3 (1) A beautiful spring-like day on the UCSB campus, sandwiched between 3 days of rain on each side.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- At least 23 died, as a tornado ripped through Lee County in Alabama: The death toll is expected to rise.
- Fox News reportedly had Stormy Daniels' story before the 2016 election, but Rupert Murdoch killed it.
- Steven Colbert on Trump's record-breaking 122-minute CPAC speech, which began with flag-hugging.
- Saudi Arabia mimics Iran in detaining, and allegedly torturing, a dual Saudi-US citizen.
- A beautiful face: A victims of acid-spraying in Isfahan, Iran, in front of her portrait at an exhibition.
- Trump's buddy, Kim Jong Un, had a cyberattack launched against the US during the love-fest in Hanoi.
- A first for commercial space technology: SpaceX's Crew Dragon travels to the International Space Station.
- China's space ambitions include launching a rover to probe Mars in 2020.
A Haji Firooz figurine, with blackened face and large, colored lips (3) Norooz traditions' blackface problem: One fixture in Norooz celebrations is blackface entertainers, dressed in red, dancing and singing on the streets. I have written many times about the need to repeal this racist tradition. A number of friends and acquaintances take issue with my allegation of racism, offering various alternative explanations. One recurring explanation is that Haji Firooz (aka Khajeh Pirooz) dancers on the streets do not represent black people but soot-covered fire-keepers in Zoroastrian fire temples. I have always found this explanation unsatisfactory. First, blackface dancers recite lines that refer to the listener as master ("arbaab"). Second, the fire-keeper interpretation does not explain the large, painted lips on many of these entertainers. We can have fun during Norooz, without denigrating other people. Let's ditch the Haji Firooz tradition!
(4) Iranian human rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh faces a 34-year prison term: Each of these ridiculously-long sentences is another nail Iranian judiciary puts in the Islamic regime's coffin. Nasrin Sotoudeh's name is already recorded at the top of the list of the brave and selfless Iranians, who contributed peacefully and nonviolently, to the downfall of an unaccountable and brutal regime, by just speaking the truth. Hats off to her and to Iranian women's movement!
(5) Philosophical maxims, updated for freelancers: "I cannot teach anybody anything. I can only make them think that I'm doing this Skype call with the bottom half of this business-casual outfit on."

2019/03/03 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Damavand village, near Tehran, Iran Two of my favorite snacks, photographed in Tajrish, Tehran The magnificent Mount Judi in the Kurdish region of Turkey (1) Natural wonders: [Left] Damavand village, near Tehran, Iran. [Center] Two of my favorite snacks (fresh almonds and green plums, which signal the arrival of spring), photographed in Tajrish square, northern Tehran. [Right] The magnificent Mount Judi in the Kurdish region of Turkey.
(2) Communication of the ACM's March 2019 interview with Fei-Fei Li, Co-Director of Stanford University's Human-Centered AI Institute, who wants to create algorithms that can learn the way human babies do.
(3) The cost of knowledge: Negotiations between University of California and Elsevier publishing company fail over high cost, leading to cut-off of free access to many scientific journals for our students and faculty. UC aimed to negotiate a complete package that included both access to journals and pre-payment of open-access publishing fees. Alternative access methods, through inter-library loans and other mechanisms, are being explored by the administration. Here is a report by The Atlantic on the failed UC-Elsevier negotiations.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- A wonderful verse from Sa'adi, which has four variations in different sources.
- Super-fresh herbs and Persian cucumbers I brought back from Los Angeles. [Photo]
- I have fond memories of this sandwich shop in northern Tehran: Sharing, in case others remember it too.
- GPS device found on a dead eagle shows its movements over a 20-year period.
- Egyptian tourist at Parhami Traditional House (no relation) in Shiraz, during her second visit to Iran.
- Work has begun in converting the closed K-mart in Goleta, CA, to a Target store, the first in our area.
(5) Today, I drove to the Chatsworth area of San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles to visit a dear old college classmate and friend who is in poor health. He has been living in that area with his family, ever since he suffered a stroke in 2015, but I was unaware of his whereabouts until fairly recently. I talked with him about our good-old days in Tehran and our subsequent e-mail communications, which lasted until a few years ago, when I lost contact with him. He was visibly cheered up when I showed him the photos of our college days, our group's 50th graduation anniversary reunion in Yerevan, Armenia (which he could not attend), last year, and the recent celebration of Fanni's Alumni Association in Tehran. [Photos]

2019/03/02 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Physicist Michio Kaku's books, batch 2 Physicist Michio Kaku's books, batch 1 (1) Physicist Michio Kaku's books: His next book is The Future of Humanity: Our Destiny in the Universe.
(2) Quote of the day: "When scientists use the word God, they usually mean the God of Order ... However, to the nonscientists, the word God almost universally refers to the God of Miracles, and this is the source of miscommunication between scientists and nonscientists." ~ American theoretical physicist Michio Kaku
(3) A capsule review of linear algebra: If you are looking for an introduction to linear algebra or need to quickly review the main topics in an easily presented, intuitive format, this set of 14 videos, running 4-17 minutes each, is recommended.
(4) Donald J. Trump: The great businessman who hides his tax returns. The genius who ordered his grades sealed. The innocent man who won't answer questions under oath.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- An 11-year-old girl, impregnated by her step-grandfather, is denied abortion in Argentina.
- Trump mocks his former AG's Southern accent during his CPAC speech: And Southerners still support him?
- Are our national and state-level politics moving us towards Third-World status in civil discourse?
- Iran's government is subsidizing each Hajj pilgrim ~$2000 in the form of discounted exchange rate. [Tweet]
- Santa Barbara County rainfall stands at 139% of year-to-date and 103% of the total water-year amount.
- A giant sunfish, with home in the Australian waters, washed up on Coal Oil Point beach in Goleta, CA.
- Senate probes China-funded Confucius Institute at US colleges, given that US has no reciprocal rights.
- Michael Jackson is back in the news, owing to a 4-hour HBO documentary about his private life.
(6) Fatemeh Kamarkhani, the Iranian woman who exposed the marriage of an 11-year-old girl to a 50-year-old man, has been laid off from her government job. [Tweet]
(7) The first woman to ever run a marathon in the US disguised her sex by entering her initials on the sign-up sheet. When she was discovered, a man tried to force her out of the race, but she persisted.
(8) "Beatles Revolutions" film series at UCSB's Pollock Theater: The fifth and final installment of the series, "Yellow Submarine" (1968) was screened this afternoon. This animated film, with a minimalist plot, happens in the psychedelic paradise of Pepperland and features 11 Beatles tunes, mostly from the "Sergeant Pepper" album. Concurrent with the film's 50th anniversary year, a graphic-novel adaptation was published. Writer Bill Morrison and colorist Nathan Kane participated in a moderated discussion after the screening. [Images]

2019/02/28 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
This will send a clear message to ruthless dictators the world over. Don't make us come to your doorstep and bombard you with compliments! They are not invaders--they're here to install the storm screens This cartoon (Joey's Authentic Italian Pizza) needs no explanation! (1) Cartoons galore (the first two from New Yorker): [Left] "This will send a clear message to ruthless dictators the world over. Don't make us come to your doorstep and bombard you with compliments!" [Center] "They are not invaders—they're here to install the storm screens." [Right] This cartoon needs no caption!
(2) Facebook post of the day, for my Persian-speaking readers: It is a pet peeve of mine too that when a singer or other artist appears on a Persian TV show, the host often compliments and thanks the guest profusely, as if his/her appearance on the show is a great favor to the audience or a major personal sacrifice.
(3) Data transmission speed (bandwidth) record, beyond what was thought theoretically possible, is set on a 4000-mile transatlantic cable jointly owned by Facebook and Microsoft.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Northern California, devastated by fires a few months ago, now faces the worst flooding in decades.
- High prices will prevent foldable smartphones from going mainstream in 2019.
- Cartoon of the day: Pope's nonexistent plan of action on clergy sex abuse. [Image]
- Today's cartoon caption: "The President wants to know if North Korea's missiles can reach Michael Cohen."
- Iranian labor activists face intense pressure for confessing on TV to trumped-up crimes.
- Iranian dance: Costumes and some moves look Kurdish but the music is from the Persian Gulf region.
- Persian music: The pains and struggles of those who carry impossibly heavy loads on their backs.
(5) ECE Distinguished Lecture, today at UCSB: Dr. John Paul Strachan (Head of the Rebooting Computing Team at HP Labs, Palo Alto, CA) spoke under the title "A New Era for Exploring Power Efficient Hardware Accelerators: Devices, Architectures, and Lab Demonstrations." This fascinating talk's thesis was that significant performance gains in future will depend on exploiting circuits and devices beyond CMOS, as well as on hardware-software co-design of special-purpose (application-specific) systems. Examples pursued at HP Labs include new circuits and architectures for accelerating finite automata, used in rapid pattern-matching applications, and leveraging the analog and non-volatile nature of memristor arrays to accelerate machine learning and image processing. Dr. Strachen also described how noise can be harnessed in analog circuits to build a "classical annealer" for solving optimization problems at lower latency and energy than any digital system or even the quantum annealers currently being pursued. [14 slides]

2019/02/27 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
History in pictures: Nancy Pelosi, 20, with JFK at the 1962 Democratic Convention Cover image of Bernie Sanders' latest book 'Where We Go from Here' Senator Chuck Schumer's snior-year high school yearbook photo, 1967 (1) Images of US Democratic politicians, then and now: [Left] Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, 20, with JFK at the 1962 Democratic Convention. [Center] Cover image of Bernie Sanders' latest book (2018), reviewed below. [Right] Senator Chuck Schumer's snior-year high school yearbook photo, 1967.
(2) Liquid electrical tape: Let me share some information about a product that I bought recently. Over time, I had accumulated several iPhone/iPad charging cords, repaired with electrical tape at the device end. Yesterday, I repaired three of them by applying liquid electrical tape over the cord's end. Once the liquid tape dries, the cord becomes as good as new. It won't look as good as the original, but certainly better than one repaired with ordinary electrical tape. [Photo]
(3) Trump supporters have sunk to the lowest low, one Congressman threatening Michael Cohen with revealing info about his girlfriends if he is hostile to Trump.
(4) "Beatles Revolutions" film series at UCSB's Pollock Theater: Tonight's film, "Across the Universe" (2007), the fourth in a series of five and the most-recently made, defies classification. It is a musical featuring 33 Beatles songs, many of them re-imagined and performed by mostly-unknown artists, the only exception being Bono, who has a brief role. The Beatles themselves are never mentioned or shown in the film. The visuals are from the lives of young people in the 1960s, including street and campus protests against the Vietnam War. There are several dance routines, wonderfully choreographed, some in the style of Michael Jackson videos. All in all a wonderful visual and aural experience that shows the continued preeminence and relevance of Beatles music. A moderated discussion with music and cultural critic Greil Marcus followed the screening. [Images]
(5) Book review: Sanders, Bernie, Where We Go from Here: Two Years in the Resistance, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Mcmillan Audio, 2018. [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Bernie Sanders rose to his current Senate seat, working his way up from the mayor of Burlington, Vermont. He defines himself as a Democratic Socialist and labels the grassroots movement he started "Our Revolution." I like and support many of Sanders' ideas: Universal healthcare, tuition-free college for all, raising the minimum wage to $15.00 an hour, paid parental leave, dealing with climate change, and supporting labor unions. He discusses these ideas in detail, presenting them in a form resembling diary entries, each beginning with a date and perhaps a venue. He draws liberally from his previous writings and speeches.
As I write this review, Sanders has declared his intention to run for US presidency in 2020. I picked up this book to learn more about his ideas, considering that he is a serious contender for the Democratic Party's presidential candidacy. And this is what worries me.
In addition to advanced age, which makes him somewhat inflexible and learning-challenged (such as continuing to mispronounce certain country names), Sanders has limited appeal to moderate Americans. He fires up his supporters, much like Trump does his base, with rosy projections, without saying much about their practical implementation. The only concrete proposal one hears from Sanders is raising taxes on the rich. I don't object to this method, but I am not sure it will generate enough revenue to fund all the programs he advocates.
Sociopolitical changes occur in small, incremental steps, except in disruptive revolutions. It would be much wiser for him to focus on his most important proposals, such as universal healthcare and raising of the minimum wage, and turn them into a couple of compelling and easily digestible slogans/policies. Throwing everything, including the kitchen sink, into the mix dilutes the message and feeds the narrative that he is an out-of-touch idealist. This is how politics works in the US: Covering too many topics is counterproductive and raises the danger of losing the voters' attention. Furthermore, I wish he would stop talking about "socialism" and "revolution," as these words aren't popular these days, and they make some Americans uncomfortable.
Sanders is very skillful with data and is always able to cite pertinent facts and figures about the US economy. He is less versed in foreign policy and international affairs, including the global economy. Like Trump, Sanders adeptly hones in on grievances of the working class, and, alas, like Trump, he essentially says that everything would be wonderful if his policies were implemented.
Having listened to Where We Go from Here, I know more about Sanders' stance on various issues, but still not enough about how he plans to win the presidency by bringing in moderate Democrats and center-left independents. I am sorry to say that I do not see the appeal to a broad base that would help him overcome the predictable insults and attacks from Trump, who seems to prefer Sanders to other Democratic candidates, perhaps thinking that Sanders would be easier to bloody in a man-to-man fight.

2019/02/26 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Meme: When my child hits another child with a stick, I don't blame the stick, but I still take the stick away Graduating college student with a sense of humor: Game of Loans is coming! Three fortune from cookies to choose from (1) Two memes and three fortunes: [Left] Meme suggesting that the slogan "Guns don't kill, people do" is misguided. [Center] Graduating college student with a wonderful sense of humor! [Right] My son and I had lunch together on Sunday and, since he didn't want his fortune cookie, I took both, to double my chances of getting a good reading. One cookie had two fortunes in it, so I ended up having three choices!
(2) Technological evil: Kalashnikov, the company that gave us the notorious AK-47, the killing machine used by soldiers in combat and by deranged mass-shooters on our streets, has introduced a kamikaze-style "suicide drone," an exploding flying machine that will bring low-cost mass-murder to the masses. As if the job of law enforcement wasn't hard enough already!
(3) Race matters: Kian Karamdashti writes in Daily Nexus, UCSB's student newspaper, about his experiences growing up mixed. Having an Iranian father and a Mexican mother, he was doubly stereotyped.
(4) The future of economy-class flights: A British company has designed a plane seat made of a smart fabric that allows passengers to control seat temperature, tension, pressure, and movement, all via a phone app.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump's prediction that he'll have a "very tremendous summit" with Kim Jong Un reminded me of this chart.
- Theoretical physicist Michio Kaku in a 3-hour mind-expanding C-SPAN interview about everything.
- Tweet of the day [image]: For my Persian-speaking readers. [By the prolific tweeter Aida Ahadiany]
- Plous Award Lecture at UCSB: Douglas McCauley on "The Past and Future of Wildlife Loss in Our Oceans."
(6) Amtrak's Coast Starlight Train 11, traveling with 183 on board from Seattle to Los Angeles, has been stranded near Oakridge, Oregon, since Sunday evening, when it hit a fallen tree on the snow-covered tracks.
(7) Revealed for the first time: A 2014 FBI visit to the museum-like home of a beloved 90-year-old engineer revealed a huge collection of illegally-obtained treasures and historical artifacts from around the world, including about 2000 human bones dug up from Native-American burial grounds.
(8) Another one of Seth Meyers' insightful "A Closer Look" comedy news segments, this one dealing with the 2020 Democratic primary and Trump's plans to cause chaos in the crowded field.
(9) This Trump tweet is even more idiotic than what we have become accustomed to over the last 2+ years.
- HOLD THE DATE: We already hold the July 4th date every year to salute America!
- Major fireworks display: Noooo! Fireworks on 4th of July? That's so innovative!
- Your favorite President: He had to add "me," to ensure no one thought of Obama!
Shame on Trump for turning an occasion that unites all Americans into a hate-speech-filled political rally!

2019/02/25 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Message of love in a photo of fallen blossoms Message of love in a calligraphically-rendered Mowlavi (Rumi) verse Happy Sepandarmazgan, on the alternate date of February 24, not February 18 (1) Expressions of love: [Left & Center] Messages of love in a photo and in a calligraphically-rendered Mowlavi (Rumi) verse. [Right] Sepandarmazgan and its alternate date: In this 18-minute sound clip, in Persian, Dr. Shokoufeh Taghi offers her scholarly opinion, based on historical sources, on why Sepandarmazgan (or Esfandarmazgan), the ancient Iranian festival honoring women and Earth, should not be viewed as the "Iranian Valentine's Day" and why its correct date is 5th of Esfand (February 24; see my blog post of February 14).
(2) Analogies sometimes fail miserably: Pope Francis put his foot in his mouth again when he said that sexual abuse of children reminded him of the ancient religious practice of child sacrifice in pagan rites. While the abhorrent practice of human sacrifice was at least done with noble, though obviously misguided, intentions, I do not believe that a priest penetrating or otherwise abusing a child entertains any noble thoughts at the time.
(3) NASA renames building for "Hidden Figures" mathematician: The Katherine Johnson Independent Verification and Validation Facility in Fairmont, WV, honors the African-American woman who overcame bias and discrimination to rise in the ranks of NASA scientists during the 1950s and 1960s.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Company employing autistic visual-effects artists was involved in the Oscar-winning film "Black Panther."
- Would you sell 39 years of your life for $21M? That's what happened to a wrongfully-convicted man.
- Does this 2-page spread in NRA's magazine advocate violence against Nancy Pelosi and Gabby Giffords?
- Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has reportedly resigned for unknown reasons. [Aljazeera report]
- Evidence that global warming is caused by humans reaches five-sigma level, a gold standard in science.
- Kahuna Grill, fixture at Goleta's Camino Real Marketplace, has closed, to be replaced by a burger joint.
(5) Just watched the 26-minute film "Period. End of Sentence." which won the Oscar for best documentary short subject last night. In certain countries, girls are forced to end their education due to the inconvenience of cleaning up and changing in school during menstruation and, in part, because of patriarchal attitudes toward this very natural bodily function. The film's title is its thesis: That periods should only end sentences, not girls' education. Even in our advanced, modern society here in the US, a few social-media discussants considered it unfortunate that a film about such an undignified and cringe-inducing topic has been deemed worthy of an Oscar. There is no shame in any bodily function and no cringing is required! For centuries, if not millennia, women have been put down because of physiological differences with men, so much so that girls and women feel awkward discussing the topic or asking for help/guidance. It's time to bring the biases to the forefront and shame those who think girls/women become "dirty" when they menstruate. While this is happening primarily in Third-World societies, there are quite a few examples of it here in the US. Kudos to Iranian-American film-maker Rayka Zehtabchi for wonderfully documenting these injustices and unhealthy attitudes. [Film's trailer]

2019/02/24 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cloud waves rolling over the hills in Iran's Guilan Province The beautiful Vank Cathedral in Isfahan is unique in combining Iranian and Armenian architectural elements A traditional roadside cafe in Masouleh, Iran (1) Iran-related images: [Left] Cloud waves in Iran's Guilan Province. Here's a time-lapse video of cloud waves rolling over the hills in the same region. [Center] The beautiful Vank Cathedral in Isfahan is unique in combining Iranian and Armenian architectural elements. [Right] A traditional roadside cafe in Masouleh, Iran.
(2) President Barack Obama on being a man: How men are pressured in our society to exaggerate the traits deemed to represent "manhood." If you've got it, you don't need to flaunt it.
(3) Sepideh Moradi, 24, a talented and high-achieving graduate student, was expelled from a master's-degree program at Iran's Teacher Training University and dealt a 2-year prison term for belonging to a dervish sect.
(4) Great advice: Don't drink-and-drive! Because there are people out there who text-and-drive, and they will hit you, and it will be your fault.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- "Compassionate treatment at the border isn't the same as open borders." ~ Stacy Abrams' SOTU response
- You will soon be able to bike across the US, from sea to shining sea, on a 4000-mile trail.
- Marie Kondo's Netflix show has sparked a junk-clearing surge; thrift stores are now setting donation limits.
- "I'm the help. I'm like, 'What do your kids need? What can I do for you?'" ~ Chef Sandra Lee
(6) Women started the tech industry, but lost ground to sexism, reports Washington Post: "Silicon Valley's sexism has been thrust into the public eye in recent months, but women were initially at the forefront of the industry, back when technologist jobs were considered menial. However, as the industry became profitable, male executives developed hiring criteria and workplace cultures that sidelined women," according to Longpath Lab's Emma Goldberg.
(7) Business and society: "We should rid ourselves of the belief that business innovation inherently means social progress." ~ Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of Oxfam International
(8) The 91st annual Academy Awards (2019): Here are the results in major categories. Amazingly, a Mexican film-maker has won for directing in five of the past 6 years. And here is the complete list.
- Motion picture (director): "Green Book" directed by Peter Farrelly (Alfonso Cuaron for "Roma")
- Foreign-language film: "Roma" from Mexico, directed by Alfonso Cuaron
- Original (adapted) screenplay: "Green Book," Nick Vallelonga et al ("BlacKkKlansman," Charlie Wachtel et al)
- Original song (score): "Shallow" from "A Star Is Born," Lady Gaga et al ("Black Panther," Ludwig Goransson)
- Actor in leading (supporting) role: Rami Malek, "Bohemian Rhapsody" (Mahershala Ali, "Green Book")
- Actress in leading (supporting) role: Olivia Colman, "The Favourite" (Regina King, "If Beale Street Could Talk")
(9) Final thought for the day: ISIS brides, who regret their voluntary choices and want to return to the US, should wait in line behind all those who are fleeing ISIS atrocities.

2019/02/22 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Drought map of California Spring in Japan: Mt. Fuji Image of a typewriter and paper, with 'white-out' blobs (1) Images of the day: [Left] After 7 years, Santa Barbara, like most of California, is out of the drought: At most "moderate drought" (colored orange on the map) lingers in some parts of our state, according to the official United States Drought Monitor site. [Center] Spring in Japan: Mt. Fuji (Undated and unattributed photo). [Right] Do we write differently on a screen than on paper? Yes, we do, according to this New Yorker article. When we write directly onto a computer and publish our work on-line, "The mind becomes locked into an obsessive, manic back-and-forth. When immediate confirmation is not forthcoming, there is a sense of failure. Suddenly, the writer, very close to his public, is tempted to work hard and fast to please immediately, superficially, in order to have immediate gratification for himself in return. Curiously, the apparent freedom of e-mail and the Internet makes us more and more conformist as we talk to each other unceasingly."
(2) Musings of Islamic Republic officials over the years, from "Economics is for donkeys" to "Women attending universities is one of our misfortunes." [Image of quotations in Persian]
(3) What a disgrace! The Islamic Republic's propaganda machine does not even have the talent to compose a new song with their message, so they destroy the beloved "Ey Iran" anthem, the de-facto national anthem for the regime's opponents, by putting new words to it. [Video]
(4) With Trump calling the Mueller investigation a hoax, a witch hunt, and a Democratic ploy, it would be quite natural if Americans similarly dismissed the investigation's report if it exonerated Trump!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Guns/ammo confiscated from a domestic US terrorist planning to kill anti-Trump politicians and journalists.
- The Pope now says that victims [of sexual abuse] need to be believed. Really? What took him so long?
- Top 15 best global brands: From 2000 to 2012, Coca Cola was on top. Then Apple took its place. [Video]
- Angelinos see snow for the first time in decades! [LA Times story]
- Medical staff fired or placed on leave for administering lethal doses of fentanyl to dozens of patients.
- The trial of Iranian environmentalists by the Islamic regime. [Cartoon from Iranwire.com]
- "Navel," a poem by Robin Coste Lewis, Poet Laureate of Los Angeles & author of Voyage of the Sable Venus.
(6) Quote of the day: "We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done." ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
(7) Extreme hypocrisy: Some 200 dervishes remain in prison in Iran, while Khamenei sheds crocodile tears over the treatment of Yellow-Vest protesters in France.
(8) National Engineers Week 2019 Celebration tonight [Photos]: I was part of a 6-member delegation that traveled to the awards/honors ceremony at Cal State Channel Islands in Camarillo as representatives of IEEE Central Coast Section. Those honored included scholarship winners, a distinguished engineer, an exceptional teacher, and engineers and projects of the year. Dinner was served before the awards. A keynote lecture by Dr. Earl Maize, a NASA engineer at JPL, concluded the program.
This year, Cal State Channel Islands has added a mechatronics engineering program to a previously established program on cyber-security. In both areas, projects by student teams and collaboration with industry are pursued vigorously. CSU-CI is a relatively new Cal State Campus, with an enrollment of about 7000 students in 26 majors. Almost 2/3 of the students are women.

2019/02/21 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Trump's 'Pocahontas' slur should be countered with 'Pinocchio'! Evidence of rampant literary theft in Iran (Web-store screen shots) An accomplished woman athlete tells men who insulted her to come get their sandwiches at the South Pole! (1) Memes of the day: [Left] Cartoon retort: Trump's "Pocahontas" slur should be countered with "Pinocchio"! [Center] Literary theft is alive and well in Iran: A book of poetry published in 2009 is republished 7 years later under a different author's name. Many friends have experienced this kind of theft, and they have no legal recourse, particularly if they live outside Iran. [Right] An accomplished woman athlete tells men who insulted her to come get their sandwiches at the South Pole!
(2) Sea change in the House: Elaine Luria, 43, an incoming Navy veteran and nuclear engineer, seeks to promote evidence-based thinking on Capitol Hill. Representing Virginia's coastal Hampton Roads, home to world's largest naval base, Luria has already secured a seat on the Armed Services Committee and has pledged "to create solutions that serve all Americans." [Source: ASEE Prism magazine, issue of February 2019] [Photo]
(3) A White-Nationalist was arrested with a stockpile of weapons and ammunition he planned to use for a widespread domestic terror attack targeting politicians and journalists. Several news anchors were on the former Coast Guard lieutenant's hit-list. [Source: Washington Post]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Unusual weather today: More snow in Las Vegas and pea-size hail on Santa Barbara beaches!
- Bill Maher's open letter to Roseanne contains a lot of great points, as usual. [8-minute video]
- One East-Coaster to another: "I've blocked all Instagram pics from California." [New Yorker cartoon caption]
- "A hurtful act is the transference to others of the degradation which we bear in ourselves." ~ Simone Weil
(5) An informal credibility poll, whose final results will become available later, has New York Times winning over Donald Trump 93% to 7% thus far. [Tweet images]
(6) Hostile guest on Fox News: Tucker Carlson's guest turns on him, and he doesn't like it one bit when the guest characterizes Fox News anchors as "millionaires funded by billionaires"!
(7) Silent film screening at UCSB's Pollock Theater, with live musical accompaniment: Tonight's black-and-white film was the recently-rediscovered John Ford classic comedy "Upstream" (1927). A post-screening reception allowed audience members to mingle with the musical performers Michael Mortilla (piano/composer), Nicole Garcia (violin/percussion), and Frank Macchia (mixed woodwinds). [Images]
(8) Final thought for the day: One greedy, selfish, and self-promoting person ("Empire" actor Jussie Smollett) has dealt a major blow to the cause of homosexuals and other targets of real hate crimes.

2019/02/20 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photos from IEEE Central Coast Section's technical meeting on February 20, 2019 Some items displayed in a photo exhibit in connection with celebrating in Tehran the 50th anniversary of our graduation from Tehran University's College of Engineering (1) Today's major events: [Left] IEEE Central Coast Section technical meeting at Rusty's Pizza in Goleta (5934 Calle Real): Behrooz Parhami spoke to about two-dozen attendees on "Promoting Technological Literacy through Mathematical and Logical Puzzles." Here are the talk's slides, which include an abstract and links to a number of pertinent YouTube videos. IEEE CCS meetings are held on the third Wednesday of each month at 6:00 PM. We already have an exciting line-up of speakers, all the way to November 2019. (P.S.: The panoramic photo was taken a few minutes before the talk began and after the pizzas were gone!) [Center] Displays at a photo exhibit in connection with celebrating the 50th anniversary of our graduation from Tehran University's College of Engineering. The empty swimming pool is at our family home in Vanak, Tehran, Iran. [Right] Photos from the February 20 celebration gala in Tehran, to mark the 50th anniversary of our graduation from Tehran University's College of Engineering. [More photos] [Videos, batch 1] [Videos, batch 2, from an earlier gathering]
(2) Cryptic quote of the day [each letter stands for a different letter]: "HB HC HRXEV XDWVW'B CE HNXECEPG, NCZWBB GEN'VW YVWYHVWI XE VJBT XDW YEBBJAJZJXG EM BXHVSJCF." ~ AWC TJCFBZWG
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- A refugee family fled civil war in Syria, only to have all 7 of their children die in a house fire in Canada.
- Massive winter storm is affecting wide areas of the US: More than 1000 flights have been cancelled.
- The case for optimism: Thirty-four people try to change how we see our world. [Time magazine feature]
- Cartoon of the day: Music thrives in Iran, despite official bans, restrictions, and censorship. [Image]
(4) The swamp lives on: E-mails between Senate Majority Leader and Trump's Secretary of Transportation reveal a cozy relationship that led to granting infrastructure contracts and other favors.
(5) Bully-in-Chief's bully-friend Roger Stone posts photo of Judge Amy Berman Jackson (who issued a gag order against him) with crosshairs: He calls Mueller "Deep State hitman" and solicits money for his defense fund. How ironic that billionaires are asking for handouts from the lower and middle classes!
(6) Extreme hypocrisy: All the rich folk screaming for a border wall employ undocumented immigrants to maximize their personal and business wealth. The Wall-Builder-in-Chief has done it, and his nominee for UN Ambassadorship, Heather Nauert, has withdrawn her name from consideration over a "nanny problem."
(7) Israel will become the fourth country to land a spacecraft on the moon: The spacecraft, to be launched using SpaceX's Falcon 9 commercial rocket, is carrying capsules filled with Israeli national symbols, Jewish cultural items, and digital files detailing how this project came about. It also holds a tiny nanotech version of the Bible. That last item spoiled the whole thing! [Reported by Washington Post]
(8) As I walked back home this afternoon through Isla Vista, spring was in the air, even though its official arrival is still one month (4 weeks) away: Spring equinox (Norooz; Saal-Tahveel 1398) will be on Wednesday, March 20, 2019, at 2:58:27 PM California time. [Photo of blossoms on an Isla Vista street]

2019/02/19 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Justice, as defined by the ruling class! (Artist unknown) Scatter-plot of prevalence of mass shootings in some world countries versus the number of guns owned Impoverished kids in southeastern Iran playing a version of basketball (1) Miscellaneous images: [Left] Justice, as defined by the ruling class! (Artist unknown) [Center] Anyone who sees this chart and fails to acknowledge the direct impact of the number of guns in a society on the prevalence of mass shootings is science-averse. [Right] FIBA has shared on its official Web site this photo of impoverished kids in southeastern Iran playing a version of basketball.
(2) UCSB researchers advocate a change in biofuel sourcing, from currently used crops to deep-rooted prairie grass, e.g., which is better able to store carbon and also can grow in extremely infertile lands.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The Internet explodes in response to Trump's tweet re Andrew McCabe's "60 Minutes" interview. [Tweets]
- Trump uses "many stats" as basis for his fake emergency declaration, but he wouldn't name his sources.
- Quote: "A fault that humbles a man is of greater value than a virtue that puffs him up." ~ Anonymous
- The Israeli group Carmel A-cappella performs Beethoven's 5th Symphony with just voices. [4-minute video]
(4) Bernie Sanders runs again: I am ambivalent about Sanders's candidacy. This speech from 15 years ago is prophetic about how Republicans implement pro-1% policies by skillfully branding them as pro-working-class and by sowing discord between white and colored, religious and non-religious, men and women, and so on. They have now added the evil of "socialism" to their lexicon for 2020. On the other hand, I am not sure I want to have another old, inflexible, learning-challenged person in the White House, no matter how much better than the current old fool he is. I am listening to the audiobook of Sanders's Where We Go from Here (read by Sanders himself) and cringe every time he says "eye-ran" and "eye-raq." Surely, he has been told many times about the correct pronunciations for country names!
(5) Extreme weather over the past couple of weeks: A plane is forced to land after being struck by lightning. Another plane's speed increased to 779 MPH, a record, due to a 224 MPH tailwind.
(6) "The Milan Protocol": This is the title of a 2017 film by German director Peter Ott, screened at UCSB's Pollock Theater tonight. In this gripping film, with theme music to match, a German female doctor (played by Catrin Striebeck), working in the Kurdish region of Iraq, is abducted while traveling in an ISIS-controlled region of Syria. The abductors identify themselves as former ISIS members who are trying to escape with their lives, apparently wanting to use their hostage as a bargaining chip. The hostage situation brings into play many shady players, including men from intelligence agencies of Germany, Turkey, and Iraq, and a slew of subplots involving smuggling and illegal arms deals, leaving the doctor confused as to whom she can trust. The story is told with frequent flashbacks and a mixture of reality, dreams, and false memories, which add to the layered complexity of the film. The dialog is in German, English, and Arabic, again adding to the mystery. Ott was scheduled to appear for a post-screening discussion, but visa problems led to the replacement of the in-person interview with a taped one, which was screened immediately after the film.

2019/02/18 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Nine of America's great Presidents The long and Martian road: NASA's Opportunity Mars rover looking back at its own trail Full-scale models of two Mars rovers, on display at NASA's JPL (1) Today's images: [Left] Happy Presidents' Day: "If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader." ~ John Quincy Adams [Center] The long and Martian road: NASA's Opportunity Mars rover looking back at its own trail. [Right] Full-scale models of two Mars rovers, on display at NASA's JPL: In front is Opportunity, which, after many years of service, became unresponsive due to a recent Martian sand storm. In the back is Curiosity, which is still operational. (Credit: Faramarz Davarian)
(2) Andrew McCabe talks to "60 Minutes" about reasons for opening a counterintelligence investigation into Trump: A very important conversation for the future of America. [28-minute video]
(3) Dictatorial tendencies rear their ugly heads: Un-American mindset of a substitute teacher in Florida leads to the arrest of an 11-year-old who refused to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Happy Sepandarmazgan, the venerable Iranian festival celebrating love, women, friendship, and Earth.
- Ivanka Trump sat awkwardly, as Angela Merkel hammered her dad.
- FAA will be mandating that registration numbers be affixed to the exterior of small drones. [Source: Reuters]
- Nuclear-powered "worm robots" could bore for life through the icy shell of Jupiter's moon Europa.
- A brand new wine: For those who are tired of frequent trips to the bathroom. [Cartoon]
- Familiar faces, aging before our eyes, some very gracefully, others not so much. [3-minute video]
- How our young folk treat our elderly, nowadays. [Photo]
- Persian poetry: A few loverly verses from Simin Behbahani (Khalili) [1927-2014].
- Henan Shaolin Tagou School teens demonstrate Chinese martial arts with precision, grace, and power.
- Aspiring artists who became engineers: Priceless photo of a late friend and me, taken 50+ years ago.
(5) Reproducibility crisis in science: In some branches of science, existing large datasets are analyzed and deductions are made that do not stand the test of time. A large dataset is still one dataset, and in some cases, the patterns observed may not exist when a second dataset comes along.
(6) Israeli TV exposes the Iranian threat: From markets to restaurants, Persian cuisine is spreading in Israel. This 8-minute report is narrated in Hebrew, but food images should be understandable to all!
(7) National emergency in our president's skull: "Trump has declared war on our institutions because of a fantasy, in which he saves imaginary women, bound with imaginary tape, from imaginary rape." ~ LA Times

2019/02/17 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Persian music legend Esmat Bagherpour Baboli, aka Delkas, 1925-2004: Photo 1 Persian music legend Esmat Bagherpour Baboli, aka Delkas, 1925-2004: Photo 2 Portrait of actress Golshifteh Farahani by unknown artist (1) Iranian artists: [Left & Center] Persian music legend Esmat Bagherpour Baboli, aka Delkash, 1925-2004. [Right] Portrait of actress Golshifteh Farahani by unknown artist: Screenshot from an unlabeled music video.
(2) My forthcoming technical talk, entitled "Promoting Technological Literacy through Mathematical and Logical Puzzles," at a meeting of IEEE Central Coast Section: Rusty's Pizza, 5934 Calle Real, Goleta, CA, Wednesday, February 20, 2019, 6:00 PM. Pizza, salad, and beverages will be served. [Flyer]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The US government "informally" asked Japan to nominate Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize.
- Cartoon of the day: GOP national-emergency plan entails politicians rolling over on command! [Image]
- We do have a national emergency , but it's at the border between the rich and the poor. [Meme]
- Wonderful music for this Sunday: Five-year-old plays Bach! [2-minute video]
(4) Remembering and honoring my father yesterday, on the 27th anniversary of his passing: Despite many on-line appearances of this Persian poem, the poet remains unknown to me. Interestingly, some of the postings have removed the last verse, which mentions an edict from the prophet, presumably Muhammad. I will also retell parts of the story of my dad's fruitful life by recalling some of the places where he worked and lived, from a post I made last month about Vanak. [Photos] [Videos] My kids are all at home for the Presidents-Day weekend, so we took this commemorative photo after Sunday's breakfast at the kitchen counter.
(5) Prefixes for metric units of measurement: We all know the first three "huge" prefixes below, and perhaps even the next three, used, for example, in connection with supercomputer performance (e.g., petaflops). Now, get ready for the last four prefixes on the list, two of which are still awaiting approval from international bodies in charge of standard units.
10^3 kilo    10^6 mega    10^9 giga    10^12 tera    10^15 peta    10^18 exa
10^21 zeta    10^24 yotta    10^27 ronna    10^30 quecca
On the other end of the scale, to designate very small quantities, we have the following "tiny" prefixes:
10^–3 milli   10^–6 micro   10^–9 nano   10^–12 pico   10^–15 femto   10^–18 atto
10^–21 zepto   10^–24 yocto   10^–27 ronto   10^–30 quecto
Again, the last couple of terms are still under discussion for approval.
For huge prefixes, abbreviations are uppercase letters, except for kilo, which is abbreviated "k" (k, M, G, etc.). Uppercase "K" is sometimes used in computing to stand for 1024, or "binary kilo."
For tiny prefixes, abbreviations are lowercase letters, except for micro, which is abbreviated using the Greek "mu" or sometimes the English "u" (m, u, n, etc.).

2019/02/15 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
An alley in Tehran's historic/cultural district: 'Alley of Break-off and Reconciliation' Cartoon: How the Islamic Revolution has affected different classes of people in Iran Information about spring equinox and saal-tahveel, the changeover to the Persian calendar year 1398 (1) Iran-related images: [Left] Alley in Tehran's historic/cultural district named "Break-off and Reconciliation" [Center] How the Islamic Revolution has affected different classes of people in Iran. (Source: Iranwire.com) [Right] The changeover to the Persian calendar year 1398 (saal-tahveel or spring equinox) will occur on Wednesday, March 20, 2019, at 2:58:27 PM California time. The corresponding Iran time will be on Thursday, Farvardin 1, 1398, at 1:28:27 AM. UCLA's Norooz celebration will occur on March 10.
(2) The three richest Americans have as much wealth as the bottom 50%. Millionaire politicians want you to believe that we have but two choices: Accept the status quo or starve to death under socialism! [Photos]
(3) Five people are dead and 5 officers wounded in Aurora, Illinois, mass shooting. When will our politicians say enough is enough, instead of just sending thoughts and prayers?
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump's 2014 tweet: If only his supporters cared that he's doing things for which he criticized Obama!
- Resistance to Trump's declaration of national emergency over border-wall funding begins.
- Trump ally indicates that with a confirmed, fully-functioning AG in place, Mueller's days are numbered.
- Yesterday, on Valentine's Day, Amazon fell out of love with New York and withdrew its HQ2 plans.
- "What this country needs is a billionaire businessman ..." [No thanks; been there, done that!] [Cartoon]
- Three books, selected by New York Times, detail the lives of Middle Eastern women. [Cover images]
- Azeri poetry: Adorable girl recites a poem, in which I can make out the names of several Iranian cities.
- One of two poems by Nasim Basiri, published by North of Oxford. [Image]
- Persian music, with lyrics based on a Hafez poem and English subtitles. [Video]
- From life's users manual: "Before talking, connect tongue to the brain." ~ Anonymous
(5) Azi Jangravi, one of the "Women of Revolution Street," says she braved certain arrest for taking off her headscarf in public because she desired better living conditions for her daughter.
(6) Final thought for the day: National Enquirer has threatened Jeff Bezos with the release of embarrassing personal info. Does it also have dirt on Ted Cruz and Lindsay Graham, who were once harsh critics of Trump, but are now his avid supporters?

2019/02/14 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Celebration of love: Happy Valentine's Day! Celebration of love: Capturing the sun in a heart Celebration of love: Happy Sepandarmazgan Festival! (1) Celebration of love: Happy Western Valentine's Day (2/14) and Iranian Sepandarmazgan Festival (2/18)!
(2) Remembering poetess extraordinaire Forough Farrokhzad on this anniversary of her tragic, premature death in 1967: Music video by Kourosh Yazdani, based on Farrokhzad's poem "Ba'dhaa" ("Later on").
(3) The world's best tech city is New York, not San Francisco: The just published Savills Index bases its city ranking on factors such as cost of living, cost of doing business, investment opportunities, real estate prices, and access to transit. [Source: Bloomberg]
(4) After successful trials in American football and basketball, "True View" technology comes to soccer: Intel has partnered with several top UK teams to bring the 3D replay technology, which allows viewing of a play from multiple angels, to the teams' home stadiums.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Britain will hit Iran with sanctions it has already prepared immediately after the completion of Brexit.
- Mother of imprisoned Iranian girl takes off her headscarf to protest the cruel treatment of her daughter.
- Eight environmental activists, labeled as spies by the Iranian regime, are denied legal representation.
- Yesterday's high winds in Goleta led to this downed tree and a broken water meter.
- Quote of the day: "It is easy to be brave from a safe distance." ~ Aesop
- A story for little kids: "If Sharks Were Men," by Berthold Brecht. [4-minute video]
- Quotation: "Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself." ~ John Dewey
- Persian Music: Rana Mansour's live performance of "Zan" ("Woman"). [3-minute video]
(6) Two interesting distinguished/keynote lectures coming up at UCSB later this winter: On Thursday, February 28, Dr. John Paul Strachen (HP Labs, Palo Alto) will give an ECE Distinguished Lecture entitled "A New Era for Exploring Power Efficient Hardware Accelerators: Devices, Architectures, and Lab Demonstrations" (10:00 AM, ESB 1001). Then, as part of the day-long CS Summit at UCen's Corwin Pavilion on March 13, Lise Getoor (CS Professor, UCSC), will be the keynote speaker, with the title "Responsible Data Science."
(7) Monica Witt charged with spying for Iran: The former counterintelligence officer for US Air Force Office of Special Investigations defected to Iran in 2013 and remains at large.
(8) Leaked records from Iran's judiciary indicate that 860 journalists, a quarter of them women, have been arrested/imprisoned/executed over the 40-year reign of terror.

2019/02/12 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Truth-challenged President's numbers, versus reality (crowd sizes in El Paso, Texas) Yesterday (February 11, 2019) was the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. Yesterday, February 11 (Bahman 22), Islamic Republic officials celebrated the 40th anniversary of Iran's Islamic Revolution (1) Newsworthy images: [Left] Truth-challenged President's numbers, versus reality. [Center] Yesterday (February 11, 2019) was the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. [Right] Yesterday, February 11 (Bahman 22), Islamic Republic officials celebrated the 40th anniversary of Iran's Islamic Revolution. Ordinary Iranians, who have nothing to celebrate, had been warned against holding street protests.
(2) Humor: Trump wants to also build a wall around New Mexico, because we don't need any New Mexicans while we are trying to get rid of the old ones.
(3) Liar-in-Chief contradicted by stats the Republican Mayor of El Paso cited: El Paso has always been one of the safest large cities in the US. Its crime rate went down before the border barrier was erected in the mid-2000s, and it actually rose slightly after the barrier. Trump keeps claiming that El Paso was a very dangerous city before the barrier and one of the safest afterwards. [Violent-crimes chart]
(4) Finally, a science-friendly executive order: Trump administration's "AI Initiative" will support research and commercialization, as well as training, fellowships, and regulations to help workers whose jobs are affected.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Melania Trump worked as a model in 1996, when she was an undocumented alien.
- Genentech uses virtual reality to train eye surgeons: Over 150 have used VR training in the past year.
- Researchers study a radically new kind of neural network to overcome AI's big challenges.
- California Governor Newsom pulls National Guard from border, citing Trump's political theater. [LA Times]
- Many Americans are in for a shock, as they see their tax refunds shrink substantially. [Washington Post]
- Persian music: Young boy with magical voice performs a traditional Persian song. [5-minute video]
(6) Researchers break the mathematical code of a 3700-year-old Babylonian clay tablet dug up in southern Iraq nearly a century ago: It contains a highly-accurate trig table, which means that trigonometry was discovered by Babylonians, not the Greek, as previously thought.
(7) No one stopped the pedophile doctor working for US Indian Health Services, who was under suspicion for 21 years. [Source: Wall Street Journal]
(8) Tonight's film screening at UCSB's Pollock Theater: We were treated to "I Wanna Hold Your Hand," a screwball comedy about the Fab Four's fans and Beatlemania, as the third of five installments in the "Beatles Revolutions" series. The 1978 film was directed by Robert Zemeckis and produced by Steven Spielberg. The screening of the story of non-stop screaming fans, who wanted to see the Beatles up close at their well-guarded hotel and get into the Ed Sullivan Theater where they were performing, was followed by a moderated discussion with actress Nancy Allen and screenwriter Bob Gale. [Images]

2019/02/10 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cherry blossoms in Tokyo, at sunrise Cover image of Ursula Le Guin's book 'Words Are My Matter' Maryam Zaree's 2019 film 'Born in Evin' tells the story of children like her who were born to mothers detained at Iran's Evin Prison (1) Images for today: [Left] Cherry blossoms in Tokyo, at sunrise. [Center] See my review of Ursula Le Guin's book, Words Are My Matter, below. [Right] Maryam Zaree's 2019 film "Born in Evin" tells the story of children like her who were born to mothers detained at Iran's Evin Prison. [Interview in Persian with Maryam Zaree]
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Why are men, even very powerful ones, so obsessed with taking and sending photos of their genitals?
- Pills equipped with tiny pop-up needles can inject medicine into a body from the inside.
- A brief tour of Venice, Italy: A city built on water. [1-minute video]
- Intelligence/memory tests: Chimps versus humans. [2-minute video]
- Persian music: Breathtaking video combined with a nice rendition of the oldie "Ghowghay-e Setaregan."
- Persian poetry: The late poet/lyricist Rahim Moeini Kermanshahi recites a poem of his in this 1998 video.
(3) Book review: Le Guin, Ursula K., Words Are My Matter: Writings About Life and Books 2000-2016, unabridged audiobook on 11 CDs, read by Laural Merlington, Tantor Audio, 2018.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This collection of essays/reviews/talks is about contemporary fiction. LeGuin [1929-2018] was an American author of fiction (often depicting futuristic or imaginary alternative worlds), short stories, and children's books. Some of the items have been revised from their original versions for inclusion in this book.
The 70 or so pieces in this collection are quite diverse, so I will comment on a few overarching themes that caught my attention.
The first theme is the place of books in our hurried, attention-challenged society. People continually predict that books are doomed. Le Guin counters that book-readers have always been a minority and they will continue to enjoy books in printed or electronic form. Authors, too, whose primary motivations are communication and the pure joy of writing, will continue to churn out books. If there is an element to blame for the challenges facing books it is the publishing industry, which views books much like cereals or deodorants: Products to be sold at maximum possible profit.
The second theme concerns the place of fiction in our modern world. Writing fiction requires imagination: To take real-world experiences and to spin them into made-up characters, places, and events. Many people are uncomfortable with this kind of imagination, which they consider akin to lying, so, when they decide to write, they opt for autobiographies, that is, realistic views of their own lives. Readers are also prone to this misjudgment, as they try to deduce aspects of the fiction-writer's life from his/her story. I must admit that I have entertained similar thoughts when reading fiction (which I do on occasion, despite my preference for non-fiction). If the author writes about an extra-marital affair, for example, my mind immediately wonders about whether it is an act or inclination of the author herself. It wasn't until I listened to Le Guin's audiobook that I became aware of this tendency of mine.
The third theme is the haughty attitude that prevails against "genered" books, such as sci-fi, romance, and the dismissively-labeled "chick-lit," a world view that essentially divides books into literature and genres. According to Le Guin, all fiction is to be considered literature.
The fourth and final theme for this review is the role of gender in literature/publishing. The designation "women's lit" is really quite offensive and gives rise to many anomalies. Women's books are reviewed by both men and women, whereas the works of male authors are less frequently reviewed by women. Le Guin was known for using her voice in the literary world to challenge gender stereotypes and gender inequality. Patriarchy, empowerment, womanhood, and freedom ran through her writings.
There is something for everyone in this delightful collection. Writers, in particular, will enjoy Le Guin's insights about the craft of writing and about the artificial categorization of literature, including those based on gender.

2019/02/09 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Freedom House's 2019 report on the status of basic freedoms in countries around the world Two white men in blackface John Meacham and the cover image of his book, 'The Soul of America' (1) Democracy and freedom in America: [Left] Freedom House's 2019 report on the status of basic freedoms in countries around the world: USA is 53rd! [Center] We need to make America great (not "great again"): If there is a silver-lining to the cloud of Trump's presidency, it is the exposure of hidden racism in America. You can't begin to solve a complex problem if you are unaware of it, pretend it doesn't exist, or do not grasp its full breadth and depth. [Right] See my review of Jon Meacham's book, The Soul of America, below.
(2) A new acronym: INSTEX (Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges) is a clearinghouse formally set up on January 31, 2019, to facilitate non-dollar-based trade between Iran and European countries without exposing the participants to retaliation by the US, while encouraging Iran to keep its commitments under JCPOA.
(3) Brett Kavanaugh shows his true colors in a Supreme-Court case: He voted to allow a highly restrictive abortion law stand, when previously, SCOTUS had struck down an identical law. John Roberts saved the day by siding with the liberal minority. So much for Senator Susan Collins' stated confidence, when she voted for BK, that he would honor precedents in abortion and other cases.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Today is the US National Pizza Day: Many pizza chains offer special deals to mark the occasion.
- Bill Maher's monologue on the state of politics in the US, the Republicans, and Howard Schultz's candidacy.
- Not a joke: A 27-year-old Indian man plans to sue his parents for giving birth to him without his consent.
- Fun with technology: A parade of giant robotic animals. [5-minute video]
(5) Book review: Meacham, Jon, The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author and Fred Sanders, Random House Audio, 2018.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
I got to know the Pulitzer-Prize-winning presidential historian Jon Meacham through his editorials in Newsweek and Time magazines, which I read regularly for several years. Among his books are acclaimed biographical volumes on Andrew Jackson (2008), Thomas Jefferson (2012), and George H. W. Bush (2015).
Meacham's eulogy for GHWB, captured in this 12-minute video, was typical of his thoughtful and poignant writing/speaking style and wonderful sense of humor.
By citing examples from America's past, Meacham aims to educate the reader that the fear and division we experience today are far from unprecedented and that, as a nation, we have survived even worse times. We have risen through hard times and managed to move forward by forging programs such as the Square Deal, the New Deal, and the Great Society.
The soul of America is democratic and progressive, but there are forces of authoritarianism and racism that rear their ugly heads from time to time. Darkness and intolerance in our society is often opposed by our leaders, some of whom were quite unlikely champions of freedom and civil rights. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 are prominent examples of the role of our "better angels" (to borrow a term from Lincoln's first inaugural address) prevailing against all odds.
Meacham ends his wonderfully-written book with a call for active engagement to reject tribalism and to respect facts. The fight will not be easy, and it will be mired by setbacks, but we really have no other option than to oppose the forces of darkness.

2019/02/08 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Fiftieth anniversary celebration of graduation from Tehran University's College of Engineering: Photo 2 Fiftieth anniversary celebration of graduation from Tehran University's College of Engineering: Photo 1 (1) Fiftieth-anniversary celebration: Ahead of the February 20 formal celebration gala in Tehran, a group of 1968 graduates of Tehran University's College of Engineering (my Fanni classmates) gathered on 2/06 at the College to take group photos, including one at a classroom that has been historically preserved as it was when we attended calculus lectures by Dr. Jamal Assaar. And, yes, our class was all-male, with the exception of one female electromechanics-major classmate who now lives in the US (there was another female contemporary in the chemical-engineering major).
(2) "A Structured Approach to Distributed Computation in Neural Networks": This was the title of yesterday's recruitment talk (the last one for the CS Neuroscience position) by E. Paxon Frady, a post-doc at UC Berkeley. Dr. Frady discussed how connectionist frameworks can be used to understand the information processing of neural networks. While our understanding how individual neurons work has been growing, there is currently a dearth of knowledge on how collections of neurons, distributed throughout the brain, collaborate and, thus, on how to program neural networks to perform computations of interest. [Photos]
(3) Dangers posed by eucalyptus globulus (blue gum) trees: Following numerous instances of giant eucalyptus trees shedding heavy limbs and occasionally being uprooted in strong winds, posing dangers to the housing community where I live and to UCSB's campus, and in view of dozens of e-mail exchanges about what to do with them, a neighbor posted this informative 2014 article about the species' structural failures. [Image]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Apple rewards 14-year-old Grant Thompson, who discovered FaceTime's eavesdropping bug (now patched).
- Another brilliant "A Closer Look" segment from comedian Seth Meyers, covering socialism and healthcare.
- An excellent overview (in Persian) of the status of Iranian women, as the Islamic Republic turns 40.
- 'Fauxtography' is now a fact of life: Say goodbye to real, unedited photos and videos!
(5) 'Reporters Without Borders' exposes Iran's arbitrary detention of journalists for fabricated charges of undermining national security, acting as foreign agents, and insulting Islamic tenets/leaders.
(6) Why would a well-to-do and already-famous journalist plagiarize? Surely, she knows it's unethical. And she knows, or should know, that detection of plagiarism is now easier than ever.
(7) Jeff Bezos preemptively publishes correspondence from AMI, including graphic descriptions of nude and other compromising photos they have of Bezos and his lover, to expose AMI's extortion attempt.
(8) Tonight, at UCSB's Multicultural Center Theater: Los-Angeles-based Lian Ensemble performed in two sets. The first set consisted of traditional/classical Persian music. This 3-minute sample is from the second set, featuring the ensemble's own compositions, based on classical Persian poems (Mowlavi/Rumi, in this case).

2019/02/07 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of Masih Alinejad and Mike Pompeo Title slide of Behrooz Parhami's February 20, 2019, talk in Goleta Rusty's Pizza in Goleta, CA (5934 Calle Real) (1) Miscellaneous images: [Left] Photo of women's-rights activist Masih Alinejad and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo: See item (2) for details. [Center & Right] Technical talk in Goleta, CA: See item (3) for details.
(2) I was disappointed to see the photo on the left above and the associated news story: Masih Alinejad, Iranian women's-rights activist, met with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who reassured her of Trump administration's support. So, I searched for Ms. Alinejad's explanation. According to a report by Radio Farda, after the 35-minute meeting, Alinejad explained, "I tried my utmost to be the voice of all those who put their trust in me," by highlighting three areas of concern. First, "Many Iranians want an end to the Islamic Republic. Opposition voices should be heard." Second, International community should focus on 40 years of human rights violations by the regime. Third, the Trump administration travel ban hurts human rights activists and students, not the regime. Still, I think Ms. Alinejad made a mistake in siding with Trump's war-mongering administration, which has aligned itself with some extremist enemies of Iran and seems to be eager to start a war with it.
(3) [In a couple of weeks] IEEE Central Coast Section event at Rusty's Pizza, 5934 Calle Real, Goleta, Wednesday, February 20, 2019, 6:00 PM (pizza, salad bar, and beverage, followed by presentation at 6:30).
Speaker: Dr. Behrooz Parhami, UCSB Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Title: Promoting Technological Literacy through Mathematical and Logical Puzzles
Abstract: Literacy and numeracy, introduced long ago to define the skill sets of a competent workforce are no longer adequate. Literacy is instilled and improved by telling stories that use more and more advanced vocabulary and grammar. The key tool in teaching and advancing numeracy is dealing with real-life problems, be they book-keeping and accounting tasks, analyzing geometric shapes and relationships, or deriving answers from (partially) supplied information. Teaching technical literacy (techeracy) requires a further shift away from story-telling and word problems toward logical reasoning, as reflected in the activity of solving puzzles. I will draw upon my experiences to convey how a diverse group of learners can be brought to understand the underpinnings of complex science and technology concepts such as integrated-circuit layout, recommendation systems, cryptography, and task scheduling.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The mother of all Freudian slips: Trump touts "the abolition of civil rights," crediting people of faith for it!
- Seven-vehicle crash on Highway 135 in Santa Maria leads to at least 2 deaths.
- Iranian Parliament's report acknowledges extreme poverty, encompassing more than half the population.
- Iranian officials withheld more than $1M earned by the country's national soccer team from the team.
(5) Delta Airlines and Coca-Cola apologize for marketing stunt involving napkins with space for name and phone number, and a message nudging plane passengers to hit on their 'plane crush.'
(6) US-Embassy hostage-taker nicknamed "Sister Mary," now Iran's VP for Women and Family Affairs, still does not see the light after 38 years: She asserts that Khomeini "spread democracy and stood against autocracy."

2019/02/06 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: The big bad wolf calls on the House of Representatives Photo of the backside of the Moon, along with Planet Earth, captured by a Chinese satellite State of the Union meme: Meteor and dinosaurs (1) Images of the day: [Left] The big bad wolf calls on the House of Representatives. [Center] Photo of the backside of the Moon, and Planet Earth, captured by a Chinese satellite. [Right] State of the Union meme.
(2) A big surprise for many people this tax season: Those who normally get a refund from IRS will either owe taxes or will see a smaller refund. The reason is that in the new tax code, withholdings were reduced to a greater extent than taxes. The lower withholdings created the illusion of a larger tax cut in our paychecks. So, we are essentially paying back part of the tax cut we thought we received. And things will get worse in future years. Billionaires and corporations will continue to enjoy their huge, permanent tax cuts, while the rest of us will see smaller and smaller benefits, especially as deductions disappear, healthcare costs rise, and many government services on which we rely are cut.
(3) California threatened by measles, from near and far: Washington State has reported 43 cases, a neighboring southern-Oregon county 1 case, and New York 200+ cases.
(4) Today's World Music Series noon concert: The 9-member Santa-Barbara-based Dixie Daddies and Mamas treated the audience to Dixieland music. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]
(5) Types of lying: I am puzzled by TV pundits constantly talking about the difference between lying under oath and just plain old lying, as if some kinds of lying are harmless or socially acceptable. When we raise children, do we tell them not to lie under oath but that regular lying is okay? Was Pinocchio blameless because he was never under oath? What does "the most successful president in the history of our country" tell his youngest son about lying? A good question for reporters, who asked him the easier question of whether he would let his son play football.
(6) On "digital humanities": Equating digital with new/modern and analog with old/passe is misguided. In the February 2019 issue of Communications of the ACM, Herbert Bruderer explains that the opposite of digital isn't analog and that using "digital" when we mean "electronic" is problematic. The first calculating device, the abacus, was digital, and numerous digital gadgets have been used through the ages. The predecessors of e-books, that is, paper books, cannot be considered analog books. So, the term "digital humanities" is misguided. Humanities are neither analog nor digital. A better term would be "computer-aided/assisted humanities."
(7) Decisions, decisions! UCLA's Persian lecture on Iran (Sunday, February 24, 2019, 4:00 PM, 121 Dodd Hall), entitled "From Instanbul to Chicago: Iranian Diaspora Across Time and Space" (by Fariba Zarinebaf), coincides with the Academy Awards ceremony from Hollywood's Dolby Theater, beginning at 5:00 PM on ABC. I am inclined to go to the lecture, but I remember, from a lecture event in the past, that attendance suffers when there are such time conflicts.

2019/02/05 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Chinese (lunar) new year and welcome to the year of the pig! Double-standard in wardrobe at Super Bowl halftime show: Adam Levine, 2019 Double-standard in wardrobe at Super Bowl halftime show: Janet Jackson, 2004 (1) Newsworthy images: [Left] Happy Chinese New Year to everyone, and welcome to the year of the pig! [Center & Right] Double-standard in reacting to Adam Levine and Janet Jackson: Shirtless performance at Sunday's Super Bowl 2019 halftime show vs. fines levied for "wardrobe malfunction" in 2004.
(2) Adam Khan, inventor and manufacturer of a type of hard glass for cell phones, assisted FBI by wearing surveillance devices during meeting with Huawei reps at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
(3) World Freedom Report (by Freedom House) rebukes Trump: "No president in living memory has shown less respect for its tenets, norms and principle."
(4) State of the Union Address: Fewer Democrats were no-shows at this year's SOTU Address, because they wanted to actively resist Trump, with record number of women in Congress (wearing white) and guests from immigrant and other slighted groups. Trump's speech in the US House was fake news; the real SOTU address will be transmitted in tweet-size chunks over the next few days!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump administration is planning delay tactics ahead of expected House request for Trump's tax records.
- Melting glaciers reveal landscapes and life forms that had been hidden from us for at least 40,000 years.
- Daring people and beautiful vistas: A wonderful combination! [2-minute video]
- The constant job growth rate over the period 2011-2018, as variously described by Donald Trump. [Chart]
- Colorado by drone: Breathtaking vistas (one in a series of amazing "by drone" travel videos on Vimeo).
- Not a new warning: Never leave your car engine running when you step away from the driver's seat.
(6) Book review: Gore, Al, Truth to Power (An Inconvenient Sequel), unabridged audiobook on 4 CDs, read by the author and several others, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2017. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image of Al Gore's book 'Truth to Power (An Inconvenient Sequel)' This book, already made into a 2017 movie, paints a grim picture of domestic and international politics in the realm of global warming. While the Paris Climate-Change Accord can be viewed as a positive turn in the book's plot, the overall picture is quite negative. The election of Donald Trump derailed the slow but steady progress that was being made in curbing greenhouse-gas emissions, but now, no one, including Gore himself seems to know what to do, other than sound the alarm.
Gore's An Inconvenient Truth (both the book and the movie) did make a dent in shaping the public's perception of the seriousness of climate change and of the dangers that lie ahead if we choose not to act. The sequel comes at an even more critical time in our Earth's history, when several thresholds have already been crossed. But the book and film seem to have had fairly limited impact on public discourse in the US.
Anti-climate-change forces have been rather successful in sowing doubts about the reality of the threat and human-beings' role in its amplification, and they have been peddling a false narrative on the long-term economic harm of regulations and action plans. Like many other social and economic issues, climate-change has fallen prey to shortsighted views of populist leaders and the resulting political divide in society.
Reconciling a serious threat, that is decades out, with immediate concerns about jobs, wages, education, and healthcare, takes foresight and leadership, that, as I write this review, do not exist here in the United States. Technology seems to hold the only hope for stopping the worsening conditions and, eventually, reversing the harm already done.
Gore does an excellent job of presenting pertinent facts and the challenges posed by less-developed countries viewing pollution and global warming as First-World problems. India, for example, has argued that it has the same right as the US to cheap, oil-spurred industrialization. Any global solution must cut countries that are late-comers to industrial growth some slack, and that is where the current US administration, with its disdain for sacrifice and wealth-sharing, stands in the way.
All educated citizens of the world must read this book and/or see the movie based on it. Activism is important to keep the flame going, even if the prospects for immediate impact are dim. The book contains an extensive list of resources to help those who are inclined to act, as well as suggestions on how each individual might help.

2019/02/04 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Posthumous performances: Increasingly, entertainment contracts include language covering who controls and profits from virtual/holographic performances after the performer's death A success story in promoting diversity in computer science: Carnegie Mellon University's efforts and results discussed Quote about the US president being a fair target of criticism (1) Noteworthy memes/headlines: [Left] Posthumous performances: Increasingly, entertainment contracts include language covering who controls and profits from virtual/holographic performances after the performer's death (credit: Time magazine). [Center] A success story in promoting diversity in computer science: Efforts made and results achieved by Carnegie Mellon University are discussed in an article in the February 2019 issue of Communications of the ACM. [Right] This is exactly what ails us now: "The powers of the president will not be questioned." ~ Stephen Miller, Senior Policy Advisor to Donald Trump
(2) Well, I don't know if we needed yet another anti-Trump book, but here it is, a psycho-cultural critique from the author of Reality Hunger, David Shields: Nobody Hates Trump More than Trump: An Intervention [Cover]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- New England Patriots won 13-3 in the Super Bowl over LA Rams; the 3-3 score after 3+ quarters was odd!
- In a speech, Kim Jong Un describes the Trump administration as a racist billionaires' club.
- Trump's claim of having a very good memory debunked in a video compilation of memory fails.
- Small plane disintegrates, crashes into single-family home in SoCal, killing the pilot and 4 residents.
- How Asghar Farhadi, arguably Iran's best director, makes art of moral ambiguity (NYT).
- The estate of the late comedian Gary Shandling donates $15.2 million to UCLA's Medical School.
Book introductions: Three interesting titles from Princeton University Press (4) Book introductions: Three interesting titles from Princeton University Press.
- Kernighan, Brian W., Millions, Billions, Zillions: Defending Yourself in the World of Too Many Numbers
- Steiglitz, Ken, The Discrete Charm of the Machine: Why the World Became Digital
- McCormick, John, What Can Be Computed? A Practical Guide to the Theory of Computation
(5) The silver lining: Scientists and engineers took advantage of the deep freeze in the US Midwest to observe how robots function in such extreme weather conditions.
(6) Unusually strong winds led to many downed trees and broken tree limbs on the UCSB Campus, in my housing complex, and around Goleta yesterday. Clean-up is in progress, as are damage assessments and discussions about mitigating the hazards in future.
(7) Earl Maize (JPL) describes "Cassini, Saturn's Little Big Explorer" in this 20-minute TED talk. He will be the banquet speaker for South Coast's National Engineers Week event at Cal State University Channel Islands' Grand Salon on Friday 2/22. I am considering attending the event.

2019/02/03 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Humor: Kabob-e barg, after the sharp rise of meat prices in Iran Calligraphic rendition of a verse by Mowlavi (Rumi), by artist Javad Youssefi This bust of the late Iranian wrestler Gholamreza Takhti is on display in the US (1) Miscellaneous images: [Left] Kabob-e barg, after the sharp rise of meat prices in Iran. (For Persian non-speakers, the meme plays on the fact that "leaf" and a type of beef kabob share the same Persian word.) [Center] Calligraphic rendition of a Mowlavi (Rumi) verse, by Javad Youssefi. (This video contains more of his creations). [Right] This bust of the late Iranian wrestler Gholamreza Takhti honors his gesture of competing with one arm behind his back, when he noticed that his American opponent couldn't use an injured arm.
(2) The 2018 Turing Lecture by John L. Hennessy and David A. Patterson, entitled "A New Golden Age of Computer Architecture," has been published, along with a link to the full lecture video, in the February 2019 issue of Communications of the ACM.
(3) Quote of the day: "If a problem has no solution, it may not be a problem, but a fact—not to be solved, but to be coped with over time." ~ Shimon Peres [1923-2016], Israeli President
(4) Long view of life: "A painting that looks flawless from a distance may appear as a collection of color patches up close. Perhaps you should take a long view of life to avoid seeing just spots." ~ Zoya Pirzad, We'll Get Used to It [My translation from Persian]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Way to start Black History Month: Photo of Virginia's Democratic governor from his med-school yearbook.
- Golshifteh Farahani plays a Kurdish fighter battling ISIS in the film "Girls of the Sun." [Persian interview]
- Persian Music: Innovative lip-synching. [1-minute video]
- WW II history: Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin meet with each other and with Iran's Shah in Tehran. [Video]
(6) Aiming for defense funding: Today, I saw a TV ad from Boeing, touting its space technology and saying "the future of defense is here." It seems aerospace companies are positioning themselves to get a bigger piece of the "Space Force" pie.
(7) Another egotist builds a vanity tower: The 550-meter-tall Burj Jumeira in Dubai will display Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid's thumb-print at its base.
(8) In its issue of February 4-11, 2019, Time magazine offers a special section on what to expect in the 2020s and another one on the socioeconomic changes in the 2030s.
(9) Trouble ahead for 2020: A new poll shows that 54% of Democrats feel party positions should be more moderate. About the same number think having a third party is good for the country. A third-party candidate won't draw many votes from Republicans, 87% of whom support Trump.

2019/02/02 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Flamboyant old man has a change of wardrobe! Iranian asylum seeker, journalist Behrouz Boochani, who wrote a book in Manus Island's offshore refugee detention camp, wins two of Australia's richest literary prizes Cartoon: The ideal Democratic candidate (1) Newsworthy images: [Left] Roger Stone's change of wardrobe! [Center] Iranian asylum seeker, journalist Behrouz Boochani, who wrote a book in Manus Island's offshore refugee detention camp, wins two of Australia's richest literary prizes. [Right] The ideal candidate: "They want Biden's working-class appeal, Sanders's populist fervor, Beto's youthful charisma, Warren's fierce progressivism, Klobuchar's calm moderation, Harris's toughness, Brown's everyman image, Booker's media savvy, Gillibrand's feminist credentials, ..."
(2) Trump and the Republican Party seem headed for a divorce: Perhaps he is in search of a third party (like a third wife), after cheating on the first two (he was once a Democrat).
(3) Four days of expected rain (forecast), at times quite heavy, has led to evacuation orders for parts of Montecito, the area that was devastated by Thomas Fire and mud/debris flows last year. This downpour, captured around 7:50 AM at my home in Goleta, is good news for the drought in our area, but not so for the homeless or residents fearing another devastating mud/debris flow. By mid-afternoon, the sun had returned to Goleta, but US 101 is closed in both directions due to flooding and debris, and more rain is on the way over the next few days. Meanwhile, in Malibu, California, a street turns into a raging river.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Virginia's Democratic Governor urged to resign over revealed racist photo in his med-school yearbook.
- Aljazeera reports from Tehran on Islamic Republic's 40th-anniversary celebrations amid economic woes.
- America once loved billionaires: The likes of Donald Trump made it fall out of love with them.
- Iranian music and beautiful dance: No info about the performers. [3-minute video]
- A piece of space junk: A trash-bag-like object is circling the earth at a distance greater than the Moon's.
- Negar Ag's contribution to the site "Old Photos of Iran": Jews celebrate Rosh Hashanah in Shiraz, 1974.
- A millennial made millions buying items off the clearance aisles of Walmart and reselling them on Amazon.
(5) Trump's love-hate relationship with the press: He grants an 85-minute interview to the "failing," "fake-news," and "enemy-of-the-people" New York Times, But it won't be long before he starts attacking it again.
(6) Recognizable speech generated from brain waves: The new Columbia University research results, published in Scientific Advances, raises hopes of being able to give voice to those without.
(7) Fiftieth-Anniversary celebration: Gathering in Tehran to honor the 1968 graduates of Tehran University's College of Engineering ("Daaneshkadeh-ye Fanni") will occur on Wednesday, February 20, 2019. [Invitation]
(8) Fake news super-sharers: A Northeastern University study has found that just 16 Twitter users tweeted out nearly 80% of the misinformation posing as news in 2016, while 99% of users spread virtually no fake information. Among people categorized as left-leaning and centrists, fewer than 5% shared any fake information, while 11% of accounts belonging to those described as right-leaning shared misinformation made to look like legitimate news.

2019/02/01 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Face made up of many faces Iran appears as #45 on 'New York Times' list of 52 travel destinations for 2019 Floating trash patch in the Pacific which is twice the size of Texas (1) Miscellaneous images: [Left] Face made up of many faces. [Center] Iran appears as #45 on New York Times' list of 52 travel destinations for 2019 (extra image). [Right] Floating trash: An estimated 1.2-2.4 million tons of plastic enters the oceans each year from rivers, accumulating in 5 different patches in the world's oceans. The largest of these, located between Hawaii and California, has an area twice the size of Texas or three times that of France (Photo credit: Time magazine, issue of February 4-11, 2019).
(2) On my 72nd birthday, as I do each year, I looked up the properties of the number 72. Here are the results.
Has 12 divisors, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12, 18, 24, 36, 72; Is half a gross, or six dozen; Is the product of 2^3 and 3^2; Is a master number, in esoteric numerology; Is the sum of four consecutive primes, 13 + 17 + 19 + 23; Is the sum of six consecutive primes, 5 + 7 + 11 + 13 + 17 + 19; Is the smallest number whose 5th power is the sum of five smaller 5th powers, 19^5 + 43^5 + 46^5 + 47^5 + 67^5; Is the measure of each exterior angle of a regular pentagon, in degrees; Is generally considered room temperature, in degrees Fahrenheit; Is the point size that makes characters 1 inch tall (a point is 1/72 of an inch); Is the number of strings (24 triple strings) on the Persian classical instrument santur; Is the number of virgins promised to martyrs in heaven, according to Islam; When appearing at the end of a year's number, makes it a leap year; When divided by the annual rate of return yields the number of years it takes for an investment to double ("The rule of 72").
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- More than 2 dozen deaths in 8 states blamed on the cold spell resulting from the polar vortex.
- Blackouts in the US Midwest add to the challenges posed by record-low temperatures.
- Trump not only lies himself but makes false statements on behalf of others!
- Good news on the women's rights front: Lebanon gets its first female Interior Minister. [Persian report]
- A poisonous variety of mushroom is spreading in North America's urban areas, putting children at risk.
- In a paper published in Nature Astronomy, scientists suggest that the universe's dark energy is growing.
- A fleet of robotic valets will park cars at London's Gatwick Airport.
- Amazon will fund many computer science classes at NY-area high schools ahead of its HQ2 placement.
(4) Multislacking: A relatively new word that means having multiple windows open on your screen to create the appearance of working, while actually slacking. [From an audio course entitled "The Secret Life of Words: English Words and Their Origins," which I am pursuing now.]
(5) Direct Relief International's new $40 million headquarters has been named after former UCSB Professor and nanotechnology pioneer Dr. Virgil Elings, who donated $5.1 million to complete its funding. Elings has donated significantly in Southern California and elsewhere, including to UCSB, Dos Pueblos High School, and other institutions. Direct Relief International is one of the most effective charities and does a remarkable job of distributing medicine and other supplies after natural disasters. I highly recommend donating to it.

2019/01/30 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Roger Stone is all smiles as he is arrested World Music Series: Dannsair performed Irish (dance) music in today's noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl Minnesota man wears shorts during the state's deepest freeze in decades, which can lead to frostbite in minutes (1) Images of the day: [Left] Rich people smile and have fun when they get arrested, while poor people become gloomy and nervous. [Center] World Music Series: Dannsair performed Irish (dance) music in today's noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl (see item 2 below for details). [Right] Unprecedented cold spell: Chicago city authorities lit fires under elevated train tracks to prevent damage to the rails. Meanwhile, this Minnesota man wears shorts during the state's deepest freeze in decades, which can cause frostbite in minutes.
(2) Noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: Dannsair, a Santa Barbara-based band boasting several UCSB music graduates, performed wonderful Irish music, with the band leader providing colorful commentary. I had taken along my home-made egg-salad with crackers for lunch; the rose in this photo was given to me as I walked by the library on my way to the concert venue, for reasons unknown. Sample music follows. [Video 1] [Video 2, country-style film music] [Video 3, dance tune from "Titanic"] [Video 4, a jig tune] [Video 5; stayed a few minutes longer to record this one, and, as a result, had to run to make it to my 1:00 PM office hour!]
(3) Smear campaign against Robert Mueller and his investigation: Russians are using materials provided by Mueller's team to Concord Management, the indicted Russian company, to discredit the investigation into Moscow's election interference. Some of the documents used have been altered.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump celebrates a flat market over the past year, as DJIA returns to where it was on January 4, 2018.
- Seth Meyers' "A Closer Look": Informative and funny. Are we in for a wag-the-dog war in Venezuela?
- DNA testing may reveal the identities of anonymous sperm donors, creating problems at both ends.
- Fun with art: Mona Lisa brought to life by artist James Dean Wilson. [1-minute video]
- Wonderful street art, combining wall paintings with existing plants. [1-minute video]
- Persian music: A 1-minute video clip from Molook Zarrabi, a pioneering woman singer in Iran.
(5) The Robomart start-up in Santa Clara, CA, will soon dispatch "grocery stores on wheels" in some Greater-Boston neighborhoods. Customers summon the vehicles, open their sliding doors with a phone app, and are automatically charged as they remove the RFID-tagged items. [Photo]
(6) Sarah Huckabee Sanders: God wanted Trump to become president. Me: Perhaps Robert Mueller should include God in his Russia probe!
(7) Final thought for the day: "A good head and good heart are always a formidable combination. But when you add to that a literate tongue or pen, then you have something very special." ~ Nelson Mandela

2019/01/29 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
This adorable little girl is disappointed at Iran losing to Japan 0-3 in soccer's Asian Cup semifinals Norway endeavors to build the world's first floating tunnel Coldest wind-chills from the polar vortex (weather map) (1) Newsworthy images: [Left] This adorable little girl is disappointed at Iran losing to Japan 0-3 in soccer's Asian Cup semifinals. [Center] Norway endeavors to build the world's first floating tunnel: Less visual clutter than a bridge, cheaper than a regular tunnel. [Right] Coldest wind-chills from the polar vortex: My thoughts are with Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri friends. Stay safe!
(2) Quote of the day: "Happiness is neither virtue nor pleasure nor this thing nor that but simply growth. We are happy when we are growing." ~ Author/poet William Butler Yeats (1865-1939)
(3) Water returns to Zayandeh Rood: People of Isfahan celebrate in this undated video, as the river, whose name means "Life-Giving," sees water after a long drought.
(4) You can be freezing in the US Midwest today, while we experience one of the hottest years on record globally: Local weather fluctuations and long-term global climate trends are different things. Someone please show this video to Trump, although he will likely dismiss it as fake news.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Intelligence chiefs disagree with Trump on threats from Iran and North Korea and on the demise of ISIS.
- John Bolton lets the cat out of the bag by displaying his notepad, intentionally or absent-mindedly.
- This rich old white dude (Senator Graham) wants to manufacture another financial crisis over wall funding!
- Pink Martini: If you want hours of easy-listening jazz/Latin music, this YouTube channel is for you.
(6) A glitch in Apple's group FaceTime allows eavesdropping on conversations and access to your microphone and camera, before you join and even if you don't. Apple has disabled the feature until a fix is put in.
(7) Colonel Larry Wilkerson speaks up against a war with Iran: As a young man, he went to Vietnam to fight a war "built on lies." As an older man, he presided as Chief of Staff at the US State Department, where he helped justify another war built on lies, the Iraq war, which history will judge as a catastrophic geopolitical decision. Wilkerson says he wishes he had resigned at the time. Now, he sees the beginnings of another war built on lies and warns us that "we have seen this picture before." The new lies are promoted by the same people who helped start the Iraq war. [5-minute video]
Images about the documentary 'The Point of No Return' about the first fully solar-powered flight around the world (8) "Point of No Return": This was the title of a 2018 feature film screened at UCSB's Pollock Theater tonight. The film documents the story of the first fully solar-powered flight around the world. The challenging 26,000-mile journey took 505 days, at an average speed of about 45 MPH. The aircraft, with 17,000 solar cells and a wingspan of 235 ft, weighed only 2.4 tons. The control room filled with support staff looked very much like that of a space mission. The screening was followed by a moderated discussion with the film's co-directors, Noel Dockstader and Quinn Kanaly. [Images]

2019/01/28 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Screen shot from BBC Persian's 'Pargar' program on Iranian women's agency (1) Women's agency in Iran: BBC Persian's "Pargar" program features a 52-minute debate between Prof. Nayereh Tohidi (someone who grew up in a traditional family but rose to high educational attainment and was a participant in the Revolution) and Ms. Soudeh Rad (a women's-rights activist who was born after the Revolution and has directly experienced only Iran's Islamic government and its misogynistic laws).
The debate's topic is whether the remarkable activism of Iranian women is at least in part due to the Islamic Revolution or occurs in spite of it. This is an important discussion that should be continued.
The differences in viewpoints between the two guests are subtle, as both are devout feminists (and end up endorsing each other's views on many points), but I find myself in greater agreement with Ms. Rad that the restrictions imposed on women by Iran's Islamic rulers and their patriarchal supporters have motivated women to act but have also served to channel their activism into relatively safer secondary disobedience (not donning "proper" hijab, wearing colorful clothes, and pursuit of beauty, including opting for cosmetic surgery), rather than a true pursuit of equality.
As Dr. Tohidi states, in sociopolitical domains, it is difficult to answer hypothetical questions such as where Iranian women would be today, that is, more or less empowered, had the Islamic Revolution not occurred, but my gut feeling tells me that they would be better off than they are today. It is indeed unclear whether Iranian women's greater presence at institutions of higher learning or as book authors, to cite just two examples, would have been as extensive in the absence of the Islamic Revolution.
(2) Returning from class just before noon, I encountered a "Take a Nap" sign from UCSB Health & Wellness, along with a table, presumably offering tips on taking a nap. Alas, I had to be at my office hour at noon!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The beginning of an announcement e-mail from NSF about resumption of scientific activities.
- Thank you anti-vaxxers for bringing measles back to the US. Making America great again!
- Upcoming winter and spring events in UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran. [Table]
- Upcoming events at UCLA sponsored by Pourdavoud Center for the Study of the Iranian World. [Table]
- Humor: Iranian man's secret to catching fish! [1-minute video]
- Persian music: Bahar Choir honors Iranian opera singer Pari Zangeneh, 79, in this touching tribute.
- "It isn't the mountain ahead that wears you out; it's the grain of sand in your shoe." ~ Robert W. Service
(4) Bias as a human defense mechanism against information overload: The remarkable human brain can store several terabytes of information, according to Robert Birge of Syracuse University, yet this is only one-millionth of the information produced in the world each day, per IBM estimates. So, we have to be extremely selective about the information we choose to remember. In his 1970 book, Future Shock, Alvin Tofler hypothesized that one way of dealing with information overload is to simplify the world in ways that confirm our biases, shedding nuances and key details in the process. As a result, rather than serving to bring us together, more information tends to push us into the familiar confines of our biases.
Also relevant to the notions above is a view of judgment as lazy thinking (from an October 2018 Facebook post of mine). When you see something new, your brain goes into overdrive until you identify it and assign a noun to it ("Oh, that's a fork"); you then relax and stop thinking. The same is true with regard to people ("Oh, that's a Latino/feminist/Republican"). Stoppage of thinking at this point makes you miss all the nuances. [Video]
(5) Final thought for the day: "Before mass leaders seize the power to fit reality to their lies, their propaganda is marked by its extreme contempt for facts as such, for in their opinion fact depends entirely on the power of man who can fabricate it." ~ Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism

2019/01/27 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image of Time magazine, issue of January 28, 2019 (1) How to fix social media before it's too late: Early tech investor Roger McNamee opines on democracy, privacy, controlling your data, regulation, making it human, addiction, and protecting children. A must-read for anyone who cares and worries about where social media are taking us.
In the same issue of Time magazine:
- Tim Cook urges taking action on privacy.
- Maria Ressa expresses optimism that FB can fulfill its original promise.
- Laurie Segall demarcates some of the scary aspects of technology.
- Eli Pariser vouches for restoring dignity to technology.
- Donald Graham indicates that he'd bet on FB's efforts to fix its mistakes.
(2) Today is Holocaust Remembrance Day: Let's remember the atrocities and renew our "never again" pledge! This UN-designated day commemorates the genocide that led to the death of 6 million Jews, 1 million Gypsies, 250,000 mentally and physically disabled people, and 9,000 homosexual men by the Nazi regime and its collaborators.
(3) If everyone thinks outside the box, things in the box won't get done!
(4) History of space-flight computers: In the article "First-Hand Hacking Apollo's Guidance Computer," Walt Whipple gives a first-person account of how a hack of a relatively primitive computer to allow memory and I/O channel dumps facilitated system diagnostics. [Related link: "Human Space Travel Primary Sources"]
(5) "US Sanctions: Unfulfilled Expectations and Challenges Facing the Iranian Economy" (Slides/Charts): This was the title of today's Persian lecture at UCLA's Dodd Hall, Room 121, which will repeat tomorrow in English at Kaplan Hall, Room 365, as part of the Iranian Studies Outreach Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran. The speaker, Dr. Hashem Pesaran, is a Distinguished Chair Professor of Economics at USC and Emeritus Professor of Economics at Trinity College, Cambridge. Professor Pesaran has earned numerous recognitions, including honorary degrees, in the course of his career.
Dr. Nayereh Tohidi, Professor of Gender and Women Studies at Cal State Northridge and Coordinator of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series, introduced the speaker and moderated the discussion that followed the lecture.
Dr. Pesaran began with what he called the good news, Iran's economic potential in theory, before dealing with the bad news of why the potential is not realized in practice. In the 40 years since the Islamic Revolution, a number of hardships (wars and sanctions) and internal mismanagement have impacted the country's economy. Iran's $425-billion economy is the second largest in the region, after Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, Iran possesses the world's largest natural-gas reserves, a young population (60% under 30), a citizenry that is 15% university-educated, and a vast cultural heritage (22 UNESCO World Heritage Sites).
There is now enough data from Iran's economy (18 years prior to the Islamic Revolution, that is, 1960-1978, and 40 years after) to carry out analyses and issue verdicts about what has caused the dysfunction. Post-Revolution, Iran has had a 2.5% annual growth, compared with 3.1% for Middle East and North Africa as a whole. Iran's GDP growth nearly matches its population growth, implying that things remain the same on a per-capita basis. Inflation has averaged 17%, falling to 10% after JCPOA but rising again with the new sanctions. Averages, of course, do not tell the entire story, as they do not reflect volatilities and fluctuations that create economic uncertainty.
The unemployment rate has averaged 12%, but it is much higher for the youth and women (30-40%). Economic growth fell significantly after the Revolution. This drop and the aforementioned volatility are evident in the chart in one of the slides, where the red line reflects the world average. Another slide shows the currency exchange rate, where blue signifies the official rate and red denotes the free-market rate. This duality of exchange rate (there are actually more than two rates) as well as subsidizing essential products is one of the sources of rampant corruption, as people and organizations take advantage of their access to more favorable rates to make ilicit profits. Yet another slide shows the value-drop of the Iranian rial during the terms of various recent Iranian presidents (Rafsanjani, factor of 5.8; Khatami, 4.9; Ahmadinejad, 3.7; Rouhani, 3.4).
Dr. Pesaran then discussed the effects of cumulative inflation, which although not a direct cause of currency devaluation, is related to it. The difference between average inflation in Iran (17%) and the US (3%) causes significant cumulative inflation, which sometimes leads the rise of the dollar and sometimes trails it, but the two indicators rise pretty much in tandem (slide, with blue line showing the price of dollar and red line representing cumulative inflation). For comparison, the corresponding figures for other countries in the region and a couple of oil-producing countries outside the region (included to show that possessing oil isn't necessarily the curse) are shown on one of the slides.
Dr. Pesaran pointed to economic mismanagement as the primary cause of Iran's economic woes. Part of this mismanagement pertains to populist policies that don't make economic sense, lack of stable policies with regard to the private sector, the existence of a huge semi-private sector, outdated banking and financial systems, and, as pointed out earlier, having multiple exchange rates that lead to inflation and corruption.
The effects of sanctions are highlighted on one of the slides, where economic growths during the low-impact sanctions of 1990-2005 and high-impact sanctions of 2006-2015 are compared. Using the average of some countries forming our comparison group, one can deduce that about 2.5% of the growth dip can be attributed to world economy and the rest is damage resulting from sanctions.
Another chart in the slides compares Iran's domestic oil use with production. Still another slide, depicting Iran's poverty map, shows that as low as the economic growth has been, its benefits have gone predominantly to the rich, which has led to a worsening of poverty in the country. Interestingly, Iran has always enjoyed substantial foreign currency reserves, which could have been used for controlling the exchange rate, but weren't.
Dr. Pesaran then showed portions of President Trump's Executive Order (see two of the slides) regarding Iran sanctions and urged everyone to examine it carefully. Explicitly included in the Order are concerns about Iran's missiles program and its automotive industries which, for some reason, are seen as threatening to the US.
To summarize, sanctions have had significant direct and indirect effects on the Iranian economy. However, the major share of the blame for Iran's economic woes goes to inept economic policies, including the tendency to pursue isolationism. Today's world does not allow isolationist economies to prosper. Even China, which was isolated for many decades, can no longer ignore the global economy and return to isolationism.
The Iranian government has recognized the importance of technology to the country's economy, which has led to less control over Internet access and emergence of higher-quality communication services. DigiKala, Iran's version of Amazon, has had a significant impact on making prices transparent, thus empowering consumers to find better deals, which were unavailable with secret, arbitrary prices of yore. This is a trend that cannot be reversed and is a positive omen overall.
[Note: The version of this report posted on Facebook also has a Persian version at the end.]

2019/01/26 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Image of robotic hand, playing chess Four-layer pudding-jello dessert for today's family gathering Misogynists at work: Photo of a friend, PhotoShopped by the staff of an Iranian scientific journal where her paper was published, to make her long, flowing hair and smile disappear (1) Random images: [Left] Google's AlphaZero, which trained itself and beat the human-trained Go champion AlphaGo program, now also excels at Chess and Shogi: The next frontier is for it to tackle more challenging games that entail imperfect information (Go and Chess are examples of games that are played with perfect information). [Center] Dessert for today's family gathering: Layers from the bottom are sandwich cookies (not visible), sugar-free lemon pudding, sugar-free orange jello, and fruit toppings. [Right] Misogynists at work: A friend posted this photo of her, PhotoShopped by the staff of an Iranian scientific journal where her paper was published, to make her long, flowing hair and smile disappear. I commented thus: "They are so stuck in the Middle Ages that it's laughable. The funny thing is that the person enforcing these ridiculous laws may not even believe in them himself; he is just following the mob. They are also afraid of smiling people. I remember the anti-smile question: 'Nishet chera baazeh?' So sad!"
(2) This year marks the 50th anniversary of the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill: The spill left an indelible mark on the idyllic South-Coast community and helped spur the national environmental movement, including the establishment of Earth Day to raise awareness. [Images from Santa Barbara Independent]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- FBI Director Wray slams the government shutdown which has affected all his underlings in serious ways.
- There is an $18,000 gender pay gap among scientists, according to the latest salary-data analysis.
- What is the hardest part of studying computer science? Getting into classes you need to graduate.
- Bodies-on-a-chip: Proxies for living beings may alleviate the need for lab animals, help cure diseases.
- What do Mars astronauts and the elderly have in common? Loneliness, osteoporosis, muscle-mass loss.
- George Mason University's student meal plans now include an option for food delivery by a fleet of robots.
- Dueling instruments: Guitarist mimics the rhythms and sounds of tonbak (goblet drum). [3-minute video]
- Persian music: LA-based Lian Ensemble is coming to UCSB on Friday, February 9. [10-minute video]
(4) The most-productive plane factory: Boeing 737 assembly line, where 42 planes roll off per month, each one taking 9 days from start to finish (which means more than a dozen planes are being worked on at once).
(5) The effect of a terminal master's degree: According to Computing Research Association, those with a terminal master's degree prior to earning a PhD in computing are twice as likely to have first-author journal publications than those without a terminal master's degree.
(6) Trump signs temporary end to government shutdown: He went from deal-man to tariff-man. Now, his nickname has changed to cave-man, because he caved. Some consider this nickname an insult to cavemen.

2019/01/25 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Screening of 'Let It Be' at UCSB's Pollock Theater on January 24, 2019: Image 1 Screening of 'Let It Be' at UCSB's Pollock Theater on January 24, 2019: Image 2 Screening of 'Let It Be' at UCSB's Pollock Theater on January 24, 2019: Image 3 (1) "Beatles Revolutions" film series: The second of five Beatles-related films, "Let It Be," was screened at UCSB's Pollock Theater last night. The packed house was also treated to a discussion (moderated by UCSB's David Novak) about the film with Santa-Barbara-native musician and producer Alan Parsons, of the "Alan Parsons Project" fame, who was a 20-year-old sound person at the Beatles January 29, 1969, roof-top concert prominently featured in the documentary film. The film, intended to showcase the band's creative process, ended up documenting the Fab Four's final days together, as the film was released a month after the Beatles disbanded. Tensions among Paul, John, George, and Ringo are evident as they rehearse and perform at the iconic concert atop London's Apple Studio.
(2) Bus Line 28 between UCSB campus and Camino Real Marketplace: This afternoon, I rode a brand-new tram/train-like double-length bus. Line-28 rides are free to UCSB faculty/staff/students, providing a convenient way of getting to shopping and alternative dining joints. [Photos of the inside and outside of the bus]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Skilled fed workers consider private-sector careers: So, when the shutdown ends, its effects will linger.
- Trump friend and confidant Roger Stone has been indicted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
- Comedy news: Seth Meyers takes a closer look at government shutdown and official reactions.
- Cartoon of the day: US government shutdown. [Uncle Sam needs winding up!]
- The penny that sold for $204,000: The 1943 penny had been minted in bronze instead of zinc-coated steel.
- Amazon's cooler-box-size delivery robot rolls along sidewalks to deliver packages in north Seattle.
- Give/accept hugs when you can: They're good for your health; even animals need them! [2-minute video]
- Heavenly Iranian food, served at a popular restaurant in Tehran's Bazaar. [1-minute video]
- Regional folk music of Iran: A wonderful performance of "Mah Pishanoo." [3-minute video]
- Magic act involving cigarettes and paper napkins: This act is hard to watch, but impressive nonetheless.
(4) Violinist Leonidas Kavakos in concert at UCSB's Campbell Hall tonight: Kavakos was superb throughout, playing some very challenging pieces, particularly right after the intermission and at the very end (Program). Enrico Pace, the pianist who accompanied Kavakos was every bit as good. A treat in every way!
Here is an 11-minute sample of the violin maestro's work on YouTube.
[In the margins: Watching the performance tonight, it occurred to me that if there is one job in the world that can be easily removed/automated it is that of the page-turner for a pianist. The page turner must be musically savvy to know when to turn the page, making her (yes, it's usually a woman) the least-efficiently utilized talent on any stage. True, the job can be viewed as a form of apprenticeship, but still ...]

2019/01/24 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cutlet sandwich with mint: What I took along to eat during yesterday's noon music concert A clear view of the Channel Islands in Goleta yesterday, 2019/01/23 Cartoon: Iranian government's budget allocation to different constituents, graphically illustrated (1) Images of the day: [Left] Cutlet sandwich with mint: What I took along to eat during yesterday's noon music concert. And no, I did not eat both of them at once! [Center] A clear view of the Channel Islands in Goleta yesterday: This spring-like sunny day made us forget the cold, wet days of last week, but winter rains are not over. [Right] Iranian government's budget allocation to different constituents, graphically illustrated.
(2) Trump's new rhyming message for his campaign generates huge backlash: He wrote, "Build a wall & crime will fall," to which people responded, "Oppose a wall & Trump will fall" and "Mexico will pay, you used to say"!
(3) Trump named Nancy Pelosi in a statement and followed her full name by "whom I call Nancy": Sounded like he was ready to reveal a nickname/insult for Pelosi, but chickened out at the last second.
(4) After Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani said he may be remembered in his eulogy for lying for Trump, the Internet is having fun with suggestions on what should be etched on his tombstone: "Here lies Rudy Giuliani. And everywhere lied Rudy Giuliani." [Image]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Democrats' and Trump's plans to re-open the government both fail in the US Senate: Now what?
- After Giuliani's denial that plans for Trump Tower Moscow ever existed, BuzzFeed published this image.
- Political Humor: Trump's plan-B is to deliver the State of the Union Address at a DC McDonald's.
- Actor Jorge Antonio Guerrero, star of Oscar-nominated "Roma," is denied US visa to attend the Oscars.
- Iranian FM Zarif met with Iraqi minorities re their rights and national unity: Will he do the same in Iran?
- Woman who accused Iranian MP of rape found dead: Not known whether it was suicide or murder.
- Cargo plane crash in Iran kills 15 of 16 on board: Failed navigation system blamed. No one else was hurt.
- Spring-like weather, with highs of ~70 degrees, in store for us in Santa Barbara for another week. [Image]
(6) Social harm coming from child marriages: There is much discussion on Twitter about child marriages in Iran, with users sharing personal stories from their own or their friends' experiences. Here is one example.
(7) A bit late for MLK Day, but still worth posting: Martin Luther King is remembered mostly for his "I Have a Dream" speech, envisaging equal opportunities, regardless of one's skin color. Lesser known is his more poignant speech about Vietnam, in which he characterized the war as an enemy of the poor, given that young black men were sent to "guarantee liberties in Southeast Asia which they had not found in southwest Georgia and East Harlem." [Adapted from an article by Viet Thanh Nguyen, in Time magazine, issue of Jan. 28, 2019]
(8) Final thought for the day: "The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction (i.e., the reality of experience) and the distinction between true and false (i.e., the standards of thought) no longer exist." ~ Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism

2019/01/23 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The colorful fire-throated hummingbird David T. Walter's colorful carpet made of 2500 Hot Wheels toys Colorful art from a collection of temporary tattoos (1) Art and nature in full color: [Left] Fire-throated hummingbird. [Center] Traffic jam: David T. Walter turns 2500 Hot Wheels toys into a colorful carpet. [Right] Colorful art from a collection of temporary tattoos.
(2) A lie has no horn or tail: This Persian saying advises us that lies sometimes look quite normal, so we must be vigilant in identifying and exposing them. A historian did just that about Mike Pence's statement that likened Donald Trump to MLK.
(3) Losers who feel entitled to love and sex aren't as uncommon as one might think: A massacre of the kind this man was thinking about (killing as many girls as he could) happened near UCSB some 5 years ago. We all need to learn to see the signs and to act on suspicious behavior on social media and elsewhere.
(4) Energy intensity of transportation: According to an opinion piece in the Jan. 2019 issue of IEEE Spectrum, a single person driving a Honda Civic consumes 2 megajoules of energy per passenger-kilometer (2 MJ/pkm). With two occupants in the car, the energy intensity drops to 1 MJ/pkm, the same as that of a half-full bus. A full jetliner has an energy intensity of 1.5 MJ/pkm. Newer inter-city high-speed trains in Europe and Japan consume about 0.2 MJ/pkm. The best subways require less than 0.1 MJ/pkm, making them the least energy-intensive mode of transportation.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Remarkable examples of cooperation, coordination, and trust. [2-minute video]
- Persian music: Paris-based Bahar Choir collaborates with, and performs a piece by, Majid Derakhshan.
- Persian music: Chance meeting of two young Iranian pianists, Saman Ehteshami and Payam Samimi.
- Persian music: Rana Mansour's jazzy "Shohar-e Pooldar Nemikham" ("I Don't Want a Rich Husband").
(6) The fight for the future of the disk drive: Recording-density improvements of around 40% per year over the past few decades have recently dropped to ~10%. Seagate and Western Digital, aware of this problem, have opted for different approaches to solving it, one using microwave-assisted magnetic recording and the other using heat assist. It remains to be seen which approach wins. [From: IEEE Spectrum, issue of January 2019]
(7) World Music Series noon concert: Mariachi Las Olas de SB was supposed to perform at UCSB's Music Bowl today, but they couldn't make it. Instead a few members of two different local mariachi bands appeared and did an excellent job of entertaining the crowd and getting everyone involved in sing-alongs. [Video 1] [Video 2]
(8) Final thought for the day: "Totalitarianism in power invariably replaces all first-rate talents, regardless of their sympathies, with those crackpots and fools whose lack of intelligence and creativity is still the best guarantee of their loyalty." ~ Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism

2019/01/22 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Adam Barr's 'The Problem with Software: Why Smart Engineers Write Bad Code' This year's Oscar-nominated lead actors and actresses A clever bookstore sign reads: Alternative facts can be found in our fiction section (1) Oscar nominees, sandwiched between book-related images: [Left] When good engineers write bad software: Interview with Adam Barr, author of a new book on software development, Why Smart Engineers Write Bad Code. [Center] This year's Oscar-nominated lead actors and actresses. (List of Oscar nominees) [Right] A clever bookstore sign reads: Alternative facts can be found in our fiction section.
(2) CS neuroscience faculty candidate talk: Decisions, decisions! There were two interesting but overlapping talks on campus this afternoon. Normally, in such cases, I choose one of the talks to attend, but today, I decided to sample the 3:30 talk and show up a tad late to the 4:00 talk. And I am glad I did!
Michael Bayeler (post-doc, U. Washington) talked about "Biologically Inspired Algorithms for Restoring Vision to the Blind." My understanding of the field of retinal prostheses is that most kinds of blindness and other visual impairments will soon disappear, as we learn to integrate light sensors with human brain's visual signal processing system.
Dr. Beyeler presented and discussed evidence showing nontrivial perceptual distortions caused by interactions between implant electronics and retinal neurophysiology. He then discussed how detailed knowledge of the visual system can be combined with data-driven techniques to develop novel encoding algorithms aimed at minimizing distortions and improving patient outcomes. He closed by outlining future strategies for leveraging virtual/augmented reality to quickly and efficiently test novel stimulation strategies in real-world tasks using visually typical individuals as 'virtual patients.' [Images]
Dr. Maryam Kia-Keating delivering a lecture at UCSB Library's Pacific View Room (3) UCSB Library's Pacific View Lecture: Dr. Maryam Kia-Keating (UCSB Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology, www.kiakeating.com) presented a very interesting and informative lecture this afternoon under the title "Exiled: Loss and Resilience Among Refugee and Forcibly Displaced Youth and Communities." [Slides]
When we think of refugees, we often visualize war and political unrest. However, forced displacements also occur because of economic instability, violence, natural disasters, and, most recently, climate change. The refugee problem is now worse than it has ever been, with one person forcibly displaced every 2 seconds worldwide. More than half of the refugees are children, who are particularly vulnerable to the sense of hopelessness resulting from having no home. The perils of being stateless was masterfully portrayed in the movie "Terminal," in which Tom Hanks played a man who was not wanted by any country, ending up spending 18 years inside Paris Airport.
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, ratified by all UN member countries except for the US, will become 30 years old later this year. Ratifying states must act in the best interests of the child, which means compliance with child custody and guardianship laws, honoring children's basic rights, including the right to life, to their own name, and identity, to be raised by their parents within a family or cultural grouping, and to have a relationship with both parents, even if they are separated. These rights are obviously in greater jeopardy in the case of child refugees. One key cause for having so many stateless children is the fact than women do not possess the same citizenship and other rights as men.
Psychological impacts on child and adult refugees are not limited to the pre-migration period, as the migration itself, and re-settlement in the post-migration period are also serious stress factors. Occasionally, children are so impacted by loss of hope that they lose consciousness and may even become comatose, with no apparent medical cause.
People become de-sensitized to the plight of refugees when they are called "illegal immigrants." In fact, seeking refuge from war, violence, and other causes of trauma is legal worldwide. A key observation is that refugees must be empowered to become participants and partners, rather than be mere subjects (e.g., get them involved in taking photos, rather than becoming subjects of other people's photos). As observed by the founder of Chobani (a highly successful yogurt company), himself an immigrant, the moment a dislocated person gets a job, s/he ceases to be a refugee.
Far from being vulnerable and delicate individuals, immigrants are less likely to suffer chronic disease or premature death for the leading causes of death. This surprising outcome is known as the Immigrant Paradox. And the effect is not limited to health. Recent immigrants tend to outperform more-established immigrants and non-immigrants on education, conduct, and crime-related outcomes, despite the barriers they face to successful social integration.
Dr. Kia-Keating's talk is related to this year's "UCSB Reads" selection, Thi Bui's memoir entitled The Best We Could Do, which portrays her family's history in Vietnam and her parent's escape to the US. The book will be the subject of many campus-wide discussions, culminating in a public lecture by the author on April 25, 2019.
[In the margins: These photos include a panoramic view of the 8th-floor Pacific View Room, views from the room's windows, and the glass enclosure where an up-to-date scale-model of the entire campus is kept.]

2019/01/21 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Martin Luther King Day! Last night's 'super blood wolf moon' lunar eclipse Some of the honorees on the Forbes list of America's Top 50 Women in Tech (1) Images of the day: [Left] Happy Martin Luther King Day! (See item 2 below) [Center] Last night's "super blood wolf moon" lunar eclipse, with totality from 8:41 to 9:44 PM, PST. This total lunar eclipse will be the last ofits kind until 2033. [Right] Forbes issues list of America's Top 50 Women in Tech.
(2) Dr. King's message of love, peace, unity, and respect must be repeated more than ever, in order to counteract the hate, conflict, division, and discourtesy practiced by the current US administration. "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."
[P.S.: This weekend, we also marked two ominous occasions: Entering the third year of Trump's presidency and the second month of the US government shutdown.]
(3) Holland plans to teach the basics of AI to its citizens: The first phase of the ambitious plan entails educating 1% of the population (~ 55,000 people). [While we are occupied by government shutdown, building a wall, and bringing coal jobs back, other countries are preparing for the second half of the 21st century!]
(4) Women's rights: The right to enter a shrine in South India has sparked an intense national battle over women's rights. Two women who entered the forbidden Hindu Temple are now in hiding for fear of their lives.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Oil pipeline blast in Mexico kills 66.
- Raising taxes on the super-rich has broad support: 71/60/45% among Democrats/independents/Republicans.
- On Trump and lies: As the saying goes, people living in glass houses shouldn't be throwing stones. [Tweets]
- Trump always hires the best, the smartest, people: Then, they all turn dumb, lowlife, or crazy! [Cartoon]
- Comedian recalls when he was introduced to God and Jesus as a 4-year-old. [English; Persian subtitles]
- The average American lives in 11 different residences over a lifetime (mine is 18). [From an Allstate TV ad]
(6) Lectures on Iran at UCLA next week: Dr. Hashem Pesaran (USC Distinguished-Chair Economics Professor) will speak on "US Sanctions: Unfulfilled Expectations and Challenges Facing the Iranian Economy" (Sunday, January 27, 4:00 PM, Dodd Hall 121, in Persian; Monday, January 28, 4:00 PM, Kaplan 365, in English). [Flyer]
(7) On lies and politics: I tried to find the original wording of this Persian translation of a Hana Arendt quote but did not succeed: When a society faces organized lying, telling the truth turns into a political act. The truth-teller, even if not motivated politically, becomes a political activist. Under these conditions, you cannot set politics aside and go your own way: You must either join the ministry of deception or become a dissident.

2019/01/19 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Women's March Santa Barbara participants pass in front of the SB Courthouse on Anacapa Street Map of Vanak, Tehran, Iran, around 50 years ago, constructed from memory Selfie taken on my way back from Women's March Santa Barbara (1) Images of the day: [Left] Women's March Santa Barbara participants pass in front of the SB Courthouse on Anacapa Street. [Center] Map of Vanak, Tehran, Iran, around 50 years ago, constructed from memory (see the personal history under the last item below). [Right] On my way back from Women's March Santa Barbara, with my T-shirt message: "Fem.i.nism (fem-uh-niz-uhm), The radical notion that women are people."
(2) Women's March Santa Barbara: The program began at De La Guerra Plaza with song and dance performances, followed by a Chumash prayer and speeches by local politicians and community leaders. It then continued by marching westward on State Street, returning via Anacapa [Photos] [World Dance performing to the global women's anthem "Break the Chains"] [March video 1] [March video 2] [March video 3].
(3) Trouble among women marchers: Allegations of anti-semitism against the national organization coordinating the marches nationwide may have hampered participation this year. Santa Barbara's organizers reiterated their commitment to diversity and full equality during a TV appearance yesterday, as they claimed independence from the national organization.
(4) Vanak, Tehran, Iran (a personal history; see the map above): Vanak is a neighborhood in North Tehran, where my family lived from 1958 to 1991. A well-known traffic circle, near major thoroughfares in the capital city, and a tree-lined street in the area are named "Vanak." The neighborhood's name comes from a village that still existed in the 1980s; the name "Vanak" means "small (ash) tree."
At the time we lived there, major landmarks in Vanak included Iran Plan & Budget Organization's Factory #5, where my dad worked as an engineer for many years, a historic Armenian village/fort surrounded by walls, and, later on, the Girls' College (built on an abandoned cemetery and land acquired from private owners) and later renamed Farah Pahlavi University and, after the Islamic Revolution, Alzahra University. The neighborhood now boasts a major Armenian Sports Club (Ararat) and is home to high-rise residential and commercial buildings. Hotel Vanak, an amusement park, named "Fun Faar" (derived from the English "Fun Fair"), and a miniature golf course used to occupy three of Vanak Circle's corners, with the high-rise Sheraton Hotel not far away.
We lived at two locations in Vanak, both alongside the extension of Vanak Avenue, where it veered to the north upon passing the Factory Circle and its bus stop.
The first location, was a rented 5-room apartment in Alizadeh Building, named after the owner. We lived at one end of the building, on the second floor. The building's first floor on the street side was taken up by businesses, including a small grocery store, or baghghaali, a metal-working shop (which made doors, windows, and fences, and treated us to banging, welding, and grinding sounds all day long), and a workshop/mini-factory that my dad occupied to make metal furniture, including folding beds that were in high demand. The building had a large garden on its back side, which was out of bounds to us, except when the owner's rep, who occupied a first-floor unit, let us in to use the algae-covered, green-water pool.
The second location was at a 1.5-story building that my dad designed and built to house his workshop/factory and a residential quarter for the family. There were also a couple of street-front shops, which he planned to use as the factory's offices and, perhaps, rent out to other businesses. Soon he closed his factory and the large hall where metal furniture pieces were to be built became our over-size living room. The backyard had flower beds and trees along the sides and a swimming pool in the middle, which for some reason was rarely filled with water. Most of the family photos we have from those days show an empty swimming pool. My dad had a deep well dug in one corner of the yard for our water supply and built a simple structure on the far end of the yard, which held a largish warehouse on one side and toilet/shower facilities on the other. Later remodeling added a bathroom at the main part of the house, sparing us from having to walk through rain and snow, shovel in hand, for bathroom visits!
My parents sold the latter house dirt-cheap when they immigrated to the US to join their children. Later, the building was demolished to accommodate a street-widening project, which gobbled up much of the land. The new owner erected a multi-story building on the back side of the lot to take the greatest advantage of the now-more-valuable land. I have seen recent photos of the area where our house once stood, which is totally unrecognizable to me.
P.S.: Whenever Queen Farah came to visit the university in Vanak, or, less frequently, when the Shah visited, the potholes on the main road were filled, dirt roads in the area were sprinkled with water, vegetation was trimmed (and sometimes new flower bushes planted), and the crumbling walls on both sides of the road were painted over. Everything went back to its normal crummy state in a few days!

2019/01/18 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Fake issue of <i>The Washington Post</i>, recently distributed in the DC area Super-Moon total lunar eclipse Map of Iran, comparing its provinces to other world countries in terms of area (1) Interesting images: [Left] Fake issue of The Washington Post, recently distributed in the DC area. [Center] Super-Moon lunar eclipse coming on Sunday 1/20, beginning at 10:34 PM EST: Super-Moon is when the Moon is closest to Earth and thus appears larger. The event will last for 3.5 hours, giving us 63 minutes of totality. [Right] It's a big country: Map of Iran, comparing its provinces to other world countries in terms of area.
(2) Beauty isn't the only thing that's in the eye of the beholder: Perceptions vary. It's possible for the same object to be perceived as a sphere by one person and as a cube by another.
(3) History in pictures: This newspaper clipping shows Donald Trump in Tehran, ca. 1978, accompanied by actors Jack Nicholson and Warren Beatty. Trump's plans to build a casino on Iran's Caspian coast were scrapped due to political unrest preceding the Islamic Revolution.
[Correction: The photo in the clipping was actually taken in Africa and the rest of the story is likely fake.]
(4) [Political humor] Breaking news: Democrats have agreed to funding the wall to reopen the government, on the condition that Trump stays on the other side of the wall!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump fired Comey and Flynn on advice from Kushner, who told him it will help end the Russia probe.
- Persian music: A tender poem in praise of mother, recited by singer/poet Homay. [8-minute video]
- Those were the days: Tehran, Iran, ca. 1956. [9-minute video]
- A UK immigration officer placed his wife's name on a terror watch list after she traveled to Pakistan.
(6) Where is ardent Trump supporter Devin Nunes? After a period of disappearance, he is back in the news, because Robert Mueller and Manhattan federal prosecutors are looking into a breakfast meeting he attended, along with Michael Flynn and a number of foreign officials in connection with Trump's inaugural celebrations.
(7) Connections coming to light: A computer tech specialist working for Jerry Falwell Jr.'s Liberty University was paid by Trump to manipulate on-line polls in his favor.
(8) Four US soldiers killed in Syria by the supposedly-defeated ISIS: Will there be endless investigations of this incident, as there were for the four Americans who died in Benghazi, Libya?
(9) Temporary river: I took this photo at Goleta's Coal Oil Point, where the Devereux Slough connects to the ocean when it's full. Water is seen flowing into the ocean at low tide. In this 2.5-minute video, water is seen flowing into the ocean at low tide. My narration is barely audible over the sounds of the wind and raging water.

2019/01/17 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Dangers of vehicles driving on UCSB campus walkways, Photo 1 Colorful patterns, natural and artificial (photo montage) Dangers of vehicles driving on UCSB campus walkways, Photo 2 (1) Images of the day: [Left & Right] Poor planning endangers safety at UCSB: The new Bioengineering Building on our campus (like several older buildings) does not have any road access, so the only way to get to the parking and deliveries area behind it is via driving a significant distance on a busy walkway. Yesterday, Wednesday 1/16, as I was walking back to my office around 1:00 PM, I observed a large delivery truck drive on the walkway to the east of the Bioengineering Building to get to the delivery area on its north side; several other cars were parked in that lot, which must have gotten there by driving on the same busy walkway. How did this multi-million-dollar, state-of-the-art project get approved without mitigating its vehicle access problem? [Center] Photo montage: Colorful patterns, natural and artificial.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Senior Pentagon personnel are nervous about Trump's unpredictability and his politicization of the military.
- Pelosi told Trump he could deliver the State-of-The-Union address in writing: Here's a leaked draft copy.
- An apparently record-breaking ice disk measuring 300 feet in diameter floats on a Maine river in the US.
- Southern Californians are alarmed that they have not been able to drive with their sun-roofs open for 3 days!
- The Republican Party of the 21st-century America: See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. [Image]
- Some English terms for money. [Image]
- Persian poetry: Mr. Haloo's humorous poem about a just-married couple and their first night together.
- Old-time Iranian singer Hooshmand Aghili gets emotional as he is honored by his peers.
- The story behind Costco's Kirkland brand, which has helped it increase profits as other retailers struggle.
(3) An embarrassment of riches: In a third talk by a CS neuroscience faculty candidate in as many days, Hannah Choi (post-doc at U. Washington; PhD in applied math from Northwestern) spoke today under the title "Bridging Structure, Dynamics, and Computation in Brain Networks." Because the talk overlapped with another talk that was of greater interest to me, I did not attend. This post will serve as a reminder for me to pursue the subject later. [Dr. Hannah Choi's Web page]
(4) "Zero-Carbon Cloud: Reducing the Cloud's Growing Carbon Footprint and Enabling High-Renewable Power Grid": This was the title of a talk this afternoon by Dr. Andrew Chien (U. Chicago), sponsored by UCSB's Institute for Energy Efficiency. Data centers and other cloud infrastructure are energy-intensive and, despite the efforts expended and claims made (e.g., by Google), we are a long way from achieving zero-emission powering of the cloud. In connection with the goal of a zero-carb cloud, Dr. Chien discussed a number of computing research challenges, including resource prediction, adaptive workload distribution, new distributed protocols, and novel business models.
(5) Film screening at UCSB's Pollock Theater: As part of the "Beatles Revolutions" series, the 1964 film "A Hard Day's Night" was screened tonight, followed by a discussion with journalist Ivor Davis, who accompanied the Beatles on their 5-week North-American tour. The 1964 tour was kicked off with an appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show." Director Richard Lester's semi-documentary style captures the Beatlemania of 1964 and the shear fun the Fab Four had with their quick rise to fame. In the discussion, moderated by David Novak (UCSB Professor of Music), Davis recounted his first-hand experiences during the tour, in which music and lyrics were drowned out by screams from young fans. One of those screaming/weeping girls happened to be sitting in Pollock theater's front row tonight. The music and sound quality are first-rate, so, if you have not seen the film in a theater, consider doing so at the first opportunity.

2019/01/16 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
'Time' magazine's cover photo, issue of January 21, 2019: The art of the duel 'New Yorker' cartoon of the day: 'Wow, I wonder what the losing team got' The highly over-rated actress Meryl Streep impersonates the highly over-rated dealmaker Donald Trump! (1) Trump images of the day: [Left] Time magazine's cover photo, issue of January 21, 2019: The art of the duel. [Center] New Yorker cartoon of the day: "Wow, I wonder what the losing team got." [Right] The highly over-rated actress Meryl Streep impersonates the highly over-rated dealmaker Donald Trump!
(2) One of the "Girls of Revolution Street," who stood against Iran's mandatory hijab laws by removing their headscarves in public, writes about her ordeal at Iranian stone-age courts in cases of domestic abuse and freedom of speech. A truly heartbreaking story! [Facebook post, in Persian]
(3) The liberalization of America: More people self-identify as liberal (once considered a negative term) than ever before. In a quarter of century, the fraction of Americans who support gay marriage and legalization of pot has grown from about 1/4 to 2/3.
(4) Conservatives insist that the US has the best healthcare system in the world, yet Kentucky Senator Rand Paul has chosen to undergo surgery in Canada, a country with awful, socialized, universal healthcare! Paul and others like him remind me of Iranian mullahs, who travel abroad for even routine medical care, while chanting the slogan of self-sufficiency for mere mortals.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- More than a decade after masterminding the USS Cole attack, a key Al-Qaeda operative is dead.
- The clueless, heartless, tactless, classless, amoral POTUS does it again! [Tweets]
- Newspaper censures woman's obituary that blamed Trump for contributing to her death. [From Newsweek]
- UCLA gymnast's delightful perfect-10 floor routine, channeling Tina Turner and Michael Jackson, goes viral.
(6) World Music Series noon concert: Very few people were in attendance at today's event, Klezmer and Balkan Music with Kalinka. Perhaps the rain made people think that the outdoor performance would be cancelled, whereas it was moved indoors. One of the band members joked that it felt like an academic conference, with a 1:1 ratio of panelists to audience members! [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4]
(7) "Perceptual Engineering": This was the title of a talk by UCSB CS faculty candidate Misha Sra this afternoon. Dr. Sra (PhD, MIT, 2018) is a Research Affiliate at MIT's Media Lab.
Our bodies interact with the physical world in rich and elaborate ways, whereas digital interactions are far more limited. Dr. Sra's Research raises computing devices from external systems that require deliberate usage to those that are true extensions of us.
In Dr. Sra's view, using the entire body for input and output allows for implicit and natural interactions. By building devices and immersive systems (such as the one for virtual scuba diving that replicates the actions and sensations of a human under water, while operating on a dry platform), Dr. Sra aims to modify a user's sense of space, place, body, balance, and orientation and manipulate his/her visual attention, so as to assist or guide the interactive experience in an effortless way and without explicit user input. [Images]
One of Dr. Sra's projects about counteracting motion sickness is described in this 11-minute TEDx talk.

2019/01/15 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Vulnerability of US entry points to terrorists infilteration A few memes about the struggles of Iranian women to regain their rights Trump treats Clemson's championship football team to food from Wendy's, McDonald's, and Burger King (1) Newsworthy images: [Left] Vulnerability of US entry points to terrorists infilteration. [Center] A few memes about the struggles of Iranian women: Women's resistance to mandatory hijab laws and other manifestations of misogyny in social and judicial settings is one of the bright spots in the fight for freedom in Iran. [Right] Trump treats Clemson's championship football team to food from Wendy's, McDonald's, and Burger King: Next, he'll cut NASA's budget and send them Space-Set Lego Blocks from a local toy store's clearance section.
(2) Unlikely Iranian spies in Southern California: "Within the span of a year—from the summer of 2017 to the spring of 2018—authorities say the men crisscrossed Orange County and the United States, videotaping participants at MEK rallies in New York and Washington, D.C., and photographing Jewish centers in Chicago."
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Increasingly isolated, Trump quotes Pat Buchanan and claims most Americans support his border wall.
- Trump's "Amazon Washington Post" should be recipropcated with "Trump Organization White House."
- Rep. Steve King removed from committee posts in wake of racist and White-Supremacist comments.
- Veterans, the primary victims of higher-education scams, oppose DeVos's proposed deregulation.
- Saudi teen, who left her country to escape abuse and seek freedom, granted refugee status by Canada.
- Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, jailed in Iran since 2016, starts hunger strike in a bid to get medical attention.
- Tiny cotton plants have sprouted as a result of a biology experiment by the Chinese lunar lander.
- Hubble Space Telescope's life is expected to come to an end by the mid-2020s.
- U. California warns students/faculty against using messaging apps and social media while visiting China.
- Actress Carol Channing, of the "Hello, Dolly!" and "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" fame, dead at 97.
(4) Shades of last year: Evacuation orders are in place around Santa Barbara over the expectation of several days of rain and the possibility of flash floods and mud/debris flows. They took effect at 10 AM on Tuesday 1/15 for areas below the Sherpa, Whittier, and Thomas fire burn areas.
(5) "Bridging the Spatiotemporal Neural Dynamics of Recurrent Processes in the Brain with Deep Hierarchical Convolutional Neural Network Models": This mouthful of a title belonged to a CS faculty candidate talk this afternoon at UCSB. The speaker, Dr. Yalda Mohsenzadeh, is a postdoc at MIT and received her graduate degrees from Sharif University of Technology (MS, 2009) and Amirkabir University (PhD, 2014), both in Tehran. Her work relies on a combination of EEG/MEG, which provide good temporal resolution, and fMRI, which has good spatial resolution, in an effort to arrive at mm and msec resolutions for studying brain activity. The talk consisted of three complementary parts, followed by a description of the speaker's future research plans. First, a novel method for characterizing the interplay of feedforward and feedback mechanisms along the human ventral visual stream, which suggests that recurrent artificial neural networks can better explain the neural data in challenging visual tasks, was presented. Second, Dr. Mohsenzadeh showed how some visual events are privileged by perceptual processing for potential successful memory encoding, offering a new way of characterizing the spatiotemporal neural signature of visual memorability in the human brain. Third, via a novel method to examine what an artificial deep neural network has learned, Dr. Mohsenzadeh showed how biological and artificial networks share many more similarities than previously believed. [A few slides]
(6) Film screening at UCSB's Pollock Theater: "Nadie" (a 2017 documentary, whose title means "Nobody") tells the story of love and deception in the Cuban revolution, seen through the eyes of a man who was initially mesmerized by its possibilities. Rafael Alcides, who talks for much of the film, was once a celebrated writer. Now, a stranger in his own country, a nobody, he tries to salvage his unpublished novels as the ink fades away from their pages. Miguel Coyula's film is a pop-culture collage, combining clips from old movies, photographs, and imaginary conversations, all held together by the magnetic personality of raconteur Rafael Alcides.
The film's screening was followed by a discussion with Miguel Coyola (writer/director/co-producer) and Lynn Cruz (actor/co-producer), moderated by Cristina Venegas (Film & Media Studies, UCSB). Apparently, the director and producers of the film also became nobodies, given the reverence with which Castro is viewed in Cuba and the extreme censorship of all that is critical of him.
Even though the director categorizes his film as a "documentary," much of the imagery is digitally manipulated, making it of a different genre (historical commentary?). Some examples of such manipulations were shown during the Q&A period. [Some images]

2019/01/14 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Right before disaster strikes: Bat about to hit chin Right before disaster strikes: When you gotta go Right before disaster strikes: Falling in the pool Right before disaster strikes: Cargo about to go Right before disaster strikes: Elephant's toy car Right before disaster strikes: Knocking over a vase (1) Unfortunate events: [Top left] Bat about to hit chin. [Top center] When you gotta go. [Top right] Falling in the pool. [Bottom left] Cargo about to go. [Bottom center] Elephant's toy car. [Bottom right] Museum oops!
(2) Perfect retort to the Trump tweet slamming FBI and Comey: "When you're attacking FBI agents because you're under criminal investigation, you're losing." ~ Sarah Huckabee Sanders' tweet of November 3, 2016
(3) An emerging pattern: The Saudi government may have rescued a Saudi man awaiting trial for rape in Canada. They had done this for an accused murderer in Oregon.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Death toll of massive US winter storm, from the Midwest to the mid-Atlantic, stands at 7 and rising.
- Trump's anti-FBI tweet and Comey's reply: "I ask you to judge me by the enemies I have made." ~ FDR
- Racism rewarded: Megyn Kelly is out at NBC but will be given the full amount of her $69 million contract.
- Trump risks financial disaster for America, says the President of a country whose economy is in tatters!
- James Watson of the DNA double-helix fame has been stripped of his honors over racist comments.
- Highly creative Olympics ice-dancing: Tango with a Chair. [2-minute video]
- Azeri music: A wonderful performance of "Sari Galin" by a group of school children. [5-minute video]
- Trevor Noah's 8-minute stand-up comedy routine about his racial identity and racism in South Africa.
- Traditional Persian music: Mastan Ensemble performs. [4-minute video]
- Jim Carrey impersonating 12 famous people in 1992. [Photos]
- Ancient Irish "healing soil" contains bacteria that halt the growth of antibiotic-resistant superbugs.
(5) Trump responds to reports of chaos in the WH by tweeting that he is home alone: Tweeter users consider this a sign of isolation, rather than reassuring.
(6) World's top 10 most-educated countries [educated fraction rounded to the nearest percent]: Canada 56, Japan 51, Israel 50, Korea 47, UK 46, USA 46, Australia 44, Finland 44, Norway 43, Luxembourg 43.

2019/01/13 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Punishment by lashing in the Islamic Republic of Iran (cartoon by Touka Neyestani) This wall at UCSB Library used to be covered with a shelf that held new books: Another casualty of the digital revolution! Cartoon: Lady Liberty replaced by Liberty Wall (1) Troubling sights: [Left] Punishment by lashing in the Islamic Republic of Iran (cartoon by Touka Neyestani). [Center] This wall at UCSB Library used to be covered with a shelf that held new books: It was my favorite spot to spend some time before or between meetings, to discover new books outside my areas of expertise. Another casualty of the digital revolution! [Right] Lady Liberty being replaced by Liberty Wall.
(2) The number 33 is very special (part of birthday message to my son, who turns 33 today): It is the product of the primes 3 and 11, thus being a semiprime. The smallest run of 3 consecutive semiprime integers begins with 33 (the next run is 85, 86, 87). Coincidentally, 11 is the binary representation of 3. It is the sum of the first four positive factorials. It is a master number, along with 11 and 22. It is the smallest odd number n such that n + x! isn't a prime for any x. It is the smallest positive integer yet to be represented as a^3+b^3+c^3. Al-Ghazali claimed that dwellers of Heaven will forever exist in a state of being 33.
(3) "Back to the Future: The Return of US Economic Sanctions and Iran's Response" [With thanks to Dr. Bavafa for sending me his slides and submitting several clarifications]:
This was the title of today's Persian lecture at UCLA's Dodd Hall, Room 121, which will repeat tomorrow in English at Bunche Hall, Room 10383, as part of the Iranian Studies Outreach Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran. The speaker, Dr. Reza Bavafa, is an adjunct professor at USC's Marshall School of Business. Dr. Bavafa teaches courses in economics and business strategy and has had 25 years of executive management experience with AT&T and IBM.
Dr. Kazem Alamdari introduced the speaker and moderated the discussion that followed the lecture, in lieu of the lecture series' coordinator, Dr. Nayereh Tohidi, who is abroad on a conference trip.
Dr. Bavafa began with a disclaimer: Given that the new Trump administration sanctions on Iran are only a tad over two months old, their effects are not yet known in full, so we must extrapolate from previous sanctions regimes, and employ economic models, to predict their effects. Another disclaimer, that Dr. Bavafa mentioned during the talk and Q&A period, is that he is not versed to speak about the political and psychological impacts of sanctions, so his focus is on economic effects and on the effectiveness of sanctions in achieving their stated goals. Many sanctions and responses to them are politically motivated in order to score points with the base at source and/or target countries. There are also psychological impacts on both sides, which are outside the scope of this talk.
Dr. Bavafa indicated that his talk covers five points: Defining economic sanctions, history of sanctions against Iran, reinstatement of sanctions in November 2018, impact of sanctions, and Iran's potential response.
US sanctions apply to "US Persons," that is, US citizens and permanent residents, no matter where they live, anyone physically present in the US, and US entities such as corporations. Secondary sanctions apply to entities with economic ties to both the US and Iran, thus potentially capable of circumventing the sanctions via indirect deals. Although there are counterexamples, generally speaking, economic sanctions have been less than successful in achieving their goals.
Considering a two-dimensional space characterized by a country's degree of dependence on imports (high or low) and it having or not having strategic exports as a crude version (that focuses only on two of the more prominent parameters) of a model used in the literature on this topic, one can distinguish four quadrants. Most vulnerable to sanctions are counties with high degrees of dependence on imports and with no strategic exports (Liberia). Countries with little dependence on imports are usually not affected by sanctions (North Korea, with no strategic exports, and China, with a great deal of exports). Iran falls in the fourth quadrant, because it is highly dependent on imports, but also has oil as a strategic export.
The case of Iran is rather puzzling. The 3-decade sanctions spanning 1979-2010, resulting from the hostage crisis, though economically devastating, had more limited effects on changing Iran's behavior than the broadly-supported and deep 2012-2015 sanctions arising from the nuclear program, which eventually brought Iran to the negotiating table and led to the JCPOA (recently overturned by the Trump administration, while still considered valid by the Europeans, China, and Russia).
The reinstated sanctions are expected to be somewhat less effective than those in 2012-2015, for a variety of reasons, including the absence of "carrot" to complement the "stick." First, Iran is allowed to sell oil to certain countries that would be greatly inconvenienced if Iran's oil were not available to them. Second, the sanctions are unilateral and not supported by US partners in the nuclear deal. Third, reduction in both the unemployment rate and of inflation, from 30% to around 10% (although the figure shot up to 35% upon declaration of the new sanctions), anti-corruption measures, and in-progress banking reforms, including control of money-laundering, may spur foreign investments.
The previous round of sanctions created problems for the country in terms of an increase in poverty levels, especially in provinces with smaller urban populations, although in terms of inequality, Iran is surprisingly in better shape than the US. The bottom line is that sanctions affected villages much more severely than cities.
Demonstrations against rampant inflation in Iranian cities are signs of trouble to come. Iran was expected to have a 4% growth this year, which was downgraded to -1.6% upon the mere announcement of the new sanctions (a reduction of 5.6%). Another 4% decrease in growth is projected for next year.
In conclusion, the reinstated US sanctions are not expected to be super-effective, thus giving Iran some flexibility in how it responds to them. The Trump administration has stated that regime change is not a goal of the reinstated sanctions. In fact, the globally unpopular sanctions may serve to strengthen the Iranian regime, as people rally around the leadership. Conservatives in both the US and Iran seem to be the main beneficiaries of the sanctions.
The Facebook version of this post also includes photos and a Persian summary. [The speaker's slides]

2019/01/12 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
World's largest neuromorphic computer, built at U. Manchester Researchers are replicating honeybee's tiny brain, containing about 1 million neurons, to improve drone navigation Tech goes to Broadway: The latest stage King Kong (1) Science and technology: [Left] World's largest neuromorphic computer: Built at U. Manchester, the $20M machine contains 1M processor cores and mimics the brain's massive parallelism. Its design concept will be scaled up in future to model up to 1B neurons. [Center] Beeline navigation: Researchers are replicating honeybee's tiny brain, containing about 1 million neurons, to improve drone navigation. (Credit: Cover of Prism magazine, issue of December 2018) [Right] Tech goes to Broadway: The latest stage King Kong is a 2000-pound, 20-foot-tall blending of art and technology, controlled by on-board hydraulics and a team of puppeteers. Despite this marvel of animatronics, the Broadway version of "King Kong" has received poor reviews.
(2) How do evangelical Christians reconcile their love and support for Israel with their belief that all Jews will go to hell unless they convert to Christianity?
(3) Persian music: This nostalgic song, entitled "Grandma's House," is recognizable by next-generation Iranians (the generation after me) as the theme song of a children's TV program.
(4) Persian music: My friend Koorosh (Kory) Yazdani sings his composition "Mi-Khaahamat" ("I Desire You"), based on a poem by another friend, Partow Nooriala. [5-minute video]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Cost to GDP of the current government shutdown will likely exceed Trump's wall funding demand. [Chart]
- Federal agencies affected by the current partial government shutdown (9 out of 15). [Chart]
- Virginia Federal Appeals Court: Politicians who block citizens on social media violate First Amendment.
- A detailed history of Donald Trump's connections to the mob, both in the US and in Russia.
- Changing our perception of beauty: Photographing women from 60 different countries. [Pictorial]
- Official Queen video of "Bohemian Rhapsody" (inspired a new movie by the same name). Its live version.
(6) Bad news: Catastrophic collisions are coming to our Milky Way galaxy. Good news: The first collision is expected in about 2 billion years. [CNN story]
(7) The Trump administration is breaking records left and right: On the heels of the longest government shutdown in history, we now have an agency head resigning before he is confirmed by Congress.
(8) Final thought for the day: Trump was essentially forced to be hostile to the press and his political opponents. With so many skeletons in his closet, he couldn't defend himself in any other way but via preemptively declaring his critics spiteful and biased.

2019/01/11 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Changes by age group in the composition of the US House in the 2018 midterm elections China's Lunar Rover exploring the far side of the moon Trump's tax plan of 1999: A one-time 14.25% net-worth tax to eliminate the national debt (1) Newsworthy images: [Left] Changes by age group in the composition of the US House in the 2018 midterm elections: Significant increases in the number of Gen-Xers and Millennials. [Center] China's rover exploring the far side of the moon (More photos). [Right] Trump's tax plan of 1999: A one-time 14.25% net-worth tax to eliminate the national debt. His economic plan evolved from "soak the rich" to "screw the poor" in two decades!
(2) The US Supreme Court will not intervene in the legal battle between Special Counsel Robert Mueller and an unknown foreign corporation fighting his grand-jury subpoena.
(3) Predatory artists: We must remember that each act of support or fandom, insignificant as it may seem in the grand scheme of things, serves to enable the despicable behavior.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Fiat-Chrysler to pay $800 million to settle DoJ, EPA, and California lawsuits over false emissions readings.
- CA's commitment to getting all of its electricity from green sources by 2045 is spreading to other states.
- At least two dozen US electric utilities are believed to have been compromised by Russian hackers.
- Hurricane-stricken town in the Florida Panhandle is now dealing with "Hurricane Government Shutdown."
- American co-presidents: Donald Trump, Sean Hannity, and Rush Limbaugh. [Photos]
- Amazon's Jeff Bezos and former TV anchor Lauren Sanchez, both in the middle of divorces, are dating.
(5) Disaster relief (humor): In a stunning development, FEMA has decided to allocate funds to Trump's wall to get him off people's nerves, given that no hurricane, flood, or wildfire has caused this much trauma!
(6) It's unclear whether volunteers can clean up the mess at Southern California's Joshua Tree National Park, left because of government shutdown. But it's heart-warming that they are trying.
(7) Our very helpful government has advised fed workers without paychecks to be creative: Hold garage sales, baby-sit, walk a neighbor's dog, ...; do these people even know how much a baby-sitter or a dog-walker earns?
(8) Seeing old-time friends: Ten of my college classmates from 50+ years ago and their families got together in Tehran and were kind enough to include me in their merriment via FaceTime.
(9) Mike Pompeo's abhorrent Cairo speech: In his Middle East policy statement, he said not one word about the murderous dictators in the region but took several shots at former President Obama! [Full text]

2019/01/10 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Yesterday was the 1-year anniversary of the mudflow in Santa Barbara's Montecito area Beautiful sunset shots in Goleta, California, from January 9, 2015 Khosro Harandi, former chess champion and a staff member at Iran's Sharif University of Technology, has passed away at 68 (1) Some remembrances: [Left] Yesterday was the 1-year anniversary of the mudflow in Santa Barbara's Montecito area. The death toll was 21, with 28 others injured. Wikipedia has an article about the disaster, which was a consequence of Thomas Fire in late 2017. [Center] Beautiful sunset shots in Goleta, California, from January 9, 2015. [Right] Khosro Harandi, former Iranian chess champion and a staff member at Iran's Sharif University of Technology, has passed away at 68. RIP!
(2) Economic insecurities, exposed by the current government shutdown: In the world's richest country, 78% of workers live paycheck-to-paycheck. This makes the relatively low unemployment rate rather irrelevant.
(3) Homophobia, like racism and anti-Semitism, is rearing its ugly head under Trump: Evangelical group wants gays removed from an anti-lynching bill passed last month by the US Senate.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump plans to order FEMA to stop helping fire-ravaged California: Childish rage to punish a blue state!
- Saudi power couple, a stand-up comic and a women's-rights activist, have disappeared from the scene.
- Mass transit, in the true sense of the term: Bangladesh railway. [2-minute video]
- A capsule history of the Persian language and its influence on other languages. [2-minute video]
- The New Yorker's glowing review of the comedy "Pig," to be shown at NY's upcoming Iranian Film Festival.
- Wonderful 3D design app: Of course, nothing is as easy as it appears in demos, but I'm still impressed.
- A joke for my Persian-speaking readerss: It uses an utterly untranslatable play on words. [Tweet]
- Persian music: A wonderful rendition of the old song "Mey-Zadeh Shab." [4-minute video]
(5) Heard on the radio while driving (didn't catch the attribution): Usually, the president uses an Oval-Office address to calm a frightened public. This must be the first time a president has used it to frighten a calm public!
(6) On declaring national emergency: Having painted himself into a corner with no way to declare victory upon ending the government shutdown, Trump is increasingly likely to see a declaration of national emergency as the only way to appease his base and seem strong to his nut-job right-wing bosses in the media.
(7) Impact of government shutdown on science and technology: Researchers at federal agencies, including Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Standards and Technology, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Science Foundation, and US Geological Survey, are banned from any form of work activity, including opening of e-mails, during the current government shutdown.

2019/01/09 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Moon landing's 50th anniversary coming up: Washington Post's front page Moon landing's 50th anniversary coming up: Ticker-tape parade in NYC Moon landing's 50th anniversary coming up: Man walking on the moon (1) Moon landing's 50th anniversary coming up: Astronauts Neil Armstrong (right), Michael Collins (Center), and Buzz Aldrin (left) received a ticker-tape parade in NYC upon returning from the moon in July 1969.
(2) Will Iran start a preemptive war? Rather likely, considering this statement from the Revolutionary Guards Corps Commander: "Until now the strategy of the Islamic Republic has been defensive. But it seems that from now on we must be ready to take the offensive and go after the enemy."
(3) Iranian journalist lashed in public: Poet, satirist, and Telegram-channel administrator Mohammad-Hossein Sodagar received 74 lashes after his conviction for "disseminating false information."
(4) After years of denial/hedging, Iran publicly admits to having conducted regular talks with the Taliban: Can you guess which of these two men in this photo (credit: Iranwire) is the Taliban representative?
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- According to Andy Borowitz (humorist), Trump's speech on border security is simulcast in English!
- Democrats demand equal time if TV networks devoted time to Trump's prime-time address of yesterday.
- The best news analyses now occur on comedy shows: Seth Meyers' "A Closer Look" feature, in particular.
- No collusion? Paul Manafort fed campaign information to Russian with intelligence ties.
- Singer R. Kelly will likely be the next giant of the entertainment industry to fall due to sexual misconduct.
- On being radical: It is giving bigger tax breaks to the rich that's radical; taxing them more is mainstream!
- US academic institutions are being drained of AI talent by the lure of projects at tech giants.
- The Dunning-Kruger effect (psychology): Educational Facebook post from January 8, 2018.
- Bumper sticker, spotted in Goleta yesterday: "Science Is Not A Conspiracy" [Photo]
- Asian Cup: Iran's national soccer team beat Yemen 5-0. Hoping it does just as well against stronger teams.
(6) Trump administration's lies continue, getting bolder by the day: Six terrorist arrests at the Mexico border is inflated to 4000. That's a factor of ~17 higher than the Iranian saying "counting one crow as 40 crows"!
(7) Trump lies himself and forces others to lie to cover for him: Both Mike Pence and Sarah Huckabee Sanders backed up Trump's lie that 4000 terrorists had been apprehended at our southern border.
(8) Will the wave of new women representatives bring changes to sexual harassment laws? Perhaps not directly, in terms of the effect of additional votes, but certainly indirectly, as a result of men talking and acting differently in the presence of women (e.g., no locker-room talk, where multiple women are present).

2019/01/08 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image of Andrew Lloyd Webber's memoir 'Unmasked' World's most-beautiful bookshop, located in Buenos Aires, Argentina Cover image of Sally Field's dark memoir 'In Pieces' (1) Reviewing two memoirs from the world of entertainment (see items 2 and 3 below) and sharing a photo of the world's most-beautiful bookshop (a converted old opera house), located in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
(2) Book review: Lloyd Webber, Andrew, Unmasked: A Memoir, unabridged audiobook on 13 CDs, read by the author and Derek Perkins, Harper Audio, 2018. [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
In this memoir, Lloyd Webber [b. 1948], composer of some of the most successful musical theaters of all time (such as "The Phantom of the Opera," "Jesus Christ Superstar," "Cats," and "Evita"), elaborates on his 5-decade reign over the musical theater world, his creative process, and collaboration with luminaries such as Tim Rice.
Lloyd Webber is by far the most commercially successful composer in history and his company is a major theater operator in London. He is one of only 15 people in the world to have received all four major entertainment honors (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony). Let me stop listing the glories at this point and refer you to the Wikipedia article on Lloyd Webber for a complete list of his awards, honors, and professional achievements.
A large number of world-famous celebrities make cameo appearances in the audiobook, which is really the first half of his life's story, ending with the opening performance of "The Phantom of the Opera" in 1986, a show that is still running after more than three decades. Critics of Unmasked have faulted Lloyd Webber for his verbosity and for not pacing his presentation. The length of the book is in part due to including a lot of backstage or making-of details for each of his productions.
Lloyd Webber has a reputation for being a difficult person, but he also has many admirers and defenders. This dichotomy extends to assessing the quality of his music, some praising his melodic gift and success in bridging Broadway and opera, and others characterizing his music as repetitive and overbearing. I am definitely in the first group!
(3) Book review: Field, Sally, In Pieces, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Hachette Audio, 2018. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Telling her story for the first time, in her own words and voice, Field, the winner of two Oscars and three Emmy Awards over a long, continuing acting career, writes primarily about a challenging and lonely childhood. The sad, frightened face of a young Sally Field on the cover reflects the book's tone.
Field was apprehensive about telling her life story, being unsure of whether she wanted to share certain events and of her writing chops. Known affectionately as America's Sweetheart, Field reveals aspects of her personality that are anything but sweet. She suffered through self-doubt (for example, she deemed herself not pretty enough for leading roles), even as she carved a successful acting career for herself. Throughout her life, Field has been angry and seemingly incapable of forming relationships, even with her spaced-out mother, until much later in life.
Perhaps, the most significant revelation in the book is Field's long-term sexual abuse as a young girl by her stepfather. The abusive stepfather told a contrived version of his deeds (essentially claiming that it was a one-time thing caused by drunkenness) to Field's mother, and begged for forgiveness. Field told her mother much later that the abuse had gone on for years. The weight of being almost completely ignored as a child may have made Field susceptible to her stepfather's advances. When Field's relationship with her mother improved and they had open talks, the mother asked why she had not been told about the long-term abuse. Field offers an enlightening explanation: Because she was only a child and had no idea how other children lived and whether her stepfather's actions were a normal part of everyone's childhood.
Much of what Field writes in this book, including the sexual abuse and a secret abortion in Mexico at age 17, is news to her three grown sons, from two marriages, and to her siblings. To the people around her and the world at large, Field seemed as totally in control and enjoying her life and career. Maybe the happiest-looking people are hiding the most angst! In Field's case, the craft of acting seems to have been what saved her from consequences of the type of childhood that drowns many people.
Field writes about her relationships with actor Burt Reynolds and singer-songwriter Jimmy Webb, as well as her marriages to Steven Craig and Alan Greisman. Reynolds, in particular, emerges as petty, angry, envious, manipulative, and controlling. Some have criticized Field for bad-mouthing Burt Reynolds (who is dead) and Jimmy Webb (who recalls their love affair differently and claims that he left Field out of his own memoir because he respected her and didn't want her to be hurt). The other side of the coin is that nearly all men who abuse or otherwise hurt women deny the allegations.
Field writes in detail about her acting gigs, including in TV shows such as "Gidget," "Sybil," "The Flying Nun," and "Brothers and Sisters," and film roles in "Norma Rae," "Steel Magnolias," "Smokey and the Bandit," "Mrs. Doubtfire," and Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln," to name a few. Even Field herself did not believe that she deserved all the critical acclaim and the awards, and those around her, particularly Reynolds, tended to dismiss her achievements.
Field is taking flack for writing a sob story, portraying quite a few individuals negatively, and not being grateful for her successes. Women, by and large, have received the book warmly and are thankful for Field's courage and contribution to advancing the #MeToo movement.
Field's writing is splendid, but her tone is at times too negative. Perhaps writing this book was her way of dealing with her past and putting to rest her personal demons. As a reader/listener, I felt that Field did not share enough of her fortunes and happy life events and too much of her miseries. In fairness, though, writing a memoir is a highly personal undertaking and one should cut the writer some slack. This ultra-sad book may not be everyone's cup of tea, but if you are a Sally Field fan, it is a must for you.

2019/01/07 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Mouthwatering selections of Iranian cuisine from Internet sources: Photo 1 Mouthwatering selections of Iranian cuisine from Internet sources: Photo 2 Mouthwatering selections of Iranian cuisine from Internet sources: Photo 3 Mouthwatering selections of Iranian cuisine from Internet sources: Photo 4 Mouthwatering selections of Iranian cuisine from Internet sources: Photo 5 Mouthwatering selections of Iranian cuisine from Internet sources: Photo 6 (1) Continuing with the Iran theme today: Mouthwatering selections of Iranian cuisine from Internet sources.
(2) Good news amid political turmoil: The US Senate has confirmed Kelvin Droegemeier, a respected extreme-weather expert, as the White House's top science and technology adviser.
(3) UK's Government Communications Headquarters has created a competition for 12- and 13-year-old girls, aimed at drawing more women into cybersecurity-related professions.
(4) Ayatollah Yazdi claims that Iran has made 400 years' worth of progress in the last 40 years: Given that all of our presidents are now deemed deviant and traitorous, could you please specify when this immense progress was made? [Question asked in this Persian-language tweet]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump firm on border wall, offers steel option as compromise: If this doesn't work, he'll go to china option!
- Memes of the day: On Trump's wall, government shutdown, women's rights, and authoritarianism. [Memes]
- Golden Globes 2019: Here is CNN's complete list of the winners, organized by categories.
- CBS News taps producer Susan Zirinsky as its first-ever female president.
- Periodic table turns 150: Its genius aided understanding and facilitated discovery of many new elements.
- For history buffs: Thousands of Ottoman-Era photographs have been digitized and made available on-line.
- Twitter user encourages Iranians to take to the streets with their musical instruments to beautify cities.
(6) If building a border wall, which was Trump's promise and priority form Day 1, is such an emergency, why wasn't it funded over the past two years by the Republican House and Senate?
(7) All four living ex-presidents deny they privately told Trump that they support his border wall: Gee, I don't know whether to believe the real-estate developer with multiple bankruptcies in his past, concealed tax returns, thousands of documented/cataloged lies in two years of presidency, and multiple ongoing criminal investigations, or four former presidents who are gaining more respect with the passing of each day!

2019/01/06 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Historical photos of Iran's cities: Isfahan's 33-Pol Historical photos of Iran's cities: Mashhad Historical photos of Iran's cities: Tehran's Fouzieh Square (1) Historical photos of Iran: [Left] Isfahan's 33-Pol. [Center] Mashhad. [Right] Tehran's Fouzieh Square.
(2) Quote of the day: "The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie, deliberate, contrived and dishonest, but the myth, persistent, persuasive and unrealistic." ~ President John F. Kennedy
(3) The lies are getting bolder and more bizarre: Trump claims that certain former presidents support his idea of a wall! Not even his closest staffer, Mick Mulvany, can back up his claim.
(4) Saudi women, rejoice! Now, when your husband divorces you, you'll get a text message notifying you of your new status. Aren't you thankful for Crown Prince MBS's reforms?
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- If this madness doesn't stop soon, we'll have to worry about immigration out of the US, not into it!
- The alt-reality of Fox News: Trump not sticking to his guns on border wall will leave the GOP demoralized.
- President foul-mouth finds his words, when spoken by someone else, dishonorable and disrespectful.
- Meme of the day: All of a sudden Republicans are sensitive to the use of crass language! [Meme]
- To share or not to share: That is the question! [3-minute video]
- Turkish music: Based on a traditional Iranian folk song. [3-minute video]
- My Saturday walk on Coal Oil Point Beach in Goleta, during last couple of dry hours before 2 days of rain.
(6) Persian poetry: Mostafa Badkoobei is known for his fiery, patriotic poems. In this video, he recites one of his better-known poems, admonishing the country's rulers for abandoning Iranian history and values in favor of a pan-Islamic view that favors Lebanon and Palestine, to the detriment of our fellow countrymen.
(7) Quantum error-correcting codes (QECCs): ECCs are used as a matter of course to protect digital data from corruption. If a 0 accidentally changes to 1 due to a physical defect or logical fault, use of an ECC allows us to restore the bit to its correct value and continue our computation undisturbed. Quantum bits are much more fragile than ordinary bits, so they need ECCs even more, if we are to build reliable quantum computers. Now, in a stunning development, scientists have concluded that the robustness of spacetime may come from some sort of QECC. This development may pave the way for further advances in both quantum computing and quantum gravity research.
(8) Final thought for the day: Government shutdown does not just affect the 800,000 unpaid federal workers. Many millions are impacted by lack of access to National Parks, laxer security and longer lines at airports, and delayed tax processing and refunds, to name just a few.

2019/01/04 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Historical photos of Iran's old-time music celebrities: Marzieh, Morteza Mahjoubi, Adib Khansari Historical photos of Iran's old-time music celebrities: Toofan, Neli, Sattar, Naser Cheshm-Azar Historical photos of Iran's old-time music celebrities: Pouran, Viguen, Googoosh (1) Historical photos of Iran's old-time music celebrities (named from left to right): [Left] Marzieh, Morteza Mahjoubi, Adib Khansari. [Center] Toofan, Neli, Sattar, Naser Cheshm-Azar. [Right] Pouran, Viguen, Googoosh.
(2) Yes, this is just what our country needs right now: A president who is doing Russia's bidding and a Senate that thinks it is serving Trump, not America! The Congress must express its independent opinion.
(3) Where Trump get his bizarre conspiracy theories: Watch this insightful analysis by Rachel Maddow to find out. "Several of Trump's foreign policy talking points since taking office have appeared to directly parrot propaganda and fake news originally put forward by Russian President Vladimir Putin's government."
(4) The US ayatollahs mimic their Iranian counterparts in criticizing Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for having danced on a rooftop in college. But they are okay with a private-parts-grabbing president!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Beautiful flowers to brighten your Friday amid grim economic and government-shutdown reports. [Photos]
- CBS's "60 Minutes" to air interview with President Sisi, over strong objection from Egypt's government.
- Larry Roberts, who as a manager at ARPA oversaw the development of Internet's first iteration, dead at 81.
- Seven dead in fiery multi-vehicle Florida crash, including 5 children who were headed to Disney World.
- The Pridrangaviti Lighthouse is precariously perched on a rock pillar in Iceland's Westman Islands. [Photo]
- UCLA Bilingual Lectures on Iran: Sun. 1/13 (4:00 PM, Dodd 121) and Mon. 1/14 (2:00 PM, Bunche 10838).
(6) Iranian female chess player Sarasadat Khademalsharieh emerges as the overall champion in blitz and lightning chess. Here is the YouTube video of one of her matches.
(7) A new balance of power in Washington: It used to be Donald Trump and his stooge Mitch McConnell, with Paul Ryan largely absent from the scene in recent months. Now, it's Trump and Nancy Pelosi, with McConnell gone into hiding, and Trump is clearly unhappy to cede one-half of the spotlight. [Photos]
(8) Dr. Jedidah Isler: A black woman who pursued a PhD in astrophysics and now wants to help colored people like her overcome obstacles en route to their STEM passions. [Part of NPR's "Brief but Spectacular" series]
(9) [Final thought for the day] Manifesto for a simple life: Eat less, move more. Buy less, make more. Stress less, laugh more. Feel blessed, love more. Find a quiet spot every day and just breathe.

2019/01/03 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Map of Isla Vista and UCSB, including Main and West Campus areas (1) Map of UCSB and Isla Vista: I took this photo of a map at the University Center. The main campus is on the right, and Harold Frank Hall (the former Engineering I Building), where the ECE Department and my office are located, is near the right/east edge of the campus. Isla Vista, with its street network, is center-left on the map. UCSB West Campus, on the left/west of the map, holds the Faculty Housing complex, where my home is located. My walking path to the campus goes roughly across the center of the map, about 1 mile within Isla Vista and 1 mile inside the campus. The map is a few years old, so it doesn't show some of the latest additions to the campus, including new student housing along El Colegio and on both sides of Storke Road. The former Devereux School on the left edge of the map is now part of UCSB, as is the area known as North Campus (a former golf course and its surrounding land), located to the north of West Campus, along Storke Road. The map inset shows the relationship of the campus to US 101, Highway 217, and Santa Barbara Airport.
(2) The far side of the moon has never been examined up close: That will change with the announced soft-landing of the Chinese spacecraft Chang'e 4, which has begun transmitting photos.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- No, Donald, you wouldn't make a good general if you were judged medically unfit to serve in the military.
- Trump disses Mitt Romney for losing in 2012, and hears about it from the husband of an ardent supporter.
- Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinkes handwritten resignation note ridiculed. [Tweet]
- US stocks slide again, as Apple shares falter: At closing, DJIA was 660 points down.
- Islamic Iran: Isn't it sad that this talented girl has to dance on the street because of lack of opportunities?
- The rock band Metallica donates $1 million to 10 cummunity colleges for trade skill education.
- The Women's March is coming on Sat. 1/19: Santa Barbara's De La Guerra Plaza, beginning at 11:30 AM.
- A few puzzles, from the January-February 2019 issue of IEEE Potentials. [Image]
- Iranian music: A beautiful Azeri love song, performed by old-time singers Aref and Yaghoub Zoroofchi.
(4) Iran's Minister of Communications: "Today, we announce that in the infrastructure for our National Information Network, no American product will be used." [Good for you, sir, but your statement would have been a lot more believable without that McBook in front of you!] [Image]

2019/01/02 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Late-afternoon walk on January 1, 2019: Photo 1 Late-afternoon walk on January 1, 2019: Photo 2 Late-afternoon walk on January 1, 2019: Photo 3 (1) During yesterday's late-afternoon walk, I snapped photos of the very colorful sunset and what might be a missile launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base to the north. A blue patch of the ocean is visible in one photo.
(2) NASA's New Horizons spacecraft flies by the most-distant known object in the Solar System, some 4 billion miles away, and sends back images to Earth, the planet it left 12 years ago.
(3) What an amazing year for women! Yes, there were some setbacks, but the courage shown by women will bear fruit for many years to come. #TimesUp #MeToo [Tweet]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Tonight is Perihelion: Celebrate, and go find an astrophysicist on the street to dance with! [Tweet]
- The US government shutdown begins to impact scientific research in labs and field sites across the world.
- US National Parks suffer from government shutdown, as visitors turn roads into dumps and toilets.
- Science could have seen far greater progress if it had not dismissed women as intellectually inferior.
- Kurdish and Persian music: Samples of performances by Sheno Ensemble. [5-minute video]
- Fondly remembering our former First Couple and their humanity, 2 years after they left the White House.
- Interesting shots taken on a deserted UCSB campus, whose winter 2019 classes will start on Monday 1/07.
- Persian music: Performed at a soccer match (pre-game or half-time) in Tajikistan. [4-minute video]
- Persian music: Beautiful rhythmic piece, performed masterfully on piano/violin/tonbak. [6-minute video]
- Persian music: A spiritual piece, featuring a poem by Mowlavi (Rumi). [3-minute video] [Poem/Lyrics]
(5) Taking credit and blame: The markets have tanked, so Trump doesn't say a word about them. But gas prices have come down, so Trump immediately takes credit. According to GasBuddy, "2019 sets the stage for the first decline in the yearly national average since 2015, but before motorists drive for joy, it may be prudent to remind them that 2019 will still be the second most expensive year to fill up since then."
(6) Mitt Romney, the flip-flopper: First he stood next to Trump at the Trump Hotel and thanked him for his support. Then, he called Trump a con man and much worse during the 2016 campaign. Next, he had an intimate dinner with Trump as a short-list candidate for the job of Secretary of State. When he wasn't chosen, he began criticizing Trump again. Later, he accepted Trump's support gratefully, as he began to run for a Senate seat from Utah. Most recently, he wrote an op ed against Trump a couple of days before beginning his service as a Senator. Which Mitt Romney will show up at the Senate?
(7) What First Amendment? Netflix removes episode of "Patriot Act with Hasan Mihaj" from its service in Saudi Arabia after the Saudis objected to the comedian's comments about the country and MBS in connection with the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

2019/01/01 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A very happy new year to everyone! My drawing from memory of my family's residence and its environs, 1952-1955 Welcome to 2019! Best wishes for a peaceful and prosperous 2019 (1) Reigning in the new year: [Left & Right] A very happy new year to everyone! Best wishes for a peaceful and prosperous 2019. An impressive calligraphic rendering of "Happy New Year." [Center] My drawing from memory of my family's 1950s residence and its environs near Tabriz railway station (see item 2 below).
(2) Some memories from about 65 years ago: My family (dad, mom, and sister Behnaz) lived in Tabriz, Iran, for about 3 years (1952-1955). My father worked as an engineer with the National Railroad Organization and, after a couple of years in Bandar Shah on the Caspian shore and a short stint in Tehran, was reassigned to Tabriz. In those days, the Tehran-Tabriz train track had not yet been completed, so we took the train (which was of course complimentary for us) to Mianeh and rode a bus from Mianeh to Tabriz.
The railway station and the Russian-standard track that led from it to the northern border town of Julfa were leftover relics from the Russian occupation of the 1910s. We lived very close to the majestic railway station, in a government-owned house, with a nice yard in front of it. There were other houses around us, a dirt soccer field nearby, and an elementary school just beyond the field (see the diagram I have drawn from memory).
I was 5.5 years old when I started first grade and attended that school until third grade. The school principal was reluctant to admit me at first, given my age, but agreed to give me a chance after administering a test. I walked to school through the soccer field daily, at times stopping to watch the youth playing or practicing there. On occasion, I spent time at the fruit and vegetables patch across the road from my school (bearing mostly melons, tomatoes, zucchini, and other vegis) and among the dry, dusty olive trees.
This is pretty much the extent of my recollection from those years. The memories were rekindled when, recently, I engaged in a conversation with a college buddy about Tabriz, its railway station, and routes served by trains. I have also dug up some images from Wikipedia and elsewhere for inclusion in this post.
Note 1: This old image shows the arrival of the first Russian train in Tabriz, with the ceremony attended by Crown Prince Mohammad Hassan Mirza, local authorities, Russian officers, and railway workers.
Note 2: Tabriz's century-old train station was inscribed on National Heritage List, thanks to its place in Iran's railroad history.
Note 3: "The Proposed Connection of the Russian and Indian Railway Systems" (1917 article, published in Geographical Review).
Note 4: The July 27, 1917, issue of Railway Age Gazette indicates that the Tabriz-Julfa railway, with its branch from Sofian to Sharafkhaneh on Lake Urumiah, was completed mid-1917.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump's year-end melt-down on 12/31/2018 led to a collection of confusing and contradictory tweets.
- I achieved the goal of emptying my e-mail in-box before the end of 2018, with more than an hour to spare!
- I am fascinated with numbers and their attributes: Sad to report that the number 2019 is very unspecial!
- Some prediction for 2019: Trump will go, and other cases of wishful thinking!
- One year after their announcements, US and Israel formally quit UNESCO, citing its anti-Israel bias.
- This is the 10-foot wall around the Obamas' compound in DC, according to Trump's very active imagination.
- The three women at the top of this image have made social-media posts about Michelle Obama being ugly!
(4) Today is Public Domain Day: Tens of thousands of published works have been released from their copyright shackles. "These works dating from 1923 were supposed to become part of the public domain in 1998 (after the statutory 75 years), but in that year, Disney and other powerful copyright holders successfully lobbied Congress to extend copyright restrictions another 20 years. This way, Disney postponed the lapse of copyright on its biggest icon, Mickey Mouse."
(5) New authoritarians are waging war on women: The common denominator among the anti-democratic movements across the globe is hostility toward women and a longing to reverse decades of feminist gains.

Blog Entries for 2018

2018 bonus year-end posts: A way of clearing my backlog of posts before entering the new year 2019.
Holiday decorations at my home-office (1) A year-end wish: As we end 2018 and look past the gloom and doom predictions to 2019, may your final day of this year be filled with peace and joy, and may the new year bring you much hope, health, happiness, and success.
(2) Humorous Persian poem: The anonymous poet makes fun of the fact that amid major sociopolitical problems and rampant corruption, a customs official insulting a parliament member is being treated as a most-important crisis.
(3) Erasing women: VR fashion show goes to Iran, albeit with severe limitations on the virtual models and their clothing. Is this progress or caving in to patriarchal views?
(4) Quote of the day: "We all, everyone in uniform, we took an oath; we took an oath of allegiance to the Constitution. And embedded within that Constitution is an idea, and it's an idea that says you and I, no matter whether you're male or female, gay or straight or anything else, whether you're black or you're white or whether you're Protestant or you're Catholic or you're Jew or you're Muslim or you don't believe at all, it doesn't matter if you're rich or poor or famous—it doesn't matter. None of that matters." ~ Army General Mark Milley, who awaits Senate confirmation as the new Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump's easy ride is coming to an end in 2019: And he's not thrilled that a woman will make his ride bumpy.
- The murky Washington 'Swamp' remains undrained, as we head into 2019.
- Fake porn: An unfortunate new way to use technology for harassing women. [#TimesUp]
- The Azeri song "Sari Galin," performed on udu hang instrument. [1-minute video]
- Regional folk music from Iran: This popular oldie is from the Caspian-region province of Guilan.
- Persian music: The song "Beh Sooy-e To" ("Toward You"), accompanied by scenes from Tehran of Yore.
(6) A rape victim's story: I apologize for bringing up this grim subject during the festive holiday season, but having encountered a year-old story on my Twitter feed a couple of days ago, I thought I should share it. It isn't an exaggeration to say that our society's rape culture will not change until men learn to see the problem from a woman's perspective. So, my post is aimed primarily at my male readers, but women too may learn something from it. Here is the article's concluding paragraph: "There is a growing dialogue in America about the prevalence of sexual violence—just look at the #metoo movement. But we haven't discussed the complicated impact of sexual violence on individuals in a widespread, meaningful conversation. It's time to start having those conversations."
(7) Why do engineers often wear short sleeves? According to Henry Petroski, writing in the December 2018 issue of ASEE Prism, "In the days of hand drawings, engineers took to wearing short-sleeve shirts because long sleeves and cuffs would have been blackened by graphite dust." Hence, "casual Friday" every day!
(8) "Promoting Common Sense, Reality, Dependable Engineering": This is the title given by Communications of the ACM (Vol. 61, No. 12, pp. 128-127, December 2018) to an interview with Peter G. Neumann, the long-serving guru of the risks to the public of poorly designed computer systems. I use items from "Risks Forum", which he moderates, in my graduate course on fault-tolerant computing and highly recommend the interview and his Forum to anyone who is worried about the risks of computer systems.
(9) Trump stands up for Saudi Arabian values: This is the title of a scathing New York Times editorial from November 20, 2018, which critizes Trump for not even paying lip service to freedom of the press after the abhorrent murder of Jamal Khashoggi by a hit squad sent to Turkey by the Saudi regime.

2018/12/31 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Oregon's monster mushroom: The world's largest living organism is 2400 years old Humorous Persian poem by B. Parhami, entitled 'Whatever Previously Existed in Iran Should Go' Can we retire the term 'the weaker sex' already? (1) Miscellaneous images: [Left] Oregon's monster mushroom: The world's largest living organism is 2400 years old. (The mushroom photo is fake and the enourmous fungus, which is real and covers several square miles, lives under the ground. Pretty good idea for a tourist monument on the site, though!) [Center] My humorous Persian poem (see item 2 below). [Right] Can we retire the term "the weaker sex" already?
(2) A humorous Persian poem: I had kept this poem of mine, composed a few months after Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution and titled "Whatever Previously Existed in Iran Should Go," under wraps until now (see the middle image above). It is written from the vantage point of Khomeini, who was opposed to many symbols of Iran's 1970s culture and wanted them gone. Make sure to read the final rhyming word of each verse as "Berah," the way Khomeini would have pronounced it. Enjoy! The poem's image is from a page of my diary/calendar for 1980 (1358 in Iranian calendar), which I rediscovered a week or so ago. There are other poems and notes in that calendar, which I will share over time. Here is a 2-minute video in which I recite the 4-decade-old poem.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Jim Mattis sends farewell letter to Department of Defense personnel on his last day as Secretary of Defense.
- Mitch McConnell has gone into total hiding, despite his central role in the ongoing government shutdown.
- Peter King praises ICE for having only two kids die in custody, and hears about it from Chelsea Clinton.
- Several US newspapers victimized by what they suspect to be a foreign malware attack.
- Teen boy, 16, is set to graduate from a Kansas high school and, days later, from Harvard University.
- Not for the faint-hearted: Aerial videos of mind-numbing places and some daring photographers.
- On mergers: "Soon there'll be only 2 US companies left, AppleZon and GoldmanGoogleMart." ~ Bill Maher
- Fusion music: "Jingle Bells," Persian style [1-minute video], and belly/dance tango [3-minute video].
(4) Holiday mystery: A hush-hush case relating to Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation has reached the US Supreme Court and is getting personal attention from Chief Justice John Roberts. "The dry issues involved matters of jurisdiction and statutory interpretation fathomed only by elite appellate lawyers, but the potentially juicier underlying issues hinted of fascination: somewhere, a corporation (a bank? a communications firm? an energy company?) owned by a foreign state (Russia? Turkey? Ukraine? United Arab Emirates? Saudi Arabia?) had engaged in transactions that had an impact in the United States and on matters involved in the special counsel's investigation."
(5) In an interview everyone knew would be coming, John Kelly says he should be judged not by what Trump did but by what didn't get done during his tenure as Chief of Staff.
(6) Trump lies again about the FBI deleting 19,000 text messages: He apparently did not read or wasn't briefed on a report from his own administration that the messages were temporarily lost to a technical glitch and that they have since been fully recovered.
(7) Today in history: US President Carter lauds the Shah and characterizes Iran as "an island of stability" 41 years ago today, a little over one year before the Islamic Revolution.
(8) When there is incontrovertible evidence in support of a hypothesis, you shouldn't treat it as a "both sides" issue: There is no credible "other side" for the hypothesis that the Earth is round. Kudos to NBC for finally deciding not to give equal time to climate-change deniers.

2018/12/30 (Sunday): Today's blog post contains a book introduction and two brief book reviews.
Cover image for the book 'The Data Center as a Computer' Cover image for Stuart Gibbs' 'Spy School' Cover image for Reese Witherspoon's 'Whiskey in a Teacup' (1) Book introduction: Parallel processing has entered the age of warehouse-scale machines, where the computer is a large collection of servers, connected by a data-center network. This book, authored by three Google researchers as part of the series "Synthesis Lectures in Computer Architecture," explains the concepts in its 2019 third edition. The 2013 second edition is available on-line.
[Citation: Barroso, Luiz Andre, Urs Holzle, and Parthasarathy Ranganathan, The Data Center as a Computer: Designing Warehouse-Scale Machines, Morgan & Caypool, 3rd ed., 2019.]
(2) Book review: Gibbs, Stuart, Spy School, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Gibson Frazier, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2017. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
In this first book of the "Spy School" series, seemingly targeted at pre-teens, Gibbs introduces us to Ben Ripley, an awkward, nerdy middle-school boy who is recruited for a prestigious science school, which turns out to be a front for a junior CIA academy. He sees this lucky turn of events as a cure-all for his perceived lack of coolness and inattention from his beautiful crush. Ben isn't really the James Bond type, but he tries his best to become an undercover agent, and does perform as a halfway-decent spy through a series of misadventures. A fun story, which is surprisingly well-conceived and nicely written, given its target audience.
(3) Book review: Witherspoon, Reese, Whiskey in a Teacup: What Growing Up in the South Taught Me About Life, Love & Baking Biscuits, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2018.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Early on, Witherspoon, CEO of a company that produces films and TV shows with strong female leads, tells us that "whiskey in a teacup" is a metaphor for southern women: Delicate and pretty on the outside, strong on the inside. The audiobook, which is rather short to begin with, is light on life events and rich on lifestyle, and it comes with a PDF file containing recipes, among other symbols of the South. Witherspoon is proud of her Southern heritage and enjoys playing in films about the South, where she can use her natural accent.
Witherspoon's bubbly personality shows, both in the writing and in the reading of her work. She fawns over Dolly Parton ("the ultimate Southern icon"), Kate Middleton, and Patsy Cline. She writes at length about the beauty of Southern female friendships and the importance of beauty-shop politics, party-hosting, baking, feeding and entertaining guests, and gift-giving (she prefers cakes over flowers, because they are more practical and don't go to waste).
Witherspoon is a big fan of monograms and has many tips on properly dressing for various occasions (never go on a plane in sweatpants), make-up (she went to a beauty school), and acting (watch "Steel Magnolias").
This is no literary memoir, but it's a fun read/listen, particularly for fans of the Oscar-winning actress.

2018/12/29 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Mini-reunion of class-of-1968 EE/ME graduates of Tehran University's Faculty of Engineering (1) Mini-reunion of class-of-1968 EE/ME graduates of Tehran University's Faculty of Engineering: On Thursday night, I saw three college buddies (Faramarz Davarian, Javad Peyrovian, Yousef Salimpour, right to left with me in the photo), their spouses, and a couple of other family members. Yousef is visiting from France and Faramarz generously hosted the dinner gathering. A memorable night indeed! [Three of these four classmates (all but Javad) had also been present at a much larger 50th-anniversary reunion in Yerevan, Armenia, this past July.]
(2) Quote of the day: "The president boasting about the dangers he'd faced, and [John] Bolton was a brave man to go with him. God, he's talking to special operations soldiers in Iraq, it's sort of embarrassing." ~ Retired General Barry McCaffrey, criticizing Trump's politicized, dishonest, and boastful visit to the US troops in Iraq [Newsweek story]
(3) Image manipulation: The same technology that gives us better entertainment can be used in the service of spreading disinformation. Here's the process of creating a video of anyone saying/doing anything we want.
(4) Toddler-in-Chief vents: Trump continues to attack NAFTA (which has already been replaced by his USMCA) and threatens to completely close the US border with Mexico if Democrats do not agree to fund his wall.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Political brawls and revelations about illegal activities by those around Trump will extend into 2019.
- Saudi student awaiting trial for murder in Oregon flees the US on a private jet, despite having no passport.
- Two super-rich Saudi families become citizens of Malta by purchasing 62 of the EU member's passports.
- Fire-ravaged Brazil National Museum lives on through Google, which is helping via a virtual exhibition.
- New proof of a 25-year-old claim that quantum computers are way more powerful than classical devices.
- A tantalizing question: Is the Church-Turing Thesis the logical limit or a breachable barrier? [CACM article]
- A beautiful Azeri dance: Quite complicated and physically challenging! [1-minute video]
- Topical images for the season: Migrants ahead; Weight-gain saving time; Winter (in Norway); Resolutions.
(6) How a slime-mold amoeba found an entirely new way of solving the challenging "traveling salesperson" problem: Even though the amoeba used by Keio University researchers is extremely slow in its solution method, as the problem size increases, its processing time grows only linearly, not exponentially, which is the case for conventional algorithms. [Video]
(7) The ongoing debate on the (in)compatibility of science and religion: This is a vast area of disagreement and conflicting opinions. Lately, arguments that science and religion are not only compatible, but they can actually help each other have proliferated. In this article, biologist Jerry Coyne argues that "accomodationism" is misguided and that science and religion constitute incompatible ways of viewing the world.

2018/12/28 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Time magazine's 1968 Persons of the Year (Apollo 8 moon-orbiting astronauts, famous for their Earthrise photo, from left, Bill Anders, Jim Lovell, and Frank Borman), reunite after 50 years (1) Time magazine's 1968 Persons of the Year (Apollo 8 moon-orbiting astronauts, famous for their Earthrise photo, from left, Bill Anders, Jim Lovell, and Frank Borman), reunite after 50 years.
(2) The year when scams proliferated is coming to an end: What have we learned? The story in this article begins with a con artist, a young black woman, who collected lots of money through GoFundMe to make a political statement (she has since returned the contributions).
(3) Some pricing algorithms may be illegal: Examining the potential and consequences of using algorithm-based pricing. [Communications of the ACM Law and Technology column, January 2019]
(4) T-shirt for young Iranians, who are tired of family members and acquaintances asking them about their GPA, when they'll get married, how much they earn, and other very private questions! [Photo]
(5) New mercenary jobs: If certain 0.1-percenters close to the Trump administration have their way, not only the postal service, universities, prisons, and healthcare but also waging of wars will be fully privatized.
(6) Soldier-less wars of the future: Fighting wars with robots may appear to be a positive development, but further reflection reveals at least two problems. First, casualties suffered by invading forces is one of the major deterrents of starting new wars, particularly in the case of the US and other industrialized countries. Second, civilian casualties will not be eliminated, and may in fact increase, because robotic-army leaders will be highly incentivized to kill anyone coming near an expensive robot which contains classified equipment and technology. [Cover image, E&T magazine, issue of December 2018 and January 2019]
(7) STEM education in Canada and California: By offering free 2-day workshops to introduce young girls to programming, the Canadian nonprofit Hackergal aims to influence female students' selection of CS as a high-school elective or career. California Education Learning Lab, established in 2018 by Assembly Bill 1809, is a competitive grant-making program for faculty teams to incorporate science and adaptive learning technology into curricula and pedagogy, so as to improve learning outcomes and close equity and achievement gaps. Here is an introduction to the Lab by its Director, Lark Park, and here is its RFP #1, 2018-2019.
(8) The enigma of street musicians in Iran: Certain kinds of music is disallowed, singing by women is prohibited, performances require government permits. Yet, Iranians are defiant in entertaining with music and supporting street performers. The happy part is the impact of beautiful music on people's dispositions, as they go about their daily lives. The sad part is such talented individuals having to take risks to make ends meet. I am in awe of the talent and the determination to preserve Iran's musical heritage in the face of shortsighted rulers who want to wipe smiles off people's faces. [Sample street music]
(9) Working hard to accomplish the goal of an empty e-mail in-box by New Year's Eve: It is down to 5 items!

2018/12/27 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Trump cartoons for the holidays: 1 of 3 Trump cartoons for the holidays: 2 of 3 Trump cartoons for the holidays: 3 of 3 (1) Trump cartoons: A three-pack for the holidays! [A fourth, bonus, cartoon is included in this package.]
(2) The Liar-in-Chief lies even to the troops: He brags about giving them a 10% pay raise, after years of stagnant wages. The troops in fact got a pay raise in each of the last 10 years. The 2019 pay raise will be 2.6%, only slightly above the 2.4% they got last year. Here is Newsweek's version of Trump's first set of lies ever, told inside Iraq!
(3) An apt reminder of a stellar record of service to the US: "Today, as we stand here together on this, the darkest of days, we renew that bond. We remember the light these individuals brought to each of you here today. We renew our efforts to bring justice down on those who seek to harm us. We renew our efforts to keep our people safe, and to rid the world of terrorism. We will continue to move forward. But we will never forget." ~ Robert Mueller, 30 years ago on Winter Solstice, as he began his quest to solve the mystery of Pan Am Flight 103 and bring the culprits to justice
(4) Book review: Garrels, Anne, Putin Country: A Journey into the Real Russia, unabridged audiobook on 7 CDs, read by the author, HighBridge Audio, 2016 [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image for Anne Garrels' 'Putin Country' Most of us never see the real Russia. Even those of us who get to travel to the vast country see only what is intended for tourists to see. In this book, foreign correspondent Anne Garrels shows us Russia's well-hidden parts: Its bizarre economy, its social divide between Moscow's elite and the urban/rural poor, and its widespread corruption. Garrels writes that to decide which part of Russia to explore, she took a map of the country and threw a pencil at it, which landed on Chelyabinsk, not far from the Ural Mountains, near the European border.
With a population of just over 1 million, Chelyabinsk is perhaps best-known for the 2013 meteor exploding at an altitude of about 27 km, generating a shock wave that injured over 1000 people. Garrels has been going to Chelyabinsk for over 20 years, so as to explore the area and its people in depth. The area was closed to foreigners during the Soviet era, given its military and industrial make-up, including two mysterious "nuclear cities," which are still out of bounds to everyone.
Garrels covers the harsh experiences of the region in the 1990s, as industries were privatized under Boris Yeltsin, after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Workers were not being paid and they had to improvise by selling vegetables from their gardens or traveling to China to buy cheap goods, to cite just two examples.
Putin became popular by talking about Russia's greatness, and by promising to enrich the impoverished country and bringing about stability. Given how low the economy had sunk, it wasn't difficult to bring about steady improvements. However, corruption is still a big problem and there does not seem to be an end in sight for it, given that nurturing and protecting families depends on it. No part of the Russian society, from goods-procurement to higher education, is immune from such corruption.
Garrels received a visit from Russia's security agency one early morning, was taken in for questioning, and told to leave the country immediately, with no explanation (she had previously been expelled as an ABC correspondent under Soviet rule in 1982). She was later allowed back in and continued her observations, but now, people were more cautious in their interactions with her.
For those who want to gain in-depth knowledge of a small part of Russia, this is a great read. For others, Garrels' NPR interview about her book (podcast and transcript) is a more-efficient substitute.

2018/12/26 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The ship that, at the end of 1899, was in two different days of the week, two different months, two different seasons, and two different centuries Heart-wrenching violence against women: The attitude that men own women ('If I can't have you, nobody else can') is alive and well in Iran, and the authorities pay only lip service to fixing the problem Berlin wall being knocked down (1) Miscellaneous images: [Left] Hard to believe, but true: The story of the ship that, at the end of 1899, was in two different days of the week, two different months, two different seasons, and two different centuries. [Center] Heart-wrenching violence against women: The attitude that men own women ("If I can't have you, nobody else can") is alive and well in Iran, and the authorities pay only lip service to fixing the problem. (#MasoumehJalilpour) [Right] Berlin Wall, redux: Wouldn't it be ironic if Trump's Wall were built and, in some future year, people gathered to knock it down as they celebrated?
(2) Real-time face-capture technology: The January 2019 issue of Communications of the ACM features the technology in its cover feature. While the development is technically quite exciting, it leads to the easy production of fake videos that are nearly indistinguishable from real ones. The image in front on the cover is generated by combining the other two images. More examples of facial reenactments, where mouth and lip configurations are superimposed from one input video to another video, appear in this image from page 102.
(3) Former president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, sends a Christmas message to the world: Or is this one of those fake videos made with the new face-capture technology? [See item (2) above]
(4) Trump's latest whopper, about the government shut-down and out-of-work federal workers: "Many of those workers have said to me ... 'stay out until you get the funding for the wall.'"
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Happy Kwanzaa! Celebrating the African diaspora, Kwanzaa means "first fruits of the harvest" in Swahili.
- Ten die in bus accident on a mountainous road within an Iran Azad University campus.
- US markets rebound, but investors are wary of additional losses: Monday's 2-3% loss was reversed by noon.
- Musical Christmas wish, somewhere in Los Angeles. [Photo]
- Putin's allies float the idea of constitutional changes to circumvent term limits for the 2-term President.
- History in pictures: A man and his dog at Yosemite National Park, 1924. [Photo]
(6) US Senator Susan Collin is no feminist: She could have quietly endorsed Brett Kavanaugh, but instead, she chose to deliver a 45-minute holier-than-thou lecture, sugar-coating her anti-feminist vote with feminist lingo and the many survivor stories she had heard. Her endorsement was a calculated move to win back the Republican support she had lost in voting against the repeal of Obamacare.
(7) How Europe deals with hi-tech competition from China: EU has approved plans from France, Germany, Italy, and the UK to fund up to $9.1 billion (8 billion euros) in microelectronics research.
(8) Gerald Ford [1913-2006], the 38th US president, died 12 years ago, today: He became US president when Richard Nixon resigned a year into his second term. Dubbed "the accidental president," Ford replaced VP Spiro Agnew when he was forced to resign. So, he was never elected to vice-presidency or presidency.

2018/12/25 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Trump is like a horse or elephant in a street parade: He needs a clean-up crew to pick up the mess after him! Trump and his GOP enablers: Someday, these two stooges and others will have to explain their behavior to the American people Trump and his indicted and/or racist sidekicks (1) Trump-related images, captured from Seth Myeres' recurring late-night-show segment "A Closer Look": [Left] Trump is like a horse or elephant in a street parade: He needs a clean-up crew to pick up the mess after him! [Center] Trump and his GOP enablers: Someday, these two stooges and others will have to explain their behavior to the American people. [Right] Trump and his indicted and/or racist co-conspirators.
(2) Archaeology: A Persian military camp, that may have been used as a base camp by King Cambyses in his all-out attack on Egypt more than 2500 years ago, has been unearthed in northern Israel.
(3) What I did on a windy, but gorgeous, Christmas Day in Goleta: My older son, my daughter, and I went to Ming Dynasty for a traditional Jewish Christmas-Day lunch! Two years ago, my second son was with us also. After our buffet lunch, a long walk was called for, so we went to the recently restored UCSB North Campus Open Space and, from there, to the beach and back.
(4) Trump plans to complete the border wall by Election Day 2020: Iranians have a saying for every occasion. The appropriate one here is, "The man was banned from entering a village, he was asking for directions to the mayor's house." [Read it in Persian] In English, we have, "Learn to walk before you run."
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump on Dems' oversight in 2019: It's harassment, and "I know how to handle that better than anybody."
- Let's pass this law: Government shutdown means that salaries and services at the WH and Congress are cut.
- And now for something different this Christmas Day: Belly dancing to Jingle Bells.
- This is how giant ships are launched: Usually, sideways, not lengthwise! [11-minute video]
(6) Interesting debate on Sunday's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" program: "Many people are hoping 2019 will be a better year for the world. But is it possible 2018 was actually the best year ever?" Steven Pinker, psychology professor at Harvard and the persistent optimist who thinks we live in the best of times, debated Niall Ferguson, senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution, who represented a pessimistic view that we must not lose sight of black-swan events (major wars and the like) amid generally improving conditions. [Teaser]
[I have not found a full video of this must-see debate; I will post the video if and when it becomes available.]
(7) Final thought for the day: "The danger with hatred is, once you start in on it, you get a hundred times more than you bargained for. Once you start, you can't stop." ~ Philip Roth

2018/12/24 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Bill Gates thanks his Secret Santa for making a charity donation in his name George H. W. Bush and the child he secretly sponsored Former President Barack Obama plays Santa to kids in a children's hospital (1) Charitable leaders: [Left] Bill Gates thanks his Secret Santa for making a charity donation in his name. [Center] George H. W. Bush secretly sponsored a child in the Philippines and served as his pen pal for years. [Right] Former President Barack Obama plays Santa to kids in a children's hospital.
(2) A very happy holiday season and new year to you! May you enjoy the Christmas break with your loved ones and may the United States of America get back on course from its current nose-dive into fake greatness.
(3) US stocks fell another 2-3% in today's shortened trading session: Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 653 points, smashing a 100-year-old record dating back to Christmas Eve 1918. [Chart]
(4) In Sydney, Australia, if you use your cell phone while driving, they will take your picture and fine you, much like the use of remotely-operated cameras at intersections to catch those who run red lights.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Canada experiences immigration explosion in tech specialists: Rise of 83% to 538% in various categories.
- The impactful return of wolves to Yellowstone National Park: A fascinating segment in CBS's "60 Minutes."
- Trump: I've done more damage to ISIS than all recent presidents...! Twitter reader: Hey, you misspelled USA!
- Vanity Fair headline: The Terrifying Paradox in Trump's War on Everything. [Photo]
- James Cordern, Emily Blunt, and Lin-Manuel Miranda perform segments from 22 musicals in 12 minutes.
- A most-impressive example of shadow-dancing. [Video]
- Beautiful music from Iran's Caspian-Sea region: Guilan Symphony Orchestra performs. [4-minute video]
- Music from Iran's Shooshtar-Dezful region, performed by the Rastak Ensemble. [5-minute video]
- Iran tourism: Introducing the city of Isfahan and its wonders. [3-minute video]
- Iran history/tourism: Tour of the historic city of Bishapour in Kazeroon, Fars Province. [8-minute video]
(6) Shame on con-men who fool the masses by pretending to represent God, and on their enablers in Iran and elsewhere: This con-man/cleric relates the story of Prophet Muhammad's son-in-law touching a wife on the shoulder, which immediately led to signs of pregnancy and, within an hour, the delivery of a baby boy!
(7) Mega-mall, with its architecture inspired by several historical sites and monuments, set to open in Tehran, Iran: Interestingly, this video opens with an Islamic call to prayer, indicating that it was made to appease the mullahs. Here is a YouTube video about the same project.

2018/12/23 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Gift idea: For your liberal friends in the US, there is this anti-Trump mug, available from various sellers at $10-15 Gift idea for a loved one in Iran: You can make them an overnight book author at a cost of 5-10 million tomans! Nerdy Christmas message: me^(rry) = x - mas! (1) A couple of holiday gift ideas and a nerdy message: [Left] For your liberal friends in the US, there is this anti-Trump mug, available from various sellers at $10-15 (excuse the poor grammar). [Center] And for a loved one in Iran, you can make them an overnight book author at a cost of 5-10 million tomans, equivalent to about 500-1000 US dollars (see the list of titles and prices)! [Right] Deriving the equation: me^(rry) = x–mas!
(2) The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance: This is the title of a 1953 short story by Dorothy M. Johnson, later turned into a 1962 John Ford movie by the same title. In the now-classic Western film, James Stewart plays a wimpy scholar who gets involved in a shoot-out against the outlaw character Valance (played by Lee Marvin). Valance is shot dead before he can draw his gun, with the Stewart character thinking that he accomplished the impossible feat. However, Valance was actually shot dead by a hidden sharp-shooter, played by John Wayne. Trump and his sidekicks, Steve Bannon and Kellyanne Conway, think that their strengths and smarts slayed Hillary Clinton, while the fatal shot was actually fired by a Russian sharp-shooter, as new revelations confirm.
(3) Trump reportedly rattled by Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis' resignation letter and the Fed's interest-rate hike. He is considering firing the Fed Chief, as #TrumpResigns trends on Twitter.
(4) Advances in game-playing programs: The unprecedented success of Google's AlphaZero shows that DeepMind has produced an algorithm capable of mastering even the toughest board games with fixed rules.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Hundreds perish in Indonesia from tsunami induced by underwater volcanic eruption and mudslide.
- Norwegian and Danish women beheaded in Morocco: ISIS seems to want to scare tourists away.
- Trump, angered by Jim Mattis' resignation letter, fires him two months before his resignation date. [NYT]
- Acting President appoints another acting secretary! Deputy Defense Secretary takes Jim Mattis' position.
- The Trump presidency faces four major threats, all beginning with 'M': Markets; Mueller; Military; Media.
- US House enacts the National Quantum Computing Initiative, a 10-year program to spur R&D in the field.
- It's ironic that a guy who looks like this, and needs spray-on hair to feel whole, considers his race superior.
- Just another beautiful day in Goleta, California: Photo of the car in front of me at Fairview-101 on-ramp.
(6) Tweet of the day: Aida Ahadiany observes that Iranian films contain too much screaming, concluding with the advice that sorrow, pain, and uncertainty cannot be communicated effectively in this way. [Tweet image]
(7) Sustainability research gains prominence at UCSB: Henley Hall, a new building to house our Institute for Energy Efficiency, is expected to open in fall 2020.

2018/12/22 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Map of Japan and the expected location of a magnitude-9.0 quake in the next 3 decades Cartoon: Crushed by the weight of the news The grocery chain Kroger has teamed up with Nuro to expand the use of self-driving food delivery vehicles in Arizona (1) Newsworthy images: [Left] Japan is quietly preparing for a magnitude-9.0 quake and associated 30-meter tsunami waves, that are said to have 3 in 4 odds of occurring near its southern shores over the next 3 decades. [Center] Does anyone else feel crushed by the news (both volume and gravity)? [Right] The grocery chain Kroger has teamed up with Nuro to expand the use of self-driving food delivery vehicles in Arizona.
(2) Trump's second gift to Putin in as many days: He lifts sanctions against an oligarch linked to Putin and to the bank that was to finance the Trump Tower Moscow project.
(3) Consciousness and associated psychological processes—thoughts, beliefs, ideas, intentions, and more—are products of non-conscious processes: Confused? Read this article!
(4) History of human space flight: A wonderful resource page concerning the history of human space flight, as we prepare to celebrate in 2019 the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Happy winter/summer! As we enter the winter season, our friends down-under are starting their summer.
- Last night's gorgeous sunset in Carpinteria, posted by one of our local Channel 3 reporters.
- US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg undergoes emergency lung-cancer surgery.
- Yes, Mr. Ryan, America is broken, as you observed, but I wish you'd say a few words about who broke it!
- Anyone who disagrees with Trump is weak and stupid: This week it was the Fed's turn to be dissed!
- Mitch McConnell says he is distressed over Jim Mattis resigning. Here are his distressed and normal looks!
- Los Angeles names the 134 freeway "President Barack H. Obama Highway." [Photo]
- Two young UCSB professors have been honored with Northrop Grumman Excellence in Teaching Award.
(6) Iran's Supreme Leader essentially pre-approves the use of deadly force on street protesters: Normally, he would wait until after the protests to blame the US, Israel, the Saudis, or whoever else came to his mind. By saying the US is hatching evil plans for 2019 (perhaps worried about Islamic Republic's 40th anniversary celebrations, which would be natural targets of protests), he is giving his security apparatus a blank check to deal with them as they please. All street protesters will now be viewed as US agents, unless proven otherwise.
(7) Major airport is shut down because of drone threat: Planes at Gatwick Airport, UK's second largest, were grounded due to repeated, deliberate drone interference with flight paths; no terrorism seems to be involved.
(8) Final thought for the day: "We need to write now, write well—tell the truth in all its messy complexity. It's our best shot at helping to preserve a democracy in which facts still exist and all of us can speak freely." ~ Jennifer Egan, Pulitzer-Prize-winning author and President of PEN America

2018/12/21 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Winter Solstice and the Iranian Festival of Yalda, celebrating the longest night of the year. Colored eggshells: Apt image for educating racists A gorgeous sunrise in Goleta, California, a day before the Winter Solstice (Shab-e Yalda) (1) Appreciating the colors of nature: [Left] Happy Winter Solstice and the Iranian Festival of Yalda, celebrating the longest night of the year. [Center] Colored eggshells: Apt image for educating racists. [Right] A gorgeous sunrise in Goleta, California, a day before the Winter Solstice (Shab-e Yalda).
(2) The US has abandoned the Kurds for the second time, once leaving them at the mercy of the butcher of Baghdad who gassed them en mass and now leaving them vulnerable to massacre by Assad and Erdogan.
(3) Free press is a rare privilege: Only 13% of people live where the press operates with little influence, few legal constraints, and no fear of repercussions. [Map credit: Time magazine]
(4) Mohammed bin Salman to his security chief: "Kill this man, jail that woman!" Reply: "Yes, sir!"
Donald Trump to FBI: "Jail this man, investigate that woman!" Reply: "Are you f---ing crazy?"
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- For years, Facebook exempted business partners from its rules, giving them broad access to private data.
- Techiest US state: Massachusetts tops Milken Institute's 2018 State Technology and Science Index.
- Interesting architectures in Iran: Ghazvin Bazaar and other samples of work by Goli Tavakoli. [Photos]
- Donald Knuth worries about algorithms getting too prominent, and so complicated they cannot be read.
- In a first, Reporters Without Borders places the US among the top-5 deadliest countries for journalists.
- A market in Tehran, Iran, with Shab-e Yalda (Winter Solstice) decorations and antique home implements.
- Democracies flourish where there is bright light. Autocracies prosper in total darkness.
(6) Scientific fraud: Fei Wang, Tenured Associate Professor of Cell and Molecular Biology at U. Illinois, has been fired after revelations that he had fabricated data in NSF and NIH grant applications.
(7) Science's big crisis, created by big data: In this age of "big data," scientists tend to perform statistical analyses long after the data have been collected. This creates a reproducibility crisis, fueled in part by the analyses applied to data-driven hypotheses, the opposite of how things are traditionally done. Scientists can luckily see interesting but spurious patterns in a dataset, leading them to formulate hypotheses which will, of course, be validated by the data. To protect against this eventuality, data should be seen only after the hypothesis-formulation stage.
(8) Tweet of the day: Do not say that 3 pre-school kids were killed in Zahedan (Iran). Honor their memories by mentioning their names to the clueless authorities running our country. Scream Mona Khosro-Parast, Maryam Nokandi, and Saba Arabi! We people are more than a bunch of numbers in news stories. [Persian tweet]
(9) Final thoughts for the day, with calligraphic images from Time magazine, issue of December 24/31, 2018.
- "Only truth and transparency can guarantee freedom." ~ John McCain [1936-2018] [Image]
- "Freedom of the press ensures that the abuse of every other freedom can be known, can be challenged, and even defeated." ~ Kofi Annan [1938-2018] [Image]

2018/12/20 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Sample social-media posts in the US by Russia's Internet Research Agency, Image 1 Sample social-media posts in the US by Russia's Internet Research Agency, Image 2 Sample social-media posts in the US by Russia's Internet Research Agency, Image 3 (1) Sample social-media posts in the US by Russia's Internet Research Agency, which operates a troll farm. These samples exploit three key wedge issues: Military/veterans, race, and religion. In the category of race, Russian trolls played on legitimate grievances of black Americans to sow discord and suppress votes.
(2) Which is it, Donald: Have we defeated ISIS or are we leaving the fight to others? You can't have it both ways! And, by the way, we already had by far the most powerful military in the world; you aren't building it!
(3) In a chain of tweets, beginning with these two, Trump defends his "charitable" foundation, which he is dissolving in the face of allegations of fraud, much like what he did with Trump University in 2016.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Correlation between share of white people with no college degree and districts' 2018 voting margin. [Chart]
- Rudy Giuliani has become an embarrassment to himself and to our country: When will this prolonged end?
- Trump Foundation joins his University in the dustbin of history, following allegations of illegal conduct.
- Despite dozens of daily air strikes against ISIS, Trump declares victory and orders US forces out of Syria.
- Illinois AG slams the Catholic Church for its protection of hundreds of accused priests in her jurisdiction.
- Christmas music by a wonderful couple at Goleta's Camino Real Marketplace. [Video 1] [Video 2]
(5) Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis resigns, effective the end of February 2019, over differences with Trump. (Differences? Did he just wake up from a 2-year slumber? There goes the last remaining adult in the room, taking with him a shattered reputation!)
(6) The House Democratic majority just broke Trump, even before being sworn in: He rescinds the threat to shut down the government unless he gets funding for his wall, saying he will fund it some other way.
(7) MPAA rating chair retires after nearly two decades: Joan Graves, who oversaw Motion Picture Association of America's film rating endeavors, talks with NPR's Ari Shapiro about the big business of movie ratings. Among interesting tidbits in this program, we learn that many directors sign contracts with movie studios that include explicit mention of the finished product's rating. They consult with the rating board's liaison office in script and all later stages to ensure they can hit the targeted rating. One filmmaker wanted to know if it would be possible to make a movie about a womanizing and drug-using celebrity ("Ray"), while keeping the rating PG-13! If a movie targeting PG-13 ends up being rated R, the financial implications are enormous. Here's another interesting tidbit: MPAA rates films nationally, but regions of the US are sensitive to different things: Blasphemy in the South, nudity and sexuality in the Midwest, violence in coastal areas.
(8) Trump can't feign ignorance of campaign-finance laws: He once bragged to Larry King that he knows more about campaign-finance law than anybody. [Tweet image]
(9) The "Seven Friends" are back together: Afif Naeemi, the last among a group of imprisoned Baha'i leaders in Iran, has been released after serving 10 years in jail.

2018/12/19 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for the book 'What Unites Us: Reflections on Patriotism' (1) Book review: Rather, Dan and Elliot Kirschner, What Unites Us: Reflections on Patriotism, unabridged audiobook on 6 CDs, read by Dan Rather, HighBridge Audio, 2017. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Rather, 87, a venerated journalist for much of his life (until he was ousted from CBS for not sufficiently vetting falsified documents critical of President George W. Bush), is now viewed as a voice of reason in our tumultuous political climate. However, it is difficult to listen to him without remembering his mis-steps. Additionally, his once-clear anchorman's enunciation has deteriorated with age, making one wish that the publisher had chosen a different reader for the audiobook.
Rather's writing style comes across as flat and cliche-ridden. Still, I found quite a few interesting topics in this collection of original essays, which touch upon the foundations of our country, from freedom, voting, and the press, to empathy, inclusion, and service, along with institutions and traits that make it all possible, namely, public education and the spirit of innovation in science, technology, and medicine.
In a November 2017 interview with NPR, Rather spoke about this book. Key parts of the interview covered patriotism being used as a political bludgeon, his mix of optimism and alarm about our country, and the impact he has had via Facebook that he could not have had at CBS.
(2) A clear case of collusion: For a whole year, Special Counsel Robert Mueller has been attacked by Donald Trump from the inside and by Russian trolls and disinformation agents from the outside.
(3) Another genius flees Iran: Shabnam Raayai-Ardakani, a Baha'i student who was prevented from doing graduate work at Iran's Sharif University of Technology, came to America, got her PhD at MIT, and won the prestigious American Physical Society's Stanley Corrsin Dissertation Award in Fluid Dynamics. She is now a post-doctoral researcher at MIT.
(4) Judge to Michael Flynn, when postponing his sentencing: "All along you were an unregistered agent of a foreign country while serving as the national security adviser to the president of the United States. Arguably, that undermines everything that flag over here stands for." [Full story]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Dow Jones Industrial Average, and US stock market as a whole, in seriously negative territory for 2018.
- Where are Trump tweets about the market tanking? You can't boast about the highs and not own the lows!
- Film director and actress Penny Marshall dead at 75.
- California man details plans for ISIS-supported attacks around San Francisco that would "redefine terror."
- The fascinating story of meteorite hunters and their search for the most-coveted extra-terrestrial rock.
- Merriam-Webster's 2018 word of the year: Justice
- Persian equivalent terms: "charkhat" ("four lines") for "hashtag" (#) and "tarakonesh" for "transaction."
- Undersea servers solve a most challenging problem facing data centers: Keeping electronics cool.
(6) Pathology goes digital: After a biopsied tissue sample is sliced and stained, the slides are scanned and presented to a program, which uses its machine-learning training to spot subtle patterns and provide advice to the pathologist. [Source: IEEE Spectrum, issue of December 2018]
(7) The Internet of disposable things: Throwaway paper and plastic sensors will soon connect consumable goods and supplies. [Source: IEEE Spectrum, issue of December 2018]

2018/12/18 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Some Democrats are troubled that the three front-runners for 2020 presidential election are all white males (Biden, Sanders, O'Rourke) Essay: Americans are much better than Russians in fostering discord among themselves How anger became the dominant emotion in America's politics and our citizens' lives, and what to do about it (1) Thoughts on American politics: [Left] Some Democrats are troubled that the three front-runners for 2020 presidential election are all white males (Biden, Sanders, O'Rourke). [Center] Americans are much better than Russians in fostering discord among themselves (The Atlantic essay). [Right] How anger became the dominant emotion in America's politics and our citizens' lives, and what to do about it (The Atlantic article).
(2) Paul Ryan's new discovery, uttered with a straight face: "I worry about tribal identity politics becoming the new norm ... As conservatives, we always thought this was sort of a left-wing ... thing. Unfortunately, the right practices identity politics now as well."
(3) Tweet of the day, for my Persian-speaking readers: On the passage of time and changing circumstances making old songs less relevant, while they remain enjoyable and popular. [Tweet, with continuations]
(4) What do the Islamic State and Trump administration have in common? Total disregard for the environment. Islamic State groups left occupied areas polluted and in ruins, even poisoning the wells from which they drank.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- I'd agree with calling the media's tendency to sensationalize "fake news," but not if done by the biggest liar!
- Hey there boarders: Your tireless-finger president is concerned about your security. Rejoice! [Trump tweet]
- OPEC is cutting production under the influence of Russia, which seems to be running the organization.
- Today in US history: On December 17, 1862, General Ulysses S. Grant ordered Jews to leave the war zone.
- Clean-up crew caught clowning around and taking/posting offensive photos on the ruins of Camp Fire.
- Diverse film roles spanning six decades earn Jeff Bridges the Golden Globes' Cecil B. DeMille Award.
- Newly-discovered, pristine 4400-years-old tomb in Saqqara, Egypt, bears clues to the life of a royal official.
- Christmas music at the Camino Real Marketplace, played by members of Santa Barbara Trombone Society.
(6) Netflix competes with traditional movie studios, but it has a problem come Oscars time: Its films are not eligible for Academy Awards, unless they open in theaters. So, Netflix sent "Roma" to theaters first.
(7) Betting on climate change: Harvard has been quietly buying California vineyards and their water rights, particularly in areas expected to be hit hard by climate change, which would make the water rights precious.
(8) A teacher's best reward is former students appreciating and honoring him/her: This article (in Persian) appeared in Computer Report, the technical magazine of the Informatics Society of Iran, special issue on ISI's 40th anniversary, fall 2018. This brief reflection (in Persian) also appeared in the same issue.

2018/12/17 (Monday): Presenting some unusual puzzles and oddities from around the Internet.
A twist on Sudoku, Variant 1 A twist on Sudoku, Variant 2 A twist on Sudoku, Variant 3 A twist on Sudoku, Variant 4 A twist on Sudoku, Variant 5 A twist on Sudoku, Variant 6 (1) Six variations on Sudoku, from yesterday's New York Times: [Top left] Rules are the same as in ordinary Sudoku, with the added greater-than/less-than constraints. For example, the number in the top-left corner should be greater than the number to its right and less than the number below it. [Top center] You solve this one as usual, with the added constraints that the boxes having a small circle between them should hold consecutive numbers. So 1o should be followed by 2 and 6o by 5 or 7. [Top right] Here, all the numbers that are adjacent to 9 are given for each row and each column. For example, the entry 9 in the top row must be flanked by 2 and 3, in either order, and the 9 in the leftmost column has a 1 next to it (meaning that the 9 is either the top or bottom entry in Column 1). [Bottom left] The numbers along each thermometer go in increasing order, starting at the bulb, but they are not necessarily consecutive integers. For example, the thermometer on the bottom-right could hold 14679 but not 14689. [Bottom center] The miniature numbers should be placed in the four squares around them, but not necessarily in the given order. [Bottom right] This one's more challenging and rather different from ordinary Sudoku. The numbers 1 through 8 should not repeat in each of the three principal directions or within highlighted boxes. For example, using B for blank, the eight boxes on the left edge that should not contain repeated numbers are B2BBB7BB, and in the next-to-last layer from the top, the pattern is 2BBBBBB7.
(2) More puzzles from yesterday's New York Times: In these word puzzles, each of the eight 9-letter words, with one of its 3-letter blocks given, must be completed by using two of the triplets of letters provided on the left. A triplet must be used as a block, with letters appearing in the order given.
(3) One last unusual puzzle from yesterday's New York Times: Fill out the blank squares so that across and down entries are valid with both letter pairs given. For example, on the top left (across), the three blank squares should be filled out to give you two valid words _UA_ _ and _HO_ _.
(4) [Humor] Breaking news: Santa will out-source collection of wish lists to Facebook, his North-Pole workshop to Google's robotics branch, and gift delivery to Amazon, as he gets ready to retire.
(5) Cartoon caption—One legislator to another: "Can we limit the government shutdown to the White House?"
(6) Evolving lies: It didn't happen. ... Okay, it did, but I wasn't aware of it. ... I knew about it, but much later. So what? It wasn't illegal. ... It's a civil, not a criminal offense. ... [Insert the next explanation here.]

2018/12/16 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Colorful red and orange wildflowers, Photo 1 Colorful red and orange wildflowers, Photo 2 Colorful red and orange wildflowers, Photo 3 (1) Our beautiful world: Colorful red and orange wildflowers.
(2) Venezuela's inflation rate surpasses 1 million percent: That's 10,000-fold price increases (imagine a $3 cup of coffee costing $30,000), and there is no end in sight. [Source: Newsweek]
(3) Renewal of the Investor Visa Program (EB-5) being scrutinized: Under the Freedom of Information Act, DHS has been ordered to send a rep to a hearing on the Program's status and Jared Kushner's role in it.
(4) Mick Mulvaney, the new Acting WH Chief of Staff, on Donald Trump, shortly before the 2016 election: "Yes, I'm supporting Donald Trump. I'm doing so as enthusiastically as I can, given the fact that I think he's a terrible human being. But the choice on the other side is just as bad."
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Greta Thunberg, 15-year-old climate activist, addresses the plenary session at a UN climate conference.
- The worst nightmare of a con man: His entire life going under a powerful legal microscope.
- Google pauses development and sales of its facial recognition technology over ethical concerns. [Bloomberg]
- Persian music: Mandana Khazraei sings "Bezan Baaraan" (her own lyrics, on music by Babak Shahraki).
- This film-director-turned-baker from Vancouver converts pies to amazing works of art.
- Look what I found at Costco yesterday: An iPad guide for seniors, which is written in plain English!
(6) Trump question (June 2014 tweet): Are you allowed to impeach a president for gross incompetence? Answer (December 2018): Your question went unanswered for 4.5 years, but we're about to find out, Donald!
(7) Supreme-Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, speaking to a group of new citizens at the National Archives, in front of the original copy of the US Constitution: You play a vital part in cleansing the stains of discrimination from the country.
(8) Democracy can't prosper with intolerance: In this tweet, Negar Mortazavi complains that her posting of a suggestion to Prince Reza Pahlavi to deal with the dark sides of his father's and grandfather's authoritarian rules, before staking a claim as their successor, brought about loads of cussing, sexual insults, and misogynistic comments, mostly from expats who live in democratic societies. I often dismiss claims that Iranians aren't ready for democracy, but when faced with such intolerant reactions to a stated opinion, doubts set in!
(9) Final thought for the day: Every time the federal government injects $1 of subsidy into our higher-education system, universities raise tuition prices and pocket 2/3 of it. [Mitch Daniels, President of Purdue University and former Indiana Governor, this week on PBS "Firing Line"]

2018/12/15 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Front-page samples for National Enquirer Commemorative 40th-anniversary keepsake and the latest issue of 'Computer Report,' ISI's magazine Interesting protest sign: 'We need healthcare, not wealthcare' (1) Newsworthy images: [Left] Front-page samples for National Enquirer. [Center] Informatics Society of Iran turns 40 (continued): I recently received a commemorative 40th-anniversary keepsake and the latest issue of Computer Report, ISI's magazine. [Right] Interesting protest sign: "We need healthcare, not wealthcare."
(2) National Enquirer, which published only positive stories about Trump and made-up conspiracy theories about his opponents (see the image above), turned relatively quite after the story of Trump buying out their files broke out. Now, the tabloid has turned against Trump in order to save itself and its owner, David Pecker.
(3) Yemen war being curtailed: For the first time since the passage of the War Powers Act in 1973, the US Senate orders the executive branch to end an unauthorized military campaign.
(4) Church abuse scandal: Of the 200+ clergymen identified as child molesters in Southern California, 12 held lengthy postings in the Santa Barbara area. [Source: Santa Barbara Independent]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Evangelical Christians' influence waning: They helped elect Trump, but cracks are appearing in their ranks.
- Putin's E. German Stasi card allowed him to operate in that country without being linked to the KGB. [NYT]
- My daughter is the 13th author on this research paper, published in the prestigious journal Science.
- Iranian regional music and dance: From the Bakhtiari or Lorestan region. [3-minute video]
- Quote of the day: "Everybody is talented, original, and has something important to say." ~ Brenda Ueland
(6) Physicist Ania Bleszynski Jayich, who happens to be my wall-to-wall neighbor, is slated to receive more than $0.5 million as part of a $12-million project to "dramatically expand our understanding of quantum coherence in solids by building on fundamental materials discoveries." [Source: Convergence, the magazine of engineering and the sciences at UCSB]
(7) The 15-second security screening: Recently unveiled at an airport in Dubai, the process consists of an iris scan, followed by a walk through a "smart tunnel." [Source: IEEE Spectrum, issue of December 2018]
(8) Interesting calendar fact: Next week's Winter Solstice gives us the shortest day (longest night) of the year, but not the earliest sunset or the latest sunrise. In the Northern Hemisphere, the earliest sunset occurs a week or two before the Winter Solstice and the latest sunrise a week or two after. The timing of the two events is reversed in the Southern Hemisphere. [Table]

2018/12/14 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Status update by Sisyphus: 'Almost at the top, fam!' Cartoon: The Democrats finally give Trump a wall National Christmas Tree: 'The tear gas cannisters and razor wire are a nice touch ...' (1) Cartoons: [Left] Status update by Sisyphus: "Almost at the top, fam!" [Center] The Democrats finally give Trump a wall. [Right] National Christmas Tree: "The tear gas cannisters and razor wire are a nice touch ..."
(2) Engineering schools are getting more serious about teaching ethics: The coming dominance of autonomous and intelligent systems makes the ever-important ethics course more indispensable.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Iranian folk music: Sima Bina performs an old favorite from the Caspian Sea region. [Video]
- Persian Music: A beautiful traditional piece by Darvish Khan entitled "Parichehr and Parizad." [Video]
- Humor—New book being written for Trump by his attorneys: The Art of Plea Bargain Deal
- Cartoon of the day: Dilbert gets to write a performance review for himself! [Image]
- Quote of the day: "Everything you want is on the other side of fear." ~ Jack Canfield
- For cat lovers: The $180 Mousr robot entertains your cat(s). [Source: IEEE Spectrum, December 2018]
(4) Netanyahu says attacking Iran is on the table if Israel's survival is threatened: He maintains that Khashoggi's murder, which is "shocking and horrible," must be assessed in the context of Saudi Arabia's role in regional and, hence, world stability. Netanyahu did not indicate whether detainment and torturing of women's rights activists are also necessary for regional stability. [BBC Persian report]
(5) [Follow-up to the previous item, written in reply to a Facebook commenter who objected to the part about what Netanyahu didn't say.] In politics, as in other aspects of life, much is written between the lines, which should be deduced. Politicians hedge their statements to leave themselves room for denial or re-interpretation. Reacting "within the context of world stability," as suggested by Netanyahu, means we should not sanction or otherwise apply pressure to MBS for murdering Khashoggi, because that would de-stabilize the Kingdom. Now if a gruesome murder, followed by dismemberment and packing in suitcases to remove the body from the Saudi Consulate, isn't enough to raise objection, how important are mere arrests and torture of women activists in Saudi Arabia? All dictators and their apologists resort to people's fear of insecurity and instability to justify their actions, and this includes the mullahs in Iran. As I write, 251 journalists are imprisoned worldwide and, while Turkey is still the worst offender, the number in Saudi Arabia has doubled to 16 (including 4 women who wrote about women's rights) since 2017.

2018/12/13 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Las Veras Ranch gifted to UCSB: View Las Veras Ranch gifted to UCSB: Map A wall ornament costing less than $20 brightens up my dining room (1) Miscellaneous photos: [Left & Center] The fabulous Las Veras Ranch gifted to UCSB (see Item 2 below). [Right] A wall ornament costing less than $20 brightens up my dining room.
(2) UCSB receives a major land gift: Las Varas Ranch, an 1800-acre agricultural property located 6 miles west of the UCSB campus, stretching between the Pacific Ocean (2-mile coastline) and Los Padres National Forest, has been gifted to UCSB by Charles T. Munger. For now, UCSB will keep the property as a working ranch, until the completion of consultations about its long-term use to benefit the community for generations to come.
(3) Science which is disliked by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards: Kaveh Madani, who narrowly escaped arrest when he left Iran, chimes in on the fate of detained fellow scientist Meimanat Hosseini-Chavoshi.
(4) Misogynistic Iranian laws: Most discriminatory laws against women were passed in the early years after the Islamic Revolution. Recent cosmetic reforms have not significantly changed the situation. This article examines the laws and the role played in their enactment by women parliamentarians.
(5) Racism personified: "Newly elected Democrats all hate white men, are Jews, Muslims, college queers, and black church ladies." ~ Conservative commentator Ann Coulter
(6) How our brain marks time: Recent neuroscience discoveries have told us about specific brain regions that deal with time-stamping of events, before they are stored away in memory. But it is still unclear how the passage of time is marked. Calendars, and the associated notions of days, weeks, months, and years, are social constructs. There are tribes on Earth that have no words for such time units and whose members are unaware of how old they are, using instead changes and crossing of life thresholds (such as menstruation or marriage) as time markers. It is conjectured that our brain does something similar. Given that philosophers and physicists are still arguing about the nature of time, we are a long way from fully understanding how our brains record and process temporal information. [Summary of New Yorker article]
(7) Iranian women are singing and playing music in record numbers, despite a multitude of governmental restrictions.The following videos from Navahang's Facebook page show the depth and diversity of talent.
- Solmaz Naraghi performs the song "Delakam" ("My Little Heart"). [1-minute video]
- Mahdieh Mohammad-Khani performs the oldie song "Bot-e Chin" ("Chinese Idol"). [1-minute video]
- An oldie song, performed by Rahaa (Raaheleh Barzegari). [1-minute video]
(8) Apple's significant expansions in sites and jobs: The plans reportedly include a $1 billion campus in Austin, Texas, sites in San Diego and Culver City, California, and $10 billion new investment in US data centers.

2018/12/12 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Holiday lighting displays around Riverside's Mission Inn, Photo 1 Holiday lighting displays around Riverside's Mission Inn, Photo 2 Holiday lighting displays around Riverside's Mission Inn, Photo 3 (1) My two-day visit to Riverside and its historic Mission Inn: This was a group travel event on A large Santa Barbara Airbus, filled to its 56-passenger capacity. My seat, right behind the driver, had the added benefit of easy access to community snacks! The group stopped for lunch in Old Town Pasedena, where I decided to go on a walking exploration of the area, including City Hall and other government buildings, in lieu of eating at Cheesecake Factory. Traveling from Pasadena to Riverside, I photographed snow-capped mountains and, shortly after arrival at Mission Inn, the view from my room's window. Here are a couple of night shots from my room and views of the gorgeous patio where we dined. After dinner, I walked the streets around city-block-sized Inn, photographing the elaborate lighting displays and recording street musicians playing in the area. [Video 1: Banjo player] [Video 2: Electric-guitar player (rock 'n roll)] [Video 3: Guitar player (blues)] Today, on the trip's second day, I went on a guided tour of Mission Inn. The tour included both areas that are parts of the 240-room hotel and private areas, some of which are used for meetings, weddings, and the like. The Inn, a national historical monument and a major landmark in its area, isn't a converted mission, as one might think, but was built in the mission revival style by founder Frank Miller, who inherited the property from his father. The Inn's architecture and the vast collection of art it houses are reminiscent of Hearst Castle in San Simeon.
(2) Time magazine's Person of the Year announced: It is "The Guardians," a collection of journalists, headed by Jamal Khashoggi, who have been murdered, arrested, or harassed for speaking truth to power. [Cover image]
(3) Intel unveils its new 3D packaging technology: Feasibility of 3D memories had been shown earlier, but Intel is the first to bring 3D stacking to CPUs, GPUs, and AI processors in production.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- An awful lot of witches: All the associates and family members of Trump who had contacts with Russians.
- Two Democrats, the Liar-in-Chief, and a motionless department-store dummy meet in the Oval Office.
- Climate scientists consider Trump a dangerous clown for dismissing the greatest threat our country faces.
- As labor protests continue in Iran, students who support the protests targeted by the security apparatuses.
- Baha'i businesses in Iran charged with code violation and closed down for observing a religious holiday.
- The best way to teach ethics to your children or students is to treat them ethically.
- Iran's Supreme Leader supports the Yellow-Vest protesters in France. [Cartoon, from IranWire.com]
(5) Mikhail Gorbachev writes a forceful and touching tribute to George H. W. Bush in Time magazine, issue of December 17, 2018, under the title "The War We Ended—and a Peace in Jeopardy."

2018/12/11 (Tuesday): Book review: Mundy, Liza, Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers of World War II, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Erin Bennett, Hachette Audio, 2017.
Cover image for Liza Mundy's 'Code Girls' [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
If Hidden Figures wasn't enough to convince you that women can excel at the same level as and beyond men, when given opportunities, this book will. To relate a favorite quote of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, speaking on behalf of women, "I ask no favor for my sex. All I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks."
Let me begin by comparing the book to Hidden Figures (HF), as the subject matters are quite similar. Unlike HF, CG includes a lot of detail about the actual code-breaking challenges and methods, down to the names of ciphers and design of coding machines and the algorithms they used. There is attention to the women's personal and social lives, but those aren't the primary foci. Perhaps, this was made possible by code-breaking being more intuitive than space-trajectory calculations.
World War II, with its attendant shortage of men to fill available science/technology positions, provided an opportunity for women to move away from what were then nominal careers for them (teacher, librarian, etc.) and step up to roles as scientists and engineers. In fact, the US government recruited some of the code-breakers it needed to help intercept and decode enemy messages from among math teachers, who simply assumed that a math degree for a woman meant a teaching career.
Thousands of women, recruited from small-town schools and elite women's colleges were involved in the secret American program to break German, Japanese, Italian, and other communications ciphers from our adversaries. These efforts were no less important in shortening the War and ensuring the eventual victory than the contributions of those who took up arms or made battle plans in Europe and elsewhere.
Recruiting women for code-breaking jobs had started earlier, but it took greater urgency after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. The US Navy and other military branches expanded their search for talent, once the US officially entered the war. Interestingly, the branches of US military were competing in this domain and did not always share information with each other!
The women code-breakers used a combination of intuition, knowledge of math/stat, human engineering, and dogged hard work to attack each new code, sometimes taking weeks or months to break them. Mundy does provide a great deal of technical details about the secret codes and methods used to attack them. As the D-Day landing approached, the women were also charged with creating fake coded messages to mislead the axis forces about the actual attack site.
Sexism still prevailed in the military and elsewhere, as these women were helping with the war effort beyond everyone's expectations, breaking increasingly complex codes. For example, there were some who held the misguided view that women could not be trusted to keep secrets. Ironically, many of these women did not even share the nature of what they were doing with their families, and Mundy extracted information from them after providing assurances that NSA was okay with it. One person in charge of hiring women code-breakers reportedly told those who provided him with talent to send only pretty girls, because he did not want to be stuck with them after the end of the War!
Mundy's meticulous research for the book included numerous interviews with surviving code girls. The stories in this book form a nice complement to the much better-known efforts of the group at Bletchley Park, led by the British mathematician Alan Turing, which was made into a successful movie. Searching on-line, I could not find whether CG is being made into a movie. There is also no information on whether these women were honored with medals or otherwise.
Here is a 69-minute talk by the author about the book and its heroes. Mundy does mention at the very end of the Q&A period that the story has been optioned for a movie, but that there are no definite plans at this time.

2018/12/10 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
UCSB campus under unusual clouds, photo 1 UCSB campus under unusual clouds, photo 2 UCSB campus under unusual clouds, photo 3 (1) Unusual cloud formations and lighting produced these wonderful images on the UCSB Campus this evening.
(2) Universal Declaration of Human Rights turns 70: Every day should be human-rights day, but let's celebrate anyway by renewing our pledge to stand for rights and against all forms of injustice and disenfranchisement.
(3) A tweet for every occasion, just like Hallmark cards: About to appoint his third Chief of Staff in 2 years, Trump is being hit on the head with his 2012 tweet criticizing Obama for having 3 Chiefs of Staff (not Chief of Staffs) in less than 3 years. [Tweet image]
(4) Quote of the day: "Saudis would be speaking Farsi in about a week without US support." ~ US Senator Lindsay Graham, fear-mongering against Iran
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The "law-and-order" president will likely serve jail time for breaking campaign-finance and other laws.
- The company you keep: US joins Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait to challenge climate-change report.
- Duh-worthy research conclusion: College students changing majors pay more, take longer to graduate!
- A glimpse of unusual freeways in China: Marvelous feats of engineering! [Video]
- Spell checkers can't save the illiterate and the careless: Trump's "Smocking Gun" deemed mock-worthy!
(6) Jon Meacham's eulogy for GHWB: If you did not hear presidential historian Jon Meacham speak at George H. W. Bush's funeral, this 12-minute video is for you. Don't miss this touching and humorous speech!
(7) Fasten your seat belts: The stock market is following the chaos in the White House and the inconsistent ramblings of the Idiot-in-Chief. Some analysts predict continued volatility through 2019 and a drop of about 15% before an eventual rebound.
(8) China's very advanced on-line services: According to Fareed Zakaria, on his Sunday CNN program, very few Chinese carry cash or credit cards. A smartphone-based payment system is used everywhere. You can pay merchants or individuals a sum ranging from as little as a few cents to many thousands of dollars, with a tiny fee; even beggars have gone the way of electronic payment! One reason for China's leap forward in the area of electronic payments is that credit cards never took hold there, so there isn't an establishment to oppose the lightweight, low-overhead payment system. In another domain, food can be delivered in most parts of the country in as little as 30 minutes, arriving hot and costing only about $0.70 extra. Scooter-riding Chinese do the delivery, a la Uber. When there is a shortage of delivery people, a higher compensation is announced on short notice, using artificial intelligence, bringing more people to the service.

2018/12/09 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
New York City subway at rush hour, 1950s Aerial view of NYC's Times Square, 1967 Flight attendants, 1960s (1) History in pictures: [Left] New York City subway at rush hour, 1950s. [Center] Aerial view of NYC's Times Square, 1967. [Right] Flight attendants, 1960s.
(2) Emotionally Sentient Agents: This is the cover feature of the December 2018 issue of Communications of the ACM. Emotionally aware systems that respond to social and emotional cues can be more engaging and trusted, hence the incentive to study such systems, including issues of reliability and transparency. [Image]
(3) Persian Music: Shab-e Yalda, the Iranian festival celebrating Winter Solstice and the longest night of the year, is coming in a couple of weeks. Here is a song about it.
(4) The Armenian deduk, a wonderful double-reed woodwind musical instrument made of apricot wood:
Master deduk player Andranik Mesropian demonstrates dedul with his band. [Video 1]
Jivan Gasparyan's rendition of "They Took My Love Away," a tender song, featuring multiple duduks. [Video 2]
Deduk featured at a Yanni concert. [Video 3]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- It is said that Trump's Chief of Staff John Kelly is stepping down. I think the correct term is "stepping up"!
- A close look inside the International Space Station, including how the astronauts live. [25-minute video]
- The cast of "Friends," many moons ago. [Photos]
- Introducing a new musical instrument to symphony orchestras: The mechanical typewriter!
- Song and dance from Iran, featuring regional music and costumes. [Video]
(6) Fifty years ago, innovator extraordinaire Douglas Engelbart presented a demo at a technical conference that foretold today's on-line information services and preceded the Web by 20 years.
(7) College Cup's championship match: Akron, 5-1 semifinal victor over Michigan State, and Maryland, 2-0 winner over Indiana, met this afternoon for NCAA's soccer title. On the other side of Harder Stadium, across from me, are the VIP seating section (middle) and the two teams' cheering sections (left and right) [Photo]. On my side are general-admission and student seating sections. Are cameras this big really needed in the age of nanoelectronics? A UCSB musical group performed the National Anthem.
- I was expecting Akron to dominate, but Maryland had the upper hand in the scoreless first half.
- Maryland scored on a PK in the 57th minute.
- Akron presented some serious threats 15-20 minutes to the end of the game and again near the end.
- The Akron goalie was penalized for tripping a rushing forward in the 76th minute, but he saved the PK.
- Maryland claimed the NCAA soccer championship by beating Akron 1-0 and basking in the glory.

2018/12/08 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Beautiful flowers Is this a painting or a photograph? Hard to tell, given the image's low resolution. Either way, it's wonderfully composed/captured by an unknown artist Calligraphic rendering of a verse from Azeri poet Shahriar (artist unknown) (1) Beauty in nature and arts: [Left] Beautiful flowers. [Center] Is this a painting or a photograph? Hard to tell, given the image's fairly low resolution. Either way, it's wonderfully composed/captured by an unknown artist. [Right] Calligraphic rendering of a verse from Azeri poet Shahriar (artist unknown).
(2) In the end, Trump may be unseated in 2020 not by his impeachable crimes but by an economic recession, which some economists say is looming.
(3) Michelle Obama's memoir is seen as her second coming as one of the most popular Americans, launching what could become a billion-dollar brand.
(4) Trump-speak dictionary [Cartoon]: Did you know: I just found this out | People are saying: I'm making this up | We'll see what happens: I have no clue | Fake news: This makes me look bad | Believe me: I'm lying
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Nine months after his firing, Tillerson vents about his legal and moral disagreements with Trump.
- Trump's lawyers are drafting response to forthcoming Mueller report.
- John Kelly, no longer on speaking terms with Trump, is expected to resign soon. (CNN)
- Foxification of the Trump administration: The boundary is quite blurred. [Chart source: Washington Post]
- Images of the InSight Mars Lander released by NASA.
- Very close to the dwarf planet Ceres in July, NASA's Dawn spacecraft zoomed in to capture these images.
- Hard to beat this robot in fixing a Rubik's Cube! [Video]
- Yodeling is taken to new heights (pun intended) by this young girl: Wonderful! [Video]
- Tehran, on a rare smog-free day. [Tweet, with photos]
- Persian music: Reza Lotfi and Naser Farhang perform Darvish Khan's "Chahar Mezrab-e Mahoor."
(6) Scam alert: Last week, I received an e-mail message from a professional friend, whom I meet often at conferences, asking me whether I could help him with something. I answered "yes." The reply was a sob story: He was out of the country and his sister had to be hospitalized for emergency surgery, requiring him to pay an up-front fee to the doctor, which he could not do from where he was. I asked the impostor to provide me with a phone number so that I could call to verify his request, stating that I would report him to authorities otherwise. The impostor's next reply, coming from a different address that I did not recognize as belonging to my friend, included an apology, indicating that all was okay with him and that he had been hacked! I cc'ed my real friend on the correspondence, to alert him of the hack and hope to hear from him soon, although if his account has been hacked, the cc's may also go to the impostor!

2018/12/07 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Pond in the city of Rasht, near the Caspian coast, Iran Wonderfully colorful traditional Torkaman wedding ceremony, Iran Street in the central city of Isfahan, Iran, after rain. (1) Beautiful Iran: [Left] Pond in the city of Rasht, near the Caspian coast. [Center] Wonderfully colorful traditional Torkaman wedding ceremony. [Right] Street in the central city of Isfahan, after rain.
(2) Happy 20th anniversary to ISS: On December 7, 1998, the first two International Space Station modules (Unity and Zarya) were joined together, beginning the assembly of the orbital lab.
(3) AP report: Google, Microsoft, IBM, Oracle, and Qualcomm execs gathered yesterday at the White House "amid strained ties" between the Administration and the tech industry and "an ongoing trade war with China."
(4) Racism: Arizona State Rep. David Stringer is banned from one of the school districts he represents, after suggesting that only white immigrants have been successfully assimilated into American society.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Republican strategist: Trump believes he can make the law go away by tweeting at it.
- Parents who lose children to school shootings develop bonds that transcend ideology and politics. [Image]
- This year's Black Friday set an all-time sales record of $6.22 billion: One-third of it was via smartphones.
- Bad habit: Nuns embezzle half a million dollars from school, spending it on vacations and gambling.
- No cure for HIV has been found yet, but science isn't giving up. [Ad for the company XOXOScience]
- Twitter stats released—Most tweeted-about: Donald Trump. Most "liked" or quoted: Barack Obama
- Persian music: Strong feminist message in a song from a century ago. Here is part of the Persian lyrics.
- A cheerful Azeri song, performed by the Rastak Ensemble with an Azeri guest vocalist. [Video]
(6) NCAA Soccer College Cup semifinals: After the end of my office hours and a couple of oral exams, I walked to Harder Stadium to watch both College Cup semifinals (Akron v. Michigan State and Indiana v. Maryland). The championship match will be played on Sunday at 5:00 PM. Even though UCSB isn't involved this year, we hope to qualify for 2020, when the College Cup returns to Santa Barbara. [Images]
The field at UCSB's Harder Stadium was in tip-top shape, as the first semifinal match between Akron and Michigan State began. [Photos, batch 1] Akron (in white uniforms) scored in the 16th minute, when a wide-open header on a crossed ball bounced off the crossbar and was put in the net by another player. Akron scored again in the 32nd minute on a beautiful header off a corner kick. Akron's goalie saved a couple of near-certain goals in the first half, allowing his team to go into halftime break with a 2-0 lead. Akron opened the second-half scoring in the 53rd minute on a wonderfully-placed free kick from 25 yards out. Akron's fourth goal, on an unassisted run, came in the 65th minute. After some tough luck and valiant saves by Akron's goalie, Michigan State finally got through in the 79th minute, scoring in the skirmish that followed a corner kick. Akron made the final score 5-1, finding the net again on a corner kick in the 85th minute.
The second semifinal match was between Indiana and Maryland. The tournament is being broadcast on one of Fox's sports channels, so TV cameras are present, as are electronic advertising banners, marching bands, and, of course, heavy security. [Photos, batch 2] In a fairly slow, defensive first half, Maryland (in white uniforms) opened the scoring in the 37th minute on a rebound from a corner kick, holding on to its 1-0 lead at halftime. Entering the last 30 minutes of the match, Indiana was energized, trying to even up the score, while Maryland was slowing down the tempo to protect its lead. Maryland scored again in the 80th minute, prevailing 2-0 and earning the right to play Akron on Sunday for the championship. My money is on Akron. [Video snippet]

2018/12/06 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Engineering and its various subareas: Word soup (1) What's in a Discipline's Name? Thoughts on Enrollment Crisis in Electrical Engineering: During our monthly UCSB/ECE faculty lunch of Tuesday 12/04, a lively discussion ensued about the crisis facing the EE discipline, as students migrate to the more "fashionable" computer science/engineering majors. A number of quick fixes were proposed, such as a PR campaign within high schools, to inform students about career possibilities and the attendant social impact for an EE graduate, and rebranding the major by introducing terms of current interest, such as "energy," in the department's name.
In my opinion, the impact of such cosmetic changes will be limited. Many engineering majors are misnamed, because their outdated names emphasize means and gadgets (how things are/were done) rather than end results (what is done). Within the fields of computer science and engineering, this topic has been discussed from time to time, with no clear resolution.
The name "computer science/engineering," for example, emphasizes the means ("computer") rather than the end ("information"). And this is true of the names of the field's most-prominent professional organizations, IEEE Computer Society and Association for Computing Machinery. Imagine names such as "telescope science" for cosmology, "microscope science" for microbiology, "car/vehicle science" for transportation engineering, and "aircraft science" for aerospace engineering! The old name "data processing" is perhaps more descriptive than "computer science," but it is now rather dated. The Europeans' choice of "informatics" turned out to be very forward-looking.
The need for thoughtful and precise naming is also evident for subdisciplines. Careless creation of terminology has brought about various subdiscipline names that to a great extent overlap with one another and lack clear delineation and purpose. Engineers and scientists must be taught and constantly reminded about the importance of a name reflecting the precise content and boundaries of what is being named. We are deluged with new terms such as "cyber-physical systems," "big data," "cloud computing," "fog computing," and "wireless sensor networks," most of which will fade, like so many of their predecessors.
Returning to my original point, what we now call "electrical engineering" at UCSB is really a collection of four subject areas that would be better called "information engineering," "material engineering," "communications engineering," and "control engineering," with each of the four areas overlapping with the activities and specialties in our other engineering departments; Other EE/ECE departments may also be concerned with "energy engineering." Electricity is no longer a defining attribute of these endeavors.
Isn't it time we organized engineering by ends rather than means?
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Mike Pence lies just as readily as Donald Trump, but he is less obvious about it!
- When thugs high-five each other and their stooge watches wistfully, because he's been told not to join in!
- Fatalities and dozens of injuries reported in suicide attack on a police post in the Iranian city of Chabahar.
- Huawei executive arrested by Canadian authorities, on US's request, for violating sanctions against Iran.
- How unsuspecting US veterans were used to funnel money from Saudi Arabia to the Trump Organization.
- Independent press? Fox News' Sean Hannity tells potential witnesses to criminal acts not to talk to FBI.
(3) Michael Flynn court document is the tip of a huge iceberg: His cooperation with Mueller apparently has aided a couple of secret investigations about which we don't know much.

2018/12/05 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover of 'Santa Barbara Independent' about the 2018 College Cup NCAA Soccer Cup 2018 logo Soccer action from a past College Cup (1) NCAA College Cup in Santa Barbara: Even though UCSB is not participating this year (it was eliminated early on), the top four men's soccer teams will be coming to town to play the semifinals (Friday, 12/7, 5:00 PM and 7:45 PM) and the final match (Sunday, 12/9, 5:00 PM). I will be going to all three games. The semifinals pairings are as follows. Akron, which beat Stanford 3-2, will play Michigan State, 2-1 victor over James Madison, at 5:00 PM. In the 7:45 PM match, Indiana, which prevailed over Notre Dame 1-0, will face Maryland, 1-0 victor over Kentucky. This is the second time UCSB hosts the College Cup and will do it again in December 2020 (the 2019 edition will be in Cary, NC). One reason for UCSB being favored by NCAA is its perennially strong soccer program and the large, enthusiastic crowds it attracts from among students and other Santa Barbara residents, shattering NCAA attendance records and gaining UCSB the nickname "Soccer Heaven."
(2) Today's funeral service for George H. W. Bush at Washington Cathedral was very dignified and full of interesting anecdotes and great humor. Perhaps only events like this can bring us Americans together, but we can't wish for more of them. RIP!
(3) ACM 2018 Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct: Almost all professional organizations develop and maintain an ethics code, spelling out the expected behavior of their members. Association for Computing Machinery's previous code, adopted in 1992, is being revised this year. The third draft of the new code is now available for previewing and comments.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- We need to restore faith in science, as the anti-vaxxer movement gains additional adherents.
- Researcher detained in Iran: Mullahs deem scholars in demography and population studies seditionists.
- Cartoon of the day: "People don't grasp the short-term consequences of saving the planet!" [Image]
- East-meets-West music: Casbah Shuffle on sitar, by Ashwin Batish (Sitar Power Band). [14-minute video]
- Ara Malikian performs "Misirlou" (the 1963 song, which was used as the theme of the movie "Pulp Fiction").
- Apt reminder, as we feast during the holidays, to open our hearts and wallets to the needy and the hungry.
- For every problem, there is an ingenious solution: Some methods of opening locked home or car doors.
(5) An unusual day in Goleta: We had periods of wind-driven rain that made an umbrella all but useless. The rain continued, at a gentler pace, as I took this photo of the Devereux Slough in the evening. I had my last classes for the quarter and will be done with teaching after my final exam on Monday and some grading tasks.

2018/12/04 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
An unusually clear view of the SB Channel Islands from the UCSB campus (due to high winds) The top half of the Christmas tree at the Camino Real Marketplace Useful gadget: Video doorbell that records hours of video and communicates with a smartphone app, photographed at Goleta Costco (1) Today in Goleta, CA: [Left] An unusually clear view of the SB Channel Islands from the UCSB campus. [Center] The top half of the Christmas tree at the Camino Real Marketplace. [Right] Useful gadget: Video doorbell that records hours of video and communicates with a smartphone app, photographed at Goleta Costco.
(2) Mind-boggling predictions for the next 7 billion years: Take these 41 predictions with a grain of salt. They range from the Jeddah Tower becoming the tallest building in the world in 2020, through completion of Shimizu Mega-City Pyramid in Tokyo in 2110 and Chernobyl becoming habitable once again in the year 20,000, to the Earth being sucked by a vastly expanded Sun in 7.59 billion years, ending all life as we know it.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Massive ground-beef recall: More than 12M lbs, with "EST. 267" stamped inside the USDA inspection mark.
- Trump cannot win the fight he started against General Motors, says Robert Reich in this opinion piece.
- Trump tries to hijack the Paris protests: He claims the protesters chant that they want Trump!
- Trump inflames or creates problems and later claims credit for half-baked solutions to those problems.
- A least-surprising revelation: MBS ordered and monitored the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
- California's Camp Fire "burns" an insurance company, whose liabilities are nearly three times its assets.
(4) Rising budget deficits during an economic boom: The US budget deficit ballooned after the 2008 crash, to save the economy. Then, it began declining, as the economy improved. Now, despite continued economic growth, deficits are rising, a highly unusual occurrence in good economic times.
(5) A robot in space: The spherical AI robot CIMON aboard the International Space Station communicates with IBM's Watson on Earth, so it can engage with the ISS crew. In one trial, CIMON identified and recognized an astronaut's face, took photos and video, positioned itself autonomously within a module via ultrasonic sensors, and issued instructions for the crew member to perform an experiment.
(6) Kronos Quartet, featuring Mahsa Vahdat: An amazing concert at UCSB's Campbell Hall tonight! [Images] The program, "Music for Change: The Banned Countries," included selections from Azerbaijan, Egypt, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Afghanistan, Somalia, Sudan, Mali, and several pieces from Iran, including a Kurdish encore, all arranged in the Quartet's unique musical style. Ms. Vahdat performed some of her own compositions based on poems by Hafez and Mowlavi (Rumi). Video recording was disallowed, so here's similar music from YouTube. [Mahsa Vahdat's "Dorna" and "Avaaz-e Shoushtari"] [Kronos Quartet's "Tiny Desk Concert"]

2018/12/03 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
32-legged robot, built by Japan's Keio and Tokyo Universities Cartoon: Social-media bullying and hate speech are on the rise, thanks to the Bully-and-Insulter-in-Chief! Types of nuts, excluding nuts like me and you! (1) Tech-related images: [Left] This 32-legged robot, built by Japan's Keio and Tokyo Universities, can move in any direction by extending, retracting, and bending its legs. It is ideal for planetary explorations and disaster-zone operations. (Image credit: IEEE Spectrum magazine) [Center] Social-media bullying and hate speech are on the rise, thanks to the Bully-and-Insulter-in-Chief! [Right] Types of nuts, excluding nuts like me and you!
(2) Spelling- and grammar-challenged people aren't safe in cyber-space: Rudy Giuliani failed to insert a space after a period, thus inadvertently creating a link to "G-20.In" within his tweet. Someone claimed that URL and posted a derogatory comment about Trump, to be seen by anyone who clicks on the link! [Tweet image]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Prosecutors say former Trump fundraiser Elliott Broidy received laundered foreign money.
- Chelsea Clinton posted this photo of her family with George H. W. Bush, recalling his decency and kindness.
- Humor: "It's now 2018; that's the highest-number year under any president!" ~ Donald John Trump
- Quote: "You don't lead by hitting people over the head—that's assault, not leadership." ~ Dwight Eisenhower
- Persian music: Mahsa Vahdat performs "Dorna" (traditional vocal style in a modern musical framework).
(4) Book review: Gilbert, Elizabeth, The Signature of All Things: A Novel, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Juliet Stevenson, Penguin Audio, 2013. [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image for Elizabeth Gilbert's 'The Signature of All Things' With this book, Gilbert returns to fiction, producing another typically delightful book. The characters are so carefully researched and elaborately described that the story, unfolding in the 18th and 19th centuries, reads like a historical treatise.
The central character is Alma, the bright daughter of Henry Whittaker, a man who went from rags (in England) to riches (in Philadelphia). Alma, with her curious mind and insatiable appetite for knowledge, ultimately becomes a botanist and falls in love with Ambrose Pike, another curious soul who is an orchid-painting utopian artist. Alma and Ambrose share a passion for understanding the workings of our world and the wonders of life.
Quite a few other characters and diverse geographic locales appear in the story, adding to its richness, as it explores deep ideas in science, religion, and commerce, and how these notions influenced the course of human history. An enjoyable read that also teaches the reader a great deal!
(5) Final thought for the day: G-mail now offers suggested replies to e-mails you receive ("smart replies"), as if we need to become even more machine-like in our interpersonal communications.

2018/12/02 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Skateboarding in New York City, 1965 Abraham Lincoln's inauguration, 1861 Albert Einstein lecturing on relativity, 1922 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Skateboarding in New York City, 1965 (Credit: Life magazine). [Center] Abraham Lincoln's inauguration, 1861. [Right] Albert Einstein lecturing on relativity, 1922.
(2) Happy Hanukkah to all who observe the Jewish Festival of Light. Hanukkah, which begins tonight, comes around Christmas, but the exact date fluctuates due to Hebrew calendar's lunar year being about 11 days shorter than our solar year. Jewish holidays fluctuate, rather than move throughout the year, because every 2-3 years (7 times in each 19-year cycle, to be exact), an extra month is added to the calendar to put it back in step with the seasons and the Grogorian calendar. There are also occasional one-day adjustments to two other calendar months to prevent certain Jewish holidays from falling on specific days of the week. Therefore, a common Jewish year may have three different lengths: 353, 354, 355 days. The 13-month "leap year" also has three possible lengths: 383, 384, 385 days. TimeandDate.com has an article on "The Jewish Leap Year."
(3) Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson is being investigated for sexual misconduct: The alleged conducts are serious, and, if proven true, inexcusable. I like Tyson's wit and his efforts to bring science to the masses. But we can't have different standards for people we like and those we disdain. I will follow up on this story and will post again when I learn more.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Defense Secretary Mattis reveals that there is evidence Putin tried to interfere in our midterm elections.
- Paul Manfort could face more charges, increasing his jail time and the probability of turning against Trump.
- Mexicans outraged: Jared Kushner is awarded Mexico's highest honor, the Order of the Aztec Eagle.
- National Geographic's best photos of 2018 (curated): A feast for you eyes and mind.
- Persian music: The pop duo Andy and Kouros perform "Niloufar" on a concert stage.
- A beautiful performance, with masterful solos, of a piece by Niccolo Paganini at the Venice Carnival.
(5) For-profit conferences: Just like pay-to-publish journals which do little for scientific progress but fill the pockets of their publishers through "open-access publication fees," conferences are proliferating around the world to make money and to generate fake honors for their organizers and scores of people typically included on their technical program committees. By sending e-mails exemplified in the following fragment (copied verbatim from one of the many invitations I receive weekly), they stroke potential participants' egos, often in very poor English, to lure them into submitting papers and paying the conference fees.
"We came across your research work. You are a frontier with a multitude of experience and skill who can offer an in-depth explanation of the advancements and innovations. ... We wish to have your gracious presence as a Speaker to give an Oral presentation at our upcoming, Joint Conference on ..."

2018/12/01 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
An isolated and despised Trump at the G20 Summit Cartoon: He's making a list ... Checking it now ... Gotta find out who's naughty and how ... Robert Mueller's coming to town! New Yorker cartoon: Christmas spirit at the White House (1) Trump-related meme and cartoons: [Left] Trump looked ill-at-ease at the G20 Summit (see item 2 below). [Center] Song of the season: He's making a list ... Checking it now ... Gotta find out who's naughty and how ... Robert Mueller's coming to town! [Right] Christmas spirit at the White House (from The New Yorker).
(2) An isolated and despised Trump at the G20 Summit: Previously, Trump cancelled his meeting with Putin at the G20, blaming Russia's actions in Ukraine. Days after the said actions, until he boarded AF1 to fly to the Summit, he was still saying the two would meet. Only after news broke that Michael Cohen had admitted to lying about his Russia connections did Trump cancel. Now, Trump has cancelled his G20 press conference, citing respect for the Bush family. Since when has he developed this respect? His tweets certainly show no respect for 41, or 43, or 41's other son. Isn't the cancellation due to the fact that he would be asked about Bush, and Putin, and he did not know what to say?
(3) Persian Music: Some early Iranian films were referred to as "aabgooshti movies," because they invariably contained scenes of the protagonist (a man, of course) eating aabgoosht, a popular traditional lamb stew/soup in Iran. Here is a lighthearted song praising aabgoosht and the usual sides that go with it.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- George H. W. Bush, the one-term 41st US President, dies at 94 in Kennebunkport, ME.
- Famous inventions: Dunlop patented the inflatable tire in December 1888 (130 years ago). [Video]
- Some road hazards can be avoided by not driving behind or near vehicles carrying large, awkward loads.
- Humor: One way to force rude young men to yield their seats to a blind girl! [Video]
- Hilarious comedy skit: Conan O'Brien rents a family in Japan and trains the members to laugh at his jokes.
- Mohammad Nouri sings the beautiful oldie "Nazanin-e Maryam" ("Beloved Maryam") in this 9-minute video.
(5) Artificial intelligence is changing the legal industry: Asked whether he could see a day when AI-driven smart machines will assist with courtroom fact-finding or, more controversially even, judicial decision-making, Chief Supreme Court Justice John Roberts responded: "It's a day that's here and it's putting a significant strain on how the judiciary goes about doing things." This CACM article discusses whether AI judges and juries, with unemotional Vulcan-like reasoning and deduction abilities, are coming to our judicial system.
(6) Tonight's concert by UCSB Middle East Ensemble at Lotte Lehman Concert Hall: The Ensemble is marking its 30th year of activity. The program included Arabic music and dance, along with selections from Armenia, Jewish-Morocco, and Iran. [Photos] The following four videos are represntative of the diverse program.
Video 1: Armenian song/dance, "Khorotik Morotik" ("Flirtatious Love"), with solo vocalist Varduhi Sargsyan.
Video 2: Arabic solo dance, by guest performer Laura Leyl, set to the instrumental composition "Raqs Layla."
Video 3: Armenian song, known as "Sari Aghchik" ("Mountain Girl") or "Vard Sireci" ("I Loved a Rose").
Video 4: Persian dance, choreographed by Shahrzad Khorsandi, set to Mahshid Mirzadeh's "Seh Andarz."

2018/11/30 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Above Valley Falls, West Virginia. Sunset in Izmir, Turkey Bluebell season, England (1) Best Earth Pics: [Left] Above Valley Falls, West Virginia. [Center] Sunset in Izmir, Turkey. [Right] Bluebell season, England.
(2) Missing the good-old days, when small-scale data breaches were considered big news: Now, half a billion Marriott customer accounts are compromised and no one even blinks!
(3) Scientists are trusted to accurately land a craft on Mars but are considered wrong on climate change by a real-estate developer who claims to have a really large brain. [Tweet by Neil deGrasse Tyson]
(4) My home-office: Here is a panoramic view of my study from where I sit at my computer workstation. These photos, taken last night and today, show my study, with a minimalist decorative holiday tree and the two small walls, not covered with bookcases, holding my beloved family photos and various useful maps.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- California communities devastated by the deadliest fire in state's history are now coping with flash floods.
- Magnitude-7.0 earthquake rocks Anchorage, Alaska, causing major infrastructure damage. [CNN video]
- Sheryl Sandberg was indeed involved in ordering dirt-digging on George Soros and other Facebook critics.
- Thinking outside the box: How about putting airbags outside as well as inside cars to make crashes safer?
- Persian music: A tribute slide show to the late Mohammad Nouri, featuring his signature song "Nemisheh."
- Oldest depiction of Jesus discovered in the ruined baptistery of the northern church in desert of Shivta.
(6) The power of suggestion: Payless Shoes conducted a social experiment, creating the "Palessi" fictional brand and marking up their $20-$40 shoes about twenty-fold in a shoe boutique. Customers actually bought the obscenely-priced shoes. They got a refund at the end and also got to keep the shoes. Brilliant marketing!
(7) Final thought for the day: "There are many jobs that you can do, and do them well, while believing that the Earth is flat or 6000 years old, but if these are your beliefs, you should not head NASA or be in Congress." ~ Astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson, in an interview with PBS, aired tonight on "Firing Line" (not an exact quote; reproduced from memory)

2018/11/29 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Germany, 1930s; Iran, 2010s; America, ? Image from NYT article on dwindling insect populations Cartoon: Striking workers in Iran are seeking, and not getting much, solidarity from their fellow Iranians (1) Iran-related cartoons from Iranwire.com, and another cautionary tale from science: [left] Germany, 1930s; Iran, 2010s; America, ? [Center] Image from NYT article on dwindling insect populations (see item 2 below). [Right] Striking workers in Iran are seeking, and not getting much, solidarity from their fellow Iranians.
(2) Why our car windshields are no longer killing grounds for a vast array of insects? Is it because insect populations are dwindling? A joint study by universities in Denmark and the US recruited 200 Danes to drive through a variety of habitats, with their windshields replaced by nets, to test this hypothesis. It is indeed true that insects have fallen prey to a massive loss of biodiversity on Earth, the so-called "Sixth Extinction." Read the highly detailed account, with ample references to previous studies about the trend and its potential impacts on our lives, in this New York Times article.
(3) Genetically-edited twins born: A Chinese scientist, who claims to have been involved in producing the first human beings (twin baby girls) born with edited genomes, is facing skepticism and criticism. Of course, the feasibility of such a feat isn't in doubt, but ethical considerations had prevented other scientists from attempting gene-editing on humans. It is the background of the Chinese scientist, who had never before presented his work publicly, save for a handful of YouTube videos, that fuels the skepticism.
(4) An interesting account of what's in store for NASA's new Mars lander, before it begins its explorations in a few months, and why it takes so long to get started. [Space.com article]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump is stuck in 19th-century mining/manufacturing jobs, while businesses want to pivot toward high-tech.
- Trump floats the idea of pardoning Manafort; others doubt he'd be willing to pay the huge political cost.
- Trump's former attorney/fixer admits to lying to Congress about efforts to build a Trump Tower in Russia.
- Apt response to Trump's "I don't believe it" reaction to his administration's climate-change impact report.
- At last: Heavy rain in Santa Barbara! [Photos, from Thursday, November 29]
(6) These figures (with captions) from an article published in the October 2018 issue of IEEE Computer tell an interesting story about how women have been viewed/treated in computing, to the detriment of our country. [Citation: Hicks, Marie, "When Winning Is Losing: Why the Nation that Invented the Computer Lost Its Lead," IEEE Computer, Vol. 51, No. 10, pp. 48-57, October 2018.]

2018/11/28 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Trump and evangelicals: Strange bedfellows (cartoon) Trump to Merkel: 'You guys in Berlin had a terrific wall.' (Cartoon)  Meme of the day: Clown Prince Donald bin Fred al Trump (1) Trump-related humor: [Left] Trump and evangelicals: Strange bedfellows. [Center] Trump to Merkel: "You guys in Berlin had a terrific wall." [Right] Meme of the day: Clown Prince Donald bin Fred al Trump.
(2) Robots to the rescue: Walking and swimming robots are used to investigate Fukushima's failed reactors to find out where the fuel (lethal for centuries) has gone. The robots help produce 3D virtual-reality models of the reactors' insides for humans to explore. The site has turned into a robotics research laboratory. [CBS report]
(3) Whose life was ruined? Brett Kavanaugh sits on the Supreme Court and has gone back to coaching girls' basketball. Christine Blasey-Ford continues to receive death threats.
(4) Disdain for science: Donald Trump and his press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders dismiss the findings of a climate report issued over the Thanksgiving weekend, based on the work of 300 scientists and 13 federal agencies. We have a President who acts as his own economic adviser, climate scientist, and diplomatic corps!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- US midterm election results were a mixed bag for science: A number of senior, experienced lawmakers who were champions of research funding were ousted.
- Thin-skinned President walks away when fact-checked by a CBS reporter.
- Shahrzad Nazifi, a Baha'i and the first female motocross champion in Iran, has been arrested.
- The Age of Megafires: A prophetic report, first aired 11 years ago by CBS newsmagazine "60 Minutes"!
- A wonderful performance of "Despacito" by a piano-cello duo.
- Amazon patents an airbag that is inflated by a drone before dropping a package for delivery.
- This 2-year-old time-lapse video from NASA shows the disappearing arctic ice over the period 1991-2016.
- Most-dangerous countries to visit: I was surprised to learn that nearly all parts of Iran are rated very safe.
(6) To Kill a Mockingbird: The beloved novel is becoming a Broadway play for a modern audience, to open in December, 58 years after the book was published and 56 years after the release of a successful movie based on it. Jeff Daniels will play attorney Atticus Finch, the role that earned Gregory Peck an Oscar. [CBS report]

2018/11/27 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Poster: Stop violence against women! The art of rock-balancing: A giant foot Breaking the chains, on the way to freedom (1) An important cause, and some art: [Left] The most dangerous place for women is home: More than half of worldwide female murder victims last year were killed by their partners or family members, according to a new UN report. [Center] The art of rock-balancing: Giant foot in Zurich, Switzerland (artist unknown; photographed by Ms. Shirin Dabir). [Right] Breaking the chains, on the way to freedom.
(2) Cities used to burn to the ground all the time until the 1920s: Then, we started to do the equivalent of vaccination by developing fire codes and using fire-resistant building materials. Once cities stopped burning, we grew complacent and wavered in strict enforcement of fire codes. It's time to go back to the drawing board and use the knowledge we have gained to avoid another Paradise-like catastrophe.
(3) WSJ Econ 101: Trump boasts that his new tariffs are pouring money into the US coffers, not knowing, or conveniently forgetting, that those same tariffs lead to higher prices, a form of regressive tax on all Americans.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Major snowstorm causes thousands of flight cancellations in United States' Midwest region.
- Firing of tear gas and closing of US entry escalate the crisis at US-Mexico border.
- Magnitude-6.3 quake in Iran, centered near Sarpol-e Zahab, injures hundreds in Kermanshah and vicinity.
- The prophetic film "Network" comes to the stage: Artistic version of "Fake News" by playwright Lee Hall!
- Humor: When the pool's on-duty lifeguard has to take a bathroom break! [Video]
- Azeri music: Wonderful song performed by the Rastak Ensemble, accompanied by a guest singer. [Video]
- Persian music: Two young girls perform (violin and vocals) the oldie song "Simin Bari" on a street in Tehran.
- Persian Music: Beautiful oldie, performed with smiles and joy. The performers are unknown to me. [Video]
(5) "First Man," a "Script to Screen" presentation at UCSB's Pollock Theater: The acclaimed 2018 film, telling the story of America's space program in the decade leading to the 1969 moon landing, was screened tonight, followed by a moderated discussion with its Oscar-winning screenwriter Josh Singer. The film is based on James R. Hansen's book by the same title. The film's central character is Neil Armstrong. Even though there is admirable attention to technical details, with eye-popping special effects, the real focus of the film is the emotional travails of Armstrong (played by Ryan Gosling), as well as other astronauts and their families, when faced with intensive training and high-risk space missions. A flyer along with a few pages of the screenplay were distributed to the audience. [Images]

2018/11/26 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) Mars landing: After its 7-month journey from Earth and 7-minute descent through the Martian atmosphere, the landing module of NASA's InSight Probe touched down on Mars just before noon, PST, today. A manned mission to Mars for the 2030s is said to be in planning stages. [Video]
(2) US State Department report: Khashoggi's problems first arose not because he criticized Saudi leaders, but because he criticized Donald Trump. This explains Trump's weak reaction to the gruesome killing.
(3) Informatics Society of Iran (ISI) turns 40: This momentous anniversary was celebrated last Wednesday, 2018/11/21, in Tehran. As the lead founder of the Society in 1978 and its President for the first 5 years of its existence, I was asked to send a special message to its members. [2-minute Persian video message]
This Google Drive contains a number of videos related to Informatics Society of Iran's 40th-anniversary celebration. Titles of and inks to individual MP4 Persian-language videos on the drive follow. [Introducing ISI] [Message from Dr. Parhami] [ISI Teaser] [ISI Reminiscences] [ISI Activities]
(4) Applying ML & NLP at Google Ads: This was the title of a talk by Dr. Kazoo Sone (Google software engineer) on machine learning and natural-language processing, as applied at Google Ads.
Dr. Sone discussed the difficulties of supervised learning, in view of its need for vast amounts of labeled data. Even though it appears that Google does enjoy access to vast amounts of data, the portion of the data that is labeled is often inadequate for training strong supervised learning models. Using examples from quality improvement efforts for search ads, Dr. Sone described some of Google's challenges and experiences, both from the machine-learning perspective and the NLP research that links an ad's performance to its writing style, particularly what words in ads influence our decision-making. [Some slides]
One annoying feature of such talks is that a lot of buzzwords are thrown around and claims made, with little technical depth. This is a direct consequence of companies wanting to hold on to technical know-how for fear of rivals using the knowledge, which is utterly incompatible with a university's mission to spread knowledge.
(5) UCSB Faculty Research Lecture: Each year, a UCSB colleague is honored as Faculty Research Lecturer and tasked with delivering a public lecture to describe his/her leading-edge discoveries to the campus community. The 2018 honoree, my ECE colleague Professor Umesh K. Mishra, spoke at Corwin Pavilion this afternoon under the title "Thank God for Gallium Nitride."
The development of blue and white LEDs by Nobel Laureate and UCSB colleague Shuji Nakamura generated much excitement about Gallium Nitride (GaN), whose applications have spread beyond general lighting to lasers, horticulture, and electronics. Hybrid and electric vehicles, data servers, solar inverters, robotics, gaming, and communications across a large band of interests are all being served by GaN in important ways.
Professor Mishra described his research results on GaN and its varied applications, characterizing it as the miracle material that keeps on giving. Borrowing a phrase from former President Obama, the speaker ended his talk with the slogan "Yes We GaN"! [Some slides]

2018/11/25 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Isfahan City Festival, Iran: Photo 1 Isfahan City Festival, Iran: Photo 2 Isfahan City Festival, Iran: Photo 3 Isfahan City Festival, Iran: Photo 4 Isfahan City Festival, Iran: Photo 5 Isfahan City Festival, Iran: Photo 6 (1) Isfahan Festival: Locals don traditional costumes and demonstrate arts/crafts for which Isfahan is famous.
(2) About town on a beautiful sunny Sunday: Having lunch with the kids at Hamburger Habit in Isla Vista, photographing the birds of the US Pacific Coast at Campus Poing Beach and UCSB Lagoon, and capturing the beauty of the southeastern end of the UCSB campus in photos and a 1-minute video.
(3) Beautiful Iran: This time-lapse video captures Isfahan's sights and culture. By the number of items I have posted about Isfahan, you can probably tell that I have an Isfahani friend feeding me videos and other posts about the historic city!
(4) Music/dance video: This French tune entitled "Natalie" was quite popular in Iran during my youth. In it, the singer reminisces about a beautiful guide he had when he visited Moscow's Red Square.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Saudi Arabia joins Trump in spreading doubts about CIA's credibility.
- Words and actions from "The Lion King" versus "The Lying King": Some similarities. [Video]
- Hi-tech transportation: The airplane that transports airplanes! [Video]
- Lo-tech transportation: Transporting sheep on a bicycle! [Video]
- Quote: "When you feel dog-tired at night, it may be because you've growled all day long." ~ Anonymous
- Final thought for the day: "There are as many martyrs for bad causes as for good ones." ~ Anonymous

2018/11/24 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Our perfect-attendance photo with all 18 family members present, taken today as part of Thanksgiving-weekend gathering (1) Perfect-attendance photo with all family members present, taken today as part of Thanksgiving gathering.
- My mom, the 89-year-old family matriarch, with all of her 7 grandkids and both great-grandkids. [Photo]
- My mom photographed separately with each of her 4 children, alongside his/her family. [Photo collection]
(2) With light-weight material, spraying particles into the Earth's atmosphere or installing space reflectors may prove feasible in a decade or two for slowing down global warming.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Anti-government protests turn violent in Paris: Police fires tear gas into the crowd. [Images]
- Chilling repetition of history: The "failing" New York Times was at it, spreading "Fake News," 80 years ago.
- Subject explains global warming to know-it-all King. [Tweet images]
- IEEE uses a photo from its Iran Section (or is it Turkey?) in its campaign to attract more student members.
- Quote of the day: "To be trusted is a greater compliment than to be loved." ~ George Macdonald
- "My warning about social media has had 50,000 retweets." [Cartoon credit: E&T magazine, Nov. 2018]
(4) Serendipitous learning: The freshman seminar I teach this quarter meets in UCSB's Humanities and Social Sciences Building. Walking to class and having a few minutes to kill one day last week, I looked at a few posters on the hallway's walls. This particular poster reports on a study that demonstrates positive correlation between milk DHA levels and PISA math scores in 26 nations, once statistically controlled for per-capita GDP.
(5) Final thought for the day: "Never try to reason the prejudice out of a man. It was not reasoned into him, and cannot be reasoned out." ~ Sydney Smith

2018/11/23 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Woke up to a sunny post-Thanksgiving Friday, with gorgeous blue skies: Nothing black about it! Mount Damavand, a dormant volcano which is Iran's tallest peak, shot from Poloor by an anonymous friend My daughter's apple-pie creation for Thanksgiving (1) Beauty, natural and human-made: [Left] Woke up to a sunny post-Thanksgiving Friday, with gorgeous blue skies: Nothing black about it! [Center] Mount Damavand, a dormant volcano which is Iran's tallest peak, shot from Poloor by an anonymous friend. [Right] My daughter's apple-pie creation for Thanksgiving.
(2) The Bully-in-Chief hears back from many Twitter users about his stance that lower oil prices are more important than holding Saudi Arabia accountable for its crimes. [Tweet image]
(3) Advice to MBS: Don't delude yourself that you are safe because Trump stands by you and even thanks you! The American people and the rest of the world will hold you accountable.
(4) Iran's Mountain-Climbing Association (a government entity) has announced that women need permission from their husbands or male guardians before going hiking or climbing.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- CIA may have recording of MBS ordering the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
- The lies continue to pile up! [Trump lied when he said CIA didn't link Saudi Prince to Khashoggi killing."]
- Deadly wildfires, hurricanes, and heat waves, already battering the United States, will worsen over time.
- Isaac Larian: Man who left the Iran's slums as a teen now runs one of America's biggest toy companies.
- iPad magic: There are quite a few digital-magic-trick videos like this one on the Internet.
- Quote: "A conscience is what hurts when all your other parts feel good." ~ Comedian Steven Wright
(6) Facebook knew about Russians interfering in US election more than a year before publicly admitting it: Then it hired a PR firm to control the damage and dig dirt on critics.
(7) Trump calls reports about his displeasure with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin "Fake News," adding that they never ask him about such cases, because it would ruin their stories.
No, Donald; they don't ask you because you lie!
(8) Beliefs of Brits and British Christians: The only subject about which Brits as a whole are more positive than the Christians among them is alien-life/UFOs. On karma and magic, there is little difference between Brits and British Christians. [Chart from E&T magazine, issue of November 2018]

2018/11/22 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
John Wayne at 23 years old, 1930 The Beatles, on stage in Paris, 1965 Young Clint Eastwood, undated photo (1) Film and music history in pictures: [Left] John Wayne at 23 years old, 1930. [Center] The Beatles, on stage in Paris, 1965. [Right] Young Clint Eastwood, undated photo.
(2) Happy Thanksgiving Day to all my family members and friends, especially to my three children. May you all have an abundance of things for which to be thankful and may our relationships and friendships have better fates than the Thanksgiving-Day turkey! [Image]
(3) It's official now: The 2018 US midterm election results saw Republicans suffer the worst House defeat in US history. [Source: Newsweek magazine]
(4) Jeff Sessions is no hero: It's tempting to praise Sessions, because he stood up to Trump on certain issues and was bullied by him. But examining his record as AG leaves no doubt that he is a regressive individual living in the past and wanting to reverse decades of US civil rights gains.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Samsung is investing heavily on its foldable smartphone: Apple is sure to follow suit. [Source: Newsweek]
- Iran exevutes the "Gold-Coins King": He must have stepped on the toes of other grand thieves! [Cartoon]
- Teachers' strike in Iran leads to a wave of arrests.
- Female singers, who are banned by Iran's government, hold underground concerts through acquaintances.
(6) Chief of Staff John Kelly accused Fox News' Jeanine Pirro of "inflaming an already vexed Trump," when she told him in the Oval Office that he should get the DoJ to investigate H. Clinton for the Uranium One deal.
(7) Pot calling the kettle black: Turkish officials have condenmned the "comical" Trump stance on MBS. Of course, Turkey scarecely has a better human-rights record than Saudi Arabia.
(8) Persian music: Much of the pre-Islamic-Revolution music and other art forms are no longer shown on Iran's state TV, but people recuperate and cherish them in private gatherings and, when they can, on the streets.
(9) Persian music: Hossein Khajeh-Amiri, aka Iraj, and Salar Aghili perform "Aavaay-e Iran" ("The Voice of Iran") in this 6-minute video production sponsored by the Export Bank of Iran. [Other credits in the video]

2018/11/21 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
More heart-wrenching scenes from November 2018 California wildfires: Photo 1 More heart-wrenching scenes from November 2018 California wildfires: Photo 2 More heart-wrenching scenes from November 2018 California wildfires: Photo 3 (1) Three more heart-wrenching photos from November 2018 California wildfires.
(2) Advice about tech and social media: People sound tough and in control, but they are scared and confused behind the fake facade. We should take control of our lives back from constant distraction by non-stop connectivity. [10-minute video, with Persian subtitles]
(3) Middle-age American men are threatened more by loneliness than by consequences of obesity or smoking: A 2017 Boston Globe article, expertly translated into Persian by Farnaz Seifi.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump wanted to order the DoJ to prosecute H. Clinton and J. Comey, but his lawyers wouldn't comply.
- A new breed of legislators arrive in Washington, ready to swim with and defeat swamp creatures! [Tweet]
- Report: Religion is blamed for violence against women. Me: Duh! [Source: Newsweek magazine]
- Cartoon of the day: Natural disasters hit California! [Image]
- Pinpointing one of our dilemmas: "Knowledge is power. Ignorance is bliss. Tough choice!" ~ Anonymous
- Humor: Perils of traveling abroad without knowing the local language. [1-minute video]
- Santa Barbara in late November: Today, on the east side of the UCSB Campus. [Photos]
- Fortune cookies have been giving me wonderful advice of late: "Delight in a friend's success." [Images]
(5) Quote of the day: "The myth holds that Trump is a tough guy who fights back. In fact, he is a fragile man running out of safe places to hide." ~ Author and CNN commentator Michael D'Antonio
(6) The Holiday Season is upon us and, with it, come holiday scams followed by tax scams (fraudulently filing your taxes and getting your refund). Be particularly vigilant with your charity donations over the next month, as scammers position themselves to take advantage of the holiday spirit.
(7) Human-rights report: Saudi Arabia electrocuted, flogged, and sexually abused female activists. Meanwhile, on the eve of Thanksgiving Day, Trump has indicated that he is grateful to Saudis for helping lower oil prices. How low have we sunk as a nation to thank murderous thugs for saving us a few cents on a gallon of gas?
(8) Trump attacks the judiciary again: "We do not have Obama judges or Trump judges, Bush judges or Clinton judges." ~ Chief SCOTUS Justice John Roberts, after Trump berated a judge as "an Obama Judge" (Trump dismissed Roberts comments in subsequent tweets)

2018/11/20 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Example of devastation from California wildfires Brexit commemorative 50p coin Humor: Californians take Trump's suggestions to heart! (1) Reality and some political humor: [Left] Example of devastation from California wildfires. [Center] Brexit commemorative 50p coin. [Right] Preventing wildfires: Californians take Trump's suggestions to heart!
(2) After dissing the late Senator John McCain for being captured, bone-spurs Donnie attacks highly decorated retired Admiral William McRaven for not killing Osama Bin Laden sooner. Are our military leaders asleep? Why are they putting up with this nonsense?
(3) Quote of the day: "The old cliche about laughter being the best medicine turns out to be true, which is good because that's what the current administration is trying to replace Obamacare with." ~ Julia Louis-Dreyfus, while accepting the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in October 2018
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Private e-mail account: Let's recycle Trump's old tweets, with Hilary Clinton replaced by Ivanka Trump.
- WH staff is bracing for tweetstorms during Trump's unsupervised time at Mar-a-Lago over Thanksgiving.
- Alarm bells go off as a Kremlin-backed Russian becomes one of two nominees to run Interpol.
- CDC issues an unusually broad warning against eating romaine lettuce in any form and from any source.
- Cartoon Collections: If you like New Yorker's cartoons, this Web site, has many of those, and more.
- I have been following this fortune-cookie advice for several years now and it seems to be working!
- Beautiful Azeri music and dance: No info about performers or venue. [4-minute video]
- Iranian Music: Sepidar Ensemble performs Qajar-era music in a historic palace setting. [27-minute video]
(5) Because of his hatred toward Iran, Trump stands by murderous MBS: "In any case, our relationship is with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. They have been a great ally in our very important fight against Iran."
(6) It's now certain the WH Chief of Staff John Kelly will be replaced: Ivanka, Jared, and Trump's two sons have their favorite (Mike Pence's young Chief of Staff), but Kelly has his supporters among WH insiders too.

2018/11/19 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Multi-player computer game from the 1990s Fireman's bicycle, 1905 Car hi-fi system, 1960 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Multi-player computer game from the 1990s. [Center] Fireman's bicycle, 1905. [Right] Car hi-fi system, 1960s.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Mitch McConnell takes hypocrisy to the next level by accusing Democrats of partisan politics. [Quotes]
- Leaked SMS texts from an insecure Voxox server exposed password resets and two-factor codes.
- Persian Music: A beautiful performance of the golden oldie "Beh Esfahan Ro" ("Go to Isfahan").
- This little girl won't let no freaking pigeon take away food that is hers! [1-minute video]
- Tehran University's College of Engineering is utterly inaccessible to wheelchair-bound individuals. [Image]
- Drivers helping a man who seems to have car trouble are pleasantly surprised!
- Good for a chuckle: What did the janitor say when he jumped out of the closet? ... Supplies!
- Cartoon of the day, as we approach Thanksgiving: "No giblets, but there's an organ-donor card." [Image]
The bulletin board outside my UCSB office, updated today with cover images of my existing and forthcoming books (3) Bulletin board outside my UCSB office, updated today with cover images of my published and forthcoming books.
(4) Concealed Online: For-profit pro-gun entity that was among the biggest spenders on Facebook political ads during the 2018 US midterm elections.
(5) Black Friday: A day when Americans trample others to get to on-sale items, exactly one day after giving thanks for all the things they have.
(6) Translated into English from a church posting in France: If you want to talk to God, enter, choose a quiet place, and talk to Him. If you want to see Him, send him a text message while driving.
(7) Quote of the day: "The course of history is directed by the choices we make and our choices grow out of the ideas, the beliefs, the values, the dreams of the people. It is not so much the powerful leaders that determine our destiny as the much more powerful influence of the combined voice of the people themselves." ~ Eleanor Roosevelt, writing shortly before her 1962 passing
(8) Newsletter headline, referring to NYT story that Harvard, Stanford, and other universities want to address tech's ethical dark side: Universities Look to Bring "Medicine-Like Morality to Computer Science." Me: Oh no!

2018/11/18 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Trump's presidency is in many ways similar to Nixon's, with the crookedness vastly amplified MAGA wall-building block set Trump toilet-cleaning brush (1) Trump-related designs: [Left] Trump's presidency is in many ways similar to Nixon's, with the crookedness vastly amplified. [Center] MAGA wall-building block set. [Right] Trump toilet-cleaning brush.
(2) And now, some humor from the man-child in the White House: "The White House is running very smoothly and the results for our Nation are obviously very good. We are the envy of the world. But anytime I even think about making changes, the FAKE NEWS MEDIA goes crazy, always seeking to make us look as bad as possible! Very dishonest!" ~ DJT tweet
(3) Look who's giving lessons on decorum: Trump has said that he'll walk out of press conferences if reporters are rude to him. Perhaps reporters should reciprocate the next time he says "What a stupid question"!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Northern California fire death toll now at 71, with ~1000 missing. The area has world's worst air quality.
- Devastating fire in SoCal's Malibu area stopped moving westward only when it reached the Pacific Ocean.
- Horse survived California wildfire by taking shelter in a pool: It was shivering uncontrollably when rescued.
- More than 200 mass graves found in areas of Iraq formerly controlled by ISIS, according to a UN report.
- Saudi Arabia beheads Indonesian maid for killing her boss as he was raping her.
- Someone who voted at the last minute is smiling: Democrat wins Kentucky House race by a single vote!
(5) The Metric System redefined: On Friday, October 16, 2018, representatives from 60 different countries voted unanimously to rid the Metric System of its dependence on physical objects, such as the platinum-iridium cylinder (stored under lock and key in France) that defined the kilogram. Everything is now defined in terms of fundamental constants of nature, making the units more accurate and easily reproducible, even on Mars.
(6) "Leave No Trace": In this 2018 movie, screened at UCSB's Pollock Theater as part of the "Script to Screen" series on Saturday 11/17, a man (Ben Foster) and his teenage daughter (Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie, offering a superb performance) have lived off the grid, in a forest near Portland, Oregon, for years. The father is a PTSD-suffering veteran who wants to be on his own. The daughter accompanies him, despite yearning for a social life and a phone! Their idyllic life is shattered, when both are placed into social services and taken to live on a farm. After clashing with their new surroundings, the pair set off on a harrowing journey back to their wild homeland. The early part of the film is based on the true story of a man and a young girl brought in from their forest dwelling. Peter Rock turned it into the novel My Abandonment, on which the movie is based. The film screening was followed by a moderated discussion with Director/Co-Writer Debra Granik. [Images]
(7) UCSB Faculty Artist Recital: World-renowned flutist and Music Department Professor Jill Felber performed at Karl Geiringer Hall, accompanied by the Nexus String Quartet [Program/bios/photos]. An enjoyable performance in an intimate setting; one of the perks of working at a major university with wonderful artists and arts departments. A variation from the first piece on the program, a composition for flute and string quartet by composer/pianist Amy Marcy Cheney Beach [1867-1944], is captured in this 1-minute video. A short sample from Mozart's String Quartet No. 19 in C Major, K. 465, "Dissonance," performed by the Nexus String Quartet appears in this 2-minute video.

2018/11/17 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) Book review: Moshfegh, Ottessa, My Year of Rest and Relaxation, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Julia Whelan, Penguin Audio, 2018. [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image for Ottessa Moshfegh's 'My Year of Rest and Relaxation' This novel is set in the year 2000, when an anti-social twenty-something woman, fired from her job and with an inheritance to sustain her, decides to cut off from the world and lead a drug-addled existence pent-up in her apartment. Moshfegh has received a great deal of attention for this novel and other works.
The novel isn't just about the protagonist's year of rest and relaxation, but has flashbacks to other parts of her life. Moshfegh's story comes across as the whinings of an entitled young woman. After a few chapters, one gets tired of the repeated recitation of the lists of pills the young woman took, and descriptions of her disjointed states after she woke up from long sleeps. One can't help but wonder how the protagonist could remember all those details, when her mind was fogged up.
On the positive side, the writing is extremely good. Moshfegh seems to have a natural flair for the English language, and I hope to someday read other works from her that are a bit more consequential.
(2) This 1-minute audio clip is said to be the oldest recording of Iranian diva Googoosh, showcasing her talent at a very young age and demonstrating why she is still going strong at age 68.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Investigation report: The Florida International University bridge that collapsed in March had design errors.
- Seven women file a $70 million lawsuit against Dartmouth for shielding sexual predators.
- First cartoon of the day: "It's going to be a long couple of years." [Image]
- Second cartoon of the day: "Now, that's a representative parliament!" [Image]
- Oxford English Dictionary's Word of the Year for 2018: "Toxic" [Here is the shortlist]
- Flash-mob: Heart-warming performance at Isfahan's city center, Iran, despite not being very refined.
- Daf-playing Zoroastrians celebrate the Pomegranate Festival in Mobarakeh Village, Taft County, Yazd, Iran.
- Jorja Smith's moving performance of "Don't Watch Me Cry" on Stephen Colbert's late-night show.
(4) IBM's US supercomputers take the top 2 spots on the latest list of the world's top-500 supercomputers. Five of the top-10 entries are from the US, but China extends its presence on the list. In way of comparison, last November's list included two Chinese supercomputers at the top, followed by Swiss and Japanese machines, with the United States' first appearance being at the 5th spot.
(5) Final thought for the day: "Small, scared people hate, self-hating people hate, bullied and betrayed people hate, as though hate will make them large and safe and strong." ~ Nancy Gibbs, writing in Time magazine, issue of November 12, 2018, carrying the cover feature "Beyond Hate" [Cover image]

2018/11/16 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Jean-Leon Gerome's famous 1877 painting 'The Carpet Merchants' Jean-Leon Gerome's painting, 'The Whirling Dervishes' Jean-Leon Gerome's painting, 'The Blue Mosque' (1) Three magical paintings by Jean-Leon Gerome (cropped into square format): [Left] A Persian Carpet being admired in Cairo: "The Carpet Merchants" [Center] "The Whirling Dervishes" [Right] "The Blue Mosque"
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- November 16: Happy International Day for Tolerance! [Logo]
- California fires: More than 60 are dead and ~600 are still missing. Utilities scrutinized for fire cause.
- MBS ordered the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, CIA has concluded.
- Facebook hired a firm to attack Soros and other critics: Zuckerberg and Sandberg claim they didn't know.
- Orange County becomes Blue County: Republicans lose a CA enclave won over for the party by Reaganites.
- Iran says it will step up to fill the void created by US assets based in Italy being sent to fight ISIS.
- Japan follows Trump's appointments strategy: Its cybersecurity minister has never used a computer!
- One year after the 7.5 quake in northwestern Iran, people are still living in precarious conditions. [Cartoon]
Impossible object, made of Lego blocks (3) On social paradoxes: Paradoxes and impossibility results in mathematics have counterparts in social sciences. The paradox of freedom, formulated by Karl Popper in 1945, goes like this: "Freedom, in the sense of absence of any constraining control, must lead to very great restraint, since it makes the bully free to enslave the meek." The paradox of tolerance is similar: "Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance." The restraint that goes with freedom is being put to the test as I write this note. Social media are banning certain users for abusive behavior, despite US Internet Legislation Section 230 categorizing such media as "platforms," which are immune from liability for the content they publish.
(4) This week's Santa Barbara Independent has a fascinating cover story about our city's history. Photos show: The 700 block of State Street, ca. 1883; SB Mission, 1880s: Navigational error causing 7 US Navy destroyers running aground, Sept. 8, 1923; Hotel Californian, after the earthquake of June 29, 1925.
(5) Anti-Semitism: Drunk man shouts "Heil Hitler, Heil Trump" during a performance of "Fiddler on the Roof" in Baltimore. He must be a leftist or undocumented immigrant, set to tarnish Trump and his administration!
(6) Concert at UCSB's Campbell Hall tonight: The musical program by the Estonian Chamber Choir, viewed by some as the finest in the world, and Tallinn Chamber Orchestra was a component of Estonia 100, celebrating the 100th anniversary of Estonia's independence from the Russian Empire. [Promotional video for the Choir]

2018/11/15 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. Cover image of 'Catching Fire: Hunger Games, Book 2'
(1) Book review: Collins, Susanne, Catching Fire: Hunger Games, Book 2, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Carolyn McCormick, Scholastic Audio, 2009.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This book is the second volume in the "Hunger Games" trilogy. Having seen the first two parts of the series as 2012 movies, I decided to also check out the second part in book form, which I liked much better. The third volume in the series was released as a 2-part movie in 2014 and 2015.
Victors of the 74th Hunger Games, Catniss Everdeen (played in the movie version by Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark, are sent on a Victors Tour to quell uprisings in the districts, attributed to Everdeen's actions (not killing Mellark, as required by the Games' single-victor rule), which were widely viewed as defiance against the Capitol and President Snow. Soon thereafter, word arrives that the victors' lifetime exemption from further participation in the gladiator-like fighting competition has been revoked and that the Games' 75th edition will in fact feature only previous victors, a kind of Celebrity Hunger Games, if you will.
Action-packed stories generally do not translate well to the screen. Some elements of the action scenes are enhanced by visuals, but these visuals are often overdone and come across as even less realistic than the books' versions. There is something to be said about a reader reconstructing and visualizing a scene and the action in it from the author's detailed description, and Collins does a great job of putting the reader in the middle of the action.
As a "young adult" title, the story of Catching Fire isn't subtle or sophisticated. There are a few surprises along the way, but events are, by and large, rather predictable. It was an enjoyable summer read for me, but I will likely not pursue the third book in the series, or its 2-part film version.
(2) Iranians from all walks of life sing "Morgh-e Sahar," an old favorite, while flashing messages of love to the self-exiled popular singer Mohammad-Reza Shajarian.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- California wildfires have claimed 50 lives as of 11/14: Rampant looting has been reported in affected areas.
- Decision time for Democrats who want to enter the 2020 presidential race is fast approaching!
- Iranian folk music: Wonderful multi-lingual song, likely from southeastern Iran.
- What would you do if the glass surface of a pedestrian bridge cracked under your feet as you crossed?
(4) A Twitter account, set up by fans of Prince Babak Qajar, tweets (in Persian) about his right to form a government should monarchy return to Iran, because the "fake prince" (that is, Reza Pahlavi) comes from a dynasty which assumed power illegitimately. I am just reporting this discovery of mine, without suggesting that the claim is anything but an attempt at humor/entertainment. [Tweet images]
(5) Machine learning should move into the computer science undergraduate curricula: Traditionally, the focus of CS education has been precision and full control of algorithms (e.g., via a small number of well-understood parameters). AI has necessitated a change in this attitude. Machine learning brings with it a much larger number of poorly-understood parameters to our computational processes, thereby making logical proofs of correctness all but impossible. Instead of correctness proof, computer scientists must learn to deal with statistical demonstration of effectiveness.

2018/11/14 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Botanic gardens in Karaj, near Tehran, Iran, photo 1 Botanic gardens in Karaj, near Tehran, Iran, photo 2 Botanic gardens in Karaj, near Tehran, Iran, photo 3 Botanic gardens in Karaj, near Tehran, Iran, photo 4 Botanic gardens in Karaj, near Tehran, Iran, photo 6 Botanic gardens in Karaj, near Tehran, Iran, photo 5 (1) Colorful flowers, greenery, and a waterfall at the Botanic gardens in Karaj, near Tehran, Iran.
(2) Sharing my brief technical bio in Persian, prepared for a special commemorative album being compiled by the Alumni Association to honor the graduates of 50 years ago at College of Engineering, University of Tehran (pish-kesvataan-e daaneshkadeh-ye Fanni). [Includes 5-decades-old and recent photos]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- NYer cartoon: "Say what you will about 2018, I haven't been kept awake at night by the same fear twice."
- Tech and AI can help with early detection of fires and predtiction of the way they might spread.
- Quote: "Accuse the other side of that which you are guilty." ~ Jospeh Goebbels, Nazi Propaganda Minister
- One of the most remarkable magic acts I have ever seen: I know how he did it, but it still amazes me.
- I miss Trump's daily updates on the status of the caravan of migrants!
- Today's World Music Series noon concert at UCSB featured UCSB's Gamelan Ensemble. [Photo] [Video]
(4) The snipping tool (Microsoft Windows tip): Sometimes, the easiest way to copy an image is from its displayed form on the screen. Windows has a "PrtSc" (print screen) command that captures the entire screen image, even if it extends over multiple monitors, which you can later copy into Paint or other apps. I have been doing this for ages, which required extra steps to crop the large image to get the part that I needed. A couple of days ago, I discovered the snipping tool (on Windows 10, you can type "snipping tool" into the Windows search box to locate the tool), which allows you to select particular screen areas to copy, saving much work.
(5) Misleading insurance commercials: Nearly all insurance commercials contain false or misleading claims, but three recent ones on TV ticked me off, because they take the deception to another level. One company claims that they will replace a totaled car, rather than pay the depreciated price (current value) of the car. But it does not mention that the insurance policy with replacement feature costs more. Another commercial tries to sell you on their "accident forgiveness" feature, again without any mention that policies with that forgiveness feature cost more. You are essentially paying the higher post-accident premium (pro-rated for risk) right now, so that your premium won't go up after an accident! A third, doomsday commercial says that a 500-year storm should occur once every 500 years, but we have had 26 of them over the past decade. This is like saying a birthday should occur once per year, but in our family alone, we have had two dozen birthdays already this year!

2018/11/13 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The human faces of California wildfires, photo 1 The human faces of California wildfires, photo 2 Iranian woman and girl wistfully watch from a nearby hill a soccer match played at a stadium from which they are banned (1) Newsworthy images: [Left and center] The human faces of California wildfires. [Right] Iranian woman and girl wistfully watch from a nearby hill a soccer match played at a stadium from which they are banned.
(2) Actress Kathleen Turner, 64, on sexism and ageism: "I got sent a screenplay once where the character was described as '37 but still attractive.' That pissed me off."
(3) An embarrassment of a President: Confusing the Balkans and the Baltics, Trump has blamed the leaders of Baltic states in northern Europe, on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea, for starting the war in southeastern Europe's the Balkans, which encompasses Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Serbia.
(4) Accelerated evolution: Under poaching pressure, elephants are evolving to lose their tusks, because not having tusks increases their survival probability. [Source: National Geographic]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen will likely be the next Trump cabinet member to be fired.
- Kyrsten Sinema becomes the first Democrat to win an Arizona US Senate seat in 30 years.
- Death toll from California wildfires, now standing at 50, is expected to rise further, as scores are still missing.
- New York City and northern Virginia chosen to split Amazon's second headquarters.
- A very rare horizontal lightning bolt. [Photo]
- More photos of the devastation in California's northern and southern fires. [Newsweek's pictorial report]
(6) US higher education: Number of international students continues to fall under Trump, raising questions about the long-term impact of his presidency on the prosperity of high-tech and other industries.
(7) What US Presidents said when their party lost the House in midterm elections.
Bill Clinton (1994): Said they were held "accountable."
George W. Bush (2006): Called it a "thumping."
Barack Obama (2010): Called it a "shellacking."
Donald Trump (2018): Called it a "tremendous success."
(8) President of Pasadena Firefighters Association responds to Trump's blaming forest mismanagement for the devastating California wildfires. [Tweet image]
(9) [Final thought for the day] The power of nukes: Russia wouldn't be considered a world power without its nukes. Its economy is ranked 11th worldwide. California would be 5th if ranked among world countries. Without its nuclear threat, North Korea would be mentioned in world news at most once or twice per year!

2018/11/12 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Rain never stops a true leader from performing his/her duties. A very traditional Diwali celebration, with selfie and all! Trump is all smiles upon meeting Putin in Paris (1) Newsworthy images: [Left] Rain never stops a true leader from performing his/her duties. [Center] A very traditional Diwali celebration, with selfie and all! [Right] A picture is worth a thousand words: Which world leader is most excited to see Putin in Paris?
(2) NASA plans to use robots to create rocket fuel on Mars: Shipping 1 kg of anything to Mars requires 225 kg of rocket fuel, so it makes sense to try to manufacture on Mars anything that can be created there. Water, oxygen, and fuel are among the stuff that scientists believe can be produced on Mars.
(3) China reveals that two of its TV anchors are AI-driven robots: Text of the news is fed into the human-like anchors and they read it out, with no need for breaks, food, or sleep.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Death toll in California wildfires continues to rise: It now stands at 31, with hundreds still missing.
- Bone-spurs Don and his pal Vladimir are missing in this march of solidarity along the Champs Elysees.
- The real Tom and Jerry! [1-minute video]
- Girl, who carried her abusive grandfather's baby, faces attempted abortion charges and 20 years in jail.
- Michelle Obama's highly-anticipated memoir, Becoming: Book excerpts
- A beautiful dance performance: Half classical and half belly dancing. [2-minute video]
(5) Regional special sections of CACM: Communications of the ACM has launched an inclusive feature to highlight what is happening in computing around the world. The first installment, in the November 2018 issue, covers China. Among observations in this 50-page special section (pp. 38-87) are China's aspirations to become the "Saudi Arabia of Data" and its ambitious long-term programs in emerging areas such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing. [Introduction and table of contents]
(6) Persian poetry: In this 9-minute video, a young man, who says he has two mullahs as grandparents, recites his humorous and stinging poem about Islamic clerics' ridiculous proclamations and actions.
(7) Ancient relic going to the electronics recycling bin: All three of my kids used this graphing calculator in high school. I got my first scientific calculator (a simple one, not a graphing one) for ~$50 from UCLA Bookstore in the early 1970s, shortly after it came out. It was the first electronic calculator to be pocket-size and affordable to students. We have come a long way in 45 years!

2018/11/11 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for 'The President Is Missing' (1) Book review: Clinton, Bill and James Patterson (with ghostwriter David Ellis), The President Is Missing: A Novel, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Dennis Quaid and others, Hachette Audio, 2018.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This cyber-crime novel piqued my interest, perhaps in part due to the extensive publicity preceding its release. While not a bad story, it is very much a Patterson novel, with its assembly-line production. Patterson releases a tad under one book per month, with his noteworthy books including Along Came a Spider, The Lake House, and the "Women's Murder Club" series. Clinton likely contributed insight into the workings of the president, his cabinet, and interactions with other entities, such as the Congress.
The plot entails a devastating computer virus that would plunge the US into "Dark Ages" by overwriting all active data files on Internet-connected platforms, which includes pretty much everything these days. A Harrison-Ford-like president is the kick-ass-fit and mentally-sharp protagonist (perhaps Clinton saw himself in the fictional president), who goes into hiding, as he struggles to stop the looming activation of the virus, while also trying to find out which of a handful of close aides is cooperating with the terrorists and/or hostile state responsible for the virus.
Descriptions of the virus, its likely effects, and potential countermeasures are rather laughable to a computer expert such as this reviewer. The virus is treated like a ticking bomb in action movies, which is invariably defused by the hero, as the timer is just a few ticks away from reaching zero.
All in all, not a bad read, but utterly forgettable!
(2) Special Veterans' Day event in Santa Barbara: Entitled "1918: An Immersive Multimedia Experience," the Saturday-Sunday 11/10-11, 2018, event at the El Presidio historic park is a video-projection installation (with imagery from the US National Archives) honoring Veterans' Day and the signing of the Armistice of November 11, 1918, which ended World War I. A very happy Veterans' Day to all!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Death toll in California wildfires rises to 23: High winds hamper efforts to control all three major fires.
- The boss shows his satisfaction: Putin flashes 'thumbs up' to Trump before shaking his hand in Paris. [Photo]
- With Putin also nearby, Macron tells Trump to his face that nationalism is a betrayal of patriotism.
- When will Trump toughen libel laws, as promised, so reporters whom he calls stupid and racist can sue him?
(4) Two magical events tonight, 2018/11/11: The first one was a sobering visual presentation at Santa Barbara's historic El Presidio to honor Veterans' Day as well as the 100th anniversary of signing of the Armistice Treaty of November 11, 1918, to end World War I [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2]. The second one was a concert, "Montage: A Celebration of Genres," featuring an eclectic program and directed by UCSB Music Department's incomparable, world-renowned flutist, Professor Jill Felber [Program] [Photos 1] [Photos 2].

2018/11/10 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) California fires, up close and from space: Camp Fire, already the most destructive in California history, kills 9 (dozens still missing) and destroys nearly 7000 structures in the town of Paradise. The center panel in the bottom row of images shows Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, as extensive evacuations were ordered. SoCal areas experience Internet and TV outages due to fire-damaged equipment. Thousand Oaks, a community devastated by mass shooting a few days ago, is now facing devastation by fire.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- A house-size asteroid, 2018 VX1, flies past our Earth today at a distance closer than the moon.
- American press, unite! What happens if the White House calls a press conference and no one shows up?
- J. K. Rowling's response to a Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweet with blatant lies and a doctored video.
- Oh, the irony: A source named "America Uncensored" calls for more White House press passes to be revoked!
- "Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength." ~ American philosopher Eric Hoffer [1898-1983]
(3) Anti-Semitic hate crimes in the US: According to a survey conducted by GBA Strategies, 72% of American Jews think that, by emboldening anti-Semites, Trump's comments and policies are "very" or "somewhat" responsible for attacks against Jews.
(4) Sexual harassment in engineering hurts the field, in addition to individuals: The US National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have published a consensus study report titled "Sexual Harassment of Women: Climate, Culture, and Consequences in Academic Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine." At more than 300 pages, the report makes many interesting observations and useful recommendations. Sexual harassment hurts the women victims, to state the obvious, but it also damages entire disciplines by threatening to reverse the slow, but steady gains made in recruiting women to STEM fields.

2018/11/09 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Oldest known color photo of Tehran's Pahlavi Ave. (later renamed Vali-e-Asr) Art from scrap: Skull sculpture made of cans Catalina Island's 80-year-old airport runway, which is in poor shape, will be revamped by the US Marine Corps (1) Interesting images: [Left] Oldest known color photo of Tehran's Pahlavi Ave. (later renamed Vali-e-Asr). [Center] Art from scrap: Skull sculpture made of cans. [Right] Catalina Island's 80-year-old airport runway, which is in poor shape, will be revamped by the US Marine Corps.
(2) [I will take some flak for this, but here it is anyway!] Intellectual laziness: In this 6-minute fragment of a Persian-language lecture, the speaker (unknown to me) reminds Iranians that the country's problems require critical minds and 21st-century solutions. Invoking ancient personalities as keys to progress is regressive, regardless of whether it is Cyrus/Dariush, Zoroaster, or Rumi/Hafiz/Ferdowsi.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Massive wildfires rage in California: The 0%-contained Woolsey fire burns homes in Ventura County.
- Heavy smoke in Ventura, California, from nearby fires in Thousand Oaks and elsewhere. [Photo]
- The Borowitz Report (humor): "Trump unable to stop caravan of Democratic women invading Washington."
- Nintendo to suspend all video streaming services on Wii, including the Netflix Channel, in February 2019.
- DARPA plans on testing autonomous flight in Black-Hawk helicopters.
- Quote of the day: "I don't want prayers ... I want gun control." ~ Mother of Thousand Oaks shooting victim
(4) No planes for Iran: The state-owned COMAC (Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China) will not sell passenger planes to Iran. Fearing US retaliation, Moscow has also ruled out helping Iran with its fleet renewal plans.
(5) "Towards Hardware Cybersecurity": This was the title of a 2018/11/09 talk by Dr. Houman Homayoun (ECE, George Mason U.) at UCSB. Authenticity and integrity of data have traditionally been protected with security protocols at the software level, with the underlying hardware assumed to be secure and reliable. A steady rise in hardware complexity and increased attacks on hardware integrity have invalidated the latter assumption. Counterfeiting electronic components, inserting hardware trojans, and cloning integrated circuits are just a few of many malicious byproducts. Homayoun presented the concept of hybrid spin-transfer torque CMOS lookup-table-based design as a cost-effective countermeasure against physical reverse-engineering attacks. He then showed how the use of data at the hardware-architecture level, in combination with an effective ML-based predictor, helps protect systems against various classes of hardware vulnerability attacks. [Photos/slides]
[Side note: Young researchers sometimes err in their oral presentations by constructing their slides to impress, rather than to communicate. Putting too much information on one slide, and including too many slides in a presentation, that gives you virtually no chance to cover all of them, is counterproductive. A jam-packed slide, of which only 10-20% is actually covered, or that is flashed for only 3 seconds before moving on, is quite disorienting to the audience.]

2018/11/08 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cactus flowers, Batch 1: Purple Cactus flowers, Batch 2: Pink Cactus flowers, Batch 3: Orange (1) Beautiful cactus flowers: It's hard to imagine that the thorny, often ugly, plants produce such beauties!
(2) Horrific mass shooting by former US Marine at California bar claims 12 lives: This is way too close for comfort. I hope all my relatives and friends in the Thousand Oaks area are okay. Please don't wait for someone in your close circle to be affected before demanding sensible gun laws!
(3) Higher education will miss Claire McCaskill: The Senator, who lost her re-election bid on 11/6, made a big difference by putting campus sexual misconduct on the radar of Congress and the nation.
(4) Seven new scientists were elected to the US Congress on 11/6: The group includes an ocean expert, a nurse, a biochemist, and Nevada's Jacky Rosen, a computer programmer, who prevailed in the Senate race.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Today is the 2nd anniversary of the most horrific event for many of us. Hoping that things change by the 3rd!
- Man was arrested and charged with multiple terrorism-related offenses for threatening to kill CNN reporter.
- Perseverance always pays off: Failure isn't falling down; It's not getting back up. [3-minute video]
- A lively tune to brighten your day: "No Face, No Name, No Number" [4-minute video]
- Wonderful folk music and dance from Iran's Caspian-Sea region. [3-minute video]
- An Azeri song, beautifully performed with big-orchestra accompaniment. [3-minute video]
(6) "Self-Supervised Learning: Could Machines Learn Like Humans?": This was the title of a Thursday 11/08/2018 talk by Yann LeCun, Facebook's VP & Chief AI Scientist and Founding Director of the NYU Center for Data Science. UCSB's Corwin Pavilion, the venue for the 3:30 PM talk, was completely filled, with many attendees standing in the back or along the side walls of the room; highly unusual for a technical talk!
Thus far, machine learning has been by and large of the supervised variety, with human guidance and expertise used to train the AI algorithms. Even for fairly simple tasks, supervised learning requires a large number of labeled samples, making it practical only for certain tasks. Reinforcement learning requires many interactions with the environment.
Deep learning, which has brought about significant progress in computer perception, natural language understanding, and control, has also been of the supervised variety thus far, while animals and humans seem to learn much task-independent knowledge about how the world works through mere observation and occasional interactions. Learning new tasks or skills require very few samples or interactions: We learn to drive cars and fly planes in about 30 hours of practice.
What learning paradigm do humans and animal use to learn so efficiently? LeCun put forth the hypothesis that self-supervised learning of predictive world models is an essential missing ingredient of current approaches to AI. One could argue that prediction is the essence of intelligence. [Photos]

2018/11/07 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Diwali, the Hindu spiritual festival, aka the Festival of Lights (1) Happy Diwali, the Hindu spiritual festival, aka the Festival of Lights, that is used to offer prayers to Lakshmi, the goddess of prosperity, and to ritually observe the idea of knowledge over ignorance and good over evil.
(2) The slow-moving disaster near San Andreas Fault, where the big quake is expected: A muddy spring near California's Salton Sea, which had moved 60 feet over a few months, suddenly moved 60 feet in a single day.
(3) US midterm election results: The House will be controlled by Democrats (in what is characterized as a rainbow, rather then the projected blue, wave) and Republicans maintain control of the Senate. While this is only a small step toward neutralizing Trump, it constitutes a major improvement over the status quo. I choose to focus on the positive: The fact that Trump will face real oversight from one branch of the legislature. My advice to other Democrats is to cherish the advances and not to fret over the fact that Trumpians gained Senate seats, which makes one wonder how much damage a President has to do to lose control of the Congress!
(4) The women's wave: Women, of many persuasions and ethnic backgrounds, were elected yesterday at the national and state levels (legislatures, governorships, judgeships, etc.). The new House is projected to include 95 women (up from 84), and 13 new women will join the 10 women Senators who weren't up for re-election.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Anti-Semitism and anti-Jewish conspiracy theories in Iran: An Iranwire report from June 2018.
- ADL honors journalist, filmmaker, and human rights activist Maziar Bahari with Daniel Pearl Award.
- Cyrus the Great (King Cyrus) Street in Jerusalem, Israel. [Photo of street sign]
- Pretending to investigate Khashoggi's death, agents actually removed evidence from the Saudi consulate.
- Why Bill Gates is advocating and funding research on reinventing the toilet.
- The just-opened Rockfire Grill in Isla Vista, on the path I walk between my home and UCSB office. [Photo]
- Quote of the day: "Data is the new oil." ~ British mathematician Clive Humby
- The Salt Martians performed bluegrass music today at noon, as part of UCSB's World Music Series.
(6) Post-election news: Trump threw a temper tantrum at a news conference after the midterm elections, lashing out at Republicans who lost, the Democrats, and the news media. Meanwhile, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a target of Trump's mean-spirited attacks for months, resigned at Trump's request.
(7) The pasta puzzle: Take an uncooked pasta noodle and bend it, until it breaks. Most likely, it won't break into just two pieces. If you strongly twist the noodle while bending it, it will likely snap into two pieces. Why?

2018/11/06 (tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The kids who voiced Peanuts characters in the 1960s India unveils the world's tallest statue: Known as the Statue of Unity, the 182-meter behemoth depicts the Indian national hero Vallabhbhai Patel A wonderful work of art that invites children to interact with it (1) The worlds of art and entertainment: [left] The kids who voiced Peanuts characters in the 1960s. [Center] India unveils the world's tallest statue: Known as the Statue of Unity, the 182-meter behemoth depicts the Indian national hero Vallabhbhai Patel. [Right] A wonderful work of art that invites children to interact with it.
(2) False sexual assault allegations are extremely rare: According to the National Registry of Exonerations, in the nearly 3 decades since 1989, only 52 men charged with sexual assault were exonerated due to being falsely accused; that's fewer than 2 per year. [Fact cited by Ariana Marmolejo in her opinion piece published in Daily Nexus, UCSB's student newspaper]
(3) A dynamic graph showing the world's top-10 countries in terms of GDP, 1960-2017. The US is always at the top, but other countries' relative GDPs grow/shrink and their ranks occasionally rearranged. [Video]
(4) The Iranian Parliament's law about Iran joining the international Terrorist Financing (Suppression) Convention has been rejected by the Guardian Council, for a long list of "problems" as well as violations of the country's constitution. [Documents in Persian]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and memes (US midterm elections edition).
- Rumors and hoaxes about voting and polling places are quite common on Election Day: Be vigilant!
- Vote as if your life depends upon it ... It just might!
- Cartoon of the day (about voting): "You are here. You should be here, your voting place." [Image]
- On the eve of the US Election Day, TV networks (including Fox) pull Trump's racist ad.
- Trump fans chant "4 More Years": Does this mean they want him impeached in the middle of his 2nd term?
- Barbra Streisand addresses Trump in a new song: "Don't Lie to Me"
(6) Motivational speech: Baluchi young woman talks about her life challenges, including recovering from life-altering injuries sustained in a car crash, getting out of an unhappy arranged marriage, and overcoming her fears. [6-minute video, with Persian subtitles]
(7) Intellectual laziness: In this 6-minute lecture fragment, the Persian speaker reminds Iranians that the country's problems require critical minds and 21st-century solutions. Invoking ancient personalities as keys to progress is regressive, regardless of whether it is Cyrus/Dariush, Zoroaster, or Rumi/Hafiz/Ferdowsi.

2018/11/04 (Sunday): A report from IEEE IEMCON conference, which I attended in Vancouver, Canada.
UBC's Student Nest Building's main lobby The pond at the center of UBC's main campus mall The entrance to conference facilities at UBC's Student Nest Building (1) Held November 1-3, 2018, on the Vancouver campus of the University of British Columbia, the 9th IEEE Information Technology, Electronics and Mobile Communication Conference featured many keynote lectures and parallel technical sessions in multiple tracks. The conference venue was UBC's Student Nest Building, seen in two of the photos above: The main lobby is on the left and the entrance to conference facilities on the right.
(2) I missed the first day of the conference due to arriving in Vancouver in the evening of 11/1. On the morning of the second day, after a buffet breakfast, the conference's technical program featured three research keynotes, with three more scheduled for the third day. The first day's keynotes were given by industry leaders. A list of research keynotes which I did attend on the final two days follows.
- Georgios Giannakis (U. Minnesota): "Online Learning and Management for Edge Computing In IOT"
- Sidney Fels (UBC): "Design for Human Experience and Expression at the HCT Laboratory"
- Nicolas A. F. Jaeger (UBC): "Silicon Photonics: Smaller, Cheaper, Faster"
- Vincent Wong (UBC): "Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access in 5G Wireless Networks"
- Shen-En Qian (Canadian Space Agency): "Satellite Observation for Coastal Ocean and Inland Waters"
- Behraad Bahreyni (Simon Fraser U.): "Vector Microsensors for Acoustic and Optical Signals"
(3) I took advantage of a time slot on 11/2, with no interesting conference sessions for me, to walk on the immense 56,000-student Vancouver campus of the University of British Columbia, including its mile-long Main Mall, photographing architectural landmarks and student life. Sandwiched between a rainy Thursday and expected rain on Saturday, the weather was nice, but a bit on the chilly side. [Photos]
(4) In a nice touch, the conference organizers, presented speakers with certificates of presentation.
(5) Data analytics workshop: I spent much of the 11/3 afternoon attending an interesting workshop, where fundamentals of data analytics and use of the two clustering/categorization tools, RapidMiner and WEKA, were discussed by Dr. Satyajit Chakrabarti. [Photos]
(6) Awards ceremony at the end of the conference: The Technical Program Committee was kind enough to honor two of my contributions with Best-Paper Awards in their respective conference tracks.
(7) Heading back home: After 35 minutes in the air from Vancouver to Seattle on a propeller plane and a 45-minute wait for the gate to free up, I barely had enough time to change terminals and make it to my Santa-Barbara-bound flight. Once at home, I was extremely grateful to have returned to California sunshine from a gloomy early-November Vancouver. I need the coming week to resume my teaching, make up for cancelled lectures, catch up with e-mail and other personal/professional commitments, and generally recover from a week-long absence for two conferences. Looking forward to the Veterans' Day observance holiday on Monday 11/12 and Thanksgiving weekend's family gatherings the following week!

2018/11/03 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: 'Just tell me which part Obama wrote' Cartoon: The President in no way, form, or fashion has ever promoted or encouraged violence Moses is ordered to turn his caravan around, because it contains too many Middle Easterners! (1) Trump cartoons: [Left] "Just tell me which part Obama wrote." (from The New Yorker) [Center] "The President in no way, form, or fashion has ever promoted or encouraged violence." ~ Sarah Huckabee Sanders [Right] Moses is ordered to turn his caravan around, because it contains too many Middle Easterners!
(2) Grand Ayatollah Musa Shobairi Zanjani ordered to behave: Iran's Islamic regime doesn't just oppress Jews, Christians, Baha'is, and Sunni Muslims. It also squashes Shiite clergy criticizing the Supreme Leader.
(3) Trump's only worries about the hateful massacre of Jews and assassination attempts at leading Democrats? That the events stopped GOP's 'tremendous momentum'!
(4) Comedian Hasan Minhaj tells you all you need to know about Saudi Arabia: Great job, but I hope he never has a need to visit a Saudi consulate! [19-minute video]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Voting is just like driving: Choose "R" to go backward, "D" to go forward! [Meme]
- Yet another loco: Peace in the Middle East is impossible unless Jews and Muslims convert to Christianity.
- Pentagon rejects request to send troops to the border for what it considers a law-enforcement function.
- Traitor and super-spy Robert Hanssen was exposed by a KGB defector, a new book claims.
- Hit-and-run driver kills three Girl Scouts and an adult picking up highway trash in Wisconsin.
- Coalition of 46 scientists urges researchers to cite possible risks when sharing new AI technology.
- UCSB's ECE Department has 4 open academic positions, including 2 in computer engineering.
- "Your products are encroaching on my products." [Cartoon, from The New Yorker]
- These undated photos of melting polar ice are sobering nonetheless.
- An Iranian folk poem/song about wistfully remembering the simple pleasures of yore.
- Political commentary: The latest incarnation of Trump's southern border wall! [Credit: Stephen Colbert]
- Police report in Iran blames the Internet for women's increasing resistance to mandatory hijab laws.
(6) Catching up with a long-time friend: I was lucky enough to be able to connect with college classmate Farrokh Elmieh, dining together at Gilaneh Persian Restaurant during my last night in Vancouver, Canada.
(7) Final thought for the day: Know your voting rights: California law allows you to take up to 2 hours off from work on Election Day without a loss of pay.

2018/11/02 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Time magazine's cover for its November 5, 2018, double-issue features a large tri-fold photo of 245 participants (hunters, activists, teachers, police officers, parents, and children), who have told their gun stories in their own words (1) Time magazine's November 5, 2018, cover features a large tri-fold photo of 245 participants (hunters, activists, teachers, police officers, parents, and children), who have told their gun stories in their own words.
(2) On giving women more opportunities: Have you noticed that as male politicians, executives, entertainers, and TV anchors/hosts fall from grace for sexual misconduct, their female counterparts step up and fill the void admirably? Why weren't they given the opportunities in the first place?
(3) Saudi sisters whose bodies were found duct-taped together in NYC's Hudson River had stated they'd rather kill themselves than return to Saudi Arabia.
(4) Inadvertently dropped from the end of this Trump quote: "... as long they are male, white, straight, rich, Christian, and voted for me." [Grammar-challenged, as always!]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Bus plunges off bridge in China, killing 13+, after a woman who missed her stop fights with the driver.
- Donald Trump wants to play the macho tough guy and the fragile victim at the same time!
- Security concerns cited as US limits tech exports to Chinese chip-maker.
- Afghan villagers die or are maimed in large numbers by bomb explosions. [Photo, Time magazine, Nov. 5]
- Taking a page from Trump's playbook, Iran accuses BBC of hate speech, propaganda, and fake news.
- "You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
- The world record of stone-skipping, 88 skips, is nearly impossible to exceed. [12-minute video]
- Two rather unusual word puzzles that I worked on during my 11/01 flight from Santa Barbara to Seattle.
- Oldest intact shipwreck found off the coast of Bulgaria: The 75-ft Greek merchant ship is 2400 years old.
(6) The US Military has been groaning on the sidelines thus far, but when Trump starts pushing them around for political gain, tempers will flare. The Pentagon deems sending troops to the southern border a waste of tax-payers' money for political goals and also worries about the troops being caught between the asylum-seekers and American vigilantes.
(7) Bad sensor blamed for Soyuz rocket failure: The malfunctioning sensor, which signals the jettisoning of one of the four side boosters, caused the booster to collide with the rocket's second stage.

2018/11/01 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Anti-Semisism: Burning Stae of David (1) Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society: HIAS was founded to help Jews fleeing persecution resettle in Israel or the West. I know quite a few Jews who benefited from the services of HIAS, for which they are grateful. Later, HIAS broadened its mission to providing assistance to all refugees, not just Jews. Supporting HIAS was one of the "sins" of the members of the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, for which they were gunned down by a human-like creature, whose failed masculinity (he wanted to become a pro wrestler, but had to settle for exotic dancer) led to his murderous rage.
(2) A large group of Iranian musicians and other celebrities sing the "Ey Iran" anthem, a de facto national anthem, given that the Islamic Republic's version is viewed by most as lacking legitimacy.
(3) Solidarity: Islamic Center of Pittsburgh has raised $70,000+ for synagogue attack victims and has offered security guards for their next service.
(4) Sharing a funny tweet from Aida Ahadiany: Uber has messaged me that if I use their offered discount three times until Sunday, the discount will be extended for another two weeks. They just don't get it that my problem isn't discounts; it's not having any place to go. [Persian tweet]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- [Humor] Welcome sign at a Saudi consulate: Come in peace, leave in pieces.
- Nature photography by Goli Tavakoli. [Photos]
- Persian music: Darya Dadvar performs "Strangers in the Night," for which she composed Persian lyrics.
- Azeri music: A wonderful song, with piano and vocals, by two unidentified women.
- Landslide in Italy: Perhaps the most devastating mud flow ever captured on video.
- Experience Beethoven's Fifth not just aurally but also visually through a very clever Line-Rider animation.
(6) Talk about spoilers! Russian scientist stabs a colleague for telling him the endings of books he wanted to read. I have to exercise more care in my book reviews!
(7) Dinesh D'Souza, the man who retweeted posts with the hashtags #burntheJews and #bringbackslavery, and who was recently pardoned by Trump, has been invited to speak at Stanford U. in January 2019.
(8) A new sink gadget: I first saw this gadget a few days ago at Starbucks in King City, California. Water comes out from its middle, soap dispenser is on the left, and a powerful blow-dryer on the right, all three operated by motion sensors. An excellent engineering solution to a daily need in public places.
(9) Jimmy Wales, the visionary man who started Wikipedia, the Internet's largest information source, is driven by his love for education, rather than fame or money. His name may not be as familiar as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, or Elon Musk today, but history will judge him as more influential.

2018/10/31 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Halloween-themed Trump cartoon 1 United against anti-Semitism logo Halloween-themed Trump cartoon 2 (1) Halloween 2018 and anti-Semistism: [Left and right] Halloween-themed Trump cartoons. [Center] United against anti-Semitism: "But his son-in-law is Jewish" no longer cuts it as a defense for a president who has unleashed forces of evil against Jews, not to mention Muslims, refugees, and many other persecuted groups.
(2) Rise in anti-Semitism in the US: According to ADL's CEO, after a decade of decline, anti-Semitic hate crimes increased 34% in 2016 and 57% in 2017. The numbers for 2018 so far are comparable to 2017. The data leaves no doubt that Trump is to blame. Meanwhile, Trump took the opportunity to bow to his NRA masters: The synagogue should have had an armed guard! There is no evidence that an armed guard would do anything other than increase the number of casualties by one.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Murder mystery: Saudi sisters' bodies found duct-taped together in NYC's Hudson River.
- A progressive Jewish group told Trump not to visit Pittsburgh until he fully denounces white nationalism.
- Today's Trump tweet about his Pittsburgh trip: Do you see any direct mention of the shooting victims?
- LA spooked out: Boston beat LA Dodgers 5-1 in game 5 to win the MLB championship series 4-1.
- In the crash of a Boeing 737 Indonesian airliner into the sea shortly after takeoff, 189 people died.
- Persian Music: There are many YouTube videos from Fatemeh Mehlaban, but they provide no info on her.
(4) Immigrant bashing continues: In what is considered to be his most drastic anti-immigrant step, Trump says he can, and intends to, end birthright citizenship with an executive order.
(5) Troops deployment to our southern border will cost an estimated $50 million: Campaign spending on behalf of the Republicans from our tax money, essentially!
(6) Attending 52nd Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems, and Computers: Since the afternoon of Sunday 10/28, I have been at the beautiful Asilomar Conference Grounds (a National Park) in Pacific Grove, California. On Monday morning, I was scheduled to present a poster and a paper at a lecture session at the same time. I solved the dilemma by putting up my poster early, attaching a note to it that explained the problem to visitors, and running to the other session to give my talk, barely making it there in time. I joked that the conference organizing committee must have included a physicist who wanted to experiment with quantum teleportation! I walked along the beautiful Asilomar State Beach [Video 1] [Video 2] during Monday's lunch break. After conference sessions ended for me on Monday, I headed from Pacific Grove toward Monterey, stopping at and exploring the Lovers Point Park [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2]. You can say I was feeling some love for myself! On Tuesday afternoon, I took advantage of a lull in conference sessions to take a stroll on Monterey's Cannery Row [Photos] [Selfies with statues in front of "After the Quake" novelty stoer] [Photos taken along Monterey's Cannery Row and on its Steinbeck Plaza]. On Steinbeck Plaza, a couple of super-talented teenagers performed Beatles songs [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]. On the way back from Monterey to my hotel, I encountered quite a few deer on a residential street in Pacific Grove [Photos].

2018/10/29 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) The green lagoon: UCSB's campus lagoon looks green most of the time. The reason, as explained in the center photo above, is excessive growth of algae and submerged aquatic plants in the lagoon's warm, nutrient-rich water. I took all but the top-center aerial photo (which is from the Internet) in late October, 2018, as I walked to the Loma Pelona Conference Center for attending a talk.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Some ideas for keeping foodstuff fresh: I learned a couple of new tricks from this 3-minute video!
- Cartoon of the day: "Cell" phone! [Image]
- Video joke of the day: Man's dream of superiority comes to an abrupt end! [1-minute video]
- Art created on apples and leaves: Simply awe-inspiring! [2-minute video]
- Dance with a dazzling lighted costume. [May be partially muted in some regions due to copyright issues.]
(3) Judeo-Arabic, the little-known language spoken by Jews across the Medieval Arab world: "Less known than Yiddish or Ladino, Judeo-Arabic was spoken by Jews from Iran to Spain, from Yemen to Syria. The 99-year-old doyen of Maimonides' tongue, says that during Golden Age of Islam, Jewish culture in Arab lands was 10 times greater than that of Ashkenazi Jewry."
(4) I will be attending two back-to-back conferences: The first, Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems, and Computers, will be in Pacific Grove, CA, October 28-31, 2018. The second, IEEE Information Technology, Electronics & Mobile Communication Conference, will be in Vancouver, Canada, November 1-3, 2018. In case anyone is interested, I will be presenting a total of 5 papers at the two conferences, as shown in this list. You can find the full papers and presentations (in PDF and PPT formats) near the top of my publications list.

2018/10/27 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Extraordinary architecture and tilework from Iran: Example 1 Movie poster for 'A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night' Extraordinary architecture and tilework from Iran: Example 2 (1) Iran-related images: [Left and right] Examples of extraordinary architecture and tilework from Iran. [Center] Iranian movie screening at UCSB: The 2014 vampire movie "A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night" (I was totally unaware of any Persian-language vampire film) will be shown at UCSB's Multicultural Center Theater, beginning at 6:00 PM on Wednesday, October 31, 2018. I will be attending two conferences the entire next week, but plan to be back in Santa Barbara on 10/31 evening only, so I may be able to go see the film.
(2) Best of Santa Barbara: Santa Barbara Independent publishes an annual issue (cover image) in which the best businesses in our area are highlighted based on reader opinions. The problem is that the categories are so narrow that most businesses end up being the best in some category. This reminds me of something a friend told me many years ago. According to him, Americans are so bent on being the best that they draw boundaries within which they reign supreme. Examples include the tallest building west of the Mississippi and the largest eye-surgery center between Los Angeles and San Jose.
(3) Iran's border control may refrain from stamping passports of travelers who are concerned that they may not be able to enter the US after visiting Iran: Israel has been doing this for decades to accommodate people from Islamic countries or those who plan to travel to Islamic countries and want no record of a visit to Israel.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Eleven dead in Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, where a gunman walked in shouting "all Jews must die."
- The Psychology of Hate: An interesting and timely read, in view of the recent hate-crime incidents.
- In a surprise development, China cuts Iran oil purchases ahead of US sanctions.
- Persian music, accompanied by a slide show depicting life in the Iran of yore and today. [5-minute video]
(5) College soccer: The blue/green rivalry between UCSB and Cal Poly SLO has produced many memorable games and some of the largest spectator crowds on both campuses. Tonight, the two teams faced each other at UCSB's nearly-filled Harder Stadium, with UCSB prevailing 2-0. UCSB could have scored a third goal in the final minute, but a great save by the Cal Poly goalie deflected the well-placed header.
Side note 1: I bought my ticket to the game on-line and headed to the stadium on foot, getting there at 6:50 for a game I thought would start at 7:00. Unbeknownst to me, the game had been moved to 5:00 PM with no notice. So, I watched only the final 15 minutes or so, which was still pretty exciting.
Side note 2: Returning home on foot via Isla Vista, I noticed heavy presence by the Isla Vista Foot Patrol officers on foot and on bicycles, as well as Santa Barbara County's patrol cars. The weekend before a Halloween falling on a weekday is sometimes wild and results in quite a few arrests of drunken out-of-towners.

2018/10/26 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Frankenstein's 200th anniversary: Mary Shelly's novel, written 200 years ago, created a new genre and has enjoyed a remarkable afterlife If the Pinocchio effect were real, Trump would look like this after 21 months in office! Photo of the van belonging to the suspect in the mailed pipe-bombs terror attack (1) Newsworthy images: [Left] Frankenstein's 200th anniversary: Mary Shelly's novel, written 200 years ago, created a new genre and has enjoyed a remarkable afterlife. UCSB Library is showcasing a number of books on Frankenstein for the occasion. [Center] If the Pinocchio effect were real, Trump would look like this after 21 months in office! [Right] Photo of the van belonging to the suspect in the mailed pipe-bombs terror attack.
(2) Prosecutor Seo Ji-hyun is credited with kick-starting the #MeToo movement in South Korea. [From Time magazine, issue of October 29, 2018]
(3) Khashoggi's murder puts the spotlight on Saudi money flowing to Harvard and MIT: Prostituting our most-revered institutions and sacrificing our founding principles for money. Way to go, America! [Facebook post]
(4) New study: The happiest married people are those who have ever had sex only with their spouse. [P.S.: As is common in the social sciences, there is probably a study somewhere that concludes just the opposite!]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Man arrested for mailing pipe-bomb packages to Donald Trump's critics: He is Cesar Sayoc, 56, of Davie, FL.
- Trump's main worry regarding pipe-bomb mailings? That the 'bomb stuff' can hurt Republicans in midterms.
- Iranian-American Abaseh Mirvali to head Santa Barbara's planned Museum of Contemporary Art.
- Wearable assistive robotics in the form of chair-less exoskeletons help workers at Hyundai's US plant.
- TU Wien and MIT develop machine-learning algorithm that can parallel-park a car using only 12 neurons.
- When the soccer ball just doesn't feel like going into the net, hitting all three goal posts within 2 seconds!
(6) Outrage over Megyn Kelly's comments: Kelly had said on TV that a person wearing a black face to impersonate Diana Ross, say, as part of a Halloween disguise/costume should not be criticized. I had a chat a couple of days ago with a friend who thought political correctness has been taken too far in this country and that Kelly did not intend to be mean or disrespectful; furthermore, she has apologized. I told my friend that if this is an isolated incident, it will soon be forgotten, but if Kelly had made other comments that were viewed as racist, then she should be held accountable for her overall record. Political correctness is a reaction to decades or even centuries of abuse and oppression, which has made certain groups overly sensitive to further abuse and disrespect. I cited the example of women who have been abused and held back for millennia, and are thus understandably wary of acts such as pinching and cat-calling, which, in the absence of the said context, might be viewed as lighthearted, rather than mean-spirited. If women were considered completely equal, there were no pay gap or glass ceiling for them, and their "no" answer was always interpreted as "no," they might have been much less sensitive to these issues. [Image]
[Update: NBC is apparently negotiating with Kelly to terminate her contract.]

2018/10/25 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Fall colors in Zonouz Village, northeast of Tabriz, Eastern Azerbaijan Province, Iran Believe it or not: A rectangular iceberg has recently broken off from the Larsen C ice shelf Automn in New York City's Central Park (1) Earth's wonderful nature: [Left] Fall colors in Zonouz Village, northeast of Tabriz, Eastern Azerbaijan Province, Iran. [Center] Believe it or not: A rectangular iceberg has recently broken off from the Larsen C ice shelf. [Right] Autumn in New York City's Central Park.
(2) Let the denials and deflections begin: Fox News host claims that the bomb scare was faked to make Trump look bad! Of course, no one's making Trump look bad more than Trump himself.
(3) The American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) continued its strike across all 10 UC campuses today, citing the administration's not negotiating in good faith. [Video] [Photo]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Two people fall to their death from a popular overlook spot at California's Yosemite National Park.
- FBI arrests former Republican candidate for attempting to buy a lethal dose of a radioactive substance.
- The recent drop in the stock market has left the DJIA and S&P 500 in the negative territory for 2018. [Chart]
- Delightful little dancers: Some really awesome moves to brighten your day! [Video]
- Video joke of the day: The safest way to cross a super-busy street. [Video]
- Fantastic light show: Visual art projection on an an ancient stone tower. [Video]
(5) If bombs are sent to prominent Democrats, the media and socialists are to blame. If Republicans are harassed or shot at, it's the leftists' and media's fault.
(6) Tidbits from Chancellor Yang's report at today's meeting of UCSB Faculty Legislature:
- Last year, ~6700 students graduated from UCSB, bringing the total number of alumni to 210,000.
- This year, we recruited 5200 freshmen and 2500 transfer students, close to the 2/1 recently-mandated ratio.
- Non-residents account for 16% of our undergraduate student body; we are getting closer to the 18% cap.
- A classroom building with 2300 seats, centrally located on campus, is expected to be approved next month.
- Two consecutive issues of the journal Nature recently featured work by UCSB researchers on the cover.
- Where student live: 40% on campus; 40% Isla Vista; 20% nearly equally divided among SB/Goleta/other.
- US News and World Report ranked UCSB fifth among public universities; UCLA, Berkeley, Virginia, and Michigan occupy the top 4 spots. UC Irvine, UC Davis, and UCSD are also in the top 12.
(7) Screening of news films from archives (UCLA and U. South Carolina): Before the age of television, visual news footage was screened in movie theaters prior to the main feature. I remember watching many Movietone news clips in theaters in Iran. Tonight, at Pollock Theater, the audience was treated to a curated set of news clips from those days and a few from early TV days. The screening was part of the symposium "Rediscovering U.S. Newsfilm," being held at UCSB, October 25-27. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4] [Video 5]

2018/10/24 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Alarming stats on the number of prisoners per 100,000 population: The US compared to some other countries America's team places first in the 2018 International Math Olympiad Cartoon of the day: 'Welcome to the Saudi consulate. How can we help you?' (1) Some newsworthy images: [Left] Alarming stats on the number of prisoners per 100,000 population: The US compared to some other countries. [Center] America's team places first in the 2018 International Math Olympiad: "Wait, where's the American team?" muttered Trump. [Right] Cartoon of the day: "Welcome to the Saudi consulate. How can we help you?"
(2) Bomb packages sent to CNN, the Obamas, the Clintons, and other former US officials have been intercepted and are being investigated. What do these targets have in common? They have all been vilified by Trump in one way or another ("lock her up"). So, even though Trump now talks about unity, he is directly responsible for these acts of terror.
(3) UCSB strikers disrupt education: Over my 30 years at UCSB, I had never seen classes that were in session disrupted by strikers, who usually just want their grievances heard through signs, marching, and chanting in areas away from classrooms. Today, my 10:00-11:30 AM class was disrupted twice by loud chants and beating of drums, as the strikers marched by, each time for about 5 minutes. I guess this is part of the new incivility brought about by the dysfunction in our national politics. [Photo taken from my classroom's window.]
(4) World Music Series noon concert: Santa Barbara High School students, with help from a few UCSB alumni, performed selections from the musical "In the Heights" at UCSB's Music Bowl. Pre-recorded music was used for the most part, because they could not bring their 9-piece band to campus. I am looking forward to the show's opening next week. [Video 1] [Video 2, a song entitled "96,000," which, interestingly enough, is about winning the lottery (not quite 1.5 billion though)!] [Video 3, a wonderful love song]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Theory of evolution approved by Arizona's Board of Education as part of new science standards.
- According to Harvard Business Review, more top-performing CEOs have engineering degrees than MBAs.
- Kurdish woman sings: "They say Persian is sweet as sugar, but to me, Kurdish is even sweeter"! [Video]
- Robot "testifies" in the British Parliament about future use of AI in classrooms.
- Comedian Jimmy Kimmel: Sarah Huckabee Sanders' tell-all book will be titled B.S., I Love You.
- This manual/mechanical water pump for extracting water from a well was quite common in my youth.
(6) Scientist of the Year: Computational biologist Bette Korber, known for her work on HIV, will be given the Scientist of the Year Award at the 2018 R&D 100 ceremony in November. The same event will also recognize the 2018 R&D 100 Award winners.
(7) Political humor: Trump condemned the sending of bomb packages to several prominent Democrats. Now, I am waiting for his next news conference where he will say "there are fine people on both sides"!

2018/10/23 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. Only two weeks left to US Election Day: Please vote! Voting: Check!
Best election advice: Elect functioning adults (1) US midterm elections: [Left] Only two weeks left to US Election Day: Please vote! [Center] Voting: Check! [Right] Best election advice: Elect functioning adults. (Please let me where to find them!)
(2) Bird electric scooters have arrived in Isla Vista: I noticed them parked near major intersections and on busier streets a few days ago. For now, they are banned on UCSB's walkways and bike paths, which limits their usefulness as a transportation option for students. But discussions are ongoing with campus officials about the fate of these scooters, which are unlocked and managed from a smartphone app.
(3) Internet pioneer Dr. Leonard Kleinrock tells PC Magazine about the ARPANET precursor to today's Internet, how he got the geek bug and a full scholarship to MIT (where he developed the theory of packet switching as part of his PhD research), and UCLA's new Connection Lab, which will open in 2019, thanks to a $5M gift to honor his achievements.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Just one of Donald Trump's many lies to get votes: I will fight for LGBT freedoms and beliefs. [Tweet]
- Jared Kushner comes out of hiding and grants an interview on his relationship with MBS and other topics.
- Turkey says it has evidence Khashoggi's murder was premeditated, planned days in advance.
- Body-double is seen leaving the Saudi consulate in Ankara wearing Khashoggi's clothes, after he was killed.
- "Never before has a president been so determined not to be the president of all Americans." ~ Newsweek
- Director Oliver Stone's speech at the 2017 Writers Guild Awards, with Persian subtitles.
- When walls look like this, you know you are in the arts area of the campus!
- Humor: Democrats in Egypt egged the Jews to form a caravan of thousands and head to the land of Israel.
- Giant 200-meters-long sinkhole reveals enormous secret cave complex in Guangxi, China.
- NYer cartoon: "First you choose a protein, then some toppings, then you choose a Senator to publicly scold."
(5) "The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Cybersecurity": Computer Science Professor Giovanni Vigna spoke at Loma Pelona center on the UCSB Campus in the afternoon of Monday, October 22. The talk was part of UCSB's showcasing of its national prominence in cybersecurity research (under the direction of Professors Giovanni Vigna, Christopher Kruegel, and Dick Kemmerer) during National Cybersecurity Awareness Month. The talk's take-away was that even though cybersecurity will always remain an intrinsically human undertaking, much of the grunt work, data collection, and anomaly detection can be automated, so that human experts can focus on higher-level issues and more serious threats. [Images]

2018/10/21 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A helicopter installs a section of antenna mast of the CN Tower in Toronto, Canada, 1975 Poison cabinet disguised as a book, 17th century Chevrolet Impala ad, 1959 (1) History in pictures: [Left] A helicopter installs a section of antenna mast of the CN Tower in Toronto, Canada, 1975. [Center] Poison cabinet disguised as a book, 17th century. [Right] Chevrolet Impala ad, 1959.
(2) Nikki Haley's not-so-subtle jab at Donald Trump: "In our toxic political life, I've heard some people in both parties describe their opponents as enemies or evil. In America, our political opponents are not evil. In South Sudan, where rape is routinely used as a weapon of war, that is evil. In Syria, where the dictator uses chemical weapons to murder innocent children, that is evil. In North Korea, where American student Otto Warmbier was tortured to death, that was evil. In the last two years, I've seen true evil. We have some serious political differences here at home. But our opponents are not evil, they're just our opponents."
(3) A snag on the path to colonizing Mars: People and devices must be shielded against harmful solar and cosmic radiation, whose levels are much higher on Mars than on Earth, which has an atmospheric shield. But using an aluminum shield, which needs to be at least 7 mm thick, is impractical, as it imposes unrealistic load on spacecraft. A new radiation-shielding system that uses high-voltage electric cables to generate an electromagnetic field to protect modular colonies is being evaluated for use on Mars.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- John Bolton is taking us toward war with Iran and other adversaries. John Kelly apparently opposes him.
- Hot off the press: The Art If the Deal: New Presidential Edition. [Cartoon]
- Cartoon of the day: The recently completed Supreme Court of the United States of America. [Image]
- Saying: "When you're accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression."
- Quote: "The good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge." ~ Bertrand Russell
- Another video in the "People Are Awesome" series. [Parts of the audio may be muted for some viewers]
(5) Report: I have put together a report on UCSB Iranian Studies Initiative's Fourth Annual Conference with the theme "Slavery and Sexual Labor in the Middle East & North Africa," held on October 19-20, 2018, at UCSB's Mosher Alumni House. Here are links to the report on Facebook, my Blog & Books page, and Twitter.
(6) [Final thought for the day] My message to a student, who is taking a leave of absence because of a hospitalized, terminally-ill father: "I am so sorry to hear about your family emergency. I hope you can take a leave of absence as planned and can spend some time with your dad. There are certain events we cannot control and, thus, we must be satisfied with expending the best effort to deal with them. Wishing you the patience and resolve to deal with the inevitable loss." [Sharing this message, because most of us have to deal with terminally ill loved ones in the course of our lives. When people work or study under us, we must show compassion as fellow human-beings, rather then deal with the problem administratively.]

2018/10/20 (Saturday): Fourth Annual Conference of UCSB's Iranian Studies Initiative:
Poster for the Fourth Annual Conference of UCSB's Iranian Studies Initiative Held on October 19-20, 2018, at UCSB's Mosher Alumni House, the Fourth Annual Conference of the Iranian Studies Initiative, with multiple institutional and individual sponsors, was entitled "Slavery and Sexual Labor in the Middle East & North Africa." The program and my notes follow. These notes do not replace the abstracts, which are found on the conference's program Web page, but are meant to reflect my own take-aways from each presentation, where I could pay attention and understood the key points. I also include here some photos from the conference and the UCSB campus. Here are direct links to this report and its Facebook version for sharing.
Friday morning, October 19, 2018
[8:45-9:00] Coffee and tea
[9:00-9:15] Opening: Eric Massie (Conference Organizer, UCSB); Manoutchehr Eskandari-Qajar (Director, Middle East Studies Program, Santa Barbara City College); Janet Afary (Director, Iranian Studies Initiative, UCSB)
[9:15-9:30] Welcome by Dean John Majewski (Michael Douglas Dean of Humanities and Fine Arts, UCSB): Besides welcoming the attendees on behalf of the UCSB administration, Dean Majewski talked about his own research (Civil War, economics of slavery) that intersected with the theme of the conference. He praised the conference organizers for their triple achievement: Merging the discussion of slave labor with sexual exploitation, which is more than just forced labor of a certain kind; Bringing together work from the humanities and social sciences and enriching the discussion with a photo exhibit; Shining a light on the contemporary plight of Sri Lankan and Bangladeshi women, as well as exploitation of children, in the Persian Gulf region.
[9:30-10:45] Panel 1: Intimates and Familiars: Marriage, Slaves, and Family
Chair: Behnaz Mirzai (Dept. History, Brock U., Canada)
Eric Massie (UCSB), "The Bonds that Bind: Slavery and Familial Relations in the Persian Gulf, 19th and 20th Centuries": Massie drew from 1920s records on ~1000 slaves, compiled in south Iran by British consular officers, to paint a picture of slavery and its management structures, including the use of slaves for reproduction, in the Persian Gulf region. The data can be said to also cover the late 1800s, given that some of the slaves in question were quite old when cataloged. Massie shows that, as international treaties banned the importation of slaves, owners resorted to slave reproduction within their households in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Manoutchehr Eskandari-Qajar (SBCC), "Temporary and Permanent Marriages at the Court of Fath Ali Shah Qajar": Eskandari-Qajar, a descendant of his subject (Fath Ali Shah), asked for considering the nuances of slavery and associated temporary marriages, although he took pains to explain that he is not an apologist for either. He went on to assert that temporary marriages in 19th-century Iran, particularly in the royal court, should not be criticized on the basis of today's norms.
Anthony A. Lee (UCLA), "Ziba Khanum of Yazd: An Enslaved African Woman in Nineteenth-Century Iran": Lee began by relating that most Iranians are surprised to learn about slavery, particularly the presence of African slaves, in Iran. The demand in the 19th century was primarily for female slaves, as domestic servants for the rich, and for eunuchs. Male slaves to work in the pearl-diving industry came later in the 20th century. The story of Ziba Khanum, a slave who gave birth to a son who later became rich and successful, is a previously undocumented case study for slavery in Iran. Here, we see a slave who was "um walid" (with child from her master) whose son did not inherit from the slavemaster/father, even though the master did recognize the child as his son. Instead, the son moved out, joined the Baha'i community in Palestine, became a wealthy merchant, and enabled his mother to move out.
Discussion: The distinction between field slaves and domestic slaves came up, as being applicable everywhere and not just in Iran and other parts of the Middle East. The latter type enjoyed higher status, often becoming sexual partners of their masters or the masters' children. It was also pointed out that talking about "domestic slaves" may sugar-coat a practice that is just as exploitative as other kinds of slavery.
Ladan Rahbari (U. Ghent, Belgium), "All the King's Slaves: Vulnerability and Sexual Captivity during the Safavid Period" [Rahbari was not in attendance due to visa problems, but her written paper was read by Eric Massie in the time allotted to Panel 2]: Ethnicity of slaves affected their status and rights. Dark-skinned slaves/eunuchs were trusted to be in the inner court, whereas lighter-skinned slaves were used to guard the outer court. Sometimes, free men were castrated and sold into slavery. People in debt were also enslaved at times as a way of repaying their debt.
[10:45-11:00] Coffee and tea
[11:00-11:45] Panel 2: Manumission and Murder: The Legal Boundaries of Slavery
Chair: Ahmad Atif Ahmad (Dept. Religious Studies, UCSB)
Ozgul Ozdemir (Stanford U.), "Murder in the Palace: The Trial of a Sudanese Eunuch and the Position of Enslaved Africans in the Ottoman Palace" [Ozdemir was not in attendance]
Ismail Warscheid (National Center for Scientific Research, France), "Saharan Qadis and their Proteges: Women, Orphans, Slaves in the Islamic Courts of Tuwat, Southern Algeria (1750-1850)": Much can be learned from Islamic legal documents and fatwas about the history of women and other marginalized groups in the Middle East and North Africa. Warscheid's field work in southern Algeria has revealed interesting dependencies and tensions between individual rights and authority structures.
[11:45-12:30] Panel 3: Prostitution and Erotic Performance in the Late Ottoman Empire
Chair: Juan Campo (Dept. Religious Studies, UCSB)
Orlin Sabev (Bulgarian Academy of Sciences), "Imperial Power and Non-Manageable Lust: Prostitution in Late Ottoman Society": Sabev observed that punishment for prostitution often entailed deportation and, less frequently, execution. People were told that prostitutes could be killed with impunity. Later, tightly managed brothels were allowed as a practical strategy for dealing with a problem that could not be eradicated.
Erik Blackthorne-O'Barr (Columbia U.), "Between the Street and the Stage: Erotic and Sexual Performance in Late Ottoman Istanbul": Sexual/Erotic performances were sometimes embedded inside more conventional acts, thereby giving them legitimacy. Certain low-brow, apolitical acts were exempted from censorship, because they were viewed as non-threatening to the nationalistic narrative.
[12:30-2:00] Lunch
Participants in Saturday morning's panel at UCSB's Iranian Studies Initiative Conference Friday afternoon, October 19, 2018
[2:00-2:30] Keynote lecture
Chair: Janet Afary (Director, Iranian Studies Initiative, UCSB)
Speaker: Joanna de Groot (Dept. History, U. York) "'Servitude'?, 'Slavery'?, 'Sexual Labor'?: Reflections on the Uses and Usefulness of these Terms for the Study of Iran and the Middle East": Notions of coercion, human trafficking, and commerce intersect with another set of notions, namely, family, marriage, the household, personal desire, and intimacy, in the field of sexual relations. Power relations, as reflected in class-, race-, and gender-based regimes of enslavement and subordination, play dominant roles in all aspects of sexual servitude/labor.
[2:30-3:30] Panel 4: Framing Slavery and Prostitution in Photography, Literature, and Film in Qajar Iran and Zanzibar
Chair: Anthony A. Lee (Dept. History, UCLA)
Pedram Khosronejad (Oklahoma State U.), "Photographs as Objects of Sexual Desire in Iran (1860s -1970s)": Khosronejad, who also curated a photo exhibit in which photography or video-recording was disallowed, described how the passion for photography developed among the Qajar royals and spread from there to the general public, leading to the establishment of several photographic studios. Today, we distinguish several categories of nude photos (erotic, nude art, pornography), although the boundaries are quite fuzzy. In the Qajar-era Iran, all nude photos were referred to as "sovar-e ghabiheh" (forbidden images). Nasser al-Din Shah personally photographed his harem women in various states of nudity. Some of these nude photos have become public, although this was likely not his intention.
Staci Gem Scheiwiller (California State U., Stanislaus), "Photography and Prostitution in Qajar Iran (1785- 1925)": Photography changed the face of prostitution in Qajar-era Iran, because it allowed common prostitutes to achieve fame and name recognition, becoming "visual celebrities." Nude photos were publicly traded, and nude photography was viewed as a kind of pimping. Safavid-era Isfahan had a surprisingly large number of prostitutes. Prostitution was rampant and largely unregulated in the Qajar era. Women were described through the dichotomy of public woman ("faahesheh") and private woman ("najeeb"), when public space was synonymous with male space. In a way, through their rebellious breaking of norms, sex workers foreshadowed the liberated modern Iranian women.
Emily O'Dell (Yale U.), "Memories of Slavery in Zanzibar Rendered in Literature, Testimonials, and Film": O'Dell, who has lived for several years in Oman, where slavery was a taboo topic for discussion until very recently, related that Doha, Qatar, now boasts a museum of slavery. Stories of slavery are preserved in photos, films, and novels. Not all such stories are accurate and, indeed, some are hotly contested. As an example, O'Dell cited "Africa Addio," a 1966 film (sometimes characterized as a "shockumentary") about the end of the colonial era in Africa, which includes footage of the Zanzibar Revolution and associated massacres.
[3:30-3:45] Coffee and tea
[3:45-4:45] Panel 5: Sex Traffic and Unfree Labor in the Contemporary Middle East (1)
Chair: Eileen Boris (Dept. Feminist Studies, UCSB)
Kathryn Hain (Independent Scholar), "The longue duree of Sex Slavery in the Muslim Mediterranean": The French expression "longue duree" is used in historical writing as a synonym for "the long term." Possession of a large numbers of slaves, particularly concubines and eunuchs, sometimes numbering in the hundreds or even thousands, was a status symbol among Muslim rulers and elites. The official end of royal harems came in the early 1900s, although the practice of owning slaves and sex workers did not completely disappear.
Sawsan Karimi (U. Bahrain), "Slavery and Colonialism: An Anthropological Review" [was not in attendance]
Sriyani Tidball (U. Nebraska-Lincoln), "Slavery of Sri Lankan Housemaids in the Middle East": Sri Lankan domestic and sex workers in the Persian Gulf region and several other Middle Eastern countries are exploited, in large part because the government of Sri Lanka isn't motivated to deal with the abuse. The reason is primarily economic, as such workers constitute one of the three pillars of the country's economy. In addition to being exploited overseas, such workers face harassment and hostility upon returning home.
Discussion: It was pointed out that one should not think that slave trade ended because the British outlawed it. In fact, after slavery was outlawed, slave trade increased substantially, expanding into Iran and other parts of the Middle East.
[4:45-5:00] Coffee and tea
[5:00-6:00] Panel 6: Sex Traffic and Unfree Labor in the Contemporary Middle East (2)
Chair: Alison Brysk (Dept. Global Studies)
Muhammad Ala Uddin (U. Chittagong, Bangladesh), "Slavery, Sex, and Remittance: Exploring the Plight of the Bangladeshi Women Migrants in the Middle East": The plight of Bangladeshi women is quite similar to those of Sri Lankan women, discussed in the previous talk. Some 70% of these women experience physical abuse and about 25% report sexual assault by their masters and the masters' relatives/friends. Many ended up returning home without pay, where they were further stigmatized by their own community, because they were assumed to have performed sexual labor while away.
Kevin Dupont (The Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, Tufts U.), "A Life of Glitz and Horror: An Examination of Female Trafficking into the GCC States and the Levant" [GCC stands for "Gulf Cooperation Council"]: Sex workers, lured to the Persian Gulf region in search of opportunities and good pay, soon find out that such opportunities do not exist. Instead, they are trapped in forced sex and servitude. The extensive black market provides the monetary motive for traders, while the US and other countries avoid intervening in human security issues. Thus, the widespread abuse is very difficult to stop.
Martin Jorgensen (Aalborg U., Denmark), "A Few Bad Apples? UN Peacekeepers, Prostitution and Sexual Abuse in the Gaza Strip, Cairo and Beirut": The widespread abuse by UN peacekeeping force (in the late 1950s and 1960s) was exacerbated by alcohol use and a "boys will be boys" attitude on the part of higher-ups. UN blamed the sex workers and not the peacekeepers and seemed to be primarily worried about the VD epidemic, rather than the well-being of the local population. It essentially aimed to protect its workforce from women, not the other wary around. Similar conduct by international agencies continues to this day.
Discussion: Governments which are pro-active in negotiating working conditions and worker safety with the Persian Gulf states have been able to secure some measure of protection for their migrant workers. On another front, while the protection of female migrant workers is indeed quite important, male migrant workers face similar abuse, in much larger numbers. Although, it must be mentioned that men at least have a chance to spend time in groups outside working hours, whereas women are often confined to their masters' quarters even after hours. Child labor is also a serious problem.
[6:00-8:30] Dinner at the Faculty Club and Performance by UCSB's Middle East Ensemble
Poster for the 'Unveiling the Veiled' photo exhibition Saturday, October 20, 2018
Pedram Khosronejad (curator), "Unveiling the Veiled: Royal Consorts, Slaves and Prostitutes in Qajar Photographs"
Location: UCSB Room: Alumni Hall
Here are links, provided by Dr. Khosronejad, in lieu of the UCSB exhibit in which photography and video recording was disallowed. Photos and captions: Part 1, Part 2; Guardian interview
[9:30-10:30] Coffee and tea
Chair: Manoutchehr Eskandari-Qajar (Santa Barbara City College)
Speakers: Pedram Khosronejad (Oklahoma State U.); Houman M. Sarshar (Founder/Director of Kimia Foundation)
The photos in the exhibit, as well as the larger collection from which they were drawn, are private and were taken in natural settings. This is how Nasser al-Din Shah's wives and slaves dressed on a daily basis. Other than the poses, nothing else is staged. Only recently the existence of these photos, previously possessed by private collectors, has become public knowledge. There are a dozen or so researchers worldwide who study Qajar-era photography, doing so mostly in the historical context. Very few are looking at the social significance of these photos (women's status, slavery, sex).
Houman Sarshar, an independent scholar and founder of Kimia Foundation (which apparently does not have an on-line presence), related that he bought some 5000 Qajar-era photographs, now forming part of the Foundation's resources. The set includes complete albums that tell fascinating stories. A 2-volume book based on these photos is being published. Volume 1 will contain a definitive biography of Doust-Ali Khan Moayer al-Mamalek (Nezam al-Dowleh), a skilled photographer who kept in touch with other photographers around the world. Volume 2 will cover his architectural photos, among other things.
[10:30-12:00] Roundtable Discussion on the Exhibition
Chair: Janet Afary (Director, Iranian Studies Initiative, UCSB)
Speakers: Manoutchehr Eskandari-Qajar, Pedram Khosronejad, Houman M. Sarshar, Staci Gem Scheiwiller, Behnaz Mirzai, Anthony A. Lee, Joanna De Groot
Many different viewpoints about the photo collection and exhibit were expressed during the discussion. One view was that displaying nude photos of women, in many cases without the mention of any names, objectifies them, given that the average viewer may not think that there is a deeper narrative involved. A counterpoint view was that the women were called by different names in different settings, so their real names are unknown for the most part. Photo studios which owned nude photo collections sometimes assigned random names to the women, much like numbers, for identification purposes. A customer would go looking for photos of this or that woman. Such names were created solely for the purpose of male consumption and had nothing to do with the subject women's identities.
In these photos, we are looking at the women through the eyes of the king: What he wanted us to see or, perhaps, what he wanted to see himself. Whether the women were the king's permanent or temporary wives, they had prominent places in the court, thus making them different from European or Ottoman concubines. Anthony Lee argued that in depictions of slavery in the US, it would be inconceivable not to include names, even if given slave names, and other textual information that would provide context for the exhibited images. Absence of such data would be deemed a denigration of the voiceless subjects. Others argued that there exists substantial information about the lives of harem women and slaves of the Qajar era that should have been posted alongside the photos to provide context.
[12:30 PM] Janet Afary, Closing remarks

2018/10/19 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Are you ready to shift your complaints from the heat to the cold? (Cartoon from 'The New Yorker') Pumpkins, as we approach Halloween, Thanksgiving, and pumpkin-spice-latte season! Time magazine's cover photo, issue of October 22, 2018, warns that even when Trump is gone, Trumpism will linger on. (1) Cartoons: [Left] Are you ready to shift your complaints from the heat to the cold? (From: The New Yorker) [Center] Pumpkins, as we approach Halloween, Thanksgiving, and pumpkin-spice-latte season! [Right] Time magazine's cover photo of October 22, 2018, warns that even when Trump is gone, Trumpism will linger on.
(2) It seems that the US gave the Saudis just enough time to manufacture a story about Jamal Kashoggi's murder: He started a fight at the Saudi consulate in Ankara, which led to his death!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- "Fingerprints" of 3D printers will facilitate tracing 3D-printed guns.
- Cartoon of the day: Nikki Haley, who helped gut the US image in the global community, is leaving. [Image]
- Second cartoon of the day: Tsunami of plastic trash. [Image]
- Iranian variety TV of yore: Fereydoun Farrokhzad is featured in this 10-minute video compilation.
(4) Image and video forensics: On Thursday, October 18, 2018, Dr. Hany Farid (Professor and Chair of Computer Science Department at Dartmouth) spoke in the SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind seminar series, under the title "Reining in Social-Media Abuses: From Fake News, to Extremism, and Child Exploitation." This is a very timely topic and Dr. Farid's research on the subject is first-rate. Among Dr. Farid's accomplishments, as Senior Adviser for the Counter Extremism Project, is the unveiling of a software tool for use by Internet and social-media companies to find and eliminate extremist content used to spread and incite violence and attacks.
Photos are compared via their signatures, using schemes such as MD5 hash, which count on identical photos producing identical or very similar signatures. In dealing with child pornography, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible with today's technology, to automatically identify images that constitute undesirable content. It is much easier, however, to stop redistribution, which is a significant fraction of images posted by those involved in child pornography. Given a database of previously identified pornographic images, one needs to compare signatures of new content with the signatures of images in the database, setting a match threshold for screening. PhotoDNA does a very good job in such matchings; its practical use has led to the elimination of more than 10 million images in 2017 alone.
Comparing videos is much harder than images, because of the large number of frames involved. However, given that video imagery does not change much from one frame to the next (especially in the typical terrorism-related videos, where one person stands and delivers a message), it is possible to remove much content by focusing on "key frames." Clearly, the key frames chosen from two different videos may not be the same, leading to different numerical sequences for two similar videos. A process similar to DNA sequence matching can be employed to establish the degree of similarity. Interestingly, such algorithms have been used successfully to compare encrypted videos directly.
We are now at a point that highly realistic fake videos can be produced by tools such as DeepFake, where a speaker says whatever we want him/her to say. The current scheme takes an actual video of the speaker and modifies the lip movements to match the new narrative, spoken by an impersonator. The way digital cameras and video recorders work, we can distinguish such modified elements, but there is a real arms race in progress between fakers and those whose mission is to detect fakery.
Unfortunately, social media companies lack incentives to stop the distribution of harmful content. For example, Facebook was told about violence against the Rohingya, largely fueled by social-media posts, but did nothing about it for a long time. There is a delicate balance between ensuring free speech and providing safety to users. Child pornography and beheadings are clearly wrong, but the boundary isn't so clear in every case. We need to work on finding a happy medium. It is quite telling that our tech industry protected copyright owners before it protected children! [Images]

2018/10/18 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. Statue of John Lennon in Cuba Calligraphic rendering of a verse by Mowlavi (Rumi)
PhotoShopped or real image? That is the problem (1) Art/curiosities from around the world: [Left] Statue of John Lennon in Cuba. [Center] Calligraphic rendering of a verse by Mowlavi (Rumi). [Right] PhotoShopped or real image? That is the question! Can you explain?
(2) Parvin Bakhtiarnejad dead at 56: Here's the PDF file of the late women's-rights activist's third book, Tragedy of Silence: Honor Killings (in Persian), which she published on-line after Iran's Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance denied her a publication permit.
(3) Quote of the day: "Patience is not sitting and waiting, it is foreseeing. It is looking at the thorn and seeing the rose, looking at the night and seeing the day." ~ Shams Tabrizi
(4) Tweet of grammatically-challenged Trump parsed: He ends his tweet, gloating over the dismissal of Stormy Daniels' defamation lawsuit against him, while also insulting her looks, thus: "She knows nothing about me, a total con!" He is admitting that he is "a total con"!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Misogyny/racism in full view: Top Republicans join President Trump in mocking Senator Elizabeth Warren.
- Republicans talk like Democrats on issues such as healthcare and #MeToo, at least until the midterms.
- Ayatollah Putin: "Aggressors against Russia will be destroyed and Russians will go to heaven as martyrs."
- If only our politicians were as enlightened as those on TV fiction: Nationalism isn't the same as patriotism.
- MIT's new AI college to train "bilingual" scientists, conversant in computing and another scientific field.
- Sad and joyous at the same time: Deprived children use their ingenuity to make up for lack of resources.
(6) Spotting fake videos is getting harder: It's a virtual arms race between fake-content creators and academics bent on exposing them. Computer scientist Siwei Lyu wrote a paper about how the unnatural eye-blinking rates of fake videos could be used for detection, and posted the paper on-line. Weeks later, fake-video software had evolved to remove the problem. [See my post of tomorrow about image and video forensics.]
(7) John Bolton and John Kelly get into a shouting match at the White House: Trump who witnessed at least part of the altercation feigns ignorance; Sarah Sanders blames the Democrats!
(8) [Final thought for the day] Judgment is just lazy thinking: When you see something new, your brain goes into overdrive until you identify it and assign a noun to it ("Oh, that's a fork"); you then relax and stop thinking. The same is true with regard to people ("Oh, that's a Latino/feminist/Republican"). Stoppage of thinking at this point makes you miss all the nuances.

2018/10/17 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Heart equation Einstein explained: Energy = More coffee (more even!) Schrodinger's cat (1) A few important equations explained: [Left] Heart equation. [Center] Energy = More coffee (more even!) [Right] Schrodinger's cat.
(2) Underground cities in Iran's Isfahan Province: The Koohpayeh underground city, located 4-16 meters deep, was apparently built as a war shelter. This one, in Kord-e-Olia village, is similar in layout and architecture to Rome's Catacombs.
(3) The early years of Donald Trump, the self-made billionaire: He started right away after being born, built an entrepreneurial lemonade stand at six, then had a successful paper route, an exclusive tree-house club for pals who could afford the fees, and a little help from the Tooth Fairy! [Five cartoons from The New Yorker]
(4) China's 'artificial moon' will replace street lamps in a very wide area on Earth. Russia experimented with, and ultimately failed in deploying, a similar system in the early 1990s. Much has changed since then, both in satellite technology and in our ability to finely control thousands of small mirrors for precision lighting.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Terrorism in Crimea: Lone 18-year-old kills 18 people by gun and bomb attack on a college campus.
- A man with that face, hair, and body should not insult women for their physical appearance!
- Beto O'Rourke attacks Ted Cruz during debate via referring to him by his Trump-given nickname.
- WP runs a new Jamal Khashoggi column in which he warns that Middle East governments silence the media.
- This is what a tsunami does to cars and everything else on its path of destruction. [Video]
- A Republican group invites Gavin McInnes, founder of the violent neo-fascist gang The Proud Boys, to speak.
(6) "White Right: Meeting the Enemy": This 60-minute film, screened tonight at UCSB's Multicultural Center Theater, tells the story of the daughter of a Pakistani immigrant who joins racist groups to try to understand their viewpoints and strategies. Quite informative and eye-opening!
(7) World Music Series: Today's noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl featured the Santa-Barbara-based group Ewe Drums and Dance ("Ewe" is pronounced "eh-weh"). Ewe music, from certain regions of Africa, is explained in one of these photos. This 4-minute video shows a sample music/dance from today's performance.

2018/10/16 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Fall colors in Utah, USA Spring colors near Kermanshah, Kurdistan Province, Iran Summer fruits and vegetables on display in Tajrish Bazaar, north Tehran, Iran (1) Our beautiful Earth: [Left] Fall colors in Utah, USA. [Center] Spring colors near Kermanshah, Kurdistan Province, Iran. [Right] Summer fruits and vegetables on display in Tajrish Bazaar, north Tehran, Iran.
(2) Digital literacy: One of the most successful and widespread efforts to make the general public computer-literate was implemented in the former Soviet Union, when, beginning in 1985, ninth graders took a compulsory course entitled "Basics of Informatics and Computing Technology." At the time, very few Soviet households or even schools had personal computers, so programmable calculators, such as the Elektronika B3-34 filled in the void. [Source: IEEE Spectrum, issue of October 2018]
(3) A woman by any other name: Islamic Republic of Iran officials tend to refer to women as "baanovaan" (plural of "baanoo"). On the surface, "baanoo" appears to be more respectful than "zan" (similar to "lady" versus "woman"), but much sexism is hidden in the word and the way it is used.
(4) Whither computer-aided instruction? For much of the 20th century, people wanted to replace the chalkboard, the textbook, and the teacher with computers. What happened? [Opinion piece by Roderick N. Crooks (UC Irvine), "Critical Failure: Computer-Aided Instruction and the Fantasy of Information," IEEE Annals of the History of Computing, Vol. 40, No. 2, 2018.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Saudis' latest defense: We did not intend to kill Kashoggi; we just wanted to kidnap him for interrogation!
- Colbert on Trump's comments re Senator Warren: Who cares? You sir! You're literally the only one!
- John Oliver's brilliant monologue on the relationship between Trump and Saudi Arabia. [18-minute video]
- Sign of the times: Haji Mohammad's shishlik, advertised on large high-tech display board in Iran.
- Quote of the day: "The true delight is in the finding out rather than in the knowing." ~ Isaac Asimov
(6) "Harlan County, USA": This classic and highly acclaimed 1976 documentary was screened at UCSB's Pollock Theater tonight. The film is about the struggles of coal-mining communities of Appalachia (including very active and vocal woman), which led to improvements in wages and mine-safety regulations. Director Barbara Kopple presents an intimate portrait of the communities, unions, protest organizers, and law-enforcement officers. A very interesting discussion between Betsy Taylor (Director of Livelihoods Knowledge Exchange Network) and moderator Alice O'Connor (History, UCSB) and audience Q&A followed the screening. Among the topics discussed were connections between the labor organization efforts depicted in the film and the Civil Rights Movement, as well as political corruption fed by the energy industry, which extended to both local/national politicians and labor-union leaders. [Photos] [Link to the full documentary on YouTube]
A few short clips I recorded at the screening: [Video clip 1] [Video clip 2] [Video clip 3] [Video clip 4]

2018/10/15 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A variation on Sudoku: Each row, column, and stream (connected set of circles) should contain all the numbers 1 to 6 Puzzle: Can you find the animal hidden in this drawing? Visual puzzle: Stare at the upper white dot in this image for a while. Then, stare at the lower white dot. Explain the faint red color you see on the lower right and the faint green color on the lower left (1) Some puzzles: [Left] A variation on Sudoku: Each row, column, and stream (connected set of circles) should contain all the numbers 1 to 6. [Center] Can you find the animal hidden in this drawing? [Right] Visual puzzle: Stare at the upper white dot in this image for a while. Then, stare at the lower white dot. Explain the faint red color you see on the lower right and the faint green color on the lower left.
(2) Our short attention span: We have already moved on past discussing Hurricane Michael, but Panama City residents continue to suffer from lack of water and electricity.
(3) Exa-ops (10^12 operations per second) barrier broken: Using climate data from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory on NVIDIA tensor cores built into Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Summit supercomputer, a team of computational scientists trained the DeepLabv3+ neural network to identify extreme weather patterns from high-resolution climate simulations. The computation achieved a sustained performance very close to the peak of 1.13 exa-ops, making it the fastest deep learning algorithm ever reported.
(4) Fake news: Trump's figure of $110 billion in military contracts, cited as an excuse for not getting tough with Saudi Arabia, is all smoke and mirrors. Defense industry experts indicate that there are only a bunch of "letters of intent" at this point; no contract has been signed.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Ford Motor company chairman cancels visit to Saudi investor conference over the Khashoggi disappearance.
- Bodies of 11 deceased infants were found in the ceiling of a shuttered funeral home in Detroit.
- An icon of American retail declares bankruptcy: The catalog sales model that Sears pioneered survives.
- Data mining exposes Russian Twitter-troll campaigns in the US, Germany, and France.
- Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen dead of lymphoma at 65.
(6) Are traffic lights headed for extinction? According to the cover feature of IEEE Spectrum, issue of October 2018, communicative cars of the future will negotiate intersections, without a need for traffic lights, cutting commute times by 1/3 in the process. Cars collectively controlling their own traffic may be an idea whose time has come. What about pedestrians and bicyclists? In the short term, they will be handled by special priority provisions. Longer-term solutions may involve everyone carrying a personal navigation device. [Cover image]
(7) Elektro the Moto-Man: This 1930s robot by Westinghouse talked via pre-recorded snippets and could do a few other things too. [Source: IEEE Spectrum, issue of October 2018]

2018/10/14 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Colorful tray of fruits and vegetables Fall colors, somewhere in the eastern United States Pomegranates of various colors, and persimmons (1) Our beautiful Earth (fall colors, somewhere in the eastern United States), and its bounty, including my two most-favorite fruits (appearing on the right), which happen to be in season now.
(2) Fiftieth anniversary of the North Hall Takeover: On October 14, 1968, a group of black students barricaded themselves in North Hall on the UCSB campus to protest unequal treatment and passive-aggressive racism they faced as Black athletes and as members of the campus community at large. A UCSB conference marks this act of civil disobedience, which brought attention not only to the circumstances of black students, but also to those of their fellow classmates who did not see themselves reflected in academia.
(3) Confessions of a map aficionado: I have multiple maps at my home and at my office. A couple of decades ago, before GPS and Google Maps took over, I had a thick stack of now-obsolete AAA folding maps at home and in my car. I have kept some of those as mementos. So, I found this Web site that gives you a zoomable map of all the buildings in the US quite interesting.
(4) The girl who may become the next Maryam Mirzakhani: Zahra Zavieh, an Iranian girl from Urmia, has earned a gold medal in the International Math Olympiad. The team from Iran finished second overall. On a friend's post of this story, someone commented "Good for Silicon Valley"!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Eight members of an expedition are dead and another is missing after a snowstorm at Nepal's Mount Gurja.
- Defense Secretary James Mattis is a "sort of a Democrat" and may soon leave his post, according to Trump.
- Bodies of 11 deceased infants were found in the ceiling of a shuttered funeral home in Detroit.
- Ford Motor company chairman cancels visit to Saudi investor conference over the Khashoggi disappearance.
(6) Early Persian Printing and Typography in Europe: Interesting 19-minute lecture by Borna Izadpanah (PhD student of Professor Fiona G. E. Ross, a specialist on typography and graphic design at U. Reading, UK), delivered in September 2018, which I discovered based on feedback from a scholar, who commented on a draft of my forthcoming paper on computers and challenges of writing in Persian. I am pursuing this lecture and other information sources I have just discovered and will write about some of them as I learn more.
(7) Windy-afternoon stroll: After dining at Los Agaves in Goleta, my daughter and I walked home via the recently restored UCSB North Campus Open Space. The bridge behind us in this photo was built as part of the new trail, that goes over an extension of the Devereux Slough into the area formerly occupied by a golf course.
(8) Final thought for the day: Having made a post about the wonderful world of maps earlier today, I came across this humorous generic map of "every European city" and thought to share it too.

2018/10/13 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) Book review: Picoult, Jodi, Small Great Things: A Novel, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Audra McDonald (with Cassandra Campbell and Ari Fiakos), Random House Audio, 2016.
Cover image for Jody Picoult's 'Small Great Things' [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Picoult tackles the problem of racism in a thoughtful and engaging way. Her story shows the intersection of three lives, as main characters, and a few other people who work and live with them: Ruth, a middle-aged black nurse working at the labor and delivery unit of a hospital; Turk, a racist young man whose equally racist wife gives birth to a son at the hospital; and Kennedy (first name), a female public defender who represents Ruth when the couple pursues murder charges against her.
This is a great book from which to learn about the lives and outlooks of a diverse group of people. Each chapter is written from the vantage point of one of the main characters, with overlapping narratives showing how the same events may be interpreted in widely different ways by those experiencing or witnessing them.
Ruth is a conscientious and competent professional, but she carries the burden of years of oppression and injustice, swallowing her pride and trying hard to protect her son from a similar fate. She relates the difficulties inherent in her line of work, with its 12-hour shifts, as well as the additional hurdles she faces as a black person in a still-racist society.
Turk relates stories from his youth that shaped his world outlook and his involvement in White Supremacist and other race-based hate groups. He forces the hospital staff to ban Ruth from caring for, or even touching, his newborn, by threatening to cause a scene. When staff shortages during an emergency force Ruth to administer CPR to the newborn, who later dies, the stage is set for conflict.
Kennedy, the public defender, is so busy with her career and the heavy workload it entails that she does not have time to take care of herself, causing her mom to book a massage therapy session for her to prevent a gift certificate she had gotten from expiring. She disagrees with her client about the best defense strategy (whether or not to play the race card), which creates much tension, as the courtroom drama unfolds.
This is a well-researched and carefully constructed story that conveys the various dimensions of racism and how it affects the lives of Americans, as they go about their daily lives and when they hit crisis points.
(2) You have no doubt experienced or heard about horrible PowerPoint presentations: My Persian-speaking readers will have fun (vexation?) with this PPT slide!
(3) Today's double-celebration: We celebrated, with members of our extended family and a few friends, my older son's birthday and the 30th anniversary of my immediate family's arrival in Southern California (all 30 years at our current residence in Goleta) and my work at UCSB. [Photos] David Tovar, a super-talented local musician provided the entertainment; samples follow.
["Under the Boardwalk"] ["I Blessed the Day I Found You"] ["You Look Wonderful Tonight"] ["Peaceful Easy Feeling"] ["Ring of Fire"] [An instrumental piece]

2018/10/12 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. Silencing women
Violence against women Glass ceiling in the worlds of literature and publishing, where women actually dominate (1) Red, white, and black: Interestingly, several articles I have came across recently all used the same color scheme in their illustrations. The articles were about silencing women (#MeToo, etc.), violence against women, and the glass ceiling, even in the worlds of literature and publishing, where women actually dominate.
(2) Trump is reluctant to impose sanctions on Saudi Arabia for a journalist's disappearance: Rich people get mere slaps on the wrist in our justice system. Internationally, too, rich countries literally get away with murder.
(3) Mystery memo raises concerns over the Chinese ties of Broadcom, which now wants to acquire Computer Associates Technologies, a company with sensitive contracts involving the US power grid and Pentagon.
(4) When an anti-science and anti-intellectual boor takes power and surrounds himself with other dolts, climate change becomes a Chinese hoax and Kanye West emerges as a presidential adviser. Please vote!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Hurricane Michael's death toll will surely rise beyond the 14 so far, as the "war zone" search continues.
- Trees and structures are mangled by Hurricane Michael, a result of the Chinese "Global Warming" hoax.
- National Transportation Safety Board's preliminary report cites ineptitude/neglect in MA gas explosions.
- Another Facebook hack: Records of nearly 30 million users compromised and their data stolen.
- Encyclopedia of Big Data Technologies is on-line in full: The print version is expected in early 2019.
- My cousin Parviz Parhami was honored as a distinguished alumnus of U. Illinois in October 12 ceremonies.
(6) "It's a Scary Time for Boys": I had posted the song with this title before, but Jimmy Kimmel brought the singer/songwriter and a whole bunch of women and girls to his show to sing this version.
(7) Trump teaches his version of American history, with a nod to Brett Kavanaugh's drinking problem: When other generals failed, heavy-drinker Ulysses S. Grant defeated "the great general" Robert E. Lee.
(8) Quote of the day: "I'm a mother and a first lady, and I have much more important things to think about and to do." ~ Melania Trump, sidestepping a question about her husband's affairs
(9) Final thought for the day: The US is no longer on the top-20 list of the most democratic countries. Donald Trump is taking us towards his friends at #159 (Saudi Arabia) and #167 (North Korea). [Chart]

2018/10/11 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Iranian girl Girl from unknown region, 1 Girl from unknown region, 2 (1) Happy International Day of the Girl 2018: Hoping that someday, all the girls around the world will have much to smile about! [International Business Times report]
(2) UCSB's environmental leadership: Nearing completion on its ecological restoration of a former golf course, UCSB opens the first public trail at North Campus Open Space.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Aerial video shows Hurricane Michael's widespread destruction of Mexico Beach, Florida.
- "Her": A new song and music video against sexual misconduct and for believing the victims.
- Persian music: I have posted this song before, but this rendition is warm and heartfelt.
- A memorable rock-n-roll song, "I Saw Her Standing There," performed by the giants of rock-n-roll.
Cover image of Temple Grandin's 'Calling All Minds' (4) Book review: Grandin, Temple, Calling All Minds: How to Think and Create Like an Inventor, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Ann Richardson, Listening Library, 2018. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Mary Temple Grandin [1947-now], Professor of animal science at Colorado State University and consultant to the livestock industry on animal behavior, has been featured in several films, including one bearing her name (2010), "In the Woods" (2012), and "Speciesism: The Movie" (2013).
In this book, Grandin aims to inspire young readers to put down their phones and to pick up scissors, glue, milk cartons, and other tools/materials to build some of the things she herself worked on as a kid, relating her own experiences and challenges as she tried the projects. Some two-dozen projects, grouped into five sections (paper, wood, levers/pulleys, objects that fly, and optical illusions) are presented, along with descriptions of underlying inventions and patents. An accompanying PDF file includes drawings, photos, and images of patent applications.
As a spokesperson for autism, Grandin has given many seminars and talks, including this 20-minute TED talk, entitled "The World Needs All Kinds of Minds." She is not the best speaker, because, as she indicates in her talk, she is a visual, detail-oriented thinker and has trouble dealing with abstractions. But, it's still good to hear her views and learn about her success story.

2018/10/10 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Analog design depicting Donald Trump The new Canadian flag since Trump's election Digital design depicting Donald Trump (1) Graphic designs: Analog and digital Donald Trump, and the new Canadian flag since his election.
(2) Time magazine's October 15, 2018, report "50 Genius Companies" is an excellent read. I was particularly intrigued by: 23andMe (Unlocking DNA for all); Agriprotein (Turning waste into feed); Apeel Sciences (Keeping fruit fresh); Impossible Foods (Artificial "meat"); Obvious (Algorithm-generated art)
(3) Panama City Beach, a town where my younger son lived for 3 years in the early 2010s, is torn to pieces by category-4 (almost 5) Hurricane Michael, the strongest storm ever to hit the Florida Panhandle. Unusually, the Hurricane was still category-3, way after moving inland to Georgia.
(4) Ranking of healthcare efficiency in world economies: Lighter shades of blue in this map are better. The US is unfortunately ranked very low. For the definition of efficiency and other details, see this Bloomberg report.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The Dow Jones Industrial average fell 832 points today in third worst day by points ever.
- US sanctions: Iran sends 200 tons of medicine and med supplies to Iraq, amid severe domestic shortages.
- Women are sending thank-you postcards to Kavanaugh accuser, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford.
- US resident and WaPo reporter Jamal Khashoggi goes missing after visiting the Saudi Consulte in Turkey.
- Persian music: Female vocalist is accompanied by violin and traditional Iranian instruments. [Video]
- Persian music: A modern arrangement of the oldie "Bordi az Yaadam" (performed by Hooshmand Aghili).
- World Music Series: Today's noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl featured Los Catanes Del Norte. [Video]
(6) "UCSB Reads" book for 2019: The just-announced selection is The Best We Could Do, an illustrated memoir, taking the form of a comic book, by Thi Bui.
(7) Cartoon from 2017: [Donald Trump, facing a bunch of people holding signs that say Trump is wrong on Iran, torture, Russia, the border wall, ... ] Trump: "Lying media!" Aide: "That's your cabinet ... " [Image]
(8) Musical response to the "It's a Scary Time for Boys": It has been a scary time for girls and women throughout the recorded history, so, my fellow men could surely bear the pressure, if there is indeed any pressure, for a few weeks or months! [Video]
(9) Final thought for the day: If sexual assault is such a horrible act that mere allegation of it "ruins a man's life," can you imagine what the act itself does to a woman's life?

2018/10/09 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Ignoring the fact that investigative methods and science can resolve the so-called 'he said, she said' cases Cartoon: Trump attacks Brett Kavanaugh's accusers Sweeping sexual assault allegations under the rug (1) On sexual assault: [Left] Ignoring the fact that investigative methods and science can resolve the so-called 'he said, she said' cases. [Center] Trump viciously attacks Brett Kavanaugh's accusers. [Right] Sweeping sexual assault allegations under the rug.
(2) India's Supreme Court rules that a biometric database containing fingerprints and eye scans of more than 1 billion citizens does not violate the right to privacy. [Source: Time magazine, issue of October 8, 2018]
(3) Quote of the day: "A book is not improved when it becomes a movie. A book is something that stimulates creativity in the reader. The movie—you have everything already." ~ Paulo Coelho, in Time magazine interview
(4) Call to action: The Kavanaugh confirmation hearing has energized the right, which is spending lavishly to defeat Senator Heidi Heitkamp, as punishment for her "no" vote. Keep your eye on the prize: Vote, and contribute to the extent you can.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The Trump agenda:   Ruin the Presidency. ✔   Ruin the Congress. ✔   Ruin the Supreme Court. ✔
- Hurricane Michael headed toward Panama City on the Florida Panhandle: The Carolinas also threatened.
- Couple arrested in Mexico with baby stroller full of human body parts may have killed up to 20 women.
- A call-to-action essay by Suzy Evans, lawyer, historian, author, and literary agent.
- For once, Trump apologizes: But it's to Brett Kavanaugh, on behalf of America!
- Hot off the press: New updated edition of Trump's The Art of the Deal. Cover cartoon]
- With their roles in transportation diminishing, donkeys are bred for their medicinally potent milk. [Video]
- Trevor Noah's monologue about Trump's claim that the most powerful men on Earth are being victimized.
(5) [Joke of the day] Sarah: "Whenever one door closes another one opens!" Jill: "That's nice, but until you fix it, I'm not buying this car."
(7) Tweeters are doing harm to the Persian language: Granted, there are certain technical terms that do not have (good or widely-accepted) Persian equivalents, but tweets such as this one are ridiculous!
(8) Iranian politics mirrors what's happening in the US: A female member of Iran's parliament has received death threats for voting "yes" on a bill that aims to curtail corruption, money-laundering, and support for domestic and international terrorism. [Persian tweet]
(9) Final thought for the day: A post claimed that Persian is the only language in which you can form a long sentence using verbs only. This 19-verb sentence isn't properly formed, but still fun to contemplate!

2018/10/08 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Lady Liberty laments over what happened to Lady Justice Photo: Stalling of women's rights progress The best defense is teaching girls to read (1) Women's rights: [Left] Lady Liberty laments over what happened to Lady Justice. [Center] Stalling of women's rights progress. [Right] The best defense is for girls to be educated about their rights.
(2) The cover image of a book about Iran piqued my interest: Will try to locate it. [The Iranian Metaphysicals: Explorations in Science, Islam, and the Uncanny, by Alireza Doostdar, Princeton University Press, 2018]
(3) ACM issues an updated edition of its Code of Ethics: All professional societies expect ethical behavior from their members and formalize these expectations in a Code. ACM's current Code consists of a preamble and the following four sections, followed by case studies.   1. General Ethical Principles   2. Professional Responsibilities   3. Professional Leadership Principles   4. Compliance with the Code
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Twenty (17 birthday-partying friends, the driver, and 2 pedestrians) killed in upstate NY limo crash.
- Teen girl executed in Iran, after killing her abusive husband, whose brother allegedly raped her.
- The misogynists ruling Saudi Arabia for 86 years and slated to rule for another decade, at least. [Chart]
- Why not repurpose Columbus day to celebrate immigrants? After all, Columbus was an immigrant.
- Preying on the elderly: Don't ever lose sight of your purse or wallet while shopping. [Video]
- Embroidering the beauty of nature. [Vido]
- Quote of the day: "Trump has changed 'We the People' to 'Me the President'." ~ Colin Powell
(5) Here are two problems I have assigned as parts of the first homework for my graduate-level course on fault-tolerant computing. They are useful to trigger some thinking about the moral responsibilities of an engineer. These are newly designed problems that will eventually appear in my textbook on the topic.
1.24. Risks of infrastructure deterioration: In September 2018, gas explosions rocked a vast area in northeastern Massachusetts, leading to the loss of one life, many injuries, and destruction of property. Investigations revealed that just before the explosions, pipe pressure was 12 times higher than the safe limit. Using Internet sources, write a one-page report on this incident, focusing on how/why pressure monitors, automatic shut-off mechanisms, and human oversight failed to prevent the disaster.
2.26. Risks of trusting the physics of sensors: Many safety-critical systems collect data from sensors for use in making their decisions. Read the paper [Fu18] and write a one-page summary for it, focusing on safety challenges that are unique to sensors (as opposed to general risks associated with trusting technology).
[Fu18] Fu, K. and W. Xu, "Risks of Trusting the Physics of Sensors," CACM, Vol. 61, No. 2, pp. 20-23, 2018.
(6) An elaborate academic sting operation: Three professors set out to expose shady publication practices by writing bogus "papers" and having them published in top academic journals. They point their criticism at liberal arts, but the problem is much more widespread. There have been multiple successful attempts to publish nonsensical science/engineering "papers," including a few that were generated by computer programs. What causes these hoaxes to pass through the peer review of the publication process is the publish-or-perish culture in academia that leads researchers to spend as little time as possible on service activities, such as refereeing papers. The little refereeing talent available is spread very thin by the proliferation of academic journals to accommodate the flood of papers, many of which have average readership in the single digits.

2018/10/07 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon of Lady Justice under assault Cover image of a book about hidden violence against women Self-portrait of a Yezidi woman who escaped her ISIS captors. (1) Violence against women dominated the news over the past week (Kavanaugh hearing, Nobel Peace Prize): [Left] Lady Justice under assault. [Center] Cover image of a book about hidden violence against women. [Right] Self-portrait of a Yazidi woman who escaped her ISIS captors.
(2) Nobel Prize: Normally, the Literature Prize would have been announced by now, with the Economics Prize coming next week. But the Nobel Committee was forced to postpone the Literature Prize, in view of sexual assault allegations by 18 women against French photographer Jean-Claude Arnault, 72, husband of Swedish Academy member Katarina Frostenson. He has already been sentenced to 2 years on one count of rape.
(3) Oil industry analyst warns that the global oil market is on a razor's edge: Strict enforcement of sanctions, or a regional crisis disrupting the supply, can easily lead to prices exceeding $100. If this happens, affected countries will blame the US for its bull-in-the-china-shop approach to economic policy.
(4) Brett Kavanaugh confirmed for lifetime Supreme Court appointment by 50-48 Senate vote: Will he be asking the other SCOTUS members upon arrival whether they like beer?
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Indonesia quake/tsunami death toll surpasses 1700, with more than 5000 still missing.
- Patrick Leahy explains the rush to confirm Kavanaugh, before additional damning evidence came out.
- Facebook fights overly-broad search warrants against anti-Trump activists, with no criminal allegation.
- An alert suburban bank teller exposes what would have been one of the biggest bank heists ever.
- [Humor] The US Supreme Court is planning a beer party to welcome Kavanaugh.
- Lady Gaga talks to Steven Colbert about "A Star Is Born" and surviving sexual assault. [Video]
- Anti-Semitism: Northern Virginia Jewish community center spray-painted with swastikas. [Photo]
- The life and work of a super-talented Iranian musician in exile: Sepideh Raissadat. [Video]
(6) Iran doesn't even let Baha'i corpses rest in peace: For 40 years, Baha'is have faced hostility and arbitrary arrests and imprisonments. Even their cemeteries are destroyed/bulldozed as a matter of course.
(7) Jonah Goldberg's lecture: Tonight, I attended an interesting and important lecture by Jonah Goldberg, Senior Editor of National Review and fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, who talked about his acclaimed and best-selling book, Suicide of the West: How the Rebirth of Tribalism, Populism, Nationalism and Identity Politics Is Destroying American Democracy. Speaking at UCSB's Campbell Hall, Goldberg warned (not that we need the warning, as we witness first-hand what is happening in the US) that, as the United States and other democracies surrender to populism, nationalism, and other forms of tribalism, they are in danger of losing the will to defend the values and institutions that sustain freedom and prosperity. According to Goldberg, a staunch conservative, who takes pains to explain that conservatism and the Republican Party are not the same thing, our Constitution and the values it espouses put us at the peak of a mountain and from that peak, every path leads downward. Democracy must be nurtured and taught in order to survive, as every baby is born with tribalism instincts pre-wired in his/her brain. There are a lot of other important points from the lecture that I could write about, but it would take me many pages. Do go hear him, or read his book, if you get a chance.

2018/10/06 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Time magazine cover image for its October 8, 2018, issue (1) With Time magazine's cover of the October 15, 2018, issue featuring the words of Dr. Blasey Ford going viral on the Internet (see my blog post of yesterday), the equally important October 8 cover got lost in the shuffle. It stresses the need to update the US Constitution to make women's rights explicit, rather than subject to interpretation.
(2) Nobel Peace Prize: Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad win the 2018 Prize for fighting sexual violence. Quoting from The Guardian about Dr. Mukwege: "With violence against women resurgent and the US president fueling misogyny, this man is an inspiration ... an extraordinary man who has risked everything to heal, cherish and honor women. It is a call to men across the planet to do the same." Murad relates how she reclaimed her life, after 7 members of her family were murdered and she became a sex slave to ISIS captors. Here is part of Murad's book, The Last Girl, with a foreword by Amal Clooney, who characterizes ISIS as "evil on an industrial scale." Hats off to this young woman, whose bravery stands in stark contrast to the cowardice of many of our politicians condoning acts and policies they know to be morally wrong, because they fear losing the next election!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Too late? The American Bar Association reconsiders its opinion of Kavanaugh. [Letter]
- A new cell-phone app calls 911 automatically, if an accident knocks you out, away from help.
- [Humor] Denietol: A new med for men that helps erase unpleasant memories of sexual misconduct.
- Shadow-dancing to a decades-old song, which I remember from an Indian movie I saw in Iran. [Video]
- Riddle of the day: What gets dirtier after it is washed?
- Artists in Isfahan produce art from many different materials: Here is one who creates metallic carpets.
(4) Misogynistic headline: "Susan Collins Consents" is how The Wall Street Journal reports the latest development in the Brett Kavanaugh Senate confirmation saga.
(5) The out-of-touch old white men: Senate Judiciary Committee chair Grassley believes that his committee's workload is too heavy for women! These dinosaurs must be voted out and replaced with non-extinct species.
(6) The fig-leaf investigation: FBI's investigation of allegations against Kavanaugh was nothing but a fig leaf for the Republicans to cover themselves, but, with the very limited list of individuals the FBI was allowed to contact, the fig leaf turned out to be too small. They are still pretty much exposed!

2018/10/05 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The impact of sexual assault survivors' words: Time magazine cover image (1) Time magazine's October 15, 2018, cover image depicts the impact of sexual assault suvivors' words.
(2) Food waste: Some 40% of the food produced in the US is thrown out. Reducing this waste would take us a long way toward solving many of our problems, including hunger and pollution. [Video]
(3) Another mysterious death: A Russian Deputy Attorney General, thought to have directed attorney Natalia Veselnitskaya, involved in the infamous Trump-Tower meeting and other plots abroad on behalf of Russia's government, has died in a helicopter crash.
(4) Is Thomas Edison in hell or in heaven? This question is addressed by an Iranian cleric. According to his reading of Islam, non-Muslims cannot go to heaven, but their suffering in hell may be reduced, in part or totally, by a record of good deeds! [Video]
(5) California man, 90, implicated in the death of his stepdaughter based on her Fitbit data: The fitness device showed a significant spike in heart rate at 3:20 PM, September 8, before rapidly slowing. Surveillance videos showed that the stepfather's car was parked in his stepdaughter's driveway from 3:12 PM to at least 3:33 PM.
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Adding insult to injury, Trump claims that women sharing stories of sexual assault are paid professionals.
- A new character for Sesame Street: Time monster! [Cartoon]
- Life advice memes: Positivism and balance.
- Presidential alert: Donald Trump is still president. This is not a test. Action required! [Image]
(7) The president who embarrasses us on a daily basis: Trump makes a crowd laugh at Brett Kavanaugh's accuser. That crowd is no less embarrassing, although I did spot a few women among them who were not amused. Meanwhile, the Republicans seem to be competing in going lower. A Republican official has released a fake photo of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford as a teenager, implying that she was too ugly to be the target of a sexual assault! This would have been abhorrent even if the photo weren't fake.
(8) Nobel Prize: Half of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Arthur Ashkin, with the other half going to Gerard Mourou and Donna Strickland, only the third woman to win the award and the first one in more than half a century. The researchers' work on lasers was praised in the Prize citation.
(9) Space elevator may become a reality: NASA has determined the concept of replacing rockets with an elevator to be sound, and both Japan and China have projects already underway. By reducing the cost of putting satellites in orbit more than 100-fold, the project should pay for itself and then some.
[Following is a Facebook post of mine from August 29, 2012, with more technical details.]
The idea of a space elevator, a cabin that goes up and down a super-strong ribbon made of lightweight material and held vertically in space because much of its weight is on the other side of Earth's geostationary orbit, was proposed several years ago (I first encountered it in 2010). It is still a pie-in-the-sky idea, but its developers are proposing to build a smaller version on the Moon, to be used for dropping items there or retrieving them for transport back to Earth. This project will be simpler, given the Moon's much weaker gravitational pull. Still, nearly $1B will be needed to implement it. [Wikipedia article about the space elevator, Earth version]

2018/10/04 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Protest sign: Women say 'Kava-nope'! Dina Katabi, winner of the 2017 ACM Prize in Computing Statue of World War II sex slaves for Japanese soldiers installed in San Francisco (1) Pictorial news stories: [Left] Protest sign: Women say "Kava-nope"! [Center] The would-be medical doctor who became an accomplished computer scientist: Dina Katabi, winner of the 2017 ACM Prize in Computing for her creative contributions to wireless systems, ranked very high in Syria's university entrance exam and went to medical school, as expected of high achievers. She left her chosen field after a year, because she wanted to do math and engineering. (Source: CACM interview, October 2018) [Right] Japan's city of Osaka has cut its "sister city" ties with San Francisco over a statue of World War II sex slaves for Japanese soldiers.
(2) Science news: Half of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to Frances Arnold (Cal Tech), for work in changing how chemists produce new enzymes, and the other half to Gregory Winter (MRC Lab, Cambridge, England) and George Smith (U. Missouri), for their research that has led to new pharmaceuticals and cancer treatments.
(3) Women's rights advocate Maryam Azad was arrested at Tehran's International Airport, joining three other activists (Hoda Amid, Najmeh Vahedi, Rezvaneh Mohammadi) arrested earlier this month.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Former US Navy sailor arrested for sending toxic ricin seeds to Donald Trump and Pentagon.
- Experimental set-up shows the feasibility of direct brain-to-brain communication among three people.
- Khomeini apologist, who wrote a book in support of the fatwa to kill Salman Rushdie, lives freely in London.
- Iran installs surveillance cameras to detect women who attend soccer matches disguised as men.
- A few cartoons that need no caption. [Images]
- Brilliant accordion (Aydar Gaynullin) and violin (Darius Krapikas) conversation in Monti's Czardas.
(5) Brett Kavanaugh's Senate confirmation needs 50 votes: Here is the current outlook.
For: 48 R's; Against: 48 D's; Leaning for: Collins (R), Flake (R); Unknown: Manchin (D), Murkowski (R)
(6) Last night's IEEE meeting at Rusty's Pizza: After a 30-minute mixer with pizza and beer, Professor Benjamin Mazin of UCSB gave a talk entitled "Searching for Exosolar Earthlike Planets—Latest Developments." He began by describing the design of DARKNESS camera used to detect tiny amounts of light and minor light variations (it is installed at Palomar Observatory) and concluded by discussing methods of detecting planets outside our solar system and determining whether they can support life as we know it. Distant planets are too tiny and too faint to be observed directly, so their presence and properties are usually deduced from how they affect their stars (e.g., oscillations affecting the light spectrum, or blocking, akin to solar eclipse). [Photos]

Cover image for James L. Gelvin's 'The New Middle East' 2018/10/03 (Wednesday): Book review: Gelvin, James L., The New Middle East: What Everyone Needs to Know, Oxford, 2018.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
[Note: There are multiple books with the same title as this one.]
Written by historian and author of a related volume, The Arab Uprising: What Everyone Needs to Know, this book could have been titled "The Contemporary History of the Middle East." Here, "The Middle East" is defined as spanning from Morocco on the west to Iran on the east, a region more dependent on oil revenues that any other part of the world and comprising about half a billion people. The term "The New Middle East" was coined by US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, and later elaborated upon in the journal Foreign Affairs by policy analyst Richard N. Haass [p. 21], when the old, relatively-peaceful ME (from the US viewpoint) came crashing down with the invasion of Iraq.
Gelvin begins by discussing the region's past, 1945-2011, which he entitles "Before the Deluge" (ch. 1, pp. 1-23) and an overview of the Arab Uprisings (ch. 2, pp. 24-49). He then discusses the Syria embroglio (ch. 3, pp. 50-81), the rise and decline of ISIS (ch. 4, pp. 82-111), patrons, proxies, and freelancers (ch. 5, pp. 112-136), and human security in the New Middle East (ch. 6, pp. 137-167). There is no separate concluding section to wrap up the discussions and to point to what might be expected in the future, perhaps because any predictions for such a volatile region may turn out to be embarrassingly inaccurate.
According to Gelvin, five elements were responsible for popular uprisings, which had the dual goals of demanding rights/democracy and pressing for better economic conditions, in the Arab world. Bear in mind, though, that none of these elements was a key cause and, even with all of them in place, the uprisings weren't inevitable. Overall, the uprisings, with the possible exception of Tunisia's, were less than successful in bringing about major structural changes. Nowhere was this failure more pronounced than in Syria, owing to it having no Tahrir-Square-like epicenter and the army not standing down [p. 83].
1. Neo-liberalism: Having taken roots in the Arab world in the 1970s, neo-liberalism and its attendant economic reforms allowed Arab countries to get connected to and benefit from international markets and sources of credit.
2. Human rights revolution: Developing in tandem with neo-liberalism since the 1970s, the human rights and democratic rights movements were used by both liberal and regressive opponents of the region's regimes to weaken them.
3. Brittleness of Arab regimes: The region's regimes were caught between recommended austerity measures on the one hand and increased demand for government services on the other. Around the same time, governments in Western countries began to fall due to popular anger. The Arab world lacked such a safety valve, as people could not oust governments (politicians), so they focused on overthrowing the regime ("nizam").
4. Demography: An increase in the number of young people under 30 and the attendant rise in unemployment and under-employment, led to economic hardships across the region.
5. Global rise in food prices: Widespread droughts around the world and changes in agricultural priorities and patterns intensified the economic hardships that had arisen from demography and rampant unemployment. These factors affected each of the region's countries in a different way. Monarchies, by and large, escaped serious consequences, in part due to using their oil wealth to buy out their opponents. However, the survival of Morocco's monarchy is a puzzle, given that the country lacks oil.
Talking about the Middle East as a whole is challenging, because the countries in the region are not homogeneous. Arab women have the least political participation in the world, yet Israeli, Turkish, and, to some extent, Iranian women are relatively active.
I will list some of the key features of the New Middle East in the next few paragraphs.
* Refugee crises [pp. 76-77]: The Syrian civil war has intensified sectarian conflicts in all countries of the region. Syrian refugees have doubled Lebanon's unemployment rate to 20% and have caused major economic hardships in Turkey and Jordan. Many Iraqi refugees who had settled in Syria were forced to seek refuge back in Iraq, hardly a safer place.
* US-Israel relations [p. 120]: The US has become wary of extending unconditional support to Israel. "Obama's administration was not the first to have abstained or supported UN resolutions critical of Israel ... George W. Bush's allowed 6 such resolutions to pass, George H. W. Bush's allowed 9, and Ronald Reagan's allowed 21."
* Human security [p. 137]: The term "security" often means the security of states and governments. The term "human security" has been coined to shift the focus to those factors that make populations unsafe. The Middle East today is the second most urbanized region in the world (after Latin America). Megapolises with very limited human services form a major cause of human insecurity.
* Water shortage and climate-change vulnerabilities [pp. 141-144]: Three Arab countries (Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait) are already below water poverty line, defined as being able to use 50 liters of water daily for drinking and personal hygiene. There is no general agreement on whether the recent temperature spikes in the region are aberrations or omens of a new normal.
* Poverty and health problems [p. 157]: Whereas income poverty prevails in the region, despite its vast natural resources, human poverty, which includes also quality of life and the sense of well-being, is even worse. The Middle East is the second most obese region in the world, after the South Pacific.
Let me end my review by quoting the book's final paragraph [p. 167]: "The breadth and depth of the protests and uprisings that have engulfed the Arab world, Iran, Turkey, and Israel indicate that agitation for good governance is not a transient or localized phenomenon in the Middle East. As such, the history of the past thirty years cannot but disturb the sleep of politicians, kings, and dictators throughout the region."

2018/10/02 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
NASA's logo This photo was taken for the departmental brochure (no Web page then!) shortly after my arrival at UCSB in 1988 Today is IEEE Day, 134 years after the founding of one of its predecessor societies in Philadelphia (1) Anniversaries galore: NASA was born 60 years ago. On October 2, 1884, members of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, a predecessor society of today's Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE = "Eye-triple-E") gathered for the first time, in Philadelphia, to exchange technical ideas. Coincidentally, this 134th IEEE Day coincides with my celebration of arriving in California exactly 30 years ago (on October 2, 1988, when my sons were ~4 and 2.5 and my daughter was –5.5) to begin work as Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UCSB. I still love the place and work. The center photo was taken for the departmental brochure (no Web page then!) shortly after my arrival at UCSB.
[P.S.: My official work anniversary is actually July 1, but visa delays led to the late arrival. A kind colleague gave the first two lectures of the computer architecture course I was scheduled to teach during fall 1988.]
(2) Shades of Charlottesville: Despite calling Dr. Blasey Ford's testimony credible and characterizing her as a fine woman right after she testified, Trump goes on the attack during a campaign rally and shreds her to pieces. It seems that once again Trump (under pressure) made a statement he didn't really believe in and is now contradicting. Look at the women sitting behind him, though. Most of them don't seem to be thrilled with Trump's character assassination.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The Kavanaugh confirmation hearings gave us a glimpse of the bullying culture of privileged white men.
- eMedicare launched: On the heels of issuing new cards, Medicare moves to further embrace technology.
- A memorial at UCSB, with messages honoring the victims of the 2014 Isla Vista mass shooting.
- Dogs' intelligence is over-rated: They are not as smart as other animals.
- Invasive plant species may not be all bad: They actually help avert climate change.
- Newly discovered dwarf planet strengthens evidence for distant world.
(4) "Unfractured": This is the title of a documentary, screened early this afternoon at UCSB. The film is about the anti-fracking movement in New York and the role of one woman, Dr. Sandra Steingraber, in it. The effort led to NY's governor banning fracking in the state. The screening was followed by a discussion with the film's director, Chanda Chevannes (Seated on the right in one of these photos). Thanking the director, I shared with her something I learned from the film: That activism/protest isn't mindless sign-carrying and chanting, but involves much preparation. For example, the NY protesters would divide themselves into those who were prepared to be arrested and those who couldn't afford to. Those who expected to be taken away in handcuffs, needed to plan ahead for various commitments and their families' lives while they were gone. When law enforcement arrived on the scene, the second group quietly moved away, while the first group continued to block the gate or the road. Ms. Chevannes added that the protesters in her film underwent special training to ensure their protests remained nonviolent. The fact that the arrests were orderly and respectful drew laughter from the audience at a screening in Brazil, where the police behaves in a much different way!

2018/10/01 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Pablo Picasso's bust Before the age of drones, this is how photographers got their wide shots (1939) Sculpture: Stack of books (1) Art and its production process: [Left] Pablo Picasso's bust. [Center] Before the age of drones, this is how photographers got their wide shots (1939). (Source: Westways, 10/2018) [Right] Sculpture: Stack of books.
(2) The 2018 Nobel Prize in Medicine has been awarded to James P. Allison and Tasuku Honjo, who discovered different ways to unleash a patient's immune system against cancer.
(3) Sexual assault, and society's reaction to it, are now front and center in our national discourse. Let's not waste this opportunity to learn and act. [Dr. Nayereh Tohidi's Facebook post]
(4) Areas affected by the twin disasters (earthquake and tsunami) in Indonesia: People are still being dug out and the death toll of 850 is expected to rise significantly. [Map]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Scientists develop Martian soil to allow studies of Mars on Earth: And at $20/kg, it isn't dirt-cheap!
- Black waitress at Applebee's was left this note on a napkin in lieu of tip.
- Singer Charles Aznavour, who provided the soundtrack of the lives of people in my generation, dead at 94.
- Self-driving cars: Honda's AI confuses major Japanese ramen chain's logo with do-not-enter sign.
- Regardless of your circumstances, a smile can brighten your day. [Photo]
- Quote: "To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you." ~ Lewis B. Smedes
(6) Predators are everywhere: UCSB Chemistry Department researcher, 51-year-old Hongjun Zhou, arrested on charges of child sexual abuse.
(7) Seeing a friend after 45 years: This evening, I had dinner at Darband Grill in Thousand Oaks with half of the host family (the other half being her late husband) I had while attending UCLA in the early 1970s. It's impossible to cover 45 years of life stories over one dinner, so we'll get together again to continue the chat.

2018/09/30 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. Fashion at Longchamp Racing, Paris, 1908
Lindsay Wagner in publicity photo for Pablo Picasso with Brigitte Bardot, 1956 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Fashion at Longchamp Racing, Paris, 1908. [Center] Lindsay Wagner in publicity photo for "The Bionic Woman," London, 1976. [Right] Pablo Picasso with Brigitte Bardot, 1956.
(2) Deflection tactics: We learned over the past couple of days that Yale is full of misogynists, sexual predators, and morally bankrupt men, so "I got into Yale" is definitely not a defense against alleged sexual misconduct.
(3) Exposing unethical business practices: I have been receiving many e-mail messages from Trello (I have no idea what it is or what it does). The e-mails have no link to allow the recipient to unsubscribe.
(4) Cartoon caption of the day: He was drunk ... so he wasn't responsible for his behavior.
She was drunk ... so she's responsible for putting herself in that situation.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Death toll for Indonesia tsunami, caused by 7.5-magnitude quake, approaches 1000.
- Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un have fallen in love: Kim written multiple love letters to Trump!
- The term "glacial speed" may be obsolete, because glaciers are no longer moving at glacial speed!
- A visual puzzle that has gone viral: Can you spot the pencil in this image?
- I have no idea where this is, but I find it enchanting. [Photo]
- Persian poetry: A humorous poem about rising prices having elevated the social status of tomatoes.
- This evening's sunset at Camino Real Marketplace in Goleta. [Photos]
- Quote: "Our ultimate goal is to make as many people as sad as possible when we die." ~ Anonymous
(6) The FAA Reauthorization Bill, in final stages of passage by the US Senate, will set minimum width and spacing standards for airline seats. The bill also has other provisions to help passengers and improve safety.
(7) Final thought for the day: "Ninety-nine percent of us are good-hearted people who respect others and want peace. The other one percent rule the world and tell us we're at war." ~ Lee Camp

2018/09/29 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. The Afghan girl, who became famous by being featured on the cover of 'National Geographic,' grew into a rugged woman An innovative fountain
Little Iranian girl at fig harvest time (1) Feminine beauty: [Left] The Afghan girl, who was featured on the cover of National Geographic, grew into a rugged woman. [Center] An innovative fountain. [Right] Little Iranian girl at fig harvest time.
(2) Dr. Blasey Ford used her training in psychology to answer a question: "I don't expect that P. J. and Leland would remember this evening. It was a very unremarkable party. It was not one of their more notorious parties. Nothing remarkable happened to them that evening. They were downstairs. Mr. Judge [the friend alleged to be with her and Kavanaugh during the assault] is a different story. I would expect that he would remember."
[In fact, Mark Judge may also not remember. Many men who routinely harass or assault women, have no recollection of their individual victims. To them, the women and the behavior are unremarkable.]
(3) Donald Trump: The #MeToo movement is very dangerous for powerful men! Me: Only for powerful men who are dangerous to their underlings!
(4) Republicans in a ditch continue digging: "Women are going to hold the Republicans accountable for this grotesque spectacle at the ballot box. We do not have to accept a situation in which sexual violence is dismissed, and the perpetrators could be promoted."
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Magnitude-7.5 quake and ensuing tsunami devastate Indonesia.
- Shaming the victim: Fox News' Kevin Jackson reportedly fired for this gem and other offensive tweets.
- The cult residing in Albania, plotting regime change in Iran, and endearing itself to Washington.
- This is the image the world is getting from our country: A bunch of old, angry, white men. [Meme]
- Feminism: The radical notion that women are people, not properties. [Meme]
- Borowitz report (humor): Obama saddened that Kavanaugh did not blame him at any point.
- Senator Kamala Harris' statement at the US Senate hearing for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
- Tonight's SNL season premier opened with a spoof of Kavanaugh hearings, with Matt Damon as the judge.
(6) #MeToo moves into a new phase: Sexual assault reports have tripled since Dr. Christine Blasey Ford's Senate testimony. Some very young victims indicate that their families told them to keep their mouths shut.
(7) Israelis more worried about Trump's UN speech than the rest of the world: This seems counter-intuitive at first, but their country is highly dependent on US prestige and world leadership, so any erosion in the latter makes them nervous.
(8) Store closings, left and right, in our area: Goleta K-Mart is all but gone, with 80+% of the store already liquidated. It will soon be replaced by a Target store, opening in our area for the first time. Orchard Supply Hardware isn't far behind, with the liquidation discount already at 30-60%. [Photos]
(9) Final thought for the day: Tehran University's College of Engineering anthem was performed tonight at the annual gathering of Fanni graduates in Los Angeles, an event that I could not attend. [Sheet music]

2018/09/27 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Basic Human D's & C: A new supplement for men who cannot interact with women without sexualizing them! Sign of the times: Hell hath no fury like that of 157 million women scorned Iran's President Rouhani claims that the world won't find a better friend than Iran (1) Some interesting memes: [Left] Basic Human D's & C: A new supplement for men who cannot interact with women without sexualizing them! [Center] Sign of the times: Hell hath no fury like that of 157 million women scorned. [Right] Iran's President Rouhani claims that the world won't find a better friend than Iran: The signs in the photo read "Death to America," "Death to Europe," "Death to Arab Leaders," "Death to Human Rights," etc.
(2) Kavanaugh hearing: Dr. Blasey Ford won over many members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, including some Republicans (at least they said they were impressed). Kavanaugh's opening statement seemed sincere and compelling. But then, he went on the attack, screamed at the questioners, waxed political about Democrats conspiring against him, and, in one case, when asked about his drinking problem, asked back about the questioner's drinking habits. Definite no-nos!
(3) These three on-the-fence Republican Senators (Flake, Collins, Murkowski), plus one Democrat worried about his re-election in a red state, will decide Kavanaugh's fate: It's really sad that being re-elected has become more important than doing the right thing.
(4) Persian poetry: Morteza Keyvan Hashemi recites his poem in which he says, for example, that he fears ignorant religiosity, not God himself, and that he prefers knowledgeable foes to uninformed friends.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Senator Lindsey Graham's ignorant tweet about sexual assault victims and a response to it.
- Six Baha'i environmental activists arrested in the southern Iranian city of Shiraz on unknown charges.
- Exchange value for US dollar surpasses 16,000 tomans, as Iranian currency continues its nosedive.
- All this trouble, just to save a puppy: Hats off to, and Hope restored in, humanity. [Video]
- Humor: The opposite of reserved parking! [Photo]
- Cartoon of the day: "The world is laughing at us, folks." [Image]
- Persian music: Jalal Taj Esfahani's "Beh Esfahan Ro" ("Go to Esfahan").
- Traditional Persian music, in a refreshingly new way: Ali Ghamsari performs his own composition on tar.
(6) Iranian official Ataollah Mohajerani, who wrote a book in 1989 defending Ayatollah Khomeini's fatwa calling for the murder of author Salman Rushdi, now lives in London.
(7) How Putin projects power through his wealthy allies: This is the theme of an article in Time magazine (October 1, 2018). These oligarchs are in turn connected to wealthy and powerful individuals around the world.
(8) Scientists observe matter (equivalent to Earth's mass) falling (in about a day) at roughly 1/3 the speed of light into a black hole a billion light years away.
(9) Iran's beautiful nature: Boojan County near Neishapour, a city in the Iranian province of Khorasan.

2018/09/26 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Rose McGowan's 'Brave' (1) Book review: McGowan, Rose, Brave, unabridged audiobook on 6 CDs, read by the author, Harper Audio, 2018.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This is a combination memoir/manifesto. McGowan, one of the strongest voices in the #MeToo movement, had the courage to escape two cults (in her own words). One was a religious cult, which brainwashed and abused her as a child. The other was the cult of Hollywood and the entertainment industry that sexualizes women and uses them for the pleasure of powerful men. Having escaped the first cult, McGowan had the skills and tools to escape the second, and to help bring down some of the said powerful men, who took advantage of their veneer of supposedly championing and mentoring new talent.
McGowan writes at length about the objectification of women and setting of unreasonable and misguided standards of beauty to keep them under control. At one point, as part of her defying what was expected of her, McGowan cut her hair really short, as she viewed a woman's hair one of the tools of her subjugation. She never mentions the name of her abuser, Harvey Weinstein, in the book, calling him "monster" instead. In the course of her fights against the entertainment industry's bigwigs, McGowan was harassed by lawyers and former Israeli spies (hired through a security firm by Weinstein to dig up dirt on her).
After the Weinstein abuse episode, McGowan thought she had found love with a man pretending to be her savior, the so-called knight in shining armor. But he proved to be a control freak and physical/emotional abuser. At one point, he subjected McGowan to a lie-detector test, because he suspected her of having an affair. According to McGowan, one trick used by powerful men is to deliberately destabilize women and then use their condition to sow doubts about their believability.
McGowan emerged from these brutal tests triumphant and respected, as she dragged down her powerful abuser. The book was eye-opening for me, even though I already supported the #MeToo movement and identified with feminism more generally.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Why does the press even cover a "news conference" during which not one question is properly answered?
- Actress Alyssa Milano shares her poem, "A Survivor's Prayer," dedicated to survivors of sexual assault.
- Trump wants to ban the production of cocoa (chocolate source): He meant to say coca (cocaine source)!
- Today on UCSB West Campus bluffs: A brisk day, with perfect weather for walking and enjoying nature.
(3) The floodgates have opened: A third woman accuser of Judge Brett Kavanaugh has come forward. This is the usual pattern. Additional victims are emboldened by those who go first. And they don't want to leave the first accuser out in the cold if they have info to support them. Kavanaugh's third accuser sounds even more credible than the first two. She describes a repetitive group behavior that will likely be corroborated, given the large number of participants and witnesses.
(4) Alternative fact: Nikki Haley, US Ambassador to the UN, says laughter at the General Assembly wasn't a diss but a sign of respect for Trump's 'honesty'? Honesty? Really?
(5) Round-table discussion: Striving for Human Rights in Iran (Skirball Cultural Center, Wed. 10/10/2018, 7:00 PM). I will try my best to attend this event, which will be a challenge, given that I teach 4-5 PM on 10/10. The previous event with the same title was quite interesting and informative.

2018/09/25 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
T-shirt inscription reads: 'Make lies wrong again' Marathon cheering sign: 'Run like Donald Trump is behind you and Justin Trudeau is just ahead' US Senators and Congressional Representatives should start listening to Bob Dylan, before it's too late (1) Some interesting images, dissing politicians: [Left] T-shirt inscription reads: "Make lies wrong again." [Center] Marathon cheering sign: "Run like Donald Trump is behind you and Justin Trudeau is just ahead." [Right] US Senators and Congressional Representatives should start listening to Bob Dylan, before it's too late.
(2) Iran's President Rouhani "is an absolutely lovely man": Whether Trump is being facetious or he really admires Rouhani (like Putin and NK's Kim), he is making up the "requests" part. Rouhani requesting to meet with Trump would be a kiss of death for his government, whose cabinet ministers are facing a wave of impeachments by conservatives in Iran's parliament. He has reportedly asked for a pause in impeachment proceedings, offering to make several changes of his own upon returning from the UN meeting in New York. Iran's Supreme Leader has banned meetings with the US, and no one would dare over-ride his instructions. In the past, Iranian reps attending UN meetings have even carefully planned their bathroom visits to avoid chance encounters with Americans, which would spell doom for them back home.
(3) The President, who faulted previous administrations for making us the laughingstock of the world, was laughed at this morning at the UN, when he said he had accomplished more than any US President!
(4) Nikki Haley and Mike Pompeo look at Trump with admiration during his UN speech, while a man (from a "shithole country"?) covers his face. [Photo]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- A detailed description and analysis of how Russia helped swing the 2016 presidential election for Trump.
- Our Liar-in-Chief (unintentionally) makes world leaders at UN's General Assembly laugh! [Image]
- France's President Macron delivers a forceful rebuttal to Trump.
- Bill Cosby sentenced to 3-10 years in prison for 2004 rape case, meaning that he will serve at least 3 years.
- Everything you need to know about footnotes, including the fact that they were first used in the year 1347.
- Some common English words that have come from Arabic, and the paths they have taken to grt here.
- Little girl's rousing rendition of the US National Anthem at an LA Galaxy soccer match.
(6) #MeToo has made us take the first step: Listen to women. Now, we have to take additional steps and do something beyond listening. Bill Cosby's conviction and sentencing is just a start. Much more is needed.
(7) College soccer: UCSB men's soccer team played Gonzaga, a traditionally strong soccer school, tonight at Harder Stadium: By the end of minute 32, the Gauchos led 2-0, having scored on a PK and off a corner kick. Gonzaga scored 5 minutes from the end of the match to make the final score 2-1. UCSB's record is now 6-3-0, including an impressive 3-1 win over arch-rival UCLA. [Images]

2018/09/24 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
This poignant message warns against following anti-vaxers and other science deniers Fame and success aren't the same thing Warning: Reading can seriously damage your ignorance (1) Memes: [Left] This poignant message warns against following anti-vaxers and other science deniers. [Center] Fame and success aren't the same thing. [Right] Reading can seriously damage your ignorance.
(2) Tammie Jo Shults, the woman who became a hero when she safely landed a severely damaged Southwest plane, was once told girls don't become pilots.
(3) The similarities between Thomas and Kavanaugh confirmation hearings are undeniable: But there are also key differences, in that there is no race factor at play for Kavanaugh and Dr. Ford's accusation comes after our society's supposed enlightenment by the #MeToo movement. Clips of Anita Hill's testimony being replayed to draw comparisons is quite instructive, because they reveal the horrible treatment she received. [Photos]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Republicans' definition of due process includes making up your mind before hearing the accuser. [Image]
- Republicans' inverted logic: Everyone having guns makes us safer, but everyone having healthcare kills us all.
- Emphasis on STEM shouldn't be at the expense of marginalizing general education and humanities.
- How knowing more than one language enhances your brain's health and delays the onset of Alzheimer's.
- "It was a long time ago—Are you sure you haven't confused us with someone who cares?" [Cartoon]
- Teacher: "Who started the American Civil War?" Student: "Fox News and MSNBC." [Cartoon]
- Where Kurds live: Dark green areas are at least 3/4 Kurdish; medium green, ~1/3 or more. [Map]
- Masoud Darvish sings 3 Persian songs: "Sooreh Ehsas"; "Hamisheh Asheghetam"; "Raghs-e Baran"
(5) This week at UCSB: The week began with move-in and will continue with pre-instructional activities, until the start of fall-quarter classes on Thursday 9/27. [Photo]
(6) Call for inquiry into arbitrary detentions in Iran: A group of Iranian academics and human rights advocates have begun a petition drive to thank the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention for investigating the imprisonment of Princeton graduate student Xiyue Wang in Iran and concluding that the charges against him are totally baseless. This signable on-line petition, written in both English and Persian, includes links to various information sources and related articles.

2018/09/23 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Condolences to the southwestern Iranian city of Ahvaz for its losses in terror attack Calligraphic rendering of a Persian adage in Nastaliq script, rendered with a ball-point pen, instead of a calligraphy pen Persian calligraphy: Playing on the word 'eshgh' ('love') (1) Calligraphic art: [Left] Condolences to the southwestern Iranian city of Ahvaz for its losses in terror attack. [Center] Reflection: There are times when you catch yourself doing what you have scorned others for doing; confronting yourself is so scary! (The Persian version shown is written beautifully in Nastaliq script, using a ball-point pen, rather than a calligraphy pen; artist unknown) [Right] Playing on the word "eshgh" ("love").
(2) Effects of the #MeToo movement: We have a long way to go before women are viewed as full human beings with the same rights as everyone else, but the very fact that men in positions of power have begun apologizing for sexual misconduct or for not taking complaints seriously (as is the case for Santa Barbara City College President Anthony Beene) is cause for hope. Even if many of the apologies are insincere, the very fact that they feel compelled to offer them in order to survive is a step forward.
(3) Quote of the day: "What boy hasn't done this?" ~ Some women apologists for Brett Kavanaugh [It seems that the #MeToo movement has a lot of work to do educating women about their rights!]
(4) This statement, which I have translated from Persian, has been attributed to Mhatma Gandhi (I searched for its original from, but could not find anything similar on-line. Perhaps it is a misattribution, but I like the sentiment): The problem is that through a woman's torn clothes, people see her immodesty, not her poverty.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- To be happier, ban small-talk from your conversations: Here are 12 questions to ask instead.
- What kind of reasoning leads to making both abortion and contraception less accessible?
- Persian music: Violinist extraordinaire Bijan Mortazavi performs live in Los Angeles.
- Iranian folk music: Performed by Maliheh Moradi (vocals) and Shahab Azinmehr (setar). [Video]
- Girls are often ridiculed for the way they run, throw, jump, and so on: If you agree, watch this video.
- Statues come alive to stun and delight the spectators. [The music may be muted due to copyright issues]
(6) Persian fusion music: "Zamzameh" ("Whisper"), a piece based on a traditional Khorasani (northeastern Iran) melody, played by Masoud Shaari (setar), Sina Shaari (oud), and Darshan Anand (Indian drums).
(7) Mitch McConnell calls Trump to tell him that his comments about Dr. Blasey Ford, the professor who has accused Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault, were unhelpful: Notice that he said "unhelpful," not "wrong"!
(8) Wheelchair-bound Iranian veteran asked a friend to take a photo of him during the Ahvaz, Iran, military parade: It turned out to be his last photo, as he died in the terror attack that ensued. [Photo]

2018/09/22 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Fall has arrived: Happy new school year to students, teachers, and others in academia! Birds, ocean, and sunset create a magnificent sight to behold Sumptuous Iranian spread, with fish and rice as the main dish (1) Some seasonal images: [Left] Fall has arrived: A very happy new school year to students, teachers, and others in academia! [Center] Birds, ocean, and sunset create a magnificent sight to behold. [Right] Sumptuous Iranian spread, with fish and rice as the main dish.
(2) US Supreme Court nominee: Judge Brett Kavanaugh's case gets more complicated following reports that two Yale law professors groomed good-looking female students to clerk for him.
(3) Tone-deaf Republican politician jokes about sexual assault: Did you hear the latest news about Ruth Bader Ginsburg coming out that she was groped by Abraham Lincoln? They just don't get it. Period.
(4) Gender pay gap (80 cents for women vs. $1 for men) extends to other areas: In fact, the gap is much worse in stock options, where women get 47 cents to male coworkers' dollar.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Terrorist attack at a military parade in Iran's southern city of Ahvaz, leaves at least 24 adults/kids dead.
- Congressman discounts the assault allegation against Kavanaugh as "an attempt that didn't go anywhere."
- Space achievement: Japan landed two rovers on an asteroid, and they have begun sending back pictures.
- Look at these high-heel shoes carefully to see what they are made of. [Images]
- The amazing nature: Animals pursuing food, on their own or with human help. [Video]
- Solo violin performance at what appears to be a public park in Iran. [Video]
- Iranians enjoying themselves with song and dance on a hiking trail, away from the eyes of anti-fun officials.
(6) In an op-ed, President Reagan's daughter, Patti Davis, writes about being sexually assaulted by a music industry executive, an incident she kept to herself for decades.
(7) [Please consider signing this petition; link at the bottom of this Persian news story.]
The petition reads, in part: We the undersigned, a group of Iranian academics and human rights activists residing outside the country, wish to thank the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention for investigating the imprisonment of Mr. Xiyue Wang in Iran and concluding that there is "no legal basis for his arrest and detention." ... Mr. Wang is a hostage and the purpose of Iran's theocrats is either to swap him for their convicted agents detained in the United States or collect money for his release. ...
(8) Possible math breakthrough: Michael Atiyah says he will provide "a simple proof" of the 160-year-old Riemann hypothesis in a talk at the Heidelberg Laureate Forum in Germany.
(9) Another Trump surrogate bites the dust: Jason Miller, former Trump aide and apologist on CNN panels, always seemed creepy to me. Miller has been ousted by CNN amid accusations that include giving a mistress an abortion-inducing drug without her knowledge.

2018/09/21 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for the audiobook 'Russian Roulette' (1) Book review: Isikoff, Michael and David Corn, Russian Roulette: The Inside Story of Putin's War on America and the Election of Donald Trump, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Peter Ganim, Twelve, 2018.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This book presents a detailed, well-researched account, backed by documents and testimonials, of Trump's cozy relationship with several dozen Russians and mob figures. He, his family members, and close associates were intimately involved in commercial real-estate developments in Russia, including multiple attempts at building Trump towers and hotels, with the deals falling through only because Russia wanted majority control of the projects. The Trump organization was also involved in real-estate transactions in the US by Russian nationals, many of them suspected of money-laundering and other criminal activities.
Every time he has been questioned about these shady figures, Trump has feigned ignorance of their criminal backgrounds and, in most cases, has denied that he knew them beyond casual contacts.
The book offers a detailed account of FBI's efforts to brief DNC officials about Russian infiltration of their servers, going as far as providing URLs of sites in Russia with which DNC servers were communicating, warnings that were, for the most part, dismissed until it was too late. Russian hackers had conducted extensive phishing campaigns that, among other things, netted them passwords and other credentials of high-level DNC operatives, which allowed them to access e-mail communications as well as current and archived documents.
In terms of research and documentation, this is one of the better books among many titles that have been published about Trump, his presidential campaign, and his presidency. I have not yet read Bob Woodward's just-published book, Fear: Trump in the White House.
(2) Iran of youre: Print-media ad from half a century ago, telling Iranians that all they need to travel comfortably around the world is a passport and a Saderat Bank revolving-account checkbook.
(3) Pants on fire: Trump and his lawyer deny that he admitted he fired James Comey because of the Russia investigation, despite millions having seen the edited version of the on-camera NBC interview (where he plainly said so) and a longer version of the interview being available on YouTube.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Additional accusers emerge for California doctor and his girlfriend, who drugged and raped many women.
- NC river breaches dam and connects to a power plant's coal-ash reservoir, risking serious contamination.
- Two cartoons about today's biggest news story: Confirmation hearings of Judge Kavanaugh.
- Proposed Antarctica wall could prevent glaciers from melting and avert catastrophic sea-level rise.
- Science saves the day: Elephant-tusk DNA testing exposes three massive ivory-smuggling cartels.
- Persian music: Hoor Orchestra performs Saeed-Nia Kowsari's "Ey Zabaan-e Farsi" (Oh Persian Language).
(5) A plan for survival: In an editorial published by the journal Science, leading biologists propose setting aside half of Earth's surface to allow wildlife to thrive.
(6) Final thought for this International Peace Day (September 21): The world spends about $250 annually for every human being on Earth to wage war.

2018/09/20 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: 'My thoughts and prayers have been answered!' If Trump shot someone on Fifth Avenue (he would deny it, of course)! Cartoon: 'Not now, honey. Daddy's arguing with strangers about sexual orientation of puppets.' (1) Political cartoons of the day: [Left] "My thoughts and prayers have been answered!" (see the first item under one-liners below) [Center] If Trump shot someone on Fifth Avenue (he'd deny it, of course)! [Right] "Not now, honey. Daddy's arguing with strangers about sexual orientation of puppets." (From: The New Yorker)
(2) Stats for Santa Barbara's 27th Annual Day of Caring (September 15, 2018) published: More than 1000 volunteers showed up at over 50 SB County sites, providing landscaping, painting, repair, clean-up, and other services, with estimated value of around $300,000.
(3) Censorship in Iran keeps getting weirder and weirder: The judiciary arrests two theater veterans and bans a performance of "A Midsummer Night's Dream."
(4) Comprehensive study done under Iran's President Rouhani concludes that the current system, including lavish spending on "other Muslims," is unsustainable.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Workplace shooting at Rite Aid distribution center leaves multiple people dead and several others injured.
- Fear stops many women from speaking up, making sexual assault the most under-reported crime.
- The more things change, the more they stay the same: Misogyny in the #MeToo age. [Tweet]
- With many of his aides arrested, it's only a matter of time before Ahmadinejad himself is nabbed.
- How playing an instrument and listening to music vastly improve our cognitive abilities.
- Studying patterns in music: Songs that stay with us and dominate our brains are highly repetitive.
- Arabic fusion music: The French band Orange Blossom performs "Habibi" ("My Love").
- Persian music: Violinist extraordinaire Bijan Mortazavi performs "Hemaaseh" ("Epic") in his 1994 concert.
(6) Be curious, not judgmental: An essay by a psychology professor about the difference between being judgmental ("He's lazy!") and curious ("What's holding him back?") in dealing with students and others. "If a person's behavior doesn't make sense to you, it is because you are missing a part of their context."
(7) The Kavanaugh hearing is a big test for the Republicans: Not just how they treat Dr. Ford, but the manner of showing to suburban white women, who helped elect Trump, that they've heard the #MeToo message.
(8) Convergence of computer science and biology: Animal species are nothing but collections of pre-loaded algorithms that evolve to maximize survival chances.
(9) Engineering failure: Pipe pressure was 12 times higher than safe limit just before the Boston gas explosions. Where were the pressure monitors? Automatic shut-off mechanisms? Human oversight?

2018/09/19 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Some much-needed perspective on the role/place of us humans in nature! How did a Latino immigrant suddenly become a white racist? No president has done what Trump has done: Absolutely correct! (1) Three interesting and timely memes: [Left] Some much-needed perspective on the role/place of us humans in nature! [Center] How did a Latino immigrant suddenly become a white racist? [Right] No president has done what Trump has done: Absolutely correct!
(2) Oh, the Irony: North Carolina, a highly vulnerable US state to global warming because of its low-lying coastal areas, passed a law in 2012 to ban policies based on predictions of catastrophically-rising sea levels.
(3) Don't keep loads of your children's art: Creating artwork is good. Sharing them with parents and being acknowledged is also good. But keeping boxes of them around the house is a waste of time, because, over time, the works will lose freshness and seem less impressive. I kind of buy this advice; many may disagree.
(4) Fusion music to get you off your chair: Rachid Taha and Catherine Ringer perform "Ya Rayah" ("Oh Immigrant"). And here's the English translation of the lyrics.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Those who constantly cry 'Fake News,' including the Trumps, are actually the worst spreaders of fakery!
- Aftermath of Hurricane Florence: Train derails in North Carolina after flooding washes away the tracks.
- This isn't a river: It's North Carolina's Interstate 40. Hurricane Florence's death toll reaches 35. [Photo]
- Persian music: Dialog between oud (Sina Shaari), setar (Masoud Shaari), and percussion (Pejman Haddadi).
- Cartoon of the day: Iranian women outsmart the regime every step of the way! [Image]
- "I hope all that's good looks beautiful to you." ~ Ehsan Yarshater, writing in a young girl's autograph book
(6) Joke of the day: A thief came to my house at night, and, when he found nothing worth taking, he woke me up and said: "Hey, man! I feel so sorry for you. Here's 100 bucks."
(7) Fusion Jazzy music: Barcelona Gipsy Klezmer Orchestra performs "Djelem Dejelem" ("I Went, I Went").
[See Wikipedia for the history of this Romani anthem.]
(8) Math puzzle: A runner enters an east-west tunnel from its east end and runs one quarter of its length, when she notices a car moving at 40 km/hr approaching the tunnel's east end. If she runs at her maximum speed in either direction, she would get to the end of the tunnel exactly at the same time as the car. What is the athlete's top speed?
(9) [Final post for the day] Persian music: Oud, tar, and tonbak are featured in this wonderful piece by three talented young women: Padideh Ahrarnejad (tar), Ava Ayoubi (oud), and Nazanin Pedarsani (tonbak).

2018/09/17 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for 'Dear Fahrenheit 451' (1) Book review: Spence, Annie, Dear Fahrenheit 451: Love and Heartbreak in the Stacks, unabridged audiobook on 5 CDs, read by Stephanie Spicer, Dreamscape Media, 2017.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Imagine a book as the love interest of a librarian. What would s/he write in a love letter to his/her favorite book? What might one see in a break-up note, when the book has reached the end of its shelf life and no one seems to be interested in borrowing it?
The letters in this book are generally witty, funny, and compassionate, some more so than others. At times, the letters/notes are quite short, taking the form of book introductions or recommendations. You may disagree with some of the author's assessments, but her fairly short book is still an easy and fun read.
(2) Nuclear power plants in the Carolinas still in danger: Since Japan's Fukushima disaster, operators have shored up defenses, but will the protections be enough?
(3) Actor Harrison Ford (Han Solo, Indiana Jones) urges us to reject politicians who don't believe in science or, worse, pretend they don't believe in science out of self-interest.
(4) As we are occupied by Hurricane Florence here in the US, Typhoon Mangkhut, said to be the strongest-ever storm in the world, is wreaking havoc in China and, most recently, Hong Kong. And here is a video showing wind-caused damage in Japan's storm of last week.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Hurricane Florence: Death toll rises. Hundreds still trapped. The worst still to come in some areas. [Photos]
- Trump's tweet about Mexican Independence Day generates predictable backlash. [Image]
- Someone please start counting: Trump has issued his first truthful tweet! [Tweet image]
- Donald Trump Jr. mocks Brett Kavanaugh's sexual assault accuser: Apple does not fall far from the tree!
- Heavenly apple orchard (location unknown): I never knew that such small trees can bear this much fruit!
- Persian music: Masterful violin and tonbak duo by Reza Shayesteh and Nazanin Pedar-Sani.
(6) Morning huddle at the White House: "Staffers, try to contain him and keep your hands in his face. Aides, cut off the outlets. Advisers, watch out for that quick release. And, everyone, stay alert for fumbles." [Cartoon from: The New Yorker]
(7) Bob Woodward's book, Fear, is a best-seller, but it didn't cause even a ripple in Washington: Why? In part because what Woodward describes isn't surprising to anyone who has been reading the news of late, and partly because our reverence for the presidency has sharply declined after JFK (the womanizer), Nixon (the foul-mouthed crook), Clinton ("I did not have sexual relations with that woman"), and GWB (need I explain?).

2018/09/16 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. One of the first bicycles entering Iran in the Qajar era
Kurdish women of Kermanshah gather by the stream flowing next to Taq-e Bostan, a relic from the 4th-century AD Sassanid Empire, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site (early 20th century) Boys with shaven heads as part of the treatment for scalp infections (June 13, 1951) (1) Iran's history in pictures: [Left] One of the first bicycles entering Iran in the Qajar era. [Center] Kurdish women of Kermanshah gather by the stream flowing next to Taq-e Bostan, a relic from the 4th-century AD Sassanid Empire, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site (early 20th century). [Right] Boys with shaven heads as part of the treatment for scalp infections (June 13, 1951).
(2) This cleric says that Iran's conditions will not improve: Those holding power have gone from penniless to super-rich and it's foolish to think that they will start doing the right thing after four decades of being in power.
(3) Two very interesting quotes from the legendary cellist Yo-Yo Ma.
On immigrants: "What the immigrant perspective means is you know at least two places very well, which means you can actually put two places in your head at the same time. That's what builds imagination."
On whether there is still a place for classical music in pop culture: "The percentage of calcium in our diet is probably 0.00001%—But tell me we don't need calcium."
(4) Quote of the day: "Insulin was discovered in 1920, and I like that at the 100-year mark we may be done injecting insulin." ~ Douglas Melton, Harvard Stem Cell Institute [Quoted in Time magazine]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Meme of the day: Maybe justice is indeed blind: Or, perhaps, it is also deaf, heartless, and greedy!
- Donald Trump Jr. takes a stab at humor re Obama's mistake of referring to 57 states and lives to regret it.
- Mourners burn 72 doves alive to commemorate the slaughter of Imam Hussein and his army in Karbala.
- Persian music: "Majnoon" by Hoor Orch. (composed by Anooshiravan Rohani, arranged by Bijan Mortazavi.
- Persian music: A wonderful instrumental piece (violin, piano, tonbak) by Hoor Orchestra.
- Some choreography ideas for anyone wanting to perform the Persian "Baba Karam" dance!
- Archaeological discoveries in Egypt: Recently, a new Sphinx and other artifacts were found in a temple.
(6) Persian music: Salar Aghili sings "Raghs-e Guisoo," accompanied by Mehrnavazan Orchestra (composed by Fereydoon Hafezi, lyrics by Mir Naser Sharifi; a song made famous by Delkash).
(7) Persian music: Naghmeh Hafezi (piano) and Peyman Lohrasbi (violin) perform "Raghs-e Guisoo" (the song detailed in my previous post) in an intimate setting. [Anooshiravan Rohani speaks at the end.]

2018/09/15 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Chart, plotting quality of news media (from fabricated stories at the bottom to highly accurate fact reporting at the top) vs. partisan bias (extreme liberal on the left to extreme conservative on the right) (1) Informative chart, plotting quality of news media (from fabricated stories at the bottom to highly accurate fact reporting at the top) vs. partisan bias (extreme liberal on the left to extreme conservative on the right).
(2) Physics puzzle: There are two straight iron bars that look and feel identical. One is a magnet and the other isn't. How can you tell which is which by just touching them to each other? No other action is allowed.
(3) Terahertz clocks on the way: PC clock rates have stalled around 10 GHz and further improvement does not seem possible with current technology. German researchers believe that using graphene in electronics may allow orders-of-magnitude increase in clock rates.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Hurricane Florence's death toll, now at 11, will likely rise as rainwater and storm surge subside.
- Is our rotting infrastructure catching up with us? Here's a map of gas fires/explosions, in Andover, MA.
- Worked this morning on cleaning up Isla Vista as my "Day of Caring" project. [Photos]
- The turnout was impressive, consisting almost exclusively of students. A cause of hope for our society!
- RIP VW Beetle [1945-2019]: The model will be discontinued at age 74.
- Looking forward to reading In Pieces, actress Sally Field's honest, brave, and highly personal memoir.
- Interesting essay by a woman who filed for divorce three months after her wedding day.
- Essentials for a summer afternoon: Colorful flower bouquet and a yummy-looking fruit plate. [Photos]
(5) Some interesting/funny video clips for your enjoyment on this mid-September Saturday.
- Little girl, with magical voice and unbelievable poise, performs at a talent competition.
- Iranian music and dance from the Caspian shore region. [1-minute video]
- Practical demonstration of the management style of the Islamic Republic of Iran officials! [1-minute video]
- Humorous Persian poetry: Cleric recites an anti-regime piece at a poetry-reading session in Iran.
- Either Chinese toddlers receive financial training or, like Iran, there is a severe shortage of diapers in China!
- This magic routine, performed at "Britain's Got Talent," involves the quickest costume changes ever.
- And one last video: Man likes magic trick at first, but things don't go well later!?
(6) Persian poetry: In this poem, entitled "Assumption," Hooshang Ebtehaj (pen name H. E. Sayeh) tells us that people routinely make incorrect assumptions. And they are often sincere in their beliefs; they simply don't know or don't remember better. This, he said in one poetry session before reading the poem, explains inaccuracies in all autobiographies. Everyone writing an autobiography in Iran declares himself not responsible for the current mess, the left blaming the right and the right blaming the left.

2018/09/14 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for 'TransAtlantic' (1) Book review: McCann, Colum, TransAtlantic: A Novel, unabridged audiobook, read by Geraldine Hughes, Random House Audio, 2013.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The narrative in this novel begins with two aviators, Jack Alcock and Arthur Brown, setting out to cross the Atlantic Ocean in 1919, shortly after the end of World War I, flying from St. John's in Newfoundland to Ireland on a modified bomber. Two other Atlantic-crossers are prominently featured in the novel: Frederick Douglass, who goes on a lecture tour in the mid 1840s to promote his subversive autobiography, and Irish-American Senator George Mitchell, who travels to Belfast in 1998 to lead Northern Ireland's highly sensitive peace talks.
McCann introduces quite a few made-up characters alongside the real ones and weaves their fictional life stories, including parallels between them, with real personalities and events of the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. The stories are tied together by a number of remarkable women, beginning with Lily Duggan, an Irish housemaid, who crossed paths with Frederick Douglass.
(2) Kurds' rights in Iran: The late Dr. Abdol Rahman Ghassemlou [1930-1989] said that the Kurds are no less Iranian than any other group of people in the country and will never accept the status of second-class citizens.
(3) Quote of the day: "There is rape because there are rapists, not because there are pretty girls." ~ Leni Lobredo, Philippines VP, responding to President Rodrigo Duterte's remark that rape will exist "as long as there are many beautiful women"
(4) Mass killing in China: Vehicle attack in Central China kills a dozen people and injures 44: The incident has been classified as a case of "revenge on society" rather than terrorism.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump presents "alternative facts": Hurricane Maria death toll was inflated by Democrats to hurt him!
- Planned Parenthood's new president, Dr. Leana Wen, is an immigrant who practices emergency medicine.
- Gunman, his wife, and 4 others dead in Bakersfield, California, shooting incident.
- Late Senator John McCain's family distraught over the use of his words in political attack ads.
- Architect introduces some excitement and variety into the design of heretofore boring bathroom stalls.
- The President prepares for Hurricane Florence. [Cartoon] [From: The New Yorker]
- Math puzzle: How can you obtain 6 by using only 0s and any number of math symbols?
- Persian music: A short audio clip of Marzieh singing "Guisoo," accompanied by a historic photo of her.
(6) Bob Woodward's Fear: Trump in the White House sets publishing records: It sells 3/4 million copies on its first day and already has 1.15 million hard copies in print.
(7) Wonderful 10-day weather forecast for the Santa Barbara/Goleta area: Sunny, highs in the 70s, lows around 60. Feeling for those affected by Hurricane Florence.
[Continued dry conditions, leading to high fire danger, is a different story here in California, though.]

2018/09/13 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photos of the French citroen minimalist car model, marketed as 'Zhiaan' in Iran of the 1970s (1) Throwback Thursday: Some Iranian friends and acquaintances from my generation may have fond memories of this French Citroen minimalist car model that was marketed and became popular in Iran of the 1970s under the "Zhiaan" brand name.
(2) Women = Possessions: Whoever designed this misogynistic poster likely thought that it was very clever. The Persian message admonishes men who cover their cars to avoid dents and scratches, yet allow their wives and daughters on the streets, without proper head-to-toe covers. In similar signs, equally insulting to both sexes, women's hijabs are likened to candy-wrappers which keep flies and worms away from your sweets.
(3) Dire economic climate in Iran is endured with a rather surprising sense of humor: In this poetic satire, Majid Morseli (sp?) begs his baby son not to pee, given the shortage and high prices of diapers.
(4) [This item is from mid-July, but I just learned about it] Anti-Semitism in action: Miami man arrested with gasoline canisters, just in the nick of time before he could set fire to a condominium complex (which he had already sprinkled with gasoline) to "kill all the f-ing Jews" inside.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- California Governor Jerry Brown's Climate Summit embraced by leaders worldwide, but not by Washington.
- US News & World Report's latest ranking places UCSB 5th among America's public universities; 30th overall.
- Apple Computer introduces three new iPhone models: Xr, Xs, Xs Max.
- Under the hashtag #TheCensor_And_I, Iran's artists share their encounters with absurd censorship rules.
- Eagerly awaiting "A Star Is Born": Bradley Cooper directing/singing and Lady Gaga in first starring role.
- Persian music: A silly song, which I don't quite understand, but find funny nonetheless!
- For my Persian-speaking readers: You'd appreciate this video if you have ever misunderstood song lyrics!
- Funny animals: Here's what happens when you don't appreciate good deeds!
(6) Follow the money: A complex web of financial transactions among some of the planners and participants of the infamous Trump-Tower meeting between the Trump camp and Russians moved money from Russia and Switzerland to the British Virgin Islands, Bangkok, and a small office park in NJ.
(7) Scientists grow "cerebral organoids" from stem cells: Nicknamed "mini-brains," the collections of 1 million or so neurons resemble different regions of the human brain. This research field, which was born five years ago, is still a long way from mimicking the full functionality of the human brain. After 100 days, the self-organizing mini-brains resemble a portion of the pre-natal brain in the second trimester of pregnancy.
(8) Final thought for the day [real news story]: A group of DC residents complained to city authorities that the owner of Trump International Hotel fails the "good character" test required of anyone who wants to sell liquor.

2018/09/12 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for 'Trump Survival Guide' (1) Book review: Stone, Gene, The Trump Survival Guide: Everything You Need to Know about Living Through What You Hoped Would Never Happen, unabridged audiobook on 4 CDs, read by Danny Campbell, HarperAudio, 2017. [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
It seems that I cannot resist any book with "Trump" in its title! The tales are already getting old, as one author after another tells us about the den of dysfunction that is the Trump White House. According to Bob Woodward's just-released book, Trump is given the illusion that he is a powerful leader, going around, dictating actions and issuing orders, while the so-called "adults in the room" tone down outrageous policies and walk back the more misguided pronouncements, with or without his knowledge. Clearly, Trump is dangerous for our country, even in this muted form, given his direct Twitter channel for spreading misinformation and hatred.
The difference with this book, by the author of The Bush Survival Bible, is that it also provides practical strategies for ordinary citizens to cope with the crisis and to move from anger/despair to activism. Stone suggests that concrete action must supplement marches and social-media protests, and he provides names of organizations, people, Web sites, and other resources one can use to effect action. This fairly short book is well worth reading for those who are inclined to act but don't know where to start.
(2) Florence dangers explained: Hurricane Florence is dangerous, not primarily because of strong winds but due to vast storm surges it will create and loads of rain it is expected to dump on the Carolinas, as it stalls on land. Meanwhile, the northern Atlantic Ocean is spinning two other named hurricanes—Isaac and Helene. In the Pacific, tropical storm Olivia is on track to hit Hawaii. Welcome to the hurricane season!
(3) Wildfires: We know how to make wildfires easier to put out and less devastating, but the needed process of clearing the underbrush and controlled burns requires spending money we don't have.
(4) On its release day, Bob Woodward's Fear was already Amazon's 5th best-selling title of 2018: This article explains what the book is about and who might have provided the info it reports.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Carolinians warned: Even if you have ridden out storms before, be mindful that Florence is different!
- EU may sanction Hungary: PM Viktor Orban argues that he has an electoral mandate to roll back democracy.
- Republicans propose new tax cuts, paid for by another $2 trillion increase in the deficit.
- Iran's Revolutionary Guards attack Kurdish forces based in Iraq with less-than-perfect missiles.
- The US men's soccer team beat Mexico 1-0 in a friendly match, scoring after a Mexican player was ejected.
- Quote of the day: "The cure for anything is salt water—sweat, tears or the sea." ~ Isak Dinesen
(6) Republican Senator Susan Collins, a potential "no" vote on Judge Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation, harassed with obscene phone calls and shipments of wire hangers to her office.
(7) Break time: Feeling very productive at Starbucks, sitting outdoors on a 70-degree day (same forecast, as far as the eye can see) and working on the Persian version of an article I have already completed in English.

2018/09/11 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. Jewish blessing on a silver bowl from Iran (ca. 1918) The historic arch that was the gateway to Shiraz, Iran
Published around 116 years ago in 'Adab' newspaper, this cartoon is claimed by some to be Iran's oldest (1) Iran's history in pictures: [Left] Jewish blessing on a silver bowl from Iran (ca. 1918): "Blessed are you Lord, our God, King of the world, Creator of the fruit of the vine." [Center] The arch at the center-left of this photo is Darvaazeh Shiraz. We used to drive through the historic gateway to enter Shiraz, arriving from Persepolis. Now, the structure is just a tourist attraction, with a multi-lane highway next to it accommodating the vastly increased traffic. [Right] Published around 116 years ago in Adab newspaper, this cartoon is claimed by some to be Iran's oldest. It depicts the difference between Westerners, who help each other in climbing the ladder of success, versus Easterners, who kick/drag each other down.
(2) We remember September 11, 2001: A concrete and steel structure at the Flight 93 Pennsylvania crash site has been dedicated for 9/11's 17th anniversary. It features wind chimes and is named "Tower of Voices."
(3) Voice of America program (from 2015) talks to, and shows samples of music by, Iranian Kurd singer Nasser Razzazi: He discusses his own style, as well as varieties and influences on Kurdish music in general. He maintains that Kurdish music is the only thing that has kept the Kurdish language alive. Starting at the 22:20 mark of the video, Razzazi discusses a popular Kurdish song about Norooz, how it was born in Iraq, and how the Shah's secret police forced Iranian performers to change parts of the lyrics. [30-minute video] Here is an older 27-minute BBC conversation with Nasser Razzazi.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- The full phone conversation between Donald Trump and Bob Woodward. [11-minute audio file]
- Bob Woodward's first interview on his new book, Fear: Trump in the White House, to be released today.
- Trump's notebook sketch: Early idea of the wall, to be built by USA and paid for by Mexico. [Bill Mahr]
- Digital Life Design Conf.: As the new Jewish year rolls in, Israelis are pessimistic about peace prospects.
- Try the "language" dish at this eatery: Persian "zabaan" is translated to "language," instead of "tongue"!
- Turning the Sahara Desert into a wind/solar farm has the side benefit of bringing vegetation back to it.
- Quote of the day: "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." ~ African proverb
(5) The Notorious RBG: "I ask no favor for my sex. All I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks." ~ Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, speaking on behalf of women
[I was reminded of this statement while reading the book Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers of World War II; look for my review soon.]
(6) Evacuations ordered: Hurricane Florence turns into a category-4 storm, becoming perhaps the strongest storm to hit the US mainland northward of the South Carolina coast. Here is Florence's projected path.

2018/09/10 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, to all who observe it! (1) Happy Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, to all who observe it! The new Hebrew calendar year 5779 begins today. Jewish traditional celebration of Rosh Hashanah, starting on the night before, involves several fruits and vegetables. For example, apple dipped in honey represents sweetness and pomegranate signifies fruitfulness.
(2) A new store in town: Today, I finally ventured into the newly-opened Home Goods store in Goleta's Camino Real Marketplace and was impressed with the selection and prices.
(3) CBS Chief Les Moonves forced out, effective immediately, in light of sexual misconduct allegations: He is by far the highest-profile executive to be ousted since the #MeToo movement began.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump adviser Roger Stone urges the firing of Special Counsel Mueller and "insubordinate hillbilly" Sessions.
- Trump believes that his training makes him eminently qualified as a military leader! [Meme]
- Subway station at NYC's World Trade Center reopens in time for 9/11's 17th anniversary.
- Marziyeh Fariqi performs a Kurdish folk song.
- Vocal ensemble performs a Kurdish song, made famous by Marziyeh Fariqi.
- Teacher puts his safety on the line to demonstrate that predictions of scientific theories can be trusted.
Cover image for 'Furiously Happy' (5) Book review: Lawson, Jenny, Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things, unabridged audiobook on 7 CDs, read by the author, Macmillan Audio, 2015.
[My 2-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Lawson describes her lifelong battle with mental illness, using "funny" stories that are sometimes not very funny. There are genuinely funny, self-deprecating passages in the book, but the humor seems forced for the most part. For example, crass language is used in many passages in lieu of more refined presentation that would entail more work. I suspect that many other sufferers from mental illness would not like the way Lawson makes light of the challenges they face.
This book is a product of the way we Americans would like to be fed everything with a dose of laughter. Laughing is an essential need of a happy and balanced life, but not everything needs to be made fun of. This issue reminds me of a number of other "funny" acts that are not really funny. Take, for example, the case of Jimmy Kimmel's sidekick on TV, the Hispanic Guillermo, whose behavior, imperfect English, and thick accent are used to draw laughter from the audience.
Let me end on a positive note: Lawson suggests that we should celebrate our weirdness and find joy in whatever way we can, despite our limitations and dire circumstances. This is excellent advice for everyone.

2018/09/09 (Sunday): Book review: Mazarei, Merhnoosh, Mina's Revolution: A Novel, CreateSpace, 2015. [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image for 'Mina's Revolution' Iranian women have been quite prolific over the past couple of decades, publishing novels and other works at an impressive rate. So, why have these authors, coming from a region of the world where giving women permission to drive a car is a big deal, have been so productive intellectually? The credit/blame goes to the Islamic Revolution, which took away much of their hard-earned rights in one fell swoop, while at the same time, giving them much to write about. Both non-working, traditional women (needing intellectual stimulation) and working women (in need of a hobby) have been toiling alongside full-time professional writers to produce a welcome collection of books that, though mostly fictional (in the historical fiction genre), address the challenges of a regressive society in a brave and refreshing style. And the cultural backwardness isn't only limited to the country they left in search of sociopolitical freedom and a better life for themselves and their families; it also exists in diaspora, where many Iranian men still do not view the women in their lives as equal.
After dedicating the book to the free-spirited women of Iran and America, her two countries, and quoting E. L. Doctorow ("The historian will tell you what happened. The novelist will tell you what it felt like."), Mazarei begins her story in Los Angeles, on the day before 9/11, as Mina, a woman in her late 40s, barely makes it to her flight out of LAX for work-related meetings in New York City, where she also plans to see her daughter Shirin after eight years of estrangement; the real beginning, however, is in Borazjan, a city in southern Iran, sometime in 1964, when Mina was 11 or 12.
Description of some more or less routine happenings on the LA-NYC flight ends this segment, which is followed by another segment from late 1979, nine months after Iran's Islamic Revolution, when Mina arrived in the US, via London, as a pregnant twenty-something master's student, bringing along a few personal belongings, some Marzieh audio-tapes, and a National rice-cooker her mother had sent for her brother, whom Mina was visiting.
The pattern of jumping back and forth between dates and locations continues throughout the novel. The chapters are titled with a city and a person/place/event, such as "Tehran—University," "Los Anglels—Shirin," or "New York—Sept. 11th 2001." The narrative, which begins in Los Angeles on 9/10/2001, ends in New York City on 9/11/2001, 8:34 AM, as Mina runs toward WTC's North Tower, where she was to meet Shirin. The reader is left to speculate what will happen, when Flight 11 crashes into the North Tower's north face, between floors 93 and 99, shortly after 8:46 AM.
The "Revolution" of the book's title carries multiple meanings. There is the obvious Islamic Revolution, in which Mina played a role as a young political activist and which eventually drove her to leave her country of birth, and there are multiple inner "revolutions," as Mina tries to reconcile her idealism and big dreams with the challenges of material life and the realities of having to provide for a daughter, who later did not appreciate all of her mother's sacrifices.
As Mina prepares for the much-anticipated meeting with Shirin, her entire life passes before her eyes. She examines all of her key decisions, sacrifices made, and pleasures forfeited, more or less blaming herself for all that had gone wrong, including a marriage devoid of passion, the obsession of those around her with her cooking skills, the death of her idealism, unrealized dreams, and not experiencing an orgasm until later in life. She craved causes that were greater than herself and her immediate family, but which had died because of her own neglect and the impact of her vindictive, anti-intellectual husband. These details fill the pages between the LA beginning and the NYC ending.
The book had been on my to-read list for a while. After growing rather impatient with the story in the first one-third of the book, I was drawn back in when I got to the part where Mina's political activism and the affair with a self-absorbed revolutionary leader were described. Throughout, Mina self-criticizes her wrong decisions, avoidance of confrontation, not looking out for herself, and taming her rebellious self too much.
The novel is well-conceived, but it suffers from typical shortcomings of a self-published title. An expert editor might have advised the author to do away with a couple of superficially-introduced characters (such as Mohammad Ata, on p. 211, presumably one of the 9/11 hijackers) and provide more details about the men whom Mina fancied and the reasons she was drawn to them. These and a number of other editing/formatting problems are minor and do not detract much from the story's nice flow.

2018/09/08 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Louis-Francois Breguet's dial telegraph of 1842 aimed to simplify sending and receiving of telegrams, with no need for learning special codes Shades of the color white, which were left out from those posted over the last couple of days. This 2500-year-old stone tablet, which was stolen some 80 years ago, has been returned to Iran, thanks to a verdict from a Supreme Coutrt judge in NYC. (1) Some interesting images: [Left] Louis-Francois Breguet's dial telegraph of 1842 aimed to simplify sending and receiving of telegrams, with no need for learning special codes. The letter W was left out, as were diacritical marks, which are important in French. (Image credit: IEEE Spectrum, issue of September 2018) [Center] Shades of the color white, which were left out from those posted here over the last couple of days. [Right] This 2500-year-old stone tablet, which was stolen some 80 years ago, has been returned to Iran, thanks to a verdict from a Supreme Court judge in NYC.
(2) Human errors and tech: Many tech-related disasters are attributable fully or in part to human error. So, it is important to understand the reasons for human errors, some of which are due to poor tech design of human-machine interfaces. These 4 case studies are from Human Error, a 1990 book by James Reason (Cambridge University Press), one of the references I have used for my graduate-level course on fault-tolerant computing.
*Nuclear power plant at Three Mile Island     *Chemical plant at Bhopal, India
*Nuclear power plant at Chernobyl    *King's Cross Underground fire
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- How Republicans who hated candidate Trump went on to love him as President: Don Lemon has the tapes!
- Watergate attorney is certain Trump will be impeached, and Trump himself seems to dread impeachment.
- Unenthusiastic guy and a couple of others standing behind Trump are replaced by some pretty faces!
- Russia denies responsibility for the UK chemical assassination attempt, calling the evidence "fake news."
- Three young Kurdish political prisoners (Ramin Panahi, Zanyar Muradi, Loqman Murad) executed in Iran.
- Well, it was bound to happen: Teen falls to death while trying to take a selfie at Yosemite National Park.
- Kids say the darnest things: A very important phone conversation.
- Art from scrap: Making animal shapes by peeling a tangerine.
- History in pictures: NYC's Times Square, 1909.
- Juggling, with a twist (multiple ones, in fact): Four limbs, five balls, six-minute video.
- This 19-year-old domino chain-reaction master talks about her techniques for 15,000-piece creations.
- Signs of the time: Some unintentionally funny signs from Iran, for my Persian-speaking readers.
(4) Final thought for the day: Trump claims he fell asleep during former President Obama's speech. Sad! He missed an opportunity to discover what America is all about, and learn a few big words too.

2018/09/07 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
shades of black Shades of blue Shades of brown Shades of grey Shades of green Shades of orange Shades of pink Shades of red Shades of yellow (1) More color shades: Yesterday, I posted an image with names of 20 shades of purple. Out of curiosity, I searched for shades of a few other colors. Here are the results. The main color always appears on the top left.
(2) She received no credit for the discovery of pulsars, when a Nobel prize was awarded to her supervisor for the feat: Now, Bell Burnell has landed the biggest cash award ($3 million) for her contributions.
(3) Senator Kamala Harris asks US Supreme Court nominee, Judge Brett Kavanaugh, if he could think of any law that regulates the male body. He couldn't.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- More than a dozen senior administration officials have denied being NYT's anonymous op-ed writer.
- Those who think they are controlling Trump, the so-called adults in the room, are strengthening his hand.
- Twitter users have a field day with Trump's claim that he will be remembered like Abraham Lincoln.
- Trump's "Anomenous" becomes the new "Covfefe"!
- NK hacker Park Jin Hyok charged with Sony Pictures hack and WannaCry global ransomware attack.
- This week's SB Independent reports on the celebration held on 8/25 to mark Miye Ota's 100th birthday.
- In a little over two weeks, UCSB will welcome the class of 2022 to its campus by the sea.
(5) A new job title in Iran: Arranging turbans in the nicest possible way. The fee charged depends on the design's complexity. [Persian tweet] [News story (in Persian): Unusual jobs that have sprung up in Iran]
(6) Final thought for the day: Richard Corsi, new dean of engineering at Portland State University, wants to make Portland a brilliant city, which he defines as the next step up from a smart city!

2018/09/06 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Flowers in different shades of purple growing in rocks Names of different shades of purple, for color-challenged people like me More flowers in purple shades (1) Shades of the color purple: [Left] Flowers in different shades of purple growing in rocks. [Center] Names of different shades of purple, for color-challenged people like me. [Right] More flowers in purple shades.
(2) Logical reasoning puzzle: In the following sequence, what is the next number?
4   12   23   69   80   ?         a. 91   b. 100   c. 191   d. 240
(3) CDC deals with emergency: Passengers and crew of an Emirate flight landing in NYC with more than 100 sick individuals have been quarantined. This document highlights Hajj risks from all communicable diseases, including a camel-borne respiratory disease.
(4) A couple of Persian tweets about Iranian female member of parliament Parvaneh Salahshoori: After a speech, male members insulted her, one asking whether her husband had read the speech.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Up to a year and a half ago, Bob Woodward was a great guy, but not after exposing Trump's failings.
- This is Trump's level of understanding of energy sources and their security: Truly scary!
- Melania Trump's back-to-school tweet asks whether students will strive to #BeBest, with no sense of irony!
- Loss of coral reefs will bring humanity a step closer to extinction: And the process has already begun.
- Cartoon of the day: Iranians face a severe shortage of baby diapers. [Image]
- A second cartoon, from The New Yorker: Disgruntled White House employees talk to Bob Woodward. [Image]
- Mashhad, Iran's second largest and holiest city, has become a destination for Iraqi sex tourists.
(6) Tiny machines inside human body may be able to harvest energy from biological cells: Scientists have already demonstrated that a capacitor can be charged by tapping into a frog egg, with the resulting charge used to power tiny, ultra-low-power electronics.
(7) For soccer enthusiasts: Having messed up big-time by not qualifying for the 2018 World Cup, the US men's soccer team is back, trying to redeem itself. Here are their next two exhibition matches. Friday, 9/07, vs. Brazil, Fox Sports 1, 4:30 PM PDT; Tuesday, 9/11, vs. Mexico, ESPN, 5:30 PM PDT.
(8) American values ignored: The US has overlooked human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia for decades, and now that Canada is standing up to the Kingdom and getting punished for it economically, the US refuses to get involved, telling the two countries to work it out between themselves.
(9) Resistance inside the White House? Someone claiming to be a Trump administration insider has revealed, anonymously, that s/he is working to curb Trump's worst instincts and brands himself/herself as a hero. What would be heroic is to expose this president, as Bob Woodward has done, and to help remove him from office, not pick and choose from his decisions and orders via an extra-Constitutional process.

2018/09/05 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image of Walter Isaacson's 'Leonardo da Vinci' (1) Book review: Isaacson, Walter, Leonardo da Vinci: The Secrets of History's Most Creative Genius, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Alfred Molina, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2017.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Isaacson has several very impressive biographies to his credit. They include biographical books on Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein, Benjamin Franklin, and Henry Kissinger. This book, like Isaacson's other biographical works, is based on meticulous research. Normally, writing about a 15th-century personality would be difficult, but da Vinci was a very helpful subject in this regard, because he kept detailed notebooks in which he recorded his ideas, sketches, designs, attempts at solving mathematical problems, records of his expenses, and almost everything else he did.
Da Vinci always carried a small notebook with him and sketched people in various poses, as he encountered them, because he felt he might forget important details. Later, he combined his acute eye for detail with a comprehensive study of the human body, muscles in particular, to produce more realistic paintings and sculptures. Isaacson estimates that about a quarter of da Vinci's notebooks have survived, but then points out that he had more information to work with here than provided by the entire collection of Steve Jobs' documents and e-mails!
Da Vinci was easily distracted and seldom finished projects which he started. For example, he spent much time on building an enormous statue of a man on horse, for which he devoted countless hours perfecting his knowledge of horses, their motions, and structure of their bones and muscles. He led the project to the stage of producing a single-piece casting mold that was larger than anything attempted earlier, but the statue was never built. Ditto for many paintings, bridges, buildings, weapons, and flying contraptions he dreamt up, all of which remained at the sketch or design stage.
Da Vinci was quite unique in the way he combined art and science. His wide-ranging passions that contributed to his unique position at the art-science boundary included theatrical production, architecture, anatomy, physiology, and engineering. His endless curiosity, careful observation, and playful imagination made him arguably the most creative genius in history.
In a way, da Vinci needed to be a creative genius in order to fit in. He was a misfit in many ways: illegitimate, a homosexual, a vegetarian, and left-handed, during a period of history when each of these attributes was enough for being sidelined or even expurgated. He is considered by many a true model of a Renaissance man.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Tech humor: Developer of iPhone's autocorrect feature owns up to his mistakes and apologizes to us!
- Visualizing Iran's currency devaluation, in very rough terms, by considering what 20K Tomans buys you.
- Illusion of control: The world is full of buttons that don't actually do anything, by design!
- Dutch company starts a new trend: A multi-level floating dairy farm near the center of Rotterdam.
- Sign of the times: "Waxing center" ad displayed in a prominent location on the UCSB Campus. [Photo]
- Dancing to the Azeri tune "Sani Deililar" ("They're Calling You"): A new social-media campaign/craze.
- "It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see." ~ Henry David Thoreau
(3) Are US Democrats shooting themselves in the foot? The trend is clear: Inexperienced outsiders are winning primary elections and ousting incumbent Democrats at state and national levels. In one sense, this is refreshing, because incumbent Democrats aren't any less guilty than Republicans in the current state of our politics and our government's sell-out to big business. Yet, I can't help but fear that these fresh faces will not have the know-how and support structure to defeat the well-funded Republican fear/smut machinery in November. But I do hope that my fear proves misguided.

2018/09/04 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Brazil's National Museum in Rio gutted by fire My first pomegranate purchase of the season Art Deco toaster, 1920s (1) Some newsworthy/interesting images: [Left] Brazil's National Museum gutted by fire: Unimaginable loss of treasure in the 200-year-old Rio institution. [Center] My first pomegranate purchase of the season: They arrive in Santa Barbara much later than in Los Angeles. [Right] Art Deco toaster, 1920s.
(2) This "equal earth projection" map has been developed by scientists to correct centuries of misrepresentation that depicts Europe & North America much larger, and Africa & South America much smaller, than their true sizes. On some current maps, Greenland appears nearly as large as Africa.
(3) Will Donald Trump's "friends" learn from the fate of punching-bag Jeff Sessions or do they think they are somehow special and utterly indispensable to The Don?
(4) New poll shows surging disapproval rating for Trump: But if we learned anything from 2016, it's to not let our participation slip when polls favor us.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Bob Woodward explains to Donald Trump how he tried to talk to him about his forthcoming book.
- Bob Woodward's forthcoming book reportedly tells of Mattis privately expressing his disdain for Trump.
- Soccer analogy: Trump wants Jeff Sessions to play goalie, but he wants to be a striker.
- Did you know that fighting is going on in Tripoli, Libya? Rival militias have caused 50 deaths just this week.
- Franklin family criticizes pastor for inappropriately political eulogy that included little about Aretha.
- Crooks in the White House: Kushner amassed $350K in unpaid fines while heading the family business.
- Cornell University's engineering class of 2022 contains equal numbers of men and women.
- iPad that rolls up to fit in your pocket: The final product will likely be more compact than this prototype.
- A beautiful Persian dance: Short 1-minute segment of a longer routine.
- "[A] dreamer, a thinker, a speculative philosopher ... or, as his wife would have it, an idiot." ~ Douglas Adams
(6) Reza Khandan, Nasrin Sotoudeh's husband, who posted updates about the human rights activist's latest imprisonment, has been arrested in Iran.
(7) Google is trying to fix the URL mess: As they stand now, URLs are pretty much unreadable, because they contain much junk in the form of random-looking symbol strings. So, it's impossible to deduce which site you are connecting to and whether the site can be trusted. The long, unwieldy URLs won't even display in full on most browsers, particularly on mobile devices, creating deception opportunities for cyber-criminals. Fixing the mess has proven more difficult than initially thought, leading to the need for more effort.

2018/09/03 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of Iranologist Ehsan Yarshater (1) Ehsan Yarshater [1920-2018] passed away on September 1: An Ironologist and Editor of Encyclopedia Iranica, Yarshater was the founder and director of Center for Iranian Studies, and Hagop Kevorkian Professor Emeritus of Iranian Studies at Columbia University. He was widely honored by awards and scholarships and by lecture series bearing his name. A major loss to Iran lovers and scholars worldwide. May he rest in peace!
[Web site] [Wikipedia entry] [Encyclopedia Iranica] [BBC tribute]
(2) An average of 10 ships have sunk per year over the past decade because of liquefaction, when solid cargo loaded directly onto the ships' holds turns into liquid.
(3) Modern Persian music: Ziba Shirazi's "Mard-e Man" ("My Man"). This rather romantic song is labeled by Amazon.com as "explicit"!
(4) "Hunting for Peru's Lost Civilizations": This 7-minute TED talk by Sarah Parcak is one of several talks on what is known as "space archaeology," the discovery of ancient sites using aerial and satellite imagery.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump celebrates Labor Day by criticizing the head of the country's largest federation of labor unions.
- Former President Obama's awe-inspiring eulogy at John McCain's memorial service in Washington, DC.
- Barack Obama and Meghan McCain slammed by Trump supporters for their John McCain eulogies.
- Mother of a vacationing family of five is the only survivor of a kayaking accident in Wisconsin.
- Billboard reminds Texans that the Lyin' Trump, who now supports Ted Cruz, has blasted him many times.
- California leads again: New law improves transparency through public access to internal police documents.
- US salaries of holders of 4-year college degrees: Starting, median, and different percentiles. [Article]
Happy Labor Day: Banner, with US flag (6) Not much to celebrate for labor: Today is Labor Day in the US. The first Labor Day Parade was held in New York City on September 5, 1882. On that day, 136 years ago, participants began from City Hall, marched past viewing stands at Union Square, and assembled in Wendel's Elm Park for a picnic, concert, and speeches. This year's celebration is marred by broad assaults on, and proposed curtailments of, labor rights, including restrictions on unionization, elimination or reduction of minimum wage, relaxation of safety regulations, stagnant wages, and arbitrary dismissals. Such assaults often come with misguided laws and misleading slogans, such as "Right to Work," which really means crushing labor unions to keep wages low.
(7) A final thought for this Labor Day: "Of life's two chief prizes, beauty and truth, I found the first in a loving heart and the second in a laborer's hand." ~ Khalil Gibran

2018/09/01 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Taking frozen long-johns off the washing line, 1940s Iran's pyramid: A cartoon by Mana Neyestani III Anna S. C. Blake, founder of a manual-training school bearing her name, that eventually became UCSB (1) Some interesting images: [Left] Taking frozen long-johns off the washing line, 1940s. [Center] Iran's pyramid: A cartoon by Mana Neyestani III. [Right] This photograph, shot through a frame with glass, is from a UCSB library exhibit that tells the story of how a "manual training" school, founded in 1892 by Anna S. C. Blake, a wealthy Bostonian who relocated to Santa Barbara, became known for its progressive and holistic educational programs and was eventually absorbed into the UC system to become UCSB.
(2) Not the enemy of the people: In a wonderfully-written and highly emotional essay, the wife of a journalist who died of cancer at the age of 41, calls out President Trump for his callous attacks on the press.
(3) Matrescence: A word meaning transition to motherhood, in the same way that adolescence means transition to adulthood. Both transitions are difficult due to hormonal changes, but, whereas adolescence has been studied extensively, there is much less work on matrescence, which is often mistaken for postpartum depression. An excellent 6-minute TED talk!
(4) Fake news from Saudi Arabia: With nearly 7000 people killed and more than 10,000 injured in Yemen, the Saudis have the audacity to maintain that they helped "alleviate the suffering of the Yemeni people."
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- "Saturday Night Live" will re-air its John McCain episode tonight. I've heard it's really funny!
- Spot-on observation on the weirdness of waking up in the middle of the night to tweet in all caps. [Meme]
- Some answers about how our internal clocks perceive and keep time.
- Persian poetry: An exquisite love poem from Sa'adi.
- Persian music: wonderful violin performance on the street.
- The dance tune from "Zorba the Greek" performed with tar, a traditional musical instrument from Iran.
(6) Bald lie: "The president asked me to be here on behalf of a grateful nation, to pay a debt of honor and respect to a man who served our country throughout his life, in uniform and in public office." ~ VP Mike Pence
(7) Iranian politician Mir-Hossein Mousavi, after 8 years of living under house arrest and before it: Eight years of effective imprisonment, with no trial or even charges. [Photos]
(8) Quote: "We gather here to mourn the passing of American greatness. The real thing — not cheap rhetoric from men who will never come near the sacrifice he gave so willingly." ~ Meghan McCain (John's daughter)

2018/08/30 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Pizzeria augments the 'table' at the center of pizza boxes with chairs! Princess Esmat al-Dowleh, daughter of Nasar al-Din Shah Qajar, in a photo taken by her husband in the late 1800s The stain on Senator John McCain's legacy (1) Some interesting images: [Left] Pizzeria augments the "table" at the center of pizza boxes with chairs! [Center] It is often said that Iranian women are beautiful. I agree, but standards of beauty change over time. This image shows Princess Esmat al-Dowleh [1855/6-1905], daughter of Nasar al-Din Shah Qajar, in a photo taken by her husband in the late 1800s. [Right] The stain on Senator John McCain's legacy.
(2) National University of Singapore students demonstrate a quadcopter drone that is fully powered by the sun. This Wired article, which includes a video, stipulates on the size and weight scalability of the concept.
(3) Climate change: Miami's water-drainage canals, which help with getting rid of rainwater from its very flat surface, constitute the world's most-complex water management system. But it only takes a few feet of sea-level rise to overwhelm the system and put Miami under water.
(4) Forget supersonic and hypersonic planes: Airlines and airplane manufacturers are working on 20-hour flights, featuring on-board gyms, beds, and other amenities.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- VP Mike Pence tweets wistfully about "a more respectful time" and is called out for his hypocrisy. [Tweet]
- Trump wanted to buy decades of "dirt" that National Enquirer had on him.
- "Will the last GOP statesman out of the Congress please turn off the light?" [Cartoon about John McCain]
- Some customers of In-n-Out cannot stomach the fast-food chain's donation to California Republicans.
- UCSB upperclassmen scare the already-terrified freshmen in the campus student newspaper.
- Informative maps that show how land is used in the continental United States.
- Nostalgia: Ads for products and services, from Iranian print media of yore. Dates are unspecified.
(6) Human Error in Computer Systems: This is the title of a 1983 book by Robert W. Bailey, which I have used as a reference for my graduate-level course on fault-tolerant computing.
Hand-printing errors, which arose when manually-written texts and filled-out forms were keyed in by operators, are no longer common with today's technology, but examining this table from Appendix A (p. 123), listing error rates in interpreting hand-printed English alphanumeric characters, is instructive nonetheless, particularly as it provides us with a sense of the even greater error-proneness of the Persian script.
The least error-prone alphanumeric symbols, with error rates of less than 1%, are: W, M, 3, 7, A, 9, E, C.
Near the high end of the error spectrum, with error rates of around 5%, are: N, 0, 5, J, V, G.
Particularly error-prone are the letters Z (13%) and I (25%).
The book's Appendix B (pp. 124-126) discusses methods of quantifying readability.

2018/08/29 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Meeting with FIFA President, Trump was gifted a set of referee cards and immediately issued a red card to the media (1) Meeting with FIFA President about the 2026 World Cup in North America, Trump was gifted a set of referee cards and immediately issued a red card to the media. Robert Mueller reportedly has a set of the same cards!
(2) Tweets, sermons, speeches, they are all being archived and will be used as evidence: Apparently, an attorney representing the US in the international tribunal to which Iran has taken a complaint about the unfairness and debilitating effects of US sanctions, has introduced as evidence a part of a sermon/speech by Supreme Leader Khamenei, in which he mused that the economic chaos in the country is not due to sanctions but internal mismanagement.
(3) [For map lovers] Free to AAA members via local branches: A collection of historical maps, with the first in the series being a 1930 map of Metropolitan Los Angeles.
(4) Are college librarians entitled to academic freedom? The question was put to test during negotiations between UC administration and UC-AFT (American Federation of Teachers), with the former arguing that academic freedom pertains only to faculty members and students in classroom settings and the latter favoring extension of the privilege to librarians, who are already considered academic employees. Such an extension seems reasonable in my view, given that, in choosing books and journal holdings, librarians need to exercise independent judgment, without pressure from outside groups. [Faculty Associations' letter of support]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- California becomes the first major US state to mandate carbon-free electricity generation by 2045.
- Hyperpolyglots, people who speak dozens of languages, provide insights into learning and brain function.
- A fun place to visit: Museum of Illusions, 6751 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles. (Also, in SF)
- Imprisonment of political dissenters continues in Iran: Facebook post about Roya Saghiri.
- Iranian folk music: A song from the western Iranian province of Lorestan.
- Persian poetry: A poem by Mahasti Ganjavi, a female poet who lived nine centuries ago. [Read]
(6) Sexism in US Tennis: Female tennis player was charged with a violation for flipping her shirt, which she had been wearing backwards, whereas male players go bare-chested all the time with no fines.
(7) No, months that have 5 Sundays, 5 Mondays, and 5 Tuesdays aren't rare or very special: Claims such as this one pop up on social media quite frequently. So, here I try to dispel one such myth. Any 31-day month has five instances of its first three days of the week (on the dates 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 for the first one, 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 for the second one, and 3, 10, 17, 24, 31 for the third one). On average, one in every 7 months begins on a Sunday. Given that there are seven 31-day months in every year, one should expect a month with 5 Sundays, 5 Mondays, and 5 Tuesdays to occur once per year on average.

2018/08/28 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Time magazine covers over the past few months, telling the story of Trump in a storm of his own making (1) Time magazine covers over the past few months, telling the story of Trump in a storm of his own making.
(2) Trump's hollow comments on Jacksonville mass shooting, coming after a long delay: "That was a terrible thing, indeed, and how it happens, nobody really knows. But they've done an incredible job down in Jacksonville as they always do in Florida, and throughout the country, but — condolences."
(3) All crooks cry "witch hunt" when exposed: In 2002, Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, Pope Francis' right-hand man and closest adviser, characterized media reports of abuse by Catholic priests as "witch hunts." [Source: Time magazine] [Uncredited on-line photo of Maradiaga with Pope Francis]
(4) Quote: "We accept the moral obligation of Germany, in whose name terrible injustice was committed under the Nazis." ~ Heiko Maas, German FM, on the deportation from US of former Nazi guard Jaklw Palij
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Donald Trump's pettiness on full display over how he dealt with Senator John McCain's death.
- Crooks in the White House: Kushner companies fined for falsifying construction permits.
- Trump supporter Paris Dennard suspended by CNN for revelations about his record of sexual misconduct.
- Brazil may ditch democracy to elect its own version of Trump, "law and order" candidate Jair Bolsonaro.
- A woman who had tried everything for irritable bowel syndrome was cured by a placebo self-treatment.
- Lessons from Cyrus the Great on how to run a multi-ethnic, multi-faith society. [2-minute video]
- Iran's parliament refers President Rouhani to the judiciary over the mishandling of Iran's economic woes.
- "Hoghoogh-e Bashar" ("Bashar's rights") vs. "Hoghoogh-e bashar" ("Human rights"): Cartoon from 2013.
(6) This amazing 1-minute video of all NYT front pages since its initial publication in 1852 clearly shows how the front-page format has changed from exclusively textual to an increasing proportion of images.
(7) We have all heard about official flowers, birds, and fruit for states, but did you know that California also has a state dinosaur, Auggie? [Image]
(8) Wrong number, right person: A year ago, a man mistakenly sent a message to a woman he didn't know on WhatsApp. They went on their first date that night and got married three months later! [From: Time magazine]

2018/08/27 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Katherine Johnson, science pioneer of the 'Hidden Figures' fame, is celebrating her 100th birthday today Racism in Iran: A neighborhood in the southern city of Yazd puts up a sign to ban Afghans from entering Mevlana Museum (Rumi's tomb) in Konya, Turkey (1) Topical and interesting images: [Left] Katherine Johnson, science pioneer of the "Hidden Figures" fame, is celebrating her 100th birthday today. [Center] Racism in Iran: A neighborhood in the southern city of Yazd puts up a sign to ban Afghans from entering. [Right] Mevlana Museum (Rumi's tomb) in Konya, Turkey.
(2) Investing in research and development: R&D spending by the top ten countries in the world ranges from $480B (USA) to $40B (Russia). Iran appears near the southeast corner of this chart with $4B.
[P.S.: Per-capita spending stats would have been more useful.]
(3) Cyber border-walls: The national security challenge of the future does not come from people walking across physical borders but from hackers crossing cyber-boundaries.
(4) The reading brain: UCLA neuroscientist Maryanne Wolf, author of Reader, Come Home, is horrified by what has happened to her ability to concentrate in the age of electronic communication and e-readers.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- France joins Germany in maintaining that Europe can no longer rely on the US for its security.
- The links between the men behind Brexit and the Trump Campaign. [NPR's "Fresh Air" podcast]
- Instead of shielding students, SoE Betsy DeVos has chosen to protect friends operating for-profit colleges.
- Persian-language tweet of the day: Calling for civility in social-media interactions.
- College diploma at 105: Now go and update your LinkedIn profile, young man!
- Iranian diva Googoosh's full concert at Hollywood Bowl (May 12, 2018). [114-minute video]
(6) On the power of regulations: "Facebook's conduct with Cambridge Analytica was illegal in the U.K. and punished. The same conduct was only 'irresponsible' in the U.S. with no legal consequences, and nothing to prevent it happening again." ~ Communications of the ACM Editor-in-Chief Andrew A. Chien, writing in the September 2018 issue of the ACM publication
(7) Architecture for neural-network processing assist: This image shows the block diagram and chip area allocation for a domain-specific architecture to significantly speed up the processing functions needed for deep neural networks. [Source: Communications of the ACM, Vol. 61, No. 9, September 2018, pp. 50-59]
(8) "RBG: Hero, Icon, Dissenter": This critically acclaimed CNN-produced film, which I enjoyed at a theater a couple of months ago, is set for TV broadcast on Monday, September 3 (CNN, 6:00 and 9:00 PM PDT).
(9) [Final thought for the day] The late Senator John McCain's wishes for his funeral include speeches by former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama (both having defeated him in elections) and explicit instructions that Donald Trump not be invited to attend.

2018/08/26 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Colorful flowers, in 4 panels Logical reasoning puzzle: Which of the three options at the bottom belongs where we have a question mark? A kindergarten in Helsinki, Finland, 1890 (1) Some interesting images: [Left] Colorful flowers. [Center] Logical reasoning puzzle: Which of the three options at the bottom belongs where we have a question mark? [Right] A kindergarten in Helsinki, 1890.
(2) Leaking of phone numbers almost as bad as SSNs: Identity thieves can easily integrate data from multiple database breaches, because all databases contain phone numbers.
(3) "If You Could Read My Mind": Guitarist Pavlov plays a Mediterranean fusion version of the oldie classic. (Song starts at the 1:56 mark of this video.) [Post inspired by a PBS concert I watched on KCET last night.]
(4) Multiple deaths and injuries reported for the magnitude-6.0 quake in the western Iranian city of Kermanshah. The devastated region has been shaking continuously over the past few months.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona dead at 81, a day after ceasing treatment for cancer.
- Pulitzer-Prize-winning playwright and screenwriter Neil Simon dead at 91.
- Hawaii grapples with Hurricane Lane. [Pictorial]
- The go-to button is again pressed for Jacksonville shooting victims and the matter will soon be forgotten.
- NotPetya: The fast-spreading Russian malware behind the most-devastating cyber-attack ever.
- Venmo: The default public setting of all transactions, which few bother to change, creates many risks.
- Iran's Finance Minister Masoud Karbasian impeached by the parliament amid economic woes.
- Miye, the matriarch of my son's Aikido school in Goleta, celebrated her 100th birthday yesterday.
(6) Trump expresses sympathies and respect to McCain's family, without praising the man himself: "My deepest sympathies and respect go out to the family of Senator John McCain. Our hearts and prayers are with you!"
(7) John McCain was a hero and a decent man, but we shouldn't lose sight of the fact that by giving voice to Sarah Palin and her ilk, he unleashed the Trump monster!
(8) College soccer: In its second match of the season, the UCSB Men's soccer team took on UC Riverside this evening. The final score was UCSB 3-1 UCR, with UCSB scoring in minutes 38, 56, and 90, and UCR scoring on a defensive mix-up in minute 85. By the way, we Gauchos are excited that this year's College Cup (the final-four tournament of college soccer) will be held here at Harder Stadium on December 7 and 9, 2018.

Cover image for the book 'Homo Deus' 2018/08/25 (Saturday): Book review: Harari, Yuval Noah, Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Derek Perkins, Harper Audio, 2017. [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This book complements Harari's 2017 book, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, which I have reviewed before on GoodReads and elsewhere. In Sapiens, Harari took an expansive look at human history, not just spanning a few millenia for which we have written historical records of human development and the rise and fall of empires, but beginning with our genetic ancestors and ending with how the human species is changing as we speak.
In Homo Deus, Harari, professor of history at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, presents an account of how our species came to dominate the Earth, wiping out many other species, including competing human species (such as Neanderthals), and changing the world around us, to the extent that nothing resembles its natural state. My first exposure to this new book was through an engaging UCSB lecture by its author on February 27, 2017.
The theme of Homo Deus is that we are moving from the two previous stages of authority in human societies, that is, theism (listen to the Bible or some other holy book) and the more-recent humanism (listen to your feelings or inner voice), to what he calls dataism (listen to the data, that is, to Google and Amazon). In other words, authority is now shifting from human beings to algorithms, which are, or can be, much more accurate in arriving at correct decisions.
Presently, human feelings are the supreme source of authority, as reflected in the sayings "customer is always right," "beauty is in the eye of the beholder," and "if it feels good, do it!" And this kind of humanistic thinking permeates every facet of our lives, be it economics, aesthetics, education, ethics, and so on. The main threat to this humanistic view is emerging from laboratories, where scientists are becoming convinced that feelings are nothing but biochemical algorithms.
Humanism is based in large parts on the notion of free will, which is facing increasing skepticism. The day isn't far when Google or Amazon know you better than you do yourself. This supremacy of data is already a reality in medicine, where genes can predict future ailments, even though the patient "feels" perfectly fine. Today, we are in the process of completing the hacking of human brain. It is possible that we reach the conclusion that the brain isn't the mind or that we can stop the march of technology, which is, after all, not deterministic, but there is an immense momentum in the direction of algorithms taking over our lives.
Algorithms that are smarter and more capable than us humans may someday discard us, and our biochemical existence, as a mere nuisance. In a way, such algorithms may look upon us the way we now look at pets and other animals. The Internet of all things will provide perfect information for all decisions, obviating the need for reliance on our subjective decision-making capability, which is ill-suited to the needs of today, having evolved for coping with challenges of life in the African savannah.
Technology has already weakened some human abilities. Our hunter-gatherer ancestors had much more acute senses of taste and smell that helped them refrain from eating poisonous mushrooms, for example. They were also better at interpreting environmental cues, because their survival depended on these abilities. Now, you buy your food at the supermarket and put it in your mouth, while watching TV or reading e-mail, barely tasting or smelling what you eat. Likewise, the day may come when we cannot navigate on our own and become totally dependent on Google Maps.
I end my review of Homo Deus with an interesting personal story Harari told during his lecture at UCSB: Jerusalem is a hotbed of chaos and conflict. However, there is one day each year when Jews, Muslims, and Christians come together and chant the same slogans in condemning the annual Gay Pride Parade!

2018/08/24 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet. Montmartre, Paris, 1952
Night fishing in Hawaii, 1948 Location of Shockley Lab, where the first silicon devices were fabricated (391 San Antonio Rd., Mountain View, CA), marked by IEEE as the birthplace of Silicon Valley (1) History in pictures: [Left] Montmartre, Paris, 1952. [Center] Night fishing in Hawaii, 1948. [Right] Location of Shockley Lab, where the first silicon devices were fabricated (391 San Antonio Rd., Mountain View, CA), marked by IEEE as the birthplace of Silicon Valley.
(2) Trump continues to hit his favorite punching bag: I am beginning to think that perhaps Jeff Sessions, by not resigning after much indignity, is making sacrifices to save our country from Trump. Ditto for John Kelly.
(3) The stock market continues to thrive, despite worsening legal troubles for Trump: Investors are essentially saying, "Tell me something I don't know, or at least I didn't expect." And this is why big-investor-supported Republicans might never turn on Trump.
(4) Part of the new Republican platform on sanctity of marriage: Marriage is between a man, a woman, a few mistresses, and a porn star or two thrown in for good measure.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Hurricane Lane (now category 4) is the closest a category-5 storm has ever gotten to Hawaii.
- Trump attacks one felon (Michael Cohen) while smothering lavish praise on another (Paul Manafort).
- A reminder that the trend of declining unemployment rate dates back to 2012. [Chart]
- Don't want Google to track you? Well, tough luck: You have no choice, especially if you use Android.
- Growing and harvesting walnuts in Australia. [4-minute video]
- Kabob, Iranian style: For your viewing pleasure, as dinner hour approaches [1-minute video]
(6) The US President communicates (if you can call this communication) with his Attorney General via Twitter: He has no understanding of the fact that justice does not care about this side and the other side. Judges, prosecutors, and juries can have any party affiliation, without affecting their work. There is no law that requires a Republican to be investigated or prosecuted by a Republican. [Tweet]
(7) Republicans flip-flop on Jeff Sessions and his potential firing: Rather then abandoning Trump, now that they realize he is a crook, several Republicans have rallied to his support. Here is what Senator Lindsey Graham had said about the possible firing of Sessions: "I'm 100% behind Jeff Sessions. If Jeff Sessions is fired, there will be holy hell to pay." And here is Graham's most recent musing about the matter: "The President's entitled to having an attorney general he has faith in, somebody that is qualified for the job and I think there will come a time sooner rather than later where it will be time to have a new face and a fresh voice at the Department of Justice. Clearly, Attorney General Sessions doesn't have the confidence of the President."
(8) My daughter and I went for an evening walk on UCSB's West Campus beach and got soaked when we made a run to reach the stairs, as decent-sized waves came crashing in!
(9) College soccer: After an impressive 7-0 win in an exhibition game against cross-town rival Westmont, the UCSB Gauchos Men's soccer team faced St. John's of New York in its season opener tonight. UCSB won the match 2-0, scoring on a header from a cross coming for the left and on an unassisted fast-break goal.

2018/08/23 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The latest title in 'The Little Golden Book' educational series for children Trump Tower in a prison compound Offering free gas to customers, without any real possibility of losing money (1) A collection of funny images: [Left] The latest title in 'The Little Golden Book' educational series for kids. [Center] Prison compound. [Right] Offering free gas to customers, without any real possibility of losing money.
(2) Quote of the day: "Men cannot control themselves ... so all of society has to adapt." ~ Gwendoline Goipeault, activist at Femmes Solidaires, on open-air urinals installed around Paris (This quote can be re-used for mandatory hijab laws in Iran and elsewhere.)
(3) The woman who was transformed in two decades from the belle of the progressive SF Bay Area (wife of Mayor Gavin Newsom) to the princess of MAGA-land (new love interest of Donald Trump Jr.).
(4) Michael Cohen has deleted this December 19, 2015, tweet aimed at Hillary Clinton: "When you go to prison for defrauding America and perjury, your room and board will be free!"
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Here's what "the failing NYT" has to say about Michael Cohen's allegations and plea deal on its front page.
- Can you believe Trump supporters are still chanting "Lock Her Up," as close Trump advisers face jail time?
- Heroic rescue efforts in Kerala, India, after the region's historic floods.
- Missing-person case solved: Undocumented immigrant charged with the murder of Iowa jogger.
- How smart air-conditioners and water-heaters can be hijacked to bring the power grid down.
- Hundreds of Facebook accounts linked to Iran's global disinformation campaign shut down.
- Saudi Arabia set to execute a female political activist for the first time.
- Parody of Fox News coverage, while Cohen and Manafort were in court! [Image]
(6) [Humor from Twitter] CNN, NBC, BBC, ABC, AP: "Manafort and Cohen guilty!"
Fox News: "Hey, do you ever stare at one spot and zone out for a while? Crazy, right? What's up with that?"
(7) Humor from The Onion (picture Cohen & Giuliani): Law school applications skyrocket upon realization that any f...ing idiot can become a lawyer.
(8) "Loving Vincent": This is the title of a feature-length animated movie, screened at UCSB's Campbell Hall last night, as the last installment of this year's free summer cinema series. Hand-painted by some 100 artists, the film, which mimics Vincent van Gogh's oil-painting style, is an apt artistic tribute to an extraordinary artist! The story revolves around a young man who goes to van Gogh's last hometown to deliver the troubled artist's final letter, but ends up investigating the circumstances surrounding his death. I learned from the film that van Gogh painted for only 8 years, leaving behind some 800 pieces of work. [IMDB entry for the 2017 film, which includes a trailer and many photos]

2018/08/22 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Mobile office, 1961 Aretha Franklin and Ray Charles, 1971 Albert Einstein in front of bookcase, undated photo (1) History in pictures: [Left] Mobile office on the road, 1961. [Center] Aretha Franklin and Ray Charles, 1971. [Right] Albert Einstein in front of bookcase, undated photo.
(2) Putin's new hacking targets: Conservative think tanks that have broken with Trump and favor continued sanctions against Russia, expose oligarchs, or press for human rights.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Having decided they can't rely on America, the Germans are debating the merits of getting their own nukes.
- This bunch of mint I bought from Sprouts today is the freshest I have seen in my neck of the woods!
- I get sick just reading about this $75 burger: Forget about taking a bite of one! [Source: Time magazine]
- Get ready for a nationwide "free museum day" on Saturday, September 22, 2018.
- Humor: Amazon introduces its first regional adaptation of Echo: Shirin, or Alexa for Iranians.
- Persian pop music: Solo-violin rendition of the popular oldie "Shaneh."
- Azeri-Persian music: Aftab Choir performs "Sari Gelin" and a Persian version of it ("Daman-Keshan").
Cover image for Tom Hanks' 'Uncommon Type' (4) Book review: Hanks, Tom, Uncommon Type: Some Stories, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author and others, Random House Audio, 2017.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This collection of short stories by the double-Oscar-winning actor is a delight: Tender, absorbing, and quite varied, all 17 stories feature some kind of antique manual typewriter (Hanks collects them), either as a major element of the story or as an embellishment. From stories about immigrants fleeing persecution and soldiers distressed by combat to whimsical or funny tales involving space or time travel, for example, Hanks comes through with sweetness and compassion. Not a literary work, for sure, but enjoyable nonetheless.
(5) Spying plot by Iran alleged: Two men have been charged with serving as agents of Iran, monitoring Americans and a Jewish center. US Justice Department asserts that the men are part of a plot by the Iranian government to identify and eliminate political opponents.
(6) Trump's fall is accelerating: Michael Cohen's guilty plea includes admission that he broke campaign finance laws in collaboration with Trump and under his direction. Paul Manafort is convicted on 8 of the 18 charges brought against him. Maybe now the Republicans in Congress will take their heads out of the sand and do something to restore dignity to our government!

2018/08/21 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Griffiths Park Observatory sits majestically in front of the Los Angeles skyline: Day and night shots, at slightly different angles (1) Griffiths Park Observatory sits majestically in front of the Los Angeles skyline: Day and night shots, at slightly different angles.
(2) Move over oil, water is the new commodity to fight over! US and Mexico have been squabbling over the effects of climate change on Rio Grande's water deficit and Israel-Palestine-Jordan are all drawing water from Jordan River, causing the Dead Sea to become even deader.
(3) Stratolaunch unveils new rockets and space plane to launch from world's largest airplane: Using a plane to launch spacecraft is cost-effective, because much of the fuel in a conventional rocket is spent for getting through the lower parts of the atmosphere, with its relatively high density.
(4) Celebration of greatness, on both the giving and receiving ends, is awe-inspiring: The just-depated "Queen of Soul," Aretha Franklin, pays tribute to Carole King at the 2015 Kennedy Center Honors.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Dearth of drinking water and spreading of diseases main problems as floodwaters recede in Kerala, India.
- The US healthcare mess: A co-pay of $285 for a generic drug that an uninsured person can buy for $40!
- A sexual-solicitation trial in Thailand has surprising links to Paul Manafort and Russian oligarchs.
- Rudy Giuliani pulls a Schrodinger after CNN interview: Truth both is and isn't truth!
- Melania Trump addresses cyber-bullying summit: Donald was apparently not briefed on his wife's speech!
- The Eagles' "Greatest Hits" surpasses Michael Jackson's "Thriller" as best-selling album of all time.
- Robotics expert Nancy Amato is the first woman to lead the Department of Computer Science at U. Illinois.
- Interesting read on the rampant overuse of exclamation points in electronic communication.
(6) Archaeologists discover a lost city under a Kansas rural field: The unearthed ruins are believed to belong to Etzanoa, a city that was home to some 20,000 people between 1450 and 1700.
(7) For my SoCal readers: Excellent news programs on LA's independent station, KCET; DW News, 4:30-5:00, BBC World News America, 5:00-5:30; BBC World News, 6:00-6:30 (overlaps with KOCE's PBS Newshour).
(8) Final thought for the day: Former enablers and supporters of Trump are trying to wash themselves clean of the association, but I am not sure any amount of washing will remove the stench.

2018/08/20 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Sketch of the western Iranian city of Kermanshah from 1840 (1) Iran's recent history: This drawing is said to depict the western Iranian city of Kermanshah in the year 1840. It belonged to Pascal Coste, French architect and orientalist [1787-1879], whose Wikipedia entry reads, in part: "In Iran Coste and the painter Eugene Flandin were authorised to visit Azerbaijan, Isfahan, Shiraz and the ruins of Ecbatana, Bistun, Taq-e Bostan, Kangavar, Pasargadae and Persepolis, where he made many sketches."
(2) Perils of social media (actual UCSB e-mail alert, received today): "The UCSB Police Department received a report of a burglary that occurred at San Clemente Villages on 8/20/18, around 1:00am. The crime victim met the suspect on a social media site and invited the suspect to the victim's apartment. When the victim left the apartment to meet the suspect in the parking lot, the suspect gained entry into the apartment and stole items out of the residence before the victim returned from the parking lot."
(3) The noose is tightening: Bone-spurs Don attacks decorated Marine Corps hero and respected law-enforcement professional Bob Mueller; if only he showed the same outrage at Russia for meddling in our elections! "Disgraced and discredited Bob Mueller and his whole group of Angry Democrat Thugs spent over 30 hours with the White House Councel [sic], only with my approval, for purposes of transparency. Anybody needing that much time when they know there is no Russian Collusion is just someone looking for trouble. They are enjoying ruining people's lives and REFUSE to look at the real corruption on the Democrat side — the lies, the firings, the deleted Emails and soooo much more! Mueller's Angry Dems are looking to impact the election. They are a National Disgrace!"
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- California fires, including the largest in state's history (Mendocino complex), continue to burn.
- Trumpism's new addition to our lexicon: Move over "alternative facts"; make room for "truth isn't truth"!
- The paranoid clan: Eric Trump thinks that Reuters had ulterior motives in using an actual photo of his dad!
- Trump speech-writer who attended White Nationalist events has been fired.
- You can't buy class with any amount of money: Obamas, Clintons, and Trump on Aretha Franklin. [Meme]
- A documentary film about escaping the loop of poverty and the toxic masculinity in Rust-Belt America.
(5) California's Carr Fire was named for having started on Carr Powerhouse Road, not Car Fire, because it started by a disintegrating flat tire leading to sparks flying when the exposed rim hit the road.
(6) A heart-warming story amid conflicts: Daniel Barenboim, Israeli conductor and concert pianist, tries to bridge the Middle East divide with music. He brings together musicians from Israel, Palestine, Iran, and many other countries of the region, giving them a chance to get to know each other and to perform on the most prestigious stages worldwide. [15-minute segment in Sunday's "60 Minutes" program]

2018/08/18 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) Book review: Tarshis, Lauren, I Survived the American Revolution, 1776, unabridged audiobook, read by Holter Graham, Scholastic Audio, 2017. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image for 'I Survived the American Revolution, 1776 This book was a pleasant surprise! I borrowed it, because it was one of the few audiobooks that was available at the time; I had finished listening to all of my borrowed audiobooks, and none of the titles I had placed holds on was available yet. It is a young-reader's title in an action-packed historical-fiction series ("I Survived," #15).
A young boy escapes home and his cruel uncle to go to New York City in search of his father, unaware that one of the largest battles of the Revolutionary War, and the first one after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, was raging there. This little-known, little-discussed, and badly-managed battle is referred to as the Brooklyn or Long Island Battle. Amid the bloody battlefield with many injured soldiers, the boy has to fight for his life.
At the end of the audiobook, the author shares how the book came about and how she did her research for it. The battle around NYC involved many British warships, along with quite a few filthy prison-ships used to hold captured American soldiers, as General George Washington's army fell apart. Much real history, such as the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the Battle of Bunker Hill, and the idiosyncrasies of slavery, is weaved into the fictional narrative.
(2) Persian music: Shahrdad Rohani conducts and Homay sings "Man keh Mi-Miram," a poem by Shams-e Khalkhali, and his own composition "Sarzamin-e Bi-Karan" [7-minute video]. And here is the old-time favorite "Bahar-e Delneshin," with Isfahan's historical sites in the background [4-minute video].
(3) A game played on Facebook: Can you answer this? I am faced with the following problem. A murderer runs into a room and kills 4 of the 5 people there. I wonder how many people remain in that room afterwards. Comment with your answer and I'll inbox you if you're right or wrong. If wrong, you'll have to repost.
(4) Carillon concert at UCSB: All set on the lawn in front of UCSB's Storke Tower with my lawn chair, awaiting the start of a carillon concert by Margo Halsted as part of the Music Department's Summer Music Festival. My exposure to carillon as a musical instrument came from the 1953 film noire "Niagara," which, though rather cheesy in terms of its plot and execution, was nonetheless quite absorbing, particularly the way in which the two crime plotters, played by Marilyn Monroe (as an unhappily married woman) and Richard Allan (as her secret lover), communicated with each other via a song played on a carillon bell tower near the Falls, where requests could be submitted by the public. I find carillon music, and the way it is played, by banging on huge wooden keys connected to bell hammers, fascinating and attend them at UCSB whenever they are offered.

2018/08/17 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Poster for PBS 'Frontline' series 'Our Man in Tehran' (1) "Our Man in Tehran": In case you missed the two-part "Frontline" series, aired on August 13-14 on PBS So Cal (KOCE) and at various times on other PBS affiliate stations, below are links to the full episodes. NYT correspondent Thomas Erdbrink does a great job of humanizing Iranians for Westerners, who think they have "horns and tails."
Part 1 (115-minute video)   Part 2 (115-minute video)
(2) Quote of the day: "As democracy is perfected, the office of the President represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day, the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be occupied by a downright fool and complete nacissistic moron." ~ H. L. Mencken, 1920 (nearly a century ago)
(3) Rest in peace: Ezzatollah Entezami, well-known and widely-honored Iranian theater, cinema, and television actor, has passed away at 94. He was sometimes referred to as "ezzat" ("honor") of Iran's film industry. He also had a decent singing voice.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Hundreds of US newspapers ran editorials on 8/16 that blasted Trump's "enemy of the people" rhetoric.
- US Senate unanimously adopts resolution declaring "the press is not the enemy of the people."
- Kellyanne Conway's husband trolls Trump on Twitter about his bashing of John Kasich. [Tweet image]
- Look who's talking about someone being intellectually limited: Tucker Carlson and Donald Trump!
- How die-hard "conservative" Republicans became ardent supporters of pot legalization.
- Finally, a "Make America Great Again" meme I can support! [Image]
- Cartoon of the day: Dictators of our own making. [Image]
- Human-rights lawyer Narges Mohammadi, serving a 16-year prison term in Iran, has been hospitalized.
(5) Flying a drone in Goleta, California: Prompted by concerns expressed by a neighbor, who saw a drone buzzing overhead as she relaxed on a sun-deck at home, an e-mail discussion ensued about whether flying drones is or should be allowed in our housing complex. The short answer is no, on at least two accounts. First, we are considered part of the UCSB campus, which has a no-drone policy. Second, we are within a 5-mile radius of an airport, which makes it illegal to fly drones out of concern for aviation safety.
I suggest those of you with similar concerns to familiarize yourselves with California (link) or other applicable state and municipal laws. Drones, which nowadays can be outfitted with high-definition cameras and AI tracking technology, pose serious privacy risks.
(6) UCSB Department of Music's Summer Music Festival: The local band Mariachi Las Olas de Santa Barbara performed at UCSB's Multicultural Center Theater, beginning at 5:30 this afternoon [Video 1] [Video 2]. Later in the evening, the Department's graduate students performed in a showcase concert at Karl Geiringer Hall. More events are scheduled for tomorrow, but I will attend only the carillon concert at 3:00 PM. [Photos]

2018/08/16 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Ken Follett's 'World Without End' (1) Book review: Follett, Ken, World Without End, unabridged audiobook, read by John Lee, Penguin Audio, 2007.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This best-selling 2007 historical novel is a sequel to Follett's 1989 book, The Pillars of the Earth. The story follows descendants of characters in the original book. Follett includes in the story two major historical events: The start of Hundred Years' War and the Black Death.
Follet's action-filled romp through the Middle Ages features much of the period's standard fare: Plots to overthrow kings, secret love affairs, revenge, and good-guy/bad-guy conflicts. The events unfold in the context of progress and progressive minds, as transformative ideas about medicine, commerce, architecture, and justice intersect.
As usual, Follett's historical research is meticulous, making the fictional tale feel like nonfiction. And he spares no details, leading to a very long book. For example, in one passage, Follet describes how a live man was skinned as punishment, with all the gruesome step-by-step process of cutting and pulling back!
World Without End has garnered 10,000+ reviews on GoodReads and 3500+ on Amazon, most reviewers giving it 5 stars. The novel has formed the basis of a 2012 TV miniseries, starring Cynthia Nixon, Miranda Richardson, and Peter Firth.
(2) Comparable number of deaths to Italy's highway bridge collapse, but much less news coverage: Twenty-two Sudanese children die on sinking boat while headed to school.
(3) You know our country is descending into the abyss of incivility when the White House defends Trump's use of the "dog" label for Omarosa as simply a routine insult!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Suicide bombing kills 50 in Afghanistan, mostly teens studying for university entrance exams.
- Aretha Franklin, "The Queen of Soul," dead of pancreatic cancer at 76. [NYT obituary, with video]
- Sweden's tallest peak shrunk in height by 13 ft during July's glacier-melting heat wave. [Time magazine]
- Catholic Church cover-up: Ousted pedophile priest was given reference letter for a job at Disney World!
- Ignorant Fox News anchor attacks Denmark by comparing it to Venezuela, and lives to regret it!
- Cartoon of the day: Paul Manafort's new outfit, in lieu of expensive suits. [Cartoon image]
- California Representative Maxine Waters gets under Trump's skin with her tweets. [Tweet image]
- Poignant T-shirt message about kneeling to Trump and like-minded people. [T-shirt image]
- Persian poetry: A beautiful couplet, entitled "Jodaaee" ("Separation") by Rahi Moayeri.
- Persian music: A dance piece composed by Mahin Zarinpanjeh and arranged/conducted by Houman Dehlavi.
(5) Reaction to revoking John Brennan's security clearance from retired US Navy Admiral William McRaven: "I would consider it an honor if you would revoke my security clearance as well, so I can add my name to the list of men and women who have spoken up against your presidency."

2018/08/15 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The three ACM/IEEE curricula from 2001, 2008, and 2013 compared (1) Trends in computer science and engineering education: The three ACM/IEEE curricula from 2001, 2008, and 2013 are compared in the accompanying table (adapted from the May 2018 issue of Computing Edge), which shows the shift of emphasis in terms of the number of instructional hours among various "Knowledge areas." The total number of hours for a particular area in the 2013 curriculum is the sum of Tier-1 and Tier-2 entries. We see that three new Knowledge area designations appeared in 2013: Parallel and distributed computing (15 hours); Information assurance and security (9 hours); Systems fundamentals (27 hours). The number of hours for Architecture and organization is substantially reduced from 36 to 16, with some of the lost hours reclaimed under Parallel and distributed computing. The other major adjustment is the increase from 21 to 28 hours allocated to Programming languages. The next iteration of the joint curriculum will likely acknowledge data science as a separate knowledge area. Here are some possible program units.
All Tier 1 + All Tier 2 = 308
All Tier 1 + 90% of Tier 2 ~ 294 (comparable to CS2008 Core)
All Tier 1 + 80% of Tier 2 ~ 279 (comparable to CS2001 Core)
(2) Trump confidante and adviser Roger Stone briefly posted and later deleted this image about Space Force, which confused everyone. If it was meant as humor, then it seems all Trumpians are humor-challenged!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- More reports of sexual abuse by Catholic priests are emerging. Will the Church be held accountable?
- Shame on the "American Riviera": Santa Barbara has the third-highest poverty rate among CA counties.
- The role played by Iranian-Armenians in protecting and advancing Persian music. [6-minute video]
- More adult Americans are sharing their homes with people other than spouses or family members.
- Spike Lee is back with "BlacKkKlansman," a film that will change our attitudes about race and racism.
- Installation of open-air public urinals in Paris to solve the street urination problem causes an uproar.
(4) Republicans are going about their business as if all is normal in the White House, while the President is engaged in shouting insults at anyone who displays the slightest disagreement with him. Vote them out!
(5) A taxonomy of on-line trolling: In an interesting article in the August 2018 issue of IEEE Computer magazine, Hal Berghel and Daniel Berleant list and discuss the following varieties of trolling: Provocation; Social-engineering; Partisan; Firehose; Ad hominem; Jam; Sport; Snag; Nuisance; Diversion; False-flag; Huckster; Amplification/relay; Rehearsal; Proxy; Faux-facts; Insult; Public relations; Chaff; Wheat; Satire. A very interesting and eye-opening read.
(6) "User Data Privacy: Facebook, Cambridge Analytica, and Privacy Protection": This is the title of an article by Jim Isaak and Mina J. Hanna in the August 2018 issue of IEEE Computer magazine. The authors identify the following core principles of privacy and data protection: Public transparency; Disclosure for users; Control; Notification. [I could not find a public link to the full article. I will update this post when I find a link.]

2018/08/14 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page receive IEEE Computer Society's 2018 Computer Pioneer Award Dr. John Goodenough, now 96, helped invent the batteries that power our smartphones and tablets. Faces of courage, as wildfires rage in California and elsewhere (1) Some faces in the news: [Left] Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page receive IEEE Computer Society's 2018 Computer Pioneer Award "For the creation of the Google search engine and leadership in creating ambitious products and research initiatives." [Center] Dr. John Goodenough helped invent the batteries that power our smartphones and tablets. Now, at 96, this World War II veteran and "Energizer-bunny" technologist keeps going and going on bringing about the next-generation of device batteries that provide more power and charge faster. [Right] Faces of courage, as wildfires rage in California and elsewhere.
(2) If it took Omarosa nearly a year at a high-level White House insider position to "gradually awaken" to Trump's "bigoted outlook," then perhaps Trump is right in considering her not very bright!
(3) Our Man in Tehran: This is the title of a 2-part "Frontline" program, the first of which aired last night and the second will air tonight, 9:00-11:00, on PBS SoCal (KOCE). New York Times correspondent Thomas Erdbrink journeys into a private Iran that is at odds with its conservative clerics and other leaders.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Trump signs defense bill named for John McCain, without mentioning his name.
- Heavy rains cause flash-flood emergencies in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
- Highway bridge collapse over Italian city leaves at least 22 dead.
- Jeremy Corbyn, Britain's possible next PM, faces broad allegations of anti-Semitism from Jewish leaders.
- Old news: Cambridge Analytica whistleblower claims that the Brexit vote was influenced by data mining.
- Cartoon of the day: Iran is bullied into accepting a significantly reduced share of the Caspian Sea. [Image]
- Ten-day forecast in paradise: Santa Barbara's weather in the coming days!
- The Borowitz report: [on Omarosa] Trump says White House is no place for lying lowlife from reality show.
(5) How are soccer players tracked to determine the distance they cover in a game? This question arose in a recent discussion with a friend. Whereas we have the technology for detailed tracking by using microchips in a player's boot or clothing, the same way soccer balls are tracked, we suspected that this isn't the way it is done in official games. Here is what my on-line research revealed.
Coaches do use microchips to track their players during training "with systems like RedFIR, a German technology comprised of tiny (15 gram) radio transmitters that can be placed in uniforms, footwear or balls, and a network of receivers set up around the field. The system detects events like passes, crosses and goals, plus provides real-time info on player step count, speed, and distance covered. Fraunhofer IIS, the company that makes RedFIR, says that its radio-based system provides a major benefit over other tracking solutions: its tracking capability is not diminished by obstacles obscuring the line of sight."
FIFA is wary of adopting the aforementioned technology, in part because rule changes would be required and partly because players have not been very receptive of the idea. "FIFA relies on a visual tracking technology called 'Matrics' made by the Italian company Deltatre to provide data that make up the heat maps, passes completed and distance covered stats made available at the World Cup official site."
This YouTube video contains a visual demo of tracking soccer players from a 2015-2016 study.

2018/08/13 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Colorful flowers, version 1 Colorful flowers, version 2 Colorful flowers, version 3 (1) Colorful flowers of different kinds, for your viewing pleasure.
(2) Trump says he had been warned about not-so-smart Omarosa being trouble, but he still hired her and kept her at the WH because she said great things about him!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Bloomberg reports that smoke from California wildfires has caused a dip in solar-power production.
- Showdown at Justice Department: Donald Trump calls AG Jeff Sessions "scared stiff and missing in action."
- Self-repairing fabric fills up intentionally-created hole.
- Our amazing nature: Eagle outsmarts fox in epic battle over a caught rabbit.
- Recipe for feeling better in the morning: Feel free to substitute another name for "Ted Cruz."
- Quote of the day: "The world is but a canvas to our imagination." ~ Henry David Thoreau
Colorful flowers, version 4 (4) Mini-reunion in Sothern California: After the large July reunion of the class of 1968, Tehran University's College of Engineering, in Yerevan, Armenia, we had a small-scale get-together of college buddies who reside or happened to be in SoCal, on Sunday 8/12, starting with tea and various treats at Faramarz's place and ending with dinner at a Brazilian restaurant in West LA. Seated left to right at the table are: Farid Dadgar, Faramarz Davarian, Javad Peyrovian, Mohammad Modarres, Behrooz Parhami.
(5) "King Tut: Treasures of the Golden Pharaoh" exhibit at California Science Center: In an enjoyable Sunday afternoon outing, we visited a museum and attended a related IMAX film screening. The Boy-King's burial place was a secret, so as to foil grave robbers and ill-wishers who could destroy it. It wasn't until 1922 that the site was unearthed by chance, in what has been described as the greatest archaeological discovery of all time. Artifacts were meticulously catalogued and removed from the site, to be housed at a Cairo museum. The California Science Center exhibit is the world premier of this very special touring exhibit to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of the tomb's discovery. The IMAX film about Egypt is narrated by Omar Sharif and provides context and background info to complement the "King Tut" exhibit. Here are some random shots in and around California Science Center, including a couple of views of Los Angeles Rams' brand new stadium.

Cover image for Atul Gawande's 'Being Mortal' 2018/08/11 (Saturday): Book review: Gawande, Atul, Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End, unabridged MP3 audiobook read by Robert Petkoff, Macmillan Audio, 2014.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Gawande maintains that dying is a very natural human condition and must be dealt with as such. Currently, very few people die at home, in a familiar setting, the exceptions consisting mostly of those who suffer major trauma and die before being taken to a hospital. Most people die, not surrounded by loved ones but by strangers, be they medical staff at a hospital or care staff at a nursing home. In many other cultures, old people remain at home and are cared for by the family. In the Indian culture, for example, older individuals are respected and their advice sought on almost everything the family does.
Dying of old age is a relatively recent phenomenon in human history. Ancient Romans had a life expectancy of 28 years, about one-third of what it is in today's advanced societies. Dying of old age is actually a misnomer, as we do not really die of old age but of various illnesses that afflict us at old age, when our body is not as capable of fighting them.
Gawande uses his own father's battle with cancer as a case study to illustrate the points he wants to make. His surgeon father developed a cancerous tumor in his upper spinal cord. Surgery, while an option, was unlikely to lead to higher quality of life and also carried direct and indirect risks. The surgeon, in consultation with physicians and family members, decided to take his time and continue without treatment for as long as he could do things that were his life's passions. The author recommends that doctors talk to and get to know their patient's preferences and priorities, prescribing medical treatments accordingly. The most aggressive treatment, the current norm, isn't necessarily the best course of action.
One of Gawande's observations is that at old age, a typical person has so many ailments that doctors should not feel the urge to treat/cure every single one of them. When a young person becomes ill, aggressive treatment to confront the illness makes sense, but for older patients, the priority should be a treatment regimen that maximizes their comfort and ability to carry out the activities they care about most.
In short, Gawande argues for a focus on well-being as opposed to health and survival. In planning treatments, physicians should rely on a frank talk with the patient. He does admit that, "For many, such talk, however carefully framed, raises the specter of a society readying itself to sacrifice its sick and aged. But what if the sick and aged are already being sacrificed&mdashvictims of our refusal to accept the inexorability of our life cycle?"
In addition to medical interventions, models of senior living must be adjusted accordingly. For example, it is unclear how much assistance elders receive in settings known as "assisted living." Gawnade finds that in many cases, staff do things for residents, instead of assisting them with doing the tasks themselves, thus compromising their independence. It simply takes less time to dress a senior, instead of helping him/her with the task.
Gawande ends his book with a brief discussion of euthanasia, criticizing the policy of making it too easy. Avoiding loss of independence, and the attendant low life quality, versus prolonging life, which may entail suffering, is a grave decision that must be made with utmost care.

2018/08/10 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Traditional Iranian breakfast spread. (1) Traditional Iranian breakfast spread.
(2) Patriarchy in the 21st Century: A Facebook friend's status indicated that he has stopped sending stuff to a woman friend (one he grew up with), because she informed him that her son did not like men contacting her!
(3) The monsters among us: Two of the major fires raging in California have been determined to have been set by arsonists, an especially heinous category of criminals.
(4) Humor: President Trump has been so successful that by his 20th month in office, we had enjoyed 94 consecutive months of jobs growth!
(5) Persian music: A large number of young and old Iranians, from all walks of life, participate in the video for this patriotic song performed by Mohammad-Reza Shajarian, with lyrics by Hooshang Ebtehaj.
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Paul Manafort's trial has exposed him and a host of other Trump campaign officials, as utterly corrupt.
- Trump's tariffs lead to the shutting down of the last major TV factory in the US.
- This year, Trump's nose has grown at twice the rate of last year: Here are examples from recent rallies.
- PM Medvedev says US sanctions against Russian banks amounts to declaration of economic war.
- Smoke from California wildfires has reached New York City!
- Cartoon of the day: Khamenei's shield against attacks. [Image]
- CSUN Professor Nayereh Tohidi profiled in Cal State's system-wide publication. A very well-deserved honor!
- The DeVos Family apparently does not believe in "America First," given that its yacht flies a foreign flag.
- PETA wants the Trump boys expelled by NRA, offering the cash-strapped entity $100,000 as incentive.
- Inserting bogus, non-exploitable bugs into software can make it more secure by distracting attackers.
- Ford outfits factory workers with exoskeletons to provide assist for lifting arms when doing overhead tasks.
- Ford develops adaptive cruise control that helps improve traffic flow.
- Persian-Azeri music: A wonderful song, with Persian and Azeri lyrics, written and performed by Homay.
- The beautiful and diverse shoreline of the Mediterranean Sea captured in aerial photos.
- Wading bird on a beach in Isla Vista, roughly midway between the UCSB campus and Coal Oil Point. [Video]
(7) Google is celebrating a trailblazer's birthday (born on August 9) with a doodle: Mary G. Ross was selected by Lockheed Martin during World War II as the only woman and the only Native American on a team of 40 engineers to work on a top-secret project that later evolved into Lockheed Missiles & Space Co.
(8) Reinventing the wing: With a large number of electrically-driven propellers, adequate lift can be provided by a much smaller wing. [Source: IEEE Spectrum, August 2018] [Photo]

2018/08/08 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) Persian poetry: This poem, shown in its most-popular form, is unattributed and appears in several different forms on social media. And here is a wonderful verse from Divan-e Shams, by Mowlavi (Rumi). The complete poem can be found on Ganjoor.net. Finally, here is a beautiful ghazal by Sa'adi.
(2) An early-morning walk on my final day in Windsor, Canada: Having explored the city westward and eastward from my river-side hotel over the past two days, and not wanting to walk into Detroit River on the north, I headed south along Ouellette Ave., taking detours on both sides in search of interesting sights. Some residents jokingly refer to Windsor as "South Detroit," implying that it's but one of the neighborhoods of the big American city. Compared with the previous days, there wasn't much to see (Photos). I found most downtown buildings featureless, with rows of smallish houses on residential side streets much richer in terms of variety. Almost all such houses have 4-8 steps from the street into their covered front porches (indicating that they likely have basements) and second stories, with small attic windows on top. [Video]
(3) The third and final keynote talk at MWSCAS: Continuing with the automotive theme, given the key role of the auto industry in Ontario's economy and Windsor's proximity to Detroit, Sebastian Fischmeister (U. Waterloo) spoke under the title "Challenges in System Safety and Security of Future Automative Platforms."
Following circuit-level keynote talks of the past two days, today's talk focused on system-level issues. Safety (an aspect of reliability) has long been the dominating topic for cyber-physical systems. The advent of ubiquitous connectivity has made security an equally important topic.
The move toward self-driving cars is inevitable. Some 80% of accidents are attributed to driver distraction and a 42% reduction in collisions is conservatively estimated from automation. Automotive software is so complex that some 175 new vulnerabilities are discovered per week. Not all of these apply to every car, but the exposure is significant nonetheless. The need for merging studies of safety and security is thus evident. [Photos]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- California's Mendocino Fire has become the largest in state history, as fire crew brace for more.
- Three cheers to Canada: Saudis expel ambassador and suspend trade deals over human rights criticism.
- Slamming the reinstated US sanctions against Iran, Russia vows to save the nuclear deal.
- Pilot and all 4 Iranian-American passengers killed in a small-plane crash in Santa Ana, California.
- Iran's economic woes deepen as reinstated US sanctions take hold.
- Graham Nash honors 1968 and 2018 protests with a new video for "Teach Your Children."
(5) Dan Rather's "60 Minutes" interview with Donald Trump from 1999 shows that his campaign strategy of bashing John McCain was shaped years ago.
(6) The new generation of candidates includes many who are saddled with student debt and plan to take on this problem which hinders the American Dream.
(7) Returning home to Goleta: I snapped this photo of Detroit's Renaissance Center through the windshield at the end of Windsor-Detroit Tunnel, while awaiting entry into the US. Here are some super-high clouds at 34,000 feet (10,400 m) over the Rocky Mountains, on my DTW-LAX flight route. I snapped these photos just before landing at LAX. The third photo shows the 405 Freeway.

2018/08/07 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Panoramic view of downtown Detroit and part of Windsor from Windsor's Riverside trail in the vicinity of Caesars Windsor Hotel (1) Panoramic view of downtown Detroit and part of Windsor from Windsor's Riverside trail in the vicinity of Caesars Windsor Hotel: Here is a link to the dynamic version of this panorama.
(2) My early morning walk: I walked west on Riverside drive, in the opposite direction of yesterday's stroll. The walk took me through the downtown area to Windsor-Detroit Ambassador Bridge and beyond, and it included a detour next to the bridge, where University of Windsor's campus is located (Photos). I returned via Windsor's Riverside Trail, right by the water, which included a mile-long sculpture garden. (Photos). [Video]
(3) Are the purported health benefits of turmeric, aka Indian saffron, too good to be true? Short answer: Not really! "If you have an ailment, there's a good chance that someone, somewhere, is studying whether turmeric can treat it. There are more than 15,000 manuscripts published about curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric, and about 50 manuscripts added to this collection each week."
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Magnitude-6.9 Indonesian earthquake kills at least 100 at a resort island.
- Degeneration of the Republican Party under Donald Trump's leadership. [Photo]
- Sixteen major wildfires in California are being fought by more than 14,000 firefighters.
- Donald Trump's Walk-of-Fame star to be removed, per West Hollywood Council's resolution.
- Anderson Cooper reviews the web of lies we have been told about the Trump-Tower meeting with Russians.
- Kalam-polo (cabbage-rice) recipe, shared by a different Parhami Family from Shiraz, Iran!
(5) This morning's keynote lecture at MWSCAS: Dr. Eby G. Friedman (U. Rochester) spoke under the title "Power Delivery in Heterogenous Nanoscale Integrated Systems."
As the complexity of VLSI chips has reached many billions of transistors and the energy consumption per chip has grown to achieve greater functionality and speed, delivering power to chips and distributing it around have become major challenges. Power conversion and regulation resources should be designed so as to deliver high-quality power with minimum loss of energy to multiple power domains on a chip.
To achieve these goals, we need tiny voltage converters close to the loads, accurate models to characterize all the components involved, efficient algorithms for predicting the quality of power delivered, and a co-design methodology for optimally placing power supplies and decoupling capacitors. Existing tools and methodologies must be extended for dealing with emerging 3D integrated circuits. [Photos]
(6) Tonight, we had the MWSCAS's formal banquet, featuring an exquisite meal and live music by a band with a global repertoire [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]. Tomorrow, there will be an awards luncheon, which I may have to miss to make it to my return flight out of Detroit.
(7) Final thought for the day: "I just want someone to love and accept me for who I pretend to be on the Internet." ~ Anonymous

2018/08/06 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Map of Europe, with recent high temperatures (1) Europe's record heat wave: Temperatures in Celsius or degrees Centigrade. [45*C = 113*F]
(2) Venezuelan President survives assassination attempt by explosives-carrying drones: This may be the first political assassination attempt using drones. I hope the US was not involved, given that Trump had apparently considered a military invasion there.
(3) Trump is about to fall, which is satisfying: Equally satisfying is the fact that numerous criminals, parasites, and apologists in his White House will fall with him!
(4) TEDx talks by Iranian women: Getting involved in discussion on a Facebook post reminded me of this Persian talk by Lili Golestan, who achieved what she wanted through positivism and hard work. A highly effective and informative English talk by Azadeh Moaveni, entitled "Iran from a Different Perspective."
(5) Traveling from Burlington to Windsor in Canada, with a stop-over in Waterloo, on Sunday 8/05: The Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems began at Caesars Windsor Hotel (on the shore of Detroit River, facing downtown Detroit on the other side) with a welcoming reception last evening.
En route to Windsor, I spent 3 hours with my former colleague and long-time friend, Emeritus Professor Farhad Mavaddat. We had coffee and lunch and drove through the University of Waterloo Campus, which has changed a lot since I spent a sabbatical year there 32 years ago. We also went to visit the apartment building where my family used to live when my two sons were a toddler and an infant. Of course, they don't remember a thing about their stay here and the snowsuits they used to wear in winter! These photos show the apartment building at the intersection of Westmount Road and Brybeck Crescent. [Video]
(6) My early morning stroll in Windsor on Monday 8/06: After photographing the Caesar Windsor Hotel from inside and outside (Photos), I began walking eastward on Riverside Dr., turning right on Gladstone Ave. toward the Olde Walkerville Neighborhood. I returned along Wyandotte St., completing the 4-mile loop on McDougall Ave. There wasn't much auto or pedestrian traffic, given that today is a holiday in Canada. These photos show a mosque and a church, the historic Walkerville Theater, an Islamic school across the street from a gentlemen's club, and various businesses (some boarded up). [Video]
(7) Opening session of MWSCAS and its first Keynote address, delivered by Yervant Zorian, Synopsis Fellow and Chief Architect, under the title "Automotive Electronics Today: Quality, Safety, & Security."
The value in automotive products is shifting from mechanical parts to electronics and software. A typical modern car now incorporates some 100 million lines of code (slated to triple by 2025) and it generates 4 TB of data per day from its ~6 cameras and many sensors. Automotive electronics presents numerous challenges by its need for higher-quality IP components and by the requirements of testing, both initially and in operation. Self-driving cars, moving from the current hands-off mode to eyes-off and, eventually, driver-off, provide one the most important forces driving AI research, whose methods are about to surpass the capabilities of human drivers. Finally, reliable and secure operation of hardware and software components have to be ensured through new research and development initiatives.
(8) Honoring Graham Jullien and William Miller (at the podium in this photo, with Jullien right behind him): The photo was taken at today's luncheon. This afternoon, I presented an invited lecture at a special conference session convened in their honor. [See item 298 in my List of Publications]
[Here are a few sights from MWSCAS, including photos of a sample lecture, a sample poster, and a small dinner for the conference steering committee members and their guests.]

2018/08/05 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The old Radio Kermanshah building. (Photo by: Abdi Hoghoghi) US-Canada border at Niagara Falls US-Canada border between Detroit, Michigan, and Windsor, Ontario (1) Some interesting images: [Left] The old Radio Kermanshah building in the Kurdistan Province, Iran. (Photo by: Abdi Hoghoghi) [Center & Right] Our weirdly-shaped northern border: These Google Maps satellite images show that you have to move northward across Niagara Falls to get from Canada to its southern neighbor! Ditto for going from Windsor, Ontario, to Detroit, Michigan, across Detroit River.
(2) A representative from Iran's Mazandaran Province presents a comprehensive list of hardships and grievances that have led to street protests. [Speech in Persian]
(3) An advance in computing: Texas teenager finds an exponentially faster conventional algorithm for recommender systems that runs in polylogarithmic time, rather than exponential time, thus erasing the advantage of quantum computing for this particular problem. Polylogarithmic time means that the running time is a polynomial in the logarithm of the problem size n.
(4) Everybody's dumb: "Lebron (sic) James was just interviewed by the dumbest man on television, Don Lemon. He made Lebron look smart, which isn't easy to do. I like Mike!" ~ Donald Trump tweet
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Michael Jordan and a host of other athletes defend LaBron James, after Trump insulted his intelligence.
- This got to hurt DJT: Melania Trump has praised LaBron James and his work on behalf of at-risk children.
- Talk about luxury aircraft: The Airlander 10 outdoes them all!
- Finger lime: This squeezable citrus fruit looks wonderful!
- Living art (artist and location unknown). [Video]
- Instrumental music: Little violinist plays "Despacito," with skill and passion. [Video]
(6) A fable: A wheat thief was arrested and paraded through town on a donkey, while people laughed and cheered. The accompanying officer asked the thief how he was doing. "Great," he replied, "I ate the wheat, I am getting a free ride, and I have made the people happy!" [This is the story of Iran's Islamic regime: Its officials have plundered the people's money, they are riding imported luxury cars, and people are busy making jokes about them and laughing out loud!] [The original Facebook post, in Persian]
(7) Today in Burlington, Ontario, Canada: I began the day at Burlington's Village Square Market, featuring arts, crafts, and health products, along with music and dance performances. The highly-rated Rayhoon Persian Eatery can be seen in the background of this video. I then explored the downtown area and strolled along the fabulous Waterfront Trail, going through and way beyond Spencer Smith Park, providing me with about 6 miles of walking [Photos]. When I returned to Village Square just before noon to eat lunch at Rayhoon, an excellent trio, with a wonderful female vocalist, was performing pop and rock classics [Video 1] [Video 2]. As I sat at a table in Rayhoon's patio, a pair of belly dancers entertained the now sizable crowd at the market [Video].
In the scorching mid-afternoon, I took refuge in Mapleview Mall to cool off, read, have coffee, and post videos/photos. Businesses throughout the town had placed water bowls on the sidewalks for our 4-legged friends, and water fountains also had special accommodations for them. Several of the high-rises in Burlington house retirement communities; a waterfront development advertises luxury condos. [Useful info, seen on a waterfront park sign: "One Canada goose can poop up to 60 times per day." You have been warned!]

2018/08/04 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Panoramic view of the Niagara Falls (1) My adventurs in Canada so far: I arrived in Canada, via Detroit, early morning on Thursday 8/02. I spent Thursday afternoon with my former colleague and long-time friend, Emeritus Professor Farhad Mavaddat. Before that, we had lunch in Waterloo's Proof Restaurant with our common friend Professor Ladan Tahvildari, who has just been promoted to full professor at Waterloo and treated us in way of celebration!
I began Friday 8/03 with a 3-mile stroll through Niagara on the Lake. This historical small town is a bit like Carmel, California, featuring boutiques, galleries, novelty/gift shops, and restaurants. Most of all, it's filled with flowers! On this very hot day, city workers were roaming the streets, with their water trucks and hoses, tending to the plants. [Photos]
From Niagara on the Lake, I took the Niagara Parkway southward to Niagara Falls. The scenic road, winding alongside Niagara River, that flows northward from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario and forms the Falls along the way, is lined with wineries and orchards, featuring fresh-fruit stands. [Photos]
At the Falls, the mist from raging water had a welcome cooling effect on a hot and humid day, as I walked for 3-4 miles between the various parts of the town and several viewing areas. It was more than three decades ago when I had last visited the Falls, and much has changed in the interim. [Photos] [Dynamic panorama]
Despite much fun and adventure, I did miss Santa Barbara's Fiesta 2018, August 1-5, while traveling.
(2) It boggles my mind how Trump gets people living paycheck-to-paycheck cheer him on when he announces a new tax-cut plan for the super-rich!
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Wife of decorated US marine is deported to Mexico: Zero tolerance or zero compassion?
- This year, Trump's nose has grown at twice the rate of last year: Here are examples from recent rallies.
- Facing competition from EVs, gasoline engines are being improved significantly, and Mazda leads the way.
- Paper just published in PNAS details genetically-modified rice that neutralizes HIV.
- Canadian sunflower farm is closed to visitors, after selfie-takers damaged the crop and caused traffic jams.
- Cartoon of the day: "Wait until one of them says, 'It's so peaceful out here.'" [Image]
(4) On 8-dimensional numbers: A day after I visited two University of Waterloo colleagues, I encountered this Wired story about how Cohl Furey, a UoW grad student in 2014, suggested a mathematical theory to connect some forces of nature together!
Real numbers are cornerstones of physics. Complex numbers (2D numbers or pairs of reals) provide the math of quantum mechanics. Suitably paired complex numbers form 4D numbers or quaternions, which underlie Einstein's special theory of relativity. Pairs of quaternions make octonions, and that's the end of the line for kinds of numbers that can be added, subtracted, multiplied, and divided, the so-called "division algebras."
Since 2014, Furey has made notable progress in developing her theory, advancing a promising 1973 suggestion about the link between octonions and strong & electromagnetic forces that had been abandoned. One challenge in working with octonions is that their math isn't associative. We lose the ordering property when we go from reals to complex numbers and commutativity in the next transition to quaternions, but associativity remains for the latter numbers.

2018/08/02 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Logical reasoning puzzle involving fewer than 30 people standing in a circle (1) A math puzzle from WSJ: A group of fewer than 30 people are standing in a circle, each one holding a piece of cardboard with a number written on it. They are instructed to note the numbers held by the persons standing immediately to the right and left and to announce the averages. The announced averages turn out to be 1, 2, 3, 4, and so on, going in order around the circle. How many people were in the circle if one person's number was 10 times her announced average?
(2) And another WSJ puzzle: Using the numeral 2 twice, 6 once, and any number of addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, decimal-point, and parentheses symbols, form a math expression that equals 29.
(3) The "negative afterimage" effect: Stare at the dot on the woman's nose in this negative image for 15 seconds, then divert your gaze to the blank part of the image to see the effect. If you blink your eyes quickly after diverting your gaze, the afterimage will last longer.
(4) The magic of satellite imagery: I am a big fan of satellite and aerial photos, because they provide perspectives on geography not available from other forms of imagery. These satellite images show the Caucasus (Ghafghaz) mountain range, stretching from the Caspian Sea to the Black Sea, and the Alborz Mountain range in Iran's Guilan province. In the latter image, you can see Sefid Rood extending from the Sefid Rood Dam reservoir to the Caspian Sea, and the city of Rasht just below the river, near the center of the lush greenery that is characteristic of the Caspian coast.
(5) Women's-rights activist Masih Alinejad is disowned by her sister on Iran's state TV. Stalin would have been proud of the Islamic Republic! One commentator wrote that Alinejad may have been disowned by a sister, but she has gained many other sisters because of her courageous campaign against mandatory hijab laws.
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- In somewhat of a surprise, Trump taps an extreme-weather researcher to head the WH science office.
- DJT: AG "should stop this Rigged Witch Hunt right now, before it continues to stain our country any further."
- Humor: Russia, if you are listening, I really really like to get re-elected in 2020! Please?
- Brains of 20 different animals. [Image]
- Persian poetry: A couple of verses from a beautiful Anvari poem. Link to all of Anvari's ghazals.
(7) Caucher Birkar, an Iranian Kurdish refugee working at UK's University of Cambridge, is one of the four recipients of this year's Fields Medal, the most prestigious prize in mathematics (sometimes characterized as math's Nobel Prize). The other three recipients are Alessio Figalli, Peter Scholze, and Akshay Venkatesh.

2018/08/01 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Summer flowers 6 Summer flowers 2 Summer flowers 3 Summer flowers 5 Summer flowers 1 Summer flowers 4 (1) Despite super-hot weather and very dry conditions in Goleta over the past few weeks, these flowers, photographed on Monday, July 30, 2018, as I walked home from UCSB, seem to be in rather good shape!
(2) Nature photography: These photos capture rare clear views of Santa Barbara Channel Islands from UCSB West Campus and Coal Oil Point beaches. And here is a view of the Pacific Ocean, looking southeast from the bluffs at UCSB West Campus beach.
(3) Virgin Galactic has chosen Grottaglie, Italy, to host its space-tourism launches, because of a long runway, uneventful weather, and record as a test-bed for remotely-piloted aircraft.
(4) Evolution of Trump's defense strategy in the Russia probe:
- There's no proof Russia interfered in our election.
- Okay, it did, but no one on Trump's team knew about it.
- Okay, it was just the coffee boys, but Trump himself was not involved.
- Okay, Trump colluded with Russia, but collusion isn't a crime.
- Okay, it's a crime, but an itsy-bitsy crime.
- Since when is crime something to be investigated?
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Heroes: Forty hospital employees, who lost their own homes in the Carr Fire, are helping others cope.
- Surprise, surprise! North Korea is working on new missiles, according to US intelligence agencies.
- Russia liquidates almost all (84%) of its holdings in US Treasury securities.
- Summits are fun: Donald Trump is desperately looking for other dictators with whom to have summits.
- Pedestrian bridge in Vietnam is seemingly held up in the sky by a giant hand.
- NASA's Parker Solar Probe will reveal how the sun sends out plumes of energetic particles.
- Facebook shuts down 30+ fake pages for coordinated attempt to sway public opinion before the midterms.
- Amazon is in the fight of its life against dirty tricks, such as fake reviews and algorithm cheats. [WSJ Image]

2018/07/31 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cultural contrast: Iranian coffee-table cover, along with Chinese rug Different version of a classic optical illusion: Is the cat going up or down the stairs? Teasing master painters (1) Interesting images: [Left] Cultural contrast: Iranian coffee-table cover and Chinese rug. [Center] Different version of a classic optical illusion: Is the cat going up or down the stairs? [Right] Teasing master painters!
(2) US politics: Independent "never-Hillary" voters, of whom 33% voted for Trump (23% voted for third-party candidates and 37% didn't vote), are split evenly 51/49 in disapproving/approving of the job Trump is doing.
(3) On US-Israel relations: "Obama's administration was not the first to have abstained or supported UN resolutions critical of Israel ... George W. Bush's allowed 6 such resolutions to pass, George H. W. Bush's allowed 9, and Ronald Reagan's allowed 21." ~ James L. Gelvin, The New Middle East, a book I will review soon
(4) My college buddies in Iran (Fanni class of 1968) are starting an "assistance fund" and, as a first act of kindness, have made charity donations in lieu of sending flowers to the memorial gathering for our departed classmate Nasser Mohajerani. Thanks for organizing and acting quickly and compassionately in this matter!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Six dead, 7 missing, in the rapidly-spreading Shasta-County fire in Northern California.
- Hundreds of hikers, including many tourists, trapped on volcano following Indonesia's devastating quake.
- Ruth Bader Ginsburg plans to serve on the US Supreme Court for at least another 5 years.
- "Die Hard," the mother of all modern action films, turns 30.
- Smirnoff's humorous ad: Made in America, but we'd be happy to talk about our ties to Russia under oath.
- New on the menu: Sushi, Iranian style! [Photo]
- Incredible photos: Winners and honorable-mentions in the drone photography awards.
- Persian music: "Shadi" ("Joy"), featuring Arash Fouladvand and Niaz Nawab, based on a poem by Rumi.
(6) Biggest winners from Trump tax cuts are CEOs: They have received major pay hikes, while the worth of their owned/optioned stocks has risen sharply due to companies using tax-cut windfalls for stock buy-backs.
(7) After Trump saying "there was no collusion" hundreds of times, his legal team is now moving the goal-post by asserting that "collusion isn't a crime"!
(8) Another tax cut: The Trump administration is considering a unilateral (bypassing the Congress) tax cut for the wealthy. If implemented, capital gains will be taxed based on inflation-adjusted values. "Currently, capital gains taxes are determined by subtracting the original price of an asset from the price at which it was sold and taxing the difference, usually at 20 percent. If a high earner spent $100,000 on stock in 1980, then sold it for $1 million today, she would owe taxes on $900,000. But if her original purchase price was adjusted for inflation, it would be about $300,000, reducing her taxable 'gain' to $700,000. That would save the investor $40,000."

2018/07/29 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Richard Dawkins' 'Science in the Soul' (1) Book review: Dawkins, Richard, Science in the Soul: Selected Writings of a Passionate Rationalist, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Lalla Ward, and Gillian Somerscales, Random House Audio, 2017.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This book brings together 42 essays and other writings of ethologist and evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins, spanning three decades, all sharing the author's characteristic clarity, wit, and focus on the primacy of nature. Dawkins calls for using reason and empirical data over gut feeling (which may be influenced by superstition and blind prejudices) in all of our sociopolitical decisions. Science in the Soul really pertains to the role of science in ethical decision-making.
Dawkins views it as inexcusable that in the age of electronic communication, which puts scientific findings at everyone's fingertips, so many people in high places still question the facts of evolution and climate change. Why has the world grown so hostile to facts? Wrapped up in our prejudices, many of us cannot step back and take a broad look at the entire collection of prejudices that exist in the world. About the myriad of incompatible gods and religious faiths, Dawkins has said: "We are all atheists about most of the gods that societies have ever believed in. Some of us just go one god further."
I enjoyed listening to this audiobook, which provides much food for thought. Several chapters are supplied with afterwords containing updates or thoughts on how he could have written them better. These afterwords make the collection more useful, even for those who are already familiar with Dawkins' ideas. The book has my highest recommendation.
(2) A drug company has bought a $300 million stake in the genetic testing company 23andMe, giving it access to a trove of genetic data to develop new drugs and raising serious consumer privacy concerns.
(3) RIP: Sad to report that a few days after our 50th-anniversary reunion in Yerevan, Armenia, our classmate Nasser Mohajerani, one of Daneshkadeh-ye Fanni's 1968 graduates who could not attend the reunion due to illness, has passed away. He was an extraordinary engineer who played a key role in the advancement of heavy industries in the Azerbaijan province. [Announcements]
A verse by Sa'adi (4) Persian poetry: A verse by Sa'adi, quoted by Homa Sarshar in her TED-like talk "Insiders and Outsiders" about prejudice and violation of minority rights. [The full poem on ganjoor.net]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- "Trump 2020" banners are made in China (and Trump golf courses are maintained by foreign workers).
- Trump rants about Michael Cohen, 'Fake News,' and border security in Sunday morning tweetstorm.
- Before-and-after photos show the scope of disaster in northern California.
- Earthquake near Kermanshah, Iran, reported, with magnitude 4.3 (5.0 per some reports). [Map]
- This misogynist and apologist for violence against women is a university professor in Iran! [Lecture video]
- Quote of the day: "Silence is of the gods; only monkeys chatter." ~ American comedian Buster Keaton

2018/07/27 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Flyers for the two December 2017 lectures (1) Podcasts of my lectures entitled "Computers and Challenges of Writing in Persian," delivered on November 19 and 20, 2017, as part of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran, are now available. I have also included below a link to the slides (applicable to both versions) for those who want to pursue the lectures. A project of mine this summer is putting together written versions of these lectures for broader dissemination. Look for the resulting papers on my publications page later this year.
Lecture in Persian (73-minute audio file)
Lecture in English (81-minute audio file):
Lecture slides: PDF (no animation); PowerPoint
(2) Robot designers learn from rats for navigation: Being able to navigate without or with limited visual cues is a major advantage, as it allows navigation is darkness. Rats do it via a mechanism that keeps track of their own movements [Image]. "Robots have the advantage of being able to sense their own motion far more accurately than an animal, and to take advantage of a wide range of accurate motion sensors, whereas a rat may make less-reliable estimates of how far and in which direction its legs have moved it." [Reference: Edwards, Chris, "Animals Teach Robots to Find Their Way," CACM, Vol. 61, No. 8, pp. 14-16, August 2018.]
(3) One-liners: Brief Trump news, Trumpisms, and related memes/humor.
- Why it is necessary to fact-check Donald Trump: Comprehensive interview with Daniel Dale.
- "He told me I should sue the E.U.—not go into negotiations." ~ Theresa May, on Donald Trump
- Quote of the day: Barack Obama, in his July 17 Nelson Mandela Lecture. [Image from Time magazine]
- Putin not only got Trump elected but is helping him undermine Mueller. [Time magazine]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- A debate regarding Iran's and Israel's nuclear programs and the recently-annulled nuclear deal.
- After the closure of two Blockbuster stores in Alaska, only one location, in Bend, Oregon, is left in the US.
- On the day when Twitter purged fake accounts, Katy Perry lost nearly 3 million followers!
- Currently making $231,000 per minute, Jeff Bezos became world's richest person on July 16, 2018.
- Smoke and poor air quality are back in Goleta, from a small Fairview-area fire that was put out quickly.
- Updating the gun debate: Registration and other controls may become infeasible with 3D-printed guns.
- The duck boat in fatal Missouri sinking designed by businessman with no engineering training.
- US Counterintelligence and Security Center report on stealing trade secrets blames China, Russia, Iran.
(5) [Final thought for the day] Anger management: Here's what to do if someone makes you angry.
If the person is junior to you ... count to 10 and then talk.   If the person is equal to you ... count to 30.
If the person is senior to you ... count to 50.   If the person is your wife ... keep on counting, don't talk.

2018/07/26 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Persian calligraphy 'Ey Doost Maraa Beh Khaater Aavar' (1) Persian poetry: When we graduated from Tehran University's College of Engineering in 1968, a couple of friends collected our photos and produced an album with the title "Ey Doost Maraa Beh Khaater Aavar" ("My Friend, Remember Me"). I discovered during our Yerevan reunion trip that the title came from this poem by Malek-ol-Shoa'raa-ye Bahaar. Enjoy!
(2) I don't think Trump has read 1984: He is just reinventing all of George Orwell's ideas! "The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command."
Here is Trump's 2018 version: "Just remember, what you're seeing and what you're reading is not what's happening."
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- New evidence of liquid water on Mars: The vast, stable supply is a mile under the ice.
- On how old ideas die, making way for new ones: "Science advances one funeral at a time." ~ Max Planck
- Having lost hope on toppling the mullahs, some Iranians are looking for miracles from imam-zadeh Trump.
- Cartoon of the day: Nobody loves obeying the law more than I do! [Image from: The New Yorker]
- Scandals take a toll: Facebook's 20% drop in market value is the largest in US history.
- An amazing feat: A soccer goal, scored from 80 yards out!
- Persian satire: Mr. Haloo pokes fun at Rouhani's warning to Trump that he shouldn't play with the lion's tail.
(4) Santa Barbara's downtown in crisis: I would have thought that, unlike downtowns in other cities, the beautiful business district on our State Street is immune to an economic downturn, given the steady flow of tourists through the area. This SB Independent report paints a different picture. It indicates that the vacancy rate of commercial properties has risen to around 15%, as businesses continue to move out.
(5) Iran admits to hostage-taking: An Iranian judge has confirmed that Iranian-British prisoner Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe won't be released until the UK settles a long-standing debt with Iran.
(6) Insiders and outsiders: In this 20-minute TED-style talk (in Persian), journalist/author Homa Sarshar discusses the problems she has faced as a Jewish Iranian woman, perpetrated not just by Islamic officials in Iran but also by fellow Iranians, including some intellectuals, back home and in exile.

2018/07/25 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
One of the displays at Isfahan Music Museum (1) Isfahan Music Museum: I learned about this central Iranian museum, which is often described as a labor of love by two private collectors (Mehrdad Jeihooni and Shahriar Shokrani), from a friend during our recent reunion in Yerevan. So, I looked it up and decided to share the info here. The instruments on display include the kamancheh, thought to be the ancestor of the modern violin, and the tar, a precursor of the guitar. The museum has a nice Web site, which includes a virtual tour.
(2) Persian poetry: Sa'adi's musings on the importance of joy and dancing is apt advice to the Islamic regime in Iran, which harshly punishes any public display of joy. Here is the full poem on ganjoor.net.
(3) The part of joint Trump-Putin press conference in which Putin admitted to favoring Trump during the 2016 US election is mysteriously missing from the transcripts issued by the White House!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Hundreds missing after the collapse of a hydro-power dam in Laos.
- Rocket attacks and other explosions in Kabul, Afghanistan, cause multiple casualties.
- Scores dead in Greece from a fast-moving wildfire that trapped them, leaving no escape path.
- From the horse's mouth: Putin admits he wanted Trump to win and that he directed his people to help.
- Someone who cares about human rights in Iran would not cozy up to brutal dictators such as Putin, Kim, ...
- Persian poetry: A lovely verse from Sa'adi about love teaching him poetry.
- US no longer tops in per-capita military spending and China isn't in the top 50: Look to the Middle East!
- China, Russia, and the US are all building centers for AI applications in warfare.
- New evidence of liquid water on Mars: The vast, stable supply is a mile under the ice.
- Physicist Jess Wade wants female scientists to be noticed: So, she wrote 270 Wikipedia profiles.
(5) Book talk, with Backpacker magazine editor Annette McGivney: Talking at Santa Barbara's Public Library (central branch, 6:30 PM) about her new book, Pure Land: A True Story of Three Lives, Three Cultures, and Heaven on Earth (Aquarius Press, 2017), McGivney described her quest to investigate the most brutal murder in the history of Grand Canyon, leading to a most unusual combination of nature and murder-mystery writing. The three lives/cultures mentioned in the title are those of Japanese tourist Tomomi Hanamure, a nature enthusiast and hiker who was brutally murdered during one of her trips to the US, an abused Native-American boy who committed the murder, and McGivney who tried to make sense of the events and weave them into a story of healing and understanding.
(6) Before and after the book talk above: Walking from downtown to Stearns Wharf and back, I noticed that the tourist season is in full swing in Santa Barbara. Stearns Wharf and the restaurants on and around it teemed with visitors, most with kids in tow. This photo shows that meanness has invaded even the language of coin-toss games on the beach next to Stearns Wharf! As I left the Santa Barbara Public Library's Faulkner Gallery, I passed by the SB Courthouse and its Sunken Garden, where I snapped these photos of the sky, building, and a man playing his electric guitar. Here's a video of the man.

2018/07/23 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Paolo Coelho's 'The Alchemist' (1) Book review: Coelho, Paolo, The Alchemist, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Jeremy Irons, HarperAudio, 2005.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
I had wanted to read this book for a long time, given the broad following it has garnered around the world and numerous quotes and nuggets of wisdom from it floating in cyberspace. Here is an example: "And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it." Going in with such high expectations, I was rather disappointed, but the voice of Jeremy Irons in the audiobook version somewhat saved the day for me.
Coelho tells the mythical story of a young Andalusian shepherd who "follows his heart," which tells him to sell his flock and travel to Egypt in search of worldly treasures. As the shepherd travels across northern Africa, he becomes conflicted between settling for romantic love and pursuing his "personal legend."
The young traveler is advised by various individuals that the events in his life are really omens to be carefully considered and "read," in order to determine his future actions, as he moves towards his destiny. One of these individuals is the alchemist of the book's title, an old man who has learned the ways of the world and is at peace with his place in life and the universe.
Coelho weaves a tale filled with self-empowering advice and the need to do what one needs to do, even in the face of fear. However, the advice is too simple-minded and certainly not worthy of the extensive following and the myriad of quotes that it has garnered. Judging by nearly 12,000 Amazon reviews (72% fawning with 5 stars, but 15% giving it 1-3 stars), there are other skeptics about the significance of this book.
Viewed as a fable, the book's uncomplicated prose can be forgiven. However, that same lack of sophistication makes the book far from a literary masterpiece. And the self-help advice part of the book is available in much better form elsewhere.
(2) One-liners: Brief Trump news, Trumpisms, and related memes/humor.
- Citing threats to curtail oil exports, Iran's President Rouhani warns Trump not to play with the lion's tail.
- Trump responds to Rouhani's "don't play with the lion's tail" remark by threatening historic consequences.
- Donald Trump sure yells a lot: Here are some photographic examples.
- After reluctantly admitting that Russia interfered in US election, Trump flip-flops and calls it "a big hoax."
- GOP Senate candidate gets comedic, produces a big laugh: He lauds Trump for standing up to Russia!
(3) One-liners: Brief science, technology, and education news from around the world.
- Univ. of Alabama scientists discover that turning off a mutation reverses wrinkles and hair loss in mice.
- California governor calls for launch of an on-line community college for workers' skills improvement.
- Americans hold on to their smartphones for an average of 32 months.
- Electrical contact to semiconductor molecules demonstrated by Univ. of Basel and IBM Reasearch, Zurich.
- University of Waterloo researchers achieve liquid animation so realistic you can almost taste the honey!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of general interest.
- Gunman and one victim dead, 13 injured, in Toronto mass shooting.
- Extreme conditions: Freak weather hits Japan, China, the US and other parts on the world.
- Pronounced "miray-towa" and "soh-may-tow," mascots for Japan's 2022 Olympics and Parolympics named.
- Positive news amid global chaos: Officer gives homeless man a shave to help him in his job quest.
- After the success of an experimental program, New Zealand firm to make its 4-day work-week permanent.

2018/07/21 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Small map of Armenia (1) Reflections on Armenia and its capital city of Yerevan: Having just returned from a week-long trip to Yerevan and nearby locales, for a get-together with my college buddies to celebrate the 50th anniversary of our graduation from Tehran University's College of Engineering, I'd like to share with you some of my observations.
Republic of Armenia is a relatively poor, but very proud country. It was established in 860 BCE and was the first nation to adopt Christianity as its official religion, around the year 301 CE. The ancient Armenian kingdom was split between the Byzantine and Sasanian Empires in the early 5th century.
Erevan or Yerevan, with an elevation of about 1000 m, is one of the oldest continuously-inhabited cities in the world. After World War I, Yerevan became the capital of the First Republic of Armenia, as thousands of survivors of the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire arrived in the area.
A most notable feature of Yerevan is the presence of numerous drinking fountains with ice-cold water (bearing no chemicals) in parks and other public places. Yerevan, with a population of around 1 million (1/3 of Armenia's total), is one of the safest cities in the world, and it has very clean air. It is one of the oldest capitals in the world, beating Rome by 29 years.
One sees many Iranian tourists on the streets of Yerevan. Reasons include Yerevan's proximity to Iran, the fact that Iranians need no visa to travel to Armenia, and the very reasonable prices for food and accommodations. As I walked in Yerevan, I came across a mosque that has been refurbished by the Islamic Republic of Iran and a special currency exchange store for Iranian travelers.
(2) Curiosity is good, but keep it in check: Seven-time "Jeopardy!" winner was put on probation by the college where she teaches for inappropriately logging into the email accounts of fellow professors, administrators, and students.
(3) Brief Trump news, Trumpisms, and related memes/humor.
- Whose interests is Trump serving? This 4-minute video answers the question in 10 alarming points.
- The artist who morphed Trump's and Putin's faces for a Time magazine cover image explains her work.
- Russia had access to mass of data collected from Facebook by Cambridge Analytica.
- Humor: Facebook's friendship video for Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.
- Meme of the day: We actually meant Trump shouldn't be President! [Image]
- The Borowitz Report (humor): "Kim Jong Un upset to learn that Trump is seeing other dictators."
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of potential interest.
- At least 13 dead, with 4 still missing, as tourist boat capsizes on a lake in Missouri.
- A dozen more moons of Jupiter discovered, raising the total number to 79.
- A surreal freeway interchange network in China. [Video]
- From E&T magazine 7/2018: "A truly inclusive profession doesn't treat women as a distinct type of worker."
- Full text of the Nelson Mandela Lecture, delivered by former-president Barack Obama on July 17, 2018.
- California Supreme Court nixes measure to split California into three states from the November ballot.
- Santa Barbara joins an expanding list of cities that have outlawed plastic drinking straws.
- A group of young Iranian men travel to provide free haircuts to underprivileged communities.
- Persian poetry: Satire by Hadi Khorsandi. (Our lost Joseph is an asylee in Germany!)
- Quote: "If we desire respect for the law, we must first make the law respectable." ~ Louis D. Brandeis

2018/07/19 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) My last day in Yerevan (Wednesday 7/18): After saying good-bye to departing friends at the end of a memorable reunion in Yerevan, Armenia, and seeing them off, I spent some time exploring the city, before heading to visit Dr. Samvel K. Shoukourian (Scientific Leader of YSU's IT Educational and Research Center, Member of Armenia's National Academy of Sciences, and Senior Manager of Embedded Test and Repair Solutions Group at Synopsis Armenia) at Yerevan State University. Our visit was followed by a late lunch at Lavash Restaurant near the Opera House.
Founded in 1919, YSU (aka University of Yerevan) is the oldest continuously-operating public university in Armenia. Following the break-up of the former Soviet Inion, universities, like many other institutions in Armenia, went through difficulties arising from dearth of resources and leadership. Problems still persist, and they are intensified by sociopolitical conflicts in the region. Relations with Russia and Iran are apparently good, but those countries have their own internal challenges.
Dr. Shoukourian provided details of a number of IT programs at YSU, including a joint master's-degree program with University of Rostock (Germany, Prof. Djamshid Tavangarian), in which students study for three semesters at YSU and one semester at Rostock. YSU's IT programs are sponsored by Synopsis, Mentor Graphics (another major tech presence in Armenia), and other industrial partners, which provide mentorships and paid internships. A joint program with San Jose State University covering data analytics is under development.
Formally established in 2007, with roots going back to 2000, the Armenian Virtual College is another major presence in Armenia's higher education scene. Offering instruction in several regional and global languages, AVC uses software platforms that were developed by Dr. Shoukourian.
Dr. Shoukourian and I agreed to look into possible collaborations in the form of joint research and educational programs based on our overlapping and complementary interests.
(2) Heading home: After a final evening stroll in Yerevan on Wednesday and getting some rest, I left my hotel for the airport very early on Thursday 7/19. With the exception of the issue raised in the following blog post, the trip back was rather uneventful. There was certainly no drama resulting from missing a flight!
(3) Manspreading and misplaced nationalism: The first of these photos shows the knee of a Russian man which (like his elbow) was continuously in my space during the long Moscow-LAX Aeroflot flight. This type of not caring for others and encroaching on their personal space is a prominent symptom of, and one of the key reasons for, backwardness in Third-World countries. It affects women to a larger degree than men, and it causes more discomfort for them because of its sexual connotations.
As required of passengers entering the US, I was asked to fill out a US Customs and Border Protection form, which was inexplicably in Russian. When I inquired what to do, a flight attendant told me that I can find the English version on page so-and-so of the Aeroflot Magazine. It was printed with such small font, however, that I had to take a photo of it and enlarge the resulting image for reading, taking care to enter each answer in the correct space of the Russian form. How difficult is it for Aeroflot to stock the original English version of the form for the many non-Russians who enter the US on their planes?
(4) Persian poetry: As I headed home on Thursday morning, I dedicated these verses about love and friendship to all the friends whose companionship in Yerevan over the last few days was energy-inducing and refreshing. Until we meet again! On the flight from Moscow to Los Angeles, I wrote a poem of my own to commemorate the Yerevan meeting with 16 classmates, 2 contemporaries from the civil engineering major, 9 wives, and 2 other family members.

2018/07/17 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Panoramic view of the hilltop Black Church and Sevan Lake (1) Panoramic view of the hilltop Black Church and Sevan Lake: The lake, known for the second-highest altitude in the world at 2800 meters, and the town of Sevan take their names from the 9th-Century church [Dynamic panorama]. And here is a view of Yerevan's Republic Square [Dynamic panorama].
(2) Points of interest in Armenia, visited over the past couple of days:
The memorial monument to the Armenian Genocide in Yerevan (7/16) [Photos].
Saint Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral in Yerevan (7/16) [Photos].
Mother-of-Armenia monument in Yerevan (7/16) [Photos].
The 1000-Steps Public Square is a source of pride and a center for arts in Yerevan (7/16) [Photos].
Evening walk from our hotel to Yerevan's Republic Square and beyond, to the Opera House (7/16) [Photos].
Enjoying music with old-time friends at one of the open-air cafes adjoining Yerevan's Opera House [Video].
Valley of Flowers achieved status when the Soviet Olympics team trained there before Mexico games [Photos].
The 9th-Century Black Church, near Sevan, Armenia [Photos] [Video, singing on the bus].
(3) Meals: We had breakfast at the hotel, as usual. Here are photos and two videos of our lunch on Monday 7/16 [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2]. Like Sunday night, we gathered on Monday night 7/16 for a late dinner and entertainment at a friend's hotel suite. On Tuesday, we had lunch on the shore of Sevan Lake [Photos]. Tuesday's dinner was the last one for us as a group [Video 1] [Video 2]. Here are some group musical performances late at night [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] ["Maraa Beboos"] ["Ey Iran"] [Video 6].
(4) Reunion activites and events: Unveiling of the banner that commemorates our 50th-anniversary reunion in Yerevan, Armenia. In front of Hotel Metropol, after retuning from Tuesday's touring and before going out for our last dinner as a group [Photos]. After Tuesday's dinner, we gathered in the hotel lobby to sign the reunion banner and give appreciations [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2].
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of potential interest.
- Trump: "Our relationship with Russia has NEVER been worse thanks to many years of U.S. foolishness ..."
- One more witch: This one, investigated by the US Justice Dept., was actually arrested, not just indicted.
- MGM sues 1000 victims of the Vegas mass shooting in a preventive measure to dismiss/stop lawsuits.
- As usual, the press is being blamed for Trump's wreck of a performance at the Helsinki summit with Putin.
- Cartoon of the day: What Trump did in Helsinki left Russians celebrating and Americans reeling. [Image]
- Diamonds aren't rare at all: At 10^15 tons, they are 1000 times more common than previously thought.
- Gigantic 11-million-ton iceberg threatens to inundate tiny Greenland village with tsunami. [Photo]

2018/07/15 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Soccer World Cup 2018: Completed bracket (1) Getting to Yerevan and my first day there: My trip began Friday morning with a ride on Santa Barbara Airbus (which took the PCH to avoid congestion on 101 and 405), followed by a 12-hour Aeroflot flight to Moscow. Due to inattention to announcements in a very busy and chaotic airport, I missed my connecting flight to Yerevan and ended up paying a very steep panalty to purchase a new ticket (the new ticket cost a tad more than the entire LAX-Yerevan round-trip ticket I had purchased for the trip, and I received very poor service from Aeroflot personnel in trying to arrange another flight). While waiting an extra 7 hours at Moscow Airport, I watched Belgium beat England 2-0 in an exciting 3rd-place World Cup match. Very tired after a super-long day, I arrived at and settled in my spacious room in Hotel Metropol early Sunday morning. In the evening of my first day in Yerevan, a number of friends and I had a World Cup watching party at our hotel's outdoors sports bar. In a fast-moving and somewhat dirty match, France got some help from Croatia (an own goal and a PK) to beat it 4-2. The subscript after a team's abbreviation in the chart above is its 2017 FIFA world ranking.
(2) Sightseeing in Yerevan: The Temple of Garni is the only standing Greco-Roman colonnaded building in Armenia and the former Soviet Union. An Ionic temple located in the village of Garni, Armenia, it is the best-known structure and symbol of pre-Christian Armenia. (Info from: Wikipedia) Our tour guide stated that the structure was a Zoroastrian fire temple. [Photos] [Video, spiritual music]
The medieval monastery Geghard in the Kotayk province of Armenia is partially carved out of the adjacent mountain, surrounded by cliffs. It is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. (Info from: Wikipedia) [Photos]
At a Mt. Ararat vista point, haze prevented us from seeing the mountain today. Armenians consider Mt. Ararat, located in Turkey, sacred and believe that it will someday be reunited with Armenia. [Photos] [Video, music] [Video, our group getting off the bus] [Singing in the tour bus: Video 1; Video 2, Video 3]
(3) Meals: The hotel provided breakfast [Photos]. We had a group lunch as part of the guided tour [Video]. We had a light dinner at a friend's hotel suite and also some entertainment, involving violin music and group singing. [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]

Poster for Fanni class of 1968 reunion in July 2018 2018/07/14 (Saturday): I am in Yerevan for the 50th Anniversary Reunion of the 1968 graduates of Tehran University's College of Engineering. I will update this entry and post new entries about Soccer World Cup 2018 outcome and my experiences in Armenia upon my return on Thursday 7/19.
As one of the activities associated with this gathering, I have been updating, with help from former classmates, a list of the graduates and our professors/instructors on my Personal Web Page.
P.S.: It's so ironic that graduates of an Iranian university cannot celebrate such a momentous anniversary in Iran. It's doubly painful that those of us traveling from outside Iran will get so close to the country of our birth and growing-up, without being able to visit it. Oh well!

2018/07/13 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Women in the US Congress: Map (1) Women in Congress: According to this Time magazine map, every US state but Vermont has sent at least one woman to Congress. The first woman to serve in Congress, Jeannette Rankin of Montana, was elected in 1916, four years before women were able to vote nationwide. Twenty states have never had a woman Senator. More details can be found in these interactive maps.
(2) Photos taken yesterday afternoon, as I walked home from work: The interesting cotton-candy cloud patterns formed excellent backdrops for these photos I snapped around UCSB's Storke Tower and the campus Arts District.
(3) Iranian man flogged for drinking as a teenager a decade ago: Amnesty International
(4) Democrat defends FBI agent Peter Strzok during Congressional hearing by reading quotes from Republican lawmakers who also expressed serious reservations about Trump's character flaws.
(5) Course review: Messenger, Professor Bill (Peabody Conservatory of Music), Elements of Jazz: From Cakewalks to Fusion, 8 lectures in the "Great Courses" series (8 CDs + guidebook), The Teaching Company, 1995. [My 4-star review of this course on GoodReads]
Let me begin by listing the lecture titles, which provide a good sense of what the course is about.
Lecture 1: Plantation Beginnings
Lecture 2: The Rise and Fall of Ragtime
Lecture 3: The Jazz Age
Lecture 4: Blues
Lecture 5: The Swing Era
Lecture 6: Boogie, Big Band Blues, and Bop
Lecture 7: Modern Jazz
Lecture 8: The ABCs of Jazz Improvisation
The guidebook ends with biographies of performers/bandleaders/singers/composers, a timeline, and bibliography.
Jazz had its beginnings in plantations and slaves singing using primitive banjos made of a bowl and a stick and similarly primitive percussion devices. One context in which early jazz was played was cakewalk, in which contestants would emulate the walk of their masters moving toward a cake, which they could win as a prize.
Before the age of microphones and amplifiers, guitars, drum brushes, and other instruments with small sounds were not used, as they could not be heard in the back of the room. Subtler instruments such as guitars and clarinets replaced banjos and tubas, as the loudness of sound was no longer a factor.
Plantation music evolved through ragtime, jazz, and blues. Swing music was the big-band version of jazz, with elaborate production and minimal or non-existent improvisation. Swing bands played music that people danced to, but their music quality was impressive. By contrast, society bands just focused on dance tunes. Blues music later gave rise to rock-n-roll.
I found the course very useful for understanding and appreciating jazz in its many forms

2018/07/12 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
My four chain-tweets on the perils of artificial intelligence (1) Here are my four chain-tweets this morning about an open letter, signed by Stephen Hawking, Elon Musk, and others, that is sometimes erroneously characterized as a stern warning on the perils of artificial intelligence.
(2) Current composition of the US Supreme Court (Time magazine chart) and how it has shifted to the right over the years (Mother Jones chart). [Charts]
(3) Here is what I think: Trump is utterly incapable of saying anything wise or profound that would make the headlines, so he gets himself in the news by making stupid and inflammatory remarks. He has made himself and us Americans laughingstocks of the world.
(4) Irony of the day: The man who compliments Putin and Russia at every opportunity, and who takes Putin's claim that Russia did not interfere in US elections at face value, accuses a European leader, who grew up behind the Iron Curtain and celebrated with her family the fall of the Berlin Wall, of being a Putin stooge!
(5) This Trump-Putin cartoon from a year ago is again topical, as the mutually-admiring racist despots, who have mastered the art of fake news, are set to meet.
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of potential interest.
- Trump disses NATO before his summit with Putin: John Kelly's body language is priceless!
- Game of Thrones, SNL, Westworld, and Handmaid's Tale lead in Emmy nominations; Netflix tops HBO.
- Soccer World Cup: FIFA takes a stand against broadcasters zooming in on "hot women" during games.
- "People generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for." ~ Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird
- The beautiful night sky in Goleta, California, photographed on July 11, 2018. [Photos]
- UCSB Librarian Kristin Antelman combines a lifelong love of libraries with a passion for technology.
Cover image for Lisa Scottoline's 'Exposed' (7) Book review: Scottoline, Lisa, Exposed, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Kate Burton, Macmillan Audio, 2017. [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
A law firm run by two women, colleagues and close personal friends Bennie Rosato and Mary DiNunzio, gets entangled in a case of conflict of interest, when Mary decides to defend a close friend wrongly fired by a subsidiary of a parent company, which is represented by Bennie. The book is part of Scottoline's "Rosato and Associates" series.
It appears that the fired man was let go because his cancer-stricken daughter would cost the company a fortune in out-of-pocket payments and raised insurance premiums. Of course, true to form for a legal thriller, things aren't as they seem and quite a few surprises await the women en route to resolving the problems, testing their friendship and professional commitments along the way.
Scottoline is a capable, best-selling author. In this book, parts of the writing are compelling and engaging, while other parts are filled with cliches and mushy expressions. An entertaining read/listen, and nothing more!

2018/07/11 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Soccer World Cup 2018 bracket as of July 11, 2018 (1) Soccer World Cup 2018: In Tueday's semifinals match, France was dominated early on by Belgium's possession game, but a couple of counter-attacks later, the play evened up. In the scoreless first half, Belgium trailed on shots taken. France scored in the 51st minute, prevailing 1-0. France deserved to win, but Belgium (my predicted World Cup champions) played one of their worst games, turning the ball over on numerous occasions.
In Wednesday's semifinals match, England scored on a 5th-minute free kick from outside the box, the only goal before halftime. Croatia came to life when it evened up the score in the 68th minute on a service from the right, claiming the momentum and gaining several scoring opportunities, but the match went into extra time, tied 1-1. Croatia took the lead in the 109th minute, advancing to the finals match against France. Croatia's 2-1 victory crushed England's dream of returning to the World Cup finals after 52 years.
(2) New Yorker humor about future nuptials: "The MacMillans announce the engagement of their daughter to a man with really fantastic health insurance."
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of potential interest.
- Americans in London told to keep low profile during Trump visit: Inflatable baby-Trump floated in protest.
- The nightmare continues: Trump accuses Germany of being totally controlled by Russia!
- A picture's worth a thousand words: Nato summit participants talk around and over Trump. [Photo]
- Flooded-cave rescue completed in Thailand: All 12 boys and their coach are now out.
- Woodland Hills postal worker found dead in her truck during Friday's extreme heat in Los Angeles.
- "They go low, we go high": A Chinese trade official uses Michelle Obama's phrase as a double-jab at Trump.
- Oil tanker collides with bus, killing at least 13 in the western Iranian city of Sanandaj.
- Persian music: Koorosh Yazdani's musical interpretation of Forough Farrokhzad's poem "Ghazal." [VoA]
(4) Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh nearly had me fooled: As I listened to him accepting the nomination, I thought he was quite warm and reasonable. Far from it! Information is emerging on his past activities and opinions that is troubling, to say the least, particularly the parts about deeming the President immune from prosecution and lawsuits (and this from a man who wanted to crucify Bill Clinton for his digressions). And I am not defending Clinton; just pointing out the hypocrisy.
(5) The 2018 documentary "Anote's Ark" (Trailer): Unfortunately, I could not attend the film's screening at UCSB last night, but I will look for another opportunity to watch it. The film is about the tiny Pacific nation of Kiribati (population: 100,000) which is facing an existential threat due to sea-level rise. The country's president is hard at work to protect his people and find a solution that maintains their dignity. Many of the country's citizens have already started moving away, leaving behind 4000 years of Kiribati culture. The film's editor and executive producer Mila Aung-Thwin was to join moderator Michael Harrahan in a post-screening discussion.

2018/07/09 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Four photos from my evening walk, today (1) Photos taken during my walk, this evening. Note the plane approaching Santa Barbara Airport in one photo.
(2) Understanding the Thailand cave-rescue operation: The cave dips from its entrance and then rises to where the soccer team is trapped [Map]. Parts of the cave between the team's location and the entrance are flooded. The only way out entails swimming underwater at a depth of 30 m. Drilling a hole (a la the collapsed Chilean-mine rescue) and building a compact underwater transport (Elon Musk's proposal) have been contemplated.
(3) Justice, Islamic-Republic-of-Iran style: Rapists and billion-dollar embezzlers go unpunished, but a teenager who posts dance videos on social media is charged with "spreading prostitution" and forced to tearfully recant on TV, and another young woman who dared to take off her scarf is sentenced to 20 years in jail, with her lawyer (rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh) also arrested and charged. [Reza Khandan's FB post, in Persian]
(4) NASA may have found space rocks under the sea for the first time: Scientists think they have located two hunks of a 2-ton meteorites that burst into the atmosphere over the northwestern US on March 7, 2018.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of potential interest.
- North Korea demands $1 billion from Israel, or it will sell missile technology to Iran.
- North Korea calls talks with Pompeo 'regrettable' because of his demand for unilateral denuking of NK.
- Iran's OPEC Chief: Donald Trump's tweets were responsible for a $10 rise in oil prices.
- Iran's harsh treatment of the dancing teen amid economic crisis brings criticism from all sides.
- The price of freedom to drive: An intensified crackdown on Saudi feminists [Time magazine, July 9, 2018]
- Trump memes: One posted by Don Jr. for July 4th and one ridiculing his self-promoting "success stories."
- Spiders use the Earth's electric field to fly hundreds of miles.
- Scientists argue re the relative merits of exploring Europa or Enceladus (Jupiter's moons) for signs of life.
(6) A rare genetic anomaly: An 11-year-old girl, one of only 25 known cases worldwide, all females, got nearly all of her genes from her dad and almost none from her mom.
(7) Habibi you can drive my car: Beatles' song, arranged by cellist Naseem Alatrash and featuring vocalist Nano Raies, is dedicated to Saudi women who have been allowed to drive.
(8) Final thought for the day: Try to imagine what Don the Con would be tweeting today about Putin, had Russia been caught meddling in favor of Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election!

2018/07/07 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The magnificent sunset on Moonstone Beach, near Cambria, California (1) Having a wonderful time in the beautiful Cambria, California: I am participating in a family retreat on California's Central Coast, July 4-8: We watched a fireworks show (Photos, Video 1, Video 2, the finale) in Shamel Park, along Moonstone Beach, did lots of walking, watched some soccer, visited Hearst Castle (Cottages, Kitchen/Wine-Cellar, Outside/Pools), walked by Morro Rock, dined in the area's wonderful eateries, and still had plenty of time to read, relax, and engage in family conversations. We stayed at Cambria Pines Lodge, which offered a free breakfast buffet and live music in its lounge. The sunset photo is from our Moonstone Beach bluffs-top walk on July 7.
(2) Friday 7/06 in Soccer World Cup: Brazil outshot Belgium by a three-to-one ratio, but Belgium took a 2-goal lead and eventually prevailed 2-1 [highlights], thanks to their goalie's heroism. They will face France, 2-0 winners over Uruguay, in the first semifinals match [highlights]. It's going to be an all-European semifinals!
(3) Saturday 7/07 in Soccer World Cup: Sweden prevailed 2-0 over England to advance [highlights]. Tied 2-2 at the end of overtime, Croatia ended Russia's dream run 4-3 on PKs [highlights]. Semifinals matches will be played on Tuesday 7/10 (France-Belgium) and Wednesday 7/11 (Croatia-England).
Cover image for Laura Hillenbrand's 'Unbroken' (4) Book review: Hillenbrand, Laura, Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Edward Hermann, Random House Audio, 2010.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This World War II biographical tome tells the life story of Louis Zamperini [1917-2014], famed Olympics miler and survivor of Japanese POW camps, his heroism, and his multiple brushes with death. The bomber plane carrying Zamperini and 10 others crashed in the Pacific Ocean, killing nearly the entire crew and leading to a remarkable feat of survival on a flimsy raft for him and a buddy, both subsequently captured by the Japanese some 2000 miles from the point of crash.
While Zamperini's spirit never broke in captivity, despite the horrendous abuse, torture, and starvation, he nearly came to a breaking point upon his return to the US at the end of hostilities. The psychological damage was just too great. He was saved from madness by Rev. Billy Graham and Zamperini's own remembering a promise he made to himself during desperate times that if was saved from that situation, he would devote himself to God's work.
The plight of US prisoners of war in Japan is frightening: While only 1% of American POWs died in Europe, nearly one third perished in Japanese prison-camp sites, many of which were not even registered as POW camps to avoid international scrutiny and inspections. Zamperini's spiritual awakening led him to forgive his Japanese tormentors, including the man nicknamed "The Bird,' who was the most abusive.
Hillenbrand's research and attention to detail is remarkable. The reader/listener feels s/he is present in the scenes described, be they aboard a bomber being riddled with bullets from Japanese planes, weeks afloat on a raft circled by sharks, or months of abuse and torture by sadistic guards, who forced prisoners into slave labor and nearly starved them to death by stealing their rations. At times, the narrative becomes repetitive, but it is, by and large, captivating and gut-wrenching.
To be fair, Hillenbrand has been accused of exaggerating Zamperini's heroism and of becoming too awestruck by his tales to see his faults. However, it is often true of biographies that they are written by adoring or adversarial observers, the two groups of people most motivated to write. Hillenbrand may have bought into some of Zamperini's stories without due diligence, but her Unbroken is epic nonetheless.
Zamperini's life was the subject of the 1992 movie, "Zamperini: Still Carrying the Torch." This piece, entitled "The Rest of the Story: The Life of Louis Zamperini after 'Unbroken'," provides additional interesting tidbits on Louis Zamperini's life.

2018/07/05 (Thursday): Book review: Abbott, Edwin A., Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions, Dover, 1992 (originally published by Seeley & Co., Ltd., in 1884). [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image for Edwin A. Abbott's 'Flatland' This imaginative book is a rather short one (my Dover edition has 83 pages), but it contains much food for thought. The central theme is life and its perception in a 0D world or Pointland, a 1D world or Lineland, a 2D world or Flatland, and a 3D world or Spaceland, with references to even higher-dimensional worlds. The book's old prose style makes it difficult to understand some of the concepts, but it is an enjoyable read nonetheless.
Ever since Einstein presented his theory of relativity, we have gotten used to thinking of 4D spacetime, with its extra dimension, that is, time, not quite the same as the other three dimensions. But beyond 4 dimensions, our intuition fails us. Contemplating life in lower-dimensional worlds could be useful for visualizing and understanding higher-dimensional worlds. When we read about the challenges of a denizen of Spaceland trying to make a Flatland creature understand the notion of the third dimension or "height," we realize how limited our faculties are in visualizing more dimensions.
The bulk of the book is about Flatland, a 2D world holding various geometric life forms. Women are straight line segments, soldiers and lower classes are acute isosceles triangles, middle-class men are equilateral triangles, and so on; the higher the social class, the larger the number of sides, with the highest class, the priests, being circular or nearly-circular (they have so many sides that it is hard to tell them apart from perfect circles). Flatland houses are polygons with their "roofs" toward the north, where rain comes from. Everything is attracted toward the south, the analog of gravity in our 3D world.
A streak of misogyny runs through the narrative, which isn't surprising, given the book's original publication in the late 1800s and the author being a theologian. I could not ascertain whether the misogyny is tongue-in-cheek, meant to be humorous like many other aspects of the narrative, or there is a serious view of women as the "frail" sex [p. 12] that, nevertheless, have to be watched carefully for the tricks they may have up their sleeves, including the ability to harm others with their pointy ends and to make themselves nearly invisible. Elsewhere, we read about the scandals that might befall the upper classes if they were mistakenly thought to be women with "frivolous and unseemly conduct" [p. 30]. The narrator, a Spaceland man, talks about his wife "whose good sense far exceeds that of the average of her Sex" [p. 75] and about a particular explanation being so simple and straightforward "as to be patent even to the Female Sex" [p. 77].
The question of distinguishing different Flatland denizens, particularly friends from foes, in a world where everyone seems like a straight line-segment is discussed at length, as are the concepts of marriage, procreation, and so on. In fact, things get even eerier in Lineland, where everyone looks like a point (a woman). Even line segments of varying lengths (young men and men of different ages) would be indistinguishable from points in the absence of some other sensory capabilities, which are postulated. "[L]ife in Lineland must be deplorably dull. To see nothing but a Point! Not even to be able to contemplate a Straight Line! Nay, not even to know what a Straight Line is!" [p. 49] And in Pointland, everything is one and the same, giving rise to the King/God of Pointland who can never be rescued from his self-satisfaction. (Sounds familiar?)
The Flatland narrator takes it upon himself to preach the Gospel of Three Dimensions, something that gets him in deep trouble with the authorities! Eventually, he finds it safer to speak and write of Thoughtland, where taboo notions are viewed as figments of our imagination, rather than suggesting a concrete 3D land.

2018/07/04 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Lady Liberty and fireworks (1) Happy July 4th to all fellow Americans! Here is one of my favorite quotes about patriotism, coming from former French President Charles de Gaulle: "Patriotism is when love of your own people comes first; nationalism, when hate for people other than your own comes first."
(2) Iranian women rock! At great risk of physical harm, not just from government thugs but also from backward men on the street who see women's empowerment as a threat to their power, women disobey mandatory headscarf laws and bans against all signs of vitality and joy (colorful clothing, singing, dancing, laughing in public).
(3) We stigmatize accents, but language belongs to everyone: Argentinian-born scholar/novelist Hernan Diaz reads his essay about accent discrimination and why instead of ridiculing accents we should celebrate them.
(4) Cartoon caption of the day (in court): "Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, even though nobody has any idea what that is anymore?" [From: The New Yorker]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of potential interest.
- Cohen is third associate to indicate Trump knows more about the meeting with Russians than he lets on.
- Rebuking Trump, key Senate panel endorses finding that Russia attacked the 2016 US election.
- Ethical questions about EPA chief Scott Pruitt keep piling up with release of new e-mails.
- White House tweets personal attacks on Senators Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren for stance on ICE.
- Multiple wildfires are still burning out of control in Northern California.
- Music news: David Foster proposes to Katharine McPhee during romantic Italian vacation.
- Iranian officials are scared of my hair, says Iranian journalist and women's-rights activist Masih Alinejad.
(6) Now, a couple of days of rest from soccer: World Cup schedule for the remaining eight matches involving 6 European and 2 South American teams. All times PDT. I will be watching the final match in Yerevan, Armenia!
Soccer World Cup 2018 logo Fri. 7/06: Uruguay v. France (Fox Sports, 7:00 AM)
Fri. 7/06: Brazil v. Belgium (Fox Sports, 11:00 AM)
Sat. 7/07: Sweden v. England (Fox, 7:00 AM)
Sat. 7/07: Russia v. Croatia (Fox, 11:00 AM)
Tue. 7/10: Uruguay/France winner v. Brazil/Belgium winner (Fox, 11:00 AM)
Wed. 7/11: Russia/Croatia winner v. Sweden/England winner (Fox, 11:00 AM)
Sat. 7/14: Third-place match between semifinals losers (Fox, 7:00 AM)
Sun. 7/15: Championship match between semifinals winners (Fox, 7:00 AM)
(7) Presidential lies are getting bigger by the day: Trump's claim that the Obama administration granted 2500 US citizenship visas to Iranians (including many officials) as part of the nuclear deal is totally baseless.
(8) Final thought for the day: The entire immigration debate and made-up stats for crimes and other misdeeds by illegal aliens are just methods to distract the working poor by blaming their misery on other working poor, rather than on income inequality and corporate welfare in the form of subsidies and tax breaks.

2018/07/03 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Soccer World Cup 2018 bracket as of July 03, 2018 (1) Monday 7/02 in Soccer World Cup: Two matches played in the round of 16.
- After 50 minutes of relentless attack, Brazil finally got through and took a 1-0 lead over Mexico. An 89th-minute second goal sealed Mexico's fate, 0-2.
- Japan fought valiantly to keep the first half scoreless against an explosive Belgian team. Then, instead of Belgium taking over in the second half, Japan scored twice in the first 7 minutes. Belgium floundered for a while, but then woke up to score two quick goals to even up the match 2-2. With big saves by the two goalies near the end, it seemed that the match would be going into overtime, but Belgium scored on a counter-attack in the last minute of stoppage time to win 3-2. [2-minute highlights]
(2) Tuesday 7/03 in Soccer World Cup: Today's matches set up the quarterfinals roster, per the chart above.
- Sweden squeezed by Switzerland 1-0, on a shot that was deflected, but wasn't ruled an own goal.
- England scored on a PK in the 57th minute and Colombia equalized in the third minute of stoppage time. Extra time produced no goals and England won 4-3 on PKs.
[Marginal note 1: The score box at the top of the TV screen shows the teams' jersey colors between the flag symbols and country names (in this image, yellow for Sweden, red for Switzerland).]
[Marginal note 2: When is a soccer score classified as an own goal? This question arose and was answered after Sweden's sole goal today. If the shot isn't on frame but is deflected into the net, it's an own goal, otherwise (when it is on target but deflected into the net), it is a regular goal credited to the player taking the shot.]
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of potential interest.
- North Korea is reportedly expanding its production facility for ballistic missiles.
- Six children and three adults stabbed at birthday party, four of them critically, in building housing refugees.
- All 12 boys and their soccer coach, who were trapped in a flooded cave in Tahiland, found alive.
- Arrested US Border Patrol Agent is accused of distributing child pornography through an iPhone app.
- Nobel Laureate and UCSB professor Shuji Nakamura honored by Carnegie Corp. as a 'Great Immigrant.'
- Microsoft to release pocket computing device sporting a double-size foldable display with no hinge gap.
- Fresh protests erupt: in the southern Iranian city of Abadan over pollution and shortage of drinking water.
- Signs from the June 30 nationwide protests against family separations and inhumane immigration policies.
- "Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little." ~ Edmund Burke
- So much of "AI" is just figuring out ways to offload work onto random strangers. [Cartoon][Source: xkcd]
(4) California AG adds OK to a ban (AB 1887) on state-funded and state-sponsored travel to states with laws that discriminate against LGBTQ people. These states include: AL, KS, KY, MS, NC, SD, TN, TX.
(5) Trump's personal attorney Michael Cohen breaks his silence in interview with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos. Cohen, who once said he'd take a bullet for Trump, now declares his loyalty to his family and country. He answered no significant question in his ABC News interview, citing "advice from counsel." Meanwhile, he is aiming for a book deal and new business opportunities by wrapping himself in the flag.

2018/07/01 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Poster for Marjan Satrapi's 'Persepolis' (1) Summer Cinema (Under the Stars) in Santa Barbara: "Animated Nights," film screenings in July & August
Wednesdays / 7:30 PM / UCSB Campbell Hall
Fridays / 8:30 PM / SB County Courthouse Sunken Garden
- F 7/06 (only): The 19th Annual Animation Show of Shows
- W 7/11 & F 7/13: The Triplets of Belleville
- W 7/18 & F 7/20: Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
- W 7/25 & F 7/27: Fantastic Mr. Fox
- W 8/01 (only): Ratatouille
- W 8/08 & F 8/10: The Iron Giant
- W 8/15 & F 8/17: Persepolis (see image)
- W 8/22 & F 8/24: Loving Vincent
(2) The Bitcoin system is vulnerable to collusion among participating miners: In an article appearing in Communications of the ACM, issue of July 2018, entitled "Majority Is Not Enough: Bitcoin Mining is Vulnerable," Itty Ayal and and Gun Sirer discuss the nature of this vulnerability, which arises from the invalidity of the self-interest assumption in Bitcoin mining. One key open challenge is the process by which security vulnerabilities might be disclosed to decentralized blockchain projects so as to prevent the abuse of the said information by those receiving it.
(3) Political humor: A well-researched Bill Maher monologue, telling us that our health and longevity depends more on what we do collectively than on our individual dietary and exercise choices.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of potential interest.
- A rhetorical question: Will Michael Cohen emerge as a national hero by helping to bring Trump down?
- Teacher to student: "I appreciate the text, Kate, but next time please just raise your hand."
- The law of USB cables: No matter how many you buy, you have at most one that works.
- "Happiness does not depend on what you have or who you are. It solely relies on what you think." ~ Buddha
- I have been doing engineering wrong: Must include the side effect of sarcasm! [Diagram]
- Cartoon of the day: A quintessentially human thing that computers can't do! [Image source: xkcd]
(5) Saturday 6/30 in Soccer World Cup: Two matches were played in the round of 16. The hoped-for face-off between Messi and Ronaldo did not materialize, as both Argentina and Portugal were eliminated.
- France scored first on a PK, but Argentina scored twice to make it 2-1. France took a commanding 4-2 lead with three closely-spaced goals. Argentina scored in stoppage time to make it 4-3, but time ran out for them.
- Uruguay scored in the 6th minute, but Portugal scored early in the second half to even it up. Shortly thereafter, Uruguay took the lead for good, winning 2-1
(6) Sunday 7/01 in Soccer World Cup: Two matches were played in the round of 16.
- The cinderella team, 65th-ranked Russia, tied 1-1 with 8th-ranked Spain after overtime, won 4-3 on PKs. The next lowest-ranked teams remaining in the tournament are Japan (44th) and Sweden (25th).
- In the battle of equals, 18th-ranked Croatia and 19th-ranked Denmark, the score was 1-1 after 4 minutes and at the end of 90 minutes. Croatia failed to convert on a PK in extra time, sending the match into the PK shoot-out, which Croatia won 3-2. Half of the 10 PK shots were saved by the goalies!

2018/06/30 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Dan Ariely's 'The Upside of Irrationality' (1) Book review: Ariely, Dan, The Upside of Irrationality: The Unexpected Benefits of Defying Logic at Work and at Home, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Simon Jones, HarperAudio, 2010.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This sequel, from the author of the highly successful Predictably Irrational, a book about how human-beings' irrational behavior undermines standard economic theories, which are based on rational decision-making, looks at the flip side of the coin: That our survival is actually dependent on that irrational behavior. Ariely, a Duke University professor, draws upon his own and other social-scientists' research (in a field known as "behavioral economics"), as well as medical experiments, to ask and answer a multitude of questions about human decision-making and how to improve it.
Examples of useful and often counterintuitive insights abound in this book. For instance, when monetary bonuses get too large, they begin having a detrimental effect on performance. You can imagine that studying the effects of large bonuses can quickly get quite expensive for the experimenter! So, much of the work about this topic was performed in India, where one can pay the equivalent of several months' salary as a reward, without bankrupting the research project.
As another example, we tend to overvalue things that we make and ideas that we conceive, even if they are lousy compared with other options (the "Ikea effect" and the not-invented-here syndrome). Thus, even though assembling an IKEA bookshelf, say, requires no creativity on our part, we still cherish the finished product as if it were our creation. This bias explains why managers continue to pour resources into a failing project, after expending much time and effort on it, and why offering customization options to customers pays off. By the way, the Ikea effect isn't unique to humans, as certain animals also exhibit the bias.
Another interesting insight is the key role of revenge in human emotions and behavior. If you are given $20, say, and instructed to pass on a portion of it to another participant, with each of you keeping your share if the other side accepts the offer and neither of you getting to keep any of it if the offer is rejected, you might be tempted to offer a small amount to maximize your own share. However, the other participant may reject an offer of $1, say, thus depriving himself of $1, so as to punish you for your stinginess. Revenge is an important human trait that also rears its head in many other contexts, such as in trying to punish a company that offers poor customer service.
Ariely weaves into the narrative a number of autobiographical elements, including the challenges he faced as a burn patient, making this book more personal, and somewhat more accessible, than Predictably Irrational. The book is a pleasant read/listen, that requires very little in terms of background knowledge.
[Dan Ariely's 20-minute TEDx talk on what makes us feel good about our work.]
(2) Ojai Valley Lavender Festival, today in Ojai's Libby Park: Parking near Bart's Books, the world-famous outdoors bookstore, I walked towards the festival venue, snapping these photos. After arriving in the park, I took 3 photos and a video of the Sound Arch, located at the entrance to Libby Bowl. A hundreds or so protesters were holding signs and chanting along the main downtown street in front of the park, in solidarity with nationwide protests against inhumane immigration policies and separation of families seeking asylum in the US. A pleasant part of the Lavender Festival and others of its kind is the local musical talent that is often comparable in quality to the best national groups. I managed to watch performances by three such groups while I was at the Festival: Lynn Mullins & Coyote Creek (Video 1, Video 2); Cindy Kalmenson & the Lucky Ducks (Video 1, Video 2); Smitty & Julija (Video 1, Video 2). The last act above was a duo, which had a couple of guest performers and is leaving on a European and Middle Eastern tour tomorrow.

2018/06/29 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Five victims of the 2018/06/28 mass shooting at 'Capital Gazette' (1) Survivors of yesterday's mass shooting at Capital Gazette in Annapolis, MD, during which 5 employees were killed and 2 were injured, have pledged to put out a paper today. [Photos depict the 5 murdered employees: "Enemies of the American people"]
(2) Remembering Mona: Widespread international outrage at the execution of Mona, the youngest of nine Baha'i women killed on June 18, 1983, helped bring the executions to an end, but persecution of Baha'is continues unabated.
(3) Cover of Communications of the ACM, issue of July 2018: The lamb on the cover has cut-out eyes, which show the eyes of a wolf on the next page. The message is the need to make machine learning robust against adversarial inputs. [Full text of the cover-feature article]
(4) Airbnb on travel ban: In a statement on the SCOTUS affirming Trump's travel ban, Airbnb has pledged matching donations to the International Refugee Assistance Project. "We believe that travel is a transformative and powerful experience and that building bridges between cultures and communities creates a more innovative, collaborative and inspired world."
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of potential interest.
- There are no World Cup soccer matches today, so here's something for you to watch to avoid boredom!
- Massive outage of Comcast services shows the Internet's extreme fragility. [Wired story]
- Trump to meet with his very honest boss to make plans against dishonest FBI and American press.
- No child separation here, unless Stephen Miller becomes a liability, apt for under-the-bus duty! [Cartoon]
- The Iranian economy and currency are in turmoil, but President Rouhani says not to worry! [Images]
- Iranian Dance: Niosha Dance Academy students perform at a Golden State Warriors basketball game.
- [Book picks for learning to program] Elementary: Programming 101; Advanced: Programming 1100101
- Moon-rise and sunset Tuesday evening, at Goleta's Coal Oil Point and in the vicinity of Devereux Slough.
(6) [Humor] My tweet prediction: "Low-IQ Michael Cohen knows nothing about me. He made coffee at the office; and it was awful coffee, even worse than the coffee made by George Papadopoulos and Paul Manafort."
(7) The Internet Apologizes: This is the title of an article in New York Magazine, with the premise that "free information" (that is, information provider's costs covered by ad revenues) was a mistake that must be fixed ASAP. On the surface, sellers and marketers pay for ads, but because they inevitably recover the costs of advertising from us buyers, the scheme amounts to a non-transparent tax on everyone. Other than this hidden tax, we pay for the "free" information by giving our private data to advertisers or intermediaries, so as to allow ad placement linked to our interests. The ad-revenue model has also provided incentives for social media and news outlets to gravitate toward outrageous stories and click-baits, in an effort to attract more eyeballs. We brought this on ourselves!
(8) Final thought for the day: Iran's soccer coach Carlos Queiroz fields his complaints in a news conference, speaking about lack of transparency in FIFA's decisions, which favor major teams and big-name players.

2018/06/28 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Soccer World Cup 2018 bracket as of June 28, 2018 (1) Predicting the World Cup champion: The round-of-16 match-ups are now set, as shown in the accompanying bracket, which also includes the teams' FIFA world rankings as subscripts, to help others in making predictions. The top half of the bracket includes all the top-5 teams, with the exception of the number-1 Germany, which was eliminated in a surprise. Brazil, Portugal, and Argentina didn't look sharp in the group stage, so I predict Belgium to advance to the final match. The bottom half of the bracket is more challenging to predict. Spain is 8th-ranked and seems to have a relatively easy path of advancement in the first two rounds (beating Russia and the winner of Croatia-Denmark). So, I predict a championship match between Belgium and Spain, with Belgium winning.
(2) Wednesday in Soccer World Cup: Four matches were played to close Groups F and E.
Group F: Mexico, thought to be safe, squeezed through, due to eliminated South Koreans sinking Germany.
- Sweden humiliated Mexico 3-0, putting it in danger of elimination with 6 points, but S. Korea intervened.
- In a most surprising result, South Korea beat Germany 2-0, the second goal scored in an empty net.
Group E: Costa Rica was out, with Brazil, Switzerland, and Serbia (4, 4, 3 points) all still in the running.
- Brazil prevailed over Serbia 2-0, thus advancing as the top team in Group E. [2-minutes highlights]
- Switzerland played to a 2-2 draw with Costa Rica to claim the group's second spot. [3-minute highlights]
(3) Thursday in Soccer World Cup: Four matches were played to close Groups H and G.
Group H: Poland was out, with Japan, Senegal, and Colombia (4, 4, 3 points) contending for top two spots.
- Poland played the spoiler by beating Japan 1-0 to make the records of Japan and Senegal dead even.*
- Colombia beat Senegal 1-0 on a header off a corner kick to advance as the top group team.
Group G: England and Belgium had already advanced; only next round's team match-ups were at stake.
- In the battle of eliminated teams, Tunisia was the favored side against Panama, and it won 2-1.
- Belgium was reluctant to press on after it took the lead 1-0, good enough for the top spot in Group G.**
[*Japan and Senegal were so even, that a little-known tie-breaking rule had to be applied. Both teams had 4 points in the group stage, both had scored 4 goals and conceded 4 goals. They had tied when they played each other. The "fair play" tie-breaking rule favored Japan, with its 4 yellow cards against Senegal's 6.]
[**Belgium and England played to determine the top team and second team in Group G. The two teams were dead even in the standings (6 points each, 8 goals for, 2 goals against). Much was at stake here. The top team would play Japan (FIFA rank 44), whereas the second team would face a much tougher Colombia (rank 13).]
(4) A Moore's Law for Packaging: This was the title of a talk yesterday afternoon by Subramanian S. Iyer (UCLA), whose research is focused on removing packaging barriers to exploiting the greater performance made possible by denser circuits (Moore's Law). Current packaging technology (chips placed on PC boards) wastes much of the chip-level performance gain, owing to narrower and slower links on the PC board compared with intra-chip connections. One solution is to replace the PC board with a silicon substrate (wafer) onto which dies of various kinds are fused through pressure and heat. [Photos]
(5) GRIT talk yesterday afternoon: Computer Science Professor William Wang spoke in the Groundbreaking Research / Innovative Technology lecture series, under the title "Artificial Intelligence: What's Next?" Professor Wang, who directs UCSB's Natural Language Processing Group, began by reviewing the stunning progress of AI over the past few decades, particularly in machine learning, natural-language processing, and computer vision. He then outlined his group's work at the intersection of AI and language that may lead to the emergence of empathetic conversational agents to understand and generate human sentences with rich emotions. Examples might include interpreting and writing Yelp reviews. In addition to his group's work with Emojis, Professor Wang referred to IBM's Debater as an example of human-like language skills. [Photos]

2018/06/27 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Wikipedia tables showing World Cup groups and how they were formed (1) How the World Cup 2018 groups were formed: According to Wikipedia, teams were divided into 4 pots in order of seeding (1-7, plus host; 8-15; 16-23; 24-31), with a group formed by drawing a random team from each pot. FIFA indicates that Group E was the strongest and Russia's Group A the weakest. Iran's group B was the third strongest.
(2) The coldest points on Earth's surface: The temperature of –93 degrees Celsius (–135 F) observed in several spots on the East Antarctic Plateau, is much lower than previously thought. The highest temperature ever recorded on Earth is 134 F or ~57 C (Death Valley, USA; July 10, 1913), making the temperature range nearly symmetric in Fahrenheit! The interval from lowest to highest is 150 C wide.
(3) A beautifully-made Apple commercial: It uses this touching song by manic-depressive artist Daniel Johnston. The video includes lyrics and Johnston's life story.
(4) Space Force, the sixth branch of the US military: The current five branches are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. At one point in the past, the US did not have a separate Air Force. Rather, the Army created what was known as the Army Air Force (AAF) to take advantage of airborne vehicles for logistics and combat. As the importance of air transportation grew, AAF was separated from US Army to became USAF. Experts say that the same situation will inevitably happen to the Space Division of USAF, as more and more assets are placed in space, where they need protection from enemy aggression and mischief, not to mention the possibility of space-based combat capabilities. Creating US Space Force may be premature now, but, in the long run, it may be inevitable.
Wikipedia tables showing World Cup groups and how they were formed (5) Book review: Tartt, Donna, The Secret History: A Novel, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, HarperAudio, 2007.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This first novel of Mississippi-born Donna Tartt is a Lieutenant-Columbo-style detective story, in which not the person committing the crime but his motive is a mystery. The murder occurs within the confines of an academically and socially isolated group of classics students, studying under the tutelage of a charismatic professor who is very picky about the students he admits. The students in this small group try to inject some excitement into their lives, but their neat schemes eventually unravel, turning them into a clique of out-of-touch, evil minds.
The protagonist is a young man from California who narrates the story as he experiences life at an elite Vermont college. Now, a woman author speaking on behalf of a man, or vice versa, isn't all that uncommon in books. However, it becomes a bit confusing when the author reads her own book, with her female voice describing in the first person the actions and feelings of a man. It took me a couple of hours of listening time before I began feeling comfortable with the reversed gender experience.
Woven into the main narrative about the murder and its aftermaths are discussions of nuances of ancient Greece and life in a small Vermont town. An enjoyable read/listen, despite the devious, unlikable characters!

2018/06/26 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Graphic illustrating Benford's Law for decimal numbers (1) Benford's Law: Consider a large collection of numbers from a real-world data set. We tend to assume that the digits in such a set of numbers are nearly uniformly distributed, but this intuition is way off in the case of the first or leading digit. Research has shown that the probability of the first digit being D is approximately log(1 + 1/D), where the log function is in base 10 for decimal data. So, the probability of the first digit being 1 is more than six times that of it being 9 (about 30% vs. less than 5%). An immediate corollary is that if you take numbers of a certain fixed width, say, in the interval [100, 999], nearly half of them will begin with 1 or 2 and thus will be relatively small. Benford's Law has been used for detecting data forgeries, be they in scientific research, political elections (e.g., Iran 2009), or in financial records (such as tax returns). Wikipedia has an excellent article on the topic. [Graph from: Chegg.com]
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, memes, and other items of potential interest.
- Lady Liberty thinks we should all care! [Image]
- "It's encouraging that Sarah Sanders was judged not by her skin color but by her character content."
- Don't boo or harass them. Don't sink with them to the bottom. Let's restore civility, even if it's one-way.
- Our language shapes the way we think. [2-minute video clip from a TED talk]
- Persian poetry: A verse from classical Iranian poet Sa'di.
- Taking the World Cup too seriously: Egyptian commentator dies after his country loses to Saudi Arabia.
- Prepare for soccer withdrawal symptoms on Friday 6/29, between the group stage and the knockout round.
(3) Monday in Soccer World Cup: Four matches were played to close Groups A and B.
Group A: Both matches were meaningless, except for determining the next opponents of Russia and Uruguay.
- Uruguay, which led Russia 2-0 at halftime, prevailed 3-0 to become the top team of Group A.
- Going into halftime 1-1, Saudi Arabia scored seconds before the end of stoppage time to defeat Egypt 2-1.
Group B: Morocco was out, but the other teams were still in the running, with Iran's chances being slim.
- Portugal got lucky to survive Iran 1-1, scoring just before halftime, missing a PK, and giving up a PK goal.
- Playing evenly, Spain and Morocco were tied 1-1 at halftime and ended the match 2-2; Spain advances.
(4) Tuesday in Soccer World Cup: Four matches were played to close Groups C and D.
Group C: France is in and Peru is out; Australia has an outside chance of advancing, in an unlikely scenario.
- Satisfied with the status quo, France (top group spot) and Denmark (second) battled to a scoreless draw.
- The already-eliminated Peru crushed Australia's meager hopes of advancing by beating it 2-0.
Group D: Nigeria or Argentina will likely advance with Croatia. Unlikely: Iceland crushing both teams' hopes.
- Argentina led Nigeria 1-0 at halftime (on a beautiful goal by Messi) and won 2-1 to avoid elimination.
- After a scoreless first half, Croatia crushed Iceland's meager hopes of advancing by beating it 2-1.
(5) My partial bracket for World Cup 2018, with 8 of the teams in the round-of-16 already identified.
(6) Top 500 supercomputers in the world: After many years of domination by China, the US has reclaimed the topmost spot, but in terms of the number of computers in the top 500, China's lead has widened, now standing at 206 to 124.

2018/06/25 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Prominent Iranian women who wrote a letter to FIFA, asking that it seek a permanent end to the ban against women entering sports stadiums in Iran (1) Women's rights in Iran: Postings on Facebook about 18 prominent Iranian women asking FIFA to seek a permanent end to the ban against women entering sports stadiums in Iran, have garnered numerous scolding comments that suggest these distinguished women are the enemies of Iran and allies of imperialism, the Saudis, Israel, and others. My input to the overheated discussion follows.
From my viewpoint, any movement towards justice and any pressure applied to a dictatorial regime should be welcome by the entire opposition spectrum.
Unfortunately, there are two major forces dissing demands for reasonable reforms as stepping stones for broader changes, bringing to mind the aphorism, "Perfect is the enemy of good" (popularized by Voltaire):
(a) Supporters of the Islamic regime, who, in their zeal for self-preservation, hush any opposition under the pretense that the US, the Saudis, Israel, and other unnamed "enemies" will take advantage of open criticism.
(b) Some supporters of alternative, not completely specified but in their view "perfect," political system, who believe that Iran must collapse (militarily and economically), before it can be rebuilt according to their taste.
Resorting to universally accepted rights and pointing to illogical restrictions (women attending sporting events in Iran or driving cars in Saudi Arabia) provides the best hope for making any progress in the human and women's rights domains.
Such tiny steps are already quite dangerous, especially when taken by those living in Iran, as we read daily in the news coming from the country's arbitrary "justice" system.
The ongoing World Cup in Russia, being watched by many millions around the world, makes the timing of this action ideal for garnering attention to the plight of women in Iran.
(2) Book review: Kondo, Marie (translated by Cathy Hirano), The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing, Ten Speed Press, 2014.
Cover image of Marie Kondo's 'The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing' [My three-star review of this book on GoodReads]
I read this book about half-way through, before becoming frustrated with its arbitrary rules and over-generalizations. Most everyone knows that clutter takes a toll on our peace of mind and productivity, but each of us has a slightly different way of dealing with the problem. Kondo suggests that effective decluttering requires that we get rid of extra stuff in one fell swoop and that gradual tidying up by getting rid of one item, say, per day is bound to fail. Yet, I have found such a gradual approach quite effective in my case, not just in reducing clutter but also in making a dent in piled-up tasks.
For example, when I accumulate a large number of titles on my books-to-read or book-reviews-to-write list, I resolve to take care of one item per a reasonable time period, such as one week or one month. I have found that making progress in reducing clutter or backlogs provides sufficient motivation to keep up. It's a pleasant feeling to see space open up or lists shrink, even if the clearing up or shrinkage is not total.
I am not convinced that someone with difficulty in tossing one item per day can achieve the vastly more challenging task of getting rid of a whole bunch of stuff at once. We tend to accumulate junk because items have sentimental or economic value. We keep our children's writings or artwork, because they help us remember or visualize them growing up. Those of us who are tinkerers or fixers, keep parts of broken gadgets in our garage because we think that someday they may be of use in replacing a part in another broken gadget. If this is our motivation (saving money or time in finding a replacement later), then we need organizing skills not decluttering skills.
Having expressed my reservations, I do think that Kondo's book might be useful for those who don't have their own ideas about how to declutter or where to start. Do read the book, if this applies to you, but be mindful that any general edict about doing a task in a particular way, with no viable alternative, is likely to be misguided.

2018/06/24 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The New Yorker's cover image, issue of July 2, 2018, shows immigrant children taking refuge with Lady Liberty (1) The New Yorker's cover image, issue of July 2, 2018, shows immigrant children taking refuge with Lady Liberty.
(2) Google cloud engineers refuse to work on a war-related government project: The refusal by the so-called "Group of Nine" may cost Google billions, but it's a welcome harbinger of socially responsible engineering.
(3) Prominent Iranian women ask FIFA to seek a permanent end to the ban on women entering sports stadiums in Iran.
(4) This man isn't really blind, is he? [Photo]
Gives a new meaning to seeing with your mind's eye! I have no idea who the man is and in what city/country the photo was taken.
(5) While Iranians are distracted by the prospects of soccer glory, the free-market rate for one US dollar in Iran has surpassed 8800 tomans, more than double the official rate of 4260 tomans.
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Apple to release its AirPower wireless charger later this year: Prelude to removing the Lightning port?
- Trump thinks signing two pieces of paper has solved the NK nuclear threat and the immigration problem!
- Texas wants no stinking liberals! [Photo of roadside billboard]
- Certain genes may underlie several psychiatric conditions. [Eric Topol tweet]
- Iran's President Rouhani takes a cue from Donald Trump, attacking the media for criticizing his record.
- Sufi Mohammad Salas Babajani was executed in Iran, as the country's soccer team played in Russia.
(7) Saturday in Soccer World Cup: Three matches were played in Groups F and G.
- After leading 3-1 at halftime, Belgium defeated Tunisia 5-2 in an exciting match. [3-minute highlights]
- Mexico continued its good showing, edging past South Korea 2-1, after scoring its first goal on a PK.
- Germany avoided elimination in a thrilling 2-1 victory over Sweden, after falling behind in minute 32.
[In the margins of Germany's win: The Germans pulled off a lucky win, an obvious PK not called against them, playing one man down late in the match, and scoring deep into stoppage time.]
(8) Sunday in Soccer World Cup: Three matches were played in Groups G and H.
- Scoring on 2 PKs and a variety of styles on 4 more goals, England crushed Panama 6-1.
- Senegal took the lead after 11 minutes, with the two teams alternating in scoring, for a 2-2 draw
- The Polish defense resembled cheese, as Colombia sliced through it repeatedly, to win 3-0.
(9) Group standings in the 2018 World Cup: Each team has now played two matches, with the third match to be played in simultaneous pairs (e.g., Iran-Portugal at the exact same time as Spain-Morocco) over the next 4 days, to reduce the chances of team collusions, when the advancement of a team playing in one match depends on the performance of the other two teams in the group).
Monday (Groups A, B); Tuesday (Groups C, D); Wednesday (Groups F, E); Thursday (Groups H, G). Of each simultaneous pair of matches, one will be on Fox and the other on Fox Sports, at 7:00 AM and 11:00 AM PST.
Group A: Russia and Uruguay have advanced; Egypt and Saudi Arabia are eliminated; no surprise here.
Group B: Morocco is out. Iran will advance only if it beats Portugal, or draws, with Morocco beating Spain.
Group C: France is in; Peru is out; Australia has an outside chance of advancing if it beats Peru and gets help.
Group D: Croatia is in, with Nigeria (in better shape), Iceland, and Argentina all having a chance to advance.
Group E: Costa Rica is out, with Brazil, Switzerland, and Serbia all still in the running.
Group F: Mexico is in and South Korea is out. Germany (playing SK) and Sweden (v. Mexico) are dead even.
Group G: England and Belgium have advanced, while Tunisia and Panama are out; not much excitement here!
Group H: Poland is out, with Japan, Senegal, and Colombia all possible contenders.

2018/06/22 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Melania Trump visits the border: How clueless do you have to be to wear this jacket during a visit to children's detention centers? Santa Barbara Summer Solstice Festival and Parade Speaking of borders, 'Welcome to America': Time magazine's cover, issue of July 2, 2018 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Melania Trump visits the border: How clueless do you have to be to wear this jacket during a visit to children's detention centers? [Center] Santa Barbara Summer Solstice Festival and Parade. [Right] Speaking of borders, 'Welcome to America': Time magazine's cover, issue of July 2, 2018.
(2) Hollister Ave., west of Storke Rd.: My afternoon walk on Tuesday took me from Goleta's Camino Real Marketplace to a historic 1930s gas station, 2 miles to the west. There is a newly widened sidewalk/bike-path on the southern side of Hollister, which is very lightly used at this time. A new assisted-living facility caught my eyes, given the audiobook Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End, about end-of-life care, that I listened to while walking (review coming soon). [My photos] [History of the Ellwood Gas Station]
(3) Important safety information regarding Trump tweets: Common side effects include headache, confusion, changes in mood, profanity-laced tirades, bitter family arguments, and, in some instances, projectile vomiting. [From: The New Yorker]
(4) My fall 2018 courses: I just finished updating the Web pages for a graduate-level ECE course and an interdisciplinary freshman seminar that I will be teaching, so as to set the course schedules in a way to accommodate three conference trips being planned. For those interested, here are the Web pages for my courses. [ECE 257A: Fault-Tolerant Computing] [INT 94TN: Puzzling Problems in Science and Technology]
Table of standings in a group of 4 teams (5) A soccer puzzle: Here is a table of standings in a group of 4 teams, each of which has played 2 of its 3 matches in a round-robin format. Can you determine the matches that have been played and their scores? If you like this puzzle, the 2018 World Cup group standings tables provide more examples for your enjoyment, assuming you don't already know the matches and scores.
(6) Friday in Soccer World Cup: Three matches were played in Groups D and E.
- Brazil got a scoreless scare from Costa Rica until minute 90 but ended up winning 2-0 in stoppage time.
- To Argentina's delight, Nigeria decisively beat Iceland 2-0. The disappointed Iceland team missed a PK.
- Serbia took an early lead, but the Swiss scored in minute 53 and again in stoppage time to prevail 2-1.
(7) Interesting facts about the World Cup: Did you know that World Cup's soccer ball is redesigned every 4 years? Adidas supplies the official ball for every World Cup, with this year's iteration dubbed the Telstar 18. Small changes in the design can create significant differences in how the ball responds during play. To find out how the new 2018 ball performs, scientists stuck it in a wind tunnel with a bunch of sensors, publishing their findings in the Journal Sports Engineering and Technology.

2018/06/21 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of my extended family taken on May 5, 2018 (1) Photo of my extended family, taken on my niece's wedding day, in Ventura, California, May 5, 2018.
(2) Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, the new owner of Los Angeles Times, who made $7.5 billion from selling two biopharmaceutical companies and owns 4.5% of the LA Lakers, has fighting fake news as his top priority.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Paul Manafort is the only manager who had nothing to do with what he was supposed to manage! [Meme]
- Colorado joins California in resisting Trump by requiring stricter car pollution standards.
- What do preachers with mansions and private jets have to say about detention camps for children? [Meme]
- New business for Trump, Inc.: Marketing cherry-picked passages from the Bible! [Image]
- Looking back at World Cup history: The politically-charged match between Iran and the US, 20 years ago.
- Artists building bridges in an increasingly divided and intolerant: Sistanagila concert poster.
- Cartoon of the day: What would Jesus do with children at the border? [Image]
- I couldn't walk home via the beach path yesterday, but I still stopped by for the soothing surf sounds.
(4) Wednesday in Soccer World Cup: Three matches played in Groups A and B. Uruguay and Russia advance.
- Portugal edged past Morocco 1-0 on a minute-5 Ronaldo goal, not scoring again, despite many chances.
- Saudi Arabia played much better than in its first match against Russia, but Uruguay held on to win 1-0.
- Playing defense for the first 45 minutes and much of the second half, Iran lost to Spain 0-1.
[On the Spain-Iran match: Spain, as a championship contender, was expected to win handily, but Iran went into a defensive shell which made scoring difficult. Spain's sole goal came on a lucky deflection. A goal by Iran was disallowed due to offside. Overall, Iran must consider Spain's 1-0 victory a satisfying result for its team.]
(5) Thursday in Soccer World Cup: Three matches were played in Groups C and D.
- In the first match, Denmark took the lead and Australia equalized 1-1 with a PK. [2-minute highlights]
- France edged past Peru, bringing to 10 the inordinately large number of 1-0 matches in this tournament.
- Croatia humiliated Argentina 3-0, scoring early in the second half and twice late in the match.
[Croatia's first goal was a gift from the Argentine goalie. Argentina's Lionel Messi continued to struggle.]
(6) Happy summer and longest day of the year: We have just entered summer, which means that today is the longest day of the year. Iranians celebrate the beginning of spring (Norooz), fall (Mehregan), and winter (Shab-e Yalda, the longest night of the year), but so far as I know, there is no corresponding celebration for the beginning of summer and the longest day of the year. Let's celebrate anyway.
(7) Final thought for the day: "Let my soul smile through my heart and my heart smile through my eyes, that I may scatter rich smiles in sad hearts." ~ Paramahansa Yogananda

2018/06/19 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Sunset with beach palms Sunset at Niagara Falls Sunset with fall foliage (1) Earth's beautiful nature: Photos of sunset with beach palms, at Niagara Falls, and with fall foliage.
(2) Quote of the day: "I wonder how all those who do not write, compose, or paint can manage to escape the madness, the melancholia, the panic fear which is inherent in the human condition." ~ Graham Greene
(3) Sometimes a song's beauty does not register until you hear and see it played by a big orchestra: "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" theme music, composed by Ennio Morricone. [6-minute video]
(4) The silver lining of Trump's presidency: Morally repulsive politicians, mostly men, have held power for a long time. Only the extreme repulsiveness of Trump could have mobilized so many women to run for office and so many Americans becoming open to voting for them.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- The millionaire sponsor of Brexit held previously undisclosed meetings with Russia's Ambassador to the UK.
- Persian verses by Sa'eb Tabrizi: A couple of days late, but still worth sharing in honor of Fathers' Day.
- "A child across the border is no less worthy of love and compassion than my own child." ~ Barack Obama
- "Funny, he wasn't citing Romans to obey government when the black guy was POTUS." ~ John Fugelsang
- Based on a study of Einstein's diaries, a new book shockingly accuses him of racism and xenophobia.
- The world according to Trump: Friend or national security threat? [Cartoon]
- Diverse musical styles: Cat Stevens sings "Wild World" in concert, 1971; Kurdish music from Iran.
(6) Monday in Soccer World Cup: Three matches played in Groups F and G.
- Scoring on a PK, a dominant Swedish team edged past South Korea 1-0. [2-minute highlights] `
- A finely-tuned Belgian team spoiled Panama's World Cup debut 3-0. [3-minute highlights]
- Tunisia thought it had pulled an upset with the score tied after 90+ minutes, but England prevailed 2-1.
(7) Tuesday in Soccer World Cup: Three matches were played in Groups H and A, in what is turning out to be "the World Cup of upsets"! Every team has played one match, with Russia and Egypt completing their second.
- Scoring first on a PK, Japan pulled off an upset, beating Colombia 2-1. [2-minute highlights]
- Senegal dominated the match, beating Poland 2-1 in the second upset of the day. [2-minute highlights]
- Egypt's luck ran out, when it deflected a harmless ball into its own goal. Russia then took over to win 3-1.
[In the margins: Senegal's second goal was controversial, as the referee waved in a previously-injured player, while the game was being played. The said player raced downfield uncontested from the sideline, beating a defensive player and the goalie to a long ball, and scoring the goal. Russia advances to the knockout round. It's still a long way to go in the 2018 World Cup, but I have already broken my record of watching Fox TV!]
(8) Soccer, the beautiful sport with an ugly side: Where there is lots of money, there is corruption. In recent years, nearly 50 FIFA officials, going all the way to the top, have been indicted on bribery charges, including illegal acts connected with awarding the 2018 tournament to Russia. Thumbing his nose at investigators, Putin invited Sep Blatter, the ousted and censured former FIFA President, to attend the games in Russia, and he accepted! [Source: Time magazine, issue of June 25, 2018]

2018/06/17 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Colorful abacaus I received today as a Fathers' Day gift (1) Numbers and their place in nature: In a previous post, I indicated that natural numbers are, well, "natural"! In other words, the numbers 1, 2, 3, ... have a place in nature (0 is sometimes included among natural numbers), independent of any understanding of them. A bird may not know the abstractions 2 and 3, but it does recognize the difference between having 2 eggs or 3 eggs in its nest (such as when one egg goes missing). A natural number, zero included, correspond to the size (cardinality) of sets or collections of objects. The notion of addition of natural numbers arises naturally from putting sets together, as a set of 2 boys "plus" a set of 3 girls, together making a set of 5 children. There are infinitely many natural numbers.
The set of integers consists of natural numbers and their additive inverses. When we write the abstract equality 5 + (–5) = 0, we are saying that if you put five things into a collection and then take 5 things out, nothing will be left. In a similar vain, if you borrow 5 eggs from me and then return 5 eggs the next day, you have paid your debt and owe nothing. So, negative integers appear to be just as natural as natural numbers, also known as positive integers.
Next come rational numbers of the form p/q, numbers that are ratios of a natural number p to a non-zero natural number q. Examples include 1/3, 2/7, and 9/11. Let us first focus on a special class of rational numbers called unit fractions, with p = 1. Just as negative integers are additive inverses of natural numbers, unit fractions are multiplicative inverses of natural numbers. If natural numbers exist, then unit fractions also exist. If 5 apples constitute a set of apples, then one of those apples is 1/5 of that set. Unit fractions are easier to comprehend and deal with than arbitrary fractions. This is why ancient Egyptians dealt exclusively with unit fractions (the only exception being 2/3, which had its own hieroglyph). Even today, odds or likelihoods are often expressed as unit fractions (1 in 3 or 1 in 7) for ease of comprehension and visualization.
An arbitrary fraction can always be written as the sum of unit fractions, such as 8/15 = 1/3 + 1/5. The physical interpretation of 8/15 can be said to be 1/3 plus 1/5 of a set of 15 apples, say. In case you are curious, the decomposition of a fraction into unit fractions is not unique (e.g., 3/7 = 1/4 + 1/7 + 1/28 = 1/3 + 1/11 + 1/231 = 1/6 + 1/7 + 1/14 + 1/21), and there are various ways of deriving a set of unit fractions that add up to p/q. It is well-known that rational numbers are countably infinite, meaning that they can be placed in one-to-one correspondence with natural numbers.
The class of real numbers includes all rational numbers, plus other numbers referred to as irrationals (e.g., pi or square-root of 2). The set of real numbers is also infinite, but this uncountable infinite set is much larger than the countable set of rational numbers. So, almost all real numbers are irrational.
Do irrational numbers exist in nature?
The question of whether irrational numbers exist in nature relates to whether continuity is natural. If everything in nature is discrete, then nothing continuous exists. In that case, what we deem to be continuous, such as an infinitely divisible length, is really an abstraction of highly precise discrete quantities. If space-time is continuous, then we can talk about a triangle with two sides of exact length 1.0 and a 90-degree angle between the two. The third side of this triangle will be exactly of length square-root of 2, an irrational number. Similarly, if we construct a perfect circle with the exact diameter of 1.0, its perimeter will be pi. So, it appears to me that irrational numbers exist in nature if and only if space-time is continuous, which means that arbitrarily precise length and time measurements are possible. Because the latter question is as yet unresolved, we cannot make progress in determining the reality or naturalness of irrational numbers.
In fact, the problem is somewhat more complicated. Most physicists have accepted Einstein's suggestion that space and time are of the same nature, so they are either both continuous or both discrete. There are exceptions to this view, however. It could be that we have discrete space and continuous time, or vice versa, in which case some reframing of current physics theories may become necessary.
[Reference on mathematical platonism] [Reference on space/time continuity]
[Note: The image atop this note is a photo of part of an abacus I received among my Fathers' Day gifts today.]
(2) Bittersweet end of the academic year: My early afternoon walk on Saturday took me to the edge of UCSB campus, where graduation ceremonies were held on a large lawn, next to the campus lagoon. College of Engineering had a separate graduation ceremony today. I arrived there between two ceremonies, as one group was leaving and another group of graduates was arriving with family members in tow, all smiles. The streets of Isla Vista were jam-packed with cars, including trucks, moving vans, and sedans filled to the brim with personal belongings. Streets and sidewalks were littered with discarded mattresses, furniture, and other items, attracting scavengers with trucks or push-carts, loading and taking away usable/salvageable items, as soon as they appeared on the sidewalk. [Photos]
(3) Saturday in Soccer World Cup: Four matches were played in Groups C and D. [Highlights videos in links]
- France beat Australia 2-1, the first goal of each team coming on a PK. [2-minute highlights]
- Argentina and Iceland played to a 1-1 draw, thanks to Iceland goalie's heroic saves, including a Messi PK.
- Peru controlled much of the game and took more shots (including a missed PK), but Denmark won 1-0.
- Croatia beat Nigeria 2-0 in a wide-open game, their second goal coming on a PK.
(4) Sunday in Soccer World Cup: Three matches in Groups E and F, all with unexpected outcomes.
- Serbia stunned Costa Rica 1-0 with a minute-64 long-distance goal on a free kick. [2-minute highlights]
- Mexico overcame Germany 1-0, for the first time in 30 years. [4-minute highlights and commentary]
- Brazil and Switzerland played to a 1-1 draw, in part due to the Swiss goalie's heroics. [3-minute highlights]

2018/06/15 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The colors of the four seasons (1) Putting the spring quarter 2018 behind: I have been changing my Facebook cover photos at the end of each academic quarter to something appropriate for the new season. After finishing my course-related tasks and reporting the grades to the registrar's office, instead of changing my Facebook cover photo to something about the forthcoming summer season, I replaced it with a piece of art about all seasons, beginning with summer on the left. I will name the work and the artist, once I locate the info.
(2) [Book introduction] Why? What Makes Us Curious: In this wonderful book (Simon & Schuster, 2017), Mario Livio, a best-selling author of science texts, probes the question of human curiosity, our "engine of discovery," via the stories of two icons of curiosity and discovery: artist Leonardo da Vinci and physicist Richard Feynman.
(3) Women in Post-Revolutionary Iran: The Pioneers of Gender Justice, Agents of Social Transformation, and the Prospect for the Future (All-day event in Mountain View, CA, Saturday, June 23, 2018) [Poster]
(4) The Women's Movement: From the 'Constitutional Revolution' to the 'Girls of the Revolution Street' (Talk by Dr. Nayereh Tohidi at the June General Meeting of the Association of Iranian-American Professionals of San Diego, Wednesday, June 27, 2018, 6:00 PM, San Diego area) [Announcement]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Donald Trump salutes North Korean general in lavishly produced Kim Jong Un propaganda film.
- World Cup's Days 1-2: Russia 5-0 Saudi Arabia; Uruguay 1-0 Egypt; Iran 1-0 Morocco; Portugal 3-3 Spain.
- Quote of the day: "Those who wish to sing always find a song." ~ Swedish proverb
- On Youth and age: "Youth is the gift of nature, but age is a work of art." ~ Polish poet Stanislaw Jerzy Lec
(6) In the rearview mirror: "In their 1920 program, the Nazis proclaimed that 'members of foreign nations (noncitizens) are to be expelled from Germany.' Next would come autarky: Germans would conquer the territory they needed to be self-sufficient, and then create their own economy in isolation from that of the rest of the world. As Goebbels put it, 'We want to build a wall, a protective wall.' Hitler maintained that the vicissitudes of globalization were not the result of economic forces but of a Jewish international conspiracy." ~ From: The Death of Democracy
(7) On today's Iran-Morocco Group-B World Cup match: Iran escaped from the first half against Morocco 0-0, after playing disorganized defense for nearly 30 minutes. A draw would have been bad for both teams, so they woke up late in the match, creating more opportunities. Iran forced an own goal 4 minutes into extra time to defeat Morocco 1-0! [Photos: Batch 1; Batch 2]
(8) On today's Portugal-Spain Group-B World Cup match: A TV announcer indicated right before the match that the trailers and ads were over and real soccer was about to begin! Portugal scored in the 4th minute on a PK. Spain equalized in the 24th minute. Portugal scored in the 44th minute to lead 2-1 at halftime. Spain equalized on a free kick in the 55th minute. A wonderful 58th-minute distance shot made it 3-2 Spain! Ronaldo completed a hat trick on a masterful free kick, just before the final whistle to make the tie the score at 3-3. [Photos]
(9) World Cup analysis and weekend schedule: Right now, Iran is in top spot of World Cup's Group B with 3 points, but today's draw between Portugal and Spain actually hurt Iran's chances of advancing. If both Portugal and Spain beat Iran, they will have 4+ points each (regardless of how Morocco does in its remaining two matches) and Iran will be eliminated. A draw by Iran will keep advancement chances alive, at least in theory (goal differential is unlikely to favor Iran). Here are World Cup matches for the weekend; all times US EDT.

2018/06/14 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Artist at work in Isfahan's bazaar, Iran Intersection of Church and State Streets FIFA World Cup 2018 square logo with soccer ball (1) Some interesting images: [Left] Artist at work in Isfahan's bazaar, Iran. [Center] What separation between church and state? Trump's economic adviser says there is a special place in hell for Justin Trudeau. [Right] Complete Soccer World Cup TV schedule (all times US Eastern), Friday, June 15, to Sunday, July 15, 2018.
(2) In his news conference, Trump said that North Korea has beautiful beaches and some great-looking condos can be built there. Guess who aspires to do the building after the end of his presidency?
(3) Iranian lawyer and human-rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh has been arrested again: She previously spent years in prison, yet after her release, she continued her courageous efforts to speak up for justice, most recently, in the form of defending women prosecuted for opposing Iran's mandatory hijab law. Interestingly, she has been told that she will serve a 5-year jail term, right after her arrest!
(4) Imagine a country with no Internet, only one TV channel, government-controlled news, a land where making unauthorized international phone calls is punishable by execution. The problem of North Korean people isn't that they don't have luxury condos and hotels on their beautiful beaches. The people there are suffering from oppression, poverty, hunger, and lack of human dignity. Congratulations, America, for legitimizing the regime responsible for these conditions!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Soccer World Cup 2026 will be hosted jointly by Canada, USA, and Mexico.
- After many years, the US is again leading in the race to build the world's most powerful supercomputer.
- Proposal to split California into three states, each with a population of 12-14 million, will be put to vote.
- Hunger leads to anger: Oxford Dictionary now recognizes the word "hanger" for anger caused by hunger.
- Quote of the day: "You fall in love with people's minds." ~ Anais Nin, Henry and June
- A family affair: Salar Aghili, his wife, and their son perform the Persian song "Bahar-e Delneshin."
(6) University of Washington researchers have developed a system that, once trained on sample soccer videos, converts a 2D video version of a match to realistic 3D version played right in front of you with a VR headset.

Cover image for Paul Hoffman's 'The Man Who Loved Only Numbers' 2018/06/13 (Wednesday): Book review: Hoffman, Paul, The Man Who Loved Only Numbers: The Story of Paul Erdos and the Search for Mathematical Truth, Hachette, 1999. [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Hoffman tells the story of Paul Erdos [1913-1996] (pronounced "air-dish"), arguably the most brilliant mathematician of all time. He was certainly the most prolific, in terms of both the number of papers published (~1500) and the range of topics he covered. This isn't just a book about Erdos. Numerous mathematicians, scientists, and philosophers appear across the pages, as their contributions are linked to those of Erdos or are used to make various points about mathematics and its beauty and significance. Sixteen pages of black-and-white photos, inserted between pages 148 and 149, depict Erdos and others.
The story of Erdos' life and his mathematical contributions is intertwined with horror stories from World War II. Erdos spent time with many giants of mathematics and physics during a very special era of scientific interactions. Erdos never had a girlfriend; hence the title of this book. He put his lack of romantic interests in this way: "The privilege of pleasure in dealing with women has not been given to me." Interestingly, a few women were more than happy to be around him; one drove him around for a long time, before getting tired of the routine. In all cases, the relationships remained Platonic.
Erdos traveled constantly, living out of a bag, and producing beautiful mathematical results, often collaboratively. His trail included the entire continent of Europe and, when he was not banned from entering the US during the McCarthy era and for some years after that, many parts of the US. Erdos is said to have been responsible for turning mathematics into a social activity.
Paul Erdos as a boy, in middle age, and as an old man A colleague of Erdos composed the following limerick about him:
A conjecture both deep and profound
Is whether the circle is round
In a paper of Erdos
Written in Kurdish
A counterexample is found
Erdos had so many co-authors that he is connected to most mathematicians by a few hops in the co-authorship network (two individuals are linked in the network if they published a paper together). The distance of an individual to Erdos in this network is known as his or her "Erdos Number." A small Erdos number is worn as a badge of honor! There are 485 lucky individuals with an Erdos number of 1 (his co-authors). Erdos sent out some 1500 letters per year. They mostly discussed mathematics. A typical letter of his began, "I am in Australia. Tomorrow I leave for Hungary. Let k be the largest integer ..." or "Dear Hua, Let p be an odd prime ..." Once during a museum visit, he sat down at a garden, doing math.
Erdos loved, and was good at, constructing succinct, insightful arguments, never accepting page after page of equations as a legitimate proof. In functional analysis, which Erdos knew little about, he casually constructed a two-line solution for a problem that had needed 30 pages. He had a knack for working on disperate problems simultaneously, like a chess grandmaster who goes around the room and plays against multiple opponents. A favorite topic for Erdos was Ramsey Theory, which deals with problems of the following kind: How many guests do we need (at least) at a party so that there are 3 people among them who know each other or 3 people who are mutual strangers?
Erdos was fond of saying, "A mathematician is a machine for turning coffee into theorems." Once, Erdos joked that he was 2.5 billion years old, because during his childhood, the Earth was said to be 2 billion years old, whereas now its age is given as 4.5 billion years! Erdos quoted his friend, mathematician Stanislaw Ulam: "The first sign of senility is that a man forgets his theorems, the second sign is that he forgets to zip up, the third sign is that he forgets to zip down" [p. 251].
No biography of Erdos or its review would be complete without reference to actual mathematical problems. Here is a recreational math problem of the kind that attracted Erdos. When Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run, breaking Babe Ruth's record of 714, mathematicians took delight in some unusual properties of the pair (715, 714). For one thing, the product of 715 and 714 equals the product of the first 7 prime numbers. Also, the sum of the prime factors of 715 (5, 11, 13) equals the sum of the prime factors of 714 (2, 3, 7, 17), prompting the designation "Ruth-Aaron pair" for consecutive integers having this property. When Carl Pomerance conjectured, with no inkling of how to prove it, that there are infinitely many Ruth-Aaron pairs, Erdos was quick to come up with a proof (pp. 180-181). This chance contact developed into 21 co-authored papers.
No one is working on Ruth-Aaron pairs any more, but "The line between recreational mathematics and serious number theory is often fuzzy" [p. 204]. As observed by John Tierney, "This is the remarkable paradox of mathematics. No matter how determinedly its practitioners ignore the world, they consistently produce the best tools for understanding it. ... [For example] Bernhard Riemann ... replaces Euclid's plane with a bizarre abstraction called curved space, and then, 60 years later, Einstein announces that this is the shape of the universe."
Here is another interesting example from the book. Ancient Egyptians were very fond of unit fractions, having 1 as the numerator (e.g., 1/3, 1/10, 1/413) and tried to deal with them exclusively. The only exception was 2/3, which had its own hieroglyph. Every fraction is representable as the sum of a set of unit fractions. For example, 7/11 = 1/2 + 1/8 + 1/88 and 55/84 = 1/2 + 1/7 + 1/84. Fibonacci used a greedy process to derive a set of unit fractions, whose sum equaled a given fraction. First choose the largest unit fraction 1/m that is smaller than the given fraction p/q. Compute the remainder p/q – 1/m and repeat the process. The greedy process does not necessarily lead to a "best" representation, which can be defined in a variety of ways (smallest number of unit fractions, minimal value for the largest denominator, minimal sum for the denominators, and so on). Here is an example with multiple representations: 3/7 = 1/4 + 1/7 + 1/28 = 1/3 + 1/11 + 1/231 = 1/6 + 1/7 + 1/14 + 1/21.
Hundreds of thousands of theorems are proven each year, and it is difficult to judge which ones will end up being important. Many of these theorems find a single reader or a handful of readers, but if the number of people interested in a particular area or problem reaches 100, then perhaps that area/problem is important. The list of problems that Erdos tackled himself or helped others solve is virtually endless. One example is the fact that there is always a prime between n and 2n. This constitutes one of the ways of proving that there are infinitely many primes (a fact first proven by Euclid). And Erdos wasn't well-read only in mathematics. Once, a speaker scheduled to give a talk did not show up. Erdos got up and gave a lecture about recent discoveries about the color vision of bees, with no preparation or notes.
As brilliant as Erdos was, his intuition occasionally led him astray. A famous example is his reaction to the Monty Hall problem. He got into a dispute with Marilyn vos Savant, whose column in Parade magazine popularized the problem. It took Erdos a long time to come to accept that if a contestant on a game show with three closed doors, behind one of which is a grand prize, chooses a door and is then shown behind one of the other two doors which contains no prize, switching from the chosen door to the other remaining door will double his/her chances of winning the prize.
Anyone with some interest in mathematics should absolutely read this book. I provided examples of the eccentricities and genius of Erdos in my review, but there are many more examples in this remarkable book.
[End note: Thanks to my daughter Sepideh for recommending this book to me and for loaning me her copy.]

2018/06/12 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon portrait of Donald Trump Political chess game between US and North Korea Cartoon portrait of Kim Jong Un (1) A high-stakes political chess game, being played in Singapore between US and North Korea leaders.
(2) Mind-reading Siri and Alexa: Student researchers at MIT's Media Lab have designed a headset that detects subvocalization (the process that triggers neuromuscular signals when we read to ourselves, e.g.) to pick up our thoughts through small muscle movements.
(3) Robotic bees on Mars: A future NASA Mars mission may include tiny flying robots the size of bumblebees, which are equipped with cameras, sensors, and wireless communication capabilities. Flying in swarms, the robots can help create 3D maps to help a rover navigate the rugged Martian terrain.
(4) New algorithm can spot fake photos, before they go viral: UC Berkeley and CMU researchers have developed a system that can detect inconsistencies in doctored images. Each imaging device has unique features that manifest themselves across entire images. By teaching an algorithm to distinguish imagery from different sources, researchers hope to be able to identify images that mix elements from more than one source.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Thoughts and prayers: Gunman kills four child hostages and himself in Florida standoff.
- Freudian slip: Fox News host refers to the Singapore summit as meeting of two dictators!
- Donald Trump says Kim Jong Un has accepted invitation to visit him at the White House.
- Persian poetry: A playful love poem by the Azeri poet Mohammad Hossein Shahriar. [Facebook post]
Block against a wall (6) Neat physics problem from Wired magazine: A 1-kg block is pressed against a vertical wall and is pushed an an angle theta, just hard enough to stay in place. The coefficient of friction between the block and the wall is 0.5. What is the required force F? Is there an optimum value for the angle theta that minimizes the required force?
(7) Ivanka Trump's "Chinese proverb" backfires: In support of her father's summit with Kim Jong Un, Ivanka tweeted, "Those who say it can not be done, should not interrupt those doing it." The misplaced comma aside, the tweet has two main problems. First, it isn't a Chinese proverb, but an example of Eastern "wisdom" manufactured by Westerners. Reactions from actual Asians were wide-ranging, including the following tweets:
- "This is not even remotely an actual Chinese proverb." - Chinese proverb
- "Confucius say ... don't use Chinese proverbs as intellectual and moral veneer."
- "You can call any old shit a Chinese proverb on the Internet." - Confucius
More importantly, even though the statement sounds profound at first, further reflection reveals it to be misguided. Suppose the doer is a man running toward the rim of the Grand Canyon, with the aim of jumping to the other side. An observer, who thinks the Canyon is too wide for this stunt to succeed, has the absolute moral obligation to interrupt him, even if it requires tackling him to the ground.

2018/06/11 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Geometric interpretation of square-root of 2 (1) Several friends had engaged in a discussion of numbers and whether they always existed in nature, before we humans discovered them, or whether they are made up by us. Here is what I contributed to the discussion.
On the reality of irrational numbers: Whether numbers are "real" or figments of our imagination is a deep philosophical discussion. There is near-unanimous agreement that integers have always been there, independent of human discovery and understanding. Mathematician Leopold Kronecker famously said: "God made the integers; all else is the work of man." In a deeper sense, it doesn't really matter whether pi or square-root of 2 is real or just imagined. Mathematicians can't be bothered with this question, because what they do is independent of the "realness" of numbers.
I claim that square-root of 2 is just as real as the integer 2. Here is my reasoning. Let's begin by accepting the notion of time being unidirectional (the arrow of time) and measurable. The unidirectionality of time is a debatable assumption, but we have to start somewhere. The measurability is less of a problem, because time and distance-traveled are interchangeable in the case of uniform motion. It makes perfect sense to talk about one distance or one time-interval being twice as long as another one.
Now, imagine an ant crawling for 1 minute at a constant speed of 1 meter/minute along a straight line from point A to point B, turning left by 90 degrees, and moving from B to C along a straight line in 1 minute. Travel distance and travel time from A to C by this ant are both twice as long as those for the first leg of the trip. A second ant, also crawling at 1 meter/minute, goes straight from A to C. The time taken by the second ant and the distance it travels are both shorter by a factor of square-root of 2.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Former basketball player Dennis Rodman has traveled to Singapore for the US-NK nuclear summit.
- Political puzzle: Of these two photos of Trump, which one is with a US friend and which one with a foe?
- Trump officials begin the process of cleaning up the mess he created at the G-7 summit in Canada.
- It seems that "America First" is turning into "America Alone"!
- In the top positions of Spain's new government, women outnumber men nearly 2 to 1.
- Newspapers around the world react to Trump's embarrassing behavior at the G-7 summit in Canada.
- Persian poetry: A couple of verses from Sanaa'ee Ghaznavi. [Persian verses]
- On a stroll in my mom's condo complex, with family members: The fish in the pond are up to 50 years old.
(3) Speakerless car audio system: Based on the same properties as string instruments, Continental's Ac2ated system converts vibrations from a car's interior components into high-quality sounds. The back windshield, e.g., becomes a subwoofer, the A-pillar posts become tweeters, and so on. An expensive car audio system can weigh 20 lbs or more, whereas the new system registers at just 2 lbs.
(4) Perfection isn't always desirable: ClearMotion, a Boston start-up, has created a suspension system that is so perfect that it has to be toned down a bit to give the driver a feel for the road and brakes. Various sensors predict when the car is about to go over a bump, dip, or hole and quickly compensate for it, giving a very smooth ride. The toning down is needed with real drivers, but where self-driving cars are involved, the absolute smooth ride can be maintained.

Images from UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran, Sunday, June 10, 2018 2018/06/10 (Sunday): UCLA Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran: Today's program (121 Dodd Hall, 4:00-7:00 PM) consisted of a screening of Tahmineh Milani's film "Untaken Paths" (or "Mali and Her Untaken Paths"), focusing on domestic violence, followed by a panel discussion, during which, moderator Dr. Nayereh Tohidi (shown on the right in the photo) provided a post-screening intro, followed by position statements from (in order from right to left) Dr. Nelly Farnoody-Zahiri, Abbas Hadjian, and Partow Nooriala. Let me include some links before reporting on the film and the ensuing discussion.
- Official trailer [1-minute video]
- Voice of America story about the film [5-minute video]
- The full film [106-minute video]
Dr. Tohidi introduced the panel, indicating that they were chosen to represent the viewpoints of a psychologist/family-counselor, an attorney who is familiar with both Iranian and US family laws, and an author/poet/film-critic. She also offered some concluding remarks at the end of the Q&A period, filling, in essence, the shoes of Ms. Milani, who wasn't present to respond to a number of criticisms of her film. After being banned from the Fajr Film Festival in Iran, Milani's film eventually received a screening permit and became commercially successful.
Dr. Farnoody-Zahiri commented on the cycle of violence, which was also evident in this film, because the abusive husband, Sia, was himself abused as a child, and the importance of teaching children how to deal with an abusive environment as part of school curricula. She faulted Ms. Milani for using a man to be Mali's contact point over the crisis hotline (what in an Iranian law being considered is referred to as "safe house"; more on this later). She stressed the importance of women banding together to provide support and problem-solving in case of abuse. This type of "sisterhood" was evident in several scenes of the film, including when two or more women came together in hospital or emergency-room settings. She raised the need for analyzing and dealing with the root causes of violence, because, ironically, sometimes even the abuser does not know what made him snap. Dr. Farnoody-Zahiri recommended two pertinent books in the course of her remarks: The Yes Brain and The State of Affairs.
Mr. Hadjian began by indicating that the "safe house" concept was first introduced in Afghanistan about a decade ago, but the law was shelved by the Afghan parliament in 2013. In 2012, Iran began working on an extended version of the idea, which is now said to be ready for submission to the Majlis. He indicated that the Iranian law has weaknesses in that, unlike California law, it does not say anything about the possibility of interventions and reconciliation between the couple. A big part of the problem is that Iran's family law is a century old, with hardly any updates through three political regimes, rise of the country's literacy rate to 97%, and a tenfold increase in population. The film depicts families that either no longer exist in Iran or are quite rare. Modern Iranian men and women view the film's depictions as highly exaggerated.
Ms. Nooriala read her written review of the film, indicating that whereas she admires Ms. Milani's courage in making such a film in a society where criticism of patriarchy and "honor" crimes isn't welcome, her film was cinematically weak. There were too many repeated scenes of violence (albeit, mostly filmed from behind a closed door, given the ban on male and female actors touching each other in Iran, which is also a problem in depicting love and tenderness, and, additionally, it causes awkward scenes, such as a woman wearing a headscarf, even when she is alone in her bedroom) and not enough attention to other elements of the story, such as the roles of enabling or disengaged family members. She indicated that Ms. Milani's "Two Women" was of higher quality, even though it was made many years ago.
[Note on the reaction to Milani's film by government authorities in Iran (added on Wednesday, June 13, 2018): As context for the UCLA screening and panel discussion, it is instructive to consider how the film has been suppressed in Iran, through excluding all advertising for it on the state TV and publication of critical reviews in regime's mouthpieces, including the hardliners-controlled Kayhan daily.
Voice of America story (3-minute video); Panel discussion with the director (37-minute video)]
[End note: I'd be happy to make corrections in the facts cited or any inadvertent misrepresentation of the panelists' views, if they are kind enough to let me know. I may also make corrections/refinements of my own.]

2018/06/09 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) Book review: Pirzad, Zoya, I'll Turn off the Lights (in Persian), Nashr-e Markaz, 2002. (ISBN: 978-964-305-656-8) [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image of Zoya Pirzad's 'I'll Turn off the Lights This acclaimed book was recommended and loaned to me by my sister. As in Pirzad's later novel, We'll Get Used to It (see my review), the writing consists of short, colloquial sentences. The Lights is better-written than Get Used, yet following the narrative, which comes in fits and starts, wasn't easy for me. I guess this is the way people talk, yet one expects a novelist to do more than just string together short, superficial sentences.
This is a novel with realistic characters for its setting, although the author warns us at the outset that she has taken some liberties in shaping the locales where events happen. There is much to learn from this book about the lifestyles of the Armenian minority in Iran and the more or less Westernized oil city of Abadan in the southwestern province of Khuzestan, as it was before the Islamic Revolution and during the subsequent war with Iraq.
The story is told from the vantage point of Claris, a young Armenian woman living with her husband Artush and three kids in Abadan of the 1960s. Their residence is part of the housing development where National Iranian Oil Company's employees live. The family's drab and relatively peaceful existence is disturbed when new neighbors move in.
Claris, whose Latin-based name means "fame, most famous, most bright," plays the role of a standard-issue, selfless, devoted housewife, but, deep down, she craves much more. She reads books and has a secret crush on a family friend, Emil, who visits from time to time. As a married woman in a traditional society, Claris keeps this taboo attraction under wraps, not mustering the courage to admit it even to herself. She thinks about this forbidden love nightly, for a few moments, as she gets ready to go to bed and announces that she will turn off the lights.
Claris craves attention, an amenity that was in short supply for Iranian women living many decades ago. Artush and others bring home guests unannounced and Claris is expected to feed and pamper them. Once, she rebels and in answer to her husband's "What's for dinner?" question, replies "Nothing!" and suggests that they order food from the Annex (pp. 163-164). However, by and large, she plays the role of an obedient wife, curbing her rebellion and keeping illicit thoughts to herself.
As I wrote in my review of Get Used, I am attracted to the works of Iranian women in view of their out-size influence on the political and rights movements in Iran and the attendant perspectives they bring to the ills of a backward, patriarchal society. Iranian women authors deserve to be read and heard, as they offer their diverse and compelling narratives about women's predicaments and their struggle for independence and justice.
Examples of unit fractions (2) Math puzzle: Ancient Egyptians were very fond of unit fractions, having 1 as the numerator (e.g., 1/3, 1/10, 1/413) and tried to deal with them exclusively. The only exception was 2/3, which had its own hieroglyph. Show that 7/11 and 55/84 can each be written as the sum of 3 unit fractions. Is every fraction representable as the sum of two or more distinct unit fractions?
(3) Drone light show: Time magazine created the cover of its June 11, 2018, issue with help from Intel's Drone Light Show team, which used 958 drones to display this pattern with a precise shade of red in Folsom, California, on May 2. Intel is marking its 50th anniversary this year.
(4) A drone captures the stark contrast between a shack city and a middle-class suburb on opposite sides of a road in Johannesburg, the worst example of inequality, according to the World Bank. [Photo: Time magazine]

2018/06/08 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
NASA's Mars Curiosity Rover (1) New evidence of extraterrestrial life: The nuclear-powered, SUV-size Curiosity Rover, which has been exploring the surface of Mars since 2012, has detected signs of ancient carbon compounds on the red planet. Combined with the earlier detection of methane in the current Martian atmosphere, the new findings offer the strongest evidence yet of extraterrestrial life.
(2) UC Santa Barbara basketball player Drew Edelman achieves top GPA among athletes, completes requirements for a master's degree in education, and lands pro contract to play in Israel.
(3) The end of the academic year is such a bitter-sweet thing. Yes, summer is on its way and we will have more time for research and travel, but the campus will not be as alive with seminars and cultural events. [Image]
(4) UCSB Computer Engineering Program's senior capstone project day: Here are three sample projects.
- SPOT (sponsor NASA), a device that helps astronauts path-find on unknown terrain without an increase in cognitive load. Team members: Saurabh Gupta, Bryan Lavin-Parmenter, Neil O'Bryan, Brandon Pon
- Deep Vision (sponsor NVIDIA), identifying and tracking targets, such as people and dogs, in real time by analyzing drone video. Team members: Chenghao Jiang, Terry Xie, Charlie Xu, Jenny Zheng
- Wall-E (sponsor UCSB Oakley Lab), Waterborne Autonomous Low-Light Electrostereovideography, a submersible low-light camera that can be deployed in tandem to analyze ostracod courtship patterns using computer-vision techniques. Team members: Veena Chandran, Karthik Kribakaran, Wesley Peery, Franklin Tang, Vincent Wang, Karli Yokotake
[Posters for a couple of capstone projects I assessed with regard to ABET's CE design requirements.]
[A few other projects from this afternoon's poster and demo session for engineering capstone projects.]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Anthony Bourdain, celebrity chef and TV personality commits suicide at 61. [Bourdain on depression]
- Golden State crushed Cleveland 108-85 to sweep the NBA finals series and claim its second straight title.
- It's only a matter of time before cybersecurity breach occurs on an airplane, with dire consequences.
- Intel claims 28-hour laptop batteries are possible with a new low-power display technology.
- Santa Barbara City College Professor Mark McIntire dismissed over sexual misconduct allegations.
- Quotation boards at Goleta's Pieology pizzeria, which I visited this afternoon. [Photos]
- Student artists in Isla Vista are busy prettifying electric and other street-side utility enclosures.
- Look what I found on UCSB Library's new-books shelf: Molla Sadra's selections of Persian poetry.
(6) On mathematics and the real world: "This is the remarkable paradox of mathematics. No matter how determinedly its practitioners ignore the world, they consistently produce the best tools for understanding it. ... [For example] Bernhard Riemann ... replaces Euclid's plane with a bizarre abstraction called curved space, and then, 60 years later, Einstein announces that this is the shape of the universe." ~ John Tierney

2018/06/07 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Map of California, with color-coded results for the governor race in the 6/05 primary election (1) California counties that voted for Gavin Newsome, John Cox, and Antonio Villaraigosa in the governor race: A tad over 20% voted on Tuesday. We are not safe, folks. Take voting seriously!
(2) Began this next-to-last day in the final week of spring quarter classes with some wonderful gift coffee from Hawaii. End-of-quarter and end-of-academic-year activities make for a very busy schedule this week, which will end with our "capstone project day" tomorrow. Final exams are next week.
(3) Motors may become a thing of the past in robots: A University of Hong Kong research team has created the first ever nickel-hydroxide actuating material that, when stimulated by light or electricity, exerts a force equal to 3000 times its own weight, almost instantly.
(4) Women making headway in tech: Following the election of women as President and VP of ACM, world's largest computing association, Vicki L. Hanson has been appointed Exec-Director/CEO of the organization.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Mere weeks after being appointed, Bolton seems to have been sidelined, as Trump prepares to meet Kim.
- Fox News apologizes to the Eagles for using footage of the team praying in its news story about kneeling.
- Time magazine's cover image, issue of June 18, 2018: King Donald's visions of grandeur!
- Miss America ditches the swimsuit competition, claims it is no longer a pageant.
- Golden State beats Cleveland 110-102 to take an insurmountable 3-0 lead in the NBA finals.
- Medieval quote of the day: "Only men are capable of running an international airline." ~ Qatar Airlines CEO
- Soccer World Cup attendees are being warned about lack of safety in public Wi-Fi networks of host cities.
- True or false? Any subset of n + 1 integers chosen from [1, 2n] contains two relatively prime integers.
- [Cartoon caption of the day, from New Yorker] Trump calls audible: "You fake right, I'll fake patriotism."
- From the announcements board of a church: "Jesus would have baked the cake & danced at the wedding!"
(6) Some conservatives claim that the resurrected TV series "Roseanne" was cancelled, not because of its star's racist tweet, but because the character she plays voted for Trump!
(7) Final thought for the day: Terrorists collect wounds, some of them decades or even centuries old, and pick at them continually to keep them fresh. And because their extremist ideologies do not allow forgiveness, tension easily builds up to the point of explosion. [The term "wound collector" was first used in Joe Navarro's book, Hunting Terrorists: A Look at the Psychopathology of Terror.]

2018/06/05 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for S. Mukherjee's 'The Gene' (1) Book review: Mukherjee, Siddhartha, The Gene: An Intimate History, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Dennis Boutsikaris, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2016. [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This is a detailed and highly personal account of research on genetics and genomics, spanning all the way from its centuries-long prehistory, through the discovery of genes, to the most modern genetic analyses and interventions. The "intimate" of the title has a dual meaning: The account is up-close and personal in how it portrays the research and the researchers; it also covers the author's own family history of mental illness, and how genes played a role in it.
Mukherjee had previously written a Pulitzer-Prize-winning, book, The Emperor of All Maladies, about cancer. The book under review here also has much information about cancer and its genetic dimensions. This trailer of a Ken Burns TV series based on Emperor gives you a good idea of the latter book's scope and significance.
We learn from The Gene that mono-genetic diseases, those caused by mutation in a single gene, are quite easy to diagnose and treat via genetic intervention, whereas diseases caused by the coincidence of multiple gene mutations are much more difficult to diagnose and as yet do not lend themselves to effective interventions.
This is a long (audio)book and listening to or reading it requires dedication and patience. Some of the detours and side stories may not be of interest to all listeners/readers. But perseverance yields great rewards in terms of increasing your knowledge of genetics and genomics. The book is equally appealing to scientists who want to see the entire history of the science of the genes in one place and to lay people who want to learn about exciting scientific developments that are affecting their lives.
(2) First woman recipient of IEEE/ACM Eckert-Mauchly Award: CS Professor Susan Eggers, University of Washington, was cited for her contributions to simultaneous multithreaded processor architectures and multiprocessor sharing and coherency.
(3) Trump's love fest with Macron comes to an end, as France and Germany join forces to advocate for Europe going its own way in matters of defense, finance, refugees, and immigration, in the face of an increasingly unreliable Trump-led US.
(4) These aren't movie stars or models but members of Iran's national soccer team, which just entered Russia in advance of its first World Cup match against Morocco on Friday, June 15.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Guatemala's Fuego volcano eruption kills 70 people: Dangers still loom, as volcanic activity continues.
- "Legally Blonde 3" is in the works: Will Elle Woods join the Mueller team or argue for a #MeToo case?
- Quote of the day: "The more articulate one is, the more dangerous words become." ~ May Sarton
- For my Persian-speaking readerss: Reality funnier than any joke! [Facebook post]
- View of UCSB's lagoon, the ocean beyond it, and the Channel Islands, from a campus walkway.
- Photos from the path of my walk this evening, showing the haze and perfect waves attracting surfers.
(6) Final thought for the day: "Good—he did not have enough imagination to become a mathematician." ~ David Hilbert's reaction, upon hearing that a student had dropped mathematics to become a poet

2018/06/04 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Dazzling monasteries in southwest Germany, photo 1 Dazzling monasteries in southwest Germany, photo 2 Dazzling monasteries in southwest Germany, photo 3 (1) Beautiful architecture: photos of dazzling monasteries in southwest Germany.
(2) Quote of the day: "Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it." ~ Rumi
(3) Trump tweeted this morning that he has an absolute right to pardon himself. He will likely change his mind when he realizes that pardoning himself amounts to admitting he did something wrong!
(4) Bill Clinton's Trumpian moment: He attacked a reporter asking whether he had ever apologized to Monica Lewinsky and what he thought of the #MeToo movement. Clinton later apologized for "getting hot under the collar," but his initial reaction was rather embarrassing.
(5) Asteroid on collision course with Earth spotted on June 2, just hours before impact: Luckily for us, the 6-foot-wide asteroid was small enough to safely disintegrate upon hitting the atmosphere.
(6) Turning CO2 into carbon nanotubes: Extracting carbon from the air may become cost-effective if it results in valuable products, such as carbon nanotubes.
(7) Saudi Arabia issues first batch of 10 driver's licenses to women. They also put about the same number of women in jail for activism in securing driving rights for Saudi women.
(8) Senator Rand Paul questions Mike Pompeo during his confirmation hearing: He makes some very reasonable points regarding Pompeo's demands on Iran.
(9) Turing Award Lecture for 2017 (see CACM's cover image, posted on 6/03): Titled "A New Golden Age for Computer Architecture: Domain-Specific Hardware/Software Co-Design, Enhanced Security, Open Instruction Sets, and Agile Chip Development," the lecture was delivered by John Hennessy and David Patterson at the International Symposium on Computer Architecture in Los Angeles. I watched it via live-streaming. Patterson began by providing, in Part I, a capsule history of computer architecture and how RISC architecture came about and dominated the industry, particularly in mobile and embedded-systems markets. Hennessy then took over and described, in Part II, current technological developments and how slowdowns in sheer density, power, and speed improvements will necessitate greater focus on domain-specific hardware. Both speakers emphasized the alarming lack of attention to security issues at the hardware level. Part III, presented in two segments, outlined research and development opportunities is advancing highly parallel hardware (such as tensor-processing units and hardware for deep learning) and the RISC V open architecture initiative. Q&A followed the presentation, although I lost the connection after a few questions. This 8-minute video was shown as part of the lecture:

2018/06/03 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the In Screenshots of most of the speakers' slides follows. https://www.facebook.com/bparhami/posts/10156381724772579 ternet.
David Patterson and John Hennessy on the cover of CACM, June 2018 (1) Turing Award Lecture: The esteemed lecture, titled "A New Golden Age for Computer Architecture: Domain-Specific Hardware/Software Co-Design, Enhanced Security, Open Instruction Sets, and Agile Chip Development," will be delivered on Monday, June 4, 5:00 PM PDT), by computer architects John Hennessy and David Patterson at International Symposium on Computer Architecture in Los Angeles. The lecture is free to the public and is also live-streamed. The accompanying image shows the honorees on the cover of the June 2018 issue of Communications of the ACM.
(2) Bill Nye, the Engineering Guy: Bill Nye, who goes by the moniker "The Science Guy," is actually a mechanical engineer by training. He worked as an engineer at Boeing and other industrial firms, following graduation from Cornell University. His self-identification as a scientist, as well as his signature bow-tie, appear to have come about to make him stand out from the crowd and to wield more authority with a public that adores scientists and virtually ignores engineers. [Adapted from a column by Henry Petroski, in the summer 2018 issue of ASEE's Prism magazine]
(3) Recipe for dictatorship: "Indeed, the President not only has unfettered statutory and Constitutional authority to terminate the FBI Director, he also has Constitutional authority to direct the Justice Department to open or close an investigation, and, of course, the power to pardon any person before, during, or after an investigation and/or conviction. Put simply, the Constitution leaves no question that the President has exclusive authority over the ultimate conduct and disposition of all criminal investigations and over those executive branch officials responsible for conducting those investigations." ~ Passage from a 20-page brief sent by Donald Trump's legal team to Special Counsel Mueller
(4) The Target effect: In psychology, "The IKEA Effect" refers to people valuing their own creations, even if "creation" just involved assembly, more than those of others. This afternoon, I assembled a bookcase bought from Target for use in the family room near the kitchen. It will eventually hold cookbooks and craft books, to help make room for overflowing titles, now stacked on a desk in my study.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Golden Sate beat Cleveland 122-103 tonight to take a 2-0 lead in the 7-game NBA finals series.
- Watch Steph Curry's record-setting nine 3-pointers in game 2 of the NBA finals, Golden State vs. Cleveland.
- It's going to be an interesting G-7 summit, following the US tariffs and our allies' stern reactions to them!
- On pain: "Much of pain that we deal with are really only thoughts." ~ Anonymous
- On betrayal: "When you betray someone, you also betray yourself." ~ Nobel Laureate author Isaac Singer
(6) Quote of the day: "People have only as much liberty as they have the intelligence to want and the courage to take." ~ Emma Goldman
(7) Fake quote of the day: "Don't just get involved, fight for your seat at the table. Better yet, fight for a seat at the head of the table." ~ Barack Obama
[The valedictorian at a Kentucky high school, in a county where Trump won 80% of the vote, trolled his friends by attributing the quote above to Donald Trump in his speech, getting a big cheer!]

2018/06/02 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
You're Americans, act like it (undated photo) Charles Darwin's cross-writing, a technique for saving writing paper, 1828 High-wire artist performs above the ruins of Heumarkt in Cologne, Germany, 1946 (1) History in pictures: [Left] You're Americans, act like it (undated photo). [Center] Charles Darwin's cross-writing, a technique for saving writing paper, 1828. [Right] High-wire artist performs above the ruins of Heumarkt in Cologne, Germany, 1946.
(2) Quote of the day: "Against injustice and oppression, I am a Kurd, a Baluch, a Baha'i, a Dervish." ~ Iranian attorney and human rights activist Mohammad Najafi [Photo]
(3) Business dishonesty and deception: This letter isn't official UC correspondence, as the envelop implies, but comes from an insurance company which offers discounts to UC employees and wants you to open the letter, rather than toss it directly into the recycling bin.
(4) UCLA Iranian Student Group's June 1 Culture Show at Royce Hall: Two dances (traditionan/kurdish and modern Persian), two parts of a comedy skit, and singing "Ey Iran" with piano accompaniment preceded the intermission. Sibarg Ensemble opened the second half of the program (Song 1, Song 2, Song 3. There were three more dances (Guilaki, Baba-Karam-style, and Bandari, choreographed by my daughter), continuation of the comedy skit, a stand-up comedy routine, and a performance by special guest Kamyar, who delighted the audience with a combination of memorable Persian and other tunes. [Iranian dance tune] [Persian/Hebrew/English medley] [French/Persian medley] [Encore, with background dancers]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Those who support Trump's claim that he has no conflict of interest have some explaining to do.
- NASA prepares to mark 50th anniversary of the Apollo Program that landed a dozen Americans on Moon.
- On the 50th anniversary of their 1968 marriage, an inter-racial couple looks back.
- Don't do this at home: Slacklining in high heels. [Video]
- Cartoon of the day: "Grab the jobs resulting from trade wars while they are hot!" [Image]
- Teenage street musicians on a street in Kermanshah, Iran, play up a storm. [5-minute video]
(6) Tweets exchanged between Malala Yousafzai and Elon Musk, after a parody news story reporting that the electric car launched into space by Musk had fallen to Earth, crushing Malala! [Tweets]
(7) Kim Jong Un's letter to Trump is so huge that it makes the recipient's hands look small! It is the biglyest letter ever sent to a POTUS. Obama's biggest received letter was less than a quarter the size of this beauty.

2018/05/31 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Ford Model T totaled in an accident Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, 1936 Tucker Torpedo, 1948 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Ford Model T totaled in an accident. [Center] Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, 1936. [Right] Tucker Torpedo, 1948.
(2) Quote of the day: "With or without religion, good people can behave well and bad people can do evil; but for good people to do evil—that takes religion." ~ Physicist Steven Weinberg
(3) World Cup soccer is 2 weeks away: Despite the US team not participating this time, Fox Sports plans to broadcast 38 games from the tournament held in Russia. Here is the complete TV schedule, 6/14 to 7/15. The schedule includes Iran's group-play games against Morocco on 6/15, 11 AM ET, Spain on 6/20, 2 PM ET, and Portugal on 6/25, 2 PM ET.
(4) Iran gives French company Total 2 months to obtain exemptions from US sanctions, or else China will get its allotment of the South Pars gas field, the largest in the world.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- A reduction in Southern California's low-lying morning clouds has increased the risk of wildfires.
- Wonderful wildlife photos of the week, presented by The Guardian. [Pictorial]
- "And this next one—is it the kind of racism that advances my career or ends it?" [Cartoon, by Maddie Dai]
- Tea and photography: Little is needed for having a good time with friends. [Photo]
- "Only one you'll ever make happy is the Mexican who digs your grave." ~ Nikki Glaser, roasting Ann Coulter
- "Dear whatever doesn't kill me: I think I'm strong enough now. Please stop it. Thank you." ~ Anonymous
(6) Yesterday, May 30, 2018, at UCSB: As I was headed to my 12:00 PM class, I noticed a bulldozer moving on a campus walkway. Because I had a few extra minutes, I followed it to see whether it had a legitimate reason for endangering many students and other campus denizens by driving a long distance on the walkways. It entered the walkway near the Arbor, to the north of the campus library, and drove to the area near Chemistry and Engineering Science Buildings. The starting point was a roadway, and the endpoint was 100 feet away from another roadway, so the bulldozer could have reduced its 0.2-mile drive on the walkway to one-tenth that distance, if the driver had any respect for campus laws and people's safety. [Photos]
(7) ACM elects women to its top two leadership positions: The new Association for Computing Machinery President Cherri M. Pancake is Professor Emeritus and Intel Faculty Fellow at Oregon State University's School of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science and Director of the Northwest Alliance for Computational Science and Engineering. The new ACM VP Elizabeth Churchill is Director of User Experience at Google in Mountain View, California. ACM has around 100,000 computing professionals and students as members worldwide.

2018/05/30 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
US President Gerald Ford trying to impress Pele with his soccer skills, 1975 Conversation pit, 1960s Steven Spielberg in the shark's mouth, on the set of 'Jaws,' 1975 (1) History in pictures: [Left] US President Gerald Ford trying to impress Pele with his soccer skills, 1975. [Center] Conversation pit, 1960s. [Right] Steven Spielberg in the shark's mouth, on the set of 'Jaws,' 1975.
(2) Quote of the day: "In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit." ~ Albert Schweitzer
(3) A real Spider-Man: Young Malian migrant, who rescued a child dangling from a balcony, was made a French citizen and offered a job by the Paris fire brigade.
(4) Decency trumps greed: "Roseanne's Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show." ~ ABC management
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Ladies and gentlemen: Enjoy the deep insights and brilliant mind of President Donald J. Trump! [Video]
- An excellent documentary film about Iranian folk singer Sima Bina. [24-minute video]
- The Borowitz report (humor): White House in panic mode after TV star with racist Twitter feed loses job.
- Unbelievable dexterity and brains: Solving three Rubik Cubes, while juggling them. [Video]
(6) Introducing Springer's Encyclopedia of Big Data Technologies: Bearing a 2019 copyright, many of EBDT's articles already appear on-line. I was co-editor of the section "Big Data on Modern Hardware Systems" and contributed six articles to the volume, the full-texts of which are available via my publications Web page.
(7) UCLA Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran: Screening of Tahmineh Milani's "Untaken Paths," followed by a panel discussion by Partow Nooriala, Dr. Nelly Farnoody-Zahiri, and Abbas Hadjian, held in Room 121 of UCLA's Dodd Hall, on Sunday, June 10, 2018, 4:00 PM. [Flyer]
(8) "Free Speech on Campus": This was the title of the 2018 Wade Clark Roof Lecture on Human Rights, delivered tonight by Constitutional-law scholar and UC Irvine Chancellor Howard Gillman at UCSB's Campbell Hall. Among questions addressed by Gillman were the cost of free speech and whether a college campus can protect free speech and still foster an inclusive environment for all. The talk was based on Gillman's 2018 book of the same tilte, co-authored with Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of UC Berkeley's School of Law, and it included many examples from recent free-speech incidents on college campuses and elsewhere in the US.

2018/05/28 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Poster for the Eighth Parhami Family Reunion Group photo taken at the Eighth Parhami Family Reunion

(1) An 8-year-old annual tradition continues: The Parhami Family held its 8th annual reunion in Long Beach, California, yesterday. Due to a concentration of family members in the Los Angeles area, all 8 reunions, with around 100 attendees each, have been held in Southern California thus far.
(2) "I Madonnari" street-painting Festival: A Santa Barbara tradition for the Memorial-Day weekend, this annual outdoors festival features chalk paintings on a paved area in front of Santa Barbara Mission, along with food, treats, souvenirs, and live music. Upon my arrival, most of the paintings were already complete, with a few artists still working on putting finishing touches on their creations. [Photos]
(3) Nicholas Weaver writes about "Risks of Cryptocurrencies" in the June 2018 edition of CACM's "Inside Risks" column. Here is the article's concluding paragraph: "The risks in the cryptocurrency world are multifaceted and diverse, but fortunately most are limited to those who participate. This leads to a natural conclusion. As the philosopher WOPR said in the movie WarGames, 'The only winning move is not to play.'"
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Honoring the sacrifices of our fellow citizens in uniform, with awe and gratitude, on this Memorial Day!
- Donald Trump thinks that Memorial Day is about him: Can't stop bragging for even one day! [Tweet]
- US lawmakers see no evidence to support Trump's "Spygate" claims.
- Peter Denning interviews David Parnas on software engineering notions in the June 2018 issue of CACM.
- Components in iPhone X used by Face ID 3D-scanning technology. [Image, from CACM, June 2018]
- Iranians worldwide are proud of New York Times' publication of a Persian-style pasta dish, with tah-dig!
(5) In the margins of a movie star's passing: Nasser Malek Motiei was a commercially successful pre-Islamic-Revolution actor, who was banned from working in Iranian cinema by the Islamic regime. He was heartbroken and made ends meet by opening a bakery very close to our family home in Vanak, Tehran. Following his recent passing, some have praised him as a capable actor, but there is also a healthy dose of skepticism about his choice of movies and movie roles that were predominantly misogynistic and glorified knife-wielding uneducated boors, who killed in the name of honor. Iranian cinema is now quite different and has climbed to new heights, not because of Islamic control but despite the Islamic regime's unabashed censorship, thanks to a new wave of directors, actors, and other artists who guard the industry against regime-supported mediocrity. [Shiva Shakoori's FB post, in Persian]

Cover image of Zoya Pirzad's 'We'll Get Used to It' 2018/05/27 (Sunday): Book review: Pirzad, Zoya, We'll Get Used to It (in Persian), Nashr-e Markaz, 2004. (ISBN: 978-964-305-798-5)
[My 3-star review pf this book on GoodReads]
Iranian female novelists, both at home and in diaspora/exile, are writing up a storm, producing a large number of books aimed primarily at women. Let me begin by clarifying why I decided to read a chick-lit title. Iranian women have begun one of the most enlightened political and human-rights movements of our time, one that has been playing a leading role in the overall fight for justice, freedom, and human rights in Iran. It's no exaggeration to say that if the current Islamic regime is overthrown and replaced with a democratic one, women deserve the lion's share of the credit. The significance of this movement, more than anything else, is what attracts me to Iranian women's writings.
The book was recommended and loaned to me by my sister Farnaz, who warned me about its genre. The soft-cover volume I perused is marked the 44th printing, dated 2016, and priced at 17,500 tomans (about $4.50). The back-cover blurb indicates that the book has been translated and published in France, Italy, and Georgia. This is the story of three women (daughter, mother, and grandma) in a Tehrani family of a decade or so ago. We hear the story from Arezoo, a middle-aged woman sandwiched between the incongruent worlds and expectations of her mom, Mah-Monir, who lives in the past, and her teenage daughter, Ayeh, who is consumed by her own needs. Both daughter and grandma blame Arezoo for divorcing Ayeh's father and deem it ridiculous for a middle-aged woman to even think of romance. This is a reflection of the Iranian society's view of romance at an advanced age. Persian even has a saying, "sar-e piri o ma'rakeh guiri," roughly translated to "hogging the stage or showing off at an old age," as if life and its adventures end with marriage and having kids!
Arezoo is an independent woman who doesn't need a man to complete her, and she has some unpleasant experiences with men. But, eventually, Sohrab, a man she deems perfect enters her life. She is perplexed when her mom, daughter, and best friend, Shirin, all take positions against him. The novel's main theme is the choice Arezoo faces: following her heart or bending to the demands of those around her. Will they ever accept and get used to her getting remarried? Sohrab apparently believes so. Arezoo's perplexing choice is left unresolved by the end of the novel.
Here is an example of social commentary that the author squeezes in between descriptions of mundane daily routines and her feelings for Sohrab (albeit, in the very allegorical and conservative style of Iranian prose in matters of love). Arezoo does not normally take the bus, but one time when she does, she becomes privy to a conversation among several female riders about women's predicament in today's Iran (pp. 155-157). "In your day, your man went to work and you only gave birth, cooked, and cleaned, not like today, when you slave outside the home all day, then wipe and scrub at home, and when, at last, you are ready to pass out for the night, ... there is no god but God." The last Arabic phrase is often used in Persian to indicate something horrible or shameful that should not be spelled out!
Pirzad writes in a direct, colloquial style, using very short sentences, many with 1-3 words (pp. 126-127): "You kill me. How many times do you ask? ... Fantastic! What's fantastic? ... Don't be a jerk. Where are you invited tonight?" I must admit that I was somewhat disappointed with Pirzad's writing and some elements of the storyline, including the cartoonish depiction of Sohrab and other male characters.

2018/05/26 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
New York snow storm, 1947 Plane crashes on a farm, 1962 New York City Central Park, 1933 (1) History in pictures: [Left] New York snow storm, 1947. [Center] Plane crashes on a farm, 1962the pilot survived with multiple broken bones and cuts. [Right] New York City Central Park, 1933.
(2) This year's UCLA Iranian Student Group's Culture Show will be on Friday, June 1, 7:00 PM, at Royce Hall. My daughter Sepideh will be participating in several dances, including a Kurdish one. [Image]
(3) On my schedule for the coming week: I Madonari Street-Painting Festival takes place over the Memorial-Day weekend. Another interesting event is the grand re-opening of Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.
(4) A wonderful use of technology: I sometimes take bus line 28, which goes from the UCSB campus to Goleta's Camino Real Marketplace and is free to UCSB faculty and staff. Yesterday, I noticed a convenient text messaging feature (image) that allows you to get real-time information about bus arrival times at each stop.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- All five people in this image have lucrative business ties with China, despite the tough-on-china rhetoric!
- The world is learning what we have known all along: Iran's mullahs will be overthrown by women.
- Not-so-still life: You see it evolve, as a drink is poured and consumed and a bulb flourishes and withers.
- Pro rock-balancer Pontus Jansson, a true "rock star," at work! [3-minute video]
- The incomparable Victor Borge, having fun with the piano and different singing voices. [10-minute video]
- Cartoon of the day: Thoughts and prayers, without even the slightest sign of caring! [Image]
- Bonus cartoon: "We are standing with the Iranian people." ~ Mike Pompeo [Image]
(6) Speaking to Harvard Law students, Senator Jeff Flake criticizes Trump's "moral vandalism": Talk is cheap, I must add. Why isn't there collective action by the Republicans in Congress, who see this wrecking ball destroy one pillar of our democracy after another and devolve the US presidency into a B-grade reality show?
(7) Looking forward to tomorrow's 8th Parhami Family Reunion in Long Beach, California: According to Facebook, my most-liked photo from 2014 was this one, showing part of the family's fourth generation at the 4th of these Memorial-Day weekend events in Ventura, California.

2018/05/25 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Venice, Italy Saint Petersburg, Russia Florence, Italy (1) Our beautiful world: [Left] Venice, Italy. [Center] Saint Petersburg, Russia. [Right] Florence, Italy.
(2) Rapping for freedom: Featured in Time magazine, issue of May 28, 2018, Sonita Alizadeh, 21, Afghan refugee and undocumented immigrant in Iran, has achieved leadership status by virtue of her rap lyrics opposing child marriage and selling of children to wealthy men. She wrote "Daughters for Sale" at age 17, when her parents tried to sell her into marriage for $9000. [Photo]
(3) Cartoon of the day, by Mana Neyestani: A teacher at a girl's school in Iran cut off a little girl's hair because she thought it would seduce the male vice-principal! [Image]
(4) Today, I watched a discussion at St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on C-SPAN: United States and its economic policies have been the subject of many questions posed to the participants, which include Putin and Macron. [TV screenshot]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- EU leads in cyber-privacy: European Union's new data privacy law should be copied worldwide.
- This 2015 speech of King Abdullah II of Jordan is still very relevant. [16-minute video]
- US Postal Service issues a stamp to honor Sally Ride, the first US female astronaut.
- Persian poetry: A love poem by Mowlavi (Rumi). [Image of the poem]
- Do you think these guys practice kissing before the wedding? They all have such perfect form! [Image]
- Dotard to Rocket Man: Hey, I almost met you; And this is crazy; But here's my number; So, call me maybe!
(6) Will the commemorative peace coins manufactured by the White House Communications Agency find any use? "We'll see what happens," as Trump often says! Someone already made an updated version of the Coin, in light of new developments! Here are side-by-side images of the WH coin and its humorous update.
(7) The initiative to legalize abortion seems to have succeeded in Ireland: The Catholic Church, with its many scandals, is losing its tight grip.
(8) Finally, a powerful sexual predator is led away in handcuffs: Harvey Weinstein was arrested and released on $1 million bail. Meanwhile, Gretchen Carlson just appeared on PBS's "In Principle." She discussed recent developments in the #MeToo movement, how false accusations, though a problem, account for a tiny fraction of all cases, and why she is focusing also on educating boys. #TimesUp

Cover image for Harari's 'Sapiens' 2018/05/24 (Thursday): Book review: Harari, Yuval Noah, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Derek Perkins, Harper Audio, 2017.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The common view of history spans a few millennia and includes stories from the rise and fall of empires. The history in this book is much more wide-ranging, beginning with our genetic ancestors and ending with how the human species is changing as we speak, setting the stage for Harari's follow-up book, Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow (2017). Harari presents an account of how our species came to dominate the Earth, wiping out many other species, including competing human species (such as Neandertals), and changing the world around us, to the extent that nothing resembles its natural state.
Three inflection points in the course of human history accelerated the changes. The cognitive revolution, some 70,000 years ago, led to humans exhibiting highly ingenious behavior. The agricultural revolution of 12,000 years ago relieved us from the rigors of the hunter-gatherer lifestyle and provided us with a lot more time to think and plan. The scientific revolution of 500 years ago, which in turn triggered the industrial revolution of the 18th century and the information revolution of the 20th century, has greatly expanded our understanding of nature and human condition, and it may bring about the biotechnical revolution, leading, over time, to the emergence of amortal post-humans.
Alongside the three main inflection points just mentioned, Harari discusses many other momentous events, exemplified by the development of language as an important tool for abstract thinking, large-scale cooperation, and socializing. A second example, though a negative one, is the establishment of monotheistic religions, which took us backward from the much more open and tolerant polytheistic faiths preceding them. Of equal significance was the emergence of money and credit, which helped the rapid spread of trade and civilization, via capitalism and associated financial markets.
One point that Harari keeps returning to is the fact that animals (other species) have paid a terrible price for the rise of sapiens, both during our hunter-gatherer days and in today's factory farms. Harari characterizes modern industrial agriculture as the greatest fraud/crime in history, because it has brought us poorer diets, longer work hours, a host of diseases, and many other ills. A key cause of this surprising dissonance is that, while we have plenty of food to eat, our genes have not yet adapted to the new reality, as they still think we are in the savannah, suffering from a dearth of sugars and fats.
Harari also discusses at length the notion of human happiness, citing research studies that conclude it has little to do with material possessions. The last 15 millennia have given us much in terms of material success but hardly greater happiness. This is a tricky area of scholarship, because there are those who view such conclusions as veiled justifications for social inequality and wage and income gaps. Difficulties of this kind are par for the course in any formulation of history, as historical discussions are bound to be tainted by ideologies and other biases.
Sapiens is a remarkable book, which is jam-packed with information, making it difficult to sample all of its ideas in a review of this kind. Its macro view of history as a collection of inflection points and momentous events is refreshing and eye-opening. The book has my highest recommendation.

2018/05/23 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cell phones, from 1G to 5G eras (1) Handy reference to compare 1G-5G mobile phone standards: The dates are approximate and stated differently in various sources.
1G (1980): Analog, voice only
2G (1990): Messaging, SMS, MMS
2.5G (bridge): Very limited data
3G (2000): Data, video calls, Internet
4G (2010): More data, gaming, HDTV
5G (2020): Huge data, super-speed, ...
(2) The last installment of Pollock Theater's "Women in Comedy" film series: Last night's program consisted of two silent films from the 1910s, screened with live piano accompaniment by Michael Mortilla, who improvises brilliantly as the film plays. It turns out that during cinema's early days, women were intimately involved in all aspects of film production. A reception followed the program. [Video clip 1] [Video clip 2]
(3) Remembering the Isla Vista massacre of May 23, 2014: Backpacks strewn on a lawn adjacent to Storke Tower commemorated the six UCSB students murdered four years ago and other victims of school shootings. Michael Martinez, who lost his only child in that horrible event, and went on to become an activist against gun violence, with the slogan "Not One More," gave a passionate speech at today's vigil.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Oscar-winning documentarian Errol Morris explains why Donald Trump can't kill the truth.
- This assessment of @realDonaldTrump by @mikebarnicle is spot on. [Tweet]
- Can't argue with data and facts: Sensible gun laws save lives, plain and simple! [Protester sign]
- A Persian couplet of mine from 2010: Half-verse initial letters spell a name. [Poem]
- Mother-in-law ("maadar-showhar," in Persian) must not see her bride being pampered! [Brief video]
Cover image for Tayari Jones' 'An American Marriage' (5) Book review: Jones, Tayari, An American Marriage: A Novel, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Sean Crisden and Eisa Davis, HighBridge, 2018.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The story of this novel revolves around Celestial, a fiercely independent and thriving black artist who marries Roy, a young executive, and begins to live the American Dream in Atlanta. When her husband is suddenly arrested and sentenced to 12 years in prison for a murder she knew he did not commit, her marriage is put to a stern test.
Celestial comes to understand that perhaps her life with Roy was not based on true love but on convenience and familiarity. While in prison, Roy simply assumes that his wife will wait for him, but Celestial takes comfort in and begins a love affair with Andre, a childhood friend. When Roy's conviction is overturned and he returns home to Celestial after five years, he finds that he is no longer welcome.
Each chapter of this novel is written from the perspective of one of the three main characters; hence, the male and female narrators in the audiobook version.

2018/05/21 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Kia Nobre and Luciano Floridi (1) A neuroscientist and a philosopher walk into a room: There is no joke here, just a joint presentation, today at UCSB, by wife and husband, neuroscientist Kia Nobre (Oxford Center for Human Brain Activity) and philosopher Luciano Floridi (Oxford Internet Institute), as the last installment of SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind's Lecture Series for this academic year. The presentation took the form of free exchange on human brain and mind, of the kind the couple conducts in the kitchen at home. Floridi joked that young scientists should not try this at home (actually, that they should try it only at home, focusing on mainstream ideas at work), as their musings go against convention, to the extent that doing such work may be harmful to a young professor's tenure prospects and acquisition of research funding! Human perception is incomplete and highly dependent on memories, experiences, and cultural influences. It is a harmful oversimplification to think of regions of brain as having specific functions or as being specialized. The entire brain is a network of interconnected elements, with every part influencing every other part. So, the brain is best understood as a densely interconnected network, rather than as a set of interacting blocks. We are conditioned to think of our universe as a collection of things (hence, our focus on ontology), whereas Nobre and Floridi emphasize interactions: An object exists only if you can interact with it. The "things" in our brain, the various areas, each with its specific name, are emphasized at the expense of reduced attention to interactions. Another problem is that we do not embrace uncertainty as something valuable; our scientific traditions are tuned to eliminating or killing uncertainty. [Photos and some slides]
(2) Yesterday, on the UCSB campus: Walking home from the interesting and highly informative joint talk described above, I snapped two photos of Storke Tower against a beautiful partly-cloudy sky and spent some time at an outdoors book-sale stand. I resisted temptation and did not buy any books, which were rather pricey (for used volumes), some being first or rare editions. [Photos]
(3) Pompeo threatens Iran with strongest sanctions ever, if it does not comply with US demands: This is bullying, carried to the extreme! After tearing up the nuclear deal it made in conjunction with European allies, the US is in no position to make demands on Iran. As an Iranian-American, I am in a bind when commenting on this issue. I am a strong opponent of the backward, misogynistic, dictatorial regime in Iran and would be happy to see it fall, but only if democratic forces prevail. A new dictatorship will only set Iran back another 3-4 decades. However, no country in the world should be allowed to make demands on other countries, without entering into bilateral or multi-lateral negotiations, of the kind that US just annulled unilaterally.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- The asteroid 2015 BZ509, discovered on Earth three years ago, is believed to be interstellar in origin.
- Incredible images of volcanic eruptions and lava flow on Hawaii's Big Island. [Pictorial]
- Multiple Saudi activists who encouraged women to learn how to drive have been arrested.
- Kazerun, the site of recent bloody protests in Iran, is the least-developed part of the Fars Province.
- Iranian-British prisoner Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe faces a new charge of "anti-regime propaganda" in Iran.
- Hey, Donald: Did you tell the Chinese that North Korea will pay for the Wall you are suggesting? [Tweet]
- For my Persian-speaking friends: Humorous meme received via Telegram.
- Pres. to VP: "Can you get your people to do the rapture before I have to talk to Robert Mueller?" [Cartoon]
(5) Final thought for the day: After days of royal-wedding coverage, here are some basic questions.
What's Prince Harry's last name? What are his level and field of education? What does he do for a living?

2018/05/20 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Poster for Fanni class of 1968 reunion in July 2018 (1) Tehran University College of Engineering (Daaneshkadeh-ye Fanni) 50th anniversary reunion of the class of 1968 is approaching: We will be in Yerevan, Armenia, from July 14 to July 18, 2018, staying at Metropol Hotel. So far, 10 classmates from Iran (6 with spouses) and 5 from other countries (2 with spouses) have confirmed their attendance. A few others are working on plans to join us.
Visiting this Facebook event page, you can indicate interest (to keep posted about updates) or attendance.
[PBS film on Armenia ("Parts Unknown")]
(2) [Trumpian logic] I was pulled over and blood on my clothes caused suspicion. The cops tried to pin the latest town murder on me, but DNA didn't match. Now they are looking at other murders. Witch hunt!
(3) The Trump of the high-tech world: The blood-testing company Theranos went from a worth of billions to zero virtually overnight. Tonight's "60 Minutes" program provided a lot of details. Elizabeth Holmes fooled investors, customers, and regulators into believing that her blood-testing technology based on pricking fingers, rather than drawing a much larger amount of blood, worked and, over several years, no one actually thought of testing her claims, before getting involved in what they thought was a profit bonanza. Some investors, including Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, lost millions, as the company's worth vanished.
(4) Iran's president MIA: In this wonderfully-written Persian essay, Lili Golestan asks President Rouhani some pointed questions: She wonders why he has been missing in action, not reacting to many positive developments (e.g., Jafar Panahi being honored at Cannes, while banned from leaving Iran to attend, and Iranian women winning Asia's futsal championship) and negative occurrences (e.g., clownish burning of a paper US flag in the parliament, while the Majlis speaker looked on, and cancelling of Nobel Laureate Orhan Pamuk's entire schedule of appearances in Iran) in the span of a single month.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- No, Donald! In a murder case, finding more bodies does not mean that the first victim was not killed.
- Iranian-American developer in Beverly Hills arrested on federal bribery charges.
- Word Tetris: This addicting game is a mix of Crossword, Scrabble, Word-Find, and Tetris!
- Giant strawberries in a package I bought today! [Photo]
- Hoping all of us can be like this man demonstrating soccer tricks at age 80! [1-minute video]
(6) "RBG: A Look at the Life and Work of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg": This documentary film, which I saw at SBIFF Riviera Theater today, is highly recommended. I had read two books about Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, affectionately known as "The Notorious RBG," before seeing this film, but I still learned much about her remarkable life and contributions. The film is packed with information about RBG's trailblazing style, her love for her highly supportive husband (who passed away in 2010), and her collegiality with other Justices, and it contains quite a few funny moments. The historical photos and film clips used, including portions of RBG's remarks during her confirmation hearing, are riveting. [Photos] [Trailer]

2018/05/19 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cereal bowl, with berries Today's royal wedding kiss Photo of my dream dinner, grabbed from the Internet (1) Today in pictures: [Left] My favorite breakfast, when berries are in season. [Center] Nearly impossible to ignore the royal wedding, as it's everywhere! [Right] My dream dinner (photo grabbed from the Internet).
(2) More thoughts and prayers, and hardly any action: A Republican has mused that school shootings result from schools having too many doors. We demand background checks for door installers!
(3) It wasn't just Russia: Donald Trump Jr. met with emmisaries of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates who wanted to help his dad become president. Oil tycoons trying to take over the world?
(4) When one in twenty cars on the road is a self-driving car, many traffic jams can be avoided: Even a single self-driving car can reduce phantom jams, which are jams created by the chain reaction resulting from a single car braking suddenly.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Deaths in 2018 from US school shootings exceed combat plus non-combat military casualties. [Chart]
- CDC data indicates that US farmers have the highest rate of suicide (4-5X that of the general population).
- North Korean officials reportedly reading Fire and Fury and Art of the Deal to understand Trump.
- The deputy who stayed outside during Parkland School massacre retires with $8700 monthly pension.
- New evidence of water plumes make Jupiter's moon Europa a prime candidate for hosting alien life.
- Time-location connectors in English: When to use "in," "on," "at." [Chart]
- Science explains the "Yanny versus Laurel" viral Internet question. [Video]
- Triple-threat young artist: Mezzo-soprano, pianist, and composer Miyoung Kim performs a Rossini aria.
- A persian verse, translated and technically illustrated. ["The world has its ups and downs, don't worry"]
- Interesting digital display of images and text on a computer-controlled waterfall in Iran. [2-minute video]
(6) Secret parts of Anne Frank's diary: A team of Dutch researchers backlit two pages Anne Frank had covered with making tape in her diary, took photos, and used an image-processing software to make the text legible. The uncovered entry, dated September 28, 1942, contained five crossed-out phrases, four dirty jokes, and 33 lines about sex education and prostitution.

2018/05/18 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Mars probe captures photo of Earth and Moon (1) Sobering thought for the day: Mars probe captures photo of Earth and Moon that makes us feel truly insignificant.
(2) I will definitely watch this movie about Ruth Bader Ginsburg. (Santa Barbara's Riviera Theater, May 17-24, 5:00 & 7:30 PM; Sat-Sun also at 12:30 & 2:45 PM)
(3) Book signing in Santa Barbara: The book Lost Boys about Iran, written by Darcy Rosenblatt, sounds interesting. (Event at Chaucer's Books, Sunday 5/20, 2:00 PM)
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- And who in the world would take Trump's protection guarantees seriously? [Trump addresses N. Korea]
- Texas teen uses dad's guns to murder 10 and injure 10 others at school: Thoughts and prayers, no action!
- World news on hold, while two people get married. I'm sick of the wall-to-wall coverage of "royal wedding"!
- Bill Gates discusses the two meetings he had with Donald Trump, and it ain't a pretty picture! [Video]
- This Der Spiegel cover cartoon from exactly one year ago is still very relevant.
- Persian poetry: Selected verses from Parvin E'tessami's poem "Hope and Despair" ("Omid va No'midi")
(5) Storke Tower tour: Today at noon, I went on the Storke Tower tour, offered as part of the Staff Celebration week activities. The tour went to the observation level, just below the carillon level, which was not accessible today. These photos show views from all four sides, plus zoom-ins showing the airport and Goleta Pier (with Engineering I Building to its left).
(6) Tour of UCSB's data center in North Hall: Held from 1:00 to 2:00 PM today, the tour was part of the Staff Celebration Week activities. The North Hall facilty used to house UCSB's data processing operations, which entailed the use of a mainframe. Later, computer facilities were distributed across the campus, until it was decided to have a communal facility, where each campus entity could install and manage its servers, while enjoying a central staff, machine room cooling, uninterrupted power, 24/7 security, and other benefits of pooling their resources together. Servers are housed in locked racks which are accessible only to authorized personnel. Racks are placed along rows, in such a way that the aisles between them are alternately cool and hot. Cool aisles have perforated floors through which chilled air is pumped. The cold air goes through the servers and emerges hot in the adjacent aisle, where it is sucked through the ceiling and sent to chilling devices. Walking through the hot aisles was uncomfortable. Temparatures across the data center are continually monitored and any rise above a threshold is detected and dealt with by either increasing the cooling power or reducing load. Rows of racks are placed on special foundations that allow them to swing back and forth in the event of an earthquake. The server hall contains uninterrupted power supplies and cooling devices, as well as termination points for fiber-optic cables that connect the campus to the external world. Critical communication equipment in the data center are placed behind a fence wall, from where they connect to the racks via overhead cables. We saw a demonstration of disk crushing/nuking machine that allows secure discarding of old hard disks. The last parts of the tour led us to backup chillers and generator outside the building. [16 photos]
(7) Computer Science Distinguished Lecture at UCSB: Held beginning at 2:00 this afternoon, the lecture by Jiawei Han (Professor, U. Illinois) was entitled "Mining Structures from Massive Text Data: A Data-Driven Approach." Much of the real-world data is textual and, thus, unstructured. To extract big knowledge from big data, some sort of structure must be imposed. The conversion from unstructured to structured data must be automatic if we hope to make it scalable. The speaker argued that massive text data itself may disclose a large body of hidden patterns, structures, and knowledge, which can be extracted with help from domain-independent and domain-specific knowledge bases. Professor Han's research has shown that massive text data disclose patterns and structures for conversion to structured knowledge. A key insight is that the focus should be placed on phrases, rather then words. Phrases can be understood by seeing which other phrases are associated with them in our massive text databases, examples of which include Wikipedia, specialized bibliographies, news sources, and books. [7 slides]

2018/05/17 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
School bus, 1937 Tehran, Iran, 1970s London bus, 1928 (1) History in pictures: [Left] School bus, 1937. [Center] Tehran, Iran, 1970s. [Right] London bus, 1928.
(2) Alien life on Earth: There have been some suggestions that instead of, or alongside, searching the cosmos for signs of life, we should scour the myriads of microorganisms on Earth to determine whether some of them arrived from space on meteorites. It is unlikely that larger life forms arrived from space. But, in a stunning development, 33 scientists think that octopi may be alien life forms.
(3) Trump picked a pastor who says Jews will go to hell to lead the prayer at Jerusalem embassy opening.
(4) Missing files trigger fear of cover-up: A law-enforcement official leaked Michael Cohen's financial records after finding out that additional suspicious transactions had disappeared from a government database.
(5) Today's top-ten news headlines:
- Mueller's Russia probe enters its second year
- US birth rate hits its lowest level since 1987
- Hawaii's Kilauea volcano spews out huge rocks
- US Senate votes to reinstate net neutrality
- US Senate panel: Russia favored Trump in 2016
- MSU to pay $500M to Larry Nassar abuse survivors
- Cambridge Analytica under DoJ and FBI probe
- Death toll rises in Gaza-Israel border conflicts
- Michael Avenatti reveals more payoffs to women
- Tom Wolfe, journalist and novelist, dead at 88
(6) Classical music recital: Late spring quarter is the time for formal performances by the various ensembles and students affiliated with UCSB's Music Department. Not knowing any of the students, I chose, more or less at random, a few of their performances that fit my schedule. In the case of today, I hit the jackpot and was treated to the mezzo-soprano voice of the delightful Kelly Newberry, a young performer with a highly developed voice and style.
As encore, Ms. Newberry offered a beautiful rendition of "The Sound of Music" title song. [The program]
Sample music from YouTube: "Oh! Quand Je Dors" and "Somewhere" (from "West Side Story")
During the intermission, I discovered that I had been sitting next to the performer's teacher, opera singer and biomedical engineer Isabel Bayrakdarian. She introduced herself and volunteered that I looked familiar (which isn't surprising, given how many Music Dept. events I attend). A discussion on our Media Arts and Technology Program and advances in the therapeutic use of music ensued. She was obviously very proud of her student.
[In the margin: Leaving the recital, I came across this outdoors music class. Too bad I can't hold my classes outdoors on these beautiful spring days, given the need for block diagrams, formulas, and charts/graphs!]

2018/05/16 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Peace symbol: Dove with olive branch Colorful design made of peace signs International peace sign (1) Hoping for the demise of hateful warmongers and the establishment of peace on Earth!
(2) Corruption to the extreme: Do you wonder why Trump has suddenly warmed up to trade with the Chinese, to the extent of wanting to bail out their telecom giant and save the associated Chinese jobs? It just so happens that China is providing a $500 million loan to a Trump-affiliated resort project in Indonesia.
(3) Why Washington's swamp creatures tolerate Trump: Before Trump's election, the American people were quite dissatisfied with politicians, Republicans and Democrats, and were actively organizing to kick them out of office. Now all these swamp creatures are looking benign in comparison with the scariest creature of them all!
(4) Tomas Lang [1938-2018]: One of the best-known and most-respected computer arithmetic researchers, Tomas also contributed to a variety of other subfields of computer architecture. He was a regular contributor to IEEE Trans. Computers and to IEEE Symp. Computer Arithmetic. I first met him at UCLA in the early 1970s, during my doctoral studies. He later got settled at UC Irvine and retired from there. RIP, old friend! [Tribute]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- North Korea cancels high-level talks with South Korea and threatens to cancel summit with the US.
- Europe is hard at work to rescue the Iran nuclear deal. [Aljazeera report]
- The physics of NASA's planned helicopter flight on Mars. [Wired article]
- Science reveals the answer: How giant dinosaurs sat on their eggs without crushing them.
- Antarctica-centered world map: Change of perspective is often helpful to understanding.
- A brilliant senior prank: Creating the illusion of a car breaking through a wall. [Photo]
(6) "All in this Together: Racial Justice and Democracy in the 21st Century": This was the title of last night's talk by Rinku Sen at UCSB's Multicultural Center Theater in the framework of UCSB Diversity Lectures.
Ms. Sen began with a very personal story from 1999, when the man she had been dating suddenly married someone else. After being down for a period of time, she ventured out to a Safeway supermarket, where she overheard a couple of white people talking about the unfortunate dissolution of a labor union. When she tried to express an opinion about how to confront the problem, she was dismissed in a rude manner because of her brown skin. By the way, until I heard this story, I thought of the youthful-looking speaker as someone just out of college! Ms. Sen related a number of stories about the current predicament in the US and around the world, where racists feel empowered to speak their minds without any of the considerations that had become part of our social norms before the Trump era.
Ms. Sen characterized the actions of racists, a group that includes many who are not Trump supporters, as "racial terror." She concluded by providing three practical tips for helping solve the racism problem.
- Interrupt racist speech: If you are engaged in a discussion or debate, follow the three steps of connect (connection should be genuine), pivot, and educate. For the latter part, avoid lecturing and spewing facts and tell stories instead. In other contexts, where debating is impractical or undesirable, just do the first step of interrupting, because that in itself defangs the offender. Be aware that some risk of physical harm is involved in interrupting racist speech; so, proceed with care.
- Get in proximity with people of color, even if you are a colored person yourself. This is very important for developing understanding. Some 60% of white people in the US do not have any colored friends. This advice reminds me of an anonymous quote I encountered a while ago: "Prejudice can't survive proximity."
- Examine all national and local policy debates through a racial lens. This is akin to environmental impact assessments that are required for erecting a building, developing a road, and starting almost any construction project. In a similar vein, a racial impact assessment should be required before enacting laws and policies.
Here are some resources: Race Forward; The Maven; Responding to Racist Talk at Family Gatherings.
Here are a couple of photos I took on my way to the Multicultural Center Theater for the talk.

2018/05/14 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Der Spiegel cover image of May 12, 2018 (1) Germany's Der Spiegel continues to taunt Trump with its cover images.
(2) Persian poetry: Selected verses from a beautiful poem by Hafez.
(3) This isn't a prison in the normal sense of the term: Even though the women living in this dorm, in the Iranian city of Sanandaj, can get out if they want, they are indeed prisoners of their backward, misogynistic government which denies them sunlight, in the off chance that male passers-by might catch a glimpse of their silhouettes, as they go about their daily routines. Sickening!
(4) Festivities and deadly protests in Israel: As Ivanka Trump opened the US embassy in Jerusalem with a big smile, some 60 Palestinians from Gaza Strip were killed at the Israeli border. Hamas leaders egged on the protesters to try to cross the border, where Israeli border patrols shot at them. Whether this was a legitimate defense by Israel is open to question. What is beyond question is the stupidity of the embassy move with drumbeat and fanfare. You can't poke an adversary in the eye and then extend peace offer to it. [Photos]
(5) Think twice before ordering sunny-side-up eggs: According to US CDC, more than 30 people have reported getting sick after consuming eggs contaminated with salmonella.
(6) Ancestry research continues to expose hypocrites: Tomi Lahren, a conservative commentator on Fox News, spews hatred about immigrants in her rants. Her hateful commentary often thrashes poor people and those who are not fluent in English as undeserving of becoming Americans. German genealogist and journalist Jennifer Mendelsohn researched Laren's ancestry and came up with these gems, among others. Not many of these immigrant-bashers would be here today if the policies they advocate were in effect when their ancestors came to this country. Some of my own family members, who were born outside the US and knew little English when they came over, are now among the most ardent immigrant-bashers.
(7) An observation from Iran (received via Telegram): The tragedy of our lives is that we are censored by one country and sanctioned by another. We use anti-filter software from the sanctioning country to read the news about the sanctioned, censoring country! [In Persian]
(8) Giving credit where credit is due: A symposium credits physicist Eunice Foote for her role in discovering the principal cause of global warming. (Front cover of Eunice Foote's 1856 paper on global warming)
(9) Ad (date unknown) for a portable typewriter weighing only 4 times as much as a modern laptop and 8 times as much as an iPad!

2018/05/13 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Mothers' Day greetings (1) A very happy Mothers' Day to my mom, my three sisters, and all the women friends whose motherly instincts and love make the world go around!
(2) Hawaii's Big Island under siege: I snapped these TV screen shots from a CNN Report, late this morning. New fissures keep opening up, some many miles away from the volcano itself, which may blow up any time now.
(3) Quote of the day: "Trump is what he is, a floundering, inarticulate jumble of gnawing insecurities and not-at-all compensating vanities, which is pathetic. Pence is what he has chosen to be, which is horrifying." ~ Columnist George Will, on VP Pence's Faustian bargain with the devil
(4) Reacting to a professor's comment that her shorts were too short, Cornell University student presented her thesis in underwear.
(5) California flexes its muscles: US automakers wanted some relief from Obama-era emission standards. The Trump administration gave them more than they asked for. Now, they are worried that California might set its own stricter standards, forcing manufacturers to make two categories of cars, which would raise their costs. Trump has ordered administration officials to negotiate with California about a uniform US standard.
(6) Benedict Cumberbatch: One of the few male actors standing up for the rights of his female co-stars: He won't accept film roles, unless actresses playing against him get equal pay.
Cover image for Naomi Klein's 'No Is Not Enough' (7) Book review: Klein, Naomi, No Is Not Enough: Resisting Trump's Shock Politics and Winning the World We Need, unabridged audiobook on 7 CDs, read by Brit Marling, Blackstone Audio, 2017.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Klein issues a timely warning about the perils of Trump's presidency, advising that mere refusal must be replaced with thoughtful resistance to prevent further erosion of our rights and democratic institutions. In the process, Klein makes frequent references to The Shock Doctrine, subject of an earlier book of hers, in which she suggests that the political Right and corporations manufacture one crisis after another, using the resulting chaos and fear to advance their self-serving agendas. We must learn to function within this unending crisis mode, rather than wait for the dust to settle, so to speak, before we act.
Quoting from the blurb on the back of the CD box for the book's audio version, "Klein explains that Trump, extreme as he is, is not an aberration but a logical extension of the worst and most dangerous trends of the past half-century. In exposing the malignant forces behind Trump's rise, she puts forward a bold vision for a mass movement to counter rising militarism, racism, and corporatism in the United States and around the world." In a sense, therefore, undue focus on Trump's racism and racist supporters may blind us to the forces he has unleashed within the military industrial complex and large multi-national corporations, which will be the major beneficiaries of his fiscal policies. So, racist groups and incidents may be viewed as the shock factors that allow the rest of his agenda to go forward unnoticed.
The early parts of No Is Not Enough are much better-written and more convincingly argued, to the point of being eye-opening in many regards. The second half gets bogged down in minutia, questionable assumptions, and less-than-convincing arguments. This may be, in part, due to the speed with which the book went from conception to publication. Nevertheless, this is an important book that must be read by anyone who wants to play a role in effective resistance against the Trump administration and Trump-like political operatives in the United States and around the world.

2018/05/12 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Climate change hoax The latest Lego-blocks set Baloney (1) Interesting designs: [Left] "Climate change hoax." [Center] The latest Lego-blocks set. [Right] "Baloney."
(2) Brain drain from a nation known for its start-up culture: Iran is tops in the world, when it comes to brain drain. However, Newsweek reports that many Israelis are also moving to the US and staying for good.
(3) Iran's Supreme Leader is shown inspecting a Persian version of Fire and Fury at a book fair. Of course, no equivalent book about Khamenei himself will see the light of day in Iran!
(4) Eighty-two women stood together on Cannes Film Festival's red carpet in a protest for better treatment and representation of women in film (#TimesUp).
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- NASA plans to use a small helicopter for exploration on its 2020 rover mission to Mars.
- Senator Chuck Schumer responds to Trump's Twitter rant with #BeBest, and nothing else!
- Iranian women's futsal and karate teams claim Asian championships. [Team photos]
- History in pictures: Netherlands, 1966 (B&W photo by Rudi Herzog).
- Cartoon of the day: The first couple reveal their respective social agendas. [Image]
- Persian poetry: A beautiful couplet from Haatef Esfahaani. [Persian text]
- Taking tooth-and-nail literally! [Video]
- "Nothing in this world is harder than speaking the truth, nothing easier than flattery." ~ Fyodor Dostoyevsky
- Persian love song for the departed beloved "Telegram"! [1-minute video]
Cover image for Leslie T. Chang's 'Factory Girls' (6) Book review: Chang, Leslie T., Factory Girls: From Village to City in a Changing China, unabridged audiobook on 12 CDs, read by Susan Erickson, Tantor Media, 2008.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
By focusing on the lives of two young women, whom she shadowed for three years, Chang, a former WSJ correspondent in Beijing, tells the story of China's 130 million migrant workers, constituting the largest migration in human history.
Chinese migrants are predominantly young men and women who flee the poverty and idleness of rural life in pursuit of their dreams, taking occasional English and computer classes for enhanced upward mobility. Chang intertwines the migrant workers' life stories with the adventures of her own family, who migrated within China and eventually moved to the West.
About one-third of migrants are women, who are on average younger, travel further from home, and stay out longer than their male counterparts. This is, in part, because they can gain more from the experience of moving away from a home where they are not really wanted. But they also tend to end up in a no-woman's land, between unfriendly family members and urban youths who don't quite accept them.
This eye-opening book exposes the dire economic conditions in China and the immense personal and familial sacrifices the migrants make to be able to live just above the poverty line. China's economic might is built on the backs of these young workers.

2018/05/11 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Orestis Koletsos Greek Ensemble (1) Greek music: Orestis Koletsos Greek Ensemble performed tonight at UCSB's Multicultural Center Theater to a sold-out audience. The group consists of four wonderful musicians, who are inspired by composer Mikis Theodorakis, of "Zorba the Greek" fame, who almost single-handedly popularized Greek music worldwide. [Photos]
Here's a complete 115-minute concert of the group from YouTube.
(2) Dance movements converted to music: With sensors connected to his body, dancer Kaiji Moriyama became a finely tuned musical instrument, as AI interpreted his body movements, converted them to MIDI data, and sent them to a Yamaha Disklavier player piano. [Photo credit: IEEE Spectrum, issue of May 2018]
(3) Two very different Irans: The Iran of Asghar Farhadi, whose latest film, "Everybody Knows," was given the honor of opening the Cannes Film Festival, and the Iran of mullahs, where they torch print-outs of US flag and the nuclear agreement in the parliament. And there are two very different USAs as well!
(4) Growing a new ear: Doctors at William Beaumont Army Medical Center in El Paso, Texas, took cartilage from a soldier's ribs to craft a new ear, which was then inserted under the skin of the forearm so that it could grow as a replacement for an ear he lost in an accident. [Photo] [Source: Newsweek]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Analysis of Russian-funded Facebook ads shows they even used Beyonce to sow discord among Americans.
- The strongman era is upon us: How tough guys came to rule the world. [Time magazine image]
- UCSB Library's special display marking the Middle East Awareness Week.
- Photos from my walk on the beach this afternoon: Including image of the audiobook I am listening to.
- The Borowitz Report (humor): Trump considering pulling US out of Constitution.
- English translation of a poem by Mowlavi (Rumi). [Text image]
- Vegan: "Anyone who sells meat is gross." Carnivore: "Well, anyone who sells fruits and vegetables is grocer."
(6) Cartoon of the day: Iran's economy may have entered a death spiral, as the government fails to slow the rising exchange rate for US dollar. [Image credit: Iranwire.com]
(7) Support among Republicans for challenging Trump in the 2020 presidential election, by age group: 18-24, 82%; 25-34, 57%; 35-44, 58%; 65+: 26%. It seems that older people are more easily scared! Trump losing in the primaries would be such poetic justice! I am sure he will blame the media, illegal voters, or even Putin (on whom Trump was very tough; LOL).
(8) Hearing Alexander Graham Bell's voice: This badly decomposed wax disk recording from 1885 was scanned digitally to recover the sound waves stored on it. The recording turned out to be Bell's famous statement "Hear my voice." [Photo credit: IEEE Spectrum, issue of May 2018]

2018/05/10 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Morality policewoman questions a woman's hijab in front of Tehran University (1) Morality policewoman questions a woman's hijab in front of Tehran University. [Photo credit: Iranwire.com]
(2) Madmen click together: Only Trump would try to negotiate a nuclear deal with a madman, who has reneged on every past promise, while scrapping another nuclear deal that seemed to be working, according to.our major European allies.
(3) On US foreign policy: An insightful analysis of differences between Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser John Bolton, and why a clash between their contrasting styles is inevitable.
(4) Meanwhile in Iran: Hardliners, including the Supreme Leader, are basking in Trump's decision to withdraw from the nuclear deal, telling anyone who'd listen that they were right in their "US cannot be trusted" advice.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Kim Jong Un releases three US prisoners ahead of his planned meeting with Donald Trump.
- Hawaii's Kilauea volcano could soon erupt again, spewing ash and boulder-size rocks in the air. [Photo]
- Persian poetry: A wonderful verse from Sa'adi. [Poem]
- Ancient Buddhist statue is found to contain hoard of artifacts, including scrolls.
- Quote of the day: "If you obsess about your looks, it kills your spirit." ~ Actress/model Lauren Hutton
- PhotoShopped images are no longer distinguishable from real ones: A rock in Thailand. [Image]
(6) Alan Turing, known as father of computer science, was also a naturalist, who used math to explain patterns in nature, with results that continue to enlighten today's researchers.
(7) You have seen mud and, more recently, lava covering a street. Now for something more pleasant: Liquid chocolate spilled from an overturned truck! [Photo]
(8) Some celebrity big-birthdays in April and May, 2018, according to AARP Magazine: Patricia Arquette (50); Michelle Pfeiffer (60); Stevie Nicks (70); Jerry West (80)
(9) Last evening's IEEE Central-Coast Section Meeting: Held at Upham Hotel near downtown Santa Barbara, the meeting began with drinks and appetizers, and it continued with a sumptuous meal. There was a short after-dinner presentation by Adi Wadaskar, Chair of UCSB's IEEE Student Branch, who described the experience of a few UCSB students in attending IEEE's Rising-Stars Conference in Las Vegas, where they learned about networking and personal branding, which are important requirements in today's job market. The main speaker was Dennis Horwitz, who presented an engineer's view of lightweight backpacking. Using new products and technologies, he has been able to reduce the weight of his gear (including backpack, tarp, ground cover, dishes, utensils, stove, and other necessities) to 10 lbs and the total weight including consumables to under 20 lbs. Some of the accompanying slides provide additional details.

2018/05/08 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Sean Carroll's 'The Big Picture' (1) Book review: Carroll, Sean, The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself, Unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Penguin Audio, 2016.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads; in extended form]
The title of this book seems at first to be pretentious and overambitious, but Carroll delivers effortlessly on its promise. At the physical level, the entire universe is composed of atoms, themselves formed of sub-atomic particles. Given the laws of physics, we should be able to determine the next state of the universe from its current state, what LaPlace claimed a "demon" could do, given enough computational resources. And herein lies the paradox: The required computational resources are so immense, that the theoretically possible eventuality is unlikely to materialize.
A recurring theme in this book is that we need models at multiple levels of abstraction to make sense of the world around us and to think/talk about it. Trouble arises when we mix these levels and start talking about several of them at once. For example, in the morning, we may go to our clothes closet and "choose" what to wear to work. We would get in trouble if we simultaneously think about that "decision" at the atomic level.
In a similar vein, we can talk about a gas in terms of the atoms comprising it or we can resort to high-level "emergent" properties such as temperature, pressure, and density. These emergent properties allow us to talk about gases, without dealing with the enormous complexity we would encounter in an atomic-level model. It is in the same sense that talking about emotions, moral values, and free will makes sense, despite the fact that everything is essentially pre-determined. Pascal famously said that what seems like a human-being's free will is really God's will, manifesting itself in our decisions. Modern science has replaced "God" in Pascal's formulation with "physics" or "nature."
Carroll, recognized as one of the greatest humanist thinkers of his generation, discusses a wide range of topics in terms of three key concepts of entropy, complexity, and time-arrow, as he takes the reader/listener on a fantastic journey through all that is known about our physical world and spiritual existence.
Here is Carroll's 63-minute book talk at Google.
(2) [Riddle] Question: Why do people hate elevator music? Answer: Because even though it's uplifting at first, it brings you down in the end.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Trump orders US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and authorizes the reimposing of sanctions.
- Company tied to a Russian oligarch deposited $500K in the account used to pay off Stormy Daniels.
- John McCain makes it clear that he does not want Trump at his funeral.
- Salaries of college/university employees. [Chart]
- The May 2018 issue of E&T magazine covers the crisis of trust in technology in the wake of data abuse.
- Cartoon of the day: All of Trump's tweets organized by subject matter, in a boxed set! [Image]
(4) "All in this Together: Racial Justice and Democracy in the 21st Century": This lecture by Rinku Sen is part of the program marking the 30th anniversary of UCSB's Multicultural Center; May 15, 6:00 PM, MCC Theater.

2018/05/07 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
(1) "Food and Drink in Ancient Iran": A one-day symposium at UC Irvine, Tuesday, May 15, 2018, 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM.
(2) New York State Attorney General, a staunch Trump opponent who had portrayed himself as a champion of the #MeToo movement, resigns amid allegations of violence against women and sexual misconduct.
(3) This professor has a cure for the sociopolitical mess we are in: Focus on positive feelings and words that describe them, instead of endlessly repeating negative terms such as "anxiety" or "stress"!
(4) Comedy news beats the real news in clarity: A closer look at Rudy Giuliani's lies and missteps since he started representing Donald Trump, from funny-men Seth Myers and Stephen Colbert.
(5) Math problem: You have been put in charge of building a spherical dome to house a human colony on Mars. The terrain does not allow the circular base of the dome to be larger than 300 m in diameter. What is the required minimum height, if the dome built on flat surface is to hold 5 million cubic meters of breathable air?
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Impressive footage of lava flows on Hawaii's Big Island. [Lava swallows a car]
- Union workers' strike may cripple University of California campuses, beginning today. [Strikers at UCSB]
- Quote of the day: "You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream." ~ C. S. Lewis
- Einstein wants you to help spread the gospel of science in K-12 classes. [Sign on UCSB campus]
- Interesting scientific details about the design of the font used in standard eye charts. [Video]
- Digital art: An immersive exhibition in Paris. [Video]
- Cartoon of the day: "My insurance doesn't cover pre-historic conditions." [Image]
- Creating works of art out of aluminum cans, using nothing but fingers. [Video]
(7) Book introductions: Four recent books about women in computing, their contributions, and the challenges they face. Women Codebreakers at Bletchley Park (Kerry Howard); Code Girls (Liza Mundy); The Women Who Smashed Codes (Jason Fagone); Brotopia (Emily Chang) [From Moshe Vardi's CACM column, May 2018]

2018/05/05 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Poorly worded memorial message on a bench Cat covers up girl's portrait Cartoon: The dinosaurs' last supper (1) Funny and/or interesting images: [Left] This poorly worded memorial message on a bench was intended to honor a dog lover! [Center] Cat covers up girl's portrait. [Right] The dinosaurs' last supper.
(2) In the school of life, everyone's a teacher. If you are willing to learn, everyone has something to teach you. Happy Teachers' Day!
(3) "Active Measures": This is the title of the first feature-length documentary about the Trump-Russia connection. It premiers at Toronto's Hot Docs Film Festival this week. This Vanity Fair story is comprehensive and spells out the details of how the film came about and what it covers. Bear in mind, though, that the publication is staunchly anti-Trump. Other sources describe the film in less favorable terms.
(4) Book introduction: Amanda Carpenter's just-released book, Gaslighting America: Why We Love It When Trump Lies to Us, exposes Trump's methods to remain in the media spotlight by creating one false story after another. Opponents revel in the lies, because they think each new lie will be Trump's undoing. Meanwhile, Trump moves from one lie to the next, before we have had a chance to absorb, analyze, understand, and counter the narrative.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Mag.-6.9 quake, strongest in 40 years, and volcanic eruption lead to evacuations on Hawaii's Big Island.
- Macron's "Make Our Planet Great Again" program chooses six more US scientists.
- Extreme hamocking in Shanghai, China. [Photo]
- Cartoon of the day: Food truck operator takes a cue from the air travel industry. [Image]
- The war of a single space vs. two spaces after a period continues: Science intervenes.
- Persian poetry: A wonderful verse from the beloved Azeri poet Shahriar: Facebook post.
(6) [Technology] Vatican's secret archives are being made accessible through AI: Conventional character recognition systems for converting text to digitally coded form do not work with handwritten script, so new methods are being developed for the said conversion by focusing on pen strokes, rather than letters.
(7) [Puzzle] What is the only number formed by a string of 10 digits in which the first digit equals the number of 0s in the string, the second digit indicates the number of 1s, the third digit is the number of 2s, and so on? Digit repetition is allowed.
(8) "What Helps Students Learn to Grapple with Complex Scientific Dilemmas": This was the title of a May 3 talk by UC Berkeley Professor of Education Marcia C. Linn, who spoke under the auspices of UCSB's Annual Lecture on Science Education. The focus of the talk was on understanding how middle-school students revise scientific hypotheses when they lead to contradictions and how to help them along with the revision process. Key issues were introduced through examples and reinforced by audience participation in mini-conferences. The WISE (Web-based Inquiry Science Environment) modeling tool was introduced and briefly discussed.

2018/05/03 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photoshopped image of Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un hand in hand (1) Will we see Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un hand in hand soon? If so, what will become of the oppressed and starving North Korean people?
(2) On World Press Freedom Day, let's remember all journalists who are imprisoned in Iran, Turkey, and elsewhere in the world. [And those being bullied in the US!]
(3) It's illegal to yell "fire" in a crowded library. You have to go whisper it to each person individually. For more humorous "facts" about the library, see this New Yorker piece.
(4) [Art] The Community Arts Music Association (CAMA) kicks of its centennial celebrations with a concert by UCSB students and faculty (including flutist Jill Felber, cellist Jennifer Kloetzel, and pianist Robert Koenig) at Santa Barbara's Trinity Epicopal Church, 1500 State Street, on Sunday, May 6, 2018, beginning at 4:00 PM.
(5) Trump is said to be repeating one of key mistakes of the Great Depression: More than 1100 economists, including 14 Nobel laureates, urge Trump to reverse course on recent trade measures.
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Fierce dust storms and thundershowers kill 90+ in the north of India, injuring many more.
- Putin is trying to block Telegram, a secure messaging/blogging platform used by 15+ million Russians.
- Ukraine stopped cooperating with the US Russia probe after Trump gave them weapons.
- Just published is a treatise on parallel universes that Stephen Hawking completed days before his death.
- Donald Trump has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize by Luke Messer and 17 other House members.
- [Humor] What Trump's acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize might look like!
(7) World's most advanced digital society: Estonia has transformed itself from a backward part of the Soviet Union to an EU and NATO member-country that leads the world in e-government. The country has declared access to the Internet a social right. It even grants e-residency to citizens of other countries, which would allow them to form companies and do business in Estonia, with full access to government services. Everything can be done on-line. For example, at tax time, the government pre-fills the required forms with information that it has, which allows citizens to go on-line and file their taxes with a quick check of the information already there and supplying a few missing entries. Estonia backs up its data in digital embassies in other countries via blockchain technology, which allows it to avoid cyber-attacks of the kind it experienced, likely from Russia, in 2007. An impressive part of this PBS Newshour story on Estonia is the number of women experts who explain the various aspects of their e-government.
(8) A con-man's scramble: Through his lawyer Rudy Giuliani, Trump admits that he repaid Michael Cohen for the $130,000 hush money he paid to Stormy Daniels. Why the admission, and why now? Because not having repaid Cohen puts him in violation of campaign laws, whereas paying him back turns the matter into a personal indiscretion, not a criminal violation. However, experts are saying that the manner in which the money was paid back (pretending that it was for legal services rendered by Cohen) amounts to money laundering, a crime.

2018/05/02 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Teacher of the Year at the White House (1) Teacher of the Year, honored at the White House, lets her buttons do the talkine.
(2) Buddha on anger: "Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned."
(3) US President Andrew Jackson procrastination: "There is no pleasure in having nothing to do; the fun is having lots to do and not doing it."
(4) Superbrain yoga: I am usually skeptical about these kinds of claims on improving mental powers, but decided to share this video, just in case. Judge for yourself. [4-minute video]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- John Kelly's job in jeopardy, after he joins the growing list of those calling Trump an idiot.
- Jared Kushner's demise has been predicted many times before, but he may be on his way out for real.
- No one in Trump's Russia-probe legal team has the security clearance needed to negotiate with Mueller.
- Former Mueller assistant says grammatical errors indicate that the leaked questions come from Trump.
- Trump's former doctor turns on him: Claims Trump dictated flattering health letter.
- Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif: What Baha'i prisoners? [Cartoon] [Iranwire story]
- Iran is destroying mass graves from the 1988 extra-judicial political executions.
- Iran's judiciary bans Telegram: Many are using the messaging app via anti-filtering software.
- With blacks like Kanye, stating that slavery was a choice, who needs White Supremacists?
- "Upper classes are a nation's past; the middle class is its future." ~ Author Ayn Rand [1905-1982]
(6) [Technology] Ocean farming: Seaweed provides plenty of food and jobs, while helping clean up our oceans. In a scheme known as vertical ocean farming, seaweed farming is combined with growing scallops, mussels, oysters, and other sea creatures at various depths, allowing efficient food production in small ocean plots.
(7) [Science] CRISPR, the gene-editing tool that is revolutionizing biomedical research: We are getting closer to the day when a wide array of ailments can be cured by gene modification, according to this very informative report from "60 Minutes."
(8) Final thought for the day: People put a lot of trust in engineers. Ten most terrifying skywalks in the world. [Since the preceding video was made, the Chongqing Skywalk has opened in China.

2018/04/30 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Teens hanging out, unknown location, 1950s Las Vegas, 1940 vs. 2017 Only in Ireland, 1950s (1) History in pictures: [Left] Teens hanging out, unknown location, 1950s. [Center] Las Vegas, 1940 vs. 2017. [Right] Only in Ireland, 1950s.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Israel claims it has snatched an archive of documents on Iran's nuclear-bomb program from a secret facility.
- Not fake news: The Doppler effect changes the perceived color when an object moves at super-high speed.
- The Weather Channel has launched Project Trumpmore to carve Trump's face onto a melting iceberg.
- Brazilian Rodrigo Koxa sets world record for riding an 80-foot monster wave.
- Good response to those who think women accuse men of sexual misconduct to seek fame. [Tweet]
- Little Rocket Man is now a Great Honorable Man. Please erase all previous tweets that refer to LRM.
(3) How can anyone suggest a Peace Prize for a boor who threatened North Korea with "fire and fury," dismissed a nuclear treaty that the entire world supports, vilified refugees from war-torn regions, and sabotaged the hopes for Arab-Israeli reconciliation?
(4) Not an exact quote: Republicans study and pass bills like the rest of us read and accept updated terms and conditions on iTunes. ~ Comedian Seth Myers, speaking at an Obama-era White House Correspondents Dinner [I do miss the smart comedy of the past]
(5) "Are Friends Electric: Our Future Lives with Robots": This was the title of a fascinating talk by Tony Prescott (Professor of Cognitive Robotics, U. Sheffield), constituting the last of three talks he delivered at UCSB. I reported on the first talk, entitled "Understanding the Brain by Building Robots," on April 16. I missed the second talk, entitled "How Robots Could Change Our View of the Human," on April 23, because it overlapped with a higher-priority talk for me. The accompanying slides tell much of the story of today's talk. Ontologically, robots can be described as tools (mere machines) or more than machines. Psychologically, we can view them as tools/machines or see them as more than machines. This dichotomy creates a four-way categorization, shown in one of the slides. Today's talk was concerned with the quadrant in which robots are described as machines but are seen as more than machines. In other words, Professor Prescott is of the opinion that even though robots are machines, we can become attached to them and to learn to view them as companions or helpers. Consider for example a bomb-disposal robot, used during the Iraq war, which saved many lives and was honored with a 21-gun salute and a Purple Heart Medal when it "died." Experiments have shown that people get upset when they see a robot being abused. Currently, loneliness is a major epidemic in our world, a condition that is known to contribute to increased mortality rate. Robots can help alleviate this condition, given that we are quite open to viewing robots as companions or even friends. Many people give their robots names, even if the robot is a mere vacuum cleaner. Having a companion robot essentially serves the same purpose as having a companion pet animal. Given the prominent role of robots in future societies, many groups are working on establishing guidelines and setting limits on what is or isn't appropriate. A notable example arises in the case of sex robots, when we veer into the domain of child sex. I enjoyed this talk immensely!

2018/04/28 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The first ever issue of Vogue magazine, 1892 Vintage soda-can designs J. R. R. Tolkien's original first page for 'Lord of the Rings,' 1937 (1) History in pictures: [Left] The first ever issue of Vogue magazine, 1892. [Center] Vintage soda-can designs. [Right] J. R. R. Tolkien's original first page for Lord of the Rings, 1937.
(2) Trump has hurt the North American bid to host the 2026 World Cup soccer tournament in Canada, Mexico, and the US: By threatening countries that vote against the bid, he violated FIFA's rules against political interference. It is soccer federations that vote, not countries, so the threat doesn't even make sense.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Bill Cosby has been convicted of indecent assault. Which makes me wonder: What is decent assault?
- James Comey is hated by Clinton and Trump supporters alike. So, who is buying his best-selling book?
- On music: "Music is art that goes through the ears straight to the heart." ~ Anonymous
- Titanic, in the age of modern, single women. [Image]
- Cartoon of the day: The fourth "R": Readin', 'Ritin', 'Rithmetic, Returnin' fire. {Image]
- Today, Santa Barbara celebrated 236 years of history by reenacting its Founding Ceremony of 1782.
Cover image for Carly Simon's 'Boys in the Trees' (4) Book review: Simon, Carly, Boys in the Trees: A Memoir, unabridged audiobook, read by the author, Macmillan Audio, 2015.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This is one of the most honest and charming memoirs I have read in a long time. Simon discusses both her professional life and personal challenges, including her stuttering, flings with several rock/movie stars, and her difficult marriage to James Taylor, another music giant of the 1970s. Simon and Taylor were part of the drug culture of the 1960s, but they were eventually able to kick the habit.
The blurb on the back of the CD box describes Simon as "rock star, poet, feminist icon, seductress, survivor," and we see why she deserves all these accolades as she takes us along for a journey from her childhood to the present.
The rock-star part is best known, given her memorable songs and her powerful, husky voice. The poet part manifests itself not just in her song lyrics, but also in the lyrical, absorbing prose of this book. The feminist-icon part is the weakest characterization (more on this later). The seductress part shows up in the form of several famous rock/movie stars who pursued her; the list includes Warren Beatty, Mick Jagger, and, of course, her husband of 11 years, James Taylor.
The survivor part is really the most telling aspect of this memoir. Simon struggled with depression, which included anxiety attacks and self-destructive behavior. Despite her stunning looks and musical talent, Simon suffered from self-doubt and considered herself more suitable to serving and satisfying men. Yet she transformed herself into a feminist icon later in life. She seemingly fell for any man who showed some interest in her. She felt attracted to other men, even after she married James Taylor, whom she loved deeply, but she says she did not act on the urges.
The audiobook includes original music, specially composed for the audio program. In my opinion, the music distracts more from the audiobook's charm than add to it, although the parts where Simon sings fragments of her own songs, with lyrics that are related to the points she is making, do add value.

2018/04/27 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Banff, Alberta, Canada, 1962 (photo by Walter Reed) Building of the Atomium in Brussels for the 1958 World Fair (phot by Dolf Kruger) NYC water fountain, 1930s (1) History in pictures: [Left] Banff, Alberta, Canada, 1962 (photo by Walter Reed). [Center] Building of the Atomium in Brussels for the 1958 World Fair (phot by Dolf Kruger). [Right] NYC water fountain, 1930s.
(2) Quote of the day: "Every man is dishonest who lives upon the labor of others, no matter if he occupies a throne." ~ Robert G. Ingersoll
(3) She persisted: Honoring the woman who tirelessly pursued the just-captured "Golden State" killer and wrote a book about the horrible mass-murderer and mass-rapist, but did not live to see him captured.
(4) Ethical and law-enforcement implications of ancestry DNA analysis: In what appears to be a first in the US, "The Golden State" killer was caught by having his DNA samples matched against databases of ancestry DNA analysis companies, which led to the identification of a few relatives. This is a breakthrough and also quite scary in terms of its ethical and privacy implications. I hope we see some open discussion on these issues.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Historic accord between North Korea and South Korea officially ends the 65-year Korean War.
- Merkel endured Trump's rants during a joint news conference, but her facial expressions screamed "OMG"!
- Japan builds hundreds of miles of concrete seawalls to protect coastal areas against tsunamis.
- Cartoon of the day: The president's just-us system. [Image]
- Joke of the day: Representative Luke Messer believes Trump should be awarded a Nobel Peace Prize.
- A humorous Persian song from a couple of decades ago about how money reigns supreme in our lives.
- Persian music: Marzieh in concert. This may have been her last live performance. [5-minute video]
(6) Chief-of-Staff John Kelly will be removed as soon as the White House can find him a suitable position that won't embarrass him: Perhaps Veterans Affairs?
(7) Change of guards: Is Emmanuel Macron taking the European leadership staff away from Angela Merkel because a misogynistic Donald Trump likes him better? [Illustration]
(8) Mariachi Aztlan: The highly-skilled and talented University of Texas student group performed in a free concert at Goleta's Isla Vista School this evening. Recording was disallowed, so I post a few photos and some music samples from YouTube. [Playlist] [With Ballet Folklorico] [At Chicago's 2017 Mariachi Festival] Walking back from the concert, I snapped these photos of the nearly-full moon and a planet (Mars?).
(9) Final thoughs for the day: "Money is what you'd get on beautifully without if only other people weren't so crazy about it." ~ Margaret Case Harriman

2018/04/26 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Race of double-decker buses, 1933 Delivering bread in the Irish Civil War, 1920s Women window cleaners, London, 1917 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Race of double-decker buses, 1933. [Center] Delivering bread in the Irish Civil War, 1920s. [Right] Women window cleaners, London, 1917.
(2) Rare photos of an osprey carrying a baby shark, snatched by the bird while it was eating a fish. As a Persian saying goes, "Above each hand, there are many hands."
(3) Quote of the day: "We can choose isolationism, withdrawal and nationalism. This is an option. It can be tempting to us as a temporary remedy to our fears ... But closing the door to the world will not stop the evolution of the world. It will not douse but inflame the fears of our citizens." ~ French President Emmanuel Macron, attacking Trumpism, a day after he and Trump hugged, kissed, held hands, and awkwardly touched each other during a news briefing
(4) Former police officer identified as "The Golden State Killer" and arrested for 40 years of criminal activity, including at least 12 murders and dozens of rapes. A 37-year-old cold double-murder case in my hometown of Goleta, California, is tied by DNA evidence to the captured ex-cop.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is courting American red-necks with this full-page ad in today's Los Angeles Times.
- Eighty-year-old US comedian Bill Cosby's retrial for sexual assault leads to a guilty verdict.
- The wedding season is upon us, according to Santa Barbara Independent! [Images]
- Food tips: Vegetarian mini-pizzas on English muffins; Mixed-greens salad, preparation and result.
- Patriarchy: Age difference of 24 years accepted in the bottom photo but ridiculed in the top one. [Photos]
- Cartoon of the day: "How do you get your child to read books?" [Image]
(6) Time magazine headline: "The Toronto van attack suspect was obsessed with rejection from women. He is not alone among violent men." [Members of the group call themselves "incel," for "involuntarily celibate"]
(7) "Innocent people don't take the Fifth": A compilation of Trump's musings about pleading the Fifth, in the wake of his personal attorney Michael Cohen's exercising this right in the porn actress Stormy Daniels case.
(8) For Persian-speaking readers: An informative essay by Dr. Shokoufeh Taghi about "shah" and many other words used in Persian to refer to the head of state over the centuries, and how some of them found their ways into European languages. Comments on the original Facebook post also contain valuable information.
(9) A final thought: "The good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge." ~ Bertrand Russell

2018/04/24 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Flyer for the screening of 'I, Tonya' at UCSB (1) "Script to Screen" program at UCSB's Pollock Theater: Tonight, I attended a screening of the gripping 2017 mockumentary film "I, Tonya." The story, told from the vantage points of several characters, including Harding herself and her abusive husband, happens over four decades, covering figure-skater Tonya Harding's childhood to the present. Margot Robbie, who also co-produced, is magnificent as Tonya, but the film really belongs to Allison Janney, who won a supporting-actress Oscar for portraying Tonya's cruel and abusive mother. The screening was followed by a fascinating discussion with scriptwriter/producer Steven Rogers, who described the film's development, beginning with the initial interviews. He characterized Harding as a poor girl, who had a foul mouth and was unapologetically red-neck. She was at a disadvantage, given the figure-skating world's preference for well-behaved, all-American girls, with supportive families. Her guilt in "the incident" may have been limited, but she never owned up to or apologized for her actions. Rogers wrote the role of Tonya's mother specifically for Janney, which turned out to be an excellent choice. [Images]
(2) Walking towards Pollock Theater for the screening of "I, Tonya," I took a few photos. The UCSB campus is covered with ads for the upcoming student-government elections and, in one part of the lawn to the north of Storke Tower, with reminders of the Armenian genocide.
(3) New Yorker article from December 2017: "Trump appeared at the [civil rights] museum, where he told an invitation-only audience that Martin Luther King, Jr., had been a personal inspiration, just a day after attending a rally, in Florida, where he again endorsed a candidate for the U.S. Senate who thinks that Muslims should not be allowed to serve in Congress, and who recently told an African-American man that America had been 'great' during slavery."
(4) List of children's TV programs in Ghom (humor): There have been suggestions that the city of Ghom, a center of religion and religious studies near Tehran, Iran, should be made into a sovereign country, a la the Vatican. This meme imagines what that new country's children might see on television.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Change of heart: "The little rocket man" is now deemed "very open" and "very honorable"!
- Many more Southwest flights are cancelled, as engine inspections continue.
- Mummified body found near a burial site ordered razed in 1979 Iran is believed to be that of Reza Shah.
- Amazon to deliver packages to car trunks: Next comes delivery of edibles directly to your mouth!
- Quote of the day: "Anger is a wind which blows out the lamp of mind." ~ Robert G. Ingersoll
- Dolores Leis Antelo, a Trump look-alike, lives in Nanton, La Coruna, northeastern Spain.
- You have seen birds diving to catch fish: Now watch fish rising to hunt birds.
- Robotic chefs are on the way: Sony and Carnegie Mellon University partner to develop cooking robots.
- Borowitz Report: "Bezos says that when pee tape is released, it will be free for all Amazon Prime members."
- Seth Meyer's "Closer Look" at the legal troubles facing Trump and his allies and appointees.
(6) The Toronto mass killer, who drove a van into a crowd of pedestrians, is linked to the Santa Barbara (Isla Vista) mass shooter, who in 2014 killed 6, and appears to have the same misogynistic tendencies.
(7) Book intro: I disagree with law Professor Alan Dershowitz on many issues but find the title of his new book, Trumped Up: How Criminalization of Political Differences Endangers Democracy, refreshing and timely.
(8) [Final thought for the day] Trump's 35% support base: The top 1% or so, who are raking money from tax breaks and laxer regulations, and the ~34% who believe the con-man's promises that after some hardships, they will be much better off.

2018/04/23 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Damascus, Syria, 1940 Gold diggers on the way to Dawson City, 1890s Street styles, 1940s (1) History in pictures: [Left] Damascus, Syria, 1940. [Center] Gold diggers on the way to Dawson City, 1890s. [Right] Street styles, 1940s.
(2) We closed this year's Earth Day, yesterday, with some sober thoughts: Mother Earth is again under siege, after decades of progress in making sure our children enjoy the benefits of clean air and water and can experience the wonders of nature first-hand. Happy Earth Day, and happy activism to protect Mother Earth from shortsighted politicians and businessmen!
(3) Quote of the day: "We go on multiplying our conveniences only to multiply our cares. We increase our possessions only to the enlargement of our anxieties." ~ Anna C. Brackett
(4) Why are some people so excited about North Korea saying it will stop nuclear testing? They offer no promises about stopping nuclear development or missiles development/testing! Stopping nuclear testing means they are already confident about the bomb part of their system working.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- My speech at my uncle Nourollan (Nouri) Parhami's memorial gathering of yesterday. [Image]
- Some "fine" Neo-Nazis with a glittering swastika, celebrated Hitler's birthday in Georgia. [Daily Mail images]
- Van intentionally plows into pedestrians, killing 10 and injuring 15 in Toronto, Canada.
- Cartoon of the day: The President's legal team arrives at the White House. [Image]
- The fourth-grader in the White House is every English teacher's nightmare. HERE IS WHY.
(6) Sean Hannity, a staunch anti-welfare commentator, has been a major beneficiary of HUD mortgage-loan guarantees, a form of government handout.
(7) Armenian prime minister resigns after protests against his illegal power grab: He was appointed PM after serving two five-year terms as president.
(8) "Data Management on Non-Volatile Memory": This was the title of a UCSB talk this afternoon by Joy Arulraj of CMU. In a case of embarrassment of riches, I had to forego attending another interesting talk entitled "How Robots Could Change Our View of the Human" by Tony Prescott, which overlapped with the first one. Emerging non-volatile memory (NVM) technologies are revolutionizing data storage and processing, because they do not lose data when the power source is disrupted. They sit between DRAM and mass storage in terns of speed and cost, making it possible to imagine structurally and logically much simpler systems that use only one kind of memory, rather than a hierarchy of different kinds. NVMs invalidate all major assumptions in the design of current database management systems, which include a great deal of complexity to bridge the gap between DRAM's high speed, high cost, and volatility and disk/SSD's high latency, low cost, and permanence. Adapting existing systems to the availability of non-volatile memory, while possible and offering some benefits, does not fully exploit the strengths of the new technologies, thus pointing the way to complete redesign of database management systems from scratch. Mr. Aluraj discussed some of his work on designing and evaluating DBMSs that take advantage of emerging NVM technologies, particularly the ones being developed by Intel. [Slides]

2018/04/21 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Santa Barbara Earth Day logo (1) Santa Barbara Earth Day Festival: Held over the 4/21-22 weekend at Alameda Park, this year's event is more extensive than usual. In particular, the green vehicles exhibit has many more entries. [11 photos]
Many environmental activists and organizations are present at the festival, with exhibits such as bike-powered smoothie machine, informational posters, sign-up sheets, and a sponsored talent stage. [11 photos]
The festival also features food, drinks, and recreational activities. [12 photos] [Bonus photo of a church across the street from Alameda Park]
(2) Quote of the day: "Religion's domination over science and thought in Iran is reminiscent of the Middle Ages." ~ Narges Mohammadi, recipient of APS's 2018 Andrei Sakharov Prize [Award image]
(3) The story of Elizabeth Holmes: She dropped out of Stanford to found Theranos based on new blood-testing technology and became the youngest female self-made billionaire, before her company crashed due to inaccurate test results.
(4) A thoughtful review of James Comey's blockbuster book, A Higher Loyalty: Former Clinton aide Jennifer Palmieri praises Comey's character, but is puzzled by his inconsistent justifications for actions he took during the 2016 election, arising from his unwillingness to explicitly own up to helping Trump win.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Advice to people living in the US: Don't eat any romaine lettuce until further notice.
- Trump attacks Comey in series of typo-ridden tweets, referring to Mueller as "Special Council." [Images]
- A solo Melania Trump is all smiles at the funeral of former First Lady/Mom Barbara Bush.
- Rudy Giuliani may be a witness in the Russia probe, complicating his role as a Trump attorney.
- Actress who belongs to a shady self-help group for women is charged with sex trafficking.
- In Iran, workplace safety is taken very seriously. [Funny photo]
- The Kamkar family matriarch with 4 of her 8 children, all of whom are accomplished artists. [Photo]
- Q: What do the top three best-selling books of 2018 (so far) have in common? A: They are all about Trump.
- Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia are Middle East's top three countries for executions. [Cartoon from Iranwire]
- Jane Fonda is perhaps not a perfect role model, but here she gives some sage advice. [3-minute video]
- Were we humans the first civilization on Earth? Will we be the last?
- There is no such thing as a bad emotion: All emotions are natural parts of life. [2-minute video]
(6) Humor: Mark Zuckerberg cannot easily analyze Facebook likes by Iranian users and sell the resulting information. Likes by Iranians can have many different meanings, besides actual approval of the content. We like friends' posts, whether or not we agree with the content. We like posts by lonely individuals who otherwise don't garner any likes. We like comments by warring parties to stoke the fire of discord. We like posts by beautiful women, without bothering to read them. [2-minute video]
(7) Santa Barbara Public Market: Established several years ago in the space formerly occupied by a Vons supermarket to the south of Arlington Theater, the market hosts a collection of quaint cafes, bakeries, snack shops, and bars. [6 photos]

2018/04/20 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Manhattan telephone wires, 1887 A DC-4 passenger plane flying over midtown Manhattan, 1939 New York City rush hour, 1909 (1) Historical photos of New York City: [Left] Manhattan telephone wires, 1887. [Center] A DC-4 passenger plane flying over midtown Manhattan, 1939. [Right] New York City rush hour, 1909.
(2) The Democrats file a lawsuit against the Trump campaign, Russia, and Wikileaks for conspiracy to damage the Clinton campaign: Several top Trump officials, current and former, are named in the lawsuit.
(3) Here's a liar who seems to think he's living in the Middle Ages, when there was no record of one's prior musings. Donald Trump, in 2014: "If I decide to run for office, I'll produce my tax returns, absolutely, and I would love to do that." [Meme]
(4) US State Department issues its annual assessment of human rights in the world. The usual suspects (Russia, China, Syria, Iran, North Korea) are all there, but Saudi Arabia is spared a harsh assessment, despite atrocities in Yemen and at home.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- North Korea indicates that it will suspend nuclear missiles tests and close its nuclear test site.
- Rudy Giuliani is in for major disappointment: He hopes to end the Mueller probe in a week or two.
- The very predictable Trump tweet-storm has begun: Flynn's life destroyed, Comey is getting rich!
- Redacted forms of James Comey's released memos are now available on-line.
- Senator Tammy Duckworth makes history by bringing baby daughter to the Senate floor.
- The time has come to test Michael Cohen's assertion that he would take a bullet for trump!
- Iran's morality police beats up a woman whose hijab does not meet with their approval.
- Cartoon of the day: Enough is enough. [National School Walkout Day] [Image]
(6) Dilbert's pointy-hair boss tries to get on the blockchain bandwagon: "Why can't we 3-D print a blockchain and HTML it into a bitcoin?" [Image]
(7) One more lie exposed: Trump's claim to Comey that he did not spend a night in Moscow during his 2013 trip for the Miss Universe pageant is contradicted by evidence, showing that Trump arrived in Moscow on November 8, 2013, spent the night at the Ritz Carlton Hotel, and didn't leave the city until after the pageant was finished late on the following day.
(8) I am surprised that Michael Cohen walks on the streets nonchalantly and goes to cafes: Trump allies have described him as a "ticking time-bomb," which makes him a target for deranged, gun-totting Trump supporters.
(9) This is how I will spend part of tomorrow in downtown, Santa Barbara: Earth Day Festival, Saturday and Sunday, April 21-22, 2018, starting at 11:00 AM, Alameda Park.

2018/04/19 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A 19-year-old Grace Kelly, 1949 A 16-year-old Judy Garland as Dorothy Gale, holding Toto, 1939 An 18-year-old Robin Williams as a high school senior, 1969 (1) History in pictures: [Left] A 19-year-old Grace Kelly, 1949. [Center] A 16-year-old Judy Garland as Dorothy Gale, holding Toto, 1939. [Right] An 18-year-old Robin Williams as a high school senior, 1969.
(2) Brilliant comedy: Trevor Noah likens Sean Hannity's explanation of his relationship with Michael Cohen to quickly-recited disclaimers and lists of side effects in pharmaceutical ads.
(3) Recommended reading for Melania Trump: Author Catenya McHenry's Married to a Narcissist: Enduring the Struggle and Finding You Again [Self-published on Amazon]
(4) The Southwest Airlines plane that suffered an engine fire was piloted by a female former navy fighter pilot, whose nerves of steel are credited with the safe landing.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Cuba without a Castro: A revolutionary dynasty ends with Raul Castro deciding to step down.
- Trump is not attacking Comey for what he has written but for what he knows and cannot disclose now.
- Trump has remained silent on Barbara Bush's passing, but his attack dogs are doing his bidding for him.
- Another deranged right-winger: Alex Jones calls the Sandy Hook massacre a hoax.
- Puerto Rico plunges into darkness in its worst blackout since Hurricane Maria.
- Some Airbus planes are being fitted with bunk beds, like those on sleeper trains, in their cargo holds.
- One of the 9/11 planners, a Syrian-born German citizen, has been arrested by the Kurds in Syria.
- Experiencing a dry early spring: April showers seem to have been rescheduled for May in my SoCal area!
(6) Recycled quote of the day (fron 8 years ago): "Art for the sake of truth, for the sake of what is beautiful and good—that is the creed I seek." ~ George Sand [pseudonym of Amantine Aurore Lucile Dupin, 1804-1876, the first French female novelist to gain a major reputation]
(7) Who are these people? Ted Cruz offers effusive praise to a man who called his dad a criminal, his wife ugly, and him an adulterer.
(8) Sean Hannity in the spotlight: Tabloids and other media are having a field day with the self-righteous Sean Hannity over his lack of transparency. [Front page of Daily News]
(9) Final thought for the day: If you suggest improvements to arrogant or self-doubting people, you will only create enemies for yourself. Make suggestions for improvement to humble, self-confident people, and you will gain lifelong friends.

2018/04/17 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of T-shirt: Octopi Photo of T-shirt: Intelligence defined Photo of T-shirt: Why I became a professor (1) Nerdy T-shirt designs: [Left] Octopi [Center] Intelligence defined. [Right] Why I became a professor.
(2) Do you constantly complain about leg room on airplanes? Well, that issue may disappear, as you will be essentially standing during your flight! Airlines are experimenting with "saddle seats" to cram more passengers in economy. Next, will come hooks to hang you from the cabin ceiling, as in slaughterhouses!
(3) Use of fur in fashion may be ending soon: Activists have increased awareness, and advances in materials research are providing many ethical alternatives to fur.
(4) Our planet contains diamonds from a lost planet of the early Solar System: Terrestrial planets of the early solar system (Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars) were formed by gradual merger of many proto-planets, ranging in size from as small as our moon to as big as Mars, in a series of high-energy impacts. An 80-ton asteroid, which exploded upon entering the Earth's atmosphere in 2008, showering our planet with hundreds of small meteorites, brought us some material from those proto-planets.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Barbara Pierce Bush [1925-2018]: Former First Lady and First Mom. RIP.
- Cal Poly's entire Greek life has been suspended following acts of racial insensitivity at Lambda Chi Alpha.
- Israeli intelligence takes issue with Trump's characterization of the Syria air attack as a success.
- Sketch of the man Stormy Daniels says threatened her is released and $100K reward announced.
(6) Donald Trump and Japan's Shinzo Abe will try to forget about scandals at home, when they meet at Mar-a-Lago: Meanwhile, aides are reportedly worried about Trump watching too much TV and tweeting while at Mar-a-Lago for 5 days, necessitating much clean-up duties.
(7) Trump campaign funds were used to pay legal fees for Trump, Michael Cohen, Donald Trump Jr., and former bodyguard Keith Schiller. In all, 20% of the campaign's funds were spent on legal fees, parts of which have raised eyebrows.
(8) On environmental impacts of Santa Barbara's Thomas Fire: Today's UCSB Library lecture in the Pacific Views series, "Oceanography in the Thomas Fire: Preliminary Results from a Graduate Student Led Expedition Aboard R/V Sally Ride," featured graduate students Kelsey Bisson (Geography) and Eleanor Arrington (Earth Science), who reviewed the impact of massive amounts of ash entering the ocean after the largest fire in California's history. A previously-planned expedition, for which they had done extensive fund-raising to pay for the vessel and research equipment, took on a new meaning when Thomas Fire broke out and provided them with an opportunity to track the effects of ash in real time. Ash which is directly deposited on the ocean is different from ash that is carried to the ocean by freshwater flow. The study reported in this talk helps us understand the difference. These photos show the speakers and parts of their story, as reflected in several of the presentation slides. Follow-up studies are needed to determine the longer-term effects. One interesting anecdote from the talk was the observation that on world maps, we often see differences between various types of land, such as deserts, mountains, green plains, and so on, while oceans are usually depicted as featureless blue areas. This 3-minute NASA video, which was shown by the speakers, impresses upon us the fact that oceans are alive and constantly evolving, aided by numerous currents.
(9) "Drop Dead Gorgeous": This is the title of a 1999 comedy film which was screened tonight at Pollock Theater as part of UCSB's spring quarter "Women in Comedy" series. Upon its release, the film was a flop, both financially and critically, but has since become a cult classic. Some of the antics (such as people literally dropping dead of various causes) and politically incorrect humor in this mocumentary about a beauty pageant in a small Minnesota town are frowned upon today. The screening was followed by a discussion between moderator Patrice Petro (Professor of Film and Media Studies) and Mindy Sterling (one of the film's stars and best known for portraying the Nazi lady in the Austin Powers films). The film's cast (see one of these images) includes both established pros and young actresses who went on to become major movie stars.

2018/04/16 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Flower grows undisturbed, after volcanic eruption covers everything with ash Cherry blossoms, across from Jefferson Memorial, Washington, DC Super-colorful grapes (1) The amazing nature: [Left] Flower grows undisturbed, after volcanic eruption covers everything with ash. [Center] Cherry blossoms, across from Jefferson Memorial, Washington, DC. [Right] Super-colorful grapes.
(2) A photo by Iranian photographer Ahmad Nateghi and the bronze statue based on it document Saddam Hussein's chemical attack against Iraqi Kurds in Halabja on March 16, 1988, during the closing days of the Iran-Iraq war. [Images and Persian post]
(3) Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller, as Special Counsel Robert Mueller and Trump attorney Michael Cohen, revived an iconic scene from "Meet the Parents" for their SNL cold-open sketch last night.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Comey may have called Trump "morally unfit" to lead, but RNC Chairwoman sees him as a moral leader.
- Effects of Trump tweets on Boeing and Amazon stock prices were temporary. [Source: Time magazine]
- Barbara Bush, 92, is seriously ill, but she has decided against seeking further treatments.
- A Chinese baby is born from a frozen embryo, four years after his parents died.
- A 45-m asteroid came alarmingly close to Earth (less than 200,000 km) only hours after it was spotted.
- Anon. quote: "When you're happy, you enjoy the music, but when you're sad, you understand the lyrics."
(5) This largest-ever Lego replica of Titanic contains 56,000 Lego pieces and was built in 700 hours, over 11 months, by a 10-year-old boy from Reykjavik, Iceland, who is on the autism spectrum.
(6) New developments in the Michael Cohen case: Trump was denied the right to view seized documents and to decide what should be protected under the attorney-client privilege. Meanwhile, Sean Hannity of Fox News was revealed to be a client of Cohen.
(7) Quote of the day (from today's UCSB lecture, described in the next entry): "As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being." ~ Carl Jung
(8) "Understanding the Brain by Building Robots": This was the title of an interesting talk this afternoon by Tony Prescott (Professor of Cognitive Robotics, U. Sheffield), who does both state-of-the-art research and writes pieces of general interest about artificial intelligence and robotics for "The Conversation."
Prescott will give two more lectures, while at UCSB as a Fellow of Sage Center for the Study of the Mind.
- Monday, April 23, 4:00 PM, Psych 1312: "How Robots Could Change Our View of the Human"
- Monday, April 30, 4:00 PM, Psych 1312: "Are Friends Electric? Our Future Lives with Robots and AI"
Professor Prescott described his area of research as "synthetic psychology," where theories are developed and verified by building actual systems. His career choice was influenced by two books he read as a young man: Jung's Memories, Dreams, Reflections and Braitenberg's Vehicles: Experiments in Synthetic Psychology.
In today's lecture, Prescott described his work on robotics, including robotic rats he helped build and experiments performed by various teams on how whiskers are used for sensing. Here are two links if you are curious about the subject. In the first one, a 6-minute video, Prescott describes his research on robotics and rat whiskers. The second one, an article about the machanics of whiskers, which includes a 6-minute video, describes research on rat whiskers from another research team. [A few slides from the talk]

2018/04/15 (Sunday): To make a dent in my backlog of book reviews, I present two of them today.
Cover image for Michel Wolff's 'Fire and Fury' (1) Book review: Wolff, Micheal, Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Holter Graham, Macmillan Audio, 2017.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This book has been criticized for its gossipy tone and inaccuracies. In fact, I found it quite enlightening and, having listened to it with a dose of skepticism, came away with a clearer understanding of the current US administration's mode of operation. The early chapters sounded quite convincing, while the chapters near the end (culminating in the firing of Steve Bannon) came across as more cavalier, perhaps because Wolff had begun losing his access to key players by then.
The early Trump White House was divided into several competing camps. Establishment Republicans were represented by Reince Priebus and Sean Spicer. Right-wing Tea-Party types had Steve Bannon and Steve Miller. Liberals were in the Kushner-Ivanka orbit. Intelligence pragmatists were represented by H. R. McMaster and James Mattis (who was instrumental in the firing of Michael Flynn, despite Trump's own intuition to the contrary). And Trump played these camps against one another, giving each the illusion that they had his ears, aided by yes-men/women such as Hope Hicks, who hid much negative press from him or interpreted the stories in the most benevolent manner possible.
Wolff's characterization of Trump as a conflicted man is also spot-on: He distrusts reporters, while craving attention from them. He wants to be seen as a tough man, who always comes out swinging, yet wanting to be liked and admired. He wants to be viewed as a family man who is proud of his children, and yet does not want to invest any personal resource other than money in raising them. A racist and anti-semite at heart, believing in the superiority of European genes, he also wants to avoid alienating the Jews and others around him.
This book does not rise to the level of Trump Revealed: An American Journey of Ambition, Ego, Money, and Power, by Michael Kranish and Marc Fisher (see my 4-star review on GoodReads), but it has its own charms and insights. Inaccurate and hyped-up statements are there to be sure, yet the book is a good read still.
Cover image of 'Meditation for the Fidgety Skeptic' (2) Book review: Harris, Dan (with Jeff Warren and Carlyle Adler), Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Random House Audio, 2017. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This is a companion volume to Dan Harris's first book on meditation, 10% Happier, which I reviewed on December 27, 2017, in this blog and on GoodReads.
Early in his career, Harris, an ABC News reporter (with stints on "Nightline," "Good Morning America," and weekend evening news), struggled with self-confidence issues and anxiety attacks, which drove him to drug and alcohol abuse. Subsequently, he discovered that meditation helped him tame the voice in his head that "made [him] behave like a jerk," in his own words.
This new book is a how-to manual and also tells the story of a cross-country quest by Harris and his Canadian friend Jeff Warren, whom he characterizes as "Meditation McGyver," to tackle the myths causing many to conclude that meditation isn't for them. Harris and Warren interacted with diverse groups of people during their trek across 18 states, both teaching their subjects life-changing meditation skills and, in the process, learning a lot from them.
One key reason people do not meditate, or give up soon after starting the practice, is that they aim too high and become disillusioned when they cannot achieve their lofty goals. Harris suggests that you aim very low at the outset, perhaps beginning with as little as a couple of minutes per day, and building up to a level that suits your own needs and schedule, as well as those of the people around you.
Another take-away is that meditation and mindfulness do not have to be practiced while sitting motionless in a quiet environment; it is possible to meditate while you walk or run, if you focus on the moment (e.g., concentrate on the bottom of your feet touching the ground or some other aspect of your physical body), rather than planning your day, listening to music, or day-dreaming.
Throughout, Harris emphasizes that the benefits of meditation and mindfulness have been proven scienfically, citing the results of various research studies and testimonials from people in all walks of life. I found the arguments convincing and the practical suggestions in the book quite useful. You might say that I am no longer a fidgety skeptic!

2018/04/14 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Big Buddha statue in Lantau, Hong Kong London's Natural History Museum Temple of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Barcelona (1) History in pictures: [Left] Big Buddha statue in Lantau, Hong Kong. [Center] London's Natural History Museum. [Right] Temple of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Barcelona.
(2) Russia puzzle pieces are falling into place: Mueller reportedly has evidence that Trump attorney Michael Cohen lied about never having travelled to Prague; the Steele dossier claimed Cohen met a Russian there.
(3) Dictionary Web sites see huge spikes in on-line searches for "slimeball": Trump does have the best words, after all! The rarely-used "kakistocracy," which appeared in a tweet by former CIA Director Brennan, is also looked up by many.
(4) California toy mogul Isaac Larian has submitted a $675M bid to buy 274 Toys R Us stores in the US and another $215M for 82 stores in Canada. He views each Toys R Us store as a neighborhood mini-Disneyland, which is worth saving.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Massive recall of eggs in nine US states due to salmonella contamination fears.
- Cover image of Time magazine, issue of April 23, 2018: It's Stormy in Trumpland! [Image]
- BFFs or a marriage of convenience? UN rejects Russia's resolution to condemn air-strikes on Syria.
- The average American's debt peaks at $134K at ages 35-54 and then drops steadily, reaching $35K at 75+.
- Batman, before he had enough money to buy himself a fancy bat mobile! [Photo]
- The notion of race is made up and has no scientific basis: Special issue of National Geographic on race.
(6) Quote of the day: "If religious instruction were not allowed until the child had attained the age of reason, we would be living in a quite different world." ~ Christopher Hitchens
(7) Goooooal! on Twitter: Soccer lovers may be pleased to learn that Twitter will be broadcasting one MLS soccer match every week, with the first one (CHI v. LA) occurring today at 12:50 PM PT (3:50 PM ET).
(8) Engineering ethics: [The following is adapted from a comment I made on a friend's Facebook post that offered a defense of FB in light of ongoing criticisms about privacy issues, citing many wonderful connections he had made through FB and the joys they had brought him.] For many years now, nearly all engineering and computer science programs in the US have had an ethics requirement, typically satisfied through an upper-division required course. This puts typical college-drop-out entrepreneurs at a disadvantage, because they most often drop out before taking the course. When you build a system that touches people's lives, you have to step very carefully and avoid the rush to getting there first and to reap the financial rewards of market dominance. Facebook certainly affects people's lives much much more than even the most-crossed highway bridge or the tallest skyscraper, whose designers would be subject to ethical and regulatory oversight. Granted, a single course is unlikely to turn an unethical person into an ethical one, but just being exposed to the notions of ethical engineering practice does make a difference.

2018/04/13 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Casual Friday the 13th ('Off the Mark' cartoon, by Mark Parisi) Cartoon: 'Bring me your steel (25% tariff), aluminum (10% tariff), EU cars (5% tariff)' Cartoon: 'The ringing in your ears: I think I can help' (1) Cartoons: [Left] Casual Friday the 13th ("Off the Mark," by Mark Parisi). [Center] "Bring me your steel (25% tariff), aluminum (10% tariff), EU cars (5% tariff)." [Right] "The ringing in your ears: I think I can help."
(2) Automakers may come to regret push for laxer emission targets: If EPA grants their wish, possibly going even further in regulation rollbacks, California and other states may revolt by setting their own emission standards, forcing automakers to build different cars for different markets, thus increasing production costs.
(3) Similarities of today's turmoil with Nixon days keep increasing: Michael Cohen apparently liked to tape his conversations, causing serious worries among Trump allies after the raids on Cohen's office and home.
(4) Trump pardons Scooter Libby, former VP Dick Cheney's Chief of Staff, who was convicted for lying to FBI in 2007: Some believe he is sending a signal to his allies that they will be pardoned if they stand by him.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Syria's chemical-weapons research and storage facilities hit by the US, Britain, and France.
- Another 'family values' politician accused of sexual misconduct: Governor Eric Greitens is urged to resign.
- The Trump-Comey war escalates, after Comey calls Trump a mafia-esque leader who is untethered to truth.
- California company aims to build a solar farm with a battery 3 times as large as Tesla's current-largest.
- Coverage of Iranian women's "White Wednesdays" initiative against mandatory hijab on the world stage.
- Iran censors the logo of Italy's Roma soccer team, which features an ancient she-wolf. [From: Iranwire]
- UNESCO includes traditional dolls of Tajmir, a village in South Khorasan, on its artisanal register.
- Children's rights advocates criticize an Iranian TV show for its portrayal of child marriage.
- Iran tries to enforce an official exchange rate for rial, as the currency's value sinks to new lows.
- So true for many of us on Facebook: Profile picture versus real life! [Photos]
- Top 50 most-popular TED talks: Presented in 50 slides, with notes.
- Sights of Yerevan, Armenia (150-page PDF tourist guide).
- Book introduction, through a friend's review (Los Angeles Review of Books): Negar Djavadi's "Disoriental"
(6) Gubernatorial challenger Cynthia Nixon maintains that time's up for "corporate Democrats," as she mounts a progressive campaign to unseat New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
(7) Kakistocracy: System of government run by the worst, least-qualified, or most unscrupulous citizens. [Word which appeared in a tweet by the former CIA Director John Brennan]
(8) Final thought for the day: You can't shower everyone around you with personal attacks and insults and expect to be treated with due deference and respect.

2018/04/11 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Image of Trump's face inside an apple (1) Adapted from CNN's "this is an apple" ad: Some might try to tell you that this is a president. They might scream "president" over and over again. They might put "PRESIDENT" in all-caps. You might even start to believe that this is a president. But it's not. This is a lying, cheating, narcissistic, tax-evading, amoral real-estate developer.
(2) Quote of the day: "Is it too modern to notice that there is nothing [in the Ten Commandments] about the protection of children from cruelty, nothing about rape, nothing about slavery, and nothing about genocide?" ~ Christopher Hitchens
(3) Word puzzle: What do the following words have in common? [Source: E&T magazine, issue of April 2018]
nuts; responsibility; ironman; jihad; ringfence; miffed; redcoat; macbain
(4) Hedy Lamarr: The April 2018 issue of E&T magazine contains a feature on the glamorous, talented, and great-looking actress who preferred to be remembered as an inventor/scientist. [Images] [On my tweet about this story, commenter Katherine Drew (Assoc. Commissioner, NYC Mayor's Office of Media & Entertainment) pointed to the 2017 documentary film "Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story," which she produced.]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Holocaust survivor likens today's America to Germany between the World Wars, before Nazis took over.
- Full rotation of the Moon, as seen from NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. [Video]
- Movement of ocean saltwater caused by tides creates a magnetic field that is mapped for the first time.
- NASA has begun working on the next Mars rover for 2020 launch.
- Yarn-like rechargeable batteries can power future smart fabrics and wearable electronics.
- Riddle: Why is the circle very knowledgeable? Answer: Because it has 360 degrees.
- The non-compliment that sounds like a compliment: You are one in 7 billion!
- Trump's vocabulary is at the 4th-grade level: Here is how he compares with the last 15 US presidents.
(6) UCSB Arts Walk: Much of this collection of free events across the campus overlapped with my class and office hours today. I still managed to catch a few performances and exhibits as I walked home from campus. UCSB Middle East Ensemble performed between Music Department and University Center [2-minute video]. Here are some examples of other events, followed by a photo of the sunset as I arrived home.

2018/04/10 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Elvis and Priscilla about to board a chartered plane after their marriage, 1967 Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash, Los Angeles, 1969 Paul Newman and Clint Eastwood, 1972 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Elvis and Priscilla about to board a chartered plane after their marriage, 1967. [Center] Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash, Los Angeles, 1969. [Right] Paul Newman and Clint Eastwood, 1972.
(2) Former general responds to Ivanka Trump's tweet about the importance of physical activity and nutrition to children's health.
(3) Walmart, Target, and other retailers have stopped requiring signatures on credit-card slips: New technologies have made such signatures unnecessary and worthless.
(4) Quote of the day: "Trump's lawyer got raided, which means Trump's lawyer's lawyer should probably play it safe and get himself a lawyer." ~ Comedian Stephen Colbert
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Look who's being investigated for bank fraud and campaign finance violations! [Cohen's 2015 tweet]
- Cambridge Analytica accessed not just user profiles but also private messages that FB routinely scanned.
- Extravagant 27-centuries-old gold jewelry pieces were made in Spain, not brought in by Near-Easterners.
- It has cooled off from yesterday's 80s in Goleta, 90s in Santa Barbara: A week of pleasant 70s ahead!
- Ahead of its time: Vertical parking in Chicago, 1936. [Photo]
- Riddle: What costs millions but is nearly worthless? Answer: Second place in an election.
- "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Then quit. There's no point in being a damn fool." ~ W. C. Fields
(6) Here's Fox News' headline, as Trump plunges into a legal mess of his own making: "Trump Ambushed by Opponents as He Fixes Obama's Foreign Policy Mess." Don't be surprised if he follows the network's advice to fire Mueller and his own Justice Department officials. Government of the rich, for the rich, by Fox News!
(7) Responding to Trump's tweet: The attorney-client privilege is alive and well. What is dead, and has been dead for many decades, is hiding illegal acts behind the privilege.
(8) Iranian physicist, engineer, and human-rights activist Narges Mohammadi, now serving a 16-year term in Tehran's Evin Prison, has been chosen as the recipient of the 2018 Anderi Sakharov Prize by the American Physical Society. The Prize citation reads: "for her leadership in campaigning for peace, justice, and the abolition of the death penalty and for her unwavering efforts to promote the human rights and freedoms of the Iranian people, despite persecution that has forced her to suspend her scientific pursuits and endure lengthy incarceration." [Persian report about the honor]
(9) March for Science: Los Angeles will hold a rally and science expo on Saturday, April 14, 2018, 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM, at Pershing Square. Santa Barbara does not have a separate event this year.

2018/04/09 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Time magazine cover, depicting Saudi prince Mohammad Bin Salman (1) Do you see any charm in this Time magazine cover image of Saudi prince Mohammad Bin Salman to justify the title "Charm Offensive"?
(2) Women making waves: Cindy Hyde-Smith becomes the first woman to represent Mississippi in Congress. Tammy Duckworth becomes the first US Senator to give birth while holding office.
(3) Meme of the day: "Never blame your spouse for his/her faults. Those faults could be the reasons s/he couldn't marry someone better." (These are my own words. The Dalai Lama was busy, but he sent his regards!) [View the Persian version of meme]
(4) Falling out of a Russian plane, shortly after take-off in Yakutak, Russia, was $15 million worth of gold (172 bars, weighing 3.4 tons). [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 2, 2018]
(5) UCSB ranks 24th overall (12th among public universities), 5th (2nd) in materials, and 11th (7th) in chemical engineering, according to the latest US News & World Report ranking of graduate engineering programs.
(6) Quote of the day: "As numb as we have become to the shock and ugh of the Trump presidency, here's one thing we didn't foresee: Stormy Daniels, porn star, director, entrepreneur and fiercely funny tweeter, might just be the woman the resistance needs." ~ Susanna Schrobsdorff, writing in Time magazine, issue of April 9, 2018
(7) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Syrian state news agency reports that missiles have struck an air base in Homs, Syria.
- At least 27, including 23 children aged 4-12, die in India when the bus carrying them plunges 300 feet.
- Backpage.com, a prostitution and sex-trafficking site, has been seized and closed by authorities. [Image]
- #MeToo hits the literature Nobel Prize panel: Three members resign over harassment scandal.
- FBI raids the office of Trump lawyer Michael Cohen on referral from Robert Mueller and seizes documents.
- Paul Ryan will likely retire or be ousted: Republicans are losing record number of seats under his speakership.
- How Fox News is running our country: Sending the military to the US-Mexico border was Fox's idea.
- According to AARP Bulletin, 10% of the ~ $600 billion Medicare expenditures in 2017 was lost to fraud.
- "Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you." ~ Anne Lamott
- Perfectionist's dream: A mathematical possibility but likely unrealizable in practice. [GIF image]
(8) A matter of national honor: The French are distraught over Canada taking top prize in the Camembert category at the 2018 World Championship Cheese Contest. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 2, 2018]
(9) We had a beautiful summer-like day in Goleta, California, on this Monday, with mid-80s temperatures. Goleta's Devereux Slough continues to be nearly dry. No sign of April showers!

2018/04/08 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for the book 'Darkest Hour' (1) Book review: McCarten, Anthony, Darkest Hour: How Churchill Brought England Back from the Brink, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by John Lee, Harper Audio, 2017.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Any anthology of great speeches has one entry, if not two or three, from Winston Spencer Churchill. What is remarkable about Churchill is that he wrote three such speeches in the span of four weeks, and he did it by himself, with no help from speech-writers. He was inspired in this remarkable feat by the imminent danger facing England from a potential Nazi invasion. Churchill used his mastery of the English language to craft rousing speeches to rally the people, give them hope, and urge them to fight on.
The history of World War II has been well-documented. British politicians had the habit of keeping meticulous records and diaries, which simplified the historians' job, given multiple contemporaneous accounts to compare. What is special about this atypical WW-II book is its detailed attention to the personal relationships of the main characters and the way in which they tamed their oversize egos to work together to save England during a couple of months in mid-1940.
Churchill came dangerously close to signing a peace treaty with Hitler, facing the heavy decision alone, and he did the right thing at the end. He also flirted with approaching Mussolini to seek his help in crafting a favorable peace agreement. Exposition of Churchill's thought process, as he weighed the benefits of a peace agreement against its perils in terms the entire continent of Europe falling to Nazi Germany, is enlightening.
Churchill was an imperfect person. He drank and smoked heavily and had a history of misjudging events and making wrong decisions. On the whole, however, he emerged as a strong leader and an influential politician, who affected not just the future of England but of Europe and the world. He was helped immensely by two of his political rivals, Neville Chamberlain and Lord Halifax, the three playing musical chairs in occupying positions of power over the years.
Here is an example of personal details one finds in this book. When Churchill convinced his War Cabinet to render assistance to France as it was being invaded by Germany, he thought he should deliver the news to the French PM personally. The Frenchman could not be found at work or at home with his wife. Eventually, he was located at the apartment of his mistress. Churchill wanted another official to be present as well, to hear the news first-hand. He, too, was with his mistress at the time!
Darkest Hour was turned into a movie of the same title in 2017. Gary Oldman won an Oscar and a host of other awards for portraying Winston Churchill in one of the best performances of his acting career.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- At least 70 have died in the Syrian regime's suspected chemical attack in the Syrian city of Douma.
- Trump lashes out at Bashar al-Assad and his allies Russia and Iran over suspected chemical attack.
- EPA Chief Scott Pruitt is in the cross-hairs of even conservatives, but he is fiercely defended by Trump.
- Modern-day proverbs, according to students is a first-grade class! [List]]
- Quote of the day: "Fear does not prevent death. It prevents life." ~ Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz
- If you are one of those nay-sayers, who thinks there is no such thing as a free lunch, read on!
- Cartoon of the day: Scarecrows being deployed for US-Mexico border security! [Image]
(3) April 8-14 is National Library Week: I will participate in local Goleta celebrations, because I am a major beneficiary of public libraries, whether through the books I borrow to read (most of them come from my local public library, and much of the rest from the UCSB library) or via the items I purchase at their book sales.

2018/04/07 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A fearless worker standing on the unfinished Golden Gate Bridge, 1935 The first aerial refueling, 1923 Elvis, his father Vernon, and his grandma Minnie Mae, 1959 (1) History in pictures: [Left] A fearless worker standing on the unfinished Golden Gate Bridge, 1935. [Center] The first aerial refueling, 1923. [Right] Elvis, his father Vernon, and his grandma Minnie Mae, 1959.
(2) US Department of Homeland Security is building a database of journalists, bloggers, and news media outlets. Put this development together with Trump's characterization of journalists as enemies of the American people, and the 1984-like fight against the truth jumps right at you.
(3) Tariffs have been going down in the United States for good reasons: You can't run a 21st-century economy with a 19th-century mindset. [Chart, with data from USITC]
(4) Madeleine Albright, author of Fascism: A Warning, and former US Secretary of State, pens a NYT opinion piece which touches on all the dangers of Trump's presidency: "Will We Stop Trump Before It's Too Late?"
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- At least 14 killed in the crash of bus carrying Canadian junior hockey team.
- Delivery truck plows into pedestrians in Muenster, Germany, killing 3 and injuring 20: Driver kills himself.
- Believe it or not, this Boston Globe parody front page, dated April 9, 2017, was published in 2016!
- Bill Mahr hits it out of the ballpark in defending teachers: "#TimesUp meet #PencilsDown"
- Bridal talent: I wonder if the groom can match this! [Video]
- Today is the end of Passover, a relief to Cookie Monster and countless others! [Meme]
(6) Humor-challenged president: Trump will be a no-show at this year's White House Correspondents Dinner, celebrating the First Amendment, for the second year in a row. He will be represented at the head table by Sarah Huckabee Sanders. If they really want him to attend next year, they should change the focus from the First to the Second Amendment!
(7) Trump vs. Bezos: The Tweeter-in-Chief has attacked American corporations before, but never as viciously as his tirades against Amazon, which lost 5% of its value as a result. I hope Amazon shareholders sue him for abuse of power. "Attacking an American corporation as innovative and successful as Amazon seems a strange move for the so-called businessman president. But it's perfectly in keeping with a presidency driven not by a coherent ideology—or even a clear economic agenda, for that matter—but rather by the incoherent ravings of a petty tyrant who is all too willing to jeopardize the nation's economic strength for his own political gain."
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2018/04/06 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cell-phone early warning about the latest SoCal quake (1) A group of scientists and some beta-testers of a cell-phone earthquake early-warning system got a 34-second advance notice about yesterday's magnitude-5.3 quake in Southern California. This exciting new technology will be coming to all of us shortly.
(2) For GPUs, it's Huang's Law, not Moore's law: During a 5-year period, when Moore's law predicts a 10-fold performance improvement, graphic processing units have become 25 times faster in general and up to 500 times faster for certain applications.
(3) Statistics and genetics research: UCLA researchers have developed a statistical-analysis software tool that increases the reliability of measuring how strongly genes are expressed in an individual cell.
(4) Honoring the National Poetry Month: "Even people who say: 'Oh, I don't know much about poetry,' they do have a poem that they carry." ~ Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith, in a Time-magazine interview.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Another South Korean leader falls disgracefully: Former President Park sentenced to 24 years in jail.
- The US is sanctioning Putin's son-in-law and 23 others: Will Russia retaliate by sanctioning Kushner?
- Government by the rich for the rich: The median net worth of a US senator/representative is $3.2M/$0.9M.
- Good science needs a safe environment in which researchers can contribute to the best of their abilities.
- Cause of foul smells at UCSB's University Center identified! [UCSB Daily Nexus front page]
- One more round of interesting films, as UCLA celebrates Iranian cinema, April 28 to May 19.
- Every politician we deemed unbearable or crazy now looks pleasant and sane by comparison, even Ah-nold!
- The human version of the "claw machine" for grabbing gift items at arcades is here! [Video]
- Introducing "Going Outside": A revolutionary multi-purpose activity platform for spending your time!
(6) Quote of the day: "It is not easy to protect 1.4 billion people every day. But if Facebook wants to the the home where all those people share their likes and heartbreaks and plans and politics with acquaintances online, it had better try a lot harder." ~ Lisa Eadicicco, writing in Time magazine, issue of April 2, 2018
(7) A French baker was fined $3700 for keeping his shop open every day, in defiance of a law that requires bakeries to close for at least one day of rest each week. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 2, 2018]
(8) Approaching storm: Weather reports for the weekend are conflicting, ranging from a minor storm, with no danger of flash-floods or mud-flows, to a major storm (atmospheric river) dumping one month's worth of rain in a couple of days. I decided to go for a long walk, given the uncertainty for the weekend. The Devereux Slough has nearly dried up (except for the area closest to the ocean), after it filled to the brim with the last rainstorm. It is extremely windy on the beach, with threatening clouds overhead. [Photos]

2018/04/05 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
California fashions, 1960 Day at the beach, 1920s Buick Flamingo, with rotating front seat, 1961 (1) History in pictures: [Left] California fashions, 1960. [Center] Day at the beach, 1920s. [Right] Buick Flamingo, with rotating front seat, 1961.
(2) A pretty strong jolt hit Goleta, California, around 12:30 PM today: It resulted from a 5.3-magnitude quake near Santa Cruz Island, the strongest SoCal tremor in years. No damages have been reported.
(3) The family of 8, whose SUV fell off a cliff in California, leading to 5 confirmed deaths and 3 missing kids, apparently drove off the cliff at high speed intentionally. The plunge is now being investigated as a crime.
(4) Top-10 most-recognized Chinese words in English-speaking countries: Shaolim (name of a famed temple of martial arts); Yin and yang (philosophical concepts); Yuan (currency); Gugong (Forbidden City); Nihao (hello); Wushu (martial arts); Qi (vital force); Qigong (traditional exercise); Renminbi (currency); Majiang (Mahjong, a four-player game). [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 2, 2018]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Have the Saudis bought out Jared Kushner, Trump's closest adviser?
- California gubernatorial candidate John Chiang proposes drastic tuition cuts at public universities.
- More than 1/3 of US college students don't have enough to eat: The hidden crisis on college campuses.
- Pete Souza is using Obama's photos to troll Trump, as he goes on an anti-Obama tweet-storm.
- The great-again America: A hijab-wearing woman is brutally attacked in a hospital lobby.
- Trump kills DACA, nixes two bipartisan deals and a Senate proposal to reinstate it, then blames Democrats!
- Book introduction: A remarkable memoir by a neuroscientist with an uncompromising will to live. [Image]
- From an opinion piece about bogus journals by Marilyn Dyrud, Prism magazine, March-April 2018. [Image]
- Cartoon of the day: A new title among children's books, "The President and the Porn Star." [Image]
- EPA-updated test-crash dummies: "Can't they remove these restrictive harnesses?" [Cartoon]
(6) A modest suggestion (netiquette pointer): Sending or posting a link with no accompanying description is rude. It assumes that people will click on the link and spend a few minutes reading, listening to, or watching it just because it was shared by you. Some links show up with a description from the source, but even then, it's considerate to say in a few words why you liked it or why you think I'd like it, saving me time if it's about an issue or holds content I don't particularly care about. And brief tags such as "Wow!" or "Must watch!" don't count, as they aren't very informative. A different reason for the courtesy is that scammers often send links to infected Web sites under a real person's name, gleaned from hacked address books or Facebook pages. Seeing your personal description of the link reassures me that you, not a scammer, sent or posted the link.

2018/04/04 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Young Vladimir Putin, 1972 Young Angela Merkel, 1970s Young Donald Trump, 1960s (1) History in pictures (world leaders edition): [Left] Young Vladimir Putin, 1972. [Center] Young Angela Merkel, 1970s. [Right] Young Donald Trump, 1960s.
(2) Yesterday's shooter at YouTube headquarters in San Bruno, Nasim Najafi Aghdam, had complained about and battled against the platform. She injured 3 individuals (Woman, 32, in serious condition; Woman, 27, in fair condition; Man, 36, in critical condition), before taking her own life. Other details about motive will come out soon, but it is quite unfortunate that amidst tragedy and carnage, some members of our society can't hold their misogynistic tendencies in check. On a social-media post about the event, a commenter wrote: "Woman shooter? No wonder she's the only one dead."
(3) Mark My Words: Here is a collection of four poems in the April 2018 issue of Poetry magazine, as my part in honoring the US National Poetry Month [Ilya Kaminsky's "Question"; Kiandra Jimenez's "Halcyon Kitchen"; Terisa Siagatonu's "Atlas"; Paul Tran's "Scientific Method"]. Four Persian Nowruz poems of mine from years past constitute my second contribution to the Poetry MOnth. Higher-res versions of these latter poems, as well as other poems, are available on my poetry page.
(4) Dina Ketabi, a native of Damascus, Syria, has been honored with the 2017 ACM Prize in Computing, for her contributions to wireless networking. Ketabi is the Andrew and Erna Viterbi Professor of Computer Science and Director of the Center for Wireless Networks and Mobile Computing at MIT.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Remembering Martin Luther King Jr., fifty years after his assassination on April 4, 1968. [2-minute video]
- Three former US Army soldiers accused of doing contract killings for an international crime boss.
- The US is bypassed in discussions about Syria's future, thanks to our administration's inept foreign policy.
- Lebanese couple sentenced to death in Kuwait for murdering a Filipina maid and freezing her body.
- Facebook has removed 270 accounts controlled by Internet Research Agency, a Russion troll farm.
- After yesterday's shootings at YouTube, I'm afraid NRA may propose that all software engineers be armed!
- S&P's 10% drop from its peak explains the absence of Trump tweets about the stock market.
- Andrew McCabe's legal-defense fundraiser reached $0.5 million, more than triple its goal, in just a few days.
- Trump's declaration of "Sexual Assault Awareness Month" was a gift of jokes to late-night comedians!
- Graphic humor: The Easter Bunny, standing next to Donald Trump, reacts to his statements. [Image]
(6) Captain's announcement: "... and, at this time, you may switch on your electronic devices and see what he's said now." [Cartoon caption from The New Yorker]
(7) Final thought for the day: View the Trump presidency as a needed vaccine; if we survive it, we may become immune to the disease of Trump-like leaders.

2018/04/03 (Tuesday): Book review: Jahren, Hope, Lab Girl, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Random House Audio, 2016. [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image of Hope Jahren's memoir 'Lab Girl' In this award-winning and best-selling book, Jahren writes about her personal experiences and professional endeavors as a triple-Fulbright-winning geobiologist. The journal Nature has characterized Lab Girl as "Clear, compelling and uncompromisingly honest" and its author as "the voice that science has been waiting for."
The book is "UCSB Reads" program's 2018 selection, which provided me with a free hard-copy, but I ended up listening to the MP3 audiobook version I borrowed from my local library. Hearing Jahren read her own book is a definite plus; you can readily recognize the highly emotional passages by her quivering voice. Jahren gave a free public lecture at UCSB's Campbell Hall on April 3, 2018, under the title "Be as a Tree: The Magic of Roots, Leaves and Everything in-Between." Some of the anecdotes in the review that follows come from her UCSB lecture.
Jahren grew up in the science lab of her dad, a professor at a rural Minnesota college. Her scientific pursuits took her to UC Berkeley as a graduate student, followed by stints at Georgia Tech, Johns Hopkins U., and U. Hawaii. She shares the hardships she and her poorly-compensated assistant and long-term collaborator endured to work on research projects they liked and the numerous redirections and re-starts that were required after messing up.
Jahren has become a feminist icon, but, in this book, she does not dwell much on her specific problems as a woman doing science, but rather emphasizes the difficulty of doing science in general, especially as research funds become scarce and competition for limited resources intensify. The lion's share of funding goes to applied research, something that Jahren has reluctantly accepted: "Science for war will always pay better than science for knowledge."
Jahren grew up at an age and in a place where girls had to be completed by boys. Once a co-worker asked her if she had a boyfriend. Somehow, she felt compelled to lie and answered "yes." He then asked why she was working if she had a boyfriend! About problems arising from sexism in STEM fields, Jahren has opined, "My challenge is to show these problems, while ferociously defending all that is beautiful and noble about doing science with your hands. My story is not tragic. I have been generously rewarded for everything I've ever tried to do. I'm actually a happy ending."
Jahren began her UCSB talk by telling the audience a bit about herself, now a character in a book! She indicated that the main message of her book and talk was that plants are alive. Some consider them "less alive" than animals, but they are really just as alive. Plants move by hydrating and dehydrating their various parts, as they do not have muscles. They need to move in order to get light, their only source of energy. Seeds as well as centuries-old trees are alive and patiently waiting for long stretches of time: One is waiting for an opportune moment to sprout and become a plant, the other to die.
In her talk, Jahren read passages from several holy books that showed the central roles of plants and flowers in ancient times. She connected these passages to the observation that plants and flowers are links to our past, noting that even though she had very little in common with a middle-aged woman who lived many centuries ago, they could both relate to the notion of sitting in the shade under a tree or smelling a fragrant flower.
Like her book, the UCSB talk was frank and witty, and at times laugh-out-loud funny. She indicated that one positive aspect of doing research on plants is that you can do anything with them, even kill them, with no repercussions. There is no need for cumbersome paperwork and authorizations! You can't deprive an animal of water for days to see what happens to it!
A refreshing aspect of Lab Girl is the way in which Jahren describes nature and her research on plant life. Here's an example: "A cactus doesn't live in the desert because it likes the desert; it lives there because the desert hasn't killed it yet. Any plant that you find growing in the desert will grow a lot better if you take it out of the desert. The desert is a lot like lousy neighborhoods; nobody living there can afford to move." In her UCSB lecture, Jahren stressed the predicament of plants in terms of having but one chance: Once they spread their roots, they have to endure whatever comes their way, as they can't just pack up and move to a better location.
In the Q&A period, a number of interesting questions were asked and Jahren's replies were just as refreshing as her talk. On encouraging students to do science, she observed that we don't give enough positive feedback, focusing instead on problem areas, such as a student needing to learn more about statistics or work on improving this or that skill. Her advice is that we focus on students' strengths, what feels right to them, and where they can thrive. Asked about the one thing she wished she were told or knew before embarking on a career in science, she answered that she was a know-it-all and would not have listened to any advice anyway, quipping: "That's the reason I had only one friend." Elsewhere, she joked that she receives almost no party invitations because of her outspokenness. In answer to a question from a female assistant professor about the challenges of academia for women, Jahren explained that the problems are the same as elsewhere in society and that every issue faced by feminism boils down to the three interconnected basic notions of sexual violence, pay inequity, and reproductive rights.
As she nears 50, Jahren is almost finished with her next book, which deals with five decades of her life and changes in the natural world over that time period. She characterizes the new book's tone as optimistic, in line with her belief in love and work, a combination that makes it difficult to imagine we won't prevail.

2018/04/02 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Street in San Francisco, California, 1964. Young woman riding a motorcycle with a golf bag on her back, 1928 Alfred Hitchcock in front of a 'Psycho' billboard during a promotional tour in Berlin, Germany, 1960 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Street in San Francisco, California, 1964. [Center] Young woman riding a motorcycle with a golf bag on her back, 1928. [Right] Alfred Hitchcock in front of a 'Psycho' billboard during a promotional tour in Berlin, Germany, 1960.
(2) This week's cover of Santa Barbara Independent reminded me of the scramble in April many years ago to find the kids appropriate summer activities before all local programs filled up.
(3) April is the US National Poetry Month and many publications, including Santa Barbara Independent, are having special features to mark the occasion. [Page in SB Independent]
(4) Local journalists and broadcasters up in arms against Sinclair Broadcast Group's mandate that stations air more anti-media stories in support of President Trump's media bashing. Here is the script Sinclair Broadcast Group shoved down the throats of all of its affiliate stations, which are supposed to be independently-operated stations serving the needs of their local communities.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Kellyanne Conway is the number-one leaker in the White House, according to author of new book on Trump.
- China's out-of-control Tiangong-1 space lab crashes into Pacific Ocean: Phew!
- Renowned physicist Stephen Hawking given a royal treatment for his burial in Cambridge, England.
- Both NYT and WP had editorials on 3/31 lamenting Trump administration's disdain toward science.
- Quote of the day: "Earth is forgiveness school. It begins by forgiving yourself." ~ Anne Lamott
- Anne Lamott's witty and funny 16-minute TED talk: 12 Truths I Learned from Life and Writing.
- Human Statue of Liberty: Some 18,000 men were used for this 1918 photo, taken in Iowa.
- People of Astara worked hard for 15 weeks to turn their river into the first trash-free waterway in Iran.
Open-access publishing logo (6) Pull vs. push in scholarly publishing: For many decades, the standard publishing model was subscription-based, or the reader-pays model. Researchers would publish their work free of charge and the publisher, whether it was a non-profit professional entity or a commercial publisher, would recover its costs through paid personal and institutional subscriptions. It was later realized that the subscription-based model hindered access to scientific research results, especially for non-sponsored individual researchers and for those living in developing countries. The open-access publishing model was supposed to fix the problem by asking the authors or their institutions to pay a one-time up-front fee to cover publication costs in order to make access completely free to readers. There is general agreement among researchers that open-access is a better model, particularly in disciplines where research sponsors pay the up-front fees, known as article-processing charges. A negative byproduct of this push-style open-access publishing was the emergence of predatory publishers, who make a profit by publishing almost anything, without, or with very minimal, peer reviews. Authors who can afford to pay the processing charges can pad their publication lists and pretend that they are successful researchers, without burning the midnight oil, so to speak. Among academic institutions, such predatory publishers are known (black-listed) and papers they publish are viewed as unworthy of credit in research assessments for the sake of promotions, research grants, and the like. A proposal, offered by Sheldon H. Jacobson in the March 2018 issue of Communications of the ACM may help solve this problem. The pull-style proposal is to divide research institutions into three tiers, depending on the volume of papers their researchers publish, and have them pay a "fair" annual subscription fee for their researcers to be able to publish all their work free of charge. Because publishers will be competing to get the said subscription fees from prestigious institutions, they will be motivated to improve the quality of their peer-review process. Also, to preserve their academic prestige, institutions will be motivated to support only high-quality journals and conferences, leading to a sustainable solution. [Image: .jpg; 259w, 93h]

2018/04/01 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Unknown man during the Great Depression, 1932 The Kennedys in a photo-booth picture Soldier carrying a Christmas tree home, 1915 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Unknown man during the Great Depression, 1932. [Center] The Kennedys in a photo-booth picture. [Right] Soldier carrying a Christmas tree home, 1915.
(2) Steel tariffs may spur research on advanced composite materials to replace steel: This isn't necessarily bad, but the tariffs may not actually bring manufacturing and steel jobs back.
(3) The Economics of "Fake News": This is the title of an article by Nir Kshetri and Jeffrey Voas, published in the November/December 2017 issue of IEEE's IT Professional. AI can now produce fake research papers that pass the peer review process of reputable conferences and journals. Automatic generation of fake news stories is even easier and it has vast economic consequences, given that catchy fake-news headlines generate clicks and, thus, advertising dollars.
(Anne Lamott’s witty and funny 16-minute TED talk: 12 Truths I Learned from Life and Writing. https://www.ted.com/talks/anne_lamott_12_truths_i_learned_from_life_and_writing4) Book talk in Santa Barbara: Abigail Pogrebin will speak under the title "My Amazing, Demanding, Indelible Jewish Year," on Sunday, April 22, 2018, 3:00 PM (at Congregation B'nai B'rit, 1000 San Antonio Creek Road), based on her book, My Jewish Year: 18 Holidays, one Wondering Jew, Fig Tree Books, 2017.
(5) Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah," sung in English and Arabic: The 22-year-old singer, Mennel Ibtissem, was later forced to quit the French singing competition show because of her insensitive remarks on social media, expressing doubts that the 2016 Nice truck attack, killling 86 and injuring hundreds, was a case of terrorism.
Cover image for Bandy Lee's 'The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump' (6) Book review: Lee, Bandy X., The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump, unabridged MP3 audiobook with several narrators, Macmillan Audio, 2017.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Dr. Bandy Lee was the organizer of Yale University's "Duty to Warn" Conference in which the 27 psychiatrists, psychologist, and other mental health experts featured in this volume participated. The various contributors examine different aspects of Donald Trump's personality and mode of operation and the dangers they pose to our country and its citizens, although there is significant overlap among the contributions.
The American Psychiatric Association's "Goldwater rule" (named after presidential candidate Barry Goldwater, who was deemed by nearly 1200 psychiatrists as unfit to be US President) bars mental health professionals from diagnosing public figures they have not personally examined. Many such professionals maintain that their duty to warn against an unfit and unstable leader takes precedence over the rules of their professions.
Collectively, the 27 contributors present a compelling case that Donald Trump constitutes a clear and present danger to the United States and the world, whatever the psychiatric diagnosis of his condition might be. In fact, it is irrelevant whether the danger posed by Trump arises from a specific psychiatric condition.

2018/03/31 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Happy Passover to all! Chocolate bunnies with missing parts Happy Easter to all! (1) Happy Passover to all those celebrating this Jewish holiday, whose observance actually began last night! Also, a very happy Easter to all those who observe the holiday tomorrow! Chocolate bunnies are everywhere in stores, so I thought the middle image above might resonate with you all!
(2) The myth of the criminal immigrant: Despite the 118% increase in the immigrant population from 1980 to 2016, the US crime rate fell by 36%. [NYT chart]
(3) New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu is this year's JFK Profile in Courage Award honoree for pursuing the removal of four Confederate statues in the city. [1-minute video]
(4) After repeatedly saying over the past two years that she'd devote herself to preventing cyber-bullying, Melania Trump indicates that cyber-bullying is too narrow a focus and, instead, she plans to work on all issues related to children, including nutrition and drug abuse. I guess reneging on promises runs in the family!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Moses goes down to Egypt: A jazzy tune about Passover.
- Just because it is the "White" House, doesn't mean that nearly all the interns should be white! [Photo]
- UC-Berkeley engineers build a three-atoms-thick display that becomes fully transparent when not in use.
- Twitter bots are fueling political discord: This Scientific American article presents the whys and hows.
- Iranian vigilante threatens a women's-rights activist of the "My Stealthy Freedom" fame with death.
- Kurds in the village of Kanduleh, Kermanshah, observe a long-running tradition of welcoming Nowruz.
(6) Corruption everywhere: EPA Chief Scott Pruitt got a sweetheart $50/night deal on a townhouse close to Capitol Hill, owned by the wife of an energy lobbyist, paid only on the nights he stayed there.
(7) Terahertz computers appear to be within reach: After years of exponential growth, the clock rates of modern mass-market processors have flattened out at just under 10 GHz. One reason is the extreme energy requirements of faster processors. Another is compromised reliability for higher clock rates. A Hebrew University of Jerusalem researcher has found a way to increase the clock rate 100-fold by using scalable and mass-producible optical elements.
(8) [Final thought for the day] Walk with your head up on Monday: The out-of-control 9.4-ton Chinese Space Lab Tiangong-1 is hurtling toward the Earth, with crashing tentatively expected on Monday 4/01. No one knows where it will hit. And, no, this isn't an April Fool's hoax!

2018/03/30 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Arianna Huffington's 'Thrive' (1) Book review: Huffington, Arianna, Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Agapi Stassinopoulos, Random House Audio, 2014.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
I started listening to this audiobook with relatively low expectations. Even then, I was rather disappointed with Huffington's superficial reasoning and rampant use of cliches. The main point of the book is that success cannot stand on the two legs of money and power, but needs a third leg, made of the three 'W's mentioned in the book's title: well-being, wisdom, and wonder. Huffington subsequently clarifies that giving is also part of this "third metric" of success.
And the problem starts right here, at the very beginning. Considering the three most-important components of human happiness and contentment collectively on par with money or power is difficult to justify. This obsession with money and power is uniquely American and, in a rather strange way, anti-American, a contradiction that is all too clear in today's climate.
If I were to construct a similar recipe for gauging success, I would build a 4-legged stool, with the four legs being well-being, wisdom, wonder, and money/power. Money and power are mere tools and don't bring us happiness in and of themselves, whereas each of the three 'W's is germane to human contentment. The also-important attributes of compassion and giving result directly from the other four.
The most compelling parts of this new book are those dealing with the importance of mindfulness and getting enough sleep (the latter being the subject of a previous book by Huffington, The Sleep Revolution: Transforming Your Life, One Night at a Time). "Sleeping your way to the top" is how Huffington puts it. Huffington cites much academic research in putting across the key roles of mindfulness and proper sleep habits, and I learned a great deal from these parts of the book.
Producers of the audiobook apparently thought that having someone with as thick a Greek accent as Huffington's reading the book adds to its authenticity. The strategy backfires, in my opinion. And it's not just the accent: Ms. Stassinopoulos frequently puts the stress on the wrong syllables in words or words in sentences. Listeners may tolerate a less-than-pleasant voice, accent, or enunciation when it comes from the author of a work, but coming from someone else, it quickly becomes annoying.
(2) A new book every Jewish voter should read before the 2018 US election: It's on my to-read list.
Weisman, Jonathan, (((Semitism))): Being Jewish in America in the Age of Trump, St. Martin's Press, 2018.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- The web of connections between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump. [Image]
- Donald Trump vs. Jeff Bezos, round 2: As an avid user of Amazon's services, I'm rooting for Bezos.
- New film on Mary Magdalene stirs up age-old controversies about her character and connection to Jesus.
- Number-one late-night talk show host Stephen Colbert's 30-minute SuperSoul conversation with Oprah.
- Humorous meme of the day: Hope Hicks finally departs the White House. May start a fragrance business!
- Strategic expression: UCSB Psychology professor explores facial expressions as tools for social influence.
- Physics created the A-bomb and chemistry the nerve gas: Will CS follow suit with weaponized algorithms?
(4) In January, at the start of our planning for a 50th-anniversary get-together of Fanni College's class of 1968 at University of Tehran (set for July 14-18, 2018, in Yerevan, Armenia), we were exchanging memories, funny stories, and poems about our long journey and other topics of interest. Here is the poem I contributed.

2018/03/29 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Ernest R. Ashton, Evening near the Pyramids, circa 1897 The original 'Star Wars' cast The eruption of Mount St. Helens, 1980 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Ernest R. Ashton, Evening near the Pyramids, circa 1897. [Center] The original "Star Wars" cast. [Right] The eruption of Mount St. Helens, 1980.
(2) Today I updated my spring 2018 course Web pages in preparation for classes beginning on Monday, April 2. Here are the links: ECE 1B, freshman seminar, "Ten Puzzling Problems in Computer Engineering" (meets Wed., 3:30-4:50); ECE 252B, graduate course, "Computer Arithmetic" (meets Mon./Wed. 12:00-1:30).
(3) A very unstable POTUS: Trump states that the US will withdraw from Syria very soon, letting others take care of the problems there. Both the State Department and US Military's Central Command are caught off-guard, denying any withdrawal plans. Our Commander-in-Chief is now putting the US armed forces in a bind, while alerting enemies to our military plans!
(4) Comedian Stephen Colbert jokingly referred to a GoFundMe project to pay for Trump's border wall, but someone has already set up a page, which shows $208 raised from its $400M goal!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Trump is advised to eliminate two White House positions: Communications Director and Chief of Staff.
- Fire after riot at Venezuelan police station leaves 68 dead.
- Family of 8 perishes in SUV plunge off a cliff in California: Five confirmed dead; three kids still missing.
- Judge is cited because he asked a woman if she tried closing her legs to prevent alleged sexual assault!
- Earliest known human footprints in North America (13,000 years old) found on Canadian island.
- Andrea Bocelli channels Elvis while performing in Las Vegas: "Can't Help Falling in Love"
- Half of the estimated 1M Iranian-Americans live in SoCal, mostly in "Tehrangeles": Here's their story.
- "I am not this hair, I am not this skin. I am this soul that lives within." ~ Rumi (Mowlavi)
- "The car doesn't know if I'm a man or a woman, and it doesn't care." ~ Pro race-car driver Julia Landauer
(6) The Quantum Brain Project (QuBrain): An international research collaboration based at UCSB investigates the brain's potential for quantum computation. It is hoped that this project will reveal the nature of some of the human brain's functions, such as long-term memory, that continue to elude neuroscience.

2018/03/28 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Poster for UCSB Economic Forecast Project's panel discussion at Lobero Theater (1) What Happened, and What Now? (A Discussion on the Economic, Business, and Fiscal Impacts of the Thomas Fire and Montecito Mudslides): This was the title of a panel discussion organized by UCSB Economic Forecast Project (EFP) and held at Santa Barbara's Lobero Theater. Two moderators* and six presenters had been announced, but a Montecito resident was added to the list of presenters. The gender balance among the presenters and moderators was a pleasant surprise for me. Today's discussions and PowerPoint presentation slides will be made available via UCSB-EFP Web site and the full event will be broadcast by a local Santa Barbara TV station.
- Ed Edick*, Co-Owner/Founder, Village Properties
- Janet Garufis*, Chair & CEO, Montecito Bank & Trust
- Dave Jones, California Insurance Commissioner
- Peter Rupert, PhD, Executive Director, UCSB-EFP
- Nina Johnson, Sr. Assistant to the SB City Administrator
- Kathy Janega-Dykes, President & CEO, Visit SB
- Betsy Schaffer, Assistant Auditor-Controller, SB County
- Joe Holland, Clerk, Recorder & Assessor, SB County
- Megan Orloff, Montecito resident
I will just list some facts and figures from my notes, leaving the discussion details to subsequent publication by UCSB-EFP: Insurace claims $1.8B; Firefighting costs $177M; Average length of business closures 13 days (longest was 72 days); More than 50% of homes in 12 different counties are now classified as high-risk and will likely see significant insurance rate increases (the Commissioner must approve rate increases, based on recovery of expenditure over several years, not all at once); Hotel revenue losses in December $6M; Based on experience, recovery from an event of this magnitude takes at least 90 days; Properties damaged 401 (total value $1.2B); Estimated county-wide tax loss this year $6.9M (doubling next year); Effects on sales tax are unknown, due to delayed reporting; Some 94% of costs will be recovered from FEMA, but revenue losses are unrecoverable; Montecito is an unincorported entity, making decisions on recovery projects difficult (some changes may be forthcoming); Coast Village Road and US 101 traffic problems, which were serious even before the disaster, are being given full consideration; SB County had a rainy-day fund which helped cover the expenses; Many homeowners will not rebuild; Construction guidelines to minimize the impact of future disasters of this kind are being considered; Schools will feel the impact of tax revenue loss next year, not this year; Governor Brown has some funds for the fire-impacted Sonoma County schools, and SB has asked to be included in the use of those funds; The Sonoma County fire, particularly in Santa Rosa, was much more devastating in terms of monetary loss tha Montecito's. [Before and after imagery]
Insurance questions of any kind for the Commissioner's office (not limited to fire and mudslide): 800-929-4357
[Side note: A few photos of Santa Barbara's historic Lobero Theater, the downtown Post Office diagonally across the street from it, and a couple of other architectural landmarks within a block of the Theater.]
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Trump's legal team in tatters: Prominent lawyers and law firms are avoiding his toxic White House.
- A Chinese tomb, holding many interesting artefacts and booze from 2000 years ago unearthed.
- Big pharma is suffocating our healthcare system with unreasonable price hikes.
- Is China throwing a curveball by meeting with Kim Jong Un ahead of his meeting Trump or is it helping?
- Is the interstitium really a previously overlooked human organ, as scientists now claim?
- A wonderful resource: Broad collection of free e-books on programming and other CS topics.
- Caption: "Are there any non-citizen immigrants here? The President may need a new wife." [Cartoon]
- Let's not forget this meme and sign in the 2018 US congressional and local elections.
(3) Carsey-Wolf Center presents "Women in Comedy": Achievements of women in American film and television comedy will be showcased during the spring 2018 series, each screening followed by a moderated discussion. All screenings begin at 7:00 PM, except for the one on Saturday 5/19, which begins at 2:00 PM.
- April 12 (Thursday): "Saturday Night Live" (55 min), with Laraine Newman (actress)
- April 17 (Tuesday): "Drop Dead Gorgeous" (97 min), with Mindy Sterling (actress)
- April 19 (Thursday): "Whoopi Goldberg Presents Moms Mabley" (72 min), with Bambi Haggins (UC Irvine)
- May 19 (Saturday): "The Royal Tanenbaums" (110 min; 2001), with Gwyneth Paltrow (actress)
- May 22 (Tuesday): Two Silent Classics*, with live piano accompaniment by Michael Mortilla (pianist)
[* "Won in a Cupboard" (13 min; 1914) and "The Oyster Princess" (60 min; 1919)]

2018/03/27 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
UCSB Arts Walk publicity poster (1) UCSB Arts Walk: This collection of free events will be held on Wednesday 4/11, 4:30-8:00 PM, at various campus locations, it will feature rehearsals, performances, and exhibits from the Departments of Music, Art, Theater & Dance, as well as College of Creative Studies, UCSB Library, Multicultural Center, and Art, Design, & Architecture Museum.
(2) Reactions of cowardly politicians to March for Our Lives:
Rubio: I do not agree with the March for Our Lives.
Santorum: Students should learn CPR instead of marching.
Trump: Played golf and largly ignored the marching students.
(3) This Kurdish girl reminds us that the Kurds, who helped the world by fighting ISIS at great cost in lives and treasure, were abandoned at Afrin, when they came under fire from Turkey.
(4) What a legal mess! Attorneys for attorneys fight over Stormy Daniel's "60 Minutes" interview. I am not posting this story because of my interest in the sexual revelations it contains. I just wanted to show my befuddlement over attorneys for other attorneys and attorneys for agents fighting each other in the media. On second thought, maybe this isn't weird at all. Don't dentists go to other dentists to have their teeth fixed?
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Facebook's epic fail: Zuckerberg falls from potential presidential candidate to an untrustworthy person.
- Why Trump was so keen on increasing the defense budget: He hopes the military will pay for his wall!
- There have been other stories of abusive nurses, but abusing newborns is particularly troubling.
- Time magazine turns 95: Its first issue was dated March 3, 1923. Here are two covers from that first year.
- Quote of the day: "When you blame others, you give up your power to change." ~ Anonymous
- This is Iran: An 8-minute video (in Persian), in which a number of Iranians introduce their favorite places.
(6) Brief samples of old programs on Iranian radio. People of Iranian origins, who are about my age, can identify with these audio clips from Iran's pre-TV days, when radio was king. [6-minute audio file]
(7) This Facebook post of mine from March 27, 2017, about Kushner's opinion that America should be run like a business, has turned into a funny one, given what we now know about him as a slumlord, who pressured tenants with all sorts of inconveniences to force them to leave.
(8) Dr. Nouri Parhami, one of the three surviving uncles on my father's side of the family, passed away late last night. Nine of his siblings had preceded him on this journey. He specialized in internal medicine and rheumatology, and he had published many research papers in the latter field. He was proud of his Kurdish heritage and played the tar in his spare time. He is survived by his wife, three daughters, two grandchildren, and two younger brothers. I offer this Persian poem, in which both half-verses of each verse begin with one letter in his Persian first name, as a token of my respect and appreciation. May he Rest in Peace!

2018/03/26 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Marilyn Monroe visiting American troops in Korea, 1954 Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland, 1946 Gregory Peck reading 'To Kill a Mockingbird'; photo by Cliff Donaldson (1) History in pictures: [Left] Marilyn Monroe visiting American troops in Korea, 1954. [Center] Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland, 1946. [Right] Gregory Peck reading 'To Kill a Mockingbird'; photo by Cliff Donaldson.
(2) The group Public Citizen has filed complaints about violations of Trump's Executive Order No. 13770, which barred former lobbyists from being appointed to governmental positions in many cases.
(3) Look who's complaining about fake news and inaccurate statements! Trump takes a swipe at Stormy Daniels and CBS's "60 Minutes," without mentioning them by name, which is unusual for the Bully-in-Chief, who has a name for everyone he dislikes. Trump tweet (3/26/18, 5:38 AM): "So much Fake News. Never been more voluminous or more inaccurate. But through it all, our country is doing great!"
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Shopping-center fire in the Russian city of Kemerovo kills at least 64, with dozens still missing.
- US to expel 60 Russian diplomats in multi-nation coordinated response to UK poisoning of Russian ex-spy.
- NRA used rapper Killer Mike'a interview about police brutality to slam the Parkland students' March.
- Iranian philosopher and free-thinker Dariush Shayegan, center in this selfie taken shortly before his passing.
- [Joke of the day] Book 1 to Book 2: "You look so much thinner since you had your appendix removed."
- Women musicians play at a shopping mall in Tehran on the occasion of Women's Day. [3-minute video].
(5) I hope this doesn't mean what I think it means: The Serbian Defense Minister states that the military will participate in raising the birth rate in Serbia!
Cover image of Amy Schumers 'The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo' (6) Book review: Schumer, Amy, The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2016. [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
I found this non-memoir (Schumer states that she is too young to write a memoir) by a highly successful comedian somewhat disappointing. I consider Schumer a brave and talented writer/performer, but there are many stories in this book that make one consider fast-forwarding to more interesting stuff. Touching and insightful passages aren't totally missing, but they are few and far in between. The part of the book I liked best is Schumer's description of her gun-laws activism, which began after a mass shooting at a theater screening her 2015 movie, "Trainwreck."
Schumer built her reputation as a comic with her brand of shock humor, defined as a comedy style with excessive focus on toilet language and overt sexual themes, among others. Male comedians have been using shock humor for decades, with female comedians getting into it more recently. Its success is in part due to our inhibitions in discussing our most private thoughts, which leads to a kind of release when someone else does so. Shock humor is also a way for comics to make their brand stand out in a crowded and highly competitive profession. The different ways in which male and female comedians pursuing shock humor are viewed by our society is a good example of the long way we still need to go in confronting misogyny.
I learned from this book that schumer, besides being talented, is also hard-working and quite focused on achieving her goals. It is a miracle that she became so successful, given the many different family arrangements she experienced. Almost all of those family configurations had one or more forms of dysfunction. Schumer resented her mom and dad for the aloof, reckless lives they led, but, in the end, she actually loved both of them, warts and all.
In recent years, quite a few young female actresses and stand-up comedians have written books and there seems to be a lucrative market for getting life advice from those who have not always made the best choices themselves. If you like Schumer and her brand of humor, you will enjoy this book. Otherwise, you can skip it, with little loss.

2018/03/25 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Three of the women who are fighting legal battles with Trump (1) Three of the women who will bring Trump down: Their motivations are unclear; even the one who claims she loved him, comes across as insincere. But, hey, no amount of insincerity or deception will match Trump's.
(2) Stopping hurricanes in their tracks: Is it just a scientific pipe dream or might it be possible to prevent hurricanes from gaining strength by using technology to reduce the surface temperature of oceans?
(3) Anonymous quote: "You'd be surprised how far you can go from the point where you thought was the end."
(4) Autonomous vehicles are as safe as human-operated ones, and they will ultimately be much safer: Despite the recent fatality in Arizona, the safety record of self-driving cars is still better than that of human-operated vehicles, when measured in accidents or fatalities per mile driven. Asking that safety rules be overhauled after a single fatality is like demanding that rules for issuring driver's licenses be revised after each traffic death.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Charity redefined: NRA is a tax-exempt public charity! Unbelievable!
- Bill Gates recreates a 1973 photo pose 43 years later. [Photos]
- Armenian State Jazz Band, something to look for if your travels take you to Yerevan, Armenia: "Qaravan"
- A luxury cruise ship has been sliced in half as part of a project to extend its length by 15 m (50 ft).
- Irish blessing: May you never forget what's worth remembering, nor ever remember what's best forgotten.
- History in pictures: Long-Term Parking, by Armand Pierre Fernandez, 1982. [Photo]
- Cartoon of the day: Spring arrives for Special Counsel Robert Mueller. [Image]
(6) Nine operatives of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps have been charged with global cyber-thefts: They will be arrested if they travel to any of the countries that have extradition treaties with the US. The attacked sites include those of university researchers, industrial and regulatory entities, and Internet/media companies. This is worrisome on multiple levels. First, many universities conduct classified research, so some intelligence-, security-, and weapons-related research may have been compromised. Second, industrial research projects with potential for patenting and licensing will have their values vastly diminished, as Iran is known to exchange such data with China, Russia, and other countries. Third, mailboxes that are said to have been stolen in full may get a lot of people in trouble, including professors of Iranian origins who are politically active, along with any contacts they may have in Iran and other countries around the world.
(7) Santa Barbara March for Our Lives: Yesterday's march along State Street, from De La Guerra Plaza to Victoria, and back, as well as in many other cities around the US, was to show support for Florida's Parkland students and other youth who have started a fight against the tyranny of NRA, a fight that we adults have not taken up with the same zeal and that our political leaders have avoided for decades. The crowd was comparable to the 2017 women's march (also, much more energized), and it was considerably larger than the 2018 edition of the women's march. There was significant participation by teenagers and younger kids, girls in particular, who led many of the chants. "I May Be Next" was the most heart-breaking sign I saw. One speaker at the pre-march rally had lost a friend in last year's Las Vegas mass shooting. She brought a photo of her friend, a Carpinteria resident, and urged us not to wait for such tragedies to affect us personally before acting. [Photos]

Cover image for the book 'Everybody Lies' 2018/03/24 (Saturday): Book review: Stephens-Davidowitz, Seth, Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Tim Andres Pabon, Harper Audio, 2017.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
A main thesis of this remarkable book is that the days of doing research with small samples are over in a number of domains. Analysis of Google searches can tell us a lot more, with a larger sample size than we could ever dream of and with much greater honesty on the part of the subjects. Stephens-Davidowitz cites numerous examples. For instance, racism is a trait that people hide quite successfully. When Barack Obama was elected President, the prevailing mood was that America had become a post-racial society. Yet, Google searches told a different story, given that many people were searching for phrases like "nigger jokes," a search that also peaks on Martin Luther King Day.
Searches for porn, relationship insecurities, and embarrassing diseases also tell similar stories, hence, the title "Everybody Lies." It is impossible to get accurate results from survey questions such as: Have you ever cheated on an exam? How many times have you had sex over the last week? Have you ever fantasized about killing someone? Social desirability bias makes people under-report shameful behaviors and over-report activity that makes them look good or desirable.
Nowhere is the discrepancy between self-reported traits and actual behaviors more evident than in talking about sex. Here is one example: data on condom sales show a much lower volume than the number obtained by people's self-reported sexual activity in which they used condoms. As another example, gay men are distributed pretty much evenly across the united states, judging by Google search data about gay sex, yet there are far more openly gay men in tolerant states than in intolerant ones. There are many other examples that contradict conventional wisdom.
Google's autocomplete feature for searches, which is based on searches that have been performed in the past, reveals much about social behavior. If a woman starts to type "Is my husband ..." into Google's search box, the continuation "gay" is more likely than "cheating," revealing a deep social insecurity, particularly in states that are less tolerant toward homosexuality. If you start your search with "Why are Jews ... ," autocomplete suggests the continuations "evil," "tight," "ugly," and the like. I tried this out and it seems that Google has stopped offering such continuations in searches about Jews!
Google search data is supplied to researchers anonymously, so (it is claimed that) nothing can be construed about the behavior of individuals. Clever use of the data can reveal correlations and complex relationships about various social groups. Yet, the recent data harvesting scandal at Facebook in connection with the 2016 US election makes one suspicious of the claim that no personal data is disclosed via Google data sets.
It is quite interesting that Google search capability, which was devised to help people understand the world, is also quite useful in helping the world understand people!
If you don't have the time to peruse this important and enjoyable book, I recommend the excellent summary published by The Guardian, which also includes an interview with the author.

2018/03/23 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Time magazine cover honors the Parkland, Florida, students (1) Cover story of Time magazine, issue of April 2, 2018, honors the Parkland, Florida, students and "March for Our Lives" organizers.
(2) Global detective work: A Twitter group effort helped identify the lone woman in this 1971 photo of scientists, in which all the men had previously been named. She is Sheila Minor Huff, a biological specimen analyst at the Fish and Wildlife Service at the time.
(3) Famed Iranian philosopher and free-thinker passes away at 83: Dariush Shayegan [1934-2018] died today at a Tehran hospital. Here is one of his noteworthy quotes: "Tolerance is accepting the other and taming your ego."
(4) Trump shows he is all bark and no bite: After threatening to veto the Congressional spending bill over inadequate funding for his wall, the one Mexico was supposed to pay for, he sheepishly signs it. The spending bill is a must-pass bill, as no one wants to be blamed for a government shut-down. So, true-to-form, the swamp denizens (the same swamp that was supposed to be drained) put all sorts of sneaky provisions into it. One such provision is protections for anonymous political contributions, aka "dark money."
(5) Previously anonymous DNC hacker known as Guccifer 2.0 has been identified as a Russian intelligence officer, who was in touch with Trump friend and confidante Roger Stone.
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Mark Zuckerberg apologizes, sort of, for Cambridge Analytica's data misuse but also deflects blame.
- Amnesty International criticizes Twitter for failing to act on reports of abuse and harassment toward women.
- It's no longer a question of whether Trump will fall but of when he'll fall. Prepare for the war-like aftermath!
- Developing story: Iran accused of hacking US academic sites to steal intellectual property.
- Cambridge Analytica's leaked internal document reveals its blueprint for securing a Trump victory.
- Meme of the day: If you're not paying for it, you're not the customer. You're the product being sold. [Image]
- Oxymoronic tweet of the day: The Flat Earth Society has members all around the globe. [Image]
- "We're beta-testing ways to get the President to read his briefings." [Cartoon] [Source: The New Yorker]
(7) In Trump's logic, "x AND not-x" is true: You can be against the Iraq War and appoint one of its staunchest supporters, John Bolton, your National Security Adviser!
(8) Reality trumps spy fiction: Cambridge Analytica offered a foreign client services to entrap political opponents by using attractive women, unaware that the "client" was really a reporter entrapping them!
(9) Final thought for the day: It's poetic justice that the misogynistic regime in Iran and president in the US will both be brought down by women. [Photo: Nowruz in northern Iran, by Taghi Doostkouhi]

2018/03/22 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Baby doesn't seem to be pleased after his first haircut, 1955 The book-reading gadget of the future, 1935 Albert Einstein holding an Albert Einstein puppet, 1931 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Baby doesn't seem to be pleased after his first haircut, 1955. [Center] The book-reading gadget of the future, 1935. [Right] Albert Einstein holding an Albert Einstein puppet, 1931.
(2) Fragrance of jasmines fills the spring air around me, as I work at home, and my courtyard fountain is overflowing from a second day of rain. This beautiful rainy day will be followed by seven days of sunshine, if one is to believe the weather forecast. There is no end in sight for the scary clouds in our country's political scene, though. Happy Thursday! [Photos]
(3) Trump chaos continues: H. R. McMaster fired as National Security Adviser (to be replaced by John Bolton); Attorney John Dowd resigns; Dow Jones plunges on fear of trade war.
(4) Quote of the day: "A tree can be tempted out of its winter dormancy by a few hours of southerly sun—the readiness to believe in spring is stronger than sleep or sanity." ~ Amy Leach, Things that Are
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Tiffany ditched by boyfriend. Donald Jr.'s wife divorces him. Donald's marriage is on the rocks. Stay tuned!
- Panel on Santa Barbara's recovery from Thomas Fire and mudflows: Lobero Theater, 3/28, 3:30 PM.
- Tehran International Airport, at the moment of Spring Equinox (saal tahveel). [2-minute video]
- Iranian music: "Waltz-e Nowruzi" ("Nowruz Waltz")
- Someone had to say it: Americans' notion of masculinity creates lonely men.
- Geeky facts about White House's Oval Office: The ellipse has an eccentricity of e = 0.62. [More]
- Cartoon of the day: Isolationist-in-Chief hard at work. (So, this is the wall he was talking about!) [Image]
(6) To all Facebook users who take on-line personality tests and allow various third parties access to their personal data and friends lists: Cambridge Analytica, which worked for Trump's campaign to help with the production of targeted ads, used such tests, celebrity look-alike offers, and other seemingly harmless activities to harvest data and construct detailed psychological profiles for more than 50 million Facebook users.
(7) Cartoon caption of the day: "Facebook was better before they let moms and hostile foreign agents join." ~ Caption of a New Yorker cartoon [Referring to the illicit use of private data harvested from Facebook]
(8) Walking in the rain this afternoon: I was working at home, resigned to the idea that I won't walk today and will do double the walking tomorrow, when an e-mail message from a neighbor alerted me that the Devereux Slough had broken through to the ocean, creating a sight to behold. Since the rain had slowed down a bit, I immediately put my shoes on, took an umbrella, and began walking towards the Slough. These photos show the Slough and my return path via bluff-tops near the UCSB West Campus beach. Puddles and wet ground made walking a challenge, but it was well worth the effort. I was surprised to see that surfers were not deterred by the rain and high winds. Here is a 2-minute video of the ocean.

2018/03/21 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of John Hennessy and David Patterson, co-winners of ACM's 2018 A. M. Turing Award (1) ACM's 2018 Turing Award is bestowed upon John L. Hennessy (a former president of Stanford U) and David A. Patterson (a retired professor of UC Berkeley), for their seminal contributions to computer architecture. The duo is credited with popularizing the RISC concept, writing a highly influential textbook, and putting computer architecture on a quantitative footing. ACM's A. M. Turing Award, often referred to as the "Nobel Prize of Computing," carries a $1 million prize, with financial support provided by Google. It is named for Alan M. Turing, the British mathematician who articulated the mathematical foundation and limits of computing.
(2) Misogyny in Asian soccer: Mahsa Ghorbani, the only Iranian referee at AFC Asian Cup, likely won't be acknowledged by Iran's Football Federation. Her selection to referee a soccer match between two Asian men's teams has raised eyebrows, not just in Iran, but also in a number of other Islamic countries.
(3) Here's what kids think scientists look like: A few years ago, I posted the results of a similar experiment about computer scientists, who were drawn much worse than the average depiction in this study!
(4) One more female Senator will bring the Senate total to 23, a record high: Mississippi, the only US state that has not yet elected a woman to Congress, is expected to appoint the state's Agriculture and Commerce Commissioner Cindy Hyde-Smith to replace the resigning Senator Thad Cochran.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Austin serial-bomber dies after detonating an explosive device in his vehicle, as police closed in on him.
- Islamic-State attack near Afghanistan's Kabul University kills at least 29 and injures many more.
- Kushner family real estate business is accused of filing false reports to skirt NYC's rent-control laws.
- Ben Carson blames his wife on the purchase of $31,000 dining set for his office.
- Facebook appears to be in a survival fight, following its mishandling of illicit data-harvesting revelations.
- Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg should post status updates re compromised Facebook users' data!
- Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, a very close ally of former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, arrested.
- Santa Barbara weather: Much-needed rain today and tomorrow, followed by a week of sunshine.
- Evacuations from Thomas Fire burn areas create traffic jam on southbound US 101.
- Clever and interesting images for your enjoyment on this first day of the Iranian New Year.
- New viral meme, after Trump congratulated Putin for his "election" victory, against aides' explicit advice.
- If you want to practice finding typos and grammatical errors, here's a presidential tweet for you!
(6) Our clueless FLOTUS can't seem to get it that she has no credibility in her alleged fight against cyber-bullying, when the POTUS is by far the worst offender.
(7) Technical talk at UCSB this morning: Kaisheng Ma (Penn State U) spoke under the title "Self-Powered Internet-of-Things Nonvolatile Processor and System Exploration and Optimization." Dr. Ma has worked on energy-harvesting technologies that allow ultra-low-power devices, dissipating on the order of 100 micro-Watts (preferably less), to run IoT applications, with no need for batteries. Energy sources that can be exploited include solar, radio-frequency radiation, piezoelectric effect, and thermal gradient. Because these power sources are unreliable and affected by ambient environmental factors, we must develop specialized systems that are tolerant to power variations and capable of making progress on their computation tasks despite power discontinuities. Applicable techniques include frequency scaling, resource allocation for dynamic adjustment of the microarchitecture, and approximate computing. Here's a 2-minute demo of part of Dr. Ma's work.

2018/03/20 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
My Persian poem in celebration of Nowruz Hyacinth and other flowers (1) A Nowruz message to everyone: For many years now, I have composed a cheerful traditional Persian poem celebrating the arrival of spring and renewal of nature, as well as the Iranian New Year festival. Here is the 2018 (1397) edition. Initial letters of the poem's first and second half-verses spell its Persian title, "Khojasteh Nowruz,"which translates to "Felicitous Nowruz."
For more of my Nowruz/Norooz poems, see my poetry page.
A rough English translation of my Nowruz 2018/1397 follows.
Beautify your home, for the plain is covered with flowers
Light, Nowruz, spring, festivity, hubbub, all looming towers
Don colorful clothes, wash sorrow's rust from your mind
Joy, passion, love, affection, zeal for life are right behind
Apple, oleaster, vinegar, garlic, sumac, are all on a spread
Hue of grass, smell of hyacinth, fancy silk patterns in red
Smiles adorn your family and friends, and your own face
The time for merriment and movement has come with grace
Songs and dance all around, sounds of music everywhere
Beneath and above, near and far, right here and over there
(2) [Stephen Hawking's wonderful sense of humor] John Oliver: You have stated that you believe that there could be an infinite number of parallel universes. Does that mean there is a universe out there where I am smarter than you? Stephen Hawking: Yes. And also a universe where you're funny.
(3) The nasty nor'easters in recent weeks were caused by Jews, according to DC Councilman Trayon White Sr., because they control the weather. Welcome to the new "Great America," home of racism and anti-semitism!
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Renowned computer scientist Farnam Jahanian named President of Carnegie Mellon University.
- The Texas serial-bombing mystery deepens: Bomb package explodes at FedEx facility en route to Austin.
- The US East Coast does not recognize the arrival of spring; another massive storm has arrived.
- Study on male birth control pills yields unprecedented results.
- Uber halts self-driving car tests after first fatality, a pedestrian killed in Arizona.
- Cambridge Analytica, working for the Trump campaign, harvested Facebook data for use in targeted ads.
- Quote of the day: "Our character is more evident by our choices than by our abilities." ~ Rita Schiano
- Cartoon of the day: White House's new parental advisory system. [Image][Source: The New Yorker]
(5) Hardware aspects of big-data applications: Mingyu Gao (Stanford University) spoke at UCSB yesterday under the title "Near-Data Processing Systems for Data-Intensive Applications."
Big data applications must process large volumes of data within strict time limits. Thus, memory access latency and bandwidth become major challenges, what is sometimes referred to as the "memory wall." For example, at Google data centers, an estimated 60% of CPU processing power goes to waste as a result of waiting for memory accesses. The energy requirements of an off-chip memory access, roughly 1000 times that of a floating-point addition, is also a problem.
Recent 3D integration technologies allow us to put the processing logic at the bottom layer and connect it through vias to memory layers above, in order to avoid slow and energy-intensive data movements. The speaker discussed the critical challenges of such near-data processing systems, including efficient processing logic circuits, practical system architectures, user-level programming models, and scalable parallelization and dataflow scheduling schemes.
One idea is the use of DRAM-based lookup tables and reconfigurable fabric, instead of current SRAM tables in FPGAs. While DRAM tables are denser and more energy-efficient, a variety of architectural "tricks" are needed to make them work within system constraints and performance requirements. [Photo and slides]

2018/03/18 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Photo of my haft-seen spread (1) Presenting a photo of my haft-seen spread: Wishing everyone a wonderful Nowruz and a happy, healthy, and prosperous Iranian new year! I will post my traditional Persian poem for Nowruz 1397 (the new year, according to the Iranian calendar) soon, but, as a preview, you can see it in the haft-seen photo.
(2) The Fifth Dementia: This is the name of a band formed by dementia patients, when co-founders of the UCLA program MusicMendsMinds stumbled upon the effects of music therapy as a treatment option for ongoing symptoms of Parkinson's. [Sample music] [Story]
(3) No longer identical: When astronaut Scott Kelly returned to earth from a record-setting space mission, he had become different from his formerly identical twin Mark, because some 7% of his genes had changed.
(4) Obama negotiating with North Korea: Bad! Tillerson suggesting diplomacy: Naive! Trump planning to meet Kim Jong Un: Brilliant! [News clips]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Former Irish PM sings the praises of immigrants, as Trump watches with obvious discomfort!
- Pot-to-kettle joke of the day: Donald Trump calls James Comey a liar! [Comey's tweet]
- Former CIA Director John O. Brennan attacks Donald Trump directly, mincing no words! [Brennan's tweet]
- Ex-husband of an employee at Thousand Oak's Oaks Mall kills her but survives attempted suicide.
- Brooklyn Duo's wonderful instrumental version of "Despacito" on cello and piano.
- Four youngsters step up to play "Despacito" on a toe-tap piano.
- For soccer enthusiasts: A beautiful goal that defies geometry and physics.
- Cartoon of the day: Toys 'R' Us, the latest casualty of on-line shopping. RIP! [Image]
- Second cartoon of the day: The Ayatollah's race against time. [Image] [Source: Iranwire.com]
(6) Firm working for Donald Trump campaign through Jared Kushner, and which harvested Facebook data for targeted ads, had ties to Russian oil giant.
(7) Hillary Clinton suffered an unjust defeat in 2016, but she is hurting the Democrats now: Her interview in India, where she asserted that people who voted for her are responsible for 2/3 of America's GDP, was elitist and divisive. We take pride in the one-person-one-vote principle, so saying that her voters were "better" is counterproductive. Clinton did win the popular vote, so there was really no need to make such a statement.
(8) Spending a lazy afternoon in Goleta: I am enjoying a lull in my schedule, having finished teaching and grading of homework assignments for the winter quarter, but not having received the students' research papers for my graduate course on parallel processing. At the end of my 2-mile walk from home to Goleta's Camino Real Marketplace, I listened to music by a wonderfully talented musician, before heading back.
["Save the Last Dance for Me"] ["How Sweet It Is"] ["Peaceful Easy Feeling" (The Eagles)]

2018/03/17 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Logo for Springer's Encyclopedia of Big Data Technologies (1) Encyclopedia of Big Data Technologies (EBDT) is taking shape: Many entries in this comprehensive volume, edited by Sherif Sakr and Albert Zomaya, are already available on-line and the full version will be released in early 2019. I served as a co-editor, with Bingsheng He, of EBDT's section on "Big Data on Modern Hardware Systems" and also wrote six of the sections's articles/entries, with the following titles (all of which are available via my Publications Web page):
- Computer Architecture for Big Data
- Data Longevity and Compatibility
- Data Replication and Encoding
- Energy Implications of Big Data
- Parallel Processing with Big Data
- Tabular Computation
Completed entries of Springer's EBDT can be accessed via the Worldwide Web.
(2) The Iranian government, whose thugs have attacked at least three embassies in Tehran, wants to complain to international agencies for the brief takeover of part of its embassy in London by Shi'i followers of Grand Ayatollah Sadegh Shirazi.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Russian hackers have targeted critical US energy infrastructure, including nuclear plants.
- Donald Trump Jr.'s wife, Vanessa, decides to end her 12-year marriage by filing for divorce.
- A brief history of Stephen Hawking, the man who shaped our understanding of the world.
- UCSB scholar Miriam Metzger co-authors a paper about a promising approach to detecting fake news.
- Quote: "It would not be much of a universe if it wasn't home to the people we love." ~ Stephen Hawking
- Iranian Member of Parliament struggles with pronouncing the name of "Louvre Museum."
- Cartoon of the day: The sweeping investigation of Russia's meddling in the 2016 US election. [Image]
- Second cartoon of the day: "They probably got the idea from one of those protesty video games." [Image]
(4) Author, political analyst, and University of Tehran's professor of political science Sadegh Zibakalam has been sentenced to 18 months in prison on charges of propaganda against the Islamic system.
(5) Yesterday's CS Distinguished Lecture: Held at the end of the day-long CS summit on the UCSB campus, which also featured project and research presentations by undergraduate and graduate students (with representatives of local high-tech companies present), the lecture by David E. Culler, UC Berkeley Professor and Dean of the Division of Data Sciences, was entitled "Networked Systems Design for Sustainability in the Built Environment." The talk's focus was on integrated and intelligent ways of controlling the environment in buildings so as to reduce energy consumption. Culler indicated that our challenge is to come up with ways of turning buildings into programmable entities, which would enable the application of innovative software methods to their operation and control. [Three slides]
(6) [Final post for the day] I am still working on my 2018 traditional Nowruz (Norooz) poem. Here is an unrelated Persian verse of mine, presented as a teaser. Despite the delay in completing my Nowruz poem.

2018/03/16 (Friday): Course review: Adams, Jeremy et al., Great Minds of the Western Intellectual Tradition, 84 lectures in the "Great Courses" series (seven 12-lecture parts, each with a guidebook), The Teaching Company, 2000. [My 5-star review of this course on GoodReads]
Cover image for the audiobook course 'Great Minds of the Western Intellectual Tradition' Questions about life and existence have vexed humankind for millennia. I found listening to the arguments about and nuances of these questions intellectually stimulating, even though I had heard them before, including in other "Great Courses" series.
Taught by 12 professors, this grand tour of the most brilliant minds tackling fundamental questions such as reality, purpose of life, God, freedom in the face of causal laws, having power over others, justice, and beauty, describes the bases of the Western philosophical tradition and the fundamental debates that are still raging.
Two cities figure prominently in nurturing these thoughts: Athens contributed inquiry and emancipation, the critical and self-critical spirit; Jerusalem provided the West's mythos and its holy text. The two sets of issues that permeate the Western discourse are the nature of the world and our knowledge of it (metaphysics, epistemology) and guidelines for a contented life (ethics, social theory, politics, existentialism).
Much of what we have today in Western thought can be traced to the contributions of Aristotle, who formulated the four cardinal virtues: Courage; Temperance; Justice; Practical wisdom. The first three virtues would not exist without the fourth. Courage, e.g., is a happy medium between rashness and timidity, as guided by practical wisdom.
The following summary of the 84 lectures in this series provides a good indication of what the course covers.
Part I: Classical Origins (lectures 1-12) [The Pre-Socratics; The Sophists and Social Science; Plato's Metaphysics, Politics, and Psychology; Aristotle's Metaphysics, Politics, and Ethics; Stoicism and Epicureanism; Roman Eclecticism; Roman Skepticism]
Part II: The Christian Age (lectures 13-24) [Job and the Problem of Suffering; The Hebrew Bible; The Synoptic Gospels; Paul; Plotinus and Neo-Platonism; Augustine and Free Will; Aquinas; Universals in Medieval Thought; Mysticism; Luther; Calvin]
Part III: From the Renaissance to the Age of Reason (lectures 25-36) [Machiavelli; More's Utopianism; Erasmus; Galileo and the New Astronomy; Bacon; Descartes; Hobbes; Spinoza; The Skepticism of Pascal and Bayle; Newton and Enlightened Science]
Part IV: The Enlightenment and Its Critics (lectures 37-48) [Locke, Politics, Knowledge; Vico; Montesquieu's Political Thought; Bernard Mandeville; Bishop Berkeley; Hume's Epistemology, Morality, and Religion; Adam Smith; Rousseau's Dissent]
Part V: The Age of Ideology (lectures 49-60) [Kant's Revolution and Moral Theory; Burke; Hegel's Historicism; Marx's Materialism; Mill's Utilitarianism; Kirkegaard's Leap of Faith; Schopenhauer; Nietzsche, Will to Power, and Morality]
Part VI: Modernism and the Age of Analysis (lectures 61-72) [James' Pragmatism; Freud's Human Nature; A. J. Ayer; Max Weber; Husserl's Phenomenology; Dewey; Heidegger; Wittgenstein's Language Analysis; The Frankfurt School; Structuralism]
Part VII: The Crisis of Modernity (lectures 73-84) [Hayek's Critique of Central Planning; Popper; Kuhn; Quine; Habermas; Rawls' Theory of Justice; Derrida's Deconstruction; Rorty's New Pragmatism; Gouldner; MacIntyre; Nozick and Libertarianism]

2018/03/15 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Pollution in Pittsburgh, 1940 Native-American telephone switchboard operator, Montana, 1925 Celebrating divorce, 1930s (1) History in pictures: [Left] Pollution in Pittsburgh, 1940. [Center] Native-American telephone switchboard operator, Montana, 1925. [Right] Celebrating divorce, 1930s.
(2) Virtual kidnapping: This, according to an alert coming from UCSB Police, is an expanding crime category, in which scammers call you, often identifying themselves as members of a drug cartel, claiming that they hold one of your loved ones hostage and demanding immediate payment (often by wire transfer). They try to project a sense of urgency, perhaps by having someone scream or cry in the background, because they know they have a limited window of time before you discover the scam or contact the authorities. Be alert!
(3) Data-assisted → Data-dependent → Data-immersive: "Fifty years ago, we entered a data-assisted world. Today, the world is data-dependent—we can't check out at a store if their data systems are down. Fifty years from today, we will live in a data-immersive world, doing things we have never done before via data's ubiquitous integration into every facet of our lives. This has already begun. Enjoy the ride." ~ David Lomet, Microsoft scientist, concluding his article "The Future of Data Management" in Computing Edge, March 2018
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Multiple fatalities and injuries in collapse of a just-installed pedestrian bridge at Florida Int'l Univ.
- In a direct challenge to Trump's "red line," Mueller subpoenas records from the Trump Organization.
- Freudian typo? Sean Spicer's farewell tweet reads: Rex Tillerson has severed our country well!
- Following scandals due to opening of fraudulent accounts, Wells Fargo CEO is rewarded with a $4.6M raise.
- Borowitz Report (humor): "Vladimir Putin concedes defeat in Pennsylvania's special election."
- Cartoon of the day: David and Goliath, when Parkland students take on the NRA. [Image]
On clothing and other personal choices by women and men (5) [Final thought for the day] A message to men who criticize feminism:
You often claim that feminism is trying to make women look like the photo on the left. Feminism does not try to make women look or dress in this manner but wants them to have the freedom to do so if they wish. You and I are under no obligation to like their choices and, in a free and just society, will be under no obligation to interact with them if we prefer not to.
As a feminist, I like the woman in the middle, Oscar-nominated director Greta Gerwig, and you as an anti-feminist probably like her too, but perhaps for different reasons than mine.
I detest the man on the right, not for the way he looks or dresses, but for the way he thinks. Even then, I recognize the fact that he is a product of a particular environment or culture and, consequently, may not be entirely evil. You, on the other hand, probably like him.
Feminism isn't entirely about women; it's more about human dignity and freedom of choice.

2018/03/14 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Stephen Hawking dead at 76 GIF image for pi day National School Walkout Day, to demand action on curbing gun violence (1) Today in pictures: [Left] Stephen Hawking dead at 76: The British physicist was known for his work on relativity and black holes, and for several popular science books, including A Brief History of Time. Hawking outlived his terminal diagnosis at age 22 by some five decades. [Center] Happy pi day! March 14 is known as pi day, because 3/14 matches the first three of the infinite sequence of digits in pi = 3.141 592 653 589 793 ... [Right] National School Walkout Day: Today, one month after the mass shooting at Florida's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, which took the lives of 17 students and teachers, our nation's youth walk out from school to demand action on curbing gun violence and declaring that "thoughts and prayers" won't do. [#enough]
(2) "A Brief History of Time": This engrossing 84-minute film focuses on the life and work of the late cosmologist Stephen Hawking, who possessed a brilliant mind, despite suffering near-total paralysis from ALS. Based on his best-selling book, the film focuses partly on his theories and partly on his daily life, based on interviews with friends and family.
(3) Prime Minister Theresa May indicates that Russia was behind the plot to assassinate a former double-agent by nerve gas and that UK will expel 23 Russian diplomats in retaliation.
(4) Political humor: George Takei introduces a set of commemorative plates for departed Trump administration officials at the end of this Jimmy Kimmel monlogue.
(5) Torture advocates in charge: Both Secretary-of-State nominee Mike Pompeo and his replacement at CIA, Gina Haspel, are apologists for torture, euphemistically called "enhanced interrogation techniques."
Cover image for the book 'Rules Do Not Apply' (6) Book review: Levy, Ariel, The Rules Do Not Apply: A Memoir, unabridged audiobook on 4 CDs, read by the author, Penguin Random House Audio, 2017.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Levy (ariellevy.net), who joined The New Yorker as a staff writer in 2008, is well-known for her essays and criticisms, as well as for her book Female Chauvinist Pigs. In this highly personal memoir, Levy, who labels herself as "too much," discusses her insecurities, bisexuality, marriage to a same-sex "husband" (with whom she was deeply in love), and career decisions.
After Levy's meticulously-built unconventional life suddenly fell apart, she picked up the pieces and built a new life in which she was free and empowered to do as she pleased, while recognizing inevitable limitations that make compromise necessary. "I wanted what we all want: everything. We want a mate who feels like family and a lover who is exotic, surprising. We want to be youthful adventurers and middle-aged mothers. We want intimacy and autonomy, safety and stimulation, reassurance and novelty, coziness and thrills. But we can't have it all."
The proliferation of memoirs gives us unprecedented windows into other people's lives and aspirations, so I find myself perusing many such titles. While Levy's account is particularly appealing to women in this age of #MeToo and #TimesUp, and the resulting female ascendancy, many of life's complexities and contradictions discussed by Levy will also benefit men.

2018/03/13 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A day on the river, 1941 High-voltage power lines almost buried in snow, Siberia, 1960 Testing football helmets, 1912 (1) History in pictures: [Left] A day on the river, 1941. [Center] High-voltage power lines almost buried in snow, Siberia, 1960. [Right] Testing football helmets, 1912.
(2) New earthquake warning systems will save lives: Radio signals emitted from an earthquake's point of origin can reach population centers seconds before the actual shaking.
(3) There is a very proper version of English which is referred to as "King's English": We are now graced with "President's English"! Disgust is too mild a word to describe my reaction. [Photos, and Tom Brokaw's tweet]
(4) FCC did not sanction the launch of tiny satellites, because they are too small for proper monitoring and create risks for other spacecrafts, but a California start-up launched them anyway.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- US Secretay of State Rex Tillerson ousted and replaced by CIA Director Mike Pompeo.
- Serial bomber sought in Texas for killing 2 and injuring several more with 3 packages containing bombs.
- Turkey's direct involvement Syria: Turkish forces have encircled Afrin, a stronghold of Kurdish militia.
- Distinguished computer scientists, a mother and daughter, featured on "People of ACM."
- The US not standing up to Putin has made him more brazen in assassinating opponents and defectors.
- The year women became eligible to vote, by country. [World map]
- Francis Fukuyama, of the "End of History" fame, believes that Iran is headed toward a social explosion.
- Super Mario Bros (1985) "Coin Sound" scoresheet.
- Boy-King Tut's tomb is under study with new radar technology to resolve age-old mysteries. [Graphic]
- United flight attendant forced a family to put pet dog in the overhead bin; the dog didn't survive the flight.
(6) Isn't it odd for a US president to visit a state and not meet with its governor? Jerry Brown tries to overcome this barrier by writing a letter to Trump the day before his visit to the Golden State.
(7) Why the future of computing is analog (from the Greek "analogon," meaning "model"): Analog computers, which were sidelined when digital computers began to offer greater robustness and higher precision, are making a comeback. One key reason is analog's better energy efficiency. Today's top supercomputers consume megawatts of electric power; the comparably powerful human brain draws only 20 watts. Another reason is the benefit of specialization. Connections in analog computers are hard-wired; there is no need for instruction fetch and memory access, along with their time and energy penalties. Analog computers are massively parallel by nature, without all the overheads of digital massive parallelism. [Source] [MIT blog] [Wired article]

2018/03/12 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover of 'National Geographic' April 2018 issue (1) Black and white twins challenge our notions of race and racism.
(2) Mandatory evacuation orders have been issued for some Santa Barbara County areas in anticipation of tomorrow's rainstorm. Emergency crews and high-water vehicles have been pre-positioned in the area. US 101 may be closed with little prior notice as a preventive measure.
(3) For a guy who tweets about everything and everyone, including Alec Baldwin, Oprah, Meryl Streep, Chuck Todd, and anyone else who criticizes him, Trump has been awfully quiet about Stormy Daniels.
(4) Quote of the day: "In five-billion years, as the Sun begins to die, its outer layers of glowing plasma will expand stupendously, engulfing the orbits of Mercury, then Venus, as the charred ember that was once the oasis of life called Earth vaporizes into the vacuum of space. Have a nice day!" ~ Neil deGrasse Tyson
(5) The global seed vault in Norway: After adding 70,000 new crops to this doomsday collection, which will allow the human race to recover in the event of a global catastrophe, the total number of crops in the vault now exceeds 1 million. [Source: Time magazine]
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- British PM accuses Russia of crime or criminal negligence in use of a nerve agent to kill a former Russian spy.
- A former Netanyahu confidant has turned state witness against him in corruption probe.
- Super-deep diamond reveals never-before-seen minerals from Earth's mantle.
- Berkshire Hathaway got a $29 billion windfall for 2017 as a result of recent changes to the US tax code.
- Iran's premier female film director: Rakhshan Bani-Etemad is a darling of both the people and film critics.
- Magic prank: How wonderful that this older couple has found the magic of playing and laughing together!
(7) Labor laws in the age of crowd-work: Crowdsourcing (the practice of obtaining information or input into a task/project by enlisting the services of a large number of people, either paid or unpaid, typically via the Internet) is becoming increasingly important in scientific research. According to Google Scholar, the number of papers that use the term "crowdsourcing" grew more than 20-fold from 2008 to 2016. As crowdsourcing becomes even more prevalent, the nature of the relationship between project administrators and the people doing the work must be examined more closely. Do labor laws apply in this domain? Should we set a minimum wage? How is work quality assessed for the sake of payment and continuation? Do workers need protection, as an increasing number of them rely on crowd-work as a primary income source? Can/should crowd-workers organize? For thoughts on these issues and references to other articles, see: M. S. Silberman, B. Tomlinson, R. LaPlante, J. Ross, L. Irani, and A. Zaldivar, "Responsible Research with Crowds: Pay Crowdworkers at Least Minimum Wage," Communications of the ACM, Vol. 61, No. 3, pp. 39-41, March 2018.

2018/03/11 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Banner for Farhang Foundation's Nowruz celebration at UCLA (1) Farhang Foundation's celebration of Nowruz and the Iranian New Year at UCLA: The program included various free musical performances, dances, and children's activities, along with a costume parade, from 12:00 noon to 5:00 PM. A 6:00-PM ticketed Royce-Hall concert by Mojgan Shajarian concluded the program. [Photos] Mamak Khadem performed a Kurdish song, a second song, and "Aamad No-Bahaar" ("Spring Has Arrived"). She then yielded the stage to two young singers who perform "Shaaneh" ("Comb") and followed up with another Kurdish song. Beginning at 3:00 PM, there was a "Spring Walk" in colorful costumes, with music. Performances by LA Daf Ensemble and Djanbazian Dance Academy concluded the open-air part. Beginning at 6:00 PM, a highly enjoyable concert by Mojgan Shajarian was held in the fabulous Royce Hall. Shajarian, who had replaced Sima Bina at the last minute, because of Bina being denied a US entry visa, performed several standards and a few of Sima Bina's songs, concuding with "Morgh-e Sahar" ("Dawn Bird"), a signature song of her father. In her introductory remarks, she apologized for any problems arising from a lack of rehearsal time and took off her traditional head cover (dastaar) in solidarity with Iranian women who are fighting for their freedoms and against mandatory hijab laws. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4]
(2) Trump is reportedly furious with Sarah Huckabee Sanders for inadvertently confirming (by revealing Trump's winning in arbitration) that there was a non-disclosure agreement between him and Stormy Daniels.
(3) Puzzle: Anthony was born on March 1, but he does not know the day of the week on his original day of birth. His mom, a mathematician, tells him that he was born in a year that had exactly 53 Saturdays and 53 Sundays. On what day of the week was Anthony born?
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Jeff Sessions redefines Justice: He criticizes federal judges for slowing Trump's national agenda!
- The three women hostages killed by a gunman at a California veterans home identified.
- Following Iran's lead, Houthis sentence a Yemeni Baha'i to death.
- Kim Jong Un and his dad got Brazilian passports under fake names in the 1990s to visit the West in secret.
- Trump has many, many, many friends: Believe him ... not! [2-minute video]
- Quote of the day: It's an amendment, not a commandment!" ~ Bill Mahr on the Second Amendment
(5) Saturday night's concert on the UCSB campus: UCSB's Middle East Ensemble performed in a program that in part celebrated Nowruz and the Iranian New Year. Special guest Bahram Osqueezadeh (UCSB Persian music lecturer) led the Ensemble in three Persian songs, with guest vocalist Siamak Bozorgi. Also, Besnik Yzeiri presented a rousing violin solo. Other parts of the program included a 5-piece Arabic music set, a 3-piece Turkish music set, and various dances. As usual, the ensemble had done a great job with a detailed program booklet, containing song lyrics, translations, and historical notes. ["Kereshmeh" Persian dance] [Persian song: "Sargashteh" ("Wanderer")] [Persian music piece: "Quatrains in Bayat-e Tork"; three seh-tars (9-tars?) and vocals] [Persian song: "Hamcho Farhad" ("Like Farhad")]

2018/03/10 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Fake snow on the Giza Pyramids (1) Snow on the Giza Pyramids after many decades? No, just another fake image on social media, leading to many re-tweets and Facebook reposts!
(2) Fake news spreads faster and wider than real news, according to new research findings. [This may be due to the fact that fake news stories are designed to be inflammatory and thus more likely to be shared by those who are predisposed to believing them, as opposed to arising from an inherent attribute of falsehood.]
(3) Threatening near-Earth object: A 1600-ft asteroid, with a 1 in 2700 chance of colliding with earth over the next century as it repeatedly zips by, may be deflected through a powerful nuclear explosion.
(4) The days of fossil fuels may be numbered: Within a couple of years, energy-storage companies such as Tesla will be allowed to compete in the wholesale electric-energy market against traditional suppliers.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Russia endangers Brits by using nerve toxin to poison ex-spy: Haz-mat crews working on assessing risks.
- China's Xi makes himself leader for life, as Trump looks on wistfully!
- Noteworthy quote: "Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow." ~ Helen Keller
- Noteworthy quote: "No one gossips about other people's secret virtues." ~ Bertrand Russell
- Robotic scarecrows: This wolf robot howls to protect farms. It's a bit too scary for kids, though.
- Is it winter or spring? Nature can't decide! [Photo]
- The strongest predictor of how long you will live isn't your weight or your exercise habits.
(6) Even in the age of #MeToo, rape victims are being shamed: Lawyer for Yale student accused of rape asks the victim what she was wearing, how much she had had to drink, and why she held hands with the accused as they walked on campus.
(7) A new scientific finding by a science-hating administration: According to Trump's Secretary of the Interior (the one who had a $130K office door installed), wind power leads to global warming, you know, the same phenomenon which is a Chinese hoax!
(8) International Women's Day at the White House: Dudes are everywhere in this March 8 photo, including on the walls. There's just one woman in the photo, and she is either a note-taker or a translator.
(9) Quantum-dot TV displays: The future of TV displays was supposed to be simple, progressing from LCDs to OLEDs (organic LEDs), which are brighter, sharper, and thinner. Enter the quantum-dot technology and you are faced with many new options and a dizzying list of acronyms, including QD, QUHD, SUHD, and ULED!

2018/03/09 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover of Time magazine, issue of March 12, 2018 (1) Oscar-nominated Greta Gerwig leads by example: The director of "Lady Bird," a film about the life of a teenage girl, represents the new-found power of women, in front of and behind the camera, as Hollywood finally finds its conscience.
(2) Courageous singers: Those who are born and raised in the West do not consider singing an act of bravery. But for Iranian women, singing has always been deemed a disreputable endeavor. Over the last four decades, in particular, women's voices and bodies have been viewed as profane and sinful, to be kept under wraps. This 7-minute video is an ode to brave singing women who have defied this twised world view.
(3) Interesting trends: Some of the following claims aren't strictly true, but still some head-scratching is warranted!
- Airbnb: World's largest accommodation provider owns no real estate
- Alibaba: World's most-valuable retailer has no inventory
- Bitcoin: World's biggest bank has no actual cash
- Facebook: World's most popular media owner creates no content
- Uber: World's largest taxi company owns no vehicles
(4) Puzzle: Mark has a favorite analog clock which, unfortunately, has lost its minutes hand. The hour hand is currently aligned exactly with minute 23. What time is it?
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Corruption and waste: Ryan Zinke bests Ben Carson's $31K dining set with $139K office door!
- Trump Organization ordered 12" replicas of the US Presidential Seal for use as golf course tee-markers.
- Kim Jong Un joked about his bad image abroad during dinner with South Korean officials.
- Women are receiving a larger number of college degrees than men, at all levels, but the pay gap remains.
- Following USA Gymnastics, USA Swimming is under scrutiny for a culture of sexual abuse spanning decades.
- Joke of the day: Trump administration has requested funds to promote abstinence-only sex education!
- Winter Olympics top-three medal counts: Norway (39), Germany (31), USA (23). [Source: Time magazine]
- Thursday's spectacular sunset, with interesting cloud patterns, at the end of a spring-like day in Goleta.
(6) The best things in life are free: Tonight's final post shows you how this belief of mine was reaffirmed when I attended a free community concert at the Isla Vista Elementary School, a 10-minute walk from my home. Singer/songwriter Gaby Moreno performed songs in Spanish and English, accompanied by electric and bass guitarists and a percussionist. With a warm, sultry voice and amazing stage presence, Gaby mesmerized both adults and fidgety kids, had them sing along, and persuaded them to dance (with limited success, except at the final rock-n-roll tune). I never cease to be amazed by exceptional talent I encounter in unexpected places.
[A blues tune] ["Quizas, Quizas, Quizas"] [A song she wrote about immigrating from Guatemala to US] [A Disney theme song] [Another song] ["Somewhere over the Rainbow"] [A rock-n-roll song]
[Publicly available music videos from Gaby Moreno: NPR Music's Tenth Anniversary Concert; NPR Music's Tiny Desk Concert; At the 2015 Hispanic Heritage Awards]

2018/03/08 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A very happy International Women's day to everyone Cartoon of the day: International Women's Day in Iran Not sure whether this image represents the setting of injustice or the dawn of freed! (1) In honor of March 8: [Left] A very happy International Women's day to everyone, male or female, who believes that women's rights are human rights and that full equality between men and women is the only path to a prosperous and peaceful world. [Center] Cartoon of the day: International Women's Day in Iran. (Source: Iranwire.com) [Right] Not sure whether this image represents the setting of injustice or the dawn of freedom!
(2) A kind of anthem for Women's Day and women's rights: "Break the Chain" (Lyrics by Tena Clark; Music by Tena Clark and Tim Heintz) [Facebook post with full lyrics]
(3) Message on a Chinese mom's iPhone, after her toddler entered the wrong passcode repeatedly: "iPhone is disabled, try again in 25,114,984 minutes." [That's 47 years, in case you're wondering!]
(4) Quote of the day: "Don't compete against Israelis or we'll break your legs." ~ Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps, addressing Iranian athletes going to international competitions
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Dire news on Women's Day: Iranian anti-hijab protester sentenced to 2 years in prison.
- Iranian women celebrating the 2018 International Women's Day aboard Tehran's metro.
- Malala Yousafzai talks with David Letterman about women's rights. [1-minute video]
- McDonald's turns its arches upside-down to celebrate women.
- Persian poem by Shokoufeh Taghi. [Facebook post]
- Picture worth 1000 words: The agony of Syrian kids. [Photo: Time magazine, issue of March 12, 2018]
- My talk of Monday 3/05 featured on the Web site of Razi University, Kermanshah.
- Persian music: Soheila Golestani sings "Ghesseh-ye Faramoosh" ("Forgotten Tale").
- Invitees to Trump's meeting on video-game violence did not include a single psychologist or scientist!
- Borowitz Report (humor): Trump says he has been treated very unfairly by people who wrote Constitution.
(6) Report on a technical talk: Professor Mahnoosh Alizadeh spoke this afternoon under the auspices of UCSB's Institute for Energy Efficiency. Her talk, "Electric Vehicles and a Modernized Grid: Opportunities and Challenges," covered a number of opportunities brought about by the increasing availability of real-time sensing and communication technologies. Alizadeh discussed pricing and vehicle routing schemes that allow power and transportation networks to cooperatively minimize the carbon footprint of electric vehicles by providing incentives to drivers to charge EV batteries at locations with abundant energy and minimal grid congestion and to corporations for coordinating autonomous EV fleets. Alizadeh's work is highly mathematical, but this afternoon, she focused on the big picture and consequences of her models, rather than their mathematical underpinnings. [Photos of the speaker and two of her slides]
[P.S.: What can be more empowering on this Internatiobal Women's Day than a young female faculty member presenting a prestigious technical talk on the energy-efficiency aspects of transportation systems?]
(7) World Music Series: UCSB's Son Jarocho Ensemble performed at the Music Bowl, yesterday. Each of the guitar-like instruments used is carved out of a single piece of solid wood; no connections, no glue. Many school children were present, prompting the Ensemble to perform "Los Ninos, La Ninas" in their honor. There was also teaching of tap-dancing to children and adults and a performance of "La Bamba". [One more song]

2018/03/06 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Tehran University's top graduates, 1968 (1) Tehran University's top graduates, 1968: Several classmates and I appear in this photo, showing first- and second-ranked graduates honored in various disciplines. The photo was sent to me by a friend in anticipation of our 50th anniversay reunion gathering in Armenia, during July 2018.
(2) Just wondering: Why would a person accepting an Oscar on behalf of a team only thank people who apply just to him/her and not to the entire group?
(3) Too much information: During discussion of blood types in a biology class, a young woman indicated that her blood type is AB, her dad's is O and her mom's is A. The teacher tells her that she must be confused, as this is impossible. Digging further, she discovers that her mom had had an affair with her dad's half-brother!
(4) Chelsea Clinton talks to Stephen Colbert: About the state of her friendship with Ivanka Trump, her new book, and many other topics, all in complete paragraphs, like her parents (as pointed out by Colbert).
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- The Vatican is overwhelmed with exorcism requests, so a private exorcism industry is filling the void.
- Officers were called to a daycare facility in Iowa, which gave the kids Gummy Bears laced with Sleep Aid.
- China's out-of-control space station will hit the Earth (likely in a northern US state) within weeks.
- Another Russian spy is poisoned in the UK: Defectors and Putin's critics face similar fates.
- Gary Cohn, Trump's economic advisor, resigns over disagreements on tariffs.
- Cartoon of the day: Trade war results in trading Trump for smart, female president! [Image]
- Pieces of a statue of King Ramses II found in southern Egypt's Temple of Kom Ombo.
- Team of international archaeologists uncovers thousands of ancient Mayan structures using aerial lidar.
- Flying with the birds: An up-close and personal view of majestic birds while flying along with them.
- Why would anyone give $130,000 to another person to keep quiet about something that never happened?
(6) Trump tweet about the Oscars' poor ratings: To the delight of conservatives, who hate it when women and non-Whites speak up. You know and we know that you are not "just kidding," Donald!
(7) The two Koreas seem to be making progress in their direct talks: Meanwhile, Trump takes credit for the thaw. He may be right, in the sense that distrust of him is bringing the archenemies together!
(8) Signing off with a few photos showing the audience at Razi University of Kermanshah during my remote Skype talk of Monday 3/05, entitled "Expanding the Understanding of Modern Technology among Students in Non-Science/Tech Majors." Thanks go to Dr. Amir Rajabzadeh for extending the invitation and Ms. Fereshteh Mousavi for handling the technical aspects of the talk, before and during the presentation.

2018/03/05 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Poster for today's remote Skype talk at Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran (1) Today's remote Skype talk at Iran's Razi University: The talk, entitled "Expanding the Understanding of Modern Technology among Students in Non-Science/Tech Majors," Monday, Esfand 14, 1396, 9:30 AM (Sunday, March 4, 2018, 10:00 PM PST), kicked off the technical seminar series for Razi University's newly established Faculty of Modern Sciences and Technologies.
Abstract: Literacy and numeracy, introduced long ago to define the skill sets of a competent workforce, are no longer adequate for the twenty-first century. We need what is described by the rarely-used term "techeracy," which is loosely equivalent to "grasp of technology." Just as numeracy is fundamentally different from literacy, there are key differences between the scopes and requirements of techeracy and numeracy. Achieving techeracy requires a further shift away from story-telling and word problems, used to instill literacy and numeracy, toward logical reasoning, as reflected in the activity of solving puzzles. In this talk, I draw upon my experience with teaching a freshman seminar to non-science/tech majors to convey how a diverse group of learners can be brought to understand the underpinnings of complex science and technology concepts. Once the basics are imparted in this manner, learners become empowered to pursue additional science and technology topics through suitably designed self-contained study modules.
Title slide (Persian, English); Slides (PowerPoint, PDF); ASEE 2018 conference paper (non-final draft).
(2) Wise quote of the day: "Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship." ~ Buddha [Note: This quote may or may not be from Buddha, but it's good advice regardless.]
(3) Idiotic quote of the day: "As long as young women work in stores, we have coed universities, and female professors lecture to male students, our society will never be cleansed." ~ Isfahan's Friday Imam [Meme]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Russia claims the US is meddling in its election: Oh no, our 'deep state' is upsetting Donald's good friend!
- Part of the story of why Jared Kushner can't get a full security clearance: Too many shady deals in his past.
- Hundreds of thousands remain without power days after severe windstorm on the US East Coast.
- Alibaba's machine-learning-based traffic management system to be rolled out in Malaysia.
- Virtual-currency theft: Japanese authorities raid the headquarters of Coincheck Inc. to investigate.
- Oh no! All hope is lost for Middle East peace, now that Jared Kushner seems to be leaving the White House!
(5) Status of DACA applicants in California: According to a directive from UC President's Office, despite lack of Congressional action, today's deadline for DACA applicants has no significance in California, given that the court has ruled in favor of University of California against the Trump administration, effectively reinstating DACA.
(6) Academy Awards, 2018: Acting categories led to predictable results. Frances McDormand and Gary Oldman (lead roles); Allison Janney and Sam Rockwell (supporting roles). Best film ("Shape of Water") and best director (Guillermo del Toro, for "Shape of Water") held the only surprises among the major award categories. [List]
[People of color winning Academy Awards in five major categories: Look at the last line of this chart!]
[Inclusion rider: In accepting the Oscar for best actress in a leading role, Frances McDormand mentioned that top actors should insist on an "inclusion rider" in their contracts, a statement that puzzled most people. The rider stipulates that in small and supporting roles, characters should include 50% gender parity, 40% people of color, 5% LGBTQ, and 20% disabled, that is, casting should be representative of the world we live in.]

2018/03/03 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Window washer, New York City, 1961 The first Disneyland ticket sold, 1955 Paris Library flooding, 1910 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Window washer, New York City, 1961. [Center] The very first Disneyland ticket sold, 1955. [Right] Result of Paris Library flooding, 1910.
(2) Iranian Christians have become what in Persian is called "the stick with two golden ends": Endangered at home and unwelcome in the US.
(3) Trump often says that if someone throws punches at him, he punches back ten times harder: So, where is the punch-back after Putin's announcement that he now has an "indestructible" hypersonic nuclear ICBM and showed a simulated video of it heading toward Florida? Is he afraid to punch back? Does he punch back only against weaker adversaries, such as Kim Jong Un?
(4) Econ 101: Not one leading economist believes that imposing tariffs is good for our economy as a whole. At best, tariffs benefit some parts of the economy, while penalizing many more segments, including consumers, who will pay directly or indirectly for the original tariffs and those imposed in retaliation.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Student at Central Michigan University fatally shoots both parents on campus before fleeing.
- US East Coast's massive nor'easter storm has caused 7 deaths so far. [>Pictorial report]
- Europeans are skating on ice-covered canals!
- NRA's Russian ties: Alexander Torshin cultivated ties with NRA leaders, in part to gain access to Trump.
- People who wish Trump had run to shooting scene unarmed vastly outnumber those who believe he would.
- At $2358/sf, this $2M Sunnyvale home set a record: The buyer, a young Silicon Valley techie, paid all cash!
- Terah Lyons: A young leader in artificial intelligence, dubbed AI's superhero.
- A vocal-only nostalgic Persian song: "Dush Dush Dush".
- Meme of the day: Reality beats the weirdest made-up satire. [Image]
- First, came questions about Melania's parents' chain migration. Now, there's the puzzle of her "Einstein Visa."
(6) Humor: Stephen Colbert goes to Capitol Hill to have a redacted version of his classified memo released and to learn about ongoing Russia investigations. Committee members play along!
(7) Account of world's largest family tree published in the journal Science: Project leader Yaniv Erlich (a Columbia University computer scientist) and colleagues downloaded 86 million profiles from a collaborative genealogy website and used mathematical analysis to organize the data. The resulting vast family tree includes around 13 million people and spans 11 generations on average.

2018/03/01 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Persian calligraphy with ballpoint pen, by Ali Farahani (1) Persian calligraphy with ballpoint pen, by Ali Farahani.
(2) Evacuation orders: Some 30,000 residents of Montecito and surrounding areas are warned to evacuate ahead of a storm that is about to arrive in the Santa Barbara area. The Red Cross has set up an evacuation center at the Earl Warren Showgrounds. Pre-emptive closure of US 101 is a possibility.
(3) Idiotic quote of the day: "How many Jews were put in the ovens because they were unarmed?" ~ Donald Young, Republican Congressman from Alaska and NRA Board Member
(4) Astrophysics news: A ground-based radio antenna in western Australia has detected evidence of the earliest-known stars that illuminated an infant universe just 180M years after the Big Bang.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Putin taunts the US with "You will listen to Russia now!" as he deploys a hypersonic ICBM capability.
- Former prison driver, about to start working for Uber, may have sexually assaulted 100+ female inmates.
- Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump rumored to be on their way out of the White House.
- After meetings held at the White House, Jared Kushner's family business received $500 million in loans.
- US Forest Service, with its relatively few female employees, under scrutiny for sexual misconduct culture.
- Iranian Music: Azeri song about Nowruz, from a year ago. [Video]
- Meryl Streep's reaction when she loses at the Oscars: Likely won't happen this year! [GIF images]
- Sony World Photography Awards: This photo is on the shortlist of 25 entries.
- Cartoon of the day: It's a bird, it's a plane, it's BS-man! [Image]
- Borowitz Report (humor): Sarah Huckabee Sanders organizing 'Million Liars March' to support Hope Hicks.
(6) The REAL ID Act: Beginning on October 1, 2020, the feds will require your driver's license or identification card to be REAL-ID-compliant if you wish to use it for boarding an airplane or entering military bases and most federal facilities.
(7) Deadly winter storm, dubbed "weather bomb," hits the eastern US: Hope everyone stays safe! Here in Santa Barbara, we are bracing for possible flash-floods from heavy rains in recent burn areas.
(8) Jared Kushner, the whiz kid who was going to fix everything, fades into irrelevance: He will likely go back to the private sector, where he will try to fix his failing family business.
(9) A final thought: Did you notice that February 29 flew by without any new scandals from the White House?

2018/02/28 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for the book 'Trump Revealed' (1) Book review: Kranish, Michael and Marc Fisher, Trump Revealed: An American Journey of Ambition, Ego, Money, and Power, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Campbell Scott and Marc Fisher, Simon and Schuster Audio, 2016. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
In late March 2016, with both parties' nominations still unresolved, a group of Washington Post reporters embarked on a 3-month project to research the major candidates' backgrounds, for this book and other publications, including some 30 articles.
I previously reviewed The Making of Donald Trump, by David Cay Johnson (unabridged audiobook, Blackstone Audio, 2016), which I consider much less comprehensive, not as thoroughly researched, and not as balanced as the book by Kranish and Fisher. Here is my 3-star review of the former book on [GoodReads]
Seasoned journalists Kranish and Fisher cover every aspect of Donald Trump's life, including his privileged upbringing, relationship with power-broker Roy Cohen, aggressive and often risky bets, dealings with organized crime, lack of personal friends (he has only business contacts), and penchant for winning at all cost. For Trump, politics is just another way of being in the news and grabbing headlines. He has no ideology, changing political affiliation seven times, as he jockeyed for a position from which to satisfy his presidential ambitions.
Even this most-balanced book about Trump comes across as negative. It isn't the authors' fault: the man is a large collection of contradictions and questionable behavior to get ahead, crushing rivals and shortchanging those who helped him rise. His record since becoming US President confirms many of the negative traits enumerated in this and other books about him. Yet, to about one-third of Americans who revere Trump, no revelation about him seems to be considered disqualifying, as they brush off each negative story as part of the overarching conspiracy against him.
If you read only one book about Trump, make it this one, as it presents a complete and journalistically sound picture of him up to 2016. I am looking forward to the conclusion of the Russia probe to learn the rest of the story about Trump's rise to power.
(2) Lehigh University faculty vote to revoke Trump's honorary degree: "By staying silent we are bystanders; we normalize hate speech, condone discrimination and bullying."
(3) Jumping ship: Long-time Trump aide Hope Hicks quits her White House position, supplying one of her white lies as explanation.
(4) Punching bag punches back: Attorney General Jeff Sessions has tolerated many Trump insults in the past but in the case of the latest insult, he struck back by daring Trump to fire him.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Cool temps in SoCal and a storm arriving tonight: Evacuation warning issued for recent burn areas.
- Journalist slain in Slovakia, along with his girlfriend, was investigating the government's Mafia links.
- Trump hasn't ordered NSA to disrupt Russian hacking. [Of course! Why would he hurt his re-election odds?]
- Kushner stays, despite loss of access to top-secret material, but the Kelly-vs-Trumps war is intensifying.
- Man posing as ride-sharing driver arrested and charged with raping seven Los-Angeles-area women.
- Impish quote of the day: "I use social media like a grown-up." ~ Michelle Obama
(6) UCSB's Gamelan Ensemble performed in today's Music Bowl noon concert, as part of the World Music Series. I will not post any videos, given that I have shared this type of Indonesian music fairly recently.

2018/02/27 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Coca Cola ad made by spreading grain for pigeons in St. Mark's Square, Venice, 1960s Announcement of the 'Harry Potter' cast in 2000 Black cat auditions, Hollywood, 1961 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Coca Cola ad made by spreading grain in St. Mark's Square, Venice, 1960s. [Center] Announcement of the "Harry Potter" cast in 2000. [Right] Black cat auditions, Hollywood, 1961.
(2) Monica Lewinsky, 20 years after her humiliation by the Clintons, Ken Starr, and the media: Vanity Fair report, with Persian commentary by Farnaz Seifi.
(3) Quote of the day: "I cannot support a person who routinely breaks the third, seventh, ninth, and tenth Commandments." ~ Jim Sathe of Idaho Fall, in his letter to the editor of Post Register
(4) Political commentary: Trump seems to have evolved from "I am the president and everyone should do as I say" to "Just let me be the president, and I'll do whatever you say."
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Threats and vandalism against Jews in the US approached record levels in 2017, jumping 57% over 2016.
- Talk of gun-safety laws fizzles in the US Congress two weeks after the Florida school tragedy.
- John Kelly strips Jared Kushner of his temporary top-secret security clearance.
- Dolly Parton celebrates the donation of 100-millionth book by her literacy program, "Imagination Library."
- Humor: POTUS awards himself a Medal of Honor for a hypothetical act of courage. [Image]
- Humor: Librarians are campaigning for the use of silencers if it is decided that teachers should be armed!
- UCSB Middle East Ensemble's concert on March 10 will feature a Persian segment in celebration of Nowruz.
- A blind Iranian stone-worker continues to create precision objects at age 80. [3-minute video, in Persian]
(6) Analog data and computing make a comeback: For those who might be interested, here is the 7th of 8 weekly homework assignments for my graduate-level UCSB course on parallel processing, which for winter 2018, is focused on big-data hardware challenges:
For several decades now, the world has moved continuously to replace analog data with digital data, given the latter's robustness and affinity with digital computing. We read in the reference for HW4 that the share of digital data increased from near-zero to more than 90% in the period 1986-2007. There are now hints in the literature that in some cases, use of analog data and analog computing may be beneficial, as we grapple with big data and related applications. Find two on-line sources which discuss the advantages of analog data/computation or advocate greater attention to analog in the age of big data, and present a capsule summary of your sources in the form of a single PowerPoint slide. Briefly discuss how analog computing will interface with parallel processing in a second slide. Put your two slides on a single page of a PDF document.
[Follow the 1-6-6 rule in each PowerPoint slide: A slide should contain one main idea, 6 or fewer bullet points, and 6 or fewer words per bullet point (but don't take these numbers too literally; they are just guidelines). Avoiding bullet points is even better. Diagrams are always preferable. The slide title should read like a headline about the main idea. For example: "Revenue to Rise 25% for 2018" instead of "Revenue Projection for 2018"]
(7) Final thought for the day: "Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice, and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do." ~ Soccer superstar Pele

2018/02/26 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Neal Branscomb's 'Sabotage' (1) Book review: Bascomb, Neal, Sabotage: The Mission to Destroy Hitler's Atomic Bomb, unabridged audiobook on 5 CDs, read by Jason Culp, Scholastic, 2016.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This book covers what has been described as the greatest act of sabotage during World War II. After Germans invaded Norway in a stealth night-time operation, they instituted martial rule, and at Vermonk, a chemical plant high above a towering gorge, they set out to produce heavy water for their nuclear-bomb program. The allies learned about the German plan and agreed that the plant must be destroyed, but a British operation failed to stop the dangerous development.
The mission to sabotage the nuclear-bomb fortress then fell to a group of young Norwegian commandos, equipped with skis, explosives, and not much else. The commandos waited for months in the snowy wilderness, enduring bone-chilling temperatures, getting by with meager rations, eluding Nazi patrols, and looking for an opportunity to strike. The commandos' first mission did not set back the Germans as much as they had hoped, so they had to finish the job with a second mission. The rest, as they say, is history, though not a particularly well-known part of it.
Several years ago, Paramount Pictures acquired the rights to make this book into a movie, but I couldn't find the current state of the film project on-line.
(2) Trump has pledged to improve background checks for gun buyers. Let's hope he does better here than for White House staff background checks!
(3) War photographer Max Desfor dead at 104: He won a Pulitzer Prize for this 1950 photo, which shows hundreds of Korean-War refugees crawling across a damaged bridge.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Ten days after the school mass-shooting in Florida, a gun show in Tampa attracts record attendance.
- SCOTUS refuses to hear request to overturn lower-court ruling that DHS continue to accept DACA apps.
- Trump wants to name his personal pilot as head of FAA. [And his chauffeur as Transportation Secretary?]
- Trumpian diplomacy: Handbag designer with interim security clearance talks N.Korea sanctions with S.Korea!
- Kabob and hummus identified as omnipotent foods for the prevention of mental disorders! [Meme]
- Subway construction in Greece reveals ancient Aphrodite statue, stunning mosaics, and other treasures.
- Stone tools unearthed in India resemble those in Africa, challenging theories on ancient human migration.
- Calligraphic variations on "eshgh," the Persian word for love. [Images]
- Borowitz Report (humor): "Trump orders parade to celebrate his hypothetical act of heroism in Florida school."
(5) Time magazine's entire March 5, 2018, issue is devoted to "The Opioid Diaries," a 60-page in-depth report on the current state of the addiction crisis in the US. Black-and-white photographs scattered throughout the report accentuate the darkness that prevails over the lives of addicts.

2018/02/25 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Newly engaged John Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier, 1953 Los Angeles traffic, 1950 Woman reading in Paris, 1952 (1) History in pictures, the early 1950s: [Left] Newly engaged John Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier, 1953. [Center] Los Angeles traffic, 1950. [Right] Woman reading in Paris, 1952.
(2) The new tax law has dozens of bugs: Republicans want to fix the bugs as early as next month, but Democrats are in no mood to help, given that they were totally shut out from the process of writing the bill.
(3) An epic intelligence failure: The Florida school mass-shooter could and should have been stopped. He did not live off the grid. Far from it, his activities and threats were splattered all over the social media and official police records.
(4) Printable Oscars ballot: You can mark your choices, as you watch the 90th edition of the Academy Awards Ceremony on ABC (hosted by Jimmy Kimmel), on Sunday March 4, 2018, beginning at 5:00 PM PST.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Heavily redacted Democratic Intelligence Committee memo finally released: Here is the full text.
- Irony: Republicans supported lavishly by the NRA accuse activist youth of being paid to oppose guns!
- Mexico's president postpones his White House visit after receiving a testy call from Trump.
- Banners in Los Angeles announce the arrival of Nowruz and Farhang Foundation's celebration on March 11.
- Boycott of NRA continues to spread: United and Delta are the latest to join.
- Beijing to NYC in 2 hours: Chinese scientists propose a plane that would fly at 5 times the speed of sound.
- Mahatma Gandhi: "Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."
- US men's gold medal in curling has renewed fascination with scientific theories behind the Olympics sport.
- Four interesting images and memes from around the Internet.
- Nurikabe: An interesting puzzle, reminiscent of Minesweeper. [Puzzle and instructions in this image]
(6) Michelle Obama's memoir, Becoming, to be published by Crown in late 2018. The former First Lady will read the audiobook version. International publishers will release the book in a multitude of other languages.
(7) Ziba Shirazi's concert at Santa Monica's Morgan Wixson Theater: Entitled "Songs of My Life," tonight's Persian/English biographical program included songs the Iranian songstress, poet, and feminist grew up with. Danny & Farid (guitars and some vocals) and a percussionist accompanied Ziba on this magical night. Ziba alternated between telling stories of her growing up in Tehran's Davoudieh neighborhood and singing songs that she enjoyed and learned to sing during her childhood and youth. The musical part was a tour-de-force of Iranian pop music that resonated with the sold-out crowd. Ziba described her family (including 4 siblings), schooling, marriage, motherhood, and divorce, leading up to 1985, the year she immigrated to the United States; she promised a second installement of her musical bio covering the last 3+ decades. Throughout the concert, images of artists whose songs she sang were projected on the screen, including photos from when they performed the songs, newer photos showing the older artists, and factual tidbits about them. Don't miss this highly enjoyable concert if it comes your way! [Photos]

2018/02/23 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Teacher holding a gun in front of a chalkboard (1) Teachers with guns: So, you want underpaid, under-appreciated, stressed, and resource-deprived teachers to also act as security guards? Are you aware that as in any other profession, there are sickos among teachers too? What about janitorial staff at schools? Should they be armed? College professors? Ushers at movie theaters and concert venues? This Trump proposal is NRA's dream come true: Turning a tragedy into a major uptick in gun/ammo sales, instead of restrictions on gun ownership!
(2) Farhang Foundation's March 11, 2018, Nowruz celebration at UCLA: In addition to the ticketed 6:00 PM Royce Hall concert by Iranian folk singer Sima Bina, there are lots of free performances and activities (including appearances by Mamak Khadem and LA Daf Ensemble), from noon to 5:00 PM at UCLA's Dickson Court.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Mueller files 32 new charges against Manafort and Gates; Gates pleads guilty to two of the charges in a deal.
- McMaster will be leaving the White House soon. Of Kelly and Kushner, one will likely depart as well.
- US State Department waters down or removes language on women's rights from its human rights report.
- Hubble Space Telescope data indicates a faster-than-expected rate of expansion for the universe.
- Canadian women's ice-hockey team disappointed to lose the Olympics gold medal to the US.
- After an 8-day hiding period, the NRA chief comes out swinging with blanket rejection of any new gun laws.
- Sign banning guns outside CPAC, where NRA's head was speaking: Don't they have good guys with guns?
- On March 18, Russians will go to the polls to elect their president. Can you guess who will be elected?
- Brigham Young University's male-only panel discusses women in math!
- Long-awaited Amtrak commuter service will begin April 2 between Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties.
- Quote of the day: "The absurd does not liberate, it binds." ~ Albert Camus
- Facebook's reminder from February 23, 2016: Jasmine vines on my carport trellis 2 years ago, and today.
(4) Final thought for the day: The real hoax is the theory that if the US government decides to take away your rights, you and your gun-owning buddies can stop it!

2018/02/21 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Concentric disks Flags of the world Abstract leaves (1) Colorful designs: [Left] Concentric disks. [Center] Flags of the world. [Right] Abstract leaves.
(2) White Houses: A novel by Amy Bloom, based on the now well-known 1930s secret love affair between Eleanor Roosevelt and journalist Lorena Hickok, is amassing critical acclaim.
(3) Hollywood recognizes the box-office draw of action heroines: Co-stars of the sci-fi thriller "Annihilation" began as artistic colleagues and ended up as political colleagues. From left in this photo, Tessa Thompson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Natalie Portman, and Gina Rodriguez. [Photo credit: Time magazine]
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Trumpian logic: The Russia thing is a hoax! Sessions should investigate Obama for not confronting Russia.
- Uber CEO: Self-flying taxis will be launched through Uber Elevate in the next five to 10 years.
- An icon, whose time had passed, passes: Evangelist Billy Graham dead at 99.
- George/Amal Clooney and Oprah Winfrey each donate $500K to students organizing the "March for our Life."
- Daylight saving time may end or become permanent: Europe and the US are considering legislation about it.
- In the aftermath of Thomas Fire, Montecito residents will face more evacuations in the next few years.
- Five killed in violent clashes between protesting Gonabadi dervishes and Iran's police forces.
- Khamenei apologizes for "injustices" to protesting masses he had previously labeled "troublemakers."
- Iranian parliament member: People should be happy about cutting off hands as punishment. [Cartoon]
(5) Noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: The Very Lonesome Boys performed bluegrass/country music today, as part of the World Music Series. The band began with a disclaimer about some of their lyrics from early/rural American music being "borderline offensive" and joked that they carry signed statements to this effect for anyone who's interested! One band member indicated that he had done one of these noon concerts at UCSB 55 years ago (with a different band)! Here are samples of the music the band performed today.
["Everybody Does it in Hawaii"]   [A swing-style blues tune]   [A Texan love song]
[A banjo tune]   [An old-time fiddle tune]
(6) Cudamani, Gamelan and Dance of Bali: Tonight, I attended an enjoyable concert at UCSB's Campbell Hall, featuring an ensemble of 20+ musicians and dancers from Indonesia. Video recording was disallowed, so, as a sample, I post a 10-minute YouTube video here. In her intro, the group's announcer indicated that they were lucky to get all the required visas in time for their US visit.
(7) Final thought for the day: Knock these Florida teens as much as you want, but until they got involved, politicians paid only lip service to school safety.

2018/02/19 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Gang of girls, Estonia, 1930s A pickup truck flees the largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century, Philippines, 1991 Woman with a gas-resistant pram, London, 1938 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Gang of girls, Estonia, 1930s. [Center] A pickup truck flees the largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century, Philippines, 1991. [Right] Woman with a gas-resistant pram, London, 1938.
(2) Today is US President's Day: Too bad we don't have a sitting President whom we can celebrate. The one now acting as our president could not even stay presidential over the President's Day weekend! So, here's to all great men who have made us proud as Presidents and even those who tried nobly, but failed to do right.
(3) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Meme of the day: There are more President's-Day clearance items than the ones shown in this photo!
- More than 100 killed in Syrian government's assault on Damascus suburb. [Update: 200+ killed]
- One month left to Nowruz (Norooz): Spring equinox and Persian New Year 1397. [Image, with detaied info]
- Persian music: Bahar Choir performs "Shaadi" ("Joy"), featuring a poem by Rumi.
- Some Muslim women are sharing stories of sexual abuse at Hajj and other religious venues. [#MosqueMeToo]
- Women in Tech: #HereWeAre https://twitter.com/i/events/950190256216621057?lang=en
- If it's too early to talk about the school shooting in Florida, how about discussing shootings from years ago?
- For someone who considers himself a ladies' man, Trump sure paid a lot of money for sex!
- A teacher's notes to his/her students put up in the classroom. [Photo]
- Refrigerated parking garage in Slovenia, where the country's Olympic teams trained. [Photo]
(4) Diplomatic child-play: In retaliation for DC authorities renaming the street in front of the Russian embassy after Boris Nemtsov, a critic of Putin who was assassinated, Russia has renamed the street in front of the US embassy "North American Dead End"!
(5) Final thought for the day: Some Republicans are now saying that teenagers don't have opinions of their own and they have been paid to speak up against guns! A Texas school district will reportedly suspend students who walk out to demand sensible gun laws. It is now responsible kids vs. irresponsible adults!

2018/02/18 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Kids leaving school bus in combat gear 'New York Post' front page School chair, with gun-shaped desk (1) Three images to impress upon you the dire situation with regard to gun violence in US schools.
(2) Wishing everyone a great day in celebrating love in all its shapes and forms; yes, one more time, a few days after Valentine's Day! Happy Sepandarmazgan, the ancient Iranian festival of love!
Some history: Sepandarmazgan is the ancient Iranian day of love during which both romantic love and love of nature are celebrated; a sort of combination Valentine's and Earth Day! This annual celebration is dedicated to Spanta Armaiti, the feminine angelic spirit of the Earth. It was originally held on the 5th day of Esfand in celebration of mothers/wives, including Mother Earth. The festival's currently popular date of Bahman 29 (coinciding with February 18 this year) emerged after multiple reorganizations of the Persian calendar, beginning with the work of the Persian philosopher/poet Omar Khayyam. [Wikipedia]
(3) Remembering my father 26 years after his passing: I had written this bilingual text five years ago, when our family commemorated the 21st anniversary of his passing. Then, as today, the family gathering to mark the occasion coincided with Sepandarmazgan (see the previous blog entry). Some call it the ancient version of modern Valentine's Day, but not everyone agrees. What better day to declare our love for a great man!
(4) A verse celebrating love, by the great Iranian poet Sa'di: If I break your love's bonds, where can I flee / For freedom away from you is captivity and life without you, prison [Original Persian version]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Plane with 66 passengers, flying from Tehran to Yasuj, has disappeared; wreckage has not been found.
- The Florida school mass-shooting brings about the #MeNext? movement on social media.
- How to mobilize Republicans against children dying in our schools: Change the word "school" to "uterus"!
- Meme of the day [Image]: Also, other countries have mentally ill people, but not as many mass shootings.
- Wife reunited with husband, imprisoned in Iran for 10 years due to refusing to renounce his Baha'i faith.
- How to contribute to politicians who think now isn't the time to discuss gun violence. [Check image]
- Answer to the argument that gun laws limit only law-abiding citizens, because criminals don't obey laws.
- Quote: "A healthy attitude is contagious, but don't wait to catch it from others. Be a carrier." ~ Tom Stoppard
- Cartoon of the day: US budget allocation process. [Image]
- Memories from an early department store in Tehran, which opened in 1957. [2-minute video]
(6) Trump thinks the world revolves around him: He can't even discuss the Florida school mass shooting, without making it about his own fat behind! [Trump tweet and a response]
(7) Bill Gates was interviewed by Fareed Zakaria this morning: One of the first things he offered was an explanation of why we feel so distraught at the current state of the world. His optimistic explanation, which I like very much, is that part of our anxiety comes from our rising expectations about fairness and justice, not necessarily because things are getting worse. For example, once we decide that gay people deserve to be treated like all human beings, bias and discrimination against them eats at our soul.
(8) [Signing off with some political humor] Donald Trump: "So many signs that the Florida shooter was mentally disturbed." Bill Maher: "Yes, we saw; he was wearing a MAGA hat!"

2018/02/17 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Group photo 1 from mid-1967, showing many members of the class of 1968, Fanni College's Electromechanical Division, University of Tehran Group photo 2 from mid-1967, showing many members of the class of 1968, Fanni College's Electromechanical Division, University of Tehran (1) A couple of group photos from mid-1967, showing many members of the graduating class of 1968 (1347 in Iranian calendar), Fanni College's Electromechanical Division, University of Tehran. The group is planning a 50th anniversary gathering in June or July 2018, likely in Turkey or Armenia.
(2) Thoughts and prayers are cheap: Trump blames mental illness, and even classmates who did not report the gunman's erratic behavior, but last February, he revoked a law that restricted gun purchases by the mentally ill.
(3) Correction: After the Florida school mass-shooting, I posted a widely circulated claim on social media that it had been the 18th school shooting this year. Everytown, an anti-gun-violence organization which originated the claim, explains on its website that it defines a school shooting as "any time a firearm discharges a live round inside a school building or on a school campus or grounds." As such, the number included several incidents where no student or staff life was in danger.
(4) The "Russia hoax" gets very real: Sixteen Russian nationals/entities indicted for meddling in the US election. Separately, senior figure in the Trump campaign Rick Gates is said to be ready to cooperate fully with Bob Mueller's investigation.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- An earthquake of magnitude 7.2 jolted southern Mexico yesterday. It also shook Mexico City.
- Santa Barbara County man helped Russians acquire fake American identities for the 2016 election meddling.
- Russian agents paid American women to attend Trump rallies as Hillary Clinton dressed in prison uniform.
- Dreamers' fates in limbo, as US Senate rejects all four immigration proposals.
- Kelly may have been hinting at Kushner's ouster when he vowed to reform WH's security clearance process.
- Melania hiding in the aftermath of new affair allegations: She reportedly likes books and "her private space."
- Marco Rubio, NRA apologist, is toast in the aftermath of the Florida school mass-shooting. [Meme]
- Cartoon of the day: A new category of toys, featuring hundreds of political "inaction figures." [Image]
(6) Pianist Saman Ehteshami plays Persian music: "Soltaan va Shabaan" ("The King and the Shepherd"); "Nasim" ("The Breeze"); "Ageh Yeh Rooz" ("If Someday"); and here's his playlist on YouTube.

2018/02/16 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Volvo's ad for its invention, the 3-point seat belt, 1959 Car Show, 1950s Coupe de Ville, Los Angeles, 1964 (1) Car-related historical photos from the 1950s and 1960s: [Left] Volvo's ad for its invention, the 3-point seat belt, 1959 (Volvo licensed the invention to other car manufacturers free of charge). [Center] Car Show, 1950s. [Right] Coupe de Ville, Los Angeles, 1964.
(2) Happy Chinese New Year: All the best to those celebrating the new year, as we begin the year of the dog!
(3) This week's Santa Barbara Independent shines a light on the culture of sexual assault in the student community of Isla Vista, adjacent to the UCSB campus. Cover image]
(4) The Borowitz Report (humor): "Study: Americans Safe from Gun Violence Except in Schools, Malls, Airports, Movie Theatres, Workplaces, Streets, Own Homes" [Source: The New Yorker]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- How America has failed miserably in protecting its children. Our record is a disaster! Sad.
- The man who cut taxes for corporations and the super-rich has proposed a gas tax hike to pay for his plans!
- Reince Priebus is the latest WH departee to tell horror stories about the dysfunctional administration.
- Russian pro-gun bots flock to Twitter in the aftermath of the Florida school mass shooting.
- FCC reviewing SpaceX's application to offer satellite Internet service in the United States.
- US Department of Energy creates new office for cyber, energy security.
- Removal of a single enzyme shown to reverse Alzheimer's disease in mice, benefiting also the offspring.
- Some genes stay active even after we die, a finding that opens up new possibilities for forensic science.
(6) Homework assignment: The following is the 5th of 8 weekly assignments for my graduate-level course on parallel processing, ECE 254B, at UCSB. Some of you might find it interesting to try it on a voluntary (ungraded) basis! Consider the "5 Vs" of big data (1. Volume; 2. Variety; 3. Velocity; 4. Veracity; 5. Value; see my blog post of 2018/01/29 for details). Establish a one-to-one mapping between these "5 Vs" and the following five American-English idioms involving straw and hay. Explain your choice of association briefly in each case. Don't worry that the connection isn't direct or very relevant in every case. Just try to make the best possible assignment of a different "V" attribute to each idiom.
a. Clutching at straws    b. Finding a needle in a haystack    c. Making bricks without straw
d. Straw that broke the camel's back    e. Turning straw into gold
(7) Phone case helps with monitoring blood sugar: UCSD engineers have created a smartphone case, along with an app, for blood glucose monitoring on the go. The device consists of a slim 3D-printed case with a permanent, reusable sensor in the corner and small, single-use pellets that attach to the sensor with a magnet.

2018/02/15 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Audrey Hepburn, with pet deer Pippen, 1958 Marilyn Monroe, 1950s Elizabeth Taylor with a bird sitting on her head, 1948 (1) Iconic Hollywood beauties with trademark smiles, as young women: [Left] Audrey Hepburn, with pet deer Pippen, 1958. [Center] Marilyn Monroe, 1950s. [Right] Elizabeth Taylor with a bird sitting on her head, 1948.
(2) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Baltimore Sun: How serving a belligerent POTUS turns ordinary, family-loving Americans into monsters.
- Florida school-shooting survivor challenges us to act like "adults" and enact gun-safety measures.
- Congresswoman Katherine Clark's powerful message of apology to future victims of gun violence.
- Mass shootings (1966-2012) vs. the number of guns: Do you see any correlation? [Chart]
- "New theory suggests gunman ... was assisted by 51 Senators and 298 Representatives." ~ Sarah Perry
- Black-Sea storm washes up Roman ruins on Turkish beach.
- Threat of in-prison "suicide": A new strategy of Iran's Islamic rulers for silencing activists.
- Cartoon of the day: Not a very happy birthday for Iran's Islamic Revolution. [Image credit: Iranwire.com]
(3) An Architect's Point of View on Emerging Technologies and the Future of Digital Computing: This was the title of today's talk by George Michelogiannakis (Research Scientist, LBNL), who wondered aloud about what awaits us once we achieve exascale computing power in the 2021-2023 time frame. As one slide shows, all performance indicators will flatten out by then, bringing about a need for greater innovation at all levels, from devices, through assemblies, to architecture. Tools at our disposal include emerging transistor technologies, new types of memory, 3D integration, photonics, innovative on/off-chip networks, and specialization.
(4) Laurence Olivier's "Hamlet" at UCSB's Pollock Theater: The screening, part of the "Shakepeare on Film" series, was followed by a discussion with Professor Mark Rose (right, in one of these phosos). What a feast for the eyes and ears! [Video 1] [Video 2: Play within the play]
(5) My extended beach walk [Photos]: On Wednesday, low tide allowed me to take the beach path home from work. I found the walk so invigorating that I took a detour and extended the walk from the normal 2.5 miles to 5.0 miles. Near the end of the walk, I took a tumble, when I tripped over some roots sticking out of the ground. All is fine, though; just a few scratches! I also shot a 2-minute video of the ocean, with coastal rocks, which surfers have to negotiate when they surf at high tide, exposed.

2018/02/14 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Red and white hearts for Valentine's Day Happy Valentine's Day to my three children Colorful hearts for Valentine's Day (1) Wishing everyone a great day in celebrating love in all its forms and shapes. Happy Valentine's Day!
(2) Millimeter-scale robots: Tiny robots that jackhammer their way through the body have already been tested on lambs and goats, guided by magnetic fields from outside. "Fantastic voyages" of biomedical discovery in the human body aren't far away.
(3) Not Your Father's Analog Computer: This is the title of an article in IEEE Spectrum (issue of February 2018) that discusses how analog devices, with their simplicity and energy efficiency, are making a comeback, particularly in applications involving machine learning and biomimetic circuits, where high accuracy, the forte of digital circuits, is not required.
(4) Programming with a slide-rule: This is one of the lesser-known details in the history of digital computing. A circular slide-rule allowed Univac II programmers to figure out where on the surface of a continuously rotating drum memory to place the next instruction, so that it would be available for fetching and execution immediately after the current instruction has run to completion (by then, the drum has rotated a bit).
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Another school shooting, with 17+ dead: Yes, send thoughts and prayers, and forget the tragedy tomorrow!
- Iran's downed drone over Israel was based on Lockheed Martin RQ-170, which crashed in Iran in 2011.
- Driving was a start. Now, Saudi women need jobs: 107,000 women applied for 140 jobs open to them.
- Iranian-Canadian environmental activist dies in prison following his arrest in Iran.
- Autonomous delivery vans will hit the streets much sooner than self-driving cars.
- Face recognition offerd greater accuracy for white men, a result of biased data sets driving the software.
- Deaf musician performs a song on "America's Got Talent." Inspiring!
- Bravo Canada, for replacing "all thy sons" in the lyrics of its national anthem with gender-neutral verbiage!
- The top-10 megastructures of Dubai: Unprecedented ambition and scale marks these 10 building projects.
- Taipei, Taiwan, has become home to fascinating architectural styles, blending nature, art, and high-tech.
(6) Female graduates of Iran's Sharif University of Technology rule: I have encountered quite a few of them during job interviews and faculty recruitment seminars. They are as bright as they come and, just like their male counterparts, are highly sought after within graduate studies programs, as faculty candidates, and in the high-tech industry. I don't have access to any hard data, but my guess is that SUT's female graduates are at least twice as likely to leave Iran and seek professional opportunities elsewhere. And the reason isn't difficult to understand. While these women are celebrated worldwide, in Iran, they have to mind their hijabs, refrain from laughing in public, and curtail their aspirations of landing plum jobs in academia or in government. Those who suppress these women's talents are doing their homeland a great disservice!

2018/02/13 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: Iranian democracy The lone tall palm tree I see, as I walk home from work Cartoon: Fighting the women activists in Iran (1) Three interesting images: [Left] Iranian democracy. [Center] The lone tall palm tree I see, as I walk home from work: Normally, trees grow taller than usual when they seek the sun over surrounding plants. Why this one grew so tall is unclear. [Right] Fighting the women activists in Iran. (Image credit: Iranwire.com)
(2) The Wonder of Women (WOW) Summit at UCLA: Lisa Kudrow will emcee this all-day event on Wednesday, May 2, 2018. Featured speakers include Candice Bergen, Tipper Gore, and Diane English. There is no on-line source for additional information yet, but details will follow, according to an e-mail announcement.
(3) Transmission lines are increasingly going underground: Denmark and Germany have mandates to avoid overhead high-voltage lines. Puerto Rico is burying power lines in areas that tend to get the strongest gusts. However, underground routing of high-voltage AC lines is tricky because of the greater heat they produce.
(4) A unique UCSB Arts & Lectures program I am looking forward to: The Huayin Shadow Puppet Band, with Wu Man, the world's premier master of the pipa (Campbell Hall, Thursday March 8, 2018, 8:00 PM).
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- The pattern continues: Deficits fall under Democratic administrations and rise under Republicans. [Tweet]
- White House spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders is emulating Sean Spicer in attacking the press.
- The WH was repeatedly briefed on FBI's background check of Rob Porter and domestic abuse allegations.
- UCSB Professor Elizabeth Belding named one of ten stars in computer networking and communications.
- Chloe Kim, America's new Olympics sweetheart, is the daughter of Korean immigrants.
- New York Times: Universities to bring "medicine-like morality" to computer science. Me: Oh no!
(6) Quote of the day: "It's disappointing that such an iconic women's brand @Guess is still empowering Paul Marciano as their creative director #metoo." ~ Kate Upton, on rampant sexual misconduct in the fashion world
(7) A welcome change to remove Facebook News Feed pollution: According to CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook will revise its News Feed algorithm over the next few months to promote "meaningful social interactions" via shifting away from public content by companies and media and toward posts by family and friends.
(8) My afternoon stroll: I often post photos/videos of Santa Barbara's gorgeous sunny days, as I go on my daily walks. Today, after a long stretch of spring-like days, we experienced winter, which, for SoCal, means temps in the 50s! The nature is no less beautiful on cloudy days, though. [18 photos] [2-minute video]

2018/02/12 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
What future archaeologists might find in Iran (1) Political statement: What future archaeologists might find in Iran. [Image credit: Iranwire.com]
(2) Sunday, February 11, 2018 (Bahman 22, 1396, in the Iranian calendar) was the 39th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution taking hold in Iran. Nearly four decades of despotism, chaos, ineptitude, deception, and corruption. Will we see the reign of terror celebrate its 40th anniversary?
(3) A Honda sports-car model with see-through wheels allows a peek at the brake mechanism and its inner workings. Fascinating! [Photographed on 2/09 at SB Honda]
(4) Netherlands first, second, and third: Jokingly apologizing to Trump for contradicting his "America First" slogan, the country swept the medals (a first in Olympics history) in women's 3000-meter speed skating.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Russian passenger plane crashes near Moscow, killing all 71 on board: Crash cause is still unknown.
- A Pennsylvania forty-something woman wrote letters to Trump six times a week, for an entire year.
- The Trump family gives publishing another try with a magazine called (what else?) "Trump."
- Bannon: Women will punish Trump in future elections, given his cavalier dismissal of abuse allegations.
- Melania Trump follows only 5 Twitter accounts: POTUS, Donald, Mike Pence, Karen Pence, Barack Obama.
- Cartoon of the day: The American version of Tiananmen Square. [Image]
- On my way to class, as we begin winter quarter's 5th week: Do you see any winter in these photos?
Cover image of the audiobook 'The Unbearable Lightness of Being' (6) Book review: Kundera, Milan (translated by Henry Heim), The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Richmond Hoxie, Harper Audio, 2012. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The story in this Czech novel flips back and forth between the lives of two men (a surgeon, torn between love and lust, and an idealistic professor), two women (a photojournalist, who is married to the surgeon and tolerates his infidelities, and her husband's free-spirited artist mistress, who is also involved with the kind and compassionate professor), the surgeon's estranged son, and a dog. The story happens during the Prague Spring of the late 1960s, in the aftermath of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia and three other Warsaw-Pact countries.
Kundera masterfully mixes his description of life's prosaic events with philosophical musings about existence, political activism, and the human condition. The "lightness" of the title refers to the fact that life events happen but once, so they should not be taken seriously, whereas human beings are obcessed with heaviness: burdens they carry and difficulties they face. The single-occurrence hypothesis means that we can't make thoughtful decisions, because there is no basis for comparison.
Political circumstances force the surgeon to abandon his prestigious position and work as a general-practitioner for a while, eventually becoming a window-washer, struggling all along with pressures to sign a statement of regret over an opinion piece he had published earlier.
This 1984 philosophical-fiction title was not published in Czechoslovakia until a year later. In 1988, the book was made into a film bearing the same title and starring Daniel Day Lewis, Lena Olin, and Juliette Binoche. Kundera condemned the film as bearing no resemblance to his novel and the characters therein, vowing never to allow adaptations of his work again.

2018/02/11 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image of 'Communication of the ACM,' February 2018 issue (1) Communication of the ACM, February 2018 issue: In their cover feature, "The Next Phase in the Digital Revolution," John Zysman and Martin Kenney argue that intelligent tools simultaneously replace, transform, and create work. Whether deployment of intelligent tools and platforms will augment human skills or replace humans as workers depends, in part, on social and political choices.
(2) Quote of the day: "[One of the hardest things about being sick is other people trying to explain your suffering. I'd prefer people] who hug you and give you impressive compliments that don't feel like a eulogy. People who give you non-cancer-thematic gifts. People who just want to delight you, not try to fix you, and make you realize that it is just another beautiful day and there is usually something fun to do." ~ Kate Bowler, mother with an incurable cancer diagnosis, in an interview with Time magazine about her new book, Everything Happens for a Reason and Other Lies I've Loved
(3) My reply to a friend who noted that Trump talks about abuse and sexual assault as if he's Dr. Seuss:
Oh, chum, there's no need to jab them; Let me teach you how you can grab them.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- If you were in or close to the recent fire areas, your car may need new engine and cabin air filters.
- [VP Pence on military parades] N. Korea's: Displaying menacing threats. Trump's: Celebrating our military.
- Sima Bina will perform at Farhang Foundation's March 11 Nowruz (Norooz) celebration at UCLA.
- Donald Trump believes the men, always; unless they're Democrats, in which case the accusers are credible!
- Mihaela Noroc shows with her camera that beauty is much more than is shown on magazine covers.
- Cartoon of the day: Trump wants Americans to return to the moon. [Image: From E&T magazine]
- Next for Trump: An "Eye-Candy Army Unit," a la "Little Rocket Man"? [Photo]
(5) Authorities in Tajikistan have shut down hundreds of unregistered mosques in the past decade: Suspected of preaching extremism, the mosques have been converted to housing for the homeless or are being used for various public functions.
Cover image of the audiobook 'Argo' (6) Book review: Mendez, Antonio and Matt Baglio, Argo: How the CIA and Hollywood Pulled off the Most Audacious Rescue in History, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Dylan Baker, Penguin Audio, 2012.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
I was rather disappointed with the action-packed film version of "Argo," because of its inaccuracies in portraying the political climate in post-revolution Iran and its depiction of Iranians as either hateful revolutionaries or simpletons who had no clue. The book is much more realistic in its portrayal of the events that led to the escape of six Americans trapped in Iran, and sheltered in the homes of two Canadian diplomats, in the aftermath of hostage-taking at the US Embassy.
Assuming fake identities, the Americans pretended to be part of a Hollywood team, which had traveled to Iran to scout locations for the sci-fi film "Argo." The imaginary film had a script, a made-up production company in Hollywood (in case the Iranians decided to call to check their cover story), and fake resumes and background documents for the six Americans. CIA agent Antonio Mendez, who was the mastermind of the audacious plan, acted as the pretend scouting team's leader, publishing his secret plan and its execution details more than three decades after it was carried out.
The six houseguests, and the two US intelligence agents who went to Iran to extract them. left Tehran without a hitch on a Swiss Air flight, via Mehrabad Airport; there was no suspicion on the part of Revolutionary Guards stationed at the airport, no frantic phone calls to the airport guards to reveal the escapees' identities, and no chasing of the plane on the runway to prevent it from taking off, as depicted in the film version!
The aftermath of the escape was just as interesting as the escape plan itself. Canada arranged for its diplomats to leave Iran and closed its embassy for fear of retaliation, once the story leaked out. In fact, at least one reporter was already aware of the escape plan before it was carried out, but he agreed to keep a lid on the story so as not to endanger the Americans' lives.

2018/02/10 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Street in Birmingham, Alabama, 1940s Many centuries ago, a cat walked over an Italian manuscript, leaving its paw prints on the document forever, 1445 A fisherman in Istanbul, 1930 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Street in Birmingham, Alabama, 1940s. [Center] Many centuries ago, a cat walked over an Italian manuscript, leaving its paw prints on the document forever, 1445. [Right] A fisherman in Istanbul, 1930.
(2) Quote of the day: "Facebook has a lot of work to do—whether it's protecting our community from abuse and hate, defending against interference by nation states, or making sure that the time spent on Facebook is time well spend ... We won't prevent all mistakes or abuse, but we currently make too many errors enforcing our policies and preventing misuse of our tools." ~ Mark Zuckerberg, on his personal challenges for 2018
(3) A first for Iran, after 4 decades of Islamic rule: School girls dance in traditional local dresses. I hope teachers and school administrators who allowed this celebration are not imprisoned.
(4) David Brooks, the compassionate, intellectual conservative: I like David Brooks and listen to his analyses on the Friday night editions of PBS Newshour. Yet, on this opinion piece about abortion, I side with Cheryl Axelrod and her letter to Brooks. I remember someone once saying that men should not opine on abortion. While the latter proclamation is perhaps too extreme, reading musings like those of Brooks, I start to wonder.
(5) Are people dying younger these days? Scanning the obituary section of this week's Santa Barbara Independent, I noticed that a quarter of those listed were born in the mid- to late-1940s (around my age) and another quarter were born in the 1960s (~2 decades younger).
(6) Santa Barbara and UCSB product Jack Johnson's benefit concert for Thomas Fire and Montecito Mud-flow victims sold out yesterday within hours. The concert will be at Santa Barbara Bowl on Sunday, March 18.
(7) Metal parts printed in 3D: Nearly all 3D printers use metal powder to shape metal objects. The parts thus formed are susceptible to defects, which make them unsuitable for heavy-duty use in aerospace and automotive industries. Newly proposed modifications to the 3D-printing process for metal parts allow the production of super-strong parts for heavy-duty use.
(8) World's biggest battery in South Australia: Built by Elon Musk's Tesla to store energy during high wind-turbine electricity production for use when the winds die down, the 100MW/129MWh installation was completed in an impressive two months after the contract was signed.
(9) [Final thought for the day] Mr. Trump: If you really believe that your aide, Rob Porter, is innocent, why did you dismiss him? Why didn't you help him fight the unfounded allegations and sue the defamers, instead of whining about them in the following tweet? By the way, it's "people's," not "peoples."
[@realDonaldTrump: "Peoples lives are being shattered and destroyed by a mere allegation. Some are true and some are false. Some are old and some are new. There is no recovery for someone falsely accused &emdash; life and career are gone. Is there no such thing any longer as Due Process?"]
[P.S. 1: Suddenly, Trump cares about lives being shattered, while he has shattered many lives by inhumane bans against this or that group.]
[P.S. 2: There WAS a due process for Rob Porter. FBI investigated him for months and informed the WH about "credible" allegations against him.]

2018/02/09 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Hard disk ad, 1981 Colorized photo of NYC Lower East Side, 1890s Oldsmobile Cutlass coupe, 1954 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Hard disk ad, 1981. [Center] Colorized photo of NYC Lower East Side, 1890s. [Right] Oldsmobile Cutlass coupe, 1954.
(2) Nuclear powers and their arsenals. [Time magazine map] Nuclear warheads in round numbers:
~7000: USA, Russia   ~300: France, China, UK   ~100: Pakistan, India, Israel   ~10: North Korea
(3) Quote of the day: "Anyone caught involved in voter fraud should be immediately deported and have his citizenship revoked." ~ Ben Carson, US Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
[How is it possible to revoke the citizenship of illegal aliens? Or, to where would we deport citizens?]
(4) After months of bragging about the record-setting rise of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Trump now criticizes the Dow for its record-setting fall, which is, of course, treasonous: "In the 'old days,' when good news was reported, the Stock Market would go up. Today, when good news is reported, the Stock Market goes down. Big mistake, and we have so much good (great) news about the economy!"
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Caltrans may close US 101 before the next storm hits, if there is a danger of mud flow in Montecito.
- Cartoon of the day: The next Macy's Parade! [Image] [From: The New Yorker]
- "No love for you": Pakistan bans media coverage of Valentine's Day.
- Meme for our time: Flag-waving, with no regard for truth or human dignity. [Image]
- Chain migration is bad, but not for Melania Trump and her sister Ines, who brought their parents over.
- A sobering thought: Whenever you add an item to your resume, try to also add something to your eulogy.
(6) Only about 4% of crime reports are false, according to the FBI: So, domestic violence allegations are overwhelmingly more likely to be valid than made-up. When there is material evidence (photographs, court orders) and multiple corroborations, the fraction of false reports decline even further. Yet Trump, in talking about Rob Porter, the disgraced high-level White House staffer who resigned, stressed his denial, praised his character, and wished him well in his career. Trump did the same for Roy Moore, which isn't surprising, given allegations of sexual misconduct against Trump himself. General Kelly has offered to resign over the scandal.
(7) This study was conducted at the UCLA lab where my daughter works: Based on an article published in Science and a follow-up clinical trial, Newsweek magazine reports on the potential for using antibiotics to treat autism and mental disorders.
(8) Santa Barbara International Film Festival honors Allison Janney and Margot Robbie for their starring roles in "I, Tonya." Both actresses have also received Oscar nods for their roles.
(9) Lebanon isn't a country, but a place full of people, seemingly thrown together at random: This article from five years ago (which I first posted on February 9, 2013) is still an interesting read, because Lebanon remains an amalgam of diverse communities, barely seeing eye to eye.

2018/02/07 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The original Mickey and Minnie Mouse costumes in 1939, before Walt Disney had them redesigned for Disneyland in 1955 Opening day at Disneyland, 1955 Greta Garbo and the MGM lion, 1925 (1) History in pictures: [Left] The original Mickey and Minnie Mouse costumes in 1939, before Walt Disney had them redesigned for Disneyland in 1955. [Center] Opening day at Disneyland, 1955. [Right] Greta Garbo and the MGM lion, 1925.
(2) Trump (SOTU): "We have sought to restore the bonds of trust between citizens and their government."
Fact: Trust in government has dropped 14 points to 33% during Trump's 1st year. (Edelman Trust Barometer)
(3) Trump is 100% fake: From his hair and facial tan, through his wealth, religiosity, marriage, patriotism, dealmaking skills, presidency, to the bone spurs in the heels that he faked to dodge the draft in the 1960s.
(4) Quote of the day: "Data indicate that it would be nearly impossible for a physically unattractive female instructor teaching a large required introductory physics course to receive as high an evaluation as that of an attractive male instructor teaching a small fourth-year elective course for physics majors, regardless of how well either teaches." ~ Mark Guzdial, on sexism and other biases that make student teaching evaluations unreliable (Communications of the ACM, issue of February 2018)
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Magnitude-6.4 earthquake topples buildings in Taiwan, killing or trapping many residents.
- Two Time magazine cover images: "America Alone" (Feb. 5); "Making America Nuclear Again" (Feb. 12).
- "Let Trump be Trump" means it's okay for POTUS to betray, backbite, brag, berate, belittle, and bully.
- Trump's evangelical adviser: Inoculate yourself with the word of God; Jesus stops you from getting the flu.
- So, Trump wants a parade "like the one in France"? Well, I'd like a real president "like the one in France."
- Artificial intelligence vs. natural compassion: It's not a competition; we need them both!
- This building in Germany produces music, as rainwater flows down the pathways on its facade.
- Vanity Fair thinks that Trump should embrace his baldness: It would be a sign of strength.
(6) Lengthy interview with Quincy Jones: Jones is a wonderful musician, but he stumbles all over the place in this interview. Examples include believing in a Kennedy assassination conspiracy, refusing to comment about the behavior of his friend Bill Cosby, accusing Michael Jackson of stealing songs, opining that the Beatles were awful musicians, claiming that he dated Ivanka Trump, and so on. Interesting read nonetheless!
(7) Quote of the day: "I can't think of a safer place to explore complex emotions for the first time than inside the pages of a book, while sitting in the lap of a loved one." ~ Matt de la Pena, defending the presence of dark themes in kids' books (Time magazine, issue of February 12, 2018)
(8) The Uber of healthcare: Doctors on wheels may be visiting patients at their homes or workplaces, while charging less for the required treatment, if start-ups working on revolutionizing healthcare succeed.
(9) Today's "World Music Series" concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: Dannsair, "Traditional Dance Music of Ireland" [Video 1] [Irish Polka from the movie "Titanic"] [Video 3] [Video 4] [Video 5 featuring a soprano vocalist]

2018/02/06 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The top hat worn by Abraham Lincoln the night he was shot Pierre and Marie Sklodowska Curie, preparing to go cycling, 1890s The swimming pool that used to be beneath the White House Briefing Room, 1946 (1) History in pictures: [Left] The top hat worn by Abraham Lincoln the night he was shot. [Center] Pierre and Marie Sklodowska Curie, preparing to go cycling, 1890s. [Right] The swimming pool that used to be beneath the White House Briefing Room, 1946.
(2) Quote of the day: "But now we have fulfilled far more promises than we promised." ~ Donald Trump, assessing his first year in office [I wish he had listed the promises he had not made but fulfilled!]
(3) Give Trump credit for consistency: All his statements are as accurate as his inauguration-crowd-size and his SOTU-ratings claims. Can you imagine how much discipline Mueller must have not to say a word about Trump's claim that Nunes memo exonerates him?
(4) Flipping the Senate not at all a sure bet: Of the 34 seats up for re-election, 25 are currently Democratic and only 9 are Republican. Democrats must win all of their current seats, plus all three of the Republican seats that are deemed toss-ups. Please vote! [Chart]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Pharmacies in a town of 3000 were sent 21 million prescription painkillers by drug companie, 2006-2016.
- Hundreds of Russian bot accounts joined pro-Trump forces in the #ReleaseTheMemo movement on Twitter.
- Trump (2013): Obama isn't American. Trump (2018): Democrats who don't applaud me are treasonous.
- The bigger, better Rocket Man: Trump wants a military parade along Pennsylvania Avenue!
- General Kelly shows that he is a great match to Trump: "[Dreamers are] too lazy to get off their asses."
- Picasso style through the years. [Poster]
- Nothing makes the mullahs in Iran more nervous than vocal women who stand up for their rights. [Image]
- Mexico is negotiating with Trump about paying for the border wall, but wants a slight change in its position.
(6) Spring in early February: Yesterday, near UCSB's Storke Tower, blossoms and fog were reminders that Norooz (Nowruz) is just around the corner. Saal tahveel or spring equinox, when the Persian New Year 1397 celebrations begin, is in 6 weeks, on Tuesday, March 20, 2018, 9:15:28 AM PDT. [Photos]
(7) Yesterday's Dow Jones Industrial Average fluctuations and one-day drop: Opening 25,338; High 25,521; Low 23,924; Monday's closing 24,346; Previous closing 25,521 (single-session drop of 1175 points, 4.60%).
(8) Trump: "We'll do a shutdown and it's worth it for our country. I'd love to see a shutdown if we don't get this stuff taken care of. ... We'll go with another shutdown."
Sarah Sanders (cleaning up after Trump minutes later): "We are not advocating for the shutdown."
[Those who clean up after Trump. whether in the White House or in Congress, will have a lot of explaining to do when shit hits the fan!]
(9) Fairness in algorithm design: Increasingly, algorithms are being used to allocate scarce resources, thus bringing forth the notion of fair computation. However, fairness is difficult to define in a consistent and generally-acceptable manner. Problems where the notion of fairness arises are complicated and quite varied, so let us consider a rather common problem that many of us have faced in our lives: that of dividing the rent fairly among housemates. Suppose a housing unit to be rented by n people has n bedrooms, with each housemate getting one bedroom. Different housemates assign different values to the bedrooms. Let v[i,j] be the value assigned to bedroom j by housemate i. How would one go about determining a fair division of the rent? [Reference: K. Gal, A. D. Procaccia, M. Mash, and Y. Zick, "Which Is the Fairest (Rent Division) of Them All?" Communications of the ACM, Vol. 61, No. 2, pp. 93-100, February 2018]

2018/02/04 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
A siding (side track) allows trains to park or pass each other, when traveling in opposite directions (1) Our rotting infrastructure takes more victims: A siding is a piece of track parallel to the main one that allows trains to park (typically at stations) or two trains traveling in opposite directions to pass each other in an area where there is just one main track. Entry to the siding is controlled by signals at both ends. In the case of the latest Amtrak train collision and derailing that killed 2 and injured 100+, an outdated signaling system allowed the passenger train to go on a siding where a freight train was parked. It is a trivial technological fix, with simple sensing and electronic devices, to disallow trains from entering a siding when there is already a train on it. Just as gun deaths do not seem to trigger any sort of reform in our gun laws, technology-related deaths do not make our government think about rebuilding our rotting infrastructure. Thoughts and prayers never fixed anything!
(2) Salvador Gomez Colon, 15, raised more than $123,000 and helped distribute 100s of solar lamps to Puerto Rican families who are still without power, 4 months after Hurricane Maria.
(3) This Observer article presents one of the best analyses of the declassified Nunes memo, characterizing it as much ado about nothing, produced by the echo chamber around Trump.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- NYC-to-Miami Amtrak train hit a freight train in SC and derailed early Saturday, killing 2 and injuring 100+.
- Paul Ryan, realizing a secretary's annual tax savings of $78 isn't something to brag about, deletes tweet.
- Ancient Egyptian tomb, containing remarkable 4400-year-old paintings, discovered just outside Cairo.
- This must be some sort of a record: Four untrue claims (aka lies) in a single 47-word tweet!
- Trump can't see anything beyond his own elongated nose: Did Russia interfere in our elections or did it not?
- Snacks for this afternoon's concert: You know, the one that's preceded and followed by football! [Photo]
(5) Researchers at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, have developed a customizable, fabric-like power source that can be cut, folded, or stretched while maintaining function.
(6) US plans for retaking the lead in the race to develop the world's fastest supercomputer may be in jeopardy: China's pre-exascale supercomputer could overtake Summit, a machine developed for the US Department of Energy that is expected to surpass 200 petaflops when deployed later in 2018.
(7) Comedian Jimmy Kimmel's humorous ad for Trump Hotels: "Take advantage of 'Mexico Pays Days.' You stay, Mexico pays. Just pay with a credit card and write 'Mexico' on the bill to get reimbursed by Mexico."
(8) The "Storm Glass": This birthday gift from my children purportedly predicts changes in the weather. As my older son noted, not very useful for SoCal, because it will always show the same state! Perhaps I should regift it to a friend in Canada or northeastern US.
On-line sources state that its accuracy is dubious. "It contains a mixture of ammonium chloride, potassium nitrate, camphor, water, and alcohol, making a normally clear liquid in which different types of white crystals periodically grow and dissolve. The idea is that the mixture is so finely balanced that minor fluctuations in atmospheric conditions will change the solubility of the chemicals and produce a wide variety of crystal shapes, from tiny floating flakes to large masses of feathery fans. Each supposedly predicts a certain type of weather."
(9) Finally, my birthday celebrations are behind me: As in fairy tales, where celebrations go on for days, my birthday was celebrated on three consecutive days, first through dozens of birthday-wishes on my actual birthday, then a day of phone calls and belated well-wishes, and finally, yesterday, through the family dining out and gathering in Ventura for cake and gifts. Thanks to all for many kind words and generous gifts.

2018/02/03 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Painting showing Kurdish dancers (1) Kurdish dance music: A dozen videos I have come across recently.
[Bahram Osqueezadeh & Pejman Haddadi]   [Aziz Weisi]
[Omar Souleyman, "Warni Warni"]   [Jamshid, "Ten'nek"]
[Belly dance to Kurdish music]   [Hammarkullen carnival dance]
[Kurdish folk dance from Iraq]   [Female fighters dancing]
[Kurdish dance music, orchestral]   [Parwana]
[Persian and Kurdish dances]   [Turkish and Kurdish dances]
(2) Quote of the day: "Women are NOT a special interest group. They are half of this country and they are perfectly capable of making their own choices about their health." ~ Barack Obama
(3) Observation (humor): "In Spain, matadors enrage the bull with a one-meter piece of red cloth; in Iran, women do the same with a piece of white cloth." [Translated from Roya Hakakian's Persian post on Facebook, referring to "White Wednesdays," when women wear white scarves in protest to mandatory hijab laws.]
(4) Quote of the day: "Donald Trump calling for bipartisanship is just as believable as Mike Pence calling for bisexuality." ~ Comedian Jimmy Kimmel
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Jeff Bezos, worth $116B, will be world's first trillionaire in 4 years, if his fortune grows at the current rate.
- American Road & Transportation Builders Association: The US has 4259 structurally deficient bridges.
- Among wealthy nations, America is the most dangerous place for kids, and things may be getting worse.
- If Phil the groundhog sees his shadow today, we will have a few more months of Trump.
- Young men and women spell out their message: R-E-S-I-S-T [Photo]
- Julie Flapan and Jane Margolis of UCLA aim to make the next generation of programmers more diverse.
- Goleta Water District reminds us in a postal flyer that we are still in Stage-III water shortage emergency.
- A wave of rock shaped by wind and rain towers above a plain in Western Australia, 1963.
- A classic Hollywood beauty in her youth: Elizabeth Taylor as a ballerina, 1951.
- Trump to Mueller: "I'm really looking forward to talking to you—just give me a minute." [NYer cartoon]
(6) Data longevity: Big data isn't just "lots of data," although "volume" is in fact one of the so-called "4 Vs" characterizing the big-data universe. Sometimes, we refer to "5 Vs" instead of 4, to include "value." Data is valuable to the enterprise or individual generating or collecting it, so protection against loss or theft and preservation over extended periods of time is called for. Encoding and replication provide protection against accidental loss, as discussed in my EBDT article "Data Replication and Encoding" (pubs list).
However, we must also be concerned with data loss due to format obsolescence, storage-media obsolescence, and stored-data degradation, that is, we should care about data longevity. Note that storing data in the cloud does not remove any of the problems just cited, as the cloud must also use some form of storage medium to hold the data. All three problems can be dealt with via data refreshing, the frequency of which will depend on the rate of degradation or obsolescence.
It follows that lifespans of digital storage media must be studied and taken into account in ensuring data integrity. Because these days, we store our data in the cloud, cloud storage services should safeguard the data by keeping it on multiple device types and refreshing the data by making new copies every once in a while.

2018/02/01 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Graphic design: State of California and its municipalities (1) Interesting design: California and its municipalities.
(2) Today is my 71st birthday: My new age has many interesting properties. It it the 20th prime number and forms a twin pair of primes with 73. It is a permuatable prime, as its reverse 17 is also a prime. It is an Eisenstein prime, a Pillai prime, the largest supersingular prime, and a centered heptagonal number. Finally, on a psychic site, I found the following statement: "If the angel number 71 keeps showing up in your life, it signifies that your guardian angels are just around, waiting to be of assistance to you."
(3) Here we go again: Trump's claim that his SOTU Address had the highest ratings ever is utterly false. The speech itself was full of lies, false comparisons, and misstatements. After keeping quiet on Twitter for a day, Trump has resumed his attacks on Democrats and the media, forgetting his own call for unity and bipartisanship.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- In a 2016 radio interview, current EPA Chief Scott Pruitt had said that Trump would abuse the Constitution.
- About one-third (95 out of 289) of all American Nobel Prizes in the sciences have been earned by immigrants.
- I like the Google Calendar app, which I use on my laptop and cell phone, and recommend it to everyone.
- The closer Mueller gets to the full Russia meddling story, the more erratic the Republicans become.
- The White House releases a redacted version of House Intelligence Committee's classified memo. [Humor]
- Cartoon of the day: America First! [Image]
Sam Quinones speaking at UCSB on 2018/02/01 (5) Lecture on America's opiate crisis: Sam Quinones spoke today at 4:00 PM in McCune Conference Room under the title "Dreamland: America's Opiate Epidemic and How We Got Here." Quinones is an LA-based freelance journalist and author of three nonfiction books, including the highly influential Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate Epidemic. He has reported on immigration, gangs, drug trafficking, and the border as a reporter for LA Times (2004-2014) and as a freelance writer in Mexico (1994-2004).
It is often claimed that the opiate epidemic went unnoticed for more than two decades, until it became a middle- and upper-middle-class problem. This isn't true, as addiction to opiates has been and continues to be a white middle-class problem, except that until 2015, families and parents felt isolated and too ashamed to openly admit the problem. Just as the gay-rights issue didn't take off until everyone knew of some gay person around them (as a result of more gays coming out), the opiate crisis was not recognized as deserving attention until it became so widespread that it affected nearly all families, directly or indirectly.
One of the complications in dealing with the opiate epidemic is that it originated from doctors and big pharma, rather than the Mafia and drug rings. Washington is reluctant to act because of the large sums of money politicians get from the medical and pharmaceutical lobbies. The situation got worse when opiates became a source of income for some, who would obtain a huge supply with a trivial co-pay and then turn around and sell it for hundreds or thousands of dollars. Things are beginning to change in the healthcare industry, though, and opiates are not prescribed as frequently or as indiscriminately. Doctors now try to limit the length of treatment with opiates, replacing them with alternative pain medications as soon as possible.
Quinones writes the "Dreamland Blog," where he discusses these and other ideas:
A side comment about Quinones' work is his spat with "60 Minutes" (the CBS newsmagazine), which he claims stole his ideas for a story, without crediting him or his book.
[Tonight's sunset, as seen from the edge of the campus to my home, as I walked back from the lecture.]

2018/01/31 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon portraits of Richard Nixon and Donald Trump (1) Russia's meddling in the 2016 US election, the probe being conducted, and Trump's reaction to it increasingly resemble the Watergate scandal.
(2) Quote of the day: "Women are NOT a special interest group. They are half of this country and they are perfectly capable of making their own choices about their health." ~ Barack Obama
(3) Sleep troubles may be signs of Alzheimer's: "A fitful night's sleep and a habit of daytime catnapping may be an early-warning sign of Alzheimer's dementia, according to new research conducted in humans and mice."
(4) Google's new search optimization tools: Google has released the beta version of its brand-new (built from scratch) search console and I was invited to try it out. It allows you to manage your presence on Google Search, confirm which of your pages are indexed, get info on how to fix indexing errors, and monitor your search performance with 16 months of data. For example, the first of these two charts shows the total number of clicks and impressions on my UCSB faculty Web site over the past three months. The second chart shows access to my computer architecture textbook page and its presentation slides (the lull in access during the Christmas break is clearly visible).
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Virginia Tech freshman who owned an assault rifle tried to buy 5000 rounds of ammo before being arrested.
- Many Republican lawmakers were on a train that hit a truck. They were headed for a legislative retreat.
- Donald Trump's approval ratings by state: It is above 50% in only 12 states. [Map]
- [Trump dictionary] Bipartisanship: Both parties agreeing with the President, when the President is Trump.
- Trevor Noah: How Joe Kennedy's speaking to the Dreamers in Spanish undermined his message.
- Explanation of the Super Blue Blood Moon we witnessed today. [Image credit: BBC]
- Vida Movahedi, the mom who created an iconic image of Iranian women's defiance, released from prison.
- Iranian women emulate the iconic pose of recent street protests by raising their scarves on sticks.
- Women's resistance movement in Iran picks up steam. [Cartoon credit: IranWire]
- Iranian and American feminists' joint statement, with Linda Sarsour a signatory, causes controversy.
(6) UCSB Music Bowl noon concert, as part of the World Music Series: Mariachi Las Olas De Santa Barbara performed a program it calls "Singing to the Moon"; quite appropriate, given today's super blue blood moon! One of the performers explained that Mariachi bands are quite flexible, taking any musical style and making it their own. Mariachi music got some jazz influences when a number of Cubans took back the jazz style from New York. The final video below shows a student musician I encountered on the way to the Mariachi concert. [Video 1] ["Blue Moon"] ["Fly Me to the Moon"] [Sing-along] [Video 5]

2018/01/30 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Qajar-era peddler of drinking water in Iran Lincoln's Head at Mount Rushmore under construction, 1937 A game of human chess, St. Petersburg (Leningrad), circa 1924 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Qajar-era peddler of drinking water in Iran. [Center] Lincoln's Head at Mount Rushmore under construction, 1937. [Right] A game of human chess, St. Petersburg (Leningrad), circa 1924.
(2) The very rare Blue Blood Supermoon lunar eclipse: The big, bright, and red moon will be visible on January 31. The lower the moon goes, the larger it will appear. NASA will cover the event beginning at 5:30 AM EST tomorrow (Wednesday, January 31, 2018).
(3) Certain big-data collections can compromise national security: Imagine a "heat map" generated from smart-phone and smart-watch data, showing the movements of many millions of people around the world over months or even years. A map published by Strava Labs in November 2017 based on its fitness-tracking service covered 17 billion miles of distance and a total recorded activity duration of 200,000 years. A visual representation of this data can reveal locations of homes and businesses (user being stationary for an extended time period), as well as the paths of military and intelligence personnel in various secret locations. Privacy provisions in the service allow a user to turn off tracking, but because privacy is an opt-in rather than opt-out provision, most people don't bother to use the features. So, the collected data is full of pitfalls for individual users and for organizations, including governmental and military units.
(4) Actual Dr. Seuss cartoon from 1941: It criticizes America's policy on denying European Jews safe haven during the Holocaust. Note the slogan on the mother's shirt. "... and the wolf chewed up the children and spit out their bones ... but those were foreign children and it really didn't matter."
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Three major firms join forces to create a company offering affordable quality healthcare to their staff.
- UCSB geologist describes how coincidence of conditions created 'a perfect storm' that wrecked Montecito.
- Suspected Canadian serial-killer, a gardener, buried bodies under his clients flower beds.
- Interesting 4-minute explanation (in Persian) of the concept of free will, or lack thereof.
- Migration of humans out of Africa may have happened a lot sooner than previously thought.
- Digital PDA of 34 years ago: Your secret telephone directory on your wrist, ad from 1984.
- Quote: "Go often to the house of thy friend, for weeds choke the unused path." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
- The New Yorker Cartoon: Interrogator to woman: "Talk, or we'll make you watch the State of the Union!"
- Travellers' nightmare: Cleaners at a Chinese Sheraton used same brush to clean toilet bowls and cups.
- Choose your pets with care: Giant pet python named 'Tiny' strangles its 31-year-old owner at home.
(6) Self-destructing circuits: Going well beyond the self-destructing tape player in old "Mission Impossible" films, Cornell University and Honeywell engineers have developed circuits capable of self-destruction via a radio command that opens graphene-on-nitride valves sealing cavities filled with damaging chemicals.
(7) ATM jackpotting: A new crime wave, taking advantage of system vulnerabilities to withdraw large sums of cash from ATMs, is spreading from Mexico to the US.
(8) The documentary film "Score": Tonight, I attended a screeing of producer Robert Craft's wonderful documentary about the art and challenges of making film music (UCSB's Pollock Theater, 7:00 PM). The process of composing film scores, with its difficult requirements and tight deadlines, was described by a multitude of talented and prolific composers, including the incomparable John Williams and Hans Zimmer. I am a film-music aficionado, and so particularly enjoyed the producer's thoughts at the end of the screening. [Photos]

2018/01/29 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The '4 Vs' of big data, in an IBM infographic (1) The "4 Vs" of big data in an IBM infographic: The fourth "V," given in this image as "veracity," having to do with correctness and accuracy of data, is sometimes replaced by "value," the data's importance or worth. Alternatively, one might view the big-data domain as being characterized by "5 Vs."
(2) This new week, with expected spring-like temperatures in the 70s, began with a spectacular sunrise. All of this would have been quite enjoyable in the middle of winter, were it not for extreme fire danger due to high temperatures, low humidity, and expected winds, particularly in Ventura and points to its south.
(3) Governor Brown's directive calls for Increasing the number of zero-emission vehicles in California to 5 million by 2030. [WSJ report] [WP report]
(4) A new antibiotic drug: Preliminary study indicates that a drug discovered in the 1970s may be more effective and better for the body than the current last-resort superbug antibiotic.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad dead at 91: Will they have a special Hijklmn furniture sale in his honor?
- Palestinian man uncovers ancient Roman burial site in his backyard after heavy rainfall.
- John McCain calls out Putin's dictatorship and sham election, following the arrest of his key opponent.
- CIA Director: There has been no reduction in Russian meddling in Europe and the US.
- Sanctions against Russia, passed by the US Congress last year, have not yet been imposed.
- Pilot makes emergency landing on the 55 Freeway in Costa Mesa, flying under an overpass in the process.
- Unintended humor: President Trump says he is not a feminist, shocking women around the world!
- Of interest to tourists and other world travelers: Health risks, security threats, road accidents. [Maps]
(6) Interesting technical talk on computational complexity: Daniel Lokshtanov (U. Bergen) spoke at 3:30 this afternoon in a Computer Science Department seminar under the title "Coping with NP-Hardness." Saying that a problem is NP-hard means that (unless P = NP) an algorithm that solves all instances of the problem optimally using time polynomial in the size n of the instance does not exist. The running time of O(2^n) or worse rises very quickly as n grows. However, faced with such problems, we do not give up, because algorithms of the following kinds may be discovered for them. Lokshtanov discussed each kind of attack with the vertex-cover (a running example) and other easily-understood problems. The vertex-cover problem is that of identifying the smallest possible set of vertices in a graph that "touch" every edge of the graph, so that removing those vertices would lead to the removal of all edges. As a practical example, consider the case where vertices represent elements in a large data-set and edges represent data incompatibilities. Solving the vertex cover problem allows us to remove the smallest set of data points (outliers) such that the remaining points are compatible with each other.
- An algorithm with O(2^sqrt(n)) worst-case time, say: The field of exact exponential-time algorithms.
- An algorithm that comes within a small constant factor of optimality: The field of approximation algorithms.
- An algorithm solving simple instances optimally: The fields of restricted-input and parameterized algorithms.
- An efficient algorithm that converts simple instances to equivalent small instances: The field of kernelization.
Here are links to the PDF file of the speaker's book on parametrized algorithms and to his Web page.

2018/01/28 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The dancer by Gustav Klimt, 1916 Logo of the Holocaust Remembrance Day Evolution of logos for five major Hollywood film studios (1) Selected images for a very special day: [Left] The dancer by Gustav Klimt, 1916. [Center] Yesterday was Holocaust Remembrance Day: Let's remember the atrocities and renew our 'never again' pledge! This UN-designated day commemorates the genocide that led to the death of 6 million Jews, 1 million Gypsies, 250,000 mentally and physically disabled people, and 9,000 homosexual men by the Nazi regime and its collaborators. [Right] Evolution of logos for five major Hollywood film studios.
(2) Trevor Noah responds to those who criticized the toughness of the female judge in monster Larry Nassar's sentencing hearing: He also says that perhaps those who enable sexual predators should get a percentage of their sentence, like a commission!
(3) California's independence or cessation movement began years ago, but it is gathering steam because of Trump. To paraphrase the dealmaker-in-chief, we are getting a very bad deal from the rest of the country.
(4) Mushrooms could solve America's crumbling infrastructure: Yes, mushrooms, or at least a type of fungus scientifically known as Trichoderma reesei. A new technique uses fungi to fill the cracks in concrete, creating a self-healing concrete that is low-cost, pollution-free, and sustainable.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- More than 100 die in Afghanistan: Suicide bomber drives an ambulance through a security checkpoint.
- South Korea fire killing 37 comes just one month after 29 died in a blaze in an 8-story building.
- Talk about scary jury duty! 'El Chapo' promises not to kill any jurors in his upcoming federal trial.
- Burger King becomes political with its support of Net Neutrality: Hoping it's not a whopper!
- Lives lost to mud-flow aside, Montecito properties lost value, slashing SB County's property-tax income.
- France may institute fines of 90+ euros for men following women on the street or whistling at them.
- Russia will go to the moon in 2019 with its first moon-landing in decades.
- The Catholic Church needs more exorcists due to increased demonic activity, says priest.
- Will Trump be able to use his deal-making prowess in making a plea deal with Mueller?
- The Religious Right is all Wrong: Which one of these two guys would you buy a car from? [Meme]
- Bill Mahr: After meeting with its president, Trump gives Rwanda "most-favored shit-hole" trade status.
- Men should support women in their rights struggle: The rise of women does not mean the fall of men.
(6) Leaked draft of Trump's infrastructure plan leaves many unimpressed: The administration will require that states assume the bulk of funding for any project, capping federal support at 20%.
(7) Red alert in the middle of winter? High temperatures, low humidity, and winds have brought renewed fire danger to Southern California, particularly points to the south of Ventura.

2018/01/26 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
'The Last Supper' selfie (1) The Last Supper: If smartphones and selfie sticks had been invented 20 centuries ago.
(2) Time to hold officials accountable: US Olympic Committee tells USA Gymnastics it will lose its status as a governing body unless the entire board resigns by Wednesday and an interim board is in place by February 28.
(3) Here is what happens when America is run by Wall Street and big oil: Trump's 30% tariff on imported solar panels is the beginning of a trade war that will hurt the renewable-energy industry and line the pockets of major oil companies. We are going backward on all fronts!
(4) Pedestrian-unfriendly streets of Isla Vista: Walking between home and work, I go through Isla Vista, a dense community of mostly students, with some family residences on its west end. Most IV streets do not have sidewalks, forcing me to walk 3/4 of the one-plus-mile distance to the edge of the campus along the roadway. Where there is a sidewalk, as along Del Playa, shown in this photo, it is often partially or totally blocked by electrical poles, parked cars, or other obstacles. The streets are also bicycle-unfriendly, because they have no bike lanes and are relatively narrow, making it a challenge for a biker when two cars cross each other in opposite directions. Talk of road improvements have been going on for years, with little tangible results.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Another politician ousted by the #TimesUp movement: Rep. Patrick Meehan will not seek re-election.
- Facebook hires Jerome Pesenti, former CEO of BenevolentTech and a leader of IBM's Watson platform.
- More women are running for congressional seats and governorships than ever before. [Images]
- Car visits the dentist in Santa Ana, California: DUI case gone a tad too high, leading to airborne car!
- Cal Poly San Luis Obispo cuts ribbon on solar farm, expected to supply 25% of its total electrical needs.
- France Cordova, US National Science Foundation Director since 2014, profiled by US News & World Report.
(6) UCSB Library is a great home to students: A few years ago, when the library expansion and renovation project began, I was skeptical, asking why the extra space was needed in the age of shrinking stacks due to e-books and e-journals. I have since changed my mind. Tonight, when I had some time to kill between an extra-help session for my course and a musical performance on campus, I snapped these photos of wonderful study spaces, including group study rooms, that the expansion has provided for students and other patrons.
(7) Talk about distraction with a shiny object: Sean Hannity dismisses the NYT story about Trump having ordered Mueller's firing in June 2017 as fake news and distraction tactic. Later in the same program, he back-pedals and reluctantly confirms the veracity of the story. But then ... watch for yourself ... he leaves the story for the next day and cuts to a high-speed police chase video!
(8) Souren Baronian's Taksim in concert: I just walked home from UCSB after attending an enjoyable concert at the Multicultural Center Theater. A full house swayed to a unique blend of Armenian, other Middle Eastern, and jazz music in two sets. There was food afterwards, but I did not stay. Baronian was born in NYC's East Harlem neighborhood to Armenian parents who had fled the genocide. He grew up with his family's heritage, while also frequenting jazz clubs during what was the golden age of jazz. This rather unusual combination of experiences led him to form an Armenian and Middle Eastern Jazz Ensemble in the 1970s. Baronian is seated second from the left on stage in these five videos.

2018/01/25 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Map showing 11 separate 'nations' within America (1) America really consists of 11 separate nations, with entirely different cultures: These cultural differences contribute to the political tensions between states and how they fit together to form a national identity.
(2) Social-media posts include a hit-list of high school students in Santa Barbara: Parents are livid that San Marcos High School administration did not act on the threats and did not notify the parents of named students.
(3) Quote of the day: "It isn't the mountain ahead that wears you out; it's the grain of sand in your shoe." ~ Robert W. Service
(4) There's nothing virtual about the massive amounts of energy used to create or exchange bitcoins: The electrical power required to create one bitcoin is equivalent to the average US household's use in two years. Advocates argue the energy cost, which has been rising steadily, is needed to secure the networks and support a financial infrastructure free from bank or government interference. In addition to the energy costs of bitcoin creation, each bitcoin transaction needs 80,000 times more electricity to process than a Visa credit card transaction. Critics who view cryptocurrency as a speculative bubble warn it contributes to global warming and waste without any real benefits.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Despite Trump's denials, leaks show that he ordered Robert Mueller fired, but backed off under threats.
- Larry Nassar gets 40-175 years. MSU President resigns over failure to act on reports of sexual abuse.
- Is General John 'nut-job' Kelly on his way out? Rumor has it that Ivanka is looking for a replacement.
- Sri Lanka reimposes ban on women buying alcohol days after it was lifted for the first time in 4 decades.
- Montecito's mud-flow killed two young mothers, and two of their children, from the same large family.
- Elderly man, who escaped the Montecito mud-flow, in critical condition after being hit by drunk driver.
(6) The Internet is abuzz with comments on changes in Ivanka Trump's Twitter bio: She has apparently stopped pretending that she cares about women's rights. Could the reasons be the same as Melania Trump's abandoning her efforts against cyber-bullying?
(7) Talk at UCSB by CS faculty candidate Dr. Negar Kiyavash: Talking under the title "Causal Inference in the Presence of Latent Nodes," Professor Kiyavash presented her work on discovering near-optimal approximations to the topology of a highly complex network, while observing only a subset of its nodes. Active (interventional) and passive (observational) inference based on limited information are critical to the successful deployment of social, financial, and biological networks, with their immense scales and correspondingly large data volumes, although, in today's talk, Dr. Kiyavash dealt only with observational inference. She highlighted how timing could be used as a degree of freedom that provides rich information about the dynamics, thus allowing the resolution of the direction of causation, even with limited observation. [Photos] [Web page]
(8) Throwback Thursday: Looking through my files in search of documents about the activities of IEEE Iran Section during the 1970s, I came across this poster from Informatics Society of Iran's formative months, when we were focused on recruitment of members. The main part of the graphic design is a TV-like display unit of those days, bearing the society's name and initials (ISI and aleph-aleph-aleph), in Persian and English.

2018/01/23 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Sign seen at the women's protest march on January 20, 2018 (1) This sign, photographed at the Women's March, intrigued me, both due to its cleverness and because I am currently listening to Carly Simon's memoir, Boys in the Trees. And, no, the song wasn't written about a specific person, though Warren Beatty comes close to a qualifying person!
(2) Criminal neglect: Michigan State University and USA Gymnastic had been told repeatedly about sexual assault on young gymnasts by Dr. Larry Nassar. There have been resignations at USA Gymnastics, but none at MSU. Resignations won't even cut it, because their neglect borders on criminal.
(3) Academy Awards nominations: There are nine best-picture nominees, including leading contenders "The Shape of Water" and "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri." Here is the complete list of nominees.
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Magnitude-8.2 (revised to 7.9) earthquake off the coast of Alaska triggers Pacific tsunami warnings.
- Mind-boggling: Teen, who was repeatedly molested by Dr. Nassar, is still getting bills for 'treatments'!
- Snow-woman in the city of Marivan, Iran, defies mandatory hijab laws. [Photo]
- Deranged Trump supporter, who threatened many CNN employees by calling them, arrested.
- Woman engineer dies in prison following her arrest during Iran's street protests.
- Cars parked on UCSB walkways, Sunday 2018 /01/21: Example of many violations of campus traffic laws.
- Working child: Calligraphic artwork by Mehdi Saeedi.
- Cartoon of the day: Kelly to Trump: "This one requires the signature of your parent or guardian!" [Image]
Sign reading 'No Trolls Allowed' (5) My plan to deal with trolls (Facebook post): Internet trolls maximize their disruptive effect by commenting on high-traffic sites and posts. Instead of offering their own posts, where they can express their ideas freely in our open society, they offer their narratives as comments on others' posts. Their comments are often unrelated to the main point of the post and are designed, via name-calling and other tactics, to goad others to respond.
Over time, many of my posts have been hijacked by trolls, in a way that if you read the last few comments, you can't tell what the original post was about. The needles of relevant and helpful comments get lost in the haystack of irrelevant, and often long-winded, musings. Social media etiquette requires that one comment directly on the post, offering corrections, additional insights, and helpful suggestions. Let me provide a hypothetical example.
Me: Clinton's experience would have made her a better POTUS than Trump.
Troll: But she is crooked and her husband cheated on her.
This exchange may compel me or someone else to opine that Trump is 100 times more crooked and that he himself, rather than his spouse, is a cheater. This will then be the starting point of the discussion devolving into a comparison of deeds of cheating and other matters, real or fake, that are only tangentially related to the main point of the post: Clinton Foundation, Benghazi, uranium deal, e-mails, child sex-ring, and so on. From now on, I will exercise my right to remove irrelevant, crude, and other disruptive comments from my Facebook timeline. After all, this is my space for interacting with friends and others who honor the social media etiquette alluded to above. My previous policy of simply ignoring such comments proved ineffective: sometimes, trolls comment on their own comments, with no reply from me). In the extreme, I will block trolls from commenting.

2018/01/22 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Russian writer, philosopher, and mystic Leo Tolstoy telling his grandchildren a story, circa 1890 Kodak's first prototype digital camera, 1975 Albert Einstein at the opening of New York's World Fair, 1939 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Russian writer, philosopher, and mystic Leo Tolstoy telling his grandchildren a story, circa 1890. [Center] Kodak's first prototype digital camera, 1975. [Right] Albert Einstein at the opening of New York's World Fair, 1939.
(2) Iran's ayatollahs have moved into the digital age, bringing along their antique thoughts!
[Grand Ayatollah Gerami's Web site, showing his answer to a question about whether a man and a woman planning to get married are allowed to look at each other's body.]
(3) Russian operatives pitting Americans against one another: A CNN report reveals that during the 2016 presidential campaign, Russian-sponsored Facebook groups organized two separate rallies at the exact same time and in the exact same location in Texas. One was a rally for Muslims and the other an anti-Muslim rally. Trump's top aides re-tweeted posts by several such Russian groups.
(4) Leaning Tower of San Francisco: The 56-story Millennium Tower is sinking into mud and tilting toward its neighbors. A large contingent of lawyers is fighting it out and blaming various parties as being at fault and, thus, responsible for fixing the problem. Meanwhile, time is running out for implementing a fix.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Philippines volcano erupts, unleashing a giant ash column and molten rocks.
- World's greatest deal-maker: Donald had an idea for ending the shut-down, but Mitch wouldn't buy into it.
- Street artist 'Tom Bob' adds color to mundane object around town. [Photo]
- Tonight's colorful sunset, at the end of a beautiful, spring-like day, captured from UCSB's West Campus.
- The state of trails in the Santa Barbara area, after the fire and mud-flow. [79-minute talk]
- Cartoon of the day: "I don't understand. We followed the directions to a T. We should be there." [Image]
(6) UCSB SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind seminar: Kathleen McDermott spoke today under the title "Individual Differences in Learning Efficiency" at 4:00 PM in Psychology 1312. An alternate title could have been "Individual Differences in Long-Term Memory," as learning is synonymous with long-term retention of knowledge. McDermott was introducted as being the "M" in DRM Paradigm, a procedure in cognitive psychology used to study false memory in humans. The procedure was pioneered by James Deese in 1959, but it wasn't until Henry Roediger (McDermott's spouse) and Kathleen McDermott extended the line of research in 1995 that the paradigm became popular.
Questions addressed by McDermott are listed in one of the slides shown in these images. Her research has shown that fast learners are also better at retaining the knowledge. In particular, "memory athletes," who can memorize long random sequences of digits or order of cards in a deck of cards fairly quickly, are also excellent learners. Even though for one person, making problems more challenging, and thus slowing down the learning process, improves retention, across different learners, learning speed correlates well with improved retention.

2018/01/21 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cartoon: The murdered Iranian protesters will not be silenced (1) Cartoon of the day: The murdered Iranian protesters will not be silenced. [Cartoons like this one support the claim that Iranian cartoonists are among the most creative in the world.]
(2) Paul Ryan (rightly) removes Pat Meehan from the House Ethics Committee, upon learning of the Representative's payoff to settle sexual misconduct allegations. He should apply the same standard everywhere. What's good for the House, is good for the White House!
(3) Quote of the day: "[Tolerance] is the consequence of humanity. We are all formed of frailty and error; let us pardon reciprocally each other's folly—that is the first law of nature." ~ Voltaire
(4) Stephen Miller is brought out from the shadows and blamed for Trump's erratic behavior during government funding negotiations. Senator Lindsey Graham leads the charge against Miller.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Taliban attack on foreigners at Kabul luxury hotel leaves at least 18 dead.
- Missouri governor urged to resign amid allegations that he blackmailed ex-mistress with nude photos.
- Government shutdown: Chinese media characteriz US government as chaotic and chronically flawed.
- Lunatics galore: Texas judge asks jury to return 'not guilty' verdict, because God told him so!
- Wonderful examples of dynamic, virtual-reality art. [3-minute video]
- Girther: Anyone who doesn't believe Trump weighs 239 lb, as announced; where's the girth certificate?
(6) Formalist Quartet in concert: The LA-based group played music by UCSB composers at Carl Geiringer Hall, beginning at 4:30 PM today. The program is shown in one of these images/photos. Heena Yoon's 2018 piece "Penguin, Penguin" was performed with penguin props placed by members of the audience on a round spread representing polar ice-cap, and later removed, as the music contemplated the fate of penguins, once all the glaciers on Earth melt. Nick Norton's 2018 piece "Light Delays," inspired by communication delays in space, had the cellist play notes, which were replicated with various delays by three violinists positioned around the concert hall. The iPad score-sheet is a sign of the times!
The Formalist Quartet is an ensemble dedicated to the performance of adventurous repertoire focusing on contemporary pieces and world premieres as well as exploring a diverse spectrum of early music and the standard repertoire. [Web page]

2018/01/20 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Cover image for Roxane Gay's 'Hunger' (1) Book review: Gay, Roxane, Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Harper Audio, 2017.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Gay is the best-selling author of Bad Feminist: Essays, a 2014 title (now on my to-read list) that criticized "professional feminists" as being out of touch with women who most needed the movement. Hunger is about food, self-image, and the ability to feed your urges while also taking proper care of yourself. Gay writes primarily for women who share some of her challenges and perspectives, but as a male reader, I found myself relating to and learning from her experiences.
Gay's body is the protagonist in this memoir in several different ways. First, because she was obese and, later, overweight, Gay experienced much hardship in way of body-shaming and outright discrimination. Second, having suffered a gang rape at age 12, she carried the scar for life. In fact, the extra-weight problem resulted in part from the rape experience, as Gay tried to wrap herself in what she characterizes as a safer exterior. Third, her skin color as a black woman served as another strike against her. Fourth, her bisexuality intensified and complicated the other problems.
Gay admits her many contradictions. As a feminist who can't bother to learn to fix her car. As an obese woman who seeks acceptance but also wishes she could be smaller. As a promoter of self-confidence who also practices self-loathing. In fact, this last contradiction led to the saddest outcomes, as Gay tolerated one abusive relationship after another, because she thought she didn't deserve any better.
In my view, every feminist (I do count myself as one) should read this book, as it aptly exposes the devastating effects of gender discrimination, combined with racism, fat-shaming, and fear of alternate sexual orientations.
(2) Whoever wrote this headline is more brilliant than the genius in the White House: "Doctor: No heart, cognitive issues." The alternative, "Doctor: No brain, heart problems," would have been just as appropriate!
(3) Joke of the day: Trump's tweet about today's Women's March. "Beautiful weather all over our great country, a perfect day for all Women to March. Get out there now to celebrate the historic milestones and unprecedented economic success and wealth creation that has taken place over the last 12 months. Lowest female unemployment in 18 years!"
(4) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Government shutdown is now in effect, ruining Trump's celebration of his inauguration's anniversary.
- Trump now blames the Democrats, but he once said that any shutdown is ultimately the President's fault.
- US 101 is slated to reopen on Monday 1/22, in time for the early-morning commute.
- PBS Hewshour's coverage of today's nationwide Women's March.
- In the US, 678K Twitter users followed a Kremlin-linked troll account or retweeted/liked one of their posts.
- British teen accessed top-secret US Middle East Ops by pretending to be the CIA Director.
- Cartoon of the day: "It's almost like everything he says gives us a reason to wear a stupid hat." [Image]
(5) Women's Rally/March in Santa Barbara: The rally part in De La Guerra Plaza was extended by a couple of hours and the march along State Street cancelled, because the police had refused to provide security along the route. The gathering was much smaller than last year's and the topics discussed more diffused, hurting the effectiveness of the event's messaging. Here is a small part of one of the many eloquent speeches by young women at today's rally. The speaker aptly reminded us that it's not enough to just be non-racist in our personal lives. We must be actively anti-racist in society. This song ended the rally. [Photos]
[P.S.: Driving to downtown Santa Barbara for the Women's March, I passed by a convoy of 50+ dump trucks on their way back from northern Goleta, where they are currently dumping mud from Montecito clean-up.]

2018/01/19 (Friday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Big Data (1) What is big data? Big data isn't just a lot of data, but is distinguished by four features, the so-called "4 Vs," that create challenges for computer-based applications. One of the Vs is "volume" or data amount. Before elaborating on the other three Vs, let me introduce the terminology used to describe data volumes. Here is a rough guideline:
- KB (kilobyte, 10^3 bytes): One page of text, or a small contact list
- MB (megabyte, 10^6 bytes): One photo, or a short YouTube video
- GB (gigabyte, 10^9 bytes): A movie
- TB (terabyte, 10^12 bytes): Netflix's movies; 4-years' worth of watching
- PB (petabyte, 10^15 bytes): Data held by an e-commerce site or a bank
- EB (exabyte, 10^18 bytes): Google's data centers
- ZB (zettabyte, 10^21 bytes): WWW size, or capacity of all hard drives
- YB (yottabyte, 10^24 bytes): Worldwide daily data production by 2020
The other 3 Vs are "variety" (diverse formats, including unformatted), "velocity" (rate of generation or change), and "value" (worth of the data to an enterprise or application). Dealing with big data requires big storage, big data processing capability, and big communication bandwidth.
I have just finished the first drafts of five articles on big data that will appear in Encyclopedia of Big Data Technologies. The articles and citation for the forthcoming encyclopedia are found in my list of publications, near the top and currently preceded by the codes EBDT0 to EBDT5.
(2) Tomorrow's nationwide Women's March, including here in Santa Barbara, isn't just about Trump, but constitutes a protest about the entire US sociopolitical structure that lets misogynist men control and abuse women at every level, all the way up to the highest office in the land. #Resist #MeToo #TimesUp
(3) Trump's view of the wall has evolved according to his Chief of Staff, but not according to Trump himself.
- "My concept of the wall has not changed or evolved since I first thought of it." ~ Donald Trump
- "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
(4) The man worshiped by Mike Pence and other Bible-thumping conservatives cheated on his first wife with his second wife, cheated on his second wife with his third wife, and cheated on his third wife with a porn star. Being just as promiscuous politically, he has changed party affiliation seven times, according to the book Trump Revealed, which I am about to finish and will review soon.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Amazon and Apple have narrowed down the list of candidate cities for their 2nd headquarters.
- You can't make this stuff up: ISIS rapper who married an FBI spy was killed in a Syria strike.
- The genius in the WH tweeted: "Government Funding Bill past last night in the House of Representatives."
- Robert Mueller's investigative team is exempt from furloughs in case of government shutdown.
- Leaks are good for democracy: Dictatorships survive by keeping corruption and nepotism under wraps.
- FEMA personnel are on site in Montecito to help mudslide victims rebuild, but so are low-life scammers.
- Out of touch with reality: Reality TV crew arrested for trying to smuggle pretend explosives onto plane!
(6) A book I found on the new-arrivals shelf at the UCSB library expands my already-long to-read list by one: Michael M. Gunter, The Kurds: A Modern History, Markus Wiener Publishers, 2nd ed., 2017

2018/01/18 (Thursday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
The evolution of the US-Mexico border wall (cartoon) (1) Cartoon of the day: The evolution of the US-Mexico border wall.
(2) SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind seminar: Roddy Roediger spoke today under the title "Making It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning" at 4:00 PM in Psychology 1312. He began by observing that the typical learning strategy consists of repetition of the study-test cycle. Research has shown that tesing, or retrieval practice, enhances long-term retention and slows forgetting. Testing of memory not only assesses what we know, but changes it. Future recall is facilitated more by testing than by additional study. As an example, use of flashcards is effective because it constitutes a type of testing or active learning. In short, testing should be viewed as contributing to learning and not just as an assessment method. [Slides] [See also the following item.]
(3) UCSB's SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind has llined up an impressive array of lectures for the rest of this academic year. All but one of the lectures are held in Psychology 1312 at 4:00 PM on Mondays.
(4) A wonderful rendition of one of the most moving patriotic songs about Iran: Mohammad Nouri's "Ey Iran." Here is Mohammad Nouri's own rendition. And here is another of Nouri's memorable patriotic songs, "Safar Baraay-e Vatan" ("Journey for the Homeland").
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Interactive before and after photos of the Montecito January 9 mudslide/mudflow.
- Poetic justice: Exposing the anti-immigration immigrants.
- Anne Frank movement: Hundreds of rabbis promise to hide African refugees facing deportation in Israel.
- Twelve-year-old with epilepsy and others in her group will take Jeff Sessions to court on medical pot use.
- Apple's "Text Bomb" bug: A simple text message that crashes iPhones and Macs.
- Tonight's sunset over Devereux Slough: Clouds tend to add to the beauty of sunsets.
(6) Silicon Valley has more foreign workers than domestic ones: If talk of revoking the H1B visa program is implemented, the US tech industry will be in deep trouble. Last year, Microsoft and Google each requested about 5000 such visas, paying the recruited workers an average salary of about $130K.
[P.S.: Here goes the myth of low-paid foreign workers depressing the US job market!]
(7) Hush-money paid to a porn star: Stormy Daniels was reportedly paid $130,000 by Donald Trump's lawyer, Michael Cohen, through a specially formed LLC, just weeks before the 2016 presidential election.
(8) Trump's highly ironic "Fake News Awards" backfire: "The awards, whivh were announced on Wednesday evening (and saw Newsweek take a very respectable eighth place), singled out The New York Times, ABC and CNN for the top spots—but WikiLeaks took the time to remind Trump that his own administration was a 'frequent' source of fake news."

2018/01/17 (Wednesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Laptop computer of 25 years ago vs. today (1) History in pictures: Laptop computer of 25 years ago vs. today.
(2) The identity theft roulette: In his IEEE Computer magazine article, entitled "Equifax and the Latest Round of Idnetity Theft Roulette" (issue of December 2017), Hal Berghel maintains that what we know about the Equifax data breach, which affected half of all Americans, is just the tip of the iceberg. Companies play fast and loose with our personal information, pocketing the profits, and leaving us holding the bag when things go wrong. In another article I was reading yesterday, the claim was made that auto companies are tracking our moves in newer leased or purchased computer-equipped cars and have detailed schemes on how to monetize their information about where we drive. It's frightening to realize that your car company knows more about where you have been than your spouse!
(3) Robotic dragonfly from the 1970s: This spying tool, with an impressive range of 200 m, was built by US intelligence for putting a miniaturized listening device into place, without raising suspicion. It was never actually used, because even the gentlest breeze blew the 1-gram bug-carrying bug off course. [Source: IEEE Spectrum magazine, January 2018]
(4) Secretary of Homeland Security nominee, Kirstjen Nielsen, with her obviously Norwegian name, claimed she didn't know that Norway is a predominantly white country!
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Ex CIA agent arrested for passing classified info, including names of undercover agents, to China.
- Automakers are tapping into our personal data by tracking the vehicles they sell or lease.
- All-time record amount spent on natural disasters in the US during 2017: $306 billion.
- The January 11-18 issue of Montecito Journal documents the mud-flow that devastated the community.
- Time magazine's 2-page spread depicting the rescue of a victim from under the mud in Montecito.
- Last year, for the first time ever , Cadillac sold more cars in China (175,000+) than in the US.
- I was delighted to find this mini-lettuce 6-pack at Ralphs: Perfect size for a single-serving of salad.
(6) What if Jewish immigration had been banned in the 19th century? "[Imagine the implementation of that proposed ban] on what they perceived to be some genetic inferiority. What, in terms of enterprise, genius, imagination, and philanthropy would have been lost to America as a country? And what, in terms of human tragedy, would have ultimately weighed on our conscience? Today, American Jews are widely considered the model minority, so thoroughly assimilated that organizational Jewish energies are now largely devoted to protecting our religious and cultural distinctiveness. Someone might ask Jeff Sessions and other eternal bigots what makes an El Salvadoran, Iranian or Haitian any different."

2018/01/16 (Tuesday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Wonderful Persian calligraphic art plays on the word 'eshgh' ('love'), with its 5 dots (1) Wonderful Persian calligraphic art plays on the word 'eshgh' ('love'), with its 5 dots. [Artist unknown]
(2) Believe it or not: John Tyler, the 10th US president, born In 1790, has two living grandsons. [Both he and the last of his 15 children remarried and had children very late in life.]
(3) We should embrace change brought about by technology, not fear it: The fraction of farmworkers in the US has declined from about 80% a little over two centuries ago to 2% today. This change has come about quite smoothly. Had farmworkers of the early 1800s known that most of their jobs would be lost to automation and productivity improvements, they would have objected vehemently, just as coal-miners and factory-workers are doing today. Freeing 78% of the population to contribute in other ways to our economy was actually a blessing in disguise.
(4) My tweet on the Dunning-Kruger effect is cited in Forbes article: About 46% of men and 30% of women think of themselves as geniuses, whereas the most generous definition of the term, based on IQ scores over 140, qualifies one in every 250 people for the superlative.
(5) End of the world: In the topsy-turvey world of Trump, America is gaining respect among other countries, but we are really ridiculed at every turn, including on this Der Spiegel cover image. Interestingly, Time magazine also uses a similarly unflattering cover image of Trump in reviewing the first year of his presidency.
(6) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- US general to NATO: Russia's decade-long full modernization of its military is a threat to Europe.
- Doctors warn about deadly consequences of holding back a sneeze.
- SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket, designed for carrying humans to Mars, undergoes extensive testing.
- Foiled ISIS plot to blow up the Statue of Liberty with pressure-cooker bombs revealed.
- Inventor Peter Madsen charged with killing and dismembering journalist Kim Wall on his submarine.
- Zambia's tourism office issues new ad in the wake of Trump's racist comments.
- Adamson House in Malibu, California, features floor tiles resembling a Persian carpet.
- Tonight's majestic sunset, photographed over Goleta's Devereux Slough. [Photo]
(7) Debris basin: This is a concept I learned today. For creeks that flow over steep terrains, engineers dig giant basins at regular intervals, so that debris and boulders that are dislodged by flood-waters come to rest there and do not damage structures further downhill. The mud-flow of January 9 in Montecito not only filled all the debris basins but caused them to overflow, leading to the devastation that we witnessed. The next rain may move additional debris, including boulders that have come to rest at various locations in Montecito. The Army Corps of Engineers is working hard to open up large debris basins and move the boulders, some the size of trucks, before the next rain.
(8) On per-capita GDP growth: A GDP growth of 2% would be bad if our population were growing by 3-4%. However, given that the US births minus deaths add about 0.5% to the population and immigration contributes another 0.3% to population growth, a GDP growth rate of 2% translates to a per-capita growth rate of 1.2% per year. Such a growth would produce significant improvement in the standard of living over a decade or two.

2018/01/15 (Monday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Dr. Martin Luther King, photographed by Bob Fitch, in Atlanta, 1966 (1) History in pictures: Dr. Martin Luther King, photographed by Bob Fitch, in Atlanta, 1966. Happy MLK Day! Dr. King's ideas are even more vital today, during the presidency of a bigoted and intolerant person, who, despite mountains of evidence to the contrary, has claimed he is "the least-racist person in the world"; just one of his many blatant lies!
(2) Trump thinks repeating a statement makes it true: "I am the least-racist person"; "There is no collusion"; "I have a very high IQ." The first statement has been proven false repeatedly. Robert Mueller will likely assess the second statement. See Snopes.com regarding the one on IQ.
(3) Computer science tops the list of fastest-growing undergraduate majors at UK universities: The trend accompanies significant increases in the percentage of women in computer science (8.4% increase over three years) and science subjects in general (39% to 42% over four years).
(4) EU's 5-year plan to build the world's fastest computer: The European Union has launched a $1.2-billion project to construct the world's fastest supercomputer by 2023, an exascale system capable of 10^18 calculations per second. The project is seen as a way to challenge the supercomputing prowess of China and the US, which have traditionally dominated the Top-500 supercomputers list.
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Digest of Micheal Wolff's Fire and Fury, for those who don't have the time to read the full book. [Humor]
- A brewery in SLO is using its facility to can water for Santa Barbara residents in need of safe drinking water.
- From the annals of useless research: Causes of death in traditional English folk songs.
- "Having empty pockets is no fun, but even worse is having an empty brain or an empty heart." ~ Anonymous
- Hawaiians make light of the false alarm they got over a ballistic missile attack in progress.
- Projection on Trump International Hotel in Washington, DC.
(6) Santa Barbara County's interactive map allows you to see the destruction caused by mud-flow in Montecito, California. Clicking on a dot reveals the property address and status. The map will be updated as additional inspections are completed. Red dots indicate total destruction, while orange/yellow designates major/minor damage. Blue dots are attached structures. It seems that there were two major flow paths, one in the vicinity of Olive Mill Road and the other about a mile to its east.
(7) Yearning for normalcy: Thomas Fire began in Ventura on December 4 and within a few days, affected Santa Barbara and its surrounding areas. We have been in a state of emergency for more than a month! UCSB's fall-quarter final exams were moved to early January (last week), but the schedule was disrupted when Montecito mud-flows broke out on January 9. Now, winter quarter classes are slated to begin tomorrow, with US 101 still closed and no reopening date specified. This is a bit too much improvisation and uncertainty for my taste. I know, I should be grateful that my house did not burn and no one in my family was buried under tons of mud, but still! On the positive front, the environmental group "Heal the Ocean" has issued a statement on mudslide clean-up efforts and depositing mud on beaches. The statement urges understanding, in the face of immense difficulty of mud removal, where the areas affected may still hold bodies of missing people. The group has been reassured that inspectors are keeping a close watch at the beach dumping sites and that any unsafe load is redirected to an alternate inland site.

2018/01/14 (Sunday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Eight-year-old Samuel Reshevsky defeating several chess masters at once in France, 1920 Women going shopping in Los Angeles, 1960 (photo by Allan Grant, colorized by Kostas Fiev) Queen Elizabeth II greets ... (Can you name the two on the right?) (1) History in pictures: [Left] Eight-year-old Samuel Reshevsky defeating several chess masters at once in France, 1920. [Center] Women going shopping in Los Angeles, 1960 (photo by Allan Grant, colorized by Kostas Fiev). [Right] Queen Elizabeth II greets ... (Can you name the two on the right?)
[Note added on 2018/01/21: A friend pointed out that the boy appears to be losing in every one of the chess matches. I can't independently verify this claim, but trust his word. My apologies for the fake description!]
(2) Bill and Melinda Gates are paying off Nigeria's $76 million debt to Japan. There are two ways you can treat a "shithole": put more shit in it (recall Trump's musing that his rich friends doing business in Africa can make a lot of money there), or remove the shit and help turn it into a livable place.
(3) What happens to books by disgraced authors? In the past, allegation of plagiarism was the main reason for cancelling a book contract or pulling books from shelves. The recent wave of sexual misconduct allegations has resulted in cancellation of multiple book deals. Books already published by such authors continue to sell, some briskly, but they are often re-assigned to less prestigious imprints or publishers. According to Jim Milliot, Editorial Director of Publishers Weekly, "Publishers are not against courting controversy. But it has to be a controversy rooted in ideas." [Adapted from Time magazine, issue of January 15, 2018]
(4) Americans to break meat-eating record in 2018: Per-capita consumption of red meat and poultry is expected to rise to 222 lb (~101 kg). Egg demand will also reach an all-time high. [Source: Time magazine, issue of January 15, 2018]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- The environmental group "Heal the Ocean" issues a statement about depositing mud on beaches.
- Trump likes immigrants from Norway: Here is why they may not be eager to come. [Memes]
- Humor: Reaction in Haiti to Trump's comments on immigration. [Photo]
- Iranian oil tanker sinks after burning for a week, killing 32. [Photo]
- Great answer to a misguided question: Granted, "good" appears in quotes, but what were they thinking?
- Something to remember on the eve of MLK Day about not standing up to evil. [Meme]
(6) Why would anyone dishonor her family to satisfy a childish dictator? RNC Chair Ronna Romney McDaniel dropped her middle name on Twitter after Trump "joked" that she should.
(7) Dumping mud on the beach near UCSB (seen in the background of this photo): My heart goes out to the one-percenters living in Montecito's multimillion-dollar homes, who lost lives and property, but ...
Homes will be replaced (the ~100 lost) or repaired (the ~300 damaged). Even though many residents did not carry flood insurance, there is speculation that because mudslides were caused by Thomas Fire, their fire insurance will provide coverage. The 20 lost lives, ranging in age from 3 to 89, are irreplaceable. They represent unrealized dreams and potentials, and grieving families, who have our deepest sympathy.
Residents of nearby communities, including Goleta, are doing all that's in their power to help. Stories published since yesterday have upset many, however: truckloads of mud, 1000s of cubic yards removed from the Coast Village Road area, are being dumped on Goleta Beach, without any community input. Earlier, authorities had said that speed of search, recovery, and road-opening efforts precluded careful planning and that they are doing the best they can to balance-out various considerations, but the emergency requires quick action.
The dumped mud, it is argued, may contain toxic material, glass shards, plastics, and other debris, which may affect our pristine beach for years to come. Engineers are assuring the public who have gone to the site that the mud will be taken care of by ocean waves and the area will go back to its natural state very soon. My neighbors have been conducting an e-mail discussion on the topic since early this morning. In the words of one, who reacted to reports of mud-dumping on Goleta and Carpinteria beaches, but not in Montecito, "reports read like another example of 1%ers dumping on the rest of us." I will follow up on these stories, because Goleta Beach is one of the favorite spots for me to walk and enjoy the nature. [TV report, with video] [Print report] [Santa Barbara County's press release of 2018/01/12 about mud-dumping on beaches]

2018/01/13 (Saturday): Presenting selected news, useful info, and oddities from around the Internet.
Winston Churchill takes a seat in Hitler's chair, Berlin, 1945 File clerks on electric elevator desks, Prague, 1937 A group of soldiers from the 369th Division, known as 'The Harlem Hellfighters,' World War I (1) History in pictures: [Left] Winston Churchill takes a seat in Hitler's chair, Berlin, 1945. [Center] File clerks on electric elevator desks, Prague, 1937. [Right] A group of soldiers from the 369th Division, known as 'The Harlem Hellfighters,' World War I.
(2) Quote of the day: "When you make a statement like you made yesterday, the question is: 'Do you even understand why we have a Martin Luther King holiday?'" ~ Martin Luther King III, on Trump's scripted statement about honoring MLK
(3) City Council of Washington DC passes a measure to rename the street in front of the Russian Embassy after murdered anti-Putin dissident Boris Nemtsov.
(4) Talk about misjudging a political situation: Early small-scale protests in the city of Mashhad, organized by Iran's hardliners as an affront to President Rouhani in his second term, quickly turned into nationwide unrests threatening the foundations of Iran's clerical regime. [Source: Time magazine, issue of January 15, 2018]
(5) One-liners: Brief news headlines, happenings, and other items of potential interest.
- Journalists struggle to find words/phrases for 'shithole' in Chinese and other languages, Newsweek reports.
- Where governors of states with ocean coastlines stand on Trump's opening of off-shore drilling. [CNN map]
- Merriam-Webster's word of the day is 'reprehensible': it could have just as easily been 'repugnant'!
- The media may be unfair to Trump, but no one empathizes with a bully who treats everyone unfairly.
- Are you curious about your ancestry (humor): If so, then this kit is just what you need.
- Cartoon caption of the day: Patron at the library: "Do you have any why-to books?"
(6) I don't believe Oprah Winfrey should run for US presidency, because, in my view, she isn't qualified. But if she does and wins, consider the contrast between 45 and 46:
Misogynist man vs. Feminist woman; White racist vs. Black activist; Bully vs. Nurturing; Inherited wealth vs. Self-made fortune; Non-reader vs. Book-club champion; Inarticulate vs. Eloquent
(7) Iranians are 15% poorer than a decade ago: This chart shows that the monthly budget of a typical urban household grew for a decade, before declining in the next, during the period 1998 t0 2017. [Source: IranWire]
(8) Recovery from the Santa Barbara mudslides has proven more difficult than anticipated. Mud is being removed from roads and other areas as quickly as possible, but not everyone is approving of where it is dumped. Some is being taken to garbage dumps, but much of it is being deposited on beaches, angering environmentalists. Authorities have revised their estimate of Monday 1/15 reopening for US 101, saying that the highway will remain closed indefinitely.
(9) Final thought for the day: "You may never know their names. They work beneath the headlines and far from the spotlight. When they receive formal recognition from bodies like the Nobel Committee, it is the exception, not the norm. But the fact remains: under the radar, grassroots organizations led by women are quietly changing the world." ~ Melinda Gates, writing under the title "From Mad Men to Marching Women," in Time magazine, issue of January 15, 2018

2018/01/12 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Charging an electric car in 1905 Mme Decourcelle, first female taxi driver in Paris, 1909 Henry Ford with his first automobile, 1896 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Charging an electric car in 1905. [Center] Mme Decourcelle, first female taxi driver in Paris, 1909. [Right] Henry Ford with his first automobile, 1896.
(2) Computers to the rescue: Ancient Coptic codex, deemed too fragile and damaged to open without destroying it, will be scanned through computerized tomography and then converted to legible text using special software.
(3) Released video shows Khamenei doubting his legitimacy to replace the deceased Khomeini as Iran's Supreme Leader: "Pity an Islamic society if even the possibility is raised that someone like me can be its leader," he reportedly told the Assembly of Experts in 1989, arguing that his selection was against the constitution and that clerics wouldn't obey him because he lacked seniority.
(4) Quote of the day: "Most positive developments are not camera-friendly, and they aren't built in a day. You never see a headline about a country that is not at war, or a city that has not been attacked by terrorists—or the fact that since yesterday, 180,000 people have escaped extreme poverty." ~ Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker, writing under the title "The Bright Side" in Time magazine, issue of January 15, 2018
(5) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- US FTC received more than 4.5 million complaints about robo-calls in 2017, writes Time magazine.
- Iran bans teaching of English in primary schools, citing cultural infiltration.
- Eight flu deaths in Santa Barbara County already, nearly 3 times as many as the entire flu season last year.
- Hypocrite-in-Chief talked about honoring Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday. Makes you want to vomit!
- One of the optimist essays in Time magazine's issue of January 15, 2018, was "The Future We Will Make."
- Staff Winter Warmer: Gathering at UCSB, with coffee, pastry, and displays of staff-made handicrafts.
- Cartoon of the day: Trump world map. [Source: The New Yorker]
- Cartoon caption of the day: "The media is fake news, sad, failing, and unfair—OK, let the cameras in." [TNY]
(6) [Final thought for the day] The divide that seems unbridgeable: Here is a comment by a Trump supporter on a Facebook post. I wonder if he and I are talking about the same man. I must admit that this particular supporter is much more eloquent than most, but still ...
"Whatever, however the naysayers wish to deride and denounce President Trump, he is not at all the standard fare of lying politician, but a refreshing reprieve in a man who has strove hard to keep nearly every promise he made to the American people. Far from the slick-talking salesman that America has been stuck with for nearly 100 years, he is a businessman always getting down to business. What I personally know of him after following him for more than 30 years is that Donald Trump is a true patriot determined to bring America back to moral prominence, military dominance and market preeminence. Trump is a great man, doing an impossible job for a spoiled and ungrateful people; a man for this nation's desperate hour. As most people who have impacted their world radically, they stand alone in the midst of overwhelming opposition, doing the necessary work, though hated, because their love for what is right overrides any desire for selfish gain."

2018/01/11 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Photo of Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep in the movie 'The Post' (1) The power of real news: The movie "The Post," showcasing perhaps the best actor and actress of our time (Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep; both sure to get Oscar nods) is an affront to the fakery prevailing in the current US administration and its supporters. Steven Spielberg's retelling of the story of the publication of "The Pentagon Papers" in the 1970s is an ode to the power of real news in shaping our society and politics.
(2) On Fusion GPS's congressional testimony: Republican leaders continue to pretend that nothing was going on between Trump and Russia. Trump's own repetition that there was "no collusion" is reminiscent of Clinton's "no sexual relations," that is, parsing words. I suspect that at some future time, there will be a movie about these events, with Meryl Streep playing Diane Feinstein. Mark my words!
(3) This is Iran, where a handcuffed child is clubbed and kicked by security forces and those witnessing the assault film the incident, instead of intervening.
(4) Mudslides and road closures throw a monkey-wrench into UCSB's final exams for the fall quarter, going on this week: Some 10,000 UCSB undergrads come from "southern counties" (Ventura, Los Angels, and others). Not all are affected by the current emergency, as they may have arrived in Santa Barbara before the US 101 closure. Still, instructors are being asked to be flexible in accommodating unusual circumstances.
(5) Seven brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Search for mudslide survivors continues in Santa Barbara: Death toll is at 17, with 8 still missing.
- In an amazing feat, train service resumes between Santa Barbara and the south. US 101 remains closed.
- What an embarrassment of a President! This is so un-American and below human dignity! (#ShitHole)
- Asking Melania Trump: Do you let your son watch his dad speak? What came of your anti-bullying efforts?
- China's new Tianjin Binhai Library is a feast for the eyes: It houses 1.2 million books.
- Quote of the day: "Prejudice can't survive proximity." ~ Anonymous
- Cartoon of the day: "You know, you do have the right to remain silent!" [Image]
(6) Mind-Altering Devices: This was the title of a SAGE-Center talk today (Psychology 1312, 4:00 PM), with the subtitle "How Smartphones Shape Our Thoughts."
The speaker was tech/culture writer Nicholas Carr, whose new book Utopia Is Creepy collects his best essays, blog posts, and other writings to provide an alternative history of our tech age. Carr's acclaimed 2014 book, The Glass Cage: How Our Computers Are Changing Us, examines the consequences of our growing dependency on computers, robots, and apps. His 2011 work, The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains, was a NYT best-seller. He has also authored two other influential books, The Big Switch: Rewiring the World, from Edison to Google (2008), and Does IT Matter? (2004).
Carr began by observing that technology isn't neutral. When we adopt a tool, we adopt a way of thinking that the tool imposes. In the words of John M. Culkin, "We shape our tools and thereafter they shape us." For example, the invention of mechanical clock changed our way of thinking about time, which then influenced the way we think about and interact with the world around us.
Ours is the age of "compulsive consumption." Most Web pages are viewed for less than 10 seconds. Facebook newsfeed videos are watched for 16.7 seconds on average. We glance at our inboxes 30-40 times per hour (interestingly, if you ask someone how often s/he does this, the answer would be 3-4). Teens text 3300 times per month. Students spend less than 6 minutes on homework before a tech distraction. An average iPhone owner unlocks the device 80 times per day. The average number of iPhone screen touches per day is 2617. Tech media are designed for rapid-fire information consumption, which means constant distraction.
Our adaptation to tech disrupts one of the fundamental ways we turn information into knowledge. Consolidation of information from the thimble of working memory into the bathtub of long-term memory hinges on attentiveness. When you receive information at a very high rate, you don't keep anything long enough to do a good job of consolidation.
Research has shown that the presence of a smartphone near you, even if you don't act on notifications, even if it is turned off, tends to degrade your performance on mental tasks. The same holds for friendships and relationships. Presence of a phone on the table, even if turned off, pulls your attention away from the person you are conversing with. Research by psychologists shows that objects with salience attract much of our attention. And the smartphone carries a lot of salience (see the slide that shows how much important stuff we have on our phones).
There is also disruption of memory known as the Google effect: When we know that something will be easily available to us (say, via a Google search or in a photograph we snap), we are less likely to remember it. The Silicon Valley assumption that more information means sharper thinking is questionable. In reality, the way information is supplied is more important than the amount of information delivered.
We have to be concerned, as makers and users, with how we shape these powerful tools. Where will our deep thinkers and future leaders come from if everyone is so distracted and is incapable of focused thought? There are also positive aspects to these digital tools, when used properly, but the negative will perhaps outweigh the positive if we don't heed the warning signs.
On the way from the Psychology Building back to my home, I snapped these photos of a gorgeous sunset.

2018/01/10 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
A milkman delivers milk after an air raid on London, 1940 Tape recorder, 1932 Princess (later Queen) Elizabeth of Great Britain doing technical repair work during her WW II military service, 1944 (1) History in pictures: [Left] A milkman delivers milk after an air raid on London, 1940. [Center] Tape recorder, 1932. [Right] Princess (later Queen) Elizabeth of Great Britain doing technical repair work during her WW II military service, 1944.
(2) Hundreds of protesters (thousands according to some reports) have been arrested in Iran: Among them, three young men who died shortly after their arrests, purportedly due to suicide, but most likely victims of abuse and torture by security forces. A new report puts the number of "suicides" at five. Nasrin Sotoudeh, human rights defense lawyer and activist, is interviewed about these "suicides" and other developments.
(3) I am amused by Trump supporters lecturing us on morality, over skimpy dresses worn by protesting actresses on Golden Globes Awards night.
(4) Persian Women in Tech: Sepideh Nasiri, founder and CEO of PWIT, aims to alter tech's dreary statistics of women founders and engineers.
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Lawmakers invited to support #MeToo and #TimesUp by wearing black during Trump's first SOTU Address.
- Mudslide death toll at 17: Many Montecito residents were caught off-guard by mudslides and flash-floods.
- Montecito and Summerland residents must boil drinking water: Restaurants in the area ordered closed.
- Before and after photos: Looking north from the Olive Mill Road US 101 overpass.
- Frigid cold in the US, scorching heat in Australia, and, now, sand dunes of Sahara covered with snow.
- More bad news for book lovers: The US chain Book World is closing after 42 years in business.
- Time report: Trump made 1950 false or misleading claims in 347 days in office; an average of 5.6 per day!
- UCSB's Student Resources Building and its surroundings were closed off today due to a suspicious package.
- Celebrities with big-0 birthdays include Jamie Fox (turned 50 on 12/13) and a very attractive 80-year-old.
- A wonderful Persian poem by Foroughi Bastami, and its more readable version on Ganjoor.net.
(6) Trapped in Santa Barbara for the next few days: US 101, providing the shortest route from Santa Barbara to Ventura is still closed and will remain closed until late Monday. Alternate routes through the mountains are in even worse shape and are also closed. Going north, then over the mountains, south on Interstate 5, and west on State Route 126 is at least 3 hours longer than the normal route. A boating company is offering ferry rides between the two cities, as it did during the La Conchita mud-slides many years ago. So for the next 5 days, we are trapped in Santa Barbara. I hope stores don't run out of food, given that much of the supplies comes to us from Los Angeles.
(7) Final thought for the day: Trump has turned his rage to Clinton, DNC, and the media, but his fitness for presidency was questioned by those around him.

2018/01/09 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
 Time magazine cover, issue of January 15, 2018 (1) The optimists: Bill Gates helps edit a special section of Time magazine (issue of January 15, 2018) about optimism, particularly helping kids around the world see their fifth birthdays. He recommends giving to UNICEF and Save the Children. A list of articles in the special section follows.
- Warren Buffet: The Genius of America
- Laurene Powell Jobs: What We Choose to See
- Trevor Noah: The Thing About Millennials
- Malala Yousafzai: Who Runs the World? Girls!
- Lili Cheng: Beauty in the Machine
- Samantha Buds Haeberlein: Closer to a Cure
- Steven Pinker: The Bright Side
- Bono: Why Men Must Also Fight for Women and Girls
- Ava DuVernay: The Future We Will Make
- John Lewis: Necessary Trouble
- Marcus Samuelson: The Kids Table (pictorial)
- Bill Gates (Interview): Hope By the Numbers
(2) Women ruled at Sunday night's Golden Globe Awards: Oprah Winfrey delivered a particularly passionate and pointed speech in accepting the Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award (the first black woman so honored), leading to speculation that she plans to run for president in 2020. I do hope that she remains passionate and politically active in defending the rights of women and other oppressed and disadvantaged groups, but hope that she will support a more qualified candidate for president. [1-minute video]
(3) The silver lining: Having a mentally-disturbed president allows us to learn more about psychology. We are taught from childhood that highly capable people tend to be humbler, whereas marginally capable people tend to flaunt their abilities. In psychology, this cognitive bias is known as the Dunning-Kruger effect. Wikipedia has a good article on the subject.
(4) Largest known prime number gets larger: The set of prime numbers is infinite, but at any given time, the largest known prime is finite, and it grows with time. Right now, the record is held by the Mersenne prime 2^(77,232,917) – 1, which has over 23 million digits.
(5) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Winter storm causes havoc in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties in the wakes of recent wildfires.
- Five people killed in Montecito mudslides, south of Santa Barbara; US 101 closed in both directions.
- Here is another report about devastating floods, debris flows, and mudslides in the Santa Barbara area.
- Pacific railroad through Montecito, near Santa Barbara, suffers major damage from flood and debris.
- US's aging and challenged power grid has responded well to frigid weather, with only minor problems.
- Highway turned into pond: Northbound view of US 101, from Santa Brabara's Olive Mill Road overpass.
- Times Square billboard in New York City supports #TimesUp and #MeToo women's movements.
- Borowitz report (humor): "Trump warns that President Oprah would force Americans to read."
(6) Final thought for the day: By mid-afternoon today, the sun came out in my neck of the woods. A few broken branches were what reminded us of the storm that was, but 10 miles to the south, the devastation tells a different story. According to a live news conference, broadcast on KCLU in late afternoon, firefighters are back in action in Montecito and Carpinteria as search-and-rescue crew. There are 13 confirmed deaths. With many more still missing and dozens trapped in affected areas, the death toll likely to rise. The storm's rain total of 2-4 inches was not that impressive, but some areas got 0.55 inch within 5 minutes, causing flash-floods and debris flow. US 101 is still closed, and it is not knowh when it will re-open.

2018/01/08 (Monday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Cover image of Harper Lee's 'To Kill a Mockingbird' (1) Book review: Lee, Harper, To Kill a Mockingbird, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Sissy Spacek, Harper Audio, 2014.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Having recently perused Harper Lee's Go Set a Watchman, I decided to revisit her classic 1960 book, the one whose critical and commercial success reportedly froze Lee's literary career, owing to her fear of not being able to match the quality of her prior work. Watchman, based on an early draft of Mockingbird, was indeed not in the same league as the latter.
A detailed review of Mockingbird won't be very useful, given the thousands upon thousands of published reviews (Amazon lists more than 10,000 reviews, with an average 5-star rating, and GoodReads offers 75,000, with an average 4.26-star rating). There is a Wikipedia page on the book, an edition of Spark Notes, and many other sources to learn about the book and its significance. So, I will focus on how my perception of the book changed from perusing it a second time, compared with what I remembered from my earlier reading and from the movie based on it.
The main change in my perception of the book is that the trial of a black man falsely accused of rape, with Atticus Finch (the father of the story-teller Jean Louise, nick-named Scout) serving as his court-appointed attorney, was but a small part of the story, whereas it is the part readers tend to remember most vividly.
The book is really about life in a small Alabama town, in which everyone knows everyone else. Most of the large number of characters showing up in the story are cartoonish, but the story as a whole is warm and absorbing. The narrative offers many detours into the peculiarities of rural life and the plight of children and adults who, despite being in what we would consider harsh circumstances, lead life contentedly, if not enthusiastically. Having the story told by a young girl (with her older brother Jem also being a major character) adds to its charm and effectiveness.
Almost all Americans have read Mockingbird as part of school curricula. I strongly recommend a re-reading, in view of racial scabs that, in the words of former RNC Chair Michael Steele, have been turned into fresh wounds by Donald Trump and other people in leadership positions picking at them. If you peruse the audiobook version, you will find that actress Sissy Spacek's voice vastly improves the experience.
(2) Fire and fury over Michael Wolff's Fire and Fury: Trump sent his loyal supporters to Sunday talk shows to defend him against allegations that he is unfit to serve as US President. After a heated interview with CNN's Jake Tapper, White House senior adviser Stephen Miller had to be escorted off the set by security.
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Helping stage Trump's "Fake News" awards could get WH staff in trouble for abusing their powers.
- PDF of Fire and Fury circulates on-line: Unclear whether it's intended to hurt Trump or Wolff & his publisher.
- WH staff: Trump watches 4-8 hours of TV daily, starts meetings at 11 AM, and retires to residence at 6 PM.
- SpaceX successfully launches Falcon 9, world's largest-ever rocket, delivering top-secret satellite to orbit.
- Beware of tax scams that proliferate with the arrival of each new year. [Tips from UC administration]
- United for Children of Kermanshah: Fundraising concert, January 14, 2018, Palace Theater. Los Angeles.
(4) Passages from an article in Germany's Der Spiegel, one of the largest weekly magazines in Europe: "Donald Trump is not fit to be president of the United States. He does not possess the requisite intellect and does not understand the significance of the office he holds nor the tasks associated with it. He doesn't read. He doesn't bother to peruse important files and intelligence reports and knows little about the issues that he has identified as his priorities. His decisions are capricious and they are delivered in the form of tyrannical decrees. ... He is a man free of morals. As has been demonstrated hundreds of times, he is a liar, a racist and a cheat. I feel ashamed to use these words, as sharp and loud as they are. But if they apply to anyone, they apply to Trump. And one of the media's tasks is to continue telling things as they are: Trump has to be removed from the White House. Quickly. He is a danger to the world."

2018/01/07 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Hard-working women from a cotton mill, 1909 This large Times-Square billboard, bought by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, declared that 'War is over if you want it', 1969 Irony, as people wait in a breadline in Ohio, during The Great Depression, 1937 (photo by Margaret Bourke-White) (1) History in pictures: [Left] Hard-working women from a cotton mill, 1909. [Center] This large Times-Square billboard, bought by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, declared that 'War is over if you want it', 1969. [Right] Irony, as people wait in a breadline in Ohio, during The Great Depression, 1937 (photo by Margaret Bourke-White).
(2) Aftermath of Thomas Fire: From south end of Santa Barbara to Carpinteria, flood and debris threaten residents during major storm forecast for the next couple of days. On this map, blue indicates the areas were evacuation may become necessary.
(3) Quote of the day: "What I saw the president do ... was pick at the scab of race, until it became a wound again." ~ Former RNC Chair Michael Steele
(4) Does academia have a sexual misconduct problem? According to this Newsweek article, it does, and the situation is worst in Humanities, history in particular.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Collision of oil tanker and freight ship off the east coast of China leaves 32 people missing.
- Of interest to those who will be traveling in the near future: Widespread delays and flight cancellations.
- While parts of the US suffer from record-low temps, Australian roads are melting from extreme heat.
- US Air Force releases videos showing the interception of two Russian jets over Europe in late 2017.
- Bannon denies statements about Donald Trump Jr. and seems to be begging for forgiveness from DJT.
- Farm animals in search of a stable genius. [Image]
(6) Something's brewing in California: Yesterday's 5.31-PM, magnitude-3.8 quake, centered 8 miles west of my home in Goleta, about 1.4 miles under the ocean, was the latest in a steady stream of smallish quakes in California that may be omens of a larger one in the near future.
(7) Clash over the book Fire and Fury: Appearing with Jake Tapper on CNN, Trump Senior Adviser Stephen Miller seemed to think that he is entitled to ask his own questions, rather than answer the host's questions.
Here is Trump's delusional tweet afterwards: "Jake Tapper of Fake News CNN just got destroyed in his interview with Stephen Miller of the Trump Administration. Watch the hatred and unfairness of this CNN flunky!"
(8) I put in a longer walk than usual today, in anticipation of two rainy days, beginning tomorrow: My walk took me to Cathedral Oaks Rd. and by Goleta Valley Junior High, where all three of my kids attended long ago.
(9) Final thought for the day: Tonight's Golden Globe Awards produced few surprises. I am not familiar with any of the TV shows or actors, so I focus here on movies. Best-film awards went to "Lady Bird" and "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri." Guillermo del Toro was honored as the best director. Male acting awards went to James Franco and Gary Oldman. Female acting honorees were Saoirse Ronan and Frances McDormand. Seth Myers did a good job as host, beginning his monolog with "Good evening, ladies and remaining gentlemen!" Heres the complete list of awards.

2018/01/06 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
One of the first Egyptian women to wear a short dress, early 1960s The Bridge House (Ambleside, UK), an ultimate maneuver in 17th-century tax avoidance, was built on a river between two jurisdictions Curious girl on roller-skates watches army patrol during the Battle of the Bogside, Northern Ireland, 1969 (photo by Clive Limpkin) (1) History in pictures: [Left] One of the first Egyptian women to wear a short dress, early 1960s [Center] The Bridge House (Ambleside, UK), an ultimate maneuver in 17th-century tax avoidance, was built on a river between two jurisdictions. [Right] Curious girl on roller-skates watches army patrol during the Battle of the Bogside, Northern Ireland, 1969 (photo by Clive Limpkin).
(2) Higher education is being undermined: Call me a romantic, but I have a problem with viewing college education as an investment whose pay-off is a job at the end of the line. Higher education isn't an investment by individuals but rather an investment by society and the main pay-offs aren't well-paying jobs, but societal well-being and civility. So, the recommendation of this article, that students must "think like investors" to maximize payoff of college education, is misguided in my humble opinion.
(3) Fashion show, featuring a child bridal outfit, designed to bring attention to the plight of Pakistani girls and raise funds for dealing with the problem. [Video]
(4) Seven brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Clinton Foundation is under active Federal investigation for corruption.
- Feminism is a Zionist plot: Awaiting the reaction of Iranian women to this pronouncement by Iran's Leader!
- Fusion GPS founders ask that their entire congressional testimony be released in lieu of selective leaks.
- Sessions not invited to Trump's Camp David retreat with congressional leaders and cabinet members.
- Weather vs. climate: Day-to-day/week-to-week changes vs. decade-to-decade/century-to-century trends.
- Our stable genius president at work, trying to figure out how this works! [Photo]
- Cartoon of the day: The White House in a blizzard! [Image] [Source: The New Yorker]
(5) The Iran story takes another turn: The Islamic regime is now officially accusing former President Ahmadinejad as having a hand in the ongoing unrests, having previously pointed fingers at Trump, Saudi Arabia, and Israel. Some hardliners are on record accusing Ahmadinejad as being a closet Zionist, and the new narrative of hinting at a coordinated "sedition" by Ahmadinejad (who has a small base of support, but is generally despised in Iran) and hated foreign actors can make the regime's narrative stick. Internal opposition figures (the reformists) are taking a credibility hit, because they stayed silent, offered lukewarm support to protesters, or hedged their bets by playing both sides. There is some hypothesizing that if push comes to shove and the regime is seriously threatened, it will play the ultimate reformist card of bringing to power former officials now under house arrest, to save its behind. The protests are still continuing after two-dozen deaths and a couple of thousands of arrests.
(6) [Final thought for the day] Faux populism: Promising new jobs, higher wages, and great healthcare to the middle and lower classes, while stealing from or defunding social programs to line the pockets of one's rich friends with tax cuts and rollback of regulations put on the books to protect citizens from greedy businesses.

2018/01/05 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Trend in computer science enrollment of women, compared with other professional fields (1) Attracting women to computer science and engineering: UK is among the countries that have realized the importance of facilitating the entry of women to various fields of engineering, particularly computing. Publications of the UK-based British Computer Society (BCS) and Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET) often carry articles about such efforts and their outcomes. We in the US must resume our efforts in this regard, which were quite successful a couple of decades ago, with the fraction of women computing majors rising to 37%, before taking a nosedive and settling at half that level in recent years. Med schools have been most successful in this regard, with the fraction of female students now hovering at just over 50%.
(2) Southernmost part of Switzerland: As I turned on my computer this morning, this breathtakingly beautiful aerial photo filled the screen. Thought I should share!
(3) Michael Wolff talks to "Today Show," as his book about the Trump White House is released: His body language shows discomfort, which is troubling, but he says that after many years of reporting, he has not had a single retraction or even correction. We'll see over the next few days whether his credibility remains intact.
(4) Bad news on the computer security front: Cyber-security experts have discovered two major/widespread security flaws, Meltdown and Spectre. These bugs could enable hackers to steal the entire memory contents of computers, including mobile devices, personal computers, and cloud-network servers. The Intel-specific Meltdown flaw can be exploited by renting space on a cloud service and then taking sensitive information from other customers. The Spectre flaw is more difficult to exploit, but it affects most processors currently in use and there is no known patch. A fix for it may not become available until new-generation chips are introduced.
(5) Quote of the day: "The nuclear arms race is like two sworn enemies standing waist-deep in gasoline, one with three matches, the other with five." ~ Carl Sagan
(6) The Borowitz Report (humor): "Donald J. Trump, legendary among U.S. Presidents for his aversion to reading, demanded on Thursday that members of his White House circle act out Michael Wolff's new book, Fire and Fury, in a command performance in the Oval Office. According to those who witnessed the dramatic presentation, Jared Kushner played the role of Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump played the role of Ivanka Trump, and Sarah Huckabee Sanders played Steve Bannon."
(7) Claiming to have saved Christmas, Trump shows no mercy for science: "After almost a year in office, President Trump has yet to name a science adviser and director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Since World War II, no American president has shown greater disdain for science—or more lack of awareness of its likely costs."
(8) [Final thought for the day] Putting our teenagers in a state of perpetual jetlag: Tonight's PBS Newshour had a final segment about teenagers' biological clocks having been programmed to stay up later and get up later than older folks. Forcing them to start school at 8:00 AM is akin to putting them into a state of perpetual jetlag. The idea of starting schools later isn't new. For me, this is at least the third time over the past couple of decades that I am hearing these arguments for later school start times, yet there has been no action, owing to various purported difficulties such as coordination with parents' work schedules, day-care, and after-school sports programs. As a nation famous for solving the most challenging technical problems, I am surprised that these problems have not been addressed once and for all.

2018/01/04 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cover image of the new book 'Fire and Fury,' along with photos of Trump and Bannon (1) Talk of the town: The new book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, by Michael Wolff, asserts that Trump and his allies expected to lose the election and were preparing to monetize on the fame resulting from an almost-presidency. When he won, and after the initial shock wore off, they started grooming their post-presidency business opportunities. Despite Trump's and his lawyers' temper tantrums, discussions of Wolff's book, which provides fuel for the "unfit" argument as a strategy to unseat Trump, are here to stay. There is just too much weirdness to dismiss it all as "fake news."
The juisiciest accounts come from Steve Bannon (now delegated to the ranks of former coffee-boys, after his open criticisms), whose motivation in dissing his former boss is unclear to me. Bannon has a small group of loyal followers, the Alt-Right, which helped put Trump over the finish line, but in and of themselves, are inadequate to even win House or Senate seats.
(2) Quote of the day: "The small eraser at the end of a long pencil is a reminder that you will have a second or maybe a third chance, but the number of chances is limited." ~ Anonymous
(3) There is unrest in Iran, but people are wary of overthrowing a government in vague hopes that something better will emerge: The 1979 experience, where a coalition of revolutionaries promised sociopolitical freedoms and economic benefits, without having a clue as to how to actually implement reforms (or, if you are a cynic, without even believing in their promises) has made people vulnerable to the Islamic Republic's lies that the uprising is led from abroad. Trump, Israel, and Saudi Arabia egging people on is unhelpful in this regard. As the Persian saying goes, "Having been bitten by a snake makes you fear a black-and-white twine."
(4) To Iranian friends: Please refrain from reposting anonymous calls for street gatherings at specific locations. This is quite dangerous, as those heeding the call may walk into an ambush by the Islamic Republic thugs. I know this is a catch-22 situation, as opposition forces are hesitant to put names of individuals or organizations on their calls, yet there is no responsible alternative to posting material solely from known or verified sources.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines from around the Internet:
- US suspends security assistance to Pakistan: Funds and military equipment are being withheld
- The White House bans use of personal cell phones in the West Wing, citing security concerns
- Iranian expats watch protests unfold throughout Iran with great interest and anxiety
- The Dow Jones Industrial average closed above 25,000 for the first time in history
- Another 39 Sears locations and 64 K-Mart stores are slated to close soon
- Michael Wolff's expose on Trump White House, Fire and Fury, will go on sale tomorrow
(6) Southern California Edison is being blamed for the largest fire in California's history: Details are sketchy, but already law firms are advertising to attract clients to sue SCE for damages in the wake of Thomas Fire.
(7) Crossword-puzzle clock, given to me as a holiday gift by my daughter: It comes with real puzzle clues!
(8) Final thought for the day: In e-mail exchanges among college buddies of 50 years ago, offering new-year's greetings and discussing plans for celebrating our 50th year since graduating from Tehran University's Engineering College (Daaneshkadeh-ye Fanni), I was asked to respond to another member's poem for the occasion. Here is my response in Persian.

2018/01/03 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Iconic image of a young Iranian woman raising a white scarf during recent street protests (1) Iconic image of a young Iranian woman raising her white scarf during recent street protests: Iranian women are on the front lines of the movement to claim social and political rights. White-scarf Wednesdays constitute a symbolic protest against mandatory hijab laws in Iran.
(2) A nice logical-reasoning puzzle: The numbers 1-81 should appear in this partially-filled 9 x 9 grid so that successive values are horizontally or vertically adjacent. [Hint: 6 must go between 5 and 7.]
(3) Resistance is working: Trump signs order dissolving controversial election fraud (aka voter suppression) commission after states buck information requests. [Source: AP]
(4) Trump loves street protesters, except when they march against him, in which case, they are professional protesters incited by the media.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Steve Bannon joins the ranks of former coffee boys in the Trump campaign and White House!
- A smallish Target store is coming to Santa Barbara's upper State St., corner of La Cumbre Rd.
- First drops of rain from a minor storm just showed up in Goleta. More welcome rain will arrive next week.
- America-first leads quite naturally to me-first: Everything else is considered socialism.
- Donald Trump and Mike Pence celebrating the New Year: "That's more like it!" [Cartoon]
- More cartoons: Bully seen by parents as presidential material [Image 1]; The art of distraction [Image 2]
(6) Is life in your country for people like you better now than it was 50 years ago? This is the question asked by the Pew Research Center of 43,000 people in 38 countries (unfortunately, not including Iran). Here are the percentages of 'yes' answers for some of those countries: Vietnam (88%); South Korea (68%); Russia (50%); USA (37%); Italy (23%); Venezuela (10%). [Map]
(7) My comment on a friend's Facebook post, purportedly showing women being mistreated at Kahrizak (a notorious prison in Iran), claiming that the "real" video has been released by former Iranian president Ahmadinejad, now considered an opposition member: "Kahrizak happened during Ahmadinejad's presidency by his close allies and friends. To think that he cares about people of Iran by releasing such a video is simple-minded at best. This is most definitely a forgery. [P.S.: I am not saying that women, and men, weren't tortured or otherwise mistreated, only that this particular video is fake.]"
(8) NASA aims for late-2019 flight test of Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, our next-generation deep-space launch vehicle. [Time magazine]
(9) Space exploration, including going to the moon again, will be challenging, to say the least: In 1966, NASA was allocated 4.4% of the federal budget, compared with today's 0.5%. [Time magazine]

2018/01/02 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Rare photo of Hoover Dam from behind, taken during construction, 1936 Bertha Benz driving the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, 1886 Russian soldier carries a statue head of Hitler, Berlin, May 1945 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Rare photo of Hoover Dam from behind, taken during construction, 1936. [Center] Bertha Benz driving the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, 1886. [Right] Russian soldier carries a statue head of Hitler, Berlin, May 1945.
(2) Unrest in Iran: A Facebook friend's apt warning about exercising care before accepting reports on street protests. There is an unusually high degree of misinformation and disinformation, which is further muddled by quite a few external actors trying to advance their agendas by encouraging and directing the protests.
(3) Cartoon of the day: #MeToo Productions presents "Twilight of the Creeps" [Full-page LA Times cartoon, resembling ads for blockbuster movies]
(4) Half-dozen notable headlines from Newsweek on-line:
- Mike Pence promises Trump won't repeat Obama's 'shameful mistake' on Iran protests
- China's new hypersonic missiles could hit anywhere in the US in under an hour: Chinese experts
- Gretchen Carlson takes over as Miss America's board chair in the wake of sexual misconduct scandal
- GOP needs new leadership after backing a president who has promoted conspiracy theories: Expert
- Vandal paints swastikas on mosque, but Muslims pay fine to keep him out of jail
- US ignores terrorists, Pakistan says, as ambassador summoned over Trump's lies-and-deceit tweet
(5) Kenichi Yamamoto, Father of Mazda's revolutionary rotary internal combustion engine (invented by German engineer Felix Wankel), dead at 95: The engine has few moving parts and is thus more reliable than conventional car engines, with their reciprocating pistons, connecting rods, and crankshafts.
(6) Playground taunt: My dad is richer than your dad! Presidential taunt: My nuclear button is bigger than your nuclear button!
(7) The world's last case of polio may have already happened: We will know for sure soon. [From an article by Jefferey Kluger, Time magazine, double-issue of December 25, 2017, and January 1, 2018]
(8) Final thought for the day: "A man raised with access to the same gamut of emotions and choices as women does not say, "Women are special," as Donald Trump recently averred after disbelieving Roy Moore's accusers; he does not delegate sugar and spice and humility and gentleness to the ladies, while defining himself through anger, lust and pride. Boys will not be merely boys. If we let them, boys will be human." ~ Faith Salie, in her "Viewpoint" column entitled "How to Raise a Sweet Son in an Era of Angry Men" (Time magazine, double-issue of December 25, 2017, and January 1, 2018)

2018/01/01 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Happy new year image (1) A very happy New Year to everyone! Hoping that your new year is filled with laughter, I'll get you started with a few funny new-year's resolutions.
"To tolerate fools more gladly, provided this does not encourage them to take up more of my time." ~ James Agate
"To love myself as Kanye loves himself and to believe in myself as Kanye believes in himself." ~ Anonymous
"To stop doing all the stuff I resoved to do in 2017." ~ Anonymous
"To catch up on my resolutions for 2015, 2016, and 2017." ~ Anonymous
"To break all my resolutions on January 1, because it would free up the rest of the year!" ~ Anonymous
"What's the point of new-year's resolutions? You can make resolutions and give up on them a few days later any time of the year." ~ Anonymous
(2) Socially responsible design and use of computers: The organization Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility (CPSR) took shape during 1981-1983, in the wake of concerns for the feasibility and safety of the proposed SDI missile defense system and, more generally, the perils of using computers in warfare. Later, it broadened its activities to educating policy-makers and the public on the responsible use of computer technology, given the potential adverse impact of technology on societal well-being. The organization was dissolved in 2013, purportedly because there were quite a few other entities (including professional computing societies, such as IEEE and ACM) that pursued aspects of its agenda. One could argue that social responsibility and professional ethics must be built into engineering curricula, so that no product is ever developed or no policy advocated without consideration of its social impacts, thus obviating the need for a separate advocate and watchdog. However, in the fast-paced, goal-oriented world of high-tech, ethical considerations are sometimes not given their proper dues, creating the need for on-going reminders to both computing professionals and technology policy-makers.
(3) Isfahan's Friday Prayers Leader, a close ally of Iran's Supreme Leader, says he is shocked by protesters on the streets chanting "death to Khamenei" and praise for the former Shah and monarchy.
(4) Polls show that Biden would beat Trump overwhelmingly in 2020: Even if true, my advice to the Democratic Party would be to look beyond 2020 and go for fresh faces. Beating Trump should be easy, so take the opportunity to rebuild the party. Future young voters will not stomach a government with Biden (77-81 during a possible first term) at the helm, flanked by Pelosi (79-83) and Schumer (69-73) as congressional leaders.
(5) Seven brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Sea-plane crash into a Sydney river kills the CEO of a major company and five close family members.
- Trump halts Obama's $13 billion Amtrak plan to rebuild a crucial passageway from NJ to NY.
- World's youngest female leader: Jacinda Arderns quick wit and humility won over New Zealanders.
- Australia bars registered child-sex offenders from international travel. [Time magazine]
- Quote of the day: "Write your sorrows in the sand and carve your blessings in stone." ~ Anonymous
- Former-President Obama shares on Facebook his 2017 reading list and playlist.
- On January 1, 1999, the day after I signed up for Facebook. I became friends with my daughter. [Video]
(6) How to overcome the holiday blues: Five pieces of advice from celebrities, according to Time magazine (double-issue of December 25, 2017, and January 1, 2018).
- Katie Couric: Cherish lost loved ones while enjoying those you have.
- Robin Roberts: If illness changes your traditions, build new ones.
- Patton Oswalt: Don't fear a holiday alone.
- Kesha: Care for yourself before looking after everyone else.
- Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly: After tragedy, try a simpler celebration.
(7) A forgotten 100-year-old therapy using the bacteria-eating phage virus is saving patients infected with antibiotic-resistant bugs (superbugs). [Time magazine]
(8) Final thought for the day: "I remember what it was like before penicillin. I lost a lot of my classmates. It could happen again. If we don't deal with antibiotic resistance in real time, it will get worse." ~ Dr. Carl Merril, an early phage therapy pioneer, quoted in Time magazine

Blog Entries for 2017

2017/12/31 (Sunday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Ten top new-year's resolutions (1) [Reposting from years past] New year's resolutions: Everyone makes them, but very few keep them. The culprit here may be the overambitious nature of most people's resolutions. Make small, incremental changes and build up on them. If you don't exercise at all, resolve to do it for one minute, rather than half an hour, per day. As Oliver Burkeman suggested in his Newsweek magazine article, issue of December 24, 2012, "willpower is a depletable resource: the more of it you use making one change, the less you'll have left over to make others. Pushing yourself to exercise leaves you more susceptible to burgers."
(2) Los Angeles Times reports on anti-regime protests in Iran: The protesters are said to be motivated by economic hardship and government corruption. There are some reports that the demonstrators did not represent democratic forces. One version attributed the unrest to Ahmadinejad and his followers. Another report pointed the finger at Mujahedin-e Khalgh. A third report credited royalists, who want the return of monarchy. Of course, these reports may have been planted by the mullahs, who control a vast media empire. Nothing coming out of Iran can be trusted. A fourth, more plausible, report claimed that government hardliners organized the protests as an affront to Rouhani's government but that they then lost control of the crowd, who began chanting anti-Khamenei slogans. The official Islamic Republic response is, as usual, off-target, blaming Trump and the US government. Nothing coming out of Iran can be trusted. I'll have to do some research before forming an opinion.
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Women's March Santa Barbara: De La Guerra Plaza, Saturday, January 20, 2018, 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM
- Killings of cops and others continue, while only thoughts and prayers are offered in response.
- Facebook's reminder of the 9th anniversary of my membership, which began on December 31, 2008.
- A year-in-review album created by a Facebook friend, to which I contributed a photo and a message.
- Julie Andrews' wonderful rendition of "Auld Lang Syne": A very happy New Year's Eve to everyone!
- New Year's Eve with my family members, in Ventura, California. [Photos]
(4) What makes America great is innovation and know-how, not confrontation and flag-waving: In a "Historical Reflection" article in Communications of the ACM (issue of January 2018), Thomas Haigh writes under the title "Defining American Greatness: IBM from Watson to Trump," using IBM as an example of what makes America great. "Decade after decade, IBM has been one of the world's largest, most profitable, and most admired companies. Of all American businesses, only General Electric, Apple, Microsoft, and ExxonMobile have generated more wealth. Despite recent troubles, it has been ranked in the 2010s as the number one company for leaders (Fortune), the greenest company (Newsweek), the second most valuable global brand (Interbrand), the second most respected company (Barron's) and the fifth most admired (Fortune)." Putting it succinctly, greatness results from long-term investments in new technologies and platforms that might be deemed risky.

2017/12/30 (Saturday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Chart showing the level of destruction caused by various quakes on the Richter scale (1) Richter scale for earthquakes: Prompted by a Telegram message that contained inaccurate claims, I did some research from Wikipedia, US Geological Survey's Web site, and other sources. Quakes that we can feel have magnitudes of 3.0 or more, although the logarithmic scale has no bottom and the rating can go to zero or below zero. The more destructive earthquakes range in magnitude from 5.5 to 8.9. One-point difference in Richter scale represents a ten-fold difference in amplitude and an approximate 32-fold change in destructive power (10^1.5 = 31.6, with the 1.5 exponent relating amplitude to the energy released).
(2) Bertrand Russel on science: "Science is at no moment quite right, but it is seldom quite wrong, and has, as a rule, a better chance of being right than the theories of the unscientific."
(3) Mahmonir Nadim, an amputee who left Iran 5 years ago and now lives in Sao Paulo, Brazil, shares her life story and sings about women's ordeal in Iran. [4-minute video]
(4) Seven brief items from Newsweek on-line and other sources:
- Ban on openly-transgender military recruits practically reversed
- Year-end parties across the US will be affected by super-cold weather
- Here's a down side of untraceable cash: Crypto-currency expert kidnapped for $1 million ransom in Bitcoin.
- Louisiana man, 67, found to be behind "Nigerian Prince" e-mail scams
- Putin vows Russia will keep permanent presence in Syria
- Man guns down his California law-firm co-worker, before shooting himself
- The Dems are back with fresh new faces: SNL skit
(5) Nectarines, an excellent indie band, will perform along with other groups on January 13, 2018, at the Echo (1822 W. Sunset Blvd.) in Los Angeles, beginning at 8:00 PM. [Sample music]
(6) Trump claims that he has brought "Merry Christmas" back: Let's see if President Obama had declared a war on Christmas! [Video of the Obamas saying "Merry Christmas" repeatedly]
(7) It is extremely difficult to keep track of Trump's blatant lies and misleading statements, which are issued at a high rate, but some are striving to keep a record: To mimic Trump, "During 2017, we have had the largest number of presidential lies in the history of this country; believe me!"
(8) Of possible interest to friends in the Los Angeles area: I was researching events in the Los Angeles area during the first half of January, and found some that interest me. Sharing the Web link and the events I found.
01/01-07: Lights at the Zoo, Griffith Park
01/01-07: Enchanted Forest of Light, La Canada Flintridge; a one-mile walk through lighting displays
01/02: La Brea Tar Pits, free museum day, 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM, with on-line ticket reservation
01/08-14: Santa Monica's Restaurant Week, featuring meals using a chosen ingredient (pomegranate)
01/12-14: Sondheim musical "Into the Woods," Cupcake Theater, evening, 11020 W. Magnolia, N. Hollywood
01/13: Free classical concert at SGI Auditorium, 525 Wilshire Blvd., 2:00-4:00 PM; Santa Monica Symphony
01/15: LACMA free museum day in honor of MLK
[Also of possible interest: LA Weekly's concert calendar, which is sortable by various keys.]

2017/12/29 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
LA's Staples Center, tonight (1) Mementos of a failed attempt to watch a basketball game at Staples Center tonight: By the time a friend and I got there, only super-expensive seats were available, even if we opted for two singles. The game was between the Lakers and the Clippers, which essentially doubles the number of locals flocking to the arena. We made it a night-on-the-town instead, dining and going to see the movie "All the Money in the World," the story of the kidnapping of J. Paul Getty's grandson, of the gruesome "ear sent in the mail" fame. There was as much intrigue in the making of the film as in the story itself, with Christopher Plummer replacing the disgraced Kevin Spacey just a few weeks before the film's scheduled release date.
[PS: Having lost the previous two matches against the Clippers this year, the Lakers sought revenge, but they ended up losing 106-121.] http://www.facebook.com/bparhami/posts/10155982549517579
(2) Having served up more whoppers than Burger King, it was only natural that Trump would win PolitiFact's "Lie of the Year" award! The lie that earned him the distinction is the May 2017 statement, "This Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made-up story," a lie that he has repeated in various forms many times.
(3) Trump gives an interview to NYT and, suddenly, it's no longer "the failing New York Times"; rather, it is now a paper that would fail without Trump!
(4) Mission accomplished, not: Trump claims that he destroyed ISIS (before it struck again in Afghanistan) and that he won the non-existent war on Christmas.
(5) Most Americans dream of having a white Christmas, but this year it got a little too white for some! Hope everyone stays safe in the ongoing blizzard conditions!
(6) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- New York City fire kills 12: Casualties are expected to rise. At least 4 children are among the dead.
- Investigators looking into the contents of Huma Abadin's e-mails found on Anthony Weiner's computer
- Hotels are doing away with "Do Not Disturb" signs to allow daily checks on rooms.
- Quote: "Don't explain. Your friends do not need it, and your enemies will not believe you." ~ Paulo Coelho
- Humor: NRA will endorse the new Apple iGun. [Video]
- Concert performer's 98-year-old grandma steals the show when she is brought on stage.
(7) Protesting mandatory dress code, World chess champion won't go to Saudi Arabia to defend her titles: Saudi Arabia has its backward laws, but why is the Chess Federation so insensitive to restrictions on women?
(8) Apparently America has already become so great that we don't need the HIV/AIDS Council: Trump fires all Council members by FedEx letter in retaliation for their criticism of White House Policy.
(9) RISC, 35 years later: This is one in a series of articles celebrating the 50th anniversary of IEEE Computer Society by revisiting key topics that have appeared in IEEE Computer magazine over the years. This article, by the UC Berkeley researcher who coined the term "RISC" and designed one of the first processors of the type, examines how the notion of reducing or simplifying instruction sets has affected the progress of computer technology since 1982. Even though CISC, or complex instruction set computers, represented most prominently by Intel's 80x86 architecture, won the battle in the PC and server markets now dominating cloud installations (ironically, offering high performance by translating the complex 80x86 instructions into simple underlying instructions, which are then executed by RISC-like hardware), currently 99% of all processors shipped are RISC products from ARM, MIPS, POWER, and SPARC, to name a few. Products for the mobile market just can't afford the chip real estate needed by CISC's translation mechanisms and their attendant power usage. This is why close to 100% of Apple and Android phones and tablets use RISC processors. It is estimated that Amazon, Google, and Microsoft clouds collectively contain about 10M servers, which is only 4 hours' worth of RISC chip shipments in 2017. [Source: Patterson, David, "Reduced Instruction Set Computers Then and Now," IEEE Computer, December 2017, pp. 10-12.]

2017/12/27 (Wednesday): Hoping to make a dent in my book reviews backlog, I offer two reviews at once.
Cover image for Susan Cain's 'Quiet' (1) Book review: Cain, Susan, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking, unabridged audiobook on 9 CDs, read by Kathe Mazur, Books on Tape, 2012.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Introversion is a misunderstood human trait, often confused with shyness or self-doubt. Shy people fear negative judgment, whereas introverts prefer quiet, minimally-stimulating environments. We learn form this book that shyness/assertiveness and introversion/extroversion are orthogonal dichotomies, producing four distinct categories of people. Shy extroverts are exemplified by Barbra Streisand, who has an outgoing personality but is at times paralyzed by stage fright. A shy person and an introvert may both sit quietly at a board meeting, one being afraid to speak up and the other clammed up from overstimulation. Given the similar outward signs, it's no wonder the two traits are mixed up.
Far from being insecure, coy, or anti-social, many introverts simply thrive on contemplation and self-examination. They make great business or political leaders. We owe some of the most exquisite works of art and many of our greatest scientific and technological innovations to introverts. Yet, introversion, like shyness, is viewed as a negative trait in many Western societies, and introverts are often disenfranchised in our world, which is increasingly enamored with fast-talkers and jokesters. Ours is a "culture of personality," which has grown to over-value extroversion.
By providing many examples of successful introverts, and drawing upon the latest psychological research, Cain convinces us that introversion isn't a dysfunction, but rather a totally legitimate way of experiencing the world and contributing to it. Cain doesn't just provide validation to introverts but much practical advice on how to overcome the many barriers they face.
Every introvert should read Quiet. Writing on Amazon.com, reviewer Karen Hall states that this book saved her life. Her personality was poorly matched to the demands of a noisy, stressful work environment, with frequent face-to-face interactions, that did not allow any recharging, before getting on with a difficult assignment. From Cain's book, Hall learned that she needed to take action, which eventually led to accommodations by her boss to work from home part or all of the time. Reading Quiet can also benefit extroverts. Just as introverts occasionally play extroverts when absolutely required, the reverse process is also useful, given that solitude facilitates creativity. [This 19-minute TED talk by Cain contains most of the key ideas in the book.]
Cover image of Dan Harris's '10% Happier' (2) Book review: Harris, Dan, 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help that Actually Works, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Harper Audio, 2014.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This is the story of an ABC News reporter (with stints on "Nightline," "Good Morning America," and weekend evening news), who was once told by his boss that, realistically, he would never land a news anchor's position, because he lacked the requisite looks and voice, so he had better take the "Nightline" position he was being offered. This is one of the anecdotes Harris relates in his well-written and compelling book. Early in his career, Harris struggled with self-confidence issues and anxiety attacks, which drove him to drug and alcohol abuse.
The book's account is honest and full of interesting insights about our selfish tendencies. Harris admits that he has been a jerk for much of his life and that he experienced psychological lows when he did not get the assignments he coveted at work. He was always on edge and felt jealousy toward colleagues who did get the best assignments. He names Peter Jennings and Diane Sawyer as two of his most influential mentors and the people who kept him going, when the going got tough.
Harris's personal pursuit of the happiness formula, alongside his professional assignments (Peter Jennings made him the religion correspondent for ABC News), got him to mingle with self-help and spirituality gurus, such as Eckhart Tolle and Deepak Chopra. He also delved into Buddhism, approaching spirituality as a skeptic throughout. Learning about science-based methods caused Harris to settle on meditation as a key to finding inner peace and happiness. He did struggle with the seeming contradiction of a meditative existence with the drive needed to achieve success in news and other competitive businesses, but eventually came to the conclusion that the two are not mutually exclusive.
The "10% happier" moniker is what Harris devised for responding to skeptics, when they learned about his meditation and spiritual pursuits and pressed him about the results. He advises that meditation strengthens your brain in the same way that curls exercise your biceps. It prepares you for responding, rather than reacting, to events. It inserts a very short delay between stimulus and response, so that you can decide whether you want to say or do what the voice in your head is urging. Consider it the mental equivalent of the short delay inserted in certain live TV shows to guard against the broadcasting of profanities.
If you find yourself uninterested in the book or unwilling to spend much time on it, this 50-minute video of the author's talk and Q&A at Google isn't a bad substitute.

2017/12/26 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
50th and 30th anniversaries to be celebrated at the end of June 2018 (1) Two important anniversaries are coming up for me at the end of June 2018: As the year 2017 draws to a close, prompting me to think about what's coming in 2018, I see the end of my 30th year of service as Professor at UC Santa Barbara, and passage of 50 years since graduating from the Engineering College (Daaneshkadeh-ye Fanni) of Tehran University.
My first 16 (pre-UCSB) years of teaching/research as Assistant/Associate/Full Professor were spent thus: 1.5 years at UCLA; 12 years at Sharif University of Technology (5 years before and 7 years after the Islamic Revolution); 2.5 years in Canada, at Waterloo and Carleton Universities.
Although I did not come to the US as a refugee, practically speaking, I sought refuge here from religious persecution and denial of professional opportunities in my motherland. As I approach retirement, and the kids branch out to become independent adults, I marvel over the trek that took me from a first-grader in Tabriz (where my father was based at the time, as an engineer for Iran's National Railroad) to a recognized expert in computer engineering education and research. A tumultuous journey as it was unfolding, but one that seems rewarding, when I look at it from a point near the end of my career!
(2) The market is overdue for a correction, and when it happens, it will be the Democrats' and media's fault, not Trump's, who took credit for its rise.
(3) Trump's threat to cut funding to countries that opposed the Jerusalem decision shows that he sees US resources as his personal assets.
(4) Christmas Day in Fremont, CA: After having brunch at Black Bear Diner, I headed with a group of family members to Coyote Hills Regional Park for a 4-mile hike to burn off some of the calories! Later in the day, we had a traditional Jewish-Chinese dinner at Ho Chow Restaurant!
(5) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- A new study casts doubt on the effectiveness of calcium and vitamin-D supplements for bone protection.
- A racist Christmas tradition continues in the Netherlands.
- California's Thomas Fire ended up becoming the State's largest fire ever: A dubious distinction!
- Trump makes his own presidential coin. [Photo]
- After signing the GOP tax bill, Trump told dinner guests at Mar-a-Lago "you all just got a lot richer."
- Looking from behind the windows of a tainted presidency, the FBI, the press, and all else appear tainted.
- Trump thinks the money we pay to the UN is in return for favorable resolutions, a kind of fee for service!
- Seven women to watch in 2018: Three Senators, three Representatives, and an Ambassador. [Image]
(6) With friends like these, who needs enemies? An Iranian woman official, supposedly in charge of women's and family affairs, argues against a law written to protect women from domestic violence, saying that the law would weaken the head-of-household's authority and lead to women dodging their responsibilities.
(7) Strolling in San Francisco the day after Christmas Day: Our small group began at the Ferry Building, exploring its wonderful market and bayfront views, and walked to Pier 45. Along the way, we heard a saxophonist playing Christmas music next to a giant Christmas tree. [Video] We were lucky to be there on a gorgeous sunny day (with mild temperatures and little wind) for visiting unique shops, fine dining, and checking out World War II ships. [Photos] In the afternoon, we visited Ghirardelli Square and ended the day by going to Union Square to see its Christmas decorations. [More photos]

2017/12/24 (Sunday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Merry Christmas (1) A very merry Christmas to everyone: Hope your holidays are joyous and filled with love!
(2) Quote of the day: "Government is instituted for the common good: for the protection, safety, prosperity, and happiness of the people; and not for the profit, honor, or private interest of any one man, family, or class of men." ~ John Adams
(3) 'Like's and other addictive social-media features: Did you know that Facebook estimates your mood and feeds you posts and ads accordingly? I scanned this article quickly, but will have to reread it to take in its numerous insights.
(4) The "84 Club," a group of 1984 UCSB graduates, dedicated this campus pyramid "in their hopes for international peace in the Olympic year." [Photos]
(5) Criticism of the GOP tax bill might sink in better when it comes from a member of the 1%: Millionaire shows his 2015 tax return to demonstrate how the just-passed GOP tax bill further enriches the wealthy. He claims that "tax reform" was Trump's greatest con, allowing him to turn a $50M investment in his campaign into a multi-billion-dollar bounty.
(6) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Mystery solved: Angelinos thought they saw a UFO, but it was actually a Space-X rocket launch.
- Rome's new subway dig unearths archaeological treasures.
- Trump won Alabama by 28 points and Texas by only 9 points. Ted Cruz's 2018 opponent feels optimistic.
- For the first time in US history, more women are enrolled in med schools than men.
- Robot drummer shares jamming session with FB friends.
- Seth Meyers explains Bitcoin: See if you can understand the crypto-currency from this smart comedy skit!
- Azeri music and dance from the Iran of yore, ~1971. [Video]
- Part of a Kurdish song performed by Iranian folk singer Sima Bina. [1-minute video]
- Modern Persian music: "Gol-e Goldun," performed by Celeste Buckingham. [4-minute video]
- Funny tale about two stoned guys driving a Volvo, with the Lone Ranger in the back seat. [5-minute video]
(7) Application development strategies for exascale computing: In an interview with HPCwire, three DOE scientists dicuss the 2017 book, Exascale Scientific Applications: Scalability and Performance Portability, which has been two years in the making. The book is co-edited by Tjerk Straatsma, Scientific Computing Group leader at the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility; Katerina Antypas, Data Department Head at the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center; and Timothy Williams, Deputy Director of Science at the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility.
(8) Bannon throws Kushner under the bus to save his former boss: He asserts that naive Jared went head-first toward the Russians (and disses Ivanka too). In his Vanity Fair interview, Bannon, having up to now dismissed the Russia probe as a deep-state ploy, says that Kushner was "taking meetings with Russians to get additional stuff. This tells you everything about Jared ... They were looking for the picture of Hillary Clinton taking the bag of cash from Putin. That's his maturity level." The Vanity Fair article contains many more juicy tidbits. Expect additional quotes from and tweets about it in the coming days.

2017/12/23 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Calligraphic rendering of verse in a Sa'adi poem (1) Calligraphic rendering of a verse in a Sa'adi poem, particularly apt in view of the ongoing wildfire in our area. English translation is mine. [Calligrapher unknown]
Your fire burned me and thus rose the smoke of delight
You didn't come beside me to extinguish the flames
(2) The party that cut Amtrak funding twice, under Bush and Trump, sends its thoughts and prayers to the victims of the derailing near Seattle, just as it sends thoughts and prayers after every mass shooting, while proceeding to relax regulations on gun ownership. Trump's budget cut $630M from Amtrak's construction grants.
(3) Ventura's Via Ondulando neighborhood: While Santa Barbara and Montecito were spared by Thomas Fire, Ventura wasn't so lucky. Each fire symbol on this map marks one burned house. [From: Ventura County Star]
(4) A local Santa Barbara news anchor (Beth Farnsworth Ward) shows off one of the ways in which our community is paying tribute to the selfless firefighters who have been working hard for more than two weeks to protect us from #ThomasFire.
(5) Here is how UN members voted on the resolution to condemn US's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The resolution passed overwhelmingly, with all major US allies voting for it. US is perfectly within its rights to offer such a recognition, but it overstepped the bounds of diplomacy and international tact when it threatened to "take names" of countries that vote for the resolution. This is bullying, plain and simple! [Israel, USA, and the following 7 countries were the only 'no' votes: Guatemala, Honduras, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Togo]
(6) Seven brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Former US Marine and ISIS sympathizer arrested for planning a SF Pier-39 terror attack on Christmas Day.
- White Nationalists are upset that Trump and mainstream Republicans have discarded their policies.
- Alt-Right, upset by 'feminist agenda' and 'gay' Luke Skywalker in "Star Wars," is trying to hurt its ratings!
- Sexual harassment culture was not limited to the white-collar world, as Ford factory workers are indicate.
- Meanings of Persian-Jewish Surnames: List compiled by Ephraim Dardashti [PDF file]
- Cartoon of the day: Dessert, American style. [Image]
- Kurdish music from Syria: Accompanied by scenes from life in rural Kurdistan. [5-minute video]
(7) Quote of the day: "The price of the tax bill has to be measured not only in the loss American society will face in the increase in inequality, in the impact on public health, and the growth of the deficit, but also in the damage to political culture inflicted by the spectacle of one powerful man after another telling lies of various sorts. ... The lies told by powerful men—and the thanks heaped on the most powerful man of all—are the language of a dictatorship." ~ Masha Gessen, writing in The New Yorker
(8) Trump tweet: The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 in favor of additional Sanctions on North Korea. The World wants Peace, not Death!
My response: Yes, peace is what the world prefers! That's why the same 15 UN members voted along with 113 other nations to condemn the unilateral US decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
(9) Final thought for the day: Even Kim Jong Un won't say to his people "I'm starving you to pay for nukes." He says "I'm fighting to bring you greatness."

2017/12/21 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest. [Movement of the day: #VoteThemOut]
Elephant goes shopping in this Georges Dambier photo, Paris, 1950s Drunk man rests after a night of celebrating the end of Prohibition, 1933 Private James (Jimi) Hendrix of the 101st Airborne Division, 1962 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Elephant goes shopping in this Georges Dambier photo, Paris, 1950s. [Center] Drunk man rests after a night of celebrating the end of Prohibition, 1933. [Right] Private James (Jimi) Hendrix of the 101st Airborne Division, 1962.
(2) Technology breakthrough: Israeli researchers develop a method of converting images from ordinary cameras into hyperspectral images that provide clues about material and other non-visual attributes of objects within the field of view.
(3) The next time you think a single vote makes no difference, consider this: A recount in Virginia has led to the Democratic candidate for state legislature winning over her opponent by one vote (pending certification).
(4) The Republicans are celebrating and patting each other on the back for: Giving billions in tax cuts to the rich; Taking health care from 13 million people; Opening an Alaskan wildlife refuge to drilling; Raising taxes on 100 million households [MAGA: Making Americans Greedy Again!]
(5) One dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- North Korea is hacking Bitcoin's infrastructure and poses an existential threat to the digital currency.
- In a deliberate act, car rams into pedestrians in Melbourne, Australia, injuring at least 19.
- Our local Santa Barbara headlines and covers tell the story of the devastating Thomas Fire.
- Thomas Fire 60% contained: No significant growth since yesterday. All Santa Barbara evacuation orders lifted.
- Magnitude-5.2 earthquake hits Iran's capital city, Tehran: No reports of casualties or damage yet.
- Trump considers the GOP tax bill a Christmas gift to Americans: But most people would regift it if they could!
- Trump's first pardon target was a racist. His second one is a financial fraudster. His kind of people!
- Senator Jeff Flake, who was called "Flakey" and many other names by Trump, looks at him with admiration.
- Happy winter solstice! Don't forget that as winter begins for us, summer is on its way down under.
- LeBron James lets his shoes do the talking! [Photo]
- Don't mess with the graying generation: Not that younger folks take assaults on their rights sitting down!
- "Here's how to get rid of Mueller—say that it will be great for the little guy and create jobs!" [Cartoon]
(6) Notes on the GOP tax bill, whichwas passed yesterday: A tax code has been put in place by and for the top 1%, with particular perks for real estate developers. Making America greedy again! Here is Senator Elizabeth Warren's take, in three tweets, on what she calls the GOP tax scam or tax heist, after it passed the US Senate. Graduate students were relieved, but they are not out of the woods yet. The Republican legislative agenda includes ending or curtailing other revenue streams on which graduate students depend. So, dodging taxation of their tuition-and-fees waivers in the final version of GOP's tax bill doesn't remove all their worries. They plan to stay vigilant. Employee bonuses announced by a few large companies are like thieves who clean out your house leaving you a tip on their way out.
(7) Tweet of the day: "Uh probably because I helped write the bill for the past year, have multiple provisions included, got multiple Senators on board over the last week and have worked on tax reform my entire time in Congress. But if you'd rather just see my skin color, pls feel free." ~ Senator Tim Scott, responding to a critic who accused him of being a 'black prop' during a White House ceremony
(8) Final thought for the day: I hope we won't need another Civil War to clear what's left of White Supremacists hostile to notions of human dignity and liberty.

2017/12/20 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image representing the celebration of the Iranian festival of Yalda (1) Happy Yalda Night to everyone who celebrate this Iranian festival, when the gradual return to light, after the forces of darkness have achieved their maximum strength in the year's longest night, is celebrated. Tonight's celebration follows yesterday's last night of Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights.
(2) "Today, actors such as Russia are using information tools in an attempt to undermine the legitimacy of democracies": One of the statements in the just-released National Seurity Policy Report that suggest Trump may not have read the full document.
(3) The eternal flame at UCSB: Situated on a lawn, midway between the campus library and the Chemistry Building, the flame burns atop a 3-legged base holding a quote from Martin Luther King (shown in these photos) and two others from John F. and Robert F. Kennedy.
(4) Two of the most-hated men in America shown making fun of our former President: Recall that not too long ago, the father of one of these smiling buddies accused the father of the other one of being a criminal.
(5) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Twelve House Republicans voted against the GOP tax scam: 5 from NY, 4 from NJ, 2 from CA, 1 from NC.
- Whatever happened to filing your taxes on postcards? Pork and complexity were put back in to buy votes.
- CNN Arizona poll: John McCain is more popular with Democrats and independents than with Republicans.
- Water-repellent material can make windshield, sidewalk, and road ice things of the past.
- Japanese scientists develop a new polymer glass whose cracks heal when hand pressure is applied to it.
- Metalworkers in the ancient world hunted for meteorite iron for creating exotic weapons and artefacts.
- At about 110K, the number of UCSB freshman and transfer applications hit a new record for fall 2018.
- Cartoon caption of the day: CDC scientists asking the management: "Can we stil say 'moron'?"
(6) SUTA Festival and Reunion 2018: Rather than everyone gathering in one place, a distributed reunion is being planned for September 2018 by Sharif University of Technology Association (composed of graduates, students, faculty, and staff of SUT). Four major sites (Sweden, California, Washington, and Seattle) have already been announced for the gatherings and other major or satellite sites may be added. Once the sites are known, the exact dates will be announced.
(7) The inverted pendulum problem: Austrian researchers led by Ramin Hasani have developed an algorithm that exploits an established C. elegans neural circuit for the purpose of teaching a simulated worm, or wormbot, to balance a pole on its tail. The team used reinforcement learning, once the worm's neural circuitry was fully mapped out and described. Overall, the researchers discovered this training regimen works about as well as similar machine-learning approaches to the inverted pendulum problem, but with the key wrinkle that their algorithm is built from hacked wormbot brains.
(8) Having previously bought a $450M da Vinci painting, "corruption-fighting" Saudi Prince buys the world's most expensive mansion near Paris at $320M.
(9) [A family member asked me what Bitcoin was, so I provided the following explanation and link, which I share here with others who might have the same question.] Bitcoin is a digital or virtual currency. There are other examples, but Bitcoin is the most prominent and the most successful. Just like other currencies, you can exchange dollars or euros for Bitcoins and vice versa, at the prevailing exchange rate (currently $18,350 per Bitcoin), and you can have an account with Bitcoins in it, though not at conventional banks (yet). It is not issued or backed by any country and there are no assets to back it up (such as gold backing up some currencies). Increasingly, though, currencies are not backed up by anything other than the issuing country's reputation or economic strength. You don't worry that your dollars will become worthless someday, because the US is trusted internationally. Bitcoin is a sort of doomsday currency for people who don't trust the world's current economic order and think it is slated to collapse. Bitcoin exists only in cyberspace and no one person, group of people, or country controls it. Presumably, it will survive a nuclear war, say, as long as some of the millions of computers storing its distributed ledgers survive. This Web page provides more technical details.

2017/12/19 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Nazi youth gather at the University of Berlin to burn piles of 'un-German' books written by Jews and left-wing authors, 1933 Telephone engineer in London, 1925 Einstein and his therapist, not! (This is a widely-circulated myth; Einstein is talking politics with Cord Meyer, Jr., 1948) (1) History in pictures: [Left] Nazi youth gather at the University of Berlin to burn piles of "un-German" books written by Jews and left-wing authors, 1933. [Center] Telephone engineer in London, 1925. [Right] Einstein and his therapist, not! (This is a widely-circulated myth; Einstein is talking politics with Cord Meyer, Jr., 1948).
(2) Quote of the day: "Do not be dismayed by the brokenness of the world. All things break. And all things can be mended. Not with time, as they say, but with intention. So, go. Love intentionally, extravagantly, unconditionally. The broken world waits in darkness for the light that is you." ~ L. R. Knost
(3) Talk about insensitivity! Trump invited the NRA chief to the White House on the 5th anniversary of the Sandy Hook mass shooting. Perhaps he will mingle with Neo-Nazis on Holocaust Remembrance Day!
(4) Just-out book: Collusion: Secret Meetings, Dirty Money, and How Russia Helped Donald Trump Win. The author, investigative journalist Luke Harding, was one of Fareed Zakaria's guests this morning. The book already has great reviews on Amazon. I have put it on my to-read list.
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Sen. Bob Corker will save ~$1M on his taxes, according to GOP tax bill's final version. He is now a 'yes'!
- The derailed Washington State train may have been going at 70-80 MPH around a 30-MPH curve.
- It is rumored that Trump's lawyers are telling him that the Russia probe will end soon to control his rage.
- Trump plans to reverse Obama's inclusion of climate change in the list of national-security threats.
- Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner failed to disclose assets owned by 30 investment funds.
- With recent phone calls, bromance between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin continues to grow.
- China accuses Trump of harboring a 'Cold War metality' With his announced America-first security policy.
- Islamic State claims responsibility for church attack in Pakistan that killed 8 and wounded 42.
- Tour bus crash in Mexico leaves 11 dead, 20 injured: Riders included cruise-ship passengers.
- Finally, a near-normal sunset last night, after a couple of weeks of smoke- and ash-filled skies in Goleta.
(6) UCSB #ThomasFire clean-up plans: Having cleaned up soot and ash from my courtyard and two patios (~400 sq ft total = 0.01 acre), I realized, upon reading an e-mail message from UCSB's Facilities Management, what an enormous task it is to clean up our 1000-acre campus! Indoors clean-up of hallways and classrooms with be done by our custodial staff, while outdoors clean-up will be done by a mix of campus grounds crew (using drivable wet-vacs; no blowers or similar equipment) and outside contractors specializing in clean-up.
(7) I did a second round of ash clean-up today at my house: No more smoke and ash are coming our way today, but winds are expected to pick up tomorrow, potentially upsetting the current tranquility. Thomas Fire has now burned 272K acres and 1000+ structures, and it is 50% contained. However, the containment percentage is a bit misleading. Imagine, for a minute, a square-shaped fire, 50 miles on each side, which is spreading westward and northward only. In other words, two sides of the fire (100 miles in total) are contained and the fire is spreading from the other two sides (also 100 miles). The containment percentage in this case would be 50%, which presents little comfort to people in areas to the west and north of the fire.
(8) Signing off with two interesting questions about the Niagara Falls that resurface from time to time.
Question 1: Do the Niagara Falls ever completely freeze in winter? The short answer is "no." There is always some water flowing underneath the snow and ice. Complete blockage due to ice sheets is prevented by installed steel ice-cutters to deal with icebergs.
Question 2: Do the Niagara Falls ever completely dry up? The short answer is "yes." It happened once on March 30, 1848, for over 30 hours, when large chunks of ice blown to the northeastern edge of Lake Erie blocked its outlet. Meanwhile, unaware of the reason, people flocked to churches, because they thought the end of the world had come. It happened a second time for the American side of the falls in 1969, when the US Army Corps of Engineers turned off the American Falls to deal with massive amounts of rocks that had accumulated at the base as a result of rock-slides and threatened to some day turn the falls into rapids.

2017/12/18 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
John Lennon, NYC, 1974 Union Army brass band playing atop Lookout Mountain, with the Tennessee River in the background, 1864 Female IRA volunteer, Northern Ireland, 1970 (1) History in pictures: [Left] John Lennon in front of Lady Liberty, New York City, 1974. [Center] Union Army brass band playing atop Lookout Mountain, with the Tennessee River in the background, 1864. [Right] Female IRA volunteer, Northern Ireland, 1970.
(2) Normally, I'd empathize with calling the media's tendency to sensationalize "fake news," but not if done by "The King of Falsehoods."
(3) The three big lies about Trump's tax plan: Robert Reich debunks the untruths. (1) American corporations are not competitive because they pay the highest tax rate in the world. (2) With their taxes cut, the rich will invest and create jobs. (3) Small businesses will be given an incentive to invest and create more jobs.
(4) Jared Kushner humiliated on live TV: He is told to his face that a bunch of businessmen and attorneys, with no pertinent knowledge of the Middle East, cannot solve the complex Israeli-Palestinian problem.
[Kushner says, with a straight face, that maybe it's good that a bankruptcy lawyer is part of his team, because no such person has ever worked on the problem! Yes, Mideast peace was missing a bankruptcy lawyer!]
(5) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Train derailment south of Seattle, WA, causes deaths and injuries: On-going emergency in the area.
- Decency police on skis is patrolling Iran's ski slopes to check on women's hijab and behavior.
- Using Google artificial intelligence tools, NASA discovers two new planets.
- Coordinated attacks on Mueller intensify: Fox News host calls FBI a "criminal cabal"!
- Racism doesn't hurt only the victims but also its perpetrators. [NPR report]
- Acronym of the day: MAGA: Mueller Ain't Going Away.
- The seven banned words and phrases at CDC create resistance! [Meme design by Debs Cane]
- Cartoon of the day: Actually, I do have several pets ... [Image]
(6) Trump's frantic fight for self-preservation: "Around 5:30 each morning, President Trump wakes and tunes into the television in the White House's master bedroom. He flips to CNN for news, moves to 'Fox & Friends' for comfort and messaging ideas, and sometimes watches MSNBC's 'Morning Joe' because, friends suspect, it fires him up for the day."
(7) Concert attendance plans cancelled: A friend and I were planning to see the Los Angeles Master Chorale at Disney Concert Hall tonight. Uncertainties brought about by #ThomasFire, including sporadic road closures between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles, prompted us to cancel. The program was the 37th annual sing-along rendition of George Frideric Handel's "Messiah," arguably the greatest choral composition of all time. LAMC is world-renowned for its wonderful interpretations of great music. The celestial voices heard on the soundtrack of the latest installment of the "Star Wars" film series, now in theaters, are provided by LAMC. The singers recorded their vocal tracks live with legendary composer John Williams and his orchestra at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City in April 2017. [LAMC flashmob from exactly seven year ago, December 18, 2010]
(8) Fire fatigue: It's two weeks since #ThomasFire began in Ventura, CA. After the initial quick spread toward Santa Barbara, it slowed down. Firefighters managed to divert it away from populated areas through back-burning, an operation that saved many homes but killed one firefighter. Winds picked up on Saturday, expanding the fire into areas that were previously thought to be safe. With the new flare-ups, smoke and ash plumes are back and air quality, which was improving, has become unhealthy again. Reports since yesterday indicate calming down of the winds and improved containment to 40%. Having destroyed 1000+ structures and burned 270,000 acres (~420 sq. miles), Thomas Fire is now the third largest in California history, spanning about 60 miles east-west and 40 miles north-south. Hoping for the holiday cheer to return to our area soon! [Here's a Detailed map of mandatory and voluntary evacuation orders in Santa Barbara, as of yesterday.]

2017/12/17 (Sunday): Here are two short book reviews, as I try to clear my backlog of reviews.
Cover image of the book 'Hope,' by Berry and DeJesus (1) Book review: Berry, Amanda and Gina DeJesus (with Mary Jordan and Kevin Sullivan), Hope: A Memoir of Survival in Cleveland, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Jorjeana Maric, Marisol Ramirez, and Arthur Morey, Penguin Audio, 2015.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This book is the story of two girls, the authors, who were abducted and detained at the Cleveland home of a local school-bus driver for over a decade (2002-2013), until one of them managed to escape and call 911 for help. Weaved into the girls' narrative about their horrifying days in chains, repeated rapes, and psychological abuse is the view from outside, as family members, journalists, and law enforcement searched for clues about their whereabouts.
The writing, by Pulitzer-Prize-winning Washington Post reporters Mary Jordan and Kevin Sullivan, is crisp and captivating, shedding light not only on the girls' harrowing experience and media headlines, but also on the life of the criminal school bus driver, who committed suicide in jail, one month into his life sentence.
The book has a blemish that I learned about from another published review. Emily Claire, a reviewer on Amazon, wonders why the third girl, Michelle Knight, is barely mentioned in this memoir, even though she was held the longest, became pregnant five times as a result of violent rapes, had each fetus beaten out of her body, and was in such poor health at the end that she needed hospitalization. "Just one miscarriage was referred to, and only in an oblique and vague manner. ... And where was Michelle when Amanda and Gina were invited to meet the president and speak at the White House?" These are interesting questions that should be answered by the authors.
Researching the story of Michelle Knight, I learned that she has written her own book, Finding Me: A Decade of Darkness, a Life Reclaimed, with co-author Michelle Burford (2014). A 2015 TV movie, entitled "Cleveland Abductions," was made by Lifetime based on Knight's memoir.
Cover image for Elizabeth Gilbert's 'Big Magic' (2) Book review: Gilbert, Elizabeth, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear, unabridged audiobook on 4 CDs, read by the author, Penguin Audio, 2015.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Gilbert, through her hugely successful book, Eat, Pray, Love, and its sequel, Committed, has provided inspiration to many. This book does the same by discussing the nature of inspiration and the habits we need to develop in order to live most creatively. A central theme in the book is that ideas are living things that go around looking for human partners. They should be considered gifts from the universe. If you don't act on an idea, it will move on and may find someone else to partner with.
Gilbert cites an example from her own life: An idea for a novel taking place in the amazon; an adventure/love-story combination. Events in Gilbert's life forced her to shelf the idea. When she returned to it a few years later, she saw that she had no passion to write about it, as if the idea had evaporated. After Gilbert developed a close friendship with author Ann Patchett, she discovered that Patchett was writing a very similar story. That an ignored idea moves to someone else, though poetic and allegorical, is difficult to accept, but losing one's passion for what once seemed a brilliant endeavor is understandable and familiar.
According to Gilbert, we each have "strange jewels" within us that we can uncover by following a number of straightforward steps, in order to live creatively and realize our dream project, be it writing a book, creating art, or addressing work-related challenges. At times, Gilbert comes across as preachy and over-generalizing. For example, even though creativity in science and engineering does have some of the same features as in arts and literature, not everything in Gilbert's recipe is equally applicable to such dissimilar endeavors.
Overlapping the ideas in Gilbert's book are notions in another book that I happen to be perusing at the time of this writing. The book, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking, by Susan Cain, stresses the importance of quiet contemplation, something that introverts do naturally but that everyone can benefit from it. According to Cain, it is unfortunate that introversion, like shyness (which isn't the same thing), is viewed as a negative trait in many Western societies trapped in a "culture of personality," which places too much value on extroversion.
I highly recommend perusing Gilbert's book. The few shortcomings are more than compensated for by the exquisite writing and the motivational effect of learning about how Gilbert and other subjects cited as examples in the book overcame doubts and creativity-killing fears on the path to living a creative life.

2017/12/16 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Eleanor Roosevelt with the .22 Smith and Wesson she often carried in lieu of secret service protection Cornell Capa's photo of traffic jam in New York City on Memorial-Day weekend, 1949 Carrie Fisher watches her mom on stage at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas, 1963 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Eleanor Roosevelt with the .22 Smith and Wesson she often carried in lieu of secret service protection. [Center] Cornell Capa's photo of traffic jam in New York City on Memorial-Day weekend, 1949. [Right] Carrie Fisher watches her mom on stage at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas, 1963.
(2) I left Iran more than three decades ago. It seems that since then "Irani" and 2-letter names, such as "Fa," have become very common as last names! [Referring to made-up names on Facebook and other social media]
(3) The world's most-famous nerdy car: When the bare-bones 2CV first appeared, it surprised the world by being out of fashion with its added-on headlights, and by its low price of $650 in the late 1940s. Only the Citroen name stopped the car from being thought a joke.
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Trump is severely compromised and a threat to US national security: Immediate removal is called for.
- White House officials say that Trump's daily intelligence update is structured to avoid upsetting him.
- CDC forbidden from using "diversity," "evidence/science-based," "fetus," "transgender," and other terms.
- Eight women doctors are running for elected office in DC, in part to fix a broken healthcare system.
- Ed Shiran's duet with Andrea Bocelli: "Perfect Symphony" [6-minute video]
- Cartoon of the day: The cartoon drawn after travel ban was blocked by the courts is updated for Alabama.
(5) A victory for grad students, but still a loss for the US as a whole: Last-minute compromise on the GOP tax bill eliminates the taxation of graduate-student tuition/fees waivers and allows student-loan deductions.
(6) Fraud extends beyond Trump and his cabinet: FCC being investigated for publishing 2M fake comments supporting the end of net neutrality, using identities of real Americans, including dead actress Patty Duke.
(7) Thomas Fire updates: Early this morning, the wind picked up in Montecito, SB County, extending the fire southward. New evacuation orders were issued for the area between routes 192 and 101. Voluntary evacuation zone now extends into the city of Santa Barbara. Edison advisory indicated that power outages were possible in view of the fire's expansion. These two photos, looking east and southeast from my home in Goleta, show that smoke and ash clouds have spared our immediate area so far, being carried south by offshore winds, but they seem to be closing in. Highway 101 re-opened mid-day, but residents were advised not to use it, except for evacuations. This fire map superimposed on Los Angeles gives you an idea of its extent. People in fire zones should keep their gas tank full; gas stations may close for safety and can't work during a power outage. In late afternoon, I took these photos showing blue skies coexisting with smoke/ash plumes in Goleta, CA.

2017/12/15 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
US President Lyndon Johnson listens to a tape sent to him by Captain Charles Robb (his son in law), from Vietnam during the height of the war, 1968 David Isom, 19, broke the color line in a segregated pool in Florida on June 8, 1958, which resulted in officials closing the facility Train wreck at Montparnasse, Paris, 1895 (1) History in pictures: [Left] US President Lyndon Johnson listens to a tape sent to him by Captain Charles Robb (his son in law), from Vietnam during the height of the war, 1968. [Center] David Isom, 19, broke the color line in a segregated pool in Florida on June 8, 1958, which resulted in officials shutting down the facility. [Right] Train wreck at Montparnasse, Paris, 1895.
(2) Other than Netanyahu, Putin seems to be the only world leader who praises Trump. So, Trump calls to thank Putin for his praise; as if Russia meddling never occurred!
(3) A theory about Trump's presidency: This may be dismissed as yet another conspiracy theory, but hear me out. What if Trump decided to run for US presidency in order to earn billions of dollars from increased business profits and tax cuts? Then, when he saw that his chances of being elected were slim to none, he recruited Russian oligarchs, by promising them something in return for helping him get elected. Viewed in this way, his presidency is nothing more than a 4-year deal that earns him lots of money. The increased profits are already materializing. The tax cuts are on the verge of passing the Congress. There is just one wrinkle that he did not foresee: His business practices and his mob ties are being exposed, which may, if pursued by Mueller (assuming he is not fired), actually bankrupt him instead of making him richer.
(4) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Some Republicans are saying, "Enough is enough; Trump must resign." Why did it take them 2+ years?
- The black superwomen of Alabama saved the Republican Party from itself, while also helping America.
- Bernie Sanders: "The Republican tax bill is a hole-in-one for Trump, who will benefit from tax breaks ... "
- Anti-Semitism rears its ugly head again: This time in the form of swastikas painted at a CA synagogue.
- Three Baha'i women arrested by Revolutionay Guards in the Iranian city of Kermanshah.
- Humor: White House safety officials have reportedly placed a large order for fire-proof pants!
- Iranian Ayatollah: Watching male wrestling can make women randy. [Source: IranWire]
- Cartoon of the day: Iranian athletes don't shake hands with women who hang medals around their necks.
(5) Google leads in the race to dominate artificial intelligence: Tech companies are walking a tightrope between divulging information about their AI research programs to attract talent and staying tight-lipped to protect their trade secrets.
(6) UC San Diego researchers develop an automated tool to determine whether a given Web site has suffered a data breach: The tool is a bot that creates accounts, each with a different e-mail address, on various candidate sites, each e-mail address always having the same password. They found that nearly 1% of the sites tested suffered a data breach during the 18-month study.
(7) Iran is stuck in the Middle Ages: Iranian athletes are told not to shake hands with women, in addition to losing intentionally to an opponent if such a loss would mean that they won't face an Israeli opponent later on.
(8) Thomas fire updates: After several days of my courtyard being covered in soot and ash, yesterday I put on a breathing mask, swept the debris, and hosed off the tiles. Ashes may be gone, but smoke advisory map for our area (update of yesterday) shows we are not out of the woods yet. One firefighter, 32-year-old Cory Iverson of San Diego, lost his life battling the fire. Today, red-flag warnings were issued for SoCal due to dry conditions and wind gusts. The worst air quality is expected in Carpinteria and Ojai; next worst will be in Santa Barbara and Goleta, all the way up to Solvang. I have just learned about a way of gauging air quality in terms of extra cigarettes per day (CPD), which makes it more readily understood by everyone. Berkeley Earth indicates that our air pollution cigarettes-equivalent index has gone up from the pre-fire baseline of 1.5 CPD to 6.5 CPD, that is, breathing our air in Goleta without a mask is like smoking 5 extra cigarettes per day. The 6.5 reading corresponds to a "severely polluted" day in Beijing.

2017/12/14 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Colorized photo of Amelia Earhart standing in front of her single-prop plane in Burbank, California, 1932 The Last Kiss, a memorable photo from World War II A Japanese-American business owner displays a banner the day after the 1942 Pearl Harbor attack, just before his internment (1) History in pictures: [Left] Colorized photo of Amelia Earhart standing in front of her single-prop plane in Burbank, California, 1932. [Center] The Last Kiss, a memorable photo from World War II. [Right] A Japanese-American business owner displays a banner the day after the Pearl Harbor attack, just before his internment.
(2) Quote of the day: "A president who would all but call Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand a whore is not fit to clean the toilets in the Barack Obama Presidential Library or to shine the shoes of George W. Bush." ~ USA Today
(3) Why Jewish composers wrote many of the classic Christmas songs: [Psst! Don't tell Trump about this, or he might start hating Christmas!] "The overwhelming impulse among the children of Jewish immigrants was to assimilate, and the first step in becoming 'American' nearly always involved changing their names. Israel Baline became Irving Berlin, Jacob and Israel Gershowitz became George and Ira Gershwin, Hyman Arluck became Harold Arlen, Asa Yoelson became Al Jolson and Isidore Hochberg became 'Yip' Harburg. Most not only left their names behind, but all traces of their Jewishness as well."
(4) The Chase Palm Park antique carousel is gone: Its new home is reportedly a museum somewhere. We will miss it! No word yet about what will become of the now-empty building.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- France awards research grants to US climate-change scientists in rebuke to US withdrawal from Paris accord.
- Photos and videos are emerging that show Trump with his women accusers he says he never met.
- Top Google searches for 2017: iPhone 8, Bitcoin, and sex scandals. [Source: Newsweek]
- Merriam-Webster's Word of 2017: "Feminism" (It beat out "Complicit")
- Gloria Steinem opines on women having gained their voices as a result of the #MeToo movement.
- Roy Moore, on not conceding: "We know that God is in control." J. K. Rowling: "You know she is black, right?"
(6) Sean Spicer is writing a book: I hope this generator of alternative facts faces a boycott, even if he may have decided that telling the truth is now more profitable.
(7) Trump has mobilized black voters, particularly black women (98% of whom voted for Doug Jones), and there is no going back. Alabama is the start of the realization that they've got a lot to lose with Trump and his likes in power! How's your African-American doing, Donald? [Chart]
(8) Eleanor Roosevelt Award for Human Rights: I am thrilled to learn and report that Dr. Nayereh Tohidi (Professor, Cal State Northridge) has been honored with the Eleanor Roosevelt Award for Human Rights from an international youth organization.
(9) Signing off with additional historical photos: Chicago in 1941, through the lens of John Vachon.

2017/12/13 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
A man standing in the lumberyard of Seattle Cedar Lumber Manufacturing, 1939 Abe Lincoln's Hearse, 1865 Women boxing on a roof, 1930s (1) History in pictures: [Left] A man standing in the lumberyard of Seattle Cedar Lumber Manufacturing, 1939 (Photo by Alfred Eisenstaedt). [Center] Abe Lincoln's Hearse, 1865. [Right] Women boxing on a roof, 1930s.
(2) Happy Hanukkah to all who celebrate this Jewish festival of lights, which began last night [Photos]
(3) Cartoon caption of the day: One man to another: "Thank goodness we finally have an Administration that speaks for those of us who don't care what happens to the planet in a hundred years because we'll be dead." [The New Yorker cartoon by David Sipress]
(4) Map of #ThomasFire boundaries, as of Monday night. [Source: CalFire, CA.gov] The fire's progress has been significantly slowed down by the absence of high winds, back-burns (intentionally-set fires to remove fuel from the fire's path), and areas burned in previous years, which have limited supply of fuel.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee dead at 65: It's an eerie feeling when people younger than you start to die!
- I think Donald Trump has picked the wrong fight this time. Go Senator Gillibrand!
- One of the back-burns, intentionally set to protect population centers from the advancing #ThomasFire.
- View of #ThomasFire last night, from Santa Barbara's waterfront. [Photo]
- Bitcoin vending machine: About Can$23K buys you one. [Photo]
- Cartoon of the day: "I see you serving a six-year term, but not in the Senate." [Image]
(6) Trump tweets yet another falsehood: But his base will never read the correction included, along with the tweet, in this image. They just don't read anything anti-Trump or, if they do by chance, they dismiss it as "Fake News," liberals, or socialists trying to stain their beloved leader.
(7) I got this book-shaped light as a present a couple of years ago. It has a rechargeable battery and LED lights, with multiple, selectable colors. After lighting candles during the first Thomas-Fire-caused blackout, I remembered that I can use this light, which is both brighter and cleaner.
(8) Trump supporters always say that he likes to punch back when attacked: Well, it seems that his foes are punching back even harder. He was punched multiple times for his attack on Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. He got bloodied in Alabama. Women who accused him of sexual misconduct are now emboldened to punch back at a powerful bully. [Melania: How is your anti-bullying campaign going?]
(9) My walk of yesterday afternoon in a ghost-town: Having been confined to my home for a few days, I decided to put on my breathing mask and brave Santa Barbara's waterfront area. Hardly anyone was on the beach or on Stearns Wharf. Boats were pretty much absent on the eerily calm water. Normally-full parking lots contained only a few cars. The birds, though, went about their business as usual, seemingly oblivious to the unhealthy air. Businesses in the area must be hurting: hardly a customer in the gift shops or restaurants on the Wharf or nearby streets. [Photos]

2017/12/12 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Thousands await the arrival of The Beatles, 1960s Diver examines an old sunken plane Aftermath of B-25 airplane crash into Empire State Building on July 28, 1945 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Thousands await the arrival of The Beatles, 1960s. [Center] Diver examines an old sunken plane. [Right] Aftermath of B-25 airplane crash into Empire State Building on July 28, 1945.
(2) Sharing part of my reply to a friend, who is considering moving to California but is having second thoughts in view of recent wildfires: Fires are actually not that bad, relatively speaking. The number of deaths from fires (and even earthquakes) is much smaller than other natural disasters, such as storms, tornadoes, and floods. The danger is also mostly avoidable if you choose to live in fire-safe areas (there is a correlation between the natural beauty of your surroundings and fire danger, so you have a trade-off to make).
(3) Futuristic eco-resort in the Philippines: Nautilus is a pioneering eco-tourism complex, consisting of 12 hotels arranged in the form of sea snails and powered by renewable energy derived from waves, tides, and ocean heat. It aims to preserve the coast's and islands' natural beauty. Everything in the resort is built from previously used material and guests will go to and fro on electric boats.
(4) The Louvre Abu Dhabi: Designed by architect Jean Nouvel, the museum's centerpiece is a silvery dome that appears to float over the entire complex. Weighing 7500 tons (same as the Eiffel Tower), it is held up by four hidden pillars. Perforations in the roof create intricate patterns of lighting inside.
(5) Get ready for smartphone computers: Since both Microsoft and Qualcomm have announced a new kind of laptop powered by a smartphone processor running a desktop operating system (presumably as a power-saving method to extend battery life), emergence of smartphone models that replace laptops is inevitable.
(6) Trump mocks the "Resistance" movement in his Florida rally: DJT's history shows that he mocks anything that scares him, which is good! In this case, he is mocking a majority of Americans who oppose him. If you are not with him, you're dumb and don't have any rights!
(7) Causes of SoCal wildfires: At this point, fire officials are not devoting any resources to determining how the multiple fires began, but once all fires have been contained, they will investigate. Fire departments now have advanced methods and technologies to determine the exact point where a particular fire started, to within 10 square meters. They comb the small candidate starting points for clues, such as matches, lighting fluids, and so on. If the starting points of multiple fires line up along roads, there is a good chance that they were man-made. There are other indicators that are used to determine whether arson was involved. Fascinating!

2017/12/11 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
A pair of Cambridge undergraduates, 1926 Ku Klux Klan on a ferris wheel, 1925 Wooden bathing suits that were supposed to make you more buoyant, 1929 (1) History in pictures: [Left] A pair of Cambridge undergraduates, 1926. [Center] Ku Klux Klan on a ferris wheel, 1925. [Right] Wooden bathing suits that were supposed to make you more buoyant, 1929.
(2) A Trump political support group sends 12-year-old Millie March to campaign for and interview Roy Moore in Alabama. [No word yet on whether Moore asked the girl out.]
(3) NASA's Kepler Space Telescope has been searching for signs of extraterrestrial intelligence: On Wednesday December 14, a breakthrough, achieved with help from Google's AI, will be announced at a news conference.
(4) News and announcements about the spreading Thomas Fire, now moving in the Santa Barbara County:
- Video recorded from KEYT News last night: The fire is already the 5th largest in California history.
- Stats: Acres burned 230,000; Containment 10%; Structures destroyed 840; Structures threatened 18,000.
- No rain in sight: Warm, dry weather continues at least for another week. Fire control prospects not so good.
- Newsweek magazine's coverage of the still active Thomas Fire and other (mostly contained) California fires.
- First piece of good news, after a week: The sun is finally shining through, although not quite at full force yet.
- Ventura County Sheriff's Public Affairs Office has issued warnings about charity and home repair scams.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Why can't sexually abusive men say they're sorry? From show business to politics, real apologies are rare.
- NASA is surveying California fires with high-altitude ER-2 aircraft.
- Developing story about possible explosions in NYC subway, believed to have resulted from a terror attack.
- German intelligence reveals that China has been spying on 10,000 Germans via LinkedIn.
- Wonderful rendition of "Carol of the Bells" by the American rock band Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
- Beautiful song and message: "I Dream of a World Where Everyone Would Live in Peace" [6-minute video]
(6) Data science of creating the ultimate Christmas song: Forensic musicologist Joe Bennett, PhD, songwriter Steve Anderson, and singer/songwriter Harriet Green analyzed 78 different widely broadcast Christmas songs with respect to parameters in their music (style, tempo, use of bells, etc.) and lyrics (word usage and frequency), along with data about how happy they made people feel, to create the song "Love's Not Just for Christmas." [4-minute video]
(7) Math puzzle: Consider all the 9-digit numbers that can be formed by using each of the digits 1 through 9 exactly once. How many such numbers are there? How many of them are even? How many are divisible by 3? Divisible by 4? Divisible by 5? Divisible by 6?

2017/12/10 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Logo for World Human Rights Day (1) Happy World Human Rights Day! Today, the UN kicks off a year-long campaign to honor the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which next year marks its 70th anniversary.
(2) Trump's long-time aide Hope Hicks focus of attention in Russia probe: She had been warned by the FBI that certain Russians contacting the Trump transition team weren't who they pretended to be.
(3) Thirteen mathematical problems/puzzles: A couple of days ago, I posted a review of the book Problems for Mathematicians, Young and Old, by Paul R. Halmos. My review, which is also posted on GoodReads, contains a sample of 13 mathematical problems/puzzles from the book that you may find interesting. All 13 can be solved by anyone trained in basic math and mathematical reasoning.
(4) Important warning about clean-up after fires: When houses burn, asbestos fibers from building materials may become airborne, creating a potentially hazardous situation. Cleanup can make conditions worse if not done properly. Handling materials that contain asbestos can be hazardous to your health. Care should be exercised in cleaning the debris and ash; leafblowers should not be used. [From: Santa Barbara County e-mail]
(5) News and announcements about the spreading Thomas Fire, now moving in the Santa Barbara County:
- Blackouts and air quality issues continue: We had power outage ~1:30-5:00 AM and brief outages afterwards.
- A layer of ash covered my courtyard yesterday, as the sun struggled to penetrate the haze in the sky.
- Evacuation orders have now moved further north to Montecito, a mere 5 miles to the east of Santa Barbara.
- Fire map as of early this afternoon: Light olive-green marks the mandatory evacuation areas.
- The fire's live map in Santa Barbara County shows it approaching Montecito.
- UCSB abandons its plan to hold final exams as scheduled this week. Instead, they will begin on January 8.
- UCSB's winter 2018 quarter will begin one week later on Tuesday 1/16 and will be shortened by one week.
- Santa Barbara School District declares all area schools closed until January 2, 2018.
- Authorities indicate that to filter out asbestos, one needs P-100 or N-100 masks. The N-95 masks won't do.
- KEYT is broadcasting live. Apparently, besides power & air quality, our water supply has been affected.
(6) I am sorry that the Palestinians chose to fall into Trump's trap: Violent protests are cutting into their credibility. Surely there are quite a few sophisticated political analysts among the Palestinians. Trump's announcement was an act of desperation and is viewed as such worldwide. He feels threatened by the Russia investigation and there is now a reasonable chance that his tax-cuts-for-the-rich bill will fail when it is brought back to the Senate after reconciliation with the House version. One Republican Senator already voted against it and another (Collins) is leaning toward reversing her vote the next time. It takes just one more 'no' vote to kill the bill. Tillerson is on his way out and Kushner will likely be forced out, both due to his poor judgment and the fact that after one year, he has not yet obtained the required security clearance. The Palestinians could have condemned the US and stated that they no longer consider it an impartial mediator for the peace process. Europeans are likely to step in to fill the void. Then, they could have negotiated from a position of strength. As things now stand, they are playing into Trump's hand.
(7) Understanding the Thomas Fire: In addition to dry weather and high winds, another reason for the fire's destructiveness was the fact that some of the areas affected had not burned for decades (since 1964 in some cases). So, even though some burned areas looked green from this season's rains, the greenery masked a lot of dead fuel for the fire underneath.

2017/12/09 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Street in Istanbul, Turkey, 1898 Settling with the cabbie, New York City, 1895 San Francisco's Chinatown, 1944 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Street in Istanbul, Turkey, 1898. [Center] Settling with the cabbie, New York City, 1895. [Right] San Francisco's Chinatown, 1944.
(2) Trump has approached the Israeli-Palestinian conflict like a bull in a china shop: Not one country, other than Israel, agrees with his decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem.
(3) If Obama had cured cancer, we'd be having tweets about the greatness of cancer and why it should be brought back. The Trump administration is undoing even Michelle Obama's nutrition guidelines for schools.
(4) Some fire-related news and images from Southern California (Ventura County's Thomas Fire and others):
- View from Turnpike Road in Santa Barbara, before and after Thomas Fire. [Photos]
- Sunlight barely makes it through a dense cover of smoke and ash in Goleta and Santa Barbara. [Photo]
- N95 masks that were distributed today to our community in view of the very unhealthy air quality. [Photo]
- A few satellite images of Ventura County's Thomas Fire and other SoCal fires nearby.
- San Diego's Lilac Fire makes California's already record-breaking year for wildfires even worse.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- WikiLeaks e-mail provided Trump campaign with pointer to documents that had been released.
- Trump reiterates his support for Roy Moore's Senate run at Florida rally, across the border from Alabama.
- Big oops! Someone forgot to insert the actual "Splash Heading" before sending the paper to the printer.
- Melissa McCarthy and James Franco in costumes on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" (Mccarthy guest-hosted).
- Gravity is a hoax (comedy skit): Melissa McCarthy and Jennifer Aniston fight over gravity as fake news.
- The Borowitz Report [humor]: "Trump's slurred speech tied to low battery in Putin's remote."
(6) A startling AI achievement: Google's AlphaGo Zero algorithm managed to defeat the previously strongest chess-playing program only four hours after it was taught the rules of the game and told to learn strategy by playing simulation games against itself.
(7) United States and an Imploding Middle East: Where to from Here? This is the title of a lecture by Dr. Mehrzad Borujerdi (Professor of Political Science, Syracuse U.), delivered at CSUN on November 21, 2017, and video-recorded in full. He presents a capsule review, in mostly pessimistic terms, of the current situation in the region that includes the world's 10 most fragile states (where the central government wields little power). The review is very useful for those who do not know much about the region, its geography, and its political forces, but even those who follow the region's developments closely, will find something in terms of hard facts and data cited by the speaker from the 2016 edition of Arab Human Development Report (published by UNDP, UN's Development Program). Arab countries have 5% of the world's population, but account for 45% of terror attacks worldwide, 57% of refugees, 68% of battle-related deaths, and 47% of internally displaced people. World's top 5 military spenders as a fraction of GDP are Saudi Arabia and 4 relatively small Arab countries. Some 78% of Arabs live in hardship (poverty).

Cover image for 'Problems for Mathematicians, Young and Old'

2017/12/08 (Friday): Book review: Halmos, Paul R., Problems for Mathematicians, Young and Old, Mathematical Association of America, 1991.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Paul Richard Halmos [1916-2006] was a Hungarian-Jewish-born American mathematician who made fundamental contributions to mathematical logic, probability theory, statistics, operator theory, ergodic theory, and functional analysis (in particular, Hilbert spaces). He was also recognized as a great expositor of mathematics and an advocate for education and effective teaching.
In this 318-page gem of a book, Halmos has collected a wide array of problems (126 pp.), complete with hints (18 pp.) and solutions (174 pp.). The best way to review this book is to present a sample problem from each of its 14 chapters. I will exclude chapter 13, "Mappings," because it contains no problem that can be solved without resorting to advance math; the 13 problems that follow can be solved by anyone trained in basic math and mathematical reasoning.
Chapter 1, "Combinatorics" (Tennis tournament): Consider an elimination tennis tournament with 1025 participants. In each round, the remaining players are paired, and if the number of players is odd, one of them gets a bye. For example, in the first round, 512 matches are played and one player gets a bye. How many matches must be played to determine a champion?
Chapter 2, "Calculus" (Railroad track): We have a perfectly straight and flat railroad track of length 2640 m. Suppose we add 1 m of rail to the middle of the track, while keeping its endpoints fixed. The additional length causes the track to bulge upward in the shape of a circular arc. How far will the middle of the track rise above the original level?
Chapter 3, "Puzzles" (Factorials ending in 0s): The first factorial that ends in 0 is 5! = 120. To have the factorial end in two 0s, we need to go to 10! = 3,628,800. How many 0s does 1,000,000! have at its end?
Chapter 4, "Numbers" (Irrational punch): We have a weird paper punch such that when its center is placed at a point on paper, all points whose distance to that center are irrational numbers are removed. How many punchings are needed to remove every point?
Chapter 5, "Geometry" (Shortest road to connect 4 houses): Four houses are located on flat land at the corners of a square of side length 1 km. What is the shortest road system that would enable each inhabitant to visit the other three?
Chapter 6, "Tilings" (Tiling a checkerboard with dominoes): You have a standard 8-by-8 checkerboard from which 2 squares at opposite corners have been removed. Given 31 dominoes, each of which covers exactly 2 adjacent squares on the board, can you cover all 62 squares of the board with the 31 dominoes?
Chapter 7, "Probability" (Fair and loaded dice): A fair or honest die is one for which the probability of each of the outcomes 1 through 6 is 1/6. Assume we can load a die as we please, for example, to have the probabilities 3/8, 1/4, 1/8. 1/9, 1/12, 1/18 for outcomes 1 through 6 (these probabilities add up to 1). Is there a way to load two different dice so that when they are rolled together the sum outcomes 2 through 12 each occurs with the same probability 1/11?
Chapter 8, "Analysis" (Infinite mathematical expressions): What is the value of the following expression in the limit when there are an infinite number of sqrt(2) terms? sqrt(2) ^ (sqrt(2) ^ (sqrt(2) ^ (sqrt(2) ^ ... )))]
Chapter 9, "Matrices" (Square-root of a matrix): The square-root of a matrix A is a matrix B such that A = B^2. Not every matrix has a square-root. Does a 3-by-3 matrix with all entries 0, except the top right element which is 1, have a square-root? How about a matrix of all-0s, with its only 1 entry in the middle of its top row?
Chapter 10, "Algebra" (Polynomial arithmetic): If a polynomial in x vanishes when x = 2, then it must be divisible by x – 2. Is it also true that if a polynomial in x and y vanishes when x = y, then it is divisible by x – y?
Chapter 11, "Sets" (Lines on a plane): Obviously, an infinite set of lines are needed to cover a plane. Can the set of such lines whose union is the plane be countably infinite?
Chapter 12, "Spaces" (Map coloring): It has been known for sure since 1976 (and suspected long before then) that any planar map of countries can be colored using no more than 4 colors, so that no two countries sharing a border are of the same color. Show that if the countries do not have arbitrary borders but, instead, are formed by a set of intersecting circles, then 2 colors would suffice.
Chapter 14, "Measures" (Fair sharing of a cake among 3 people): When two people want to divide a cake so that they are both convinced of the division's fairness, the "you cut, I choose" scheme is used. One person cuts the cake into two pieces that s/he thinks is a fair division and the other person picks one of the pieces. Can we extend this scheme to 3 people? This is a much harder problem than fair division into 2 pieces. There exists a scheme that appears fair, but does not work upon further reflection.

2017/12/07 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Four scenes from Ventura County's Thomas Fire Latest status of Ventura County's Thomas Fire (1) Scenes from Ventura County's Thomas Fire: The fire has expanded in multiple directions and is burning intensely, with ~5% containment. [Source of photos: LA Times]
- The live map below, captured before noon, shows the latest status for Thomas Fire: It has just crossed the Santa Barbara County line, into Carpinteria. Ojai seems to be surrounded by fire.
- US 101 was closed in both directions this morning, but has since reopened.
- Area schools are closed, as is SB City College. UCSB remains open, but has cancelled today's and tomorrow's classes. Next week's finals will be held, as scheduled.
- UCSB's Recreation Center is being used by the Red Cross to house fire evacuees (they can park in Lot 16).
- La Conchita, the coastal community devastated by deadly mudslides in 2005, is threatened to be wiped out by fire.
- It's raining ash all over Ojai Valley, as the city of Ojai is threatened by Thomas Fire. [according to KEYT]
- If you can't watch KEYT Channel 3 on TV, they are live-streaming evacuation and other info for Santa Barbara and Ventura residents.
(2) Happy 19th anniversary to ISS: Nineteen years ago today, the first two International Space Station modules (Unity and Zarya) were joined together, beginning the assembly of the orbital lab.
(3) Signs of discord in the Trump administration: President Trump's announcement that the US recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel had some people scratching their heads due to the absence of Rex Tillerson and the prominent display of Mike Pence, rather than Jared Kushner, standing behind Trump.
(4) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- FBI chief defends the agency against Trump's assertion that it's in tatters.
- Trump's war on a made-up assault against Christmas. No one is trying to eliminate Christmas!
- A tiny $289B error crept into GOP's tax bill, because they didn't allow time for even a most-basic review.
- Two new fires in northerh SB County (Santa Ynez and Santa Maria) add to the area's fire woes.
- Eight graduate students protesting the GOP tax plan arrested outside Paul Ryan's office.
- The Borowitz Report [humor]: "Broad majority of Americans support moving Trump to Jerusalem."
- Cartoon of the day: The domino gap effect. [Image]
- My wife says that nothing makes her happier than a diamond necklace, so I got her nothing for Christmas.
(5) The #MeToo movement is changing the US political scene: Not only it is driving badly-behaving men out, but it is expected to put more women in elected positions.
(6) Skier Lindsey Vonn says she will represent the people of the United States, not Donald Trump, at the winter Olympics. Expect a tweetstorm about this statement!

2017/12/06 (Wednesday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Last four couples in a dance marathon, Chicago, ca. 1930 Elton John, Diana Ross, and Cher at the Rock Music Awards, 1975 James Dean attending a ballet class in NYC, 1955 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Last four couples in a dance marathon, Chicago, ca. 1930; Notice that the women fared better than the men! [Center] Elton John, Diana Ross, and Cher at the Rock Music Awards, 1975. [Right] James Dean attending a ballet class in New York City, 1955.
(2) America's new warriors: "It's easier to put 'trainers' and 'advisers' in a country and say we don't have 'boots on the ground'." ~ GOP Representative and former Navy Seal Scott Taylor, quoted in Time magazine
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- The #MeToo movement and its brave silence-breakers chosen as Time magazine's Person of the Year.
- Tillerson gets an earful from European leaders, due to Trump's "Jerusalem as capital" announcement.
- Bannon appears to be on success path in his goal of totally destroying the Republican Party.
- Cover of Montecito Journal, winter 2017-2018 issue, featuring the area's most prominent show-biz family.
- Good for a chuckle: Q: What do you call elves who work at the North Pole? A: Subordinate Clauses.
- Cartoon of the day: "Hello, I'm death and taxes ... We merged." [Image]
(4) Stories related to multiple wildfires raging in Southern California:
- Skirball Fire has closed the 405 Freeway in both directions. Bad news for LAX travelers from our area.
- Fire raging in Santa Clarita, next to Six Flags "Magic Mountain" amusement park. [Photo]
- Air quality is a tad better at UCSB today, but you can still see smoke haze in the air. [Photo 1] [Photo 2]
- Parts of Carpinteria get voluntary evacuation orders. The fire seems to be moving north from Ventura.
- Received an emergency-alert text message: Fire danger in our area due to strong winds.
- California wildfires in 2017 (thus far): 6700 total fires; 8500 structures destroyed; 43 people killed.
(5) Computer Systems for the Brain Sciences: This was the title of a CS-Department-sponsored talk this afternoon by Abhishek Bhattacharjee (Assoc. Prof., Rutgers U.). Of course, brain science makes broad use of computers and other digital systems in many different ways, so a clarification is in order. The speaker's interests lie in computing capabilities of devices implanted in the brain. Given the very limited power that can be supplied to such implants, and restrictions on heat dissipation (research shows that even a 2-degree rise in an implant's temperature can cause damage to brain tissue), the norm so far has been to use implants for collecting data and to then send the data to external computing devices for processing. The speaker has been trying to incorporate much greater computing power in the implants, without a significant increase in energy demands or operating temperature.

2017/12/05 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Standoff between US and Soviet tanks at checkpoint Charlie, 1961 Tokyo after World War II, 1945 An English cavalryman rides through a gas attack with protective mask and body cover, 1934 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Standoff between US and Soviet tanks at checkpoint Charlie, 1961. [Center] Tokyo after World War II, 1945. [Right] An English cavalryman rides through a gas attack with protective mask and body cover, 1934.
(2) We have already had three power disruptions since sunrise this morning: Last night and earlier this morning, we had four. This is what it means to have infrastructural problems of a Third-World country. Electric power should be a reliable resource. When balckouts occur due to an emergency, power should not be restored until there is a high assurance that it will not go back out. Cutting or restoring power to a city or even a large neighborhood should not be done casually. In a home, you can flip a switch to turn a light on and then turn it back off immediately. No damage will be done. The situation is different for large electric loads. Each disruption, however brief, sets off a chain reaction of electrical surges and system resets that create havoc, leading to potential equipment damage and secondary failures in associated services. Our power grid and its management protocols are hopelessly outdated. [This photo shows the sky around my home at the beginning of last night's 5-hour blackout, caused by Ventura County's Thomas Fire, during which I read a book by candlelight!]
[Examples of structures destroyed in Ventura County's Thomas Fire.] [Video]
[Midnight update: Thomas Fire is 0% controlled: It jumped the 101 Freeway; 12,000 homes threatened.]
(3) Definition of dim-wit: A guy, who is arrested and charged with illicit contacts with Russia and given explicit instructions not to contact the media or Russians, cooperating with a Russian intelligence operative on an editorial piece for a Russian publication.
(4) Higher Education Act Overhaul released by the GOP: The provisions will hurt traditional universities and the ability of their students to secure loans, while they remove key restrictions on for-profit colleges.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Ali Abdullah Saleh, former president of Yemen, killed by Houthi rebels near the capital, Sanaa.
- Graduate students nationwide protest GOP's removal of tax exemption for tuition and fee waivers.
- Robot taxis and delivery cars will be deployed next year, according to Delphi Automotive's CEO.
- Good for a chuckle: Q: Which nation's capital is the largest? A: Ireland. It's Dublin every year.
- Wild Wild West Wing: the story of an out-of-control president who shoots from the lip.
- Cartoon of the day: Men with crossbow heads shoot at a woman walking with a child. [Image]
(6) Overcoming Biases that Affect the Evaluation of Women and Minorities: This was the title of an informative and entertaining talk by Stephanie K. Johnson (Professor, School of Business, University of Colorado, Boulder), who spoke to a standing-room-only crowd in a large lecture hall at UCSB this afternoon. [Images]
The talk carried three main messages. First, gender and racial diversity in the workforce improves productivity, creativity, and the bottom line, whether it's measured in revenues, profitability, or stock prices. Second, perception of bias and inequality is quite subjective. Even white men may perceive that there is bias against them, so we need scientifically rigorous studies to reveal and assess bias. Third, there exist quite effective methods for increasing diversity, without imposing quotas or giving unfair attention to certain applicants.
It is very important for white men to get on board, as advocacy of women and minorities for greater diversity may be viewed as suspicious and self-serving. Numerous studies have shown that even in situations where there is a claim of fairness, bias and stereotyping creep in when making decisions. A good example is provided by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, which increased the fraction of women players significantly when it switched to blind auditions, with canidates playing behind a curtain. Double-blind reviewing of scientific/technical articles, and evaluation of outcomes of hiring decisions when the gender or ethnicity of the applicant is hidden or disguised, all point to a hidden bias that disappears with appropriate provisions.
Unconscious bias plays some cruel tricks, not always in the direction one might imagine. For example, when there are four equally qualified finalists for a job, three men and one woman, a man has more than the fair 75% chance of being offered the job. But if the numbers are reversed, hiring a woman becomes more likely than the expectation. Here, the majority of candidates establish a stereotype that affects the final decision. In the mix among four final candidates is two men and two women, then the chance of the final hire being a woman or a man becomes 50%. This odd-person-out effect is seen in other contexts as well. The speaker provided many examples of interesting situations from her consulting work with corporate clients, illustrating best practices, opportunities, and pitfalls in pursuing diversity goals.

2017/12/04 (Monday): Here are Seven items of potential interest.
About 4.5 megabytes of data on 62,500 punched cards, USA, 1955 Telephone tower in Stockholm, Sweden, that served over 5000 customer lines, ca. 1890 Scene from the 1959 classic comedy 'Some Like It Hot,' starring Tony Curtis, Jack Lemon, and Marilyn Monroe (1) History in pictures: [Left] About 4.5 megabytes of data on 62,500 punched cards, USA, 1955. [Center] Telephone tower in Stockholm, Sweden, that served over 5000 customer lines, ca. 1890. [Right] Scene from the 1959 classic comedy "Some Like It Hot," starring Tony Curtis, Jack Lemon, and Marilyn Monroe.
(2) Rex Tillerson and Jared Kushner will depart the White House soon: Tillerson has been in the cross-hairs for some time now and Kushner has become a liability. It is unlikely that Ivanka will stay without Jared.
(3) James Comey pushes back against Trump's tweet that FBI's reputation is 'in tatters': "The FBI is honest. The FBI is strong. And the FBI is, and always will be, independent." After Comey's defense of the FBI, Sally Yates also tweeted on 12/03: "The FBI is in 'tatters'? No. The only thing in tatters is the President's respect for the rule of law. The dedicated men and women of the FBI deserve better."
(4) Fifty years of "60 Minutes": Last night, the iconic newsmagazine looked back on its 50-year history by showing its most-memorable stories and interviews with world leaders, celebrities, con-men, and many others.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- McCain finally caved on the middle-class-killing tax bill, sacrificing grad students in the process.
- Now that Trump has gotten his "big win" on taxes, perhaps he'll stop acting like an attention-deprived bully!
- A mostly-sunny week with spring-like temperatures is in store for us, here in Goleta! [Chart]
- "The world won't be much changed by anything I do ~ But what will change will be me." ~ Ashleigh Brilliant
- Last night's super moon, shot from my patio. [Photo]
- Some shots from the north-central part of the UCSB campus, early this afternoon. [Photos]
(6) Trump's Twitter account: His Twitter feed is a mostly one-way affair. He has 43.6 million followers, but follows only 45 (family members, family businesses, current/former advisers, a few supportive journalists, and a handful of conservative commentators. He follows no mainstream news source, not even Breitbart.
(7) Cybersecurity, Nuclear Security, Alan Turing, and Illogical Logic: This is the title of an article in Communications of the ACM (December 2017 issue), which is based on the 2015 Turing Award Lecture by Martin E. Hellman. The Turing Award honored work Hellman did four decades ago and, since then, his interests have changed. He states that he is now working, with his wife Dorothie, on a book, A New Map for Relationships: Creating True Love at Home & Peace on the Planet. Though the new book seems unrelated to Hellman's award-winning work on public-key cryptography, his Turing Lecture drew a number of parallels between the two universes, which are brought out in this important article. One of the article's key insights is that in making ethical decisions, we need to zealously guard against fooling ourselves about our real motivations. A second key insight is that a major advance in factoring integers and discrete logarithms might break existing public-key systems. From this article, we learn about political fights dictating the outcome of a standard that should have been based on technical merit. We are also given food for thought on whether cyber-deterrence will work as well as nuclear-deterrence has worked as a strategy so far, and on whether the latter is indeed a reasonable strategy. Hellman concludes his article thus: "What is the point of developing elegant algorithms (such as Diffie-Hellman-Merkle Key Exchange) if no one is around in 100 years to use them?"

Cover image of the book 'Zionism: A Very Short Introduction' 2017/12/03 (Sunday): Book review: Stanslawski, Michael, Zionism: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2017. [My 5-star review on GoodReads]
Let me begin by listing the 10 chapters, excluding an epilogue, that average 11 pages in length and provide a good view of the book's contents and structure:
1. The Jews: Religion or Nation? (pp. 1-10)
2. Modern Jewish Nationalism (pp. 11-21)
3. Theodore Herzl and the Creation of the Zionist Movement, 1897-1917 (pp. 22-34)
4. The Weizmann Era and the Balfour Declaration (pp. 35-43)
5. Socialist and Revisionist Zionism, 1917-1939 (pp. 44-50)
6. Zionism in World War II and Its Aftermath (pp. 51-63)
7. Zionism in a Jewish State, 1948-1967 (pp. 64-80)
8. Nationalism and Messianism, 1967-1977 (pp. 81-94)
9. Swing to the Right, 1977-1995 (pp. 95-105)
10. Transformation of Zionism Since 1995 (pp. 106-111)
I have read quite a few of the titles in Oxford's "A Very Short Introduction" series and, in all cases, have been impressed by the balance and thoroughness of the treatment, despite the small size of the books. Given the heavy use of the word "Zionism" in today's political news and the many conflicting views of it, I seized the chance of reading the book when I found it among the volumes on UCSB Library's new-arrivals bookshelf.
Zionism, if defined as a nationalist movement affirming the right of Jews to self-determination, has a long history. However, the modern notion of Zionism is traced back to Theodor Herzl, who is credited with formulating the idea of a secular state for the Jews, which is quite different from a "Jewish state." Herzl's liberal, utopian vision (a sort of Jewish enlightenment) faced three opposing groups from within the movement. These were a "Democratic Faction," which, fearing Herzl's dictatorial tendencies, favored a revolutionary transformation based on secular Hebrew culture, the socialist/Marxist/communist front, which emphasizes solutions to the "Arab Problem" in Palestine, and the group that favored embracing Orthodox Judaism.
The internal conflicts of Zionism mirrored those of the broader European community (within which the movement grew), where nations were taking sides in multifaceted political and economic ideologies.
One of the inventors, if that's the right word to use, of Jewish enlightenment was Moses Mendelssohn, a formidable philosopher of the 18th century, who viewed Judaism as just another religion that must be tolerated in a modern free state. Following this interpretation, it would have been feasible to integrate the Arabs, who formed the majority of the population in the new state, into a modern secular state run according to the latest scientific principles.
When Herzl died at the young age of 44, Chaim Weizmann, a renowned chemist with several important inventions to his credit, led the Zionism movement, though he didn't enjoy broad acceptance right away. Weizmann tried to iron over some of the differences by gradually moving to combine cultural and political Zionism. Work on the "Arab Problem," which had led to the consideration of other locations, such as Uganda in lieu of Palestine to site the new state, continued under his leadership.
Enlightenment meant that Jews had to abandon their roles as small-time merchants to become farmers, artisans, and professionals. Modern Jewish nationalism, with Hebrew as the common language, gained strong support, because it was seen as an antidote to assimilation, which some viewed as a grave danger. Europe's rabbis "denounced Herzl as a heretical scoundrel out to destroy Judaism by disobeying God's commandments."
Over time, Zionists attracted support from politicians in Europe, who became sympathetic to the cause but who could not promise a homeland, given that they had no control over Palestine. The Balfour declaration laid out the support in principle, in a carefully-worded document which, postulates, among other conditions, "that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights or political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country" [p. 42].
World War II and the ensuing atrocities against the Jews empowered Zionism's right-wing nationalists, who gradually gained more support. The desire to settle in Palestine intensified after WW II, when a large number of Jews in Displaced Persons Camps had no place to go. At about this time, the Soviet Union reversed its decades-long opposition to Zionism, in part, it is believed, to claim a stake in the power vacuum anticipated after the departure of the British from the Middle East.
It is noteworthy that Israel's declaration of independence contained no mention of God or the "divine promise." What united the new Israelis were the Hebrew language, a secular school system, and the decidedly-secular army. Once Israel was formed, governing proved difficult and many concessions and compromises had to be made to satisfy various factions. These included religious courts, observance of Saturdays and other religious holidays, serving kosher food in the army and government institutions, and allowing separate religious schools for ultra-orthodox Jews. These concessions to the religious factions were not inevitable and, in retrospect, may have been fatal mistakes for the state of Israel. Religious groups made inroads owing to the inability of the secular and progressive groups to iron out their differences. Religious groups have also been blamed for the promised constitution not being written, because they insisted that it should be based on Jewish law.
Beginning in the late 1970s, revisionist Zionism gained power, leading to peace with Egypt's Sadat. A second major transformation occurred upon the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin in 1995 and the migration of many Russian Jews to Israel. It is interesting that the bulk of migrations to Israel have been by relatively poor Jews around the world. Jews in North America, for example, constitute a minute fraction of those relocating to Israel. There is a saying that in the Diaspora, "Zionism means one Jew collecting money from a second Jew to send a third Jew to Israel"!
In 1870, no one spoke Hebrew as their primaty tongue, whereas roughly 8 million people speak the language fluently now. It is remarkable that in the history of Zionism, beginning with Herzl, not one single leader of the movement or Israeli Prime Minister has been a practicing Jew. At this writing, Zionists are predominantly secular, the only exception being a small group of ultra-orthodox Jews.
The state of Israel was finally created in 1948 under the leadership of David Ben-Gurion, five decades after Herzl initiated the Zionist movement. The Zionists success in bringing the state of Israel about and the remarkable social and technical accomplishments of the state are marred by a longstanding, and seemingly insoluble, conflict in the region, as the Middle East sinks further into destabilization.
The anthem of Zionists, "Hatikvah" ("The Hope"), which later became the Israeli national anthem, contains the following words: "We have not yet lost our hope." The hope of "[being] a free nation in our own land, the land of Zion and Jerusalem" has at best been only partially realized.

2017/12/02 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
This view of Boston is the oldest surviving aerial photo ever takan, October 13, 1860 George W. McLaurin, a 54-year-old African-American, was forced to sit apart from white students upon admission to University of Oklahoma in 1948 Coca Cola delivery truck, 1909 (1) History in pictures: [Left] This view of Boston is the oldest surviving aerial photo ever takan, October 13, 1860. [Center] George W. McLaurin, a 54-year-old African-American, was forced to sit apart from white students upon admission to University of Oklahoma in 1948. [Right] Coca Cola delivery truck, 1909.
(2) Any demagogue or despot who ends up destroying a country keeps insisting till his last day that he is moving it toward greatness. [Persian version]
(3) So, Republican and Democratic administrations are equally corrupt, huh? [Chart]
(4) Trump is reportedly looking for a larger bus to throw people under. A regular bus won't do any more!
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Details of perjury charges against former National Security Adviser to President Trump, Michael Flynn.
- Trump cnanges his story about why he fired his National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.
- Obama should be detained for making fun of Trump, says Fox host Lou Dobbs.
- GOP tax bill's passage isn't the end of the line. Let's expose its provisions, inserted in cowardly, secretive way!
- Supreme Leader Khamenei's Ahmadinejad problem is back, much to his consternation.
- Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps: A tangled web of corruption, illegal deals, and counterfeit money.
- The distant planet WASP-18b has no water and its atmosphere consists entirely of carbon-monoxide.
- Reuters' revolutionary AI system automatically identifies breaking news stories by analyzing Twitter data.
- Swimming robots, dubbed "PipeFish," can be inserted into water pipes to detect leaks.
- Traditional Persian music: Footage of practice session for a new song. Is it Soosan? Who is the tar player?
(6) UCSB Middle East Ensemble in concert: I have previously posted about subsets of this large, diverse Ensemble (which includes a dance troupe) performing during Wednesday noon mini-concerts, but tonight they had a full, formal program at UCSB's Lotte Lehman Concert Hall, with special guest performer soprano Dr. Isabel Bayrakdarian (of Armenian heritage, born in Lebanon). The program included Arabic, Armenian, Greek, Persian, and other musical styles. UCSB Middle East Ensemble prepares detailed program booklets, which include song histories and texts of lyrics in the original language, in transliterated form, and in English. These 12 photos and 7 videos provide a sample of the very enjoyable concert. One of the photos captures tonight's supermoon and another one shows holiday decorations I encountered as I walked home from the campus.

2017/12/01 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Berlin Wall, 1989 LEGO Minfig patent diagram, ca. 1979 Two lumberjacks on a big tree in the Pacific Northwest, 1915 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Berlin Wall, 1989. [Center] LEGO Minfig patent diagram, ca. 1979. [Right] Two lumberjacks on a big tree in the Pacific Northwest, 1915.
(2) Tweet of the day: "This tax bill will affect the lives of everyone. Your parents. Your grandparents. Children. And it's being rewritten in secret, on the same day they want to bring it to a vote. This is no way to govern." ~ US Senator Kamala Harri
(3) Our president does not understand the American justice system, the presumption of innocence, and the fact that each case must be tried on its own merit. We are not a nation of kangaroo courts. The 20th murder of a serial killer needs as much evidence ("beyond a reasonable doubt") as the first. Sad!
Here is what Trump tweeted: "The jury was not told the killer of Kate was a 7 time felon. The Schumer/Pelosi Democrats are so weak on Crime that they will pay a big price in the 2018 and 2020 Elections."
(4) You should start familiarizing yourself with the US line of succession, in case both Trump and Pence are taken down by the Mueller investigation: Meet our potential next president, Paul Ryan, the spineless, hypocritical Speaker of the House of Representatives. who once said he could not support Trump, but then quickly fell in line when Trump was elected.
(5) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Michael Flynn charged by Mueller for willful false statement on his link with Russians. He pleaded guilty.
- Now we know why DJT tried to shield Flynn: He is set to testify that Trump directed him to contact Russia.
- The GOP tax bill that may be put to vote tonight has undisclosed, handwritten corrections in the margins.
- US Treasury Department's promised and even cited analysis of GOP tax bill's impact is still missing.
- Lindsey Graham faults the press for making Trump look like 'a kook." He said in 2016 that Trump is 'a kook.'
- Soccer World Cup draw results: Iran is in Group B, which also includes Portugal, Spain, and Morocco. [Chart]
- Why are actors and journalists quickly purged for sexual misconduct, whereas politicans get free passes?
- Cartoon of the day: The strange case of President Trump and @realDonaldTrump. [Image]
(6) Phew, what a week! It began with a root-canal procedure on Monday (not too bad, as root-canals go), then a weeknight trip under very heavy traffic to Los Angeles to attend a human-rights meeting, writing a bilingual report about the forum, meeting a couple of work-related deadlines, dealing with a leaky solar-heater tank (that was finally replaced this afternoon), and getting my new cleaning lady started on her first day. Things are calming down for the weekend, when I hope to be able to catch up with a lot of stuff.

2017/11/30 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
It seems that Trump did make the cover of Time magazine after all! Doorknob for those who do not want visitors over the holidays Sample jewelry for geeks (1) Some interesting photos: [Left] It seems that Trump did make the cover of Time magazine after all! [Center] Doorknob for those who do not want visitors over the holidays. [Right] Sample jewelry for geeks.
(2) Men behaving badly: Last night, I was reflecting on all the powerful men who have recently fallen from grace for sexual misconduct. It occurred to me that, for some (usually unknown) reason, I never really liked these men. Harvey Weinstein and Bill O'Reilly constituted extreme cases of dislike (Matt Lauer, a milder case), while Charlie Rose and Garrison Keillor just seemed creepy. Kevin Spacey came closest to being likeable, but there was some unease even in his case.
(3) AI program uses Google Maps' street-view images to automatically recognize makes and models of parked cars, using the info to deduce political leanings of various neighborhoods. Scary!
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- The Navajo Nation condemns Trump's "display of immaturity and short-sightedness" in a letter.
- Afghan all-girl robotics team continues to shine.
- Pottery fragments from 8000 years ago found in Georgia (S. Caucasus) hold oldest known wine residue.
- Iranian cinema is full of Harvey-Weinstein-like figures, who prey on young, ambitious actresses.
- We give Israel, a country with free healthcare and college, $10M a day. How is that "America First"?
- Cartoon of the day: "We'll have this [GOP tax plan] off the ground in no time!" [Image]
(5) Language translation, without a dictionary: Researchers at the University of the Basque Country (UPV) in Spain and Facebook have separately developed unsupervised machine-learning techniques for teaching neural networks to translate between languages with no parallel texts. Each method employs as training strategies back translation and denoising; in the first process, a sentence in one language is approximately translated into the other, then translated back into the original language, with networks adjusted to make subsequent attempts closer to identical. Meanwhile, denoising adds noise to a sentence by rearranging or removing words, and attempts to translate that back into the original. The UPV method translates more frequently during training, while the Facebook technique, in addition to encoding a sentence from one language into a more abstract representation before decoding it into the other language, also confirms the intermediate language is truly abstract. When translating between English and French in a vast sentence database, both systems received a bilingual evaluation understudy score of about 15 in both directions, compared to Google Translate, which scores about 40, and humans, who can score more than 50. [From: ACM Tech News]
(6) UCSB Arts & Lectures "Thematic Learning" event: Emily Esfahani Smith (Persian name Golnar), author of The Power of Meaning: Finding Fulfillment in a World Obsessed with Happiness, spoke at UCSB's Campbell Hall, beginning at 7:30 tonight. These photos show A&L's announcement of the book talk, the book's cover image, table of contents, and dedication page (signed by the author). The book is on my (very long) "to read" list, so for now, I include Susan Cain's praise from the book's front matter (Cain is the author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can's Stop Talking, a book I am now listening to): "Beautifully written and rigorously researched, The Power of Meaning speaks to the yearning we all share for a life of depth and significance. In a culture constantly shouting about happiness, this warm and wise book leads us down the path to what truly matters. Reading it is a life-transforming experience." [Esfhani Smith's 12-minute TED talk]

2017/11/29 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Illustration from the first edition of 'The Wizard of Oz,' 1900 Sharpshooter Annie Oakley using a hand mirror to shoot over her shoulder circa 1899 The original Moulin Rouge the year before it burned down, Paris, 1914 (photo from Albert Kahn Museum collection) (1) History in pictures: [Left] Illustration from the first edition of "The Wizard of Oz," 1900. [Center] Sharpshooter Annie Oakley using a hand mirror to shoot over her shoulder circa 1899. [Right] The original Moulin Rouge the year before it burned down, Paris, 1914 (photo from Albert Kahn Museum collection).
(2) With sexual misconduct allegations piling up, I am starting to think that maybe invention of the zipper wasn't such a good idea!
(3) Notable SoCal faculty member: Maja Mataric, featured in "People of ACM," is a computer science professor at the University of Southern California, with appointments in the Neuroscience Program and the Department of Pediatrics. She is also founding director of USC's Robotics and Autonomous Systems Center, Co-director of the USC Robotics Research Lab, and Vice Dean for Research at USC's Viterbi School of Engineering. One of Mataric's research foci is socially assistive robotics, a field that barely existed 15 years ago, but which is now growing at a high rate.
(4) How many years of an average family's full annual income are needed to buy a home in various big cities in North America: Vancouver, 17.3; San Francisco, 13.8; Boston, 10.0; San Diego, 8.3; Mexico City, 6.1; Chicago, 5.9; Montreal, 4.2; Detroit, 1.8. [Source: Time magazine, November 27 and December 4, 2017, issue]
(5) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi cancel a budget meeting with Trump after he tweeted, "I don't see a deal!"
- Racist and alt-right groups are dismayed by Prince Harry's decision to marry a biracial American actress.
- More than 180 women have been sexually assaulted at Massage Envy franchises, according to CBS News.
- An "Impeach Trump" billboard goes up at NYC's Times Square. [Photo]
- Abraham Lincoln's presidential papers have been published on-line in full color.
- Hawaii plans to test its nuclear sirens for the first time since the end of the Cold War.
- World Music Series concert: UCSB Gospel Choir performed at the Music Bowl, today at noon. [Video]
- Cartoon of the day: Books on tape. [By John Atkinson]
(6) After NBC fired Matt Lauer over allegations of sexual misconduct, other women have come forward.

2017/11/28 (Tuesday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Charlie Chaplin in front of Federal Hall on Wall Street, 1918 Albert Einstein, his secretary Helen (left), and daughter Margaret (right) becoming US citizens to avoid returning to Nazi Germany, 1940 Testing a bulletproof vest, 1923 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Charlie Chaplin in front of Federal Hall on Wall Street, 1918. [Center] Albert Einstein, his secretary Helen (left), and daughter Margaret (right) becoming US citizens to avoid returning to Nazi Germany, 1940. [Right] Testing a bulletproof vest, 1923.
(2) Talk about fake news: Woman linked to Project Veritas, a far-right organization to which Trump has donated money, tried to dupe Washington Post reporters into publishing a fake news story about Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore (presumably to then cry "Fake News"), but WP's research unveiled the plot.
(3) What a high-IQ family! Eric Trump defends his dad's Pocahontas comment, finding it "ironic" that an ABC News reporter (whose parent company made millions from its "Pocahontas" film) would diss the comment, oblivious to the fact that making a film to honor the Native American historical figure is different from using her name as an insult.
(4) Striving for Human Rights in Iran: This was the title of a well-attended symposium held at Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, beginning at 7:30 PM (Persian time) on Tuesday, November 28, 2017. The format consisted of three speakers, named below, making extended statements and then joined by comedian and rights activist Maz Jobrani in a Q&A/discussion session moderated by Masih Alinejad. The moderator for the entire proceedings was Homa Sarshar (author, activist, feminist, and journalist), who also served as a discussant at the end.
- Dr. Kazem Alamdari, Emiritus Professor of Sociology, Cal State Northridge (author of multiple books and a frequent commentator on Radio/TV programs)
- Dr. Abbas Milani, Director of Iranian Studies Program and Professor of Stanford University's Global Studies Division (author of multiple books and biographies)
- Masih Alinejad, exiled Iranian journalist living in the US (founder of the "My Stealthy Freedom" Facebook page, human/women's rights activist)
The goals of this annual symposium have been described by the organizers as taking stock of the current status of human rights in Iran and ongoing violations thereof.
Alamdari set the stage by overviewing the various notions of human rights emerging since the 17th century, including the modern version adopted by the UN in 1948. He then cited examples of human rights violations in Iran. He planned to also discuss how Iran's Islamic clerics justify human rights violations and rampant corruption and how ordinary citizens can participate in stopping rights violations, but he ran out of time and said a few words about the latter topic during the discussion period.
Milani began by alluding to resistance exhibited by Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, observing that Iran's version of civil disobedience is both broader and stronger than any other one in the past century. Iran has a long history of honoring human rights. Today, human rights are inexorably linked to the notion of modernity and its affinity with privacy and the government staying out of citizens' private lives. Governments derive their legitimacy from people, who have the right to change the government at will. Any government that considers itself God's agent (as was also the case several centuries ago in Europe) will have issues with modernity and thus with human rights.
Alinejad delivered an impassioned speech (sample video). A major problem is self-censorship, or the hush-hush effect, imposed by other members of the society, who consider certain demands, such as freedom from mandatory hijab, less important than dealing with poverty and political oppression. She showed a video clip depicting civil disobedience by Iranian women who defy mandatory hijab laws and a touching plea by a disabled Iranian woman who asked that she be viewed as a human being and a woman, who happens to be disabled, and not the other way around. Paradoxically, the hijab problem does not stay within Iran's borders and rears its head when international sporting events (such as the upcoming Soccer World Cup) are to be shown in Iran.
During the Q&A/discussion session, Alamdari elaborated that each person can be active in safeguarding his/her own rights (every little step helps), with human-rights activists spreading the word and defending the rights of all members of the society.
Jobrani discussed his activism in opposition to the recent travel ban and his comedy performances in a number of Middle Eastern countries (not Iran, where he wouldn't be welcome), which have undergone changes leading to some openness. He quipped that some Iranian-Americans voted for Trump, expecting their taxes to be cut, whereas he cut their families!
Milani expressed his puzzlement that, given the tight grip of Iran's security apparatus, so much resistance effectively goes unpunished. One theory is that they are using the resistance as a safety valve that eases the pressures and makes the country more governable. His own theory is that the resistance is so widespread that the regime has given up trying to suppress everything. Iranians' fear of a war, which might turn the country into another Syria or Iraq, works to the regime's advantage.
Sarshar related the story of becoming upset as a girl that her religion was recorded in her national identity card, venturing a solo trip to Shiraz to have the information removed (she succeeded, after paying a bribe). She resents being asked what she thinks about various sociopolitical issues "as a Jewish woman," as if she is defined by her religion and sex. She'd rather comment as a human being.
A very unfortunate feature of the event, quite ironic, given that freedom and human rights were being discussed, was a few members of the audience shouting accusatory questions in the middle of Alinejad's talk and during the discussion period.
[A personal note: From the replies to the event invitation on Facebook, I noticed that quite a few friends attended the symposium. I am sorry I could not stay around to say hi, given that I had a 2-hour drive to get home. It took me almost 3 hours to get there from Santa Barbara, but I am glad I decided to make the trip.]
[Link to my Facebook post containing photos, a couple of videos, and the report above in Persian.]

2017/11/27 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
The first photo taken on the surface of the moon by a human being (Neil Armstrong), 1969 First photo of Machu Picchu, taken upon its discovery, 1912 First photo of Earth from outer space, taken by strapping a camera to a US-captured Nazi V-2 Rocket and hoping the film would survive the crash, 1946 (1) History in pictures: [Left] The first photo taken on the surface of the moon by a human being (Neil Armstrong), 1969. [Center] First photo of Machu Picchu, taken upon its discovery, 1912. [Right] First photo of Earth from outer space, taken by strapping a camera to a US-captured Nazi V-2 Rocket and hoping the film would survive the crash, 1946.
(2) How sales can make you overspend: Here is good advice from Time magazine, issue of November 27 and December 4, 2017, on how to view sale prices based on values rather than mark-downs. "When we see a sale price, we shouldn't consider what the price used to be or how much we're saving ... Buying a $60 shirt marked down from $100 isn't saving $40; it's spending $60."
(3) Trump targets yet another minority group with a racial slur: In a ceremony held to honor Native-American World War II veterans, he derides Elizabeth Warren by referring to her as "Pocahontas." A Native American spokesman said, "we as the Navajo Nation don't feel any member of any tribal nation should be used as the punchline of a joke."
(4) Changes (in $ millions) in federal revenues under the GOP tax plan: Positive numbers in this table mean more government revenue, or higher taxes, for the corresponding income bracket.
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Bali's Mount Agung volcanic eruption deemed imminent, prompting mass evacuations.
- The Russia story: It's not about the other shoe dropping, but 99 other shoes dropping; we have a centipede!
- After apologizing for the 'Access Hollywood' tape, the Toddler-in-Chief asserted that the tape was fake!
- Borowitz Report: Trump claims the voice on 'Access Hollywood' tape is actually Hillary Clinton imitating him.
- Tehran billboard suggests Iran's regime and its opponents are united against Trump and Saudi threats.
- An important side benefit of driverless car technology is greater mobility for the elderly and the disabled.
- First-ever Jewish finalist in the Miss-Germany contest says she is proud to be a German Jew.
- Life is good—Don't spoil it by trying to understand it. ["Pot-Shots" meme, by Ashleigh Brilliant]
- SNL's word of the year: com.plic.it /kam'plisit/ (noun): a new fragrance for Ivanka Trump
- Tweet of the day: "A lunar eclipse flat-Earthers have never seen." ~ Neil deGrasse Tyson [Image]
(6) Piano recital: Tonight, I attended a wonderful recital by Gustavo Romero, performing as part of UCSB's Spanish Piano Festival (Alexander Boyd will perform Wednesday night in another installment). Emma Lou Diemer, who recently celebrated her 90th birthday, was in the audience and was introduced by Romero, after he performed her Sonata No. 3. [Samples of Romero's performances on YouTube]
(7) Apt final thought for the day, after a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with the family: "I am grateful for what I am and have. My thanksgiving is perpetual." ~ Henry David Thoreau

Cover image for 'The Power of Habit' 2017/11/26 (Sunday): Two items from the domain of neuroscience.
(1) Book review: Duhigg, Charles, The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Mike Chamberlain, Random House Audio, 2012.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Habits are heuristics that allow the brain to control our activities without spending much time or energy. New research in neuroscience is producing a deep understanding of the role of, and formation mechanisms for, habits. Delegating much of our routine activities to the programmed habits frees our brain's resources to focus on non-routine and/or important tasks.
Formation of habits is through the establishment of special neural circuitry in the basal ganglia (a central part of our brain which controls motor activities). People who have suffered significant damage to their brain, to the extent that they are unable to form new memories, can continue to engage in activities driven by their habits. One subject, who suffered extensive brain damage, could not say where his home was located or sketch its floorplan, yet he could go for a walk and safely return home, and he could walk to the kitchen to get the snack he craved.
To put it simply, a habit consists of three components: a cue that triggers it, a routine, which is the main activity, and a reward. For example, if you have trouble exercising, you might try to form a habit with a cue (say, getting out of bed), the routine of jogging or other physical activity comprising your exercise regimen, and a reward, such as treating yourself to a smoothie afterwards. Whereas we can form new habits, modifying an old habit tends to be easier. The key is to keep the same cue and reward as the old habit and substitute a new activity. For example, to quit smoking, the cue might be craving a cigarette.
The observations above apply equally to personal habits and organizational habits (routines). One insight is that certain "keystone" habits help with the formation of other useful habits. A powerful example of habit-formation is found in the military. Trainees are exposed to different combat situations until the required reactions become more or less automatic.
Understanding habits, how they are formed, and how they can be modified constitute some of the major triumphs of neuroscience.
(2) Introduction to Neuroeconomics: How the Brain Makes Decisions (weeks 8-9; the end):
Having reported on the overall course structure and my experience in weeks 1-3 through a post on 10/24, weeks 4-5 on 10/29, and weeks 6-7 on 11/14, I briefly describe the contents of the final two weeks of the course here. http://www.coursera.org/learn/neuroeconomics/home/welcome
Week 8: The social brain: Games in the brain
a. Decisions in groups (game theory as a tool; the prisoner's dilemma as a model of cooperation)
Natural selection occurs at multiple levels: genes, individuals, groups of individuals. At the level of individuals, cheating may be the favored behavior, but at the level of groups, cooperation and altruism are favored.
Our brains are sensitized to face recognition, so when we look at the inside of a mask (concave), our brain automatically converts it to a regular face (convex).
In the prisoner/s dilemma game played only once, defection is the optimal strategy, whereas if the game is played repeatedly, cooperation (being nice) in the first instance and then mirroring the other side's previous move (tit for tat) is optimal.
b. Mirror neurons and empathy (a neural basis for social cooperation; mirror neurons)
Monitoring the brain activity when two players engage in a prisoner's-dilemma game allows us to predict the next move with relatively high probability by noting whether the reward area or the punishment area is activated after a move.
Oxytocin affects an individual's willingness to accept social risk arising from interpersonal interactions. We understand other people's actions/goals by simulating their brain activity in our own brain. The same may apply to empathy. Men show a stronger desire for revenge than women. Women show more empathy to all, whereas men show empathy to fair (nice) players and a desire for revenge to unfair (nasty) players. When the prisoner's-dilemma is played in large groups, the importance of punishment on ensuring cooperation increases.
Take-away message: There is strong evidence that cooperation has an evolutionary basis. People empathize with fair opponents, while favoring the punishment of unfair opponents.
Week 9: Evolutionary perspective on decision-making
a. Ontogenetic (and evolutionary) origin of cooperative decisions
Children are motivated to participate in cooperative social activity. They do not view their cooperative partner as a mere tool for achieving their own goals. They understand the value of cooperation.
Chimps exhibit human-like helpfulness by assisting other chimps or humans get food or achieve other goals. But they do not try to re-engage their partner once s/he loses interest.
b. Biological market theory
Examples of markets in nature (biological markets) include cleaning stations at sea, where certain fish eat dead skin cells, bacteria, and parasites off bigger fish, getting food and protection as rewards.
Among primates, grooming is a service that is often exchanged for food, sex, and other rewards. The grooming behavior in groups of primates follows the economic laws of supply and demand.
c. Capuchin monkeys (trading with capuchins; do capuchin monkeys reject unequal pay?)
Capuchin monkeys diverged from humans some 35M years ago. They can be trained to exchange tokens for small food rewarss. Humans are both loss-averse and risk-averse. We prefer a mediacl treatment that saves 200 of a potential set of 600 victims over one that kills 400 of the same group, even though the outcomes are exactly the same. We also take a smaller certain reward over a larger expected reward that is probabilistic.
The endowment effect: Humans overvalue objects that they own compared with those they do not own. Trading has the hallmarks of cooperation: Participants have to invest something in trading without a gurantee of better rewards. Capuchin monkeys were allowed to cooperate in pulling a tray that would provide food to only one of them. They did cooperate and then shared the food.
Like humans, monkeys reject unequal pay, and they are very similar to humans in other respects with regard to decision-making, suggesting that the observed behaviors were in the genes, many millions of years ago.

2017/11/25 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
At my niece Yalda's engagement party (1) Today was the engagement party for my niece Yalda. We took this family photo near the end of the party.
(2) Trump lied about being considered as Person of the Year: Time magazine has disputed Trump's claim of "probably" being chosen as Person of the Year and telling the magazine editors "no, thanks."
(3) Quote of the day: "Man's capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man's inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary." ~ Reinhold Niebuhr
(4) [A reporter, a historian, a comedian, a sociologist, and a moderator walk into a cultural center ...] Striving for Human Rights: A public forum at Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles; Tuesday, November 28, 2017, 7:30-10:30 PM.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Out of 42 top economists, only one believes the GOP tax bill would help the economy.
- Roy Clark demonstrates his mastery of three different musical instruments in one song.
- This man-child's behavior was at first maddening, then it became comical, and now it is saddening!
- May I suggest that from now on, news media cover only DJT claims that are true? Wastes less paper and ink!
- Riddle of the day: If Teresa's daughter is my daughter's mother, what am I to Teresa?
- Persian-style celebration of holidays and other festive occasions! [Image]
(6) Fifty years after Forough Farrokhzad's death in a car accident at age 32, enigmatic artist Ebrahim Golestan talks about his extramarital affair with Iran's legendary poet.
(7) Passing on a wonderful song shared on Facebook by a musician friend: Ludwig Tuman directs the Choral Tales Project, which brings together music and folk tales from around the world.
(8) If you have not seen this precious little girl, you'll fall in love with her: Musical prodigy Alma Deutscher composes a piano sonata on the fly, beginning with 4 randomly drawn notes. Deutscher's compositions are performed all over the world. Here is a 20-minute documentary film about her "Finding Cindrella" opera, which she composed at age 11. In her story, Cindrella is a composer and the Prince is a poet, who falls in love with her talent, not her looks; no glass slippers and other silly things! And here is the full 94-minute opera.
(9) Observations on the human condition: "A man cannot unsee the truth. He cannot willingly return to darkness, or go blind once he has the gift of sight, any more than he can be unborn. We are the only species capable of self-reflection. The only species with the toxin of self-doubt written into our genetic code. Unequal to our gifts, we build, we buy, we consume. We wrap us in the illusion of material success. We cheat and deceive as we claw our way to the pinnacle of what we define as achievement. Superiority to other men." ~ Protagonist in the film "A Cure for Wellness," writing to his fellow board members who sent him on a mysterious mission
[The plot of this psychological thriller has the villain afflicting visitors to a spa in the Alps with a disease, because he believes disease is good for human beings. It gives them hope for a cure, otherwise there is no hope for curing the human condition.]

2017/11/23 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Seasonal fruits Turkey and other yummy food Pies and other desserts (1) Happy Thanksgiving! On this day and every day of the year, I am thankful for my health, being surrounded by loving family and friends, and the privilege of doing what I love for a living. And, oh, for not being a turkey! Be careful about commenting on the last part, because as soon as my Chief of Staff allows me, I will retaliate!
(2) Ivanka and Kushner may be on their way out: Trump is reportedly pressuring Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner to move back to New York. Just another pair of allies thrown under the bus for his own survival?
(3) Quote of the day: "If Classical Music concerts had progress bars, then people unfamiliar with the piece would never be confused when to clap at the end." ~ Neil deGrasse Tyson
(4) Economic markets in nature: Here's another fun fact I learned from the neuroeconomics course I am taking. There are certain species of fish that work as cleaners, eating dead skin cells, bacteria, and parasites off other fish, sometimes swimming in a predator's mouth to do so. They get food and protection as rewards. Cleaning stations are set up, where fish can go to get cleaned. Clients compete for cleaner-fish services, and vice versa. In one scene near the end of this 6-minute video, a scuba-diver's mouth is cleaned by the fish!
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Egypt mosque terror attack kills at least 235: Trump uses the incident to tout his wall and travel ban.
- Iranian commander: Tehran would intervene on the side of Hezbollah in the event of a war with Israel.
- Today's cyberthreats are as serious as the Cuban missile crisis. We need to de-escalate before it's too late.
- Kellyanne Conway violated federal law when she attacked a Senate candidate during an appearance on TV.
- Angry avatars help schizophrenics stop hearing destructive voices by shouting at them.
- Actress Uma Thurman just went full "Kill Bill" on Harvey Weinstein, who produced the film.
- Dopamine injection boosted our brains, thus setting us apart from chimps and monkeys.
- These majestic and endangered animals aren't trophies: Please use your house/truck for target practice!
- Putin treats Trump and his friends to a Thanksgiving feast! [Image]
- Women are leaving the party of Trump in droves: They are very active and rearing to run for office.
(6) Face recognition: Our brain is so well-tuned to recognizing faces that, when we see the reverse side (inside) of a mask, our brain automatically changes our perception to that of a regular convex face, rather than a concave one. [Something I learned in week 8 of the neuroeconomics course I am taking on-line.]
(7) Tweet of the day: "As a veteran I don't feel disrespected by those who kneel to protest injustice. I do feel disrespected by Trump pissing on the Constitution." ~ @CaseyHinds, responding to Tomi Lahren
(8) Final thought for the day: On Thanksgiving Day, we celebrate the kindness of Americans who fed diseased, undocumented, non-native-language-speaking, illegal aliens from Europe.

2017/11/22 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Pilot restarting a stalled propeller in flight, 1960s Young lovers embrace at Arc de Triomphe in Paris, 1960 New York City neighborhood, 1900 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Pilot restarting a stalled propeller in flight, 1960s. [Center] Young lovers embrace at Arc de Triomphe, 1960 (Thomas Nebbia, National Geographic Creative). [Right] NYC neighborhood, 1900.
(2) Iran's Supreme Leader is greeted warmly by earthquake victims: This is the fake-news headline of pro-government media in Iran about Khamenei's visit to Kurdistan's earthquake-ravaged areas. Look at this photo more closely and you will see that he was greeted not by ordinary people but by clerics and military personnel.
(3) Nasrin Setoudeh addresses the former President of Iran: Ahmadinejad is now part of an opposition group that has staged a sit-in to protest arbitrary arrests and prosecutions, conveniently forgetting that many victims of arbitrary arrests and prosecutions during his administration are still in prison.
(4) UCSB grad student in ICU: Atieh Taheri, suffering from spinal muscular atrophy, is at the ICU of Santa Barbara's Cottage Hospital. She is a graduate of Sharif University of Technology's computer engineering program and a current UCSB graduate student. Her family intends to take her to Stanford Medical Center as soon as feasible, because she can get better specialist help there. GoFundMe is being used to raise funds to help with her medical expenses. Here is Atieh's Facebook page. And here is the FB page of her sister, Atefeh Taheri, where she posts updates on Atieh's status and lists a second method of helping out via PayPal.
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Saying that you should have left US citizens imprisoned because they don't like you as a leader is repugnent.
- Trump's endorsement of the misogynist and pedophile Roy Moore is the lowest point in US presidential history.
- Here we go again: Foreign-sponsored bots meddling in the on-going net-neutrality debate.
- Rafsanjani's daughter visits a Baha'i Leader: The two became friends when they served time together.
- Apple scientists publish research on their highly secretive self-driving-car project.
- AAAS and other scientific groups condemn GOP's tax bill as anti-science and harmful to graduate education.
- Kudos to this alert truck driver and the designers of his truck's braking system for saving a child's life.
- Quote of the day: "The secret of success is making your vocation your vacation." ~ Mark Twain
- Desert spring and winter: California and Texas, respectively. [Photos]
- A rather well-done 14-minute tour of Iran's geography, history, and culture.
(6) Are we any closer to solving the "P vs. NP" problem? MIT's Ryan Williams seems to have taken a step toward solving the infamous problem in theoretical computer science by connecting the domains of computational complexity and algorithm design. He has used the derivation of lower bounds on how much time a particular kind of circuit needs for solving a class of problems to derive mathematical functions for which the same class of circuits is provably inefficient.
(7) A perfect evening for walking in Santa Barbara's downtown streets and on Stearns Wharf: Spending time with my sons, watching a most colorful sunset, and dining at Santa Barbara Craft Ramen.

2017/11/21 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
The Bee Gees, 1959 Archery team, University of Chicago, 1935 A disabled war veteran begging in Berlin, 1923 (1) History in pictures: [Left] The Bee Gees, 1959. [Center] University of Chicago's archery team, 1935. [Right] A disabled war veteran begging in Berlin, 1923.
(2) The next step in self-driving car technology: Bringing the technology to older cars is the aim of a kit developed by the Canadian company X-Matik Inc. The kit, easily installed in about an hour, is said to provide an economical option for those who can't afford the sure-to-be-expensive initial self-driving car models.
(3) A pastor defended Roy Moore by citing the purity of young girls. Another said that more women are sexual predators than men!
(4) General McMaster believes that Trump has the intelligence of a kindergartner: "National Security Adviser H. R. McMaster mocked President Trump's intelligence at a private dinner with a powerful tech CEO, according to five sources with knowledge of the conversation."
(5) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Convoy of cars going to the aid of Kermanshah's earthquake victims in Iran creates a traffic jam.
- Quote of the day: "I don't know what I think until I write it down." ~ Joan Didion
- Question of the day: Will Trump repeal Obama's decisions on pardoning turkeys?
- Near-perfect frozen 40,000-year-old baby mammoth, discovered in 2007 by a reindeer herder in Siberia.
- Mehrnaz & Farnaz Dabirzadeh perform a cheerful traditional Persian tune: Parviz Meshkatian, composer.
- Disk drives from two old broken laptops, smashed with a hammer to make my private data inaccessible.
- I had not seen the leaning tower of Pisa and its adjacent cathedral from this angle before. Wonderful shot!
- Xi to Putin: "You were right—with this guy, [flattery] will get you ANYWHERE!" [Cartoon]
(6) Trophy hunting: A few days ago on NPR, someone observed that shooting an elephant with a high-power rifle is like shooting at a house: There's absolutely no challenge and it's not sports. I guess it's the same for other large, relatively slow-moving animals. [Image]
(7) Some photos from my visit to UCLA on Sudnay and Mondey (see the report of my lectures, posted on Monday 11/20). [The iconic Royce Hall and Powell Library] [A sampling of campus buildings, which include Dodd Hall (venue for Sunday's lecture) and the Humanities Building (venue for Monday afternoon's lecture, seen behind the trees of Dickson Court)] [Sculpture Garden]

2017/11/20 (Monday): My bilingual lectures at UCLA, today (in English) and yesterday (in Persian).
Flyer for the Persian lecture Photos taken at the lecture venues Flyer for the English lecture
"Computers and Challenges of Writing in Persian"
(Or "Fifty Years of Poor Penmanship: How Computers Struggled to Learn the Persian Script")
Speaker: Dr. Behrooz Parhami, Professor, UCSB [Photos in the middle above courtesy of Dr. Nayereh Tohidi]
Sunday, November 19, 2017, 4:00-6:00 PM, UCLA Dodd Hall, Room 121 (in Persian)
Monday, November 20, 2017, 2:00-4:00 PM, UCLA Humanities Building, Room 365 (in English)
On-line descriptions of the Persian and English lectures. Speaker's presentation slides (PDF file).
Modern Persian script is around 1200 years old and has undergone three developments in connection with modern technology. First, around 400 years ago, the introduction of printing presses in Iran necessitated significant changes to the script. Second, some seven decades ago, the script underwent additional changes for use with mechanical typewriters. Third, fifty-odd years ago, when banks and large governmental organizations imported electronic digital computers, the script had to be adapted to the fast-changing computer printer and display technologies. In all three instances, attributes of the Persian script made adaptation difficult and compromised the quality of the resulting script. Because changes made in connection with movable-type printers and typewriters subsequently affected the development of computer script, the talk covered aspects of all three transitions.
Movable-type fonts were developed based on the Naskh script, which was more suitable for the task than the artistic Nasta'liq. Each Persian letter was rendered in four variants (initial, middle, and final connected forms, as well as the solo form, not connected on either side) and realized in the form of small metal blocks that would be arranged into lines by a typesetter. Naskh script variants in the pre-printing era had many different shapes for each letter, which depended on context. Additionally, letters did not always appeared side by side, but rather were stacked on top of each other and their connections occurred as various heights within the written line. Movable fonts, on the other hand, had a horizontal connecting axis and connections between adjacent letters always occurred along that central line, thus making the shape of a letter independent of the surrounding letters, the four variants mentioned above notwithstanding.
With typewriters, even the four variants for each Persian letter were too many, because they would lead to some 120 forms (or 60 keys, assuming the use of a "shift" key) just for the letters, Add the digits, punctuation marks, and other special characters, and you see the problem. Fortunately, with very few exceptions (such as the letters "ein" and "ghein"), one can merge the two initial and middle forms, and do the same for the final and solo forms, to fit the resulting character set on a standard typewriter keyboard. This provision further degrades the quality of the resulting script, but over time, the ill effects are minimized through intelligent font design and human adaptation. IBM Selectric, a 1970s-vintage electric typewriter that introduced a golf-ball-like printing mechanism, already offered aesthetically-pleasing and very legible Persian script. Highly impressed, I chose the device to type an entire textbook in Persian, so as to give myself full technical and creative control over the final result.
Early computer displays had built-in "character generators" that drew letters and other symbols in geometric forms (a set of connected lines), which made it difficult to generate the Persian letters. There were also line-segment displays, used for calculators and other low-cost electronic devices. Early line-printers, used in computer centers, had rotating elements (drum, chain, and, later, daisy-chain, to name a few) that held a set of printable symbols. When a requisite symbol aligned with the print position as a result of rotation, a hammer mechanism would strike against the paper and ink ribbon, causing an impression of the letter to appear on paper. All oi these printing schemes would leave an undesirable space (corresponding to the mechanical spacing of the hammers) between adjacent Persian letters that should have been connected. Many ingenious schemes were proposed, implemented, and, occasionally abandoned, as we struggled to overcome technological limitations on the path to producing high-quality Persian output.
The beginnings of a solution presented itself when dot-matrix display units and printers were introduced. The idea is similar to what had been used for centuries in the Kufi script, which allowed artists to write decoratively on mosques and other important buildings in Persian and Arabic, using the juxtaposition of small square tiles of two or more colors. The simplest black-and-white dot-matrix may have 7 rows and 5 columns of dots. In both displaying and printing of information, a subset of the 35 dots would be rendered black and the others are left white, thus creating an approximate representation of the desired symbol. The simple 7 x 5 matrix is adequate for uppercase Latin letters and the larger 9 x 9 matrix also offers a reasonable representation of lower-case letters. Wide variation of letter widths and heights in Persian necessitates the use of a larger matrix to achieve the same aesthetic and legibility quality, which is now quite practical with high-definition displays and high-resolution printers, that even in their cheapest forms, now routinely offer 600 dots-per-inch quality.
The talk concluded with an overview of the current status of computer display and printing for the Persian script, features of the fonts provided by various applications, and areas where more work is still needed. Foremost among such areas is the resolution of problems in bilingual display/printing and nagging incompatibilities that cause formatting headaches when text is copied between various applications. A Q&A and discussion period ended the session.
[This Facebook post also contains a Persian version of the lecture summary presented above.]

2017/11/19 (Sunday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Easy Strimko with a 5-by-5 grid Medium Strimko with a 6-by-6 grid Hard Strimko with a 7-by-7 grid (1) Strimko, a Soduku-like puzzle that can be more challenging: As in Soduku, we have an n x n array of cells that should be filled using the numbers 1 through n, so that no row and no column contains repeated numbers. Instead of rectangular boxes in Soduku, we have cells interconnected via lines in arbitrary patterns. A set of interconnected cells also should contain no repetition. A typical puzzle has some of the cells already filled in (just as in Soduku) and you need to fill in the blank cells. Try the three puzzles above, ranging from easy 5 x 5 to hard 7 x 7. If you like these examples, you can find more at Puzzles.com.
(2) On Islamization of humanities and social sciences: Iran's Supreme Leader and his cronies want to purge their ideological rivals through the Islamization of university curricula, but their slogan "Islamization of humanities" has it backwards, according to Dr. Hossein Kamaly, quoted in this Persian-language article. Humanization of Islamic thought is the right way to go.
(3) Editing of genes inside the human body may become a reality: Previously, genes were edited in the lab, with the goal of re-incorporating them back into the patient's body. Now, a corrective gene is paired with two zinc finger proteins, which act as a kind of molecular scissors, cutting DNA to create a place where the new gene can insert itself.
(4) Columbia grad student Amanda Rose does the calculations to show how the GOP tax bill will reduce her usable income, after taxes and rent, from about $21K to approximately $6K per year, because of taxes due on her tuition and fee waivers. The last number on the page, showing the increase in her tax liability, should be 361% (the new number is 4.61 times the old one, but the increase is 361%). The same tax plan gives private-jet owners tax breaks for the costs of storage, maintenance, and fueling!
(5) The oldest piece of writing to use the word "America" appears on a 2D printed globe made by a German cartographer 510 years ago. The 2D globe will be auctioned off by Christie's on December 13, 2017.
(6) Pioneering hardware and software engineers: Howard Aiken (hardware architect, seated, center), Grace Murray Hopper (software engineer, seated, second from right), and others from the US Department of Defense in front of Harvard Mark I, 1944. [Image] [Image credit: Encyclopedia Britannica]
(7) UCSB Reads: The book chosen for community reading and discussion on our campus in 2018 is Lab Girl, by Hope Jahren, who chronicles her coming of age as a scientist, juxtaposing her scientific autobiography with beautifully-rendered meditations on the life of plants. The book, already on my to-read list, will now move forward in the queue! Community events related to this book will include a free lecture by Hope Jahren at UCSB's Campbell Hall on April 3, 2018.
(8) Headed to Los Angeles for lectures at UCLA, today 11/19 in Persian and tomorrow 11/20 in English.

2017/11/18 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Inside a passenger plane, 1930 Before alarm clocks were affordable, 'knocker-ups' were used to wake people early in the morning, UK, ca. 1900 Londoners celebrate Christmas Day 1940 in an underground bomb shelter (1) History in pictures: [Left] Inside a passenger plane, 1930. [Center] Before alarm clocks were affordable, 'knocker-ups' were used to wake people early in the morning, UK, ca. 1900. [Right] Londoners celebrate Christmas Day 1940 in an underground bomb shelter.
(2) The anti-press President: "Most mornings, the early Twitter tweets of amateur President Donald Trump are like the loud passing of intestinal gas. They stink for a while but drift away. Thursday might have been the exception for this television-obsessed authoritarian." ~ From an article in The Observer
(3) As they say, people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones: Trump's unwise tweet about Al Franken has caused the media to revisit the history of sexual misconduct allegations against him.
(4) When Trump compared the upset victory of the young PM of New Zealand to his own, she replied to his face, in jest, "But no one marched when I was elected!" Welcome, New Zealand, to the list of failing countries!
(5) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Trump gives Palestine 90 days to get serious about peace talks with Israel, or its DC office will be closed.
- End days: How NASA monitors space for events that could end the world.
- Three-dimensional 3D-printed naonmagnets allow more compact data storage and processing.
- Machine-learning is being applied to the problem of diagnosing supercomputer malfunctions.
- Quantum computing with molecules allows quicker searching of unsorted data sets.
- Tesla unveils electric semi-truck with 500-mile range: Working on 400-mile charging scheme in 30 min.
- Fun fact of the day: In the US, 92% of Americans celebrate Christmas, including 81% of non-Christians.
- Cartoon of the day: The Gettysburg Address, delivered Trump style! [Image]
(6) [Political humor] Donald Trump: "I saw first-hand that the Great Wall of China works. During my visit there, I didn't encounter a single Mexican." ~ Seen on the Internet in various forms
(7) Given the welcome attention to the serious problem of sexual misconduct, the following would not have been tolerated, had they occurred in late 2017: Bill Clinton's continued presidency, Clarence Thomas' confirmation, Donald Trump's candidacy.
(8) Jordan Burroughs, American world and Olympic champion in freestyle wrestling who went to Kermanshah for the 2017 World Cup, sends thoughts and prayers to the people of Kermanshah in Persian on Instagram.
(9) Signing off with four black-and-white shots by photographer Helen Levitt. Titles are mine.
[Boy and the drama queen] [Curiosity killed the cat] [Couple on subway car] [Street performance]

2017/11/17 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
A Japanese-American family returning home from an internment camp in Idaho One of the rare photographs of a slave ship. This was done by Marc Ferrez in 1882 Women protesting the forced hijab in Iran, days after the 1979 Revolution (1) History in pictures: [Left] A Japanese-American family returning home from an internment camp in Idaho. [Center] One of the rare photographs of a slave ship. This was done by Marc Ferrez in 1882. [Right] Women protesting the forced hijab in Iran, days after the 1979 Revolution.
(2) Donald Trump's tweet: "The Al Frankenstien (sic) picture is really bad, speaks a thousand words. Where do his hands go in pictures 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6 while she sleeps?"
Great question! Fortunately, the ambiguity does not exist about where your hands would go on a woman!
(3) Some Alabama Republicans are abandoning Roy Moore: They state their respect for the principle of "innocent until proven guilty" but maintain it does not mean "electable until proven guilty."
(4) Jared Kushner is privy to the country's most important national-security secrets while having only an interim security clearance. He has not been given a full clearance yet. Given the just-released info about his contacts with WikiLeaks, there is a chance he will never be fully cleared for access to top-secret information.
(5) Seven brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Massive flash floods in Greece leave 15 dead: Several people are reported missing.
- Da Vinci painting auctioned for a record $450M: The last increase that led to the winning bid was $50M!
- Robot gymnastics: This Boston Dynamics robot does a backflip.
- What a concept! A president-to-be reading newspapers, rather than watching television. [Photo]
- Ahad Panahi's calligraphic rendering of a Rumi verse, reading "Kay shavad een ravaan-e man saaken?"
- Maybe Trump will succeed in draining the swamp, including the section of it that is him and his cabinet!
- Cartoon of the day: What the explorers were looking for. [By John Atkinson] [Image] [Image]
(6) Today's lecture on AI and computer security: Speaking under the title "AI and Computer Security: Lessons, Challenges, and Future Directions," Dr. Dawn Song, EECS Professor at UC Berkeley, discussed how AI can be used to improve or hurt computer security and how security techniques can be introduced into AI systems to make them less vulnerable to adversarial interference.
In the area of applying AI to the security domain, examples were provided of how deep learning can be used to spot security threats before they do damage to our systems, as well as how hackers can benefit from AI method to penetrate relatively secure systems that may not be vulnerable to established methods of attack. A case in point is the recent progress in the design of bots that can solve captcha codes.
In the reverse direction, many research teams have revealed the extreme vulnerability of deep learning methods to adversarial interference. One of the speaker's slides showed that when photographs of different individuals are compressed for storage economy and then decompressed before use, a knowledgeable adversary can modify the images slightly, in a way that is invisible to a human observer, so that the compression-decompression sequence always leads to the same targeted image, effectively defeating a face-recognition system. Dr. Song concluded by enumerating the many open problems that exist at the boundary between AI and computer security.
Even though I learned much from this talk, there were two aspects of it that bothered me. First, just as we have cheapened "A"s and "B"s at our universities through grade inflation, we have cheapened the designation "distinguished speaker/lecture" in recent years. Not every successful or prolific researcher is "distinguished," a designation, that, in my view, requires having been around the block a few times, so to speak, and being able to synthesize ideas from a broad range of disciplines.
Second, the speaker was very difficult to understand, given her accent, tone of voice, and fast speech. One of the greatest time/resource investments that young researchers can make in their careers is to take professional training courses in voice/speech and public speaking. Such an investment is particularly important for those who have to speak regularly in a language different from their primary one.

2017/11/16 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Aerial view of Manhattan, 1951 British soldier on a horse in zebra camouflage, German East Africa during World War I Two million people gathered in NYC's Times Square on May 8, 1945, to celebrate the end of World War II (1) History in pictures: [Left] Aerial view of Manhattan, 1951. [Center] British soldier on a horse in zebra camouflage, German East Africa during World War I. [Right] Two million people gathered in NYC's Times Square on May 8, 1945, to celebrate the end of World War II.
(2) Dictators don't like social media: Among social media apps, the largest number of countries (12) have blocked WhatsApp and the largest number (27) have arrested Facebook users. [Source: E&T magazine, issue of November 2017]
(3) Some facts about the "Uranium One" deal, from Fox News. [Yes, that's Fox News, which I rarely use as a source, but here it might just stop conservatives from spewing their usual hatred against the Clintons.]
(4) Sign of the times: If you ever frequent this business, make sure to point out where your eyes are and stress that you want a RETINAL exam, just in case!
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Censored topics by country: A few (e.g., China and Iran) censor everything. Others are more selective.
- Kurdish women engaged in clean-up and reconstruction after the devastating magnitude-7.3 quake.
- Borowitz report: "Trump warns that dumping Roy Moore could start a dangerous trend of believing women."
- The Sound (and Visions) of Silence: Mesmerizing NASA footage, set to the Simon & Garfunkel song.
- Cartoon of the day: BRB note on Elon Musk's office door: "Gone to NY, back in 10 mins."
- The Chase Palm Park carousel will be leaving Santa Barbara in a couple of weeks; free rides on 12/2-3.
(6) A story from one year ago, today: Many fake-news posts of the past couple of years make more sense now, given what we have learned about the Russian meddling in our 2016 election. The year-old post begins thus: "Did you read the Denver Guardian story ... ," referring to a nonexistent newspaper.
(7) [Humor] Sharing what a neighbor wrote in a community newsletter: We Silver Surfers know that sometimes we have trouble with our computers. Yesterday I had a problem, so I called Georgie, the 11-year-old next door, whose bedroom looks like Mission Control, and asked him to come over. Georgie clicked a couple of buttons and solved the problem. As he was walking away, I called after him, "So, what was wrong?" He replied, "It was and ID ten T error." I didn't want to appear stupid, but nonetheless inquired, "An ID ten T error? What's that? In case I need to fix it again." Georgie grinned. "Haven't you ever heard of an ID ten T error before?" "No," I replied. "Write it down and I think you'll figure it out." So, I wrote it down: ID10T; I used to like Georgie.
(8) Attitudes are really changing: Singer Drake interrupted his concert to warn a man who was touching the women in the audience inappropriately. It is now everybody's business to stop sexual assaults.
(9) Today was my cleaning lady's last day. She is moving in a few days to be closer to her family members. She recruited a local friend to continue her work at my house. I will miss this very conscientious and hard-working woman. My daughter baked a blueberry bread/cake for her as one of the parting gifts. [Photos]

2017/11/15 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Mount Rushmore, as the carving project begins, ca. 1929 School playground equipment in the year 1900 Statue of Liberty, being constructed in France (1) History in pictures: [Left] Mount Rushmore, hland and Japan take positions 3 and 4 with entries that are not only a tad more powerful than the US's Titan (at #5), but also more energy-efficient. [Image]
(3) Russia's Ministry of Defense posts, then deletes, footage from a computer game as 'evidence' that the US is helping ISIS!
(4) Entertainment industry figures accused of sexual harassment: Most of the cases on this list are still at the accusation stage and no verdict is implied, but the list is useful as a way of seeing the extent of the problem.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Trump better be careful in going after critics from prior administrations. There will be a next administration!
- Twelve lawyers are being hired to start the process of seizing land for Trump's border wall.
- The United States was one of 18 countries to have its elections influenced by foreign bots.
- Iranian poet Tahirih recognized as an early feminist and a role model for Western suffragette movements.
- Observation: We are no longer allowed or able to fix our electronic gadgets.
- Patent diagram from 1891 settles proper use of a toilet paper roll (no more fights about "over" or "under").
(6) Earthquake update: Reports from the magnitude-7.3 earthquake devastation in Iran's western province of Kermanshah continue to come in. Here is a video report from a village that suffered near-total destruction. No government aid has arrived there yet, according to the villagers. Here are more images of the destruction. And here is how to help the victims. Not many international relief organizations have a presence in, or are allowed to go to, the devastation zone, particularly the epicenter, Sar-Pol Zahab. Moms Against Poverty (MAP) is a reputable organization that can help, and much help is needed according to pleas for help coming from the region. Amid the sad news, there are also glimmers of hope: Kianoush Rostami, Iran's Olympic weightlifting champion, is auctioning off his gold medal to raise money for earthquake relief efforts.
(7) Concert at the Music Bowl: UCSB Gamelan Ensemble performed at noon today. I don't much care for Gamelan music, which comes primarily from Indonesia, but the kinds of instruments used (mostly percussion) and the intricate playing techniques fascinate me. [Photos] Almost all Gamelan music pieces are soft and dreamy, with this dance tune being a rare exception. [Fun fact: More Muslims live in Indonesia than in the entire Middle East combined.] Taking the library shortcut on the way from the Music Bowl to my office, I was asked by a young lady attending a desk in the lobby whether I wanted to share on a special display my thoughts about what I am thankful for. So, I wrote something on a brown leaf. If you know me well, you may be able to spot my leaf in this photo, either from the content or from the handwriting.

2017/11/14 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
R2D2 and C3PO visit Big Bird on Sesame Street, 1970s Colorized photo of Captain Walter Young and his crew in front of their caricatures on their B-29 Superfortress, 1944 The first color photograph of the Sphinx and the Pyramid of Giza, 1913 (1) History in pictures: [Left] R2D2 and C3PO visit Big Bird on Sesame Street, 1970s. [Center] Colorized photo of Captain Walter Young and his crew in front of their caricatures on their B-29 Superfortress, 1944. [Right] The first color photograph of the Sphinx and the Pyramid of Giza, 1913.
(2) Today is "National Run-for-Office Day": Make a difference by running for a local or national office. Run for dog-catcher, if you must. Anything will do. Just act!
(3) At least four people and the gunman are dead after shootings in multiple locations, including an elementary school, in Northern California's Tehama County, according to the Assistant Sheriff. [Hush, don't talk about gun control; this isn't the time!]
(4) One-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Report on Iran's 7.3 earthquake, showing widespread destruction, including major cracks in a dam.
- John McCain tweet: "Human rights obviously not a priority in @POTUS's meeting with Dutert—again, sad."
- Jeff Sessions is either lying or has a very poor memory. Either way, he is unfit to serve as a cabinet member.
- Bill Gates invests $50 million to start a wide-ranging battle against dementia.
- Universities oppose the GOP tax plan over its adverse effects on endowments and student loans.
- Broadcom's new GPS chip will bring a resolution of 30 cm to smartphones in 2018.
- Selfie with Hitler: A museum in Indonesia removes Hitler's wax figure in front of Auschwitz after backlash.
- TSA agent risks his life to remove a smoking backpack from an airport security-check area.
- An antique car I encountered on the street during my afternoon walk. [Photo]
- Comic strip of the day: includes several spot-on observations. ["The Modern World"]
- Remnants of 260M-year-old forest discovered in Antarctica: The trees lived before dinosaurs.
- These "Flying Pencils" were installed on the UCSB campus by Peter Logan in 1986.
(5) Cartoon of the day: "... there won't be any dividends this quarter due to increased operating expenses ... we have to buy a whole new bunch of Congressmen ..." [Image]
(6) Iranian earthquake: Kurdish women use their resilience and improvisation talents to make up for shortage of tents to weather chilly nights outside their earthquake-damaged homes near Kermanshah. [Photo]
(7) Inverted priorities: Anti-riot forces arrive in some western Iran earthquake areas before search-and-rescue groups. Foreign reporters are banned from the region. [Photos of the devastation]
(8) Pacific Views, UCSB Library Speaker Series: Professor Yasamin Mostofi (UCSB Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering) spoke this afternoon under the title "Robotics Meets Wireless Communications: Opportunities and Challenges." These photos show some of the speaker's slides, as well as sweeping views of the campus and Pacific Ocean from the 8th-floor venue at the campus library (the Pacific Views Room). Professor Mostofi outlined her recent NSF-supported research that uses a combination of drones or other robotic vehicles and wi-fi to solve various practical problems, such as seeing beyond/around walls or counting human occupants in a particular environment. These problems are solvable with radar, but use of wi-fi constitutes a more cost-effective and broadly-accessible method. Radar can provide both directional and distance information, but wi-fi supplies only the signal strength as the sole clue, thus requiring sophisticated signal-processing techniques to deduce the information of interest. [Professor Mostofi's Web page]

2017/11/13 (Monday): Here are four items of potential interest.
A veteran and his son gaze at the Golden Gate Bridge from the shoreline of the nearby San Francisco VA Medical Center, 1943 Children cross the river using pulleys on their way to school in the outskirts of Modena, Italy, 1959 A group of immigrants traveling aboard a ship celebrate as they catch their first glimpse of the Statue of Liberty, 1910 (1) History in pictures: [Left] A veteran and his son gaze at the Golden Gate Bridge from the shoreline of the nearby San Francisco VA Medical Center, 1943. [Center] Children cross the river using pulleys on their way to school in the outskirts of Modena, Italy, 1959. [Right] A group of immigrants traveling aboard a ship celebrate as they catch their first glimpse of the Statue of Liberty, 1910.
(2) The Utah teapot: This image is the result of a 3D graphical model created by Martin Newel for his PhD thesis in the mid-1970s. The model, which made appearances in several well-known animated films and earned the moniker of "World's Most Famous Teapot" foretold of mind-boggling advances in computer graphics. [Image credit: IEEE Spectrum magazine, issue of November 2017]
(3) One-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Magnitude-7.3 earthquake kills at least 300 in the Iran-Iraq border area.
- Message from Kermanshah, Iran: "We don't need condolences, we need help." [Photo]
- Donald Trump Jr. was in contact with WikiLeaks for months, requesting info and suggesting leak ideas.
- Trump believes Putin's election meddling denials but disbelieves US intelligence that indicates otherwise!
- Mass approval of Trump-branded businesses in China raises questions about conflict of interest.
- Random thought for the day: Now, no one can say that Trump didn't go to Vietnam!
- Viola Brand: German champion of artistic cycling, a combination of bicycling, gymnastics and ballet.
- Condensation-trail of a plane flying below high cirrus clouds, with a low Sun casting an upward shadow.
- Persian poetry: I spent some time on Saturday, browsing a book of poems by Parvin Etesami. [Samples]
- Percent of college graduates in STEM fields that are women, by country. [Chart]
- Cartoon of the day: Is anything real if there's no record of it on social media? [Image]
- Wow, the sun is already down at 4:45 this afternoon! [Photos]
Cover image for 'Option B,' by Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant (4) Book review: Sandberg, Sheryl and Adam Grant, Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy, unabridged audiobook on 5 CDs, read by Elisa Donovan, Random House Audio, 2017.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg emerged as a champion of women's empowerment with her best-selling book Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead. This new book by Sandberg and her co-author, a Wharton professor, relates what she learned about loss and ways of coping with it, after the sudden death of her husband of 11 years David Goldberg in a freak exercise accident at a hotel gym. Her task was made more difficult by the fact that she had to help her two children cope with the loss as well.
The thesis of the book is that our resilience isn't finite, but resembles a muscle that we can strengthen, regardless of how much it has already been used. Sandberg's personal experience and Grant's research provide coping mechanisms and practical strategies to bounce back and find joy. The strength to cope comes in part from our built-in mechanisms and partly from external support.
In a way, there isn't much new in this book. Humans have evolved to cope with loss and adversity, and there are many people around the world who have coped and are coping with even greater losses. Yet, each personal story provides a new angle and fresh ammunition to attack our sense of loss and disappointment. The fresh angle in Sandberg's story is her ability to cope, while engaged in a fast-moving and high-pressure business environment in Silicon Valley.
A key piece of advice that stuck in my mind is that each person should try to recover at his/her own comfortable pace, that is, one should not rush it. A second take-away is not to feel guilt for seeking and finding joy after the loss.
The Option-B Web site provides a community for those struggling with loss or adversity. There is also an affiliated Facebook page for coping with grief.

2017/11/12 (Sunday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Wonderful example of Persian calligraphic art (1) Wonderful example of Persian calligraphic art: The artist's name is inscribed on the bottom left, but I can't quite make it out.
(2) "International Relations," a comedy in many acts: Why would Kim Jong-un insult me by calling me "old," when I would NEVER call him "short and fat?" Oh well, I try so hard to be his friend - and maybe someday that will happen! [Donald Trump tweet from Vietnam]
(4) Tonight, I attended a musical program entitled "Montage 2017" at the Trinity Episcopal Church, downtown Santa Barbara, in which UCSB's Department of Music showcased the talent of its faculty members and students. Following are some videos from the program.
["The Speaking Drums," performed by Shashank Aswath on tabla] [Performance by Petra Persolja of "Venezia e Napoli: Tarantella" (Franz Liszt) on piano] [Arabian music, performed by Sam Khattar, voice/oud, Scott Marcus, Ney, Sue Rudnicki, tabla, and Solmaz Soleimani, violin] ["Trio in A minor, Op 114: Allegro" (Johannes Brahms), performed by Jonathan Moerschel, viola, Jennifer Kloetzel, cello, and Robert Koenig, piano] [Traditional Iranian music on santoor by Bahram Osqueezadeh]
(3) Trump takes back his comment that he believes Putin's words over the assessment of US intelligence agencies: Like the taking back of his Charlottesville comments, someone has told him that he made a boo-boo and, again, he took back his words in a way that was obviously half-hearted. He did not say that he trusted US intelligence agencies, only the leaders he has installed there. One of those leaders, CIA Director Mike Pompeo, has explicitly accepted the intelligence assessment that Russia meddled in the US election.
(5) Introduction to Neuroeconomics: How the Brain Makes Decisions (weeks 6-7):
Having reported on the overall course structure and my experience in weeks 1-3 through my 10/24 post and weeks 4-5 on 10/29, I briefly describe the contents of the next two weeks here. There are 9 weeks in all, so I will offer one last post for the final two weeks.
[Week 6] Dual process theory of decision-making: Toward a neuroeconomics perspective
a. Dual process theory (Valuation system at a glance; Dual process theory and neuroeconomics) Real values are subjective; when different outcomes are possible with corresponding probabilities, a weighted sum is used to derive the expected value for comparisons and eventual decision-making. Emotions play an important role in decision-making through affecting our valuations and probability estimates. Decisions are intuitive (system 1: emotional, heuristic-based, fast, parallel, effortless) or rational (system 2: neutral, rule-governed, slow, serial, effortful). Ironically, for complex decisions, system 1 yields better results.
b. The role of DLPFC in self-control (Modulation of the value signal by the DLPFC; Self-regulation & DLPFC)
Brain activity pattern is substantially different for self-controllers (who reject tasty, unhealthy food) versus non-self-controllers. Decisions do not always follow self-interest (as economics would predict) but also consider fairness. Experiments in which one person is given a sum of money, which s/he splits in two parts, offering one of them to a second person. If the second person rejects the offer, neither one gets any money. The second person typically rejects small offers of less than 20%, despite losing money as a result. The average acceptable offer, across many different culutres, is around 40-50%. Anterior insula (area involved in negative emotions and disgust) is activated when there is an unfair offer. System 1 (emotional) is particularly sensitive to immediate rewards and tends to severely discount delayed rewards, whereas system 2 (rational) is better at weighing delayed versus immediate rewards.
c. Guest lecture by Samuel McClure (Dual or single; expert opinion)
Arguments in favor of dual process theory vs. single decision-making process using various subsystems.
[Week 7] Decision-making under risk: Toward a neuroeconomic mechanism
a. Risk and the anticipatory affect model (Risk as uncertainty of the outcome; Anticipatory affect model)
The term "risk" is used when the probabilities of various outcomes are known; otherwise, we have ambiguity. Through repeated sampling and learning, one can gradually turn ambiguity into risk. Risk is highest when the probability is around 0.5 (very low probabilities or near-certainty entails less risk). In risk-return models, the valuation is reduced by b times the risk, where b is the index of risk aversion.
b. Risk aversion (Neuroeconomics of risk aversion; "Decision weights," framing effect and prospect theory)
Humans and other animals are generally risk-averse. They might choose a smaller reward that is certain over an uncertain reward with a larger expected value. Nucleus accumbens when activated leads to more openness to risk. Prospect theory suggests that both probability estimations and valuations are non-linear. We tend to overestimate small probabililties and underestimate large probabilities. Also, we underestimate gains (leading to joy) and overestimate losses (pain). One way to measure risk aversion is via the "certainty equivalent" measure. If you choose a $30 certain reward over an expected reward of $50 ($0 or $100, with equal probabilities, say), you are more risk-averse than someone who would require $45 to choose the certain outcome under the same conditions.
c. Guest lecture by Brian Knutson (The nucleus accumbens: Rewards and risks)
Rewards prediction totally unrelated to the choice at hand (e.g., seeing arousing photos) can push someone to more risk-taking. Conversely, negative stimulation can trigger greater risk aversion. Another example is sunny versus rainy weather or running into someone you like/hate affecting decisions.

2017/11/11 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Young couples dancing, 1950 French actors Alain Delon and Brigitte Bardot, 1968 Young couple at a drive-in theater, 1961 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Young couples dancing, 1950. [Center] French actors Alain Delon and Brigitte Bardot, 1968. [Right] Young couple at a drive-in theater, 1961.
(2) Happy Veterans' Day! This ageless quote is appropriate for today, when we honor soldiers and veterans, who make sacrifices in fighting wars, while generals and politicians are remembered in historical records as heroes: "In war the heroes always outnumber the soldiers ten to one." ~ H. L. Mencken
(3) Saudi Arabia's transition of power from Alzheimer's-afflicted 80-somethings to a brash, inexperienced prince is worrisome: With 70% of the Saudis under age 30 and 25% unemployed, the snail-paced reforms of the past no longer cut it, but one corrupt prince (who once impulsively bought a $550M yacht from a Russian) arresting 7 others for corruption is like Donald Trump suddenly firing seven cabinet secretaries for lying, as observed by NYT's Thomas Friedman.
(4) Political humor: Saudi princes accused of corruption are imprisoned at Ritz-Carlton Hotel. They are told to behave, or else they will be transferred to Marriott! [Video]
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Trump blames previous US administrations for what a year ago he called "China raping our country"!
- The wealthiest 3 Americans (Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffet) hold more wealth then the bottom 50%.
- Mass shootings aren't about mental illness, but about easy access to killing machines. [Image]
- Fascinating discovery of how a fungal parasite takes over an ant's body, turning it into a zombie ant.
- Clearest-ever 3D images of neurons firing in the brain recorded, using laser technology.
- From the "corporations are people" bunch: Their new tax plan says that corporations are above people!
- Disney rejection letter to a woman job applicant, 1938. [Note: I'm uncertain about the letter's veracity.]
- Someone's excited to be singing in the choir: Good thing she is standing on the side! [Video]
- Cartoon of the day: Special section for mass-shooting condolence cards in your favorite store. [Image]
- A selfless teacher helps little students on their way to school across a stream in a rural part of Iran.
(6) An indictment for Mike Flynn now seems likely: He and his son were reportedly offered millions to help remove from the US a Muslim cleric wanted by Turkey.
(7) Information exchange via shoelaces: During the Cold War, CIA agents used a method of communication based on how their shoelaces were tied. [Image]
(8) China is expanding its global reach: By investing in road and rail networks, along with ports and other transportation infrastructures, China is connecting itself to the world and increasing its international influence. [Image credit: Time magazine, issue of November 13, 2017]
(9) The floodgate of sexual misconduct allegations has opened: It seems that the downfall of several very powerful men (and in very few cases, women) in various domains has emboldened victims to step out of the shadows. Sure, there may be false allegations mixed in with valid ones, but even if we unrealistically estimate that half of the accusations are false, we still have a serious social problem to contend with. The despicable behavior of the men accused of improper sexual conduct will no doubt lead to a welcome behavioral change. Initially, the change will be fear-based, in the sense of men not wanting to get in trouble with their families or to compromise their careers. But, over time, with the new generation being raised to be aware of issues related to sexual aggression and abuse of power, the behavioral change will be internalized as part of a cultural shift. A worrisome part of the new revelations is that some Republicans/conservatives dismiss them as politically motivated or, worse, say that nothing is wrong with predatory sexual behavior (some going as far as citing the Bible about sexual relations with minors being okay).

2017/11/10 (Friday): Report on yesterday afternoon's panel discussion entitled "Is There Any Good News About Fake News?" at UCSB's Mosher Alumni House: [This report is subject to updates and corrections]
Photos from panel discussion entitled 'Is There Any Good News About Fake News?' A standing-room-only audience heard the views of four panelists, joined by panel organizers/moderators, Professors Cynthia Stohl and Bruce Bimber, the current and founding Directors of the UCSB Center for Information Technology and Society. Seated from left to right in the accompanying photo (the moderators are on the far right and Leila J. Rupp, UCSB's Interim Dean of Social Sciences, opening the session, stands on the far left) are:
- Yochai Benkler, Prof. Entrepreneurial Legal Studies, Harvard Law School; Co-Dir. Berkman-Klein Ctr. for Internet and Society
- Maggie Farley, Creator of "Factitious," a game that tests users' skill in detecting fake news; formerly of the LA Times
- Eugene Kiely, Dir. Factcheck.org; formerly of USA Today and Philadelphia Inquirer
- Miriam Metzger, Prof. Communication, UCSB; Dir. Information and Society PhD Emphasis
The short answer is "yes." We have become accustomed to exercising caution in accepting opinions about medical treatments (hence, the prevalence of seeking second opinions) or how to plan our finances. Yet, until last year, we routinely trusted any news that came to us from news organizations whose names were even vaguely familiar.
Stohl began the proceedings by outlining how the panel, and the day-long gathering of researchers, of which the public panel was a part, came about, naming and thanking all those who played a part in making the event a reality. She also set the stage for presentations by the four panelists and the Q&A segment that followed.
Benklar showed a number of slides visualizing, in the form of large graphs, the results of studies on how news sources link to one another and the impact of fake news on the linking structure. One interesting observation is that fake-news sources, far from being isolated bad actors, influence how other sources cover the news (e.g., by running stories refuting the fake news items). His "good news" was the fact that we are making progress in understanding fake news from a scientific perspective.
Farley spoke about her efforts, through designing the Tinder-like game "Factitious" (where you swipe left or right to indicate whether you consider a story fake news), in the area of educating the public on how to recognize fake news. Among the results of her study are the fact that the source of a news story has a singularly important effect on whether we believe it and that many people share news stories having read only the headline, thus making the wording of the headline very important.
Kiely mentioned that even though the public has only recently become interested in fact-checking, Factcheck.org foresaw the importance of checking the veracity of news stories since its inception in 2007 and was very active throughout the onslaught of fake news during Obama years. The good news is that social media have begun cooperating with fact-checking organizations to flag suspicious stories as "Disputed." Another piece of good news is a collaboratively prepared list of fake news sources.
Metzger had more good news than the other panelists, some of them selfish (such as her long-term area of research on credibility having been validated) and the spread and deepening of our knowledge about the role played by social-media companies, how people process information, and the nature of journalism. Other benefits include greater collaboration between fact-checking organizations and the entry of researchers from various disciplines into the field.
Bimber asked two questions to begin the Q&A segment of the panel.
Q1: Of the disciplines tackling the fake-news problem, which one is the most-likely source of possible solutions?
Q2: Given cognitive limits, are citizens up to the task of sorting out so much information and disinformation?
As expected, the two questions elicited a variety of reactions from the panel. We humans have developed heuristics to simplify the task of processing vast amounts of information, and resorting to tribalism and trusting a small number of sources (friends, people with the same mindset) are our ways of reducing the effort. Of course, going to the other extreme of being skeptical about everything is not helpful, so we need to work on a happy medium. Another difficulty related to human cognition is that, even after we are shown (with incontrovertible proof) that something is false, the false information is solidified in our mind with repetition.
An audience member asked whether our focus on fake news in the context of modern US politics is too short-sighted, elaborating that we should seek to learn about the problem in historical and geographic contexts (how our ancestors and other countries have dealt with the problem). It turns out that France as well as 11 US states mandate media literacy programs that produce more informed citizens in the area of consuming news. In Germany, the strength of public broadcasting prevents fake news stories from gaining a foothold. In the UK, BBC serves the same function.
I end my report with two related anecdotes. Today, on NPR (hope it's not fake news!), I heard a story about how the Chinese government is setting up a system that assigns a "social score" to each citizen based on his/her activities, purchases, social-media interactions, and so on, in a manner similar to the credit score in the US. Presumably, the social score can then be used to judge people's trustworthiness. Most of us realize that this is a very dangerous scheme, but, ironically, the Chinese consider this "transparent" system an improvement over secret data-gathering on individuals by the Communist Party! The second anecdote is about the book The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do (by Charles Duhigg) which helps explain why we process information the way we do. I am listening to the audiobook version of the title now and will review it in the near future.

2017/11/09 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
The American soldier behind an iconic kiss photo The nurse behind that same iconic kiss photo Iconic movie kiss from 'Breakfast at Tiffany's.' (1) History in pictures: [Left] The American soldier behind an iconic kiss photo. [Center] The nurse behind that same iconic kiss photo. [Right] Iconic movie kiss from "Breakfast at Tiffany's," 1961.
(2) Grad students will be hurt by the GOP tax plan: Most live based on a stipend/salary of ~$20-30K, along with tuition waivers. The waivers will be taxed as income in the new plan, reducing their net incomes.
(3) Russia undergoes a history war in parallel with the US: At issue is how to handle Lenin's corpse, as the country celebrates halfheartedly, the 100th anniversary of its October Revolution in November.
(4) Tweet of the day, by Erica Buist (I couldn't have said it better): "Why not just ban guns and when people are upset about it, just send them thoughts and prayers? If 'thoughts and prayers' are good enough for people who've lost their families then [they're] good enough for people who've lost their guns."
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Governor Brown appoints an Iranian-American woman to the Superior Court of Santa Clara County.
- Volkswagen and Google expand their quantum-computing research partnership.
- Exceptionalism: Syria to join the Paris Climate Agreement, leaving the US as the only country opposing it.
- California, the EU, and China to create a common carbon market to fight climate change.
- Santa Barbara, CA, just elected its 5th female mayor in a row: Ads against Cathy Murillo were super-nasty.
- This Cayman Islands building is home to 20,000 tax-dodging corporations, according to Bernie Sanders.
- UCSB is hiring two tenure-track assistant professors in computer engineering.
- Just-elected NJ and VA governors are utterly unqualified: Neither one has any reality-show experience!
- Santa Barbara's current sales-tax rate of 7.75% will increase by 1% on April 1, 2018.
- The White House blames losing Republican candidates for not fully embracing the Trump agenda.
(6) Interesting facts from a sexual harassment training course I completed as part of the University of California requirements for senior staff with supervisory responsibilities: Of stalkers pursuing victims, 42% are acquaintances, 28% are current/former partners, 9% are strangers (in the remaining cases, the victim did not know or could not identify the stalker).
(7) Historian and presidential biographer John Meacham speaking on Trump: Meacham's American Lion, a Pulitzer-Prize-winning biography of Andrew Jackson, has been chosen for Santa Barbara Public Library's Book Club discussion ahead of Meacham's visit to give a lecture at UCSB's Campbell Hall on November 16, 2017.
(8) An effective "Facts First" ad by CNN: Showing an apple, the narrator indicates that some would like you to believe this is a banana through screaming "banana" over and over again or putting "BANANA" in all-caps. But this is an apple.
(9) Final thought for the day: Republican candidates realize that they are in a lose-lose situation. Get too close to Trump and you are doomed, given his overall approval rating of around 35%. Keep your distance, and you are doomed, particularly in primaries, given his approval rating of a tad over 80% among Republicans.

2017/11/08 (Wednesday): Here are Seven items of potential interest.
Pele's famous bicycle kick at Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, 1965 Alfred Hitchcock seeking inspiration in the river Thames, 1960s Albert Einsteins Princeton office exactly as he left it upon his death on April 18th, 1955 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Pele's famous bicycle kick at Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, 1965. [Center] Alfred Hitchcock seeking inspiration in the river Thames, 1960s. [Right] Albert Einstein's Princeton office exactly as he left it upon his death on April 18th, 1955.
(2) When it comes to sexual harassment, scientists and technologists are no different from others: "As with just about any area of human endeavor where men hold the lion's share of power, the world of science and technology is plagued by sexual harassment. Women in STEM fields have long known this, of course. But just as in Hollywood, where the predatory behavior of producer Harvey Weinstein was long whispered about but never discussed openly, the phenomenon of professors and researchers hitting on undergrads, grad students, postdocs and colleagues has mostly been hushed up—not only by victims fearing retaliation but also by institutions determined to keep their good name untarnished and their superstars happy."
(3) Quote of the day: "[Build] your cars in the United States instead of shipping them over." ~ Trump in Japan, apparently unaware that for years, Japan has built more cars in the US than the Big Three US auto makers.
(4) Tweet of the day: "I hope Donald doesn't use his 280 characters to subject us to twice as many daily lies, rants and spelling errors." ~ George Takei
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- "I never knew we had so many countries." ~ Trump in Japan, on world leaders calling him after the election
- "I'm sure I could have built it for a lot less." ~ Trump, on the $11B expansion of US's base in South Korea
- Corruption probe in Saudi Arabia leads to arrests of several members of the Royal Family.
- Why is the Saudi coup "bold reform," whereas such mass arrests in any other country is condemned?
- Speaking from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon's PM Hariri resigned, citing assassination threats and blaming Iran.
- Khamenei rearing to start a war: Missile attack on Saudi Arabia by Yemen's Houthis masterminded by Iran.
- Putin praised by another dictator, Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei, during trilateral talks in Tehran, with Azerbaijan.
- Harvey Weinstein hired spies to dig dirt on his sexual-harassment accusers and to intimidate them.
- The Borowitz Report (humor): Trump accomplishing little in final year as President, poll indicates.
- Some of the Americans just elected may cause nightmares for misogynists and White Supremacists.
(6) Today's noon mini-concert: UCSB Middle East Ensemble (about 1/3 of the members) performed at UCSB's Music Bowl. The one-hour program included an early-20th-century Armenian Song, a Greek dance tune, which was quite popular in Iran way back when, a Lebanese song, in the original form and the Persian version, and an Arabic dance tune, with its slow portion, featurng Scott Marcus, the Ensemble's Director, on the ney, recorded separately.
(7) Walking along the UCSB campus bluffs, on my way to a meeting this afternoon: On gorgeous days like this, looking on the natural beauty of the campus and its surroundings, I ask myself how I got so lucky to end up here 29 years ago. The Santa Barbara Channel Islands and a lone paddle-boarder are seen in two of the photos each. Later in the afternoon, I recorded this 360-degree view of the south end of the UCSB campus, featuring a student crew team practicing on the Lagoon.

2017/11/07 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Top of the Eiffel Tower, Paris, 1937 Fixing the antenna atop the Empire State Building, 1950 Man waling on a tightrope between the tops of NYC's Twin Towers (1) History in pictures: [Left] Top of the Eiffel Tower, Paris, 1937. [Center] Fixing the antenna atop the Empire State Building, 1950. [Right] Man waling on a tightrope between the tops of NYC's Twin Towers.
(2) The sad story of an immigrant family: A child prodigy of Greek origins, who learned to write at 2 and began taking college courses at 7, is stifled in developing her enormous potential by poverty, bullying, misogyny, and the sick obsession of a man in his late seventies. This powerful and expertly-written true story about the gifted Promethea (nee Jasmine) is quite long, but well worth reading. [Partial translation in Persian]
(3) Quote of the day: "Tonight, as my colleagues go to sleep, they need to think about whether the political support of the gun industry is worth the blood that flows endlessly onto the floors of American churches, elementary schools, movie theaters, and city streets. They need to ask themselves whether they can claim to respect human life while choosing fealty to weapons-makers over support for measures favored by the vast majority of their constituents. My heart aches for Sutherland Springs. Just like it still does for Las Vegas. And Orlando. And Charleston. And Aurora. And Blacksburg. And Newtown. Just like it does every night for Chicago. And Bridgeport. And Baltimore. Now is the time for Congress to overcome its cowardice and do something." ~ US Senator Chris Murphy, Connecticut
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Election day 2017: Governorship and congressional races may indicate how the midterrn elections might go.
- All the President's men: "The Shady Bunch" (song of the week)
- ISIS leaders defend the Second Amendment and oppose gun control; they need fewer terrorists this way!
- Photo of the day: The Moon and the volcano. [Photo]
- Reposting from four years ago: Old saying: Think before you speak. New saying: Google before you post.
- Experts believe that a newly unveiled charcoal drawing is an early draft of da Vinci's "Mona Lisa."
(5) The Borowitz Report: "White House claims Flynn's job was to make coffee when Papadopoulos was busy. ... [Sarah Huckabee] Sanders said that, in the weeks to come, the White House is likely to release the names of additional campaign staffers whose roles were limited to the preparation of coffee beverages, and that such names might include Jared Kushner and Donald Trump, Jr."
(6) Gendered expectations hold women7back: Writing under the title "I'm Your Mentor, Not Your Mother" in Science, Larisa R. G. DeSantis complains about the expectations that female academic mentors be motherly.

2017/11/06 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Mouth-watering snacks & exotic fruits, offered by street vendors in Iran (1) Mouth-watering snacks & exotic fruits, offered by street vendors in Iran: [Top, left to right] Fresh almonds; Green plums; Fresh walnuts; Boiled fava beans; Loquat ("Azguil"); White mulberries ("toot") [Bottom] Fresh pistachios; Mayhow ("Zalzalak"); Broiled corn; Baked beets; Sour cherries; dogwood fruit ("Zoghal-akhteh")
(2) Political debate in Iran: Sadegh Zibakalam argues passionately against having a cleric as Supreme Leader, who isn't accountable to anyone. Only Zibakalam's side of the debate is compiled in this video (in Persian), but it is hard to imagine any reasonable defense of an absolute dictator, who does not even abide by the country's constitution that he helped enact.
Zibakalam's arguments in this and other settings are solid and very logically constructed. I like his positions, but there is a nagging doubt in the back of my mind about why people with much milder criticisms of the Islamic regime are sentenced to long prison terms, while he is free and allowed to speak in public forums.
(3) Sexual harassment in Iran (#MeToo): Employment ads for secretarial work openly and unabashedly specify that they seek young single women only. Privately, they also add "pretty" to the list of qualifications.
(4) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- First 3 "witches" netted in Robert Mueller's "witch hunt": Paul Manafort, Rick Gates, George Papadopoulos.
- Netflix cancels the hit series "House of Cards" and fires its star Kevin Spacey over sexual misconduct.
- Trump repeats the tired line that the Texas mass murder was a mental health problem, not a gun problem!
- "Thoughts and prayers" are useless, even if you are someone who actually thinks and prays! [Image]
- Massive leak reveals new ties between Trump administration officials and Russian entities.
- Cartoon of the day: The NRA flag flying high, while the US flag is at half mast. [Image]
- Sharing to raise awareness of the Toranj app, which may help Iranian women facing domestic abuse.
- Today's views of UCSB Lagoon, under the clouds and with a seasonably cool breeze. And a panorama.
(5) I wonder whether Trump still believes in something he has stated on at least 13 different occasions: "Anyone being investigated by the FBI is not qualified to be the president of the United States."
(6) An interview with the editor of The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump: Dr. Bandy X. Lee, who began a movement, later joined by thousands of psychologists, maintains that her duty to warn the public in the face of imminent danger takes precedence over the ethics of refraining from discussing the mental conditions of someone not directly examined.
(7) Decades of progress in race relations going down the drain: Appalling racism on display at a Wisconsin football game by "fine people" (Trump's words), one dressed as Obama with a noose around his neck, being pulled by another dressed as Trump. Equally telling is the fact that the duo were not ejected from the game.
(8) Don't send prayers to the Texas mass-shooting victims (which left at least 27 dead): They had plenty of prayers, as they were shot in a church. Send them financial help and ideas about gun-control legislation.

Cover image for Mary Roach's 'Packing for Mars' 2017/11/05 (Sunday): Book review: Roach, Mary, Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void, unabridged audiobook on 9 CDs, read by Sandra Burr, Brilliance Audio, 2010.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The back-of-the-CD-box blurb aptly summarizes the main points of Roach's book. It reads in part: "Space is a world devoid of things we need to live and thrive: air, gravity, hot showers, fresh produce, privacy, beer. Space exploration is in some ways an exploration of what it means to be human. How much can a person give up? How much weirdness can they take? What happens to you when you can't walk for a year? have sex? smell flowers? What happens if you vomit in your helmet during a space walk? Is it possible for the human body to survive a bailout at 17,000 miles per hour?"
NASA tries to answer these questions for would-be astronauts, before they ever set foot in space. Some fail quickly and miserably, others can tolerate much discomfort, motivated by the allure of being one of the few human beings to travel in space. Under the very difficult conditions of sensory deprivation, isolation, lack of privacy, claustrophobic living quarters, and the like, it is quite easy for human beings to snap. For example, Russian male astraonauts have been reported as becoming sexually aggressive towards female co-workers, reflecting their culture's attitude towards women, which they could not suppress under extreme pressure. Japanese astronauts seem to be ideal candidates, in view of their culture's expectation of self-scarifice and respect for authority.
Roach describes many experimental set-ups used to train and acclimate astronauts for their eventual space missions and the cut-throat competition between many candidates for the few actual space-flight spots available. True to form, she also divulges a lot of interesting details about the challenges of life in space and interesting tidbits one would not know, if one were just looking at NASA's space programs from the outside. Here are a few examples.
a. Motion sickness isn't really a sickness but a natural condition. Even fish experience it, as confirmed by a group of fish, tank-raised and later transported by boat, emptying their stomachs into their tank. It may be the unfortunate result of an evolutionary accident that placed the control centers for motion-sensing and stomach cleansing next to each other, leading to the possibility of cross-talk between them.
b. Beached whales often die from gravity before lack of water gets them, because their skeletal structures are incapable of supporting their weight, absent the help they get from buoyancy. In many situations, gravity can be the real enemy. Gravity can also be a great help. The difficulty of having sex in zero- or low-gravity environment has been studied and confirmed by placing seals in a pool and observing them struggle to mate.
c. Opening to a space shuttle toilet is 4 inches across, compared with 18 inches in ordinary toilets. Alignment is challenging in the absence of sensory feedback from the seat in zero gravity. So, astronauts must be potty-trained. The relationship between diet and the stool type and consistency is rigorously studied, as it affects the frequency and ease of doing #2 in space. Pre-launch diet is particularly important, in view of 8 hours or more of waiting on the launch pad, with no possibility to going to the toilet.
d. For long-distance space missions, such as going to Mars, mice are the most efficient source of protein to take along, in terms of the amount of nutrition they provide per unit weight. Eating soiled clothing, that must be discarded due to the impossibility of washing them, has also been explored. Research on digestable and nutritional clothing material holds much promise for solving the problem of the enormous payload needed for travel to Mars.
The four examples above are just a few of the interesting ones. To learn more about these examples and/or to pursue many other examples of the enormous challenges of space travel, Roach's book is your best bet.

2017/11/04 (Saturday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Lady Liberty, as seen from the torch, now closed to visitors Future NYC, as imagined in the early 1900s Navajo young man, photographed by Carl E. Moon, 1906 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Lady Liberty, as seen from the torch, now closed to visitors. [Center] Future NYC, as imagined in the early 1900s. [Right] Navajo young man, photographed by Carl E. Moon, 1906.
(2) The GOP tax plan is smoke and mirrors: Not all middle-class families will see a tax cut, particularly those who live in states with expensive housing and/or high local tax rates. Even those who will see a modest immediate cut, will end up paying more, when the 5-year temporary cuts expire. Corporate tax reduction from 35% to 20% and repeal of estate tax are permanent though. Current deductions on mortgage and student-loan interests will be taken away. So, this is a tax cut plan for corporations and the super-rich, financed with increased deficit spending and sugar-coated with temporary cuts for a subset of other taxpayers. Some refer to the plan as the "Trojan-Horse tax cut." [Based on a panel discussion on the PBS program "Washington Week"]
(3) Sharing a comment I made on a friend's Facebook post of a passionate attack on the GOP tax plan by Elizabeth Warren: Warren's ideas are great, but unfortunately, given the current political climate, they are somewhat toxic when described by the right as socialistic. This label turns off all of Trump's base, plus a sufficient number of Clinton supporters to make her doomed in a general election. I think Warren (68), Sanders (76), and Pelosi (77) should move to the sidelines and support some young, energetic, middle-of-the-road Democrat in 2020.
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Purported "Mossad agent" sentenced to death without a trial in Iran.
- Government crackdown on Iranian journalists continues: Reformist journalists receive jail sentences.
- Iran bans BBC Persian Service, harasses its journalists, and freezes their families' assets.
- AG Jeff Sessions continues to be belittled and pressured by Trump to do things he deems inappropriate.
- [Message to US Congress] Make America Great Again: Impeach Trump!
- [Signs held by protesters in Hawaii to greet Trump] "Welcome to Kenya" | "I'm Not Orange, Impeach"
Cover image of the audiobook 'Earth' by The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (5) Book review: Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Earth: A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Jon Stewart et al., Hachette Audio, 2010. [My 4-star review on GoodReads]
The expansion of scope from Stewart's earlier book, America, to Earth in this book, may suggest that some future book of his will be titled Galaxy and then, perhaps, Universe! As expected, there is a great deal of smart writing in the book, but there's also filler material to expand the main ideas (barely) into a book-length presentation.
The book's premise is that humans, realizing that they will soon vanish from the face of Earth, start writing down some answers to questions that the eventual alien visitors might have about us and our habitat, when they arrive. The print version of the book apparently has many color photographs, graphs, and charts.
Much of the book follows the format of a dictionary or glossary, with typical entries being of the following kinds (example entries are abbreviated and paraphrased).
RELIGION: We are the only species that realizes life does not last forever. This leaves us two options. (a) Find comfort in life as a transitory and purposeless side show. (b) Find comfort in death as a doorway to a far richer and fulfilling state of being. We mostly went with (b), that is, God and religion. Religion tells us that we were created for a reason: To be grateful for being created and to kiss God's ass at every opportunity!
FASTER: Smaller's more demanding technology twin. You'd think we would be endlessly grateful for travel time from New York to San Francisco having been cut from 6 months to 6 hours in less than 100 years. Far from it, we tend to complain about every small delay or wait that we encounter. The only thing that exceeds the speed of technological progress is the speed with which we get irritated at its now relative slowness!
This is an enjoyable listen/read, not just for fans of Stewart's brand of humor, but for everyone else as well. It is a rare comic work that makes one think seriously about what we are doing to our environment and how close we are to the brink of extinction.

2017/11/03 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Interesting range of facial expressions in a sex-education class, 1929 A 5000-year-old toy chariot found in the ancient city of Sogmatar, southeastern Turkey (photograph by Halil Fidan) Soviet plane-spotters, circa 1917 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Interesting range of facial expressions in a sex-education class, 1929. [Center] A 5000-year-old toy chariot found in the ancient city of Sogmatar, southeastern Turkey (photograph by Halil Fidan). [Right] Soviet plane-spotters, circa 1917.
(2) Trump's shocking assertion in his latest Fox News interview: He is not worried that 5 of 6 undersecretary and 21 of 24 assistant-secretary positions in the State Department remain vacant, because his own opinion is the only thing that matters in making decisions.
(3) Twitter accounts connected with election meddling banned: The 2752 users include handles posing as local news titles, activist groups, and political commentators.
(4) Rich Americans giving up their citizenship to avoid taxes: In 2016, a total of 5411 US citizens renounced their citizenship, up 26 percent from 2015. A comparable increase is expected this year.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Trump's Twitter account shut down for 11 minutes by an employee, who went rogue on last day of work.
- Make sure to look at the full "Beaver Moon" tonight, around 10:23 PM Pacific time.
- The Supreme Court reportedly unexcited to be hearing an important gerrymandering case.
- John Kerry and top US generals, 573 e-mail addresses in all, were on Russia's cyber-hit-list.
- Bin Laden, the enemy of the decadent West, had several American films in his movie collection.
- Cartoon of the day (about iPhone X): "There is no home button. You just click your heels three times."
Cover image of 'The Andy Cohen Diaries' (6) Book review: Cohen, Andy, The Andy Cohen Diaries: A Deep Look at a Shallow Year, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Mcmillan Audio, 2014. [My 2-star review of this book on GoodReads]
The American author and radio and TV host/producer, best known for his Bravo series "Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen" and as the executive producer of "The Real Housewives" franchise, reads his diary entries, which document in great detail his activities and thoughts. The reader/listener gets bored quickly, as the account for each day sounds pretty much like the previous one: walk the dog, mingle with famous people, film show, work out, and make some comment about being fat.
As a TV producer, it's not surprising that Cohen comes in contact with a lot of people. He is careful about dishing dirt, so as not to compromise his ability to book people on his shows. Throughout, Cohen name-drops B-list to D-list celebrities, such as X's son/daughter, Y's publicist/agent, or Z's hair stylist. A-listers, such as Madonna and Lady Gaga, are also mentioned, but do not form central players in the narrative.
I was able to stomach only 3 of the 14 parts of this audiobook, before thinking that my daily walking time would be better spent on something else (such as the intelligent comedy of Earth: A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, by the Daily Show with Jon Stewart, to which I turned my attention). Going in, I thought that a book by a gay Jewish author should be doubly funny. The book does have some haha funny passages, but you have to mine for a long time to find the gems.

2017/11/02 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Martin Luther King with his son, removing a burnt cross from their front yard, 1960 Leo Tolstoy with his granddaughter Tatiana, Russia, ca. 1910 President John F. Kennedy having a tea party with his daughter Caroline (1) History in pictures: [Left] Martin Luther King with his son, removing a burnt cross from their front yard, 1960. [Center] Leo Tolstoy with his granddaughter Tatiana, Russia, ca. 1910. [Right] President John F. Kennedy having a tea party with his daughter Caroline.
(2) Russians working at a "troll farm" alternately pretended to be rednecks, blacks, and other classes of Americans on social media, and they watched "House of Cards" to familiarize themselves with US politics.
(3) Oldest solar eclipse ever recorded: By allowing us to determine when Ramesses The Great actually ruled Egypt, the recently uncovered record could change the chronology of the ancient world.
(4) A heartfelt essay in Persian, with the provocative title "Iran is the Africa of the Sexually Hungry": In this 2-year-old story, a married woman writes about sexual harassment on the streets of Tehran and other hazards of being a woman in Iran.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- US corporate taxes highest in the world? Here's what big corporations actually paid (average = 3.4%).
- Slow to react to the Las Vegas shooting, Trump wasted no time in blaming liberals for NYC's terror attack.
- The pattern continues: An utterly unqualified nominee for the post of USDA's top scientist.
- Is our number sense a neural capacity we are born with or is it a product of our culture? [Article]
- New York City memorial for bicyclists killed in truck terror attack of October 31, 2017.
- Full text of a very short story, entitled "The Oval Portrait," by Edgar Allan Poe.
(6) Responses to Donald Trump Jr.'s tweet about Halloween: DT Jr. likened socialism to taking half of his daughter's candy haul and giving it away to kids who stayed home. He heard back from many, including author J. K. Rowling.
(7) Robert Reich's talk at Campbell Hall this afternoon (which I did not attend): Entitled "How Did We Get into This Mess: Reclaiming Our Economy and Our Democracy," the talk was the inaugural event of the new Blum Center for Global Poverty Alleviation and Sustainable Development. Reich, Secretary of Labor under President Clinton and author of 15 books, including his latest, Saving Capitalism for the Many, Not the Few, has turned into a popular figure and sought-after speaker, given his searing social-media posts. I thought that getting to the venue 20 minutes before the 4:00 o'clock start time would be adequate, but upon getting there, I discovered that the large auditorium (capacity ~850) was already full and a line had formed of those still hoping to get in, as the ushers tried to compact the audience to unveil open spaces. At any rate, I was too far back in the line to get in. Here is Reich talking about his latest book at the Kansas City Public Library as a substitute for my would-be report. [Reich begins at the 8:00-minute mark of the video]

2017/11/01 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Sunset in the wild Moon over canyon Flower Paradise, Japan (1) Our beautiful nature: [Left] Sunset in the wild. [Center] Moon over canyon. [Right] Flower Paradise, Japan.
(2) Casualties of North Korea's nuclear tests: Some 200 people have died in a tunnel collapse caused by underground tests and scores of soldiers and their families are being treated for radiation exposure.
(3) NYC's truck-terrorist was a "friendly" Uber driver: No version of Trump's travel ban would have prevented the Uzbek's entry into the US.
(4) Getting out of prison vs. being freed from prison: Many reports on Iranian Baha'i leaders recently completing their prison terms refer to their "being freed from prison." I prefer to use "got out of prison." The former may be interpreted as some sort of pardon or shortened term, whereas these leaders actually served their full unjust prison terms. Unfortunately, we do not have a special term (in Persian or English) to refer to getting out of prison after serving a term, so we use "freed" ("azad shodan") to describe both a benevolent pardon event and completing one's prison term. [Persian version of this post]
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Volkswagen management knew about emissions cheating much earlier than previously admitted.
- Trump reportedly blames Kushner for the Mueller probe, because he urged the firing of Flynn and Comey.
- Houston beats LA 5-1 in game 7 to win the MLB championship. Well-deserved celebration, after Harvey!
- Marine Corps Vietnam War veterans recreate photo pose with surfboard after being apart for 50 years.
- Postmodern Jukebox's wonderful jazzy renditions of "Bad Romance" and "Careless Whisper."
- "Trump accuses Clinton of deliberately losing election so he could be impeached." ~ The Borowitz Report
(6) Saudi Arabia plans to build a $500 billion city of the future: Thirty-three times the size of New York City, Neom mega-city will be powered entirely by renewable energy. [Promotional video] [Web site]
(7) Former U. Iowa athlete arrested over high-tech cheating: He used spying software to gain professors' passwords and then entered their accounts to change grades numerous times, for himself and others.
(8) Today's noon concert at the UCSB Music Bowl: The UCSB Jazz Ensemble performed some wonderful tunes (New Orleans & other styles), including this tune, this fragment, and "Caravan" (with long improvisations).
(9) College soccer playoffs: By losing 0-1 at home to UC Riverside on an 87th-minute goal in a quarterfinals match, UCSB is eliminated from the Big West and NCAA tournaments. As they say, next year is another season!

2017/10/31 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
German prisoners of war being paraded through the streets of Moscow Tiananmen Square protests, China, 1989 Merit Ptah, perhaps the first woman of science to be known by name, practiced medicine ~5000 years ago in Egypt (1) History in pictures: [Left] German prisoners of war being paraded through the streets of Moscow. [Center] Tiananmen Square protests, China, 1989. [Right] Merit Ptah, perhaps the first woman of science to be known by name, practiced medicine ~5000 years ago in Egypt.
(2) As we are distracted by Trump's tweets about the Russia investigation, kneeling, "Fake News," uranium deal, and by other "breaking news" of the day, members of his cabinet are quietly attacking civil rights provisions, environmental regulations, consumer protections, and many other anti-bigotry, anti-greed, and anti-exploitation laws/institutions. [Time magazine cover image]
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Truck terror attack on NYC bike path kills 8: The Uzbek suspect, shot by the police, shouted "Allahu Akbar."
- Good news: Iranian Baha'i leader Fariba Kamalabadi is out of prison after serving a 10-year sentence.
- More good news: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg says she isn't leaving the Supreme Court.
- First inter-stellar object from beyond our solar system has been observed in our neck of the celestial woods.
- The new $0.12 increase in CA gas tax will mean a larger increase in gas prices, if history is any indication.
- Proof that a missing hyphen can be just as dangerous as a missing Oxford comma. [Image]
(4) For ramen lovers: Are you the kind of person who slurps when eating noodles? No worries! For $130, you can buy one of the new noise-canceling forks being offered by the Japanese instant-ramen company Nisin.
(5) Donald Trump Jr. posts an ill-advised Halloween tweet, with a photo of his very young daughter dressed up as a police officer, and hears back about it.
@DonaldTrumpJr: "I'm going to take half of Chloe's candy tonight & give it to some kid who sat at home. It's never to (sic) early to teach her about socialism."
@jacobinmag: "Just wait until she finds out about capital income!"
@Bearpigman: "My man, 'socialism' was her getting that free candy in the first place. You taking half for reasons she can't understand is capitalism."
(6) My afternoon walk: Had a long, refreshing walk to the Camino Real Marketplace, returning via the bluffs at Coal Oil Point. The experience was enhanced by a message on a memorial bench and somewhat spoiled by the discourtesy of the area's horseback riders. [Photos]
(7) My Halloween 2017: Decoration and treats set-up. More photos, taken later in the evening.

2017/10/30 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Four future US presidents on their wedding days Comparing Oxford of 200 years ago (1810 painting) and today (2015 photograph) shows very little change Paul Newman at the 1963 Civil Rights March on Washington (1) History in pictures: [Left] Four future US presidents on their wedding days. [Center] Comparing Oxford of 200 years ago (1810 painting) and today (2015 photograph) shows very little change! [Right] Paul Newman at the 1963 Civil Rights March on Washington.
(2) Puerto Rico Governor cancels the contract awarded to the tiny Whitefish Energy company, with ties to the Trump administration, for repairing the island's power grid.
(3) [Here's an item to help you forget the grim political scene] Google criticized for placing cheese under the patty in its cheeseburger emoji: Cheese is almost always placed on top of the patty, because its stickiness helps hold other toppings in place!
(4) Fox guarding the hen house: Former dean of a for-profit college accused of fraudulent practices is now in charge of the fraud-handling unit of the Department of Education.
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Rumors of imminent Mueller firing intensify amid indictments issued in the Russia collusion investigation.
- Thirteen different cancers can now be linked to sugar and carbs.
- Saudi Arabia lifts ban on women going to sports stadiums.
- The number of times Trump has offered the non-answer "we'll see" to different questions. [Chart]
- Cartoon of the day: The getaway cart. [Image] [From The New Yorker]
- Apple fires an engineer whose daughter posted a video of iPhone X before its release date.
- Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey apologizes for sexually assaulting a minor on movie set.
- Security info on Queen Elizabeth II and various UK officials found on USB stick discarded on London street.
- Preteen boy's suicide attempt by jumping off a freeway overpass kills 22-year-old woman.
- Postmodern Jukebox's wonderful jazzy rendition of "Call Me Maybe" and "Straight Up."
(6) Looking forward to attending "Montage 2017," UCSB Department of Music's talent showcase. Featuring classical, jazz, world, and contemporary music, the event will be held on Sunday November 12, 2017, 7:30 PM, at Trinity Episcopal Church, downtown Santa Barbara.
(7) I wouldn't have guessed it, but it's fairly easy to prove: You need on average e = 2.718... uniformly-distributed random numbers in [0, 1] for the sum to exceed 1 for the first time.

2017/10/29 (Sunday): Here are six items of potential interest.
West Palm Beach, Florida, 1910 The Rouchomovsky skeleton, circa 1890s Jacqueline and John F. Kennedy on an NYC street, 1960; photograph by Cornell Capa (1) History in pictures: [Left] West Palm Beach, Florida, 1910. [Center] The Rouchomovsky skeleton, 1890s. [Right] Jacqueline and John F. Kennedy on an NYC street, 1960; photograph by Cornell Capa.
(2) By a tie vote, broken by VP Pence, the US Senate threw out a key consumer-protection provision: "Yes" votes by all three "heroes" (Corker, Flake, McCain) enabled this gift to fraudulent or reckless financial firms, such as Wells Fargo and Equifax, which can now include forced arbitration clauses in their contracts to guard against lawsuits. Senators Lindsey Graham and John Neely Kennedy were the Republican "no" votes.
(3) Twitter suspends the account of former Trump aide Roger Stone: In a particularly vulgar tweetstorm, reported by numerous Twitter users, @RogerJStoneJr went after Don Lemon, Jake Tapper, Charles Blow, and other news-media figures. Conservatives are crying foul.
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- As Mueller closes in, Trump goes back to Clinton e-mails, Comey, and other old subjects in a tweetstorm.
- Dodgers vs. Astros, Game 5: 4-4 after 4 innings; 7-7 after 5; 9-12 after 8; 12-12 after 10; 13-12 Houston!
- Jared Kushner traveled unannounced to Saudi Arabia "to continue discussion of Middle East peace."
- Fire in Santa Rosa's Fountaingrove region destroyed Hewlett-Packard's key historical archives.
- Fox News says that the real scandal is "Hillary Clinton's administration," a non-existent entity.
- Quote: "You know [things are] bad when W goes, 'Please dad, stop embarrassing the family!'" ~ Bill Maher
(5) Piano recital by Paul Berkowitz: This afternoon, I attended an enjoyable recital by UCSB Professor of Piano Paul Berkowitz, held at Music Academy of the West. Berkowitz, who has been described as being "in the royal class of Schubert interpreters," performed Schubert's last three piano sonatas to promote the release of his two new CDs, the final volumes 8 and 9 of his "Schubert Piano Works" series. Recording was prohibited, so here is the first piece in today's concert, "Sonata in C Minor, D958," from YouTube.
(6) Introduction to Neuroeconomics: How the Brain Makes Decisions (weeks 4-5): Having reported on the overall course structure and my experience in weeks 1-3 through my 10/24 post, I briefly describe the contents of the next two weeks here. There are 9 weeks in all, so I will likely offer two more posts.
Week 4: Neural representation of subjective values
a. Neural substrates of valuation (Value, utility, and brain; The nucleus accumbens, the core valuation region): Value is defined as the rate of firing of certain neurons. Animals work to stimulate the valuation neurons, even when no food reward is involved.
b. The nucleus accumbens codes anticipated gains (Expected value; Shopping, marketing, and learning): Traditional decision theory uses decision matrices as tools. Dopamine has developed into a prediction-error mechanism in the brain.
c. The orbitofrontal cortex derives a value signal (Decision values; The diffusion model & valuation process): Many lobotomies were performed (40,000 in the US alone) to disconnect the orbitofrontal cortex from the rest of the brain to deal with certain behavioral problems. Now we know that such an operation causes apathy and cognitive alternations. The amygdala is activated when assessing potential costs (negative effects) of a decision. The activity of the prefrontal cortex (decision-making region) has been observed to be proportional to the difference between the nucleus accumbens (benefits) and the amygdala (costs).
Week 5: Affective mechanisms of decision-making
a. Emotions I: Biological level of emotional stimuli processing (Innate reactions to emotional stimuli; Emotions as heuristics): Subliminal exposure to happy/neutral/angry faces affects decisions made subsequently. Exposure to photos of good-looking members of the opposite sex can modulate our discount parameter, intensifying our preference for immediate rewards. Sunshine is significantly correlated with daily stock returns. Emotions play a major role in decision-making. Certain emotions also act as releasers for our innate reactions, such as our built-in ability to recognize faces.
b. Emotions II: Neurobiology of emotions (Amygdala—an emotional computer; Emotions, consciousness, and optimal decisions): Humans have innate abilities to exhibit and recognize emotional expressions. Even blind children, who have never seen a facial expression, make the same faces to display happiness, disgust, etc. Our old brain consists of the reptilian brain, the paleomammalian brain (limbic system), and neomammalian brain. MacLean theory (no longer popular) suggests that the limbic system links our emotions to our social behavior, such as care for our children. Newer theories suggest that emotions are distributed throughout the brain. Emotions are states elicited by stimuli with subjective values (non-zero utility). Unemotional people have been shown to make poor decisions. However, in certain cases, emotions can inhibit optimal decisions.

2017/10/28 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Downtown Las Vegas, 1912 Henry Behrens, the smallest man in the world, dances with his pet cat,1956 Illegal alcohol being poured out of storage building during Prohibition, Detroit, 1929 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Downtown Las Vegas, 1912. [Center] Henry Behrens, the smallest man in the world, dances with his pet cat,1956. [Right] Illegal alcohol being poured out of storage building during Prohibition, Detroit, 1929.
(2) Words and phrases used to describe the various parts of the Web we ordinary mortals do not see but that have a deep impact on our lives. [Source: IEEE Spectrum magazine, issue of October 2017]
Black Web | Dark side | Dark Web | Darknet | Deep Web | Hidden Web | Invisible Web
(3) Making big data a little smaller: The Johnson-Linderstrauss Lemma (JLL) states that for any finite collection of points in a high-dimensional space, one can find a collection of points in a lower dimension, while preserving all distances between the points. This allows us to reduce dimensionality before running algorithms to improve speed. It was recently demonstrated by Jelani Nelson (Harvard) and Kasper Green Larsen (Aarhus U.) that there exist 'hard' datasets for which dimensionality reduction beyond what is provided by JLL is impossible.
(4) On Alan M. Turing and the award that bears his name: Would Turing have won the prestigious award (often characterized as the Nobel Prize of Computing) named after him? This question sounds bizarre, but there is some substance to it. The history of the Turing Award and the question above are discussed by Moshe Vardi in his November 2017 column in Communications of the ACM. It is unclear that he would have, but Vardi concludes that he should have!
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- MLB Dodgers-Astros championship series is tied 2-2. Game 5 tomorrow at Houston. Games 6-7 in LA.
- Going backwards: Russia decriminalizes certain forms of domestic violence.
- Robots vs. Music: Robotic band plays/destroys various instruments. [Video]
- Cartoon of the day: "You knew what you signed up for!" [Image]
- Team Tyson/Nye wants to make America smart again! [T-shirt]
- Here are some of the images I found that illustrate the spread of fake news on Facebook.
(6) The singles scene: I keep being presented on Facebook with advertising posts from the site "Santa Barbara Singles." Among the insights doled out by the site is the fact that people in their 20s and 30s consider "dinner" to be the ideal first date, whereas those over 40 prefer "coffee." Good to know!

2017/10/27 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cutting a sunbeam, 1886 (photo by Adam Diston) Soldiers and German townspeople react, as they are brought in to watch footage from concentration camps Female steel-workers during wartime, 1942 (soon to be a statue in Sheffield) (1) History in pictures: [Left] Cutting a sunbeam, 1886 (photo by Adam Diston). [Center] Soldiers and German townspeople react, as they are brought in to watch footage from concentration camps. [Right] Female steel-workers during wartime, 1942 (soon to be a statue in Sheffield).
(2) My upcoming bilingual lectures at UCLA: I will be giving a Persian lecture (Sunday, November 19, 2017, 4:00-6:00 PM, UCLA Dodd Hall, Room 121) and its English version (Monday, November 20, 2:00-4:00 PM, UCLA Humanities Building, Room 365), as part of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran. The talks are titled "Computers and Challenges of Writing in Persian" (with the alternate title: "Fifty Years of Poor Penmanship—How Computers Struggled to Learn the Persian Script").
(3) Joke of the day: A prisoner goes to the librarian at Tehran's Evin Prison and asks him if they have a particular book. "No," he responds, "but we have its author." [Persian version in image]
(4) Women who are conditioned to enable men who behave badly: A different perspective on the ongoing discussion about sexual predatory behavior and its victims. "Culturally, we are taught as women that our main power is our looks and sexuality."
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Insightful interview with a female Jewish reporter who traveled to Iran twice and fell in love with its people.
- Trump considers funding his infrastructure plan by raising federal gas taxes, a regressive form of taxation.
- Former Trump aide Sebastian Gorka raises the refrain "Lock Her Up" against Clinton to "Electrocute Her."
- Uber drivers caught charging riders bogus cleaning fees, at times exceeding $100.
- Modern Persian music: Eendo performs "Naghsh-e To" ("Your Image") and "Sahm-e Man" ("My Share").
- Surfer builds a board out of 10,000 cigarette butts he collected from the sand and beach parking lots.
(6) The failing peer-review system: No, this isn't a Trump tweet; it's really happening. Too many research papers are being published, too little time is being spent on their evaluation, and journal publishers' profit motive is too strong for bad science to be properly filtered out. "Any paper, however bad, can now get published in a journal that claims to be peer-reviewed."
(7) "In-memory" computing can lead to 200x performance improvement: IBM researchers have developed a "computational memory" architecture, which would enable ultra-dense, low-power, massively parallel computer systems. The idea is to use one device, such as phase-change memory, to both store and process data, thus removing the von Neumann bottleneck (limited bandwidth in transferring data between memory and processor) in conventional architectures.
(8) Russia is building naval bases on island chain under longstanding dispute with Japan: Let's see if our President eventually complains about this aggressive move. For now, he is occupied with the Seth Rich murder conspiracy theory and the JFK assassination files!

2017/10/26 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Complete map of American rivers and tributaries (1) US rivers and tributaries: Every single one of them! The largest network of rivers, shown in pink, includes basins for the Mississippi, Missouri, and Arkansas rivers.
(2) Quote of the day: "When a leader correctly identifies real hurt and insecurity in our country and instead of addressing it goes looking for somebody to blame, there is perhaps nothing more devastating to a pluralistic society. Leadership knows that most often a good place to start in assigning blame is to first look somewhat closer to home. Leadership knows where the buck stops. Humility helps. Character counts. Leadership does not knowingly encourage or feed ugly and debased appetites in us." ~ Republican Senator Jeff Flake of Arizona
(3) Everyone in Iran seems to be happy about Trump's recent speech on the "5 + 1" nuclear deal:
- Hardliners gleefully point out that they knew the US cannot be trusted (and lno "terrorsit" label for IRGC)
- Reformers are jubilant that the nuclear agreement was given a 2-month life extension, with no sanctions
- Anti-regime factions are pleased that Trump did not rule out the military option and regime change
- All 3 groups, however, are united in their condemnation of Trump referring to the Persian Gulf as "Arabian"
(4) Yu Darvish, the half-Iranian half-Japanese Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher: The MLB championship series between LA Dodgers and Houston Astros is tied 1-1 going into the third game tomorrow. Darvish will start.
(5) One dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Trump's Department of Education rescinds 72 guidance documents outlining rights for disabled students.
- With fewer than 10,000 AI specialists worldwide, $500,000 salaries are quite common.
- Persian music by Eendo: "Waltz-e Chaman" ("Greenery Waltz"); "Hamin Lahzeh" ("This Very Moment").
- Cartoon of the day: Monument to incompetence. [By John Atkinson] [Image]
- Boo! Americans spent $3.13B on Halloween in 2016, $420M of it on costumes for pets.
- PhotoShopped images of the Founding Fathers reacting to Trump go viral.
- Afghan girls try mountain-climbing despite numerous obstables and it gives them a chance to breathe free.
- Posing as an accountant, female Russian spy tried to gain access to Hillary Clinton's inner circle.
- First "unmanned" Southwest STL-SFO flight, with all-female flight crew: Pilot, co-pilot, and 4 attendants.
- Self-driving lidar-equipped wheelchairs debut in hospitals and airports.
- Magnitude-4.3 quake strikes near Lompoc, ~50 miles north of Sanata Barbara, CA, at 12:38 PM today.
- Babcock ranch in Florida aspires to be the most sustainable town in America.
(6) A different kind of arms race: In the face of threats from hatemongers, gays and other threatened groups are buying arms and taking shooting lessons in record numbers. Will we need a national disarmament treaty to defuse the danger of armed conflicts on our streets?
(7) The Final Transition Project: As if receiving funeral and cremation flyers in the mail wasn't bad enough, I now see Facebook ads for The Final Transition Project, described on its FB page as being "about science, death, and consciousness, from experts in joyful living, emotional health during dying, nursing, and palliative care."

2017/10/25 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Abraham Lincoln, before he grew his trademark beard Alfred Hitchcock, 1920 Music to be murdered by, 1958 album (1) History in pictures: [Left] Abraham Lincoln, before he grew his trademark beard. [Center] Alfred Hitchcock, 1920. [Right] Music to be murdered by, 1958 album.
(2) US-Iran interactions are not limited to political bickering: There is also much scientific collaboration and data sharing. The unraveling of the nuclear deal might put much of these programs at risk.
(3) Iraqi Kurds are being attacked once again: With Iraqis' common top enemy, ISIS, on the run, the Iraqi government seems to be ditching the truce with Iraqi Kurds, beginning attacks on them, a la Saddam Hussein.
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- US cities are competing for the privilege of hosting Amazon's new headquarters.
- Japan's Kobe Steel chief apologized for falsifying quality data, including parts used for high-speed trains.
- Trump recalls retired pilots to put nuclear bombers on 24-hour alert.
- Super Bowl LII halftime show will be headlined by Justin Timberlake (w/o Janet Jackson).
- Apt Halloween decoration in hurricane-damaged US areas. [Photo]
- Trump's efforts to close the door on Obamacare have been largely unsuccessful. [Image]
(5) Today's noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: Vientos del Sur (Winds of the South) played as part of the World Music Series concerts. ["El Condor Pasa"] [A wonderful love song] [Short percussion sample]
(6) College soccer: Tonight, UCSB played its last home game of the regular season against Sacramento State. The game ended 0-0 after two golden-goal overtime periods. UCSB should make it to the Big West playoffs, as it will tie for first place (if UC Davis loses to Cal Poly tonight) or will be the second-place team. The UCSB Dance Team performed at halftime. As I walked home around 9:30 PM, my weather app showed 94 degrees as the temperature, which was 20-25 degrees off. Perhaps the app overheated over the past three very hot days!
(7) Fascinating talk by Google's Director of Research: Peter Norvig spoke at UCSB's Campbell Hall this afternoon under the title "Creating Software with Machine Learning: Challenges and Promises," as the inaugural talk in the Data Science Distinguished Lecture Series. [Selected slides]
Software creation is moving from being a mathematical science (logical, certain) to an empirical science (probabilistic, uncertain). The process is changing from micromanaging the computer (telling it how to do things) to teaching it about what we want to accomplish and letting it discover how to meet our needs. This change is motivated by our desire to develop software faster (in days, not months or years), produce magical results (unexpected deductions or insights that sometimes emerge from the analysis of massive data sets), and update the software in real time, as we learn more about the application domain.
Deep learning, which Norvig characterized as a cushy marketing term for what a scientist might call "hierarchical basis-function regression," is the key tool in ML-based software creation. A good example is Google's AlphaGo-Zero, the latest Go-playing program that self-trained, after being given the Go rules, by playing against itself (it wasn't fed with any human-played games). The program managed to rise to the level of a human player in 3 days and to world's top player in 40 days.
Unlike the game of Go, many applications do not have clear-cut rules, so they present greater challenges. Norvig provided several examples from the domain of image labeling, where two pizzas sitting on a stove-top were correctly identified (though awkwardly described) by the program, but a horse in pajamas and Elvis dancing were mislabeled.
Translation between languages is another example, where much improvement is needed, but the problem of developing 9900 different translators for 100 languages would be infeasible without using ML.
One of the challenges of ML-based software creation is debugging. In the case of image labeling, one can always achieve better performance by feeding the program with more pre-labeled images, but it would be nice to be able to go under the hood, so to speak, to see why a program decided in a certain way and which features of the image, or which pixels, figured prominently in that decision.
One final topic covered in the talk was the use of ML in an environment with adversaries. It is one thing to be able to recognize naturally-created images and quite another thing to deal with images modified by an adversary to throw the system off. As an example, Norvig showed the photo of a panda that, when augmented with less than 0.1% pixels of noise by an adversary, would be labeled by the program as a gibbon, whereas the picture still looked very much like a panda to a human viewer.

2017/10/24 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
JFK bought 1200 Cuban cigars just hours before signing the embargo against Cuba Public humiliation of class enemies during the Cultural Revolution, China, 1966 London's first black police officer, PC Norwell Roberts, on point duty near Charing Cross Station, 1968 (1) History in pictures: [Left] JFK bought 1200 Cuban cigars just hours before signing the embargo against Cuba. [Center] Public humiliation of class enemies during the Cultural Revolution, China, 1966. [Right] London's first black police officer, PC Norwell Roberts, on point duty near Charing Cross Station, 1968.
(2) Blockchains everywhere: Looks like every science/tech periodical I read these days has a feature story on blockchains. This photo shows the 2-page spread at the beginning of 38 pages of coverage in the October 2017 issue of IEEE Spectrum magazine. The same issue also contains an interesting article about how China is mining for Bitcoins in Ordos, a city in Inner Mongolia, with many coal-fired power plants and a booming economy. Fully half of the $8M daily Bitcoin mining rewards go to miners in China.
(3) Rope memory: Built for the first time in this 1963 prototype for NASA's Apollo missions, rope memory stores the 0s and 1s of a program as wires going or not going through tiny magnetic cores. Workers carefully embedded each bit of information by hand into this robust and non-volatile memory. Note that this read-only storage scheme is different from the read-write magnetic core memory, in which a core's direction of magnetization signals 0 or 1. [Image credit: IEEE Spectrum magazine, October 2017]
(4) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- From UCSB Library's wall exhibit "Art of Science 2017."
- A woman's experience in being cat-called, to put it mildly, and in reporting the incident.
- Imagining the future is a form of memory: Amnesia patients also lose the ability to predict the future.
- The latest Halloween costume for dreamers: Scared of being deported by Trump!
- Great idea: Crosswalk painted in 3D to make it more visible to drivers (photo shows a town in Iceland).
- A world wonder: These hex-shaped columns formed naturally by cooling lava 60M years ago.
- Facing 100+ temps and severe fire dangers, warnings are already out about flood risks come winter!
- Break the Chains: A cheerful tune with an empowering message for women everywhere. (Persian subtitles)
(5) The golfing Trump family: From Donald, who repeatedly declared during his campaign that as President, he would have no time for vacations or golfing, to Ivanka, who is shown golfing in a dress and high heels. Here is a compilation video about Trump dissing Obama many times for playing golf.
(6) "Introduction to Neuroeconomics: How the Brain Makes Decisions": This on-line Coursera offering introduces one to a new field of research that is less than two decades old. I covered 3 of the 9 weeks worth of lectures over last night and today. This write-up of my experiences is intended to give the reader a feel for the course, to see if s/he wants to pursue it.
The instructor, Vasily Klucharev (Moscow Higher School of Economics; neurophysiology PhD from St. Petersburg State Univ.), is a tad difficult to understand, but the slides and reference material make up for this shortcoming.
Here are some of the references:
- Chapters from Handbook of Neuroeconomics: Decision Making and the Brain, by Paul Glimcher et al., 2014.
- Those with no neuroscience background can use "Foundations of Neuroeconomic Analysis" P. W. Glimcher.
- Handbook of Cognitive Neuroscience: The Biology of the Mind, M. Gazzaniga et al., 2013, ch. 1-3, 12-14.
- Journal articles in neuroeconomics, selected for their clarity and accessibility [Visit the course plan]
Here is a list of the 9 weekly "lectures," each of which consists of a number of short videos and ends with a multiple-choice quiz:
Lecture 1: Introduction
Lecture 2: Brain and anatomy functions
Lecture 3: Introducing brain models of decision making and choice
Lecture 4: Neural representation of the subjective value, basal ganglia and choice value
Lecture 5: Affective mechanisms of decision-making
Lecture 6: Dual process theory of decision-making
Lecture 7: Decision-making under risk
Lecture 8: The social brain
Lecture 9: Taking an evolutionary perspective: the 'economic animal'
Here are some bits and pieces of info I gleaned from the first three lectures:
"A person's mental activities are entirely due to the behavior of nerve cells, glial cells, and the atoms, ions, and molecules that make them up and influence them." ~ Francis Crick [1916-2004]
Neuroeconomics = Neuroscience of decision-making; it is a branch of neuroscience, not economics
Brain signals can predict a decision seconds before one becomes aware of the decision (free will is an illusion)
Reference: Glimcher, Paul W. and Ernst Fehr, "Introduction: A Brief History of Neuroeconomincs," in Neuroeconomics: Decision Making and the Brain, 2nd ed., Academic Press, 2014. [On-line]
Two events gave birth to neuroeconomics: The neoclassical economics revolution of the 1930s and the emergence of cognitive neuroscience during the 1990s.
Neoclassical economics derives hidden preferences from observed choices, using mathematical models and divorcing the process from psychology and basing it on simple axioms. Demonstration of examples where some of these axioms didn't hold (paradoxes) led to the birth of behavioral economics, experimental economics, and, eventually, neuroeconomics. Although roots of the ideas go a few years further back, neuroeconomics was born at a small 2003 invitation-only gathering.
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a key tool for neuroeconomics studies.
Huettel, Scott A., Allen W. Song, and Gregory McCarthy, Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, 2014.
Diffusion model, comprised of collecting evidence, integrating inputs over time, and comparing the cumulative evidence to a threshold, is a main decision-making scheme in the human brain, which can also help explain collective decisions (such as those of honey bees).

2017/10/23 (Monday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Al Pacino and Robert De Niro in 1971 Rita Hayworth, 1948 Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean in 1955 (1) History in pictures (movie stars edition): [Left] Al Pacino and Robert De Niro in 1971. [Center] Rita Hayworth, 1948. [Right] Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean in 1955.
(2) On feelings about movies produced by Harvey Weinstein: "In the days after the Weinstein story broke, I noticed a number of young women on social media fretting that movies they had loved growing up ... now seemed tainted. Could they ever bear to enjoy them again? But to reject the movies themselves amounts to punishing the victim. It undercuts the fine work that so many women—and decent men—have put into Weinstein-produced movies over the years. The ugly reality that some of those women were working under duress makes their contribution, and their fortitude, even more admirable." ~ Stephanie Zacharek, writing as part of Time magazine's cover feature on Harvey Weinstein's sexual misconduct, issue of October 23, 2017
(3) Quote of the day: "[M]any women can't risk the financial consequences of standing up to power and subjecting themselves to retaliation, character assassination, demotion, termination and blacklisting." ~ Gretchen Carlson, writing as part of Time magazine's cover feature on Harvey Weinstein's sexual misconduct, issue of October 23, 2017
(4) Eight brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- EPA has canceled appearances of three of its scientists slated to speak at a climate change conference.
- Draft dodger, comparing his risky sexual behavior to dangers of war, thinks that a POW isn't a war hero!
- Homes can and should be made a lot harder to burn: Some existing homes are like a pile of wood.
- Hot, hot, hot: Expecting 100-degree temps over the next couple of days in Santa Barbara and Ventura.
- The chilling story of a Muslim-American who infiltrated Al Qaeda as an FBI undercover agent.
- Meet some of the Kurdish female fighters who helped defeat ISIS in Raqqa.
- Fake Navy-Seal/Vietnam-vet, with two fake Purple Heart medals, praises Trump on Fox News.
- Interesting 10/27 talk on the Iranian-American Contributions Project, for those in the Los Angeles area.
Photo of Richard Feineman (5) Thoughts on Physicist Richard Feynman: A discussion on a Facebook friend's post about Nobel Laureate and explainer-in-chief Richard Feynman led me to a search on Facebook to find and repost a book review I wrote a few years ago. Facebook doesn't make it easy to find your old posts. Fortunately, I keep copies of my Facebook posts in a diary and also make parallel posts of most items on this page.
First, let me share with you this Feynman quote that I found during my search: "When a scientist doesn't know the answer to a problem, he is ignorant. When he has a hunch as to what the result is, he is uncertain. And when he is pretty darn sure of what the result is going to be, he is still in some doubt. We have found it of paramount importance that in order to progress we must recognize our ignorance and leave room for doubt."
Now on to my review of Classic Feynman: All the Adventures of a Curious Character (W. W. Norton & Company, 2006), which contains all the material from the 1985 book, Surely You're Joking Mr. Feynman! (Adventures of a Curious Character), and its 1988 sequel, What Do You Care What Other People Think? Further Adventures of a Curious Character. The two books are not simply juxtaposed but their essays and chapters are merged to form a new arrangement of the material.
You can find the review of the book as a September 16, 2014 entry in the reverse-chronological PDF file which is accessible from near the top of my Blog & Books page. Here is a direct link to the PDF file. Also, I have just posted my review of the book on GoodReads to make it more widely accessible.
One of the remarkable things about Feyneman was his exemplary marriage to his first wife, Arline. His love letters to his terminally-ill wife, before and after her untimely death, are discussed in this post. Fearing that her illness might be contagious, they made love for the first time 2.5 years after they got married.
Feynman was the rare scientist who saw the big picture spanning not just the entire domain of science but life. An excellent example of Feyneman's curiosity and playfulness is on display in this 24-minute interview, where Feynman describes how he came to know of the tiny country Tannu Tuva (now part of Russia), and its capital Kyzyl, and how he and a friend went about exploring and learning about the country. Feynman passed away two weeks after this interview, a few days before an invitation from the Russian Academy of Sciences for a fully-paid visit to Tannu Tuva arrived.

2017/10/22 (Sunday): Here are six items of potential interest.
The Great Alaska earthquake of 1964, magnitude 9.2 William Harley and Arthur Davidson, 1914 A vending machine that sold already-lit cigarettes for a penny in 1931 England (1) History in pictures: [Left] Magnitude-9.2 Alaska earthquake of 1964. [Center] William Harley and Arthur Davidson, 1914. [Right] A vending machine that sold already-lit cigarettes for a penny in 1931 England.
(2) China is headed for dominance in the clean-energy market: Having made giant strides in solar and wind energy, China is now eyeing the energy storage market; lithium-ion batteries in particular. China already has 156,000 electric-vehicle charging stations and plans to increase the number to 4.8 million by 2020. It is projected that by 2020, China will produce 121 GWh of lithium-ion battery capacity annually. [Source: Time magazine, issue of October 16, 2017]
(3) A previously unreported sexual-harassment settlement: Worth $32 million, the newly unveiled case brings the total paid by Fox to victims of Bill O'Reilly to $45 billion. Fox paid O'Reilly $25 million as he was forced out earlier this year.
(4) A Facebook friend's heartfelt essay (in Persian) on having to flee her home in a rush, with empty hands, as the Santa Rosa fires, in northern California, were closing in: She recalls three previous flights, once in the aftermath of bombs falling on her hometown of Ahwaz during the Iran-Iraq war; a second time when she had to move from house to house, as Iraqi rockets targeted Tehran; and yet again when she fled her home country of Iran, taking with her a single suitcase.
(5) Half-dozen news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- US-backed militias have declared the total liberation of Raqqa, which was the de facto capital of ISIS.
- Former head of ACLU defends free-speech rights, even for Neo-Nazis.
- Wonderful cover of the classic love ballad "Dream On" by Postmodern Jukebox.
- Cartoon of the day: On increasing deficit spending to finance tax cuts for the super-rich. [Image]
- Five former US presidents participate in concert to benefit hurricane victims. [Photo]
- Efforts by China's Communist Party to woo the youth via glossy propaganda films produce box-office flops.
Cover image of David McCullough's 'The American Spirit' (6) Book review: McCullough, David, The American Spirit: Who We Are and What We Stand For, unabridged audiobook on 4 CDs, read by the author, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2017. [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This slim book, a collection of speeches spanning three decades (including several commencement addresses), was one of the most enjoyable reads/listens of recent years for me. McCullough reminds us of things that made this country great, but which have been forgotten amidst conflicts and divisions.
Politicians used to be thinkers, orators, and strategists who cared and thought about long-term interests of our country (many of them, anyway), rather than petty paper-pushers and deal-makers who can see only as far as the next election, if that far. The halls of Congress have seen many great men (and very few women, unfortunately) who shaped our country, its passion for social justice, and its can-do attitude.
Great presidents and other politicians of our past did not have the Internet at their fingertips, and often did not enjoy access to a decent library or a large stash of books, as they wrote their speeches and other documents, such as the Declaration of Independence. Yet, they managed to say or write statements of lasting value. And this thoughtfulness extended to people in other walks of life, from industrialists to artists.
McCullough is often described as the elder statesman of American history. But this book isn't just about American history. It's also about life, about expectations, about events (historical or otherwise) not being inevitable but dependent on our actions, and it is full of words of wisdom from someone who deserves to be looked up to. Let me end my review with this gem of an observation from one of the book's speeches: "We should never look down on those of the past and say they should have known better. What do you think they will be saying about us in the future?"

2017/10/21 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Abstract drawing of a distributed network for sharing of information (1) Silvio Micali's "Algorand: A Better Shared Ledger": On Friday, October 13, 2017, I made a brief post about the 2017 Turing Lecture right after listening to it streaming on-line. The sound quality was poor and the absence of slides, which did not advance due to a technical difficulty with the platform, combined with the speaker's enunciation/accent made it difficult to understand the technical concepts. I have pursued the matter on-line and have found a paper by Jing Chen and Silvio Micali, posted on May 26, 2017, on arXiv, that describes the concept of Algorand and its implementation in great detail.
Shared ledger is a chunk of shared data that is accessible freely, with everybody allowed to read from and write into it, but nobody allowed to change what is already written. Such a secure shared ledger has become quite important, given the spread of digital currencies. Even in the case of US dollar, which isn't a digital currency, it is estimated that 80% of the supply only exist as ledger entries. To post a new block to a secure distributed ledger, one must show proof of work. The amount of work needed is so extensive that, roughly speaking, only one block can be posted every few minutes, even if substantial computational power is applied to the problem. This is also very wasteful, because a great deal of energy is expended by computers that carry out the computations, to the extent that BitCoin-related computations can be viewed as significant contributors to global warming. Micali's work combines the original scheme of BitCoin with the notion of Byzantine agreement (in a fast and scalable implementation) to make block generation much more efficient, while keeping the security and trustworthiness unaffected. Asked about the term "Algorand," Micali described it as a mythical place for people to play and explore.
(2) Orionid Meteor Shower: Around this time each year, the Earth's orbit intersects with the path of Halley's Comet, whose debris (bits of dust, essentially) appear as shooting stars, as they streak through our sky. Good viewing times are just before dawn, both today (Saturday) and tomorrow (Sunday).
(3) Joke of the day: Question: What's the difference between Donald Trump and illegal immigrants?
Answer: Illegal immigrants pay taxes and some of them could pass a citizenship test.
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Trump is anti-Obama in every possible way: Opinion piece, entitled "Trump, Chieftain of Spite," in NYT.
- Jacinda Ardern is New Zealand's youngest female PM in 150 years: They had a female leader 150 years ago?
- The fake "Blacktivist" Facebook page had 20% more likes than the real "Black Lives Matter" page. (CNN)
- Trump gave his administration a 10 on Hurricane Maria relief efforts. 10 out of what? 100?
- Iranian Baha'is face new wave of arrests, just before the 200th birthday of the faith's founder.
- Racist nursing textbook lists how blacks, Jews, Arabs/Muslims, ... might react to pain and treatment.
(5) Quick-and-easy guide to happiness: I am suspicious of a quick-and-easy guide to anything, but most of these 8 suggestions (from Time magazine, issue of October 2, 2017) resonated with me.
- Write a thank-you note: Reflecing on a friend's impact can brighten your day and his/hers.
- Snap a smartphone photo: It directs your attention, which may enhance your pleasure of the moment.
- Drop (almost) everything: Higher degrees of multi-taskeing has been found to increase anxiey levels.
- Get some sun: It may help regulate mood by boosting serotonin, a brain chemical linked to calmness.
- Jot down what you are grateful for: Doing so has been linked to greater feelings of happiness.
- Think about doing someone a favor: Research shows the thought to be enough for a lift, even before acting.
- Do a mini-meditation: A brief but consistent mindfulness habit can help us better react to stress.
- Buy tickets to events: Experiences give us more joy than things, and many memories sweeten with time.
(6) Former UCSB student headed to prison for 36 years: The sentence resulted from various crimes committed in 2014, including two counts of brutal rape as member of a group, whose other members remain at large. The case went cold and thus remained unsolved for 2 years, until DNA evidence led to an arrest in 2016.

2017/10/20 (Friday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Two daredevils playing tennis on a flying airplane at 1000m altitude, Los Angeles, 1925 Albert Einstein visiting the Grand Canyon in 1931 First UN assembly in New York City (1) History in pictures: [Left] Two daredevils playing tennis on a flying airplane at 1000m altitude, Los Angeles, 1925. [Center] Albert Einstein visiting the Grand Canyon in 1931. [Right] First UN assembly in New York City.
(2) Russia created fake black-activist group to stir racial tensions in the lead up to the 2016 US election and, according to several recent reports, is still active in this domain. If Trump truly did not collude with Russia, he should show outrage over a foreign power meddling in domestic US affairs with the goal of creating discord. Paying lip service to respecting the flag, without a willingness to defend the country against external forces of evil is extremely hypocritical!
(3) Sexist homework assignment: Asked to use synonyms with the 'ur' sound, a young girl provided a perfect answer to Question 1, "Hospital lady." Yet, the teacher couldn't let her correct answer ("Surgeon") go without adding the "expected" answer ("Nurse") in red!
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- US soldiers killed in Niger, tasked with fighting IS, appear to have been poorly equipped and supported.
- Trump is torn between McConnell and Bannon, needing one to govern and the other to maintain his base.
- Quote of the day: "Bigotry and white supremacy are 'blasphemy' against the American creed." ~ G. W. Bush
- Time magazine cover of October 23, 2017, portrays Harvey Weinstein as "Producer, Predator, Pariah."
- Senator John McCain supports Democrats' bill seeking greater transparency in Facebook ads.
- MLB World Series will be played by LA Dodgers and the winner of NY Yankees vs. Houston Astros.
(5) Quote of the day: "This man in the Oval Office is a soulless coward who thinks that he can only become large by belittling others. This has of course been a common practice of his, but to do it in this manner—and to lie about how previous presidents responded to the deaths of soldiers—is as low as it gets. We have a pathological liar in the White House: unfit intellectually, emotionally, and psychologically to hold this office and the whole world knows it, especially those around him every day. The people who work with this President should be ashamed because they know it better than anyone just how unfit he is, and yet they choose to do nothing about it. This is their shame most of all." ~ San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich
(6) Trump again calls the ongoing Russia investigation "a hoax," suggesting that the US sale of uranium to Russia is the "real Russia story": Hey, you are the US President with a vast Department of Justice, headed by your puppet, under your control. Why don't you suggest investigations by DoJ on all of Obama's and Hillary Clinton's supposed wrongdoings? Stop complaining, as if you are the underdog here!
[The increase in the number of tweets and statements about Russia in recent days is an indication that the probe is getting uncomfortably close to Trump and that he is feeling the heat, so to speak!]
(7) Energy Leadership Lecture 2017: Dr. Urs Holzle, Senior VP for Technical Infrastructure and Senior Fellow at Google, spoke under the title "Advances in Energy Efficiency through Cloud and ML" at UCSB's Corwin Pavilion today at 4:30 PM. As the title implies, Dr. Holzle discussed how moving computations to the cloud and application of machine learning can significantly lower energy consumption and replace dirty energy with clean, renewable energy. [Selected slides]
Energy implications of computing have become quite important. Servers use ~ 200 TWh of energy, which is comparable to energy use in all of Mexico. Google alone uses as much energy as the city of San Francisco. Given that Google has a lot of users, the per-user energy consumption, which is about 0.5 W on an on-going basis, is rather insignificant, when compared with the user's laptop or other computing equipment. Energy used in computing falls into three categories: Buildings housing computing equipment, be they server rooms in smaller organizations or giant data centers run by Google and the like; Servers themselves; User equipment and associated communications.
As for the energy used in data-center installations, it consisted until fairly recently of three nearly equal parts devoted to mechanical cooling, IT equipment, and everything else (lighting, UPS, etc.). So, the energy used for the actual computation was multiplied by a factor of 3.0, implying a 200% overhead. More efficient modern data centers reduced this factor to 1.8, for an overhead of 80%. Now, we can go as low as 10% overhead through a variety of energy saving schemes, including the application of machine learning to adjust a building's cooling strategy based on information about the applicable parameters.
Servers have undergone similar efficiency improvements. Earlier, some 50% of energy went to waste, even before power got to the actual circuits. By eliminating this waste, we are now at about 10% overhead relative to the actual energy used by the circuits. The circuit energy has been going down by 20% per year in recent years (post-Moore's-Law era). Factors leading to this reduction are smaller circuits, clock-gating (disabling the parts of the circuits not in use, so that they don't draw energy), frequency scaling (operating at lower speed when the workload is light), and specialization (tailoring the circuits to computations). In the latter domain, Google's hardware optimized for machine learning uses 0.2 MW of power, compared with 2.5 MW needed by a general-purpose supercomputer doing the same job.
As a whole, the IT industry uses about 2% of the world's energy, which is of the same order as the amount used by airlines. Because modern data centers are way more efficient than local server installations, moving to the cloud will reduce the energy consumption associated with computations by some 87%. Additional benefits of this migration are that it makes the use of renewable energy possible (in 2017, Google has achieved its 100% renewables goal) and requires less redundancy to ensure reliability (Gmail uses 1% redundancy, whereas a typical local e-mail server installation needs at least duplication to avoid service disruptions). This makes the user-side energy consumption even more important. Fortunately, with the move away from desktops and laptops to tablets and smartphones, user-side energy consumption is also going down.

2017/10/19 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Inauguration of the statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Janeiro, 1931 Riverfront street in Baghdad, Iraq, 1965 View from the top of the Arc de Triomphe, Paris, 1900 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Inauguration of the statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Janeiro, 1931. [Center] Riverfront street in Baghdad, Iraq, 1965. [Right] View from the top of the Arc de Triomphe, Paris, 1900.
(2) New on-line scam: I received this notice of traffic fines, already paid from my account. I became suspicious, both because I have not driven in NYC lately and I rarely use this particular e-mail account. The scammer counts on you becoming sufficiently alarmed to click on one of the links in the message and thereby infect your computer with malware or go to a phishing Web site. The scam is more authentic-looking than most, but it has tell-tale signs of fraud, such as not including my name or the name/address of a contact. Be vigilant!
(3) Neuroscientists claim that the stereotype that women are kinder than men is true: University of Zurich reserchers have confirmed this claim via experiments. They report their results in a paper entitled "The Dopaminergic Reward System Underpins Gender Differences in Social Preferences" (Nature Human Behavior, October 2017). A natural question is whether this is merely due to social conditioning or reveals some biological and/or neurological differences.
(4) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Tillerson characterizes China as a predatory rule breaker, 3 weeks before Trump's scheduled visit there.
- Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei says on President Trump: He is "foul-mouthed" and "pretends to be an idiot."
- Like President Donald Trump, Senator Ted Cruz spreads falsehoods about US corporate taxes.
- Some DC park benches have been rendered unusable by the homeless, apparently without authorization.
- The four most populous American cities all have teams in MLB playoffs (Yankees, Dodgers, Cubs, Astros).
- Two decades of progress: CGI has come a long way from 1997. [Image]
- On the perils of getting old and technologies becoming obsolete: 3D-printed version of the "save" icon!
- Professor Touraj Daryaee's 3-minute review of the history of the Persian Gulf and the origins of its name.
- Bread-bowl Pizza: A simple and fun dish to bake; works better with a round loaf of bread. [Photos]
- Potato lasagna: Made like meat lasagna, except that potato slices are used in lieu of pasta. [Photos]
(5) Achievement of quantum supremacy may be only months away: Quantum supremacy means achieving computational capability that is beyond the limits set by conventional computing. This supremacy need not be achieved in a general-purpose environment; it suffices to demonstrate it for a single or a very limited number of applications. It is thought that, for certain apllications, a 50-qubit quantum computer would outperform the most powerful supercomputers now in existence. Researchers at UCSB and Google are aiming to create a system that can support about 50 qubits in superposition reliably. If this can be done, the thinking goes, the rest is straightforward. So far, they have shown that a 9-qubit system, capable of representing 512 numbers at once, operates reliably and without the accompanying exponential increase in errors. There is no guarantee that the scheme can be extended to 50 qubits, but the team of researchers believes the extension to be possible in a matter of months.
(6) "The buck stops here": This phrase was made famous by Harry Truman, who considered himself responsible for whatever went wrong in the US government. Former President Obama took responsibility, used the phrase "the buck stops with me" many times, accepted his mistakes, and pledged to learn from them. President Trump passes the buck and blames everything and everyone for his failures (Fake News, Congress, Repubicans, Democrats, NFL, Obama, Clinton, McCain, ...).
(7) Grand opening of UCSB's state-of-the-art Bioengineering Building: Chancellor Yang, campus academic deans, research center directors, and several local industry leaders were present at today's celebration and ribbon-cutting ceremony. An important point made during introductory speeches was that, unlike many other institutions where bioengineering stands for biomedical engineering (dealing with the design and production of medical devices), UCSB's vision is much broader and includes a wide array of concepts and techniques at the intersection of biology and engineering. Examples include drug delivery mechanisms, mimicking nature in engineering designs, and biologically-inspired materials.

2017/10/18 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Photo intallation entitled 'Eyes of a Dreamer' (1) Eyes of a Dreamer: This photo installation across the US-Mexico border by French artist JR served as a massive table for an international picnic in September.
(2) The advent of gravitational-wave astronomy: In an exciting development, UCSB scientists, using data from a large network of observatories, were able to detect the collision of two neutron stars and use the info to pinpoint a small region of the sky to look for visual confirmation. The kilonova (1000 times brighter than a nova) observation would have been impossible without the hint about where to look.
(3) A Mars colony near Dubai: Mars Science City is a $140 million project funded by UAE which will be used to acclimate a team of astronauts to the harsh environment on Mars. The occupants will research food, water, and energy self-sufficiency. The colony is the first step in UAE's ambitious Mars 2117 project, which aims to establish a human colony on the red planet within a century.
(4) This Time magazine cover image, issue of October 16, 2017, reminds us that mass shootings fade from our memories, before they lead to preventive laws.
(5) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- The US took over possession of Alaska 150 years ago, today: Happy Alaska Day!
- French women start their own version of the #MeToo campaign: #BalanceTonPorc
- Mitch McConnell can't believe Donald Trump actually said that! [Interesting facial expression]
- Suspicious package led to bomb-threat investigation in Isla Vista, a student community adjacent to UCSB.
- In Trump's own words: Texas & Louisiana vs. Puerto Rico [Image; racist disaster aid].
- Feminism is alive and well in Iran: Protesting mandatory hijab by wearing white scarves on Wednesdays.
- Postmodern Jukebox has jazzed up many pop songs, but this one's really special: "All About That Bass"
- Young Paul McCartney visiting the late Iranian pop singer Viguen and enjoying aash-e reshteh. [Photos]
- German researchers resign from posts at Elsevier journals to protest resistance to an open-access policy.
- An example from "My Uncle Napoleon" as a metaphor for Iranians' sensitivity to the name "Persian Gulf"!
(6) US losses from anti-immigration policies are Mexico's gains: Some American companies are looking to expand their operations south of the border. Maybe they can afford to pay for the wall, after all!
(7) Bluegrass music at UCSB's Music Bowl: Santa-Barbara-based band "The Salt Martians" performed as part of the World Music Series (noon mini-concerts on Wednesdays). [Sample 1] [Sample 2] [Sample 3]

2017/10/17 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
The Beatles crossing Abbey Road in 1969 Bob Dylan, with his harmonica cigarette-holder in 1964 Fleetwood Mac band in 1979 (1) History in pictures: [Left] The Beatles crossing Abbey Road in 1969. [Center] Bob Dylan, with his harmonica cigarette-holder in 1964. [Right] Fleetwood Mac band in 1979.
(2) Quote of the day: "I'm an expert on personality disorders. I don't just know a media portrayal of Donald Trump. I have hundreds of hours of behavior that I have observed on video of his own words not mediated by anyone. I have more samples of behavior and speech from Donald Trump than most of my patients." ~ John Gartner, a psychotherapist, who taught psychiatric residents at Johns Hopkins University Medical School, and founder of the "Duty to Warn" PAC, whose goal is to get Trump impeached on account of his mental instability
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Low unemployment and worker participation rates show mismatch between market needs and worker skills.
- By referring to the Persian Gulf as "Arabian," Trump has united factions of normally-feuding Iranians.
- Iranian Baha'i poet and teacher Mahvash Sabet honored with the International Writer of Courage Award.
- Californians favor greater emphasis on science and computing education in K-12 schools.
- Students are increasingly hiring professionals to write their college application essays.
- Breakfast, anyone? Cheese, nuts, and fruit make this plate an appetizing one! [Photographer unknown]
(4) If Trump's tax plan is implemented:
- The Trump Family will save billions in inheritance and other taxes, recovering all the money spent on the presidential bid several times over.
- The Koch Brothers will get a handsome return on their investment in funding far-right causes, institutions, and politicians for decades.
- Corporations that used every possible loophole to pay less in taxes will get additional breaks; these include Big Oil, Big Pharma, and Big Health.
- Income-tax cuts for the middle class, if any, will be more than eaten up by elimination of certain exemptions, increased healthcare costs (not just premiums, but also out of pocket costs), and cuts to social programs.
(5) The impotent despot: Iran's Supreme Leader has pardoned a man serving a jail term for insulting the prophet and the imams, but no one in the judiciary or Evin Prison is paying any attention to his decree.
(6) A most blatant lie: Asked why he had not reached out to the families of four fallen US soldiers in Africa, Trump began with a lie (he had written letters that had not yet been mailed) and followed up with a string of lies about former presidents not doing it either. Both George W. Bush and Barack Obama [photo] met with and personally comforted families as a matter of course.
(7) Half-baked nationalism: While accepting the Liberty Medal in Philadelphia on Monday night, Senator John McCain warned against turning toward "half-baked, spurious nationalism cooked up by people who would rather find scapegoats than solve problems."
[P.S.: In another report, Trump warned McCain to be careful, because at some point he will fight back.]

2017/10/16 (Monday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Trinity College library, Dublin, Ireland Snack service on a Scandinavian Airlines flight, 1969 Princess Fawzia Fuad of Egypt, the first wife of the last Shah of Iran, 1940s (1) History in pictures: [Left] Trinity College library, Dublin, Ireland. [Center] Snack service on a Scandinavian Airlines flight, 1969. [Right] Princess Fawzia Fuad of Egypt, the first wife of the last Shah of Iran, 1940s.
(2) A beautiful day and a new week begins: Besides opening my eyes to the colorful eastern sky in Goleta, I am glad that my waking up ended a dream that began fine but took a horrible turn. In the dream, I was trying to take a photo of gorgeous artwork inside a covered entryway and was about to give up, because of the poor lighting conditions, when a man approached me and offered to help make adjustments to my iPhone's camera settings to improve the image. He had in his hand what looked like an expensive camera, so I trusted him. You can guess the rest of the story. The funny thing is that as I was chasing him, l thought about all the time and effort needed to secure my accounts and recover lost data. I can now spend that time on something enjoyable on this hot Monday in Santa Barbara and Ventura areas.
(3) On the #MeToo movement: Since yesterday, many women have posted the Facebook status "Me Too," indicating that they too have experienced sexual harassment and/or assault. So, in solidarity, I am sharing this post of mine from a year ago today. In this essay entitled "Grab Her," a woman explains what it means to be groped, abused, chased, ignored, interrupted, talked over, talked down to, and feel unsafe when walking alone. In recent days, a number of men have posted stories about how they too were groped or assaulted as young men, implying that women can be predatory as well. I do accept their main point, but believe me when I say that the two experiences are not the same. I hope that someday they will become the same and the two sexes are treated equally and symmetrically. A day when all men start seeing women as human beings and not as objects of conquests; not as a brain and a bunch of other uninteresting body parts attached to the main sexual organs; a day when we men understand why a woman might keep a sexual assault under wraps for years or even take the secret to her grave.
[P.S.: I recommend watching the first 5-7 minutes of this 41-minute video, to hear Michelle Obama's take, in a speech of last year (more relevant than ever today), about the way women and girls are treated by many men. "This is not normal. This is not politics as usual. This is disgraceful and intolerable. ... No woman deserves to be treated this way."]
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Ophelia: First-ever Atlantic storm to reach Ireland, has caused 3 deaths and widespread power outages.
- Massive double-car bombing kills at least 300 in Somalia. The terror group Al Shabab is being blamed.
- UCSB bows to changes in psychology by abolishing its BA program and offering BS degrees only.
- Just-opened walkway and bike path foretell the opening of UCSB's Bioengineering Building on Thu. 10/19.
- Cartoon caption of the day: Fortune cookie says "Someday you will die."
- Postmodern Jukebox transforms the Justin Bieber song "Love Yourself" into vintage-1929 New Orleans jazz.
(5) Childish name-calling among the Republicans: Trump has suddenly become friendly with Senator Rand Paul, whom he once called "Gollum" (animal-like creature from "Lord of the Rings"), and Senator Lindsey Graham, who has referred to Trump as "jackass." Meanwhile, Rex Tillerson, who refused to deny for the second time on Sunday that he called Trump "a moron" is on thin ice, judging by past Trump reactions towards those who cross or insult him.

2017/10/15 (Sunday): Here are six items of potential interest.
The sun shines through NYC's Grand Central Terminal in 1929, before it was surrounded by tall buildings Paper money recovered from the Titanic German kid with a portable lemonade stand, 1931 (1) History in pictures: [Left] The sun shines through NYC's Grand Central Terminal windows in 1929, before it was surrounded by tall buildings. [Center] Paper money recovered from the Titanic. [Right] German kid with a portable lemonade stand, 1931.
(2) Quote of the day: "The world is increasingly designed to depress us. Happiness isn't very good for the economy. ... To be calm becomes a kind of revolutionary act. To be happy with your own non-upgraded existence. To be comfortable with our messy, human selves, would not be good for business." ~ Matt Haig
(3) Is English the new tool of world dominance for America? In a way, by spreading cultural symbols and weakening local languages, English does seem to be expanding hegemony. Yet, when I look at my own case, learning English and, more recently, developing a passion for it, has opened my eyes and helped me, both personally and professionally. A "world language" is not only helpful, but inevitable. And, even though a newly-designed synthetic language may be a better choice, past failures in this domain have led to the de facto choice of English. Learning a second language is a time-intensive undertaking, so, it is very natural that people would choose one that carries some tangible benefits. For example, people in southern US tend to choose Spanish. China's economic progress and its becoming a world power has motivated many to learn Chinese.
(4) Talk is cheap, results matter: I am very surprised that a number of seemingly educated Trump supporters are jumping for joy at his recent words and actions regarding healthcare. Talk is cheap, results matter (look at the beautiful, tall wall that was supposed to be built along the US-Mexico border, with Mexican funding). The glee of the healthy about being able to pay less for less coverage is misguided. As we know from people around us, a healthy person can turn into a sick person overnight. The 2018 ACA premiums had been set before the recent Trump words and actions. I will talk to supporters of Trump's healthcare actions in late 2018, once the 2019 rates and coverage limits have been published.
(5) Video showing the devastation in Santa Rosa, California: Blocks and blocks of burned homes.
(6) On-skin interfaces: These interfaces constitute one of the two cover features in the October 2017 issue of IEEE Computer. The feature has an introduction by the guest editor, along with the following two articles.
- "On-Skin Interactions Using Body Landmarks": As a surface for input to computers, the human skin differs fundamentally from existing touch-sensitive devices. This article discusses the use of skin landmarks (anatomical characteristics, body adornments, and the like) that offer unique tactile and visual cues, to enhance body-based user interfaces.
- "Interactive Systems Based on Electrical Muscle Stimulation": EMS has been used since the 1960s in rehabilitative medicine to regenerate lost motor functions, but researchers have started to explore new EMS applications including guided training, muscle-propelled force feedback, novel forms of information access, and human-computer interaction.

2017/10/14 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
T-shirt with the message 'Avoid Negativity' T-shirt with the message 'Intelligence is the Ability to Adapt to Change' T-shirt with the message 'That's How I Roll' (1) Scientists and engineers, flaunting their opinions on their T-shirts! [All three images on Facebook]
(2) Message to my oldest son, on the occasion of his 33rd birthday: A very happy 33rd birthday to you! Thirty-three is an interesting number, both mathematically and historically. It is 3 x 11, or (11)_10 x (11)_10, where the first (11)_10 is the base-2 representation of 3 and the second one is the base-10 representation of 11. Thirty-three is the sum of the first four positive factorials, 33 = 1! + 2! + 3! + 4! It is XXXIII in Roman numerals and 100001 in binary (the latter is a fact I will use for cake candles). It was the RPM speed of old phonograph LP records, which you likely have never seen! Speaking of records, 33 is the number of innings played in the longest baseball game on record. Finally, according to Al-Ghazali, the dwellers of heaven will exist eternally in a state of being age 33. [The Magic Number 33] [Photo set 1] [Photo set 2] [Photo set 3]
(3) The magic of TED talks: Here is a wonderful, quite funny, 19-minute TED talk about how our schools kill creativity: Try to imagine Shakespeare as a 7-year-old, being taught by an English teacher! And here is a second wonderful 18-minute TED talk about why we have trouble admitting that we are wrong.
(4) After income and wealth gaps, comes activity gap: A Stanford study, based on the smartphone data of 717,527 people worldwide over 68 million days of activity, has produced interesting results, including the fact that women walk far less than men. "While media coverage focused on the overall results (generating headlines such as Do YOU live in the world's laziest country?), the study shed new light on an important health inequality issue. The researchers found that high 'activity inequality'—where a country has a wide gap between those who walk a lot and those who walk very little—was a strong predictor for a nation's obesity levels among the 47 countries studied."
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- California leads again: Puppy breeding is banned by a new law. Pet stores must sell only rescue animals.
- Book bans precursors to book burnings: What is the moral justification for banning an anti-racism book?
- Death toll of Santa Rosa area fires reaches 40: Ill effects of climate change on full display. [Aerial photo]
- Usetul tip for pre-planning of hors d'oeuvres set-up for entertaining at home or taking plates to pot-lucks.
- Cartoons of day: Couldn't decide between the two, so I am posting both. [Images]
- Who is this baby actor? A tough one, but not impossible to identify, if you look carefully at facial features.
(6) The power of meaning: This is the title of a free lecture (to be presented by Emily Esfahani Smith at UCSB's Campbell Hall on Thursday, November 30, 2017, 7:30 PM) and of a book being given away on campus for the occasion. Looking forward to attending the talk.
(7) Donald Trump claims he spoke to the President of the Virgin Islands (did he speak to himself?). Rick Perry thinks that Puerto Rico is a country. This is a match made in heaven! As the Iranian Azeri saying goes, "bilah dig, bilah choghondar"!

2017/10/13 (Friday the 13th): Here are seven items of potential interest.
A gypsy-owned, horse-drawn caravan from the mid 1800s (1) History in pictures: Luxurious and colorful gypsy-owned, horse-drawn caravan from the mid-1800s.
(2) The 2017 ACM Turing Lecture: I logged on to listen to Silvio Micali's Turing Lecture entitled "Algorand: A Better Shared Ledger," as it was streaming live, beginning at 12:00 noon EDT (9:00 AM PDT) today. Very briefly, Algorand offers a computationally faster and less energy-intensive replacement for BitCoin-like distributed ledgers, while maintaining their security and trustworthiness. Unfortunately, the on-line presentation (screenshot) left much to be desired, in terms of sound quality and the fact that slides did not advance due to a platform snag. If ACM and other professional organizations are serious about spreading the benefits of on-line learning, they should do a better job of developing the needed user-friendly and aesthetically alluring platforms. I will pursue the off-line version of the lecture later and will present a brief report on it.
(3) The San Francisco Bay Area is suffering from very poor air quality: Raging fires have not only caused at least 30 deaths and immense loss of property, but they are threatening the health of millions.
(4) One-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- The marriage loophole for having sex with underage girls seems to be closing in India.
- The American Dream more accessible if you live in Denmark or Finland.
- Friends of Bill & Melinda Gates raise $30M for a U. Washington building, to be named after the couple.
- Cartoon of the day: Deadly California fires sadden and overwhelm Smokey the Bear. [Image]
- Three hurricanes, two earthquakes, and multiple major fires have stretched Direct Relief to the max.
- The doomsday eruption of of Yellowstone supervolcano may occur sooner than previously thought.
- Google commits $1 billion in grants to train US workers for high-tech jobs.
- This is a tough one: Who is this guy? [Hint: The word "guy" in the question is a subtle hint.]
- Bruce Arena resigns as coach of the US men's soccer team after failing to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.
- Stats for the 9/16 Day of Caring: 49 UCSB volunteers removed 1104 lbs of junk from 6 miles of IV streets.
- Gravity-defying statues. [Pictorial]
- Sign seen at a protest march: "Without Science It's Just Fiction." [Photo]
(5) White Christian male caught one week ago by a bomb-sniffing dog at a North Carolina airport: This bomb-planting is news to you? There were no tweets about the would-be bomber? The title of my post explains why.
(6) Trump finds the First-Amendment guarantee of the right to free speech disgusting; and his oath of office included an explicit pledge to safeguard free speech! He wrote in a tweet: "It's frankly disgusting the way the press is able to write whatever they want to write, and people should look into it."
(7) Europeans on the nuclear deal with Iran: While stressing that they are also worried about Iran's destabilizing influence in the region, they see no need for pulling or renegotiating the nuclear deal, to which Iran has adhered by all measures. If the US reimposes sanctions on Iran, the EU will be more than happy to replace Boeing planes with Airbus models and to take over in other high-tech trade areas.

2017/10/12 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Robert Kennedy in a drive-in diner, 1960 The exact spot where JFK was killed in Dallas Theodore Roosevelt becoming the first president to ride in an automobile, 1902 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Robert Kennedy in a drive-in diner, 1960. [Center] The exact spot where President John F. Kennedy was killed in Dallas; this is the last scene he saw. [Right] Theodore Roosevelt becoming the first president to ride in an automobile, 1902.
(2) Donald Trump makes up a story about the firing of his Chief of Staff John Kelly and then blames the media for it: No major news outlet had reported such a thing! According to Washington Post, Trump has made 1318 false or misleading claims over 263 days, for an average of 5 per day.
(3) Trump claims that the recent stock market gains are erasing the national debt: You'd think that a "successful businessman" would know something about economics, but you'd be wrong! Whoever is giving him these talking points is doing him no favor.
(4) US soccer shocker: For the first time in three decades, Team USA will not go to the soccer World Cup tournament. The embarrassing 1-2 loss to Trinidad and Tobago (last-place team in the qualifying group, with one win in 9 games) eliminated the US from the 2018 competition in Moscow. The United States would have qualified with a win or a tie. But a US loss, combined with Panama and Honduras winning over Costa Rica and Mexico, respectively, meant elimination.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Ancient hieroglyphs discovered in Turkey solve the mystery of the Biblical Mediterranean "Sea People."
- California couple, 100 and 98, married for 75 years, are two of the 21 people who perished in NorCal fires.
- With fires raging in both NorCal and SoCal, Santa Barbara also gets a red-flag warning for high fire danger.
- Cartoon of the day: The life of a memoirist. [Image]
- Farhang Foundation's Shab-e Yalda: An event of interest, although I'm not sure I will be able to attend.
- Eerie face-paintings and other 3D illusions created by make-up artists for Halloween.
(6) Why Amazon is different from many other high-tech businesses: Yes, Amazon deals in information, as do Google and Microsoft, but it "was never a completely virtual business," observes Michael A. Cusumano in the October 2017 issue of Communications of the ACM. Amazon began operating out of a warehouse and now, with the opening of its own stores and acquisition of Whole Foods, is moving further away from virtuality and closer to a physically-based company. Bezos likes to experiment and innovate to expand his company's reach, and, at least in the short term, isn't motivated by profits.
(7) The anonymous designer of this meme about Trump did not mince any words!
(8) Quote of the day: "If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein." ~ From a US Supreme Court decision of 1943

2017/10/11 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
International Day of the Girl banner (1) On this International Day of the Girl, let us pledge to give girls (and boys) every opportunity they need to become tomorrow's leaders.
(2) A probability problem for serious geeks: It is about self-correcting random walks (the random-walking drunk is replaced with one having limited control).
(3) Will computers ever be able to think like humans? This has been a longstanding question in the field of artificial intelligence. In a wHaray, this question may be misguided. A recent interview with Douglas Hofstadter has brought this question to the forefront again. In the words of the late computer scientist Edsger Dijkstra, "The question of whether Machines Can Think ... is about as relevant as the question of whether Submarines Can Swim." Dijkstra's point was that planes do not fly like birds and submarines do not swim like fish, yet they are both quite useful in allowing humans to do tasks they aren't capable of doing by themselves. So why do we expect that computers should think like humans? The key question is whether computers can act like intelligent assistants to us, rather then whether they can replace us.
(4) Three cheers for American immigrants: Now that all Nobel Prizes for 2017 have been announced, it is time for some reflection. Approximately 40% of US Nobel Laureates in physics, chemistry, and medicine since 2000 have been immigrants (12 of 30 in physics; 11 of 29 in chemistry; 10 of 26 in medicine).
(5) The new MacArthur "Genius Grant" honorees are as diverse as they come, from both social and disciplinary points of view.
(6) Jimmy Kimmel responds to Donald Trump Jr.'s tweet: Junior asked Kimmel if he had any thoughts on Harvey Weinstein, the movie industry mogul ousted from the company that bears his name, owing to serious allegations of sexual misconduct (something conservatives are trying to exploit, given that Weinstein was a major donor to the Democratic Party and liberal politicians, conveniently forgetting their own association with the sexual-predator-in-chief). Here's what Kimmel wrote: "You mean that big story from the failing, liberal, one-sided @nytimes? I think it is disgusting."
(7) NAE announces winners of 2017 Ramo Founders and Bueche Awards for extraordinary impact on the engineering profession: National Academy of Engineering's Ramo Founders Award went to John E. Hopcroft, widely regarded as one of the most influential computer scientists. NAE's Bueche Award was given to Louis J. Lanzerotti "for his contributions to technology research, policy, and national and international cooperation."
(8) Iranian women and men unite in protesting mandatory hijab laws by wearing white on Wednesdays. [Photo credit: "My Stealthy Freedom" Facebook page]
(9) Growth at the cost of poisoning people: EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt wants to repeal Obama's 2015 Clean Power Plan, which was put in place to cut carbon emissions by 30%. Released from the bonds of environmental regulations, some mines and manufacturing plants may become profitable and thus expand to create jobs, but at what cost? Workers in these industries as well as other Americans will be exposed to harmful emissions that will adversely affect their health, at precisely the same time when healthcare protections are being sabotaged by the administrations. Future generations will be left to pay for these shortsighted policies, which are reminiscent of corporate focus on quarterly statements and stock prices undermining long-term results.

2017/10/10 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
An East German border guard offering a flower through a gap in the Berlin Wall on the morning it fell, 1989 Freed slaves by a canal in Richmond, Virginia, 1865 German soldiers cut off the beard of an old Jewish man (1) History in pictures: [Left] An East German border guard offering a flower through a gap in the Berlin Wall on the morning it fell, 1989. [Center] Freed slaves by a canal in Richmond, Virginia, 1865. [Right] German soldiers cut off the beard of an old Jewish man.
(2) The delay is troubling: The Clintons and Barack Obama are being rightly criticized for staying mum on recent allegations of sexual misconduct against Harvey Weinstein, a major contributor to their political campaigns. They will no doubt say something soon, but the delay in making statements is troubling, especially in the case of Hillary Clinton, a champion of women's rights. [Image]
[P.S.: By the end of the day, condemnation statements from Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama were issued.]
(3) Northern California fires burning out of control: The containment level is 0%, because of high winds and dry conditions making the fires burn super-hot and spread super-fast. Some residents, who were waken up by smoke, escaped with literally seconds to spare (a number of cars caught fire as they were being driven out of the area). There are at least 15 dead, hundreds missing, and 2000 structures destroyed. This image shows a neighborhood in Santa Rosa before and after the fire. There are aslo fires raging in Anaheim, close to Disneyland in Southern California.
(4) Europeans are making fun of our Nonsensical Rifle Addiction (NRA) and suggest that NRA Anonymous can help deal with the problem! [3-minute video]
(5) Tehran's Thakht-e Jamshid Street in the 1960s: I believe the two views are looking west and east from Kaakh Circle. If so, in the color photo, a couple of blocks away on the right, was Ferdowsi Elementary School, which I attended, and the 2-story brick building on the right contained a small grocery store ("bagh'aali") where we sometimes bought snacks during lunch hour. Across the street from Ferdowsi School were a stationary store, a sandwich shop, and various street vendors. The street ended at the eastern boundary of Tehran University. In the black-and-white photo, a couple of blocks past the tall Oil Ministry Building, and on the same side of the street, was the US Embassy.
(6) Imprisoned British-Iranian woman Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe faces additional charges from the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps that would be punishable by 16 more years in prison, reports Maziar Bahari on Iranwire. Apparently, IRGC are using Ms. Zaghari-Ratcliffe's case as a threat to gain leverage over President Rouhani and his government.
(7) The risks of artificial intelligence (AI): For decades, we have been working to make computers more trustworthy, primarily by increasing their predictability and auditability. The entire field of dependable computing emerged in the early 1970s, and continues to be an active area of research, including for yours truly, to ensure that computers behave according to their specs and that any deviation from the expected behavior can be readily detected and subjected to remedial action. Now, AI builds unpredictability into our computers and computer-based systems, making it difficult, if not impossible, to monitor and check their behaviors against pre-supplied specs. In an interesting "Inside Risks" column in Communications of the ACM, issue of October 2017 (pp. 27-31), long-time software-engineering expert David Lorge Parnas chimes in on the dangers of AI, including heuristic algorithms, to system trustworthiness.

2017/10/09 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Jesse Owens winning a gold medal in Nazi Germany's 1936 Olympics Tollund Man, a perfectly preserved 2300-year-old corpse A copy of Uthman's Quran from the early 600s, kept in Topkapi Palace in Istanbul (1) History in pictures: [Left] Jesse Owens winning a gold medal in Nazi Germany's 1936 Olympics. [Center] Tollund Man, a perfectly preserved 2300-year-old corpse. [Right] A copy of Uthman's Quran from the early 600s, kept in Topkapi Palace in Istanbul.
(2) Wonkavators allow architects to be more creative: By moving up and down and sideways without using cables, they free architects from the constraint of strictly vertical skyscrapers and the height limit dictated by cable weight and extreme area waste due to many elevator shafts. With Wonkavators, many cabins can be moving in one shaft.
(3) First US exascale computer to be built by 2021: The project, dubbed "Aurora," is a modification and extension of an earlier plan to deliver 180-200 petaflops by 2018. The change came about because the US Department of Energy was disappointed in the inability of an Intel/Cray partnership to fulfill its objectives.
(4) The wonderful music of James Bond films: The plots may be unbelievable and the special effects (until fairly recently) cheesy, but the music is always first-rate, thanks to the foundation laid by John Barry.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Trump's treating the presidency like "The Apprentice" could lead to WW III, says Senator Bob Corker.
- Most-destructive fires in state's history raging in northern California: Ten dead, 1500 structures lost
- NYT reporter claims her story exposing Harvey Weinstein's sexual misconduct was quashed in 2004.
- Tops of UCSB parking structures were retrofitted with solar panels as part of our green energy initiative.
- Brutal murder, posted on social media, shocks Iran: A young man was bludgeoned, then burned to death.
- South Korea can now build graphite bombs, non-lethal weapons for taking down N. Korea's power system.
(6) Ideas that lead to Nobel Prizes aren't always accepted at first: Here is a list of 8 papers that were rejected at first but later won the world's most prestigious scientific award.
(7) What is blockchain? I pursued this question and am sharing a summary of my findings here. An introductory article (by T. Aste, P. Tasca, T. di Mateo) in the September 2017 special issue of IEEE Computer magazine begins thus: "Blockchain is a technology that uses community validation to keep synchronized the content of ledgers replicated across multiple users. Although blockchain derives its origins from technologies introduced decades ago, it has gained popularity with Bitcoin."
People trust regular currency, because it is difficult to forge and occasional forgers are vigorously prosecuted. If you claim that you have a certain amount of money, and actually have that amount of money, the claim is verifiable by trusted sources that keep track of financial transactions. In the case of Bitcoin, transactions are broadcast to a network and their validity is verified by peers. Once validated, transactions are collected into blocks that are cryptographically sealed. The blocks are then competitively interlocked like a chain, hence the name. There is no central authority; everything is fully distributed.
In essence, blockchain allows machines to act as intermediaries between humans that do not trust each other. Blockchain is an important special case of distributed ledger technologies, which include other methods of decentralized record-keeping and data-sharing across multiple servers. The winner of this year's ACM Turing Award, Silvio Micali, will talk about "Algorand: A Better Distributed Ledger" on Friday, October 13, 2017, beginning at 12:00 noon EDT. You can sign up to hear the lecture without being an ACM member.
(8) The 2017 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences: The Prize went to Richard H. Thaler (U. Chicago) for integrating economics with psychology, founding the field of behavioral economics which replaces rational decision-making with limited rationality, social preferences, and lack of self-control.

2017/10/08 (Sunday): Here are five items of potential interest.
New York City, circa 1900 New York City's Times Square in 1903 Paris in 1900 (1) History in pictures: [Left] New York, circa 1900. [Center] NYC's Times Square, 1903. [Right] Paris, 1900.
(2) Practical solution to the problem of guns in the US: If NFL athletes, instead of kneeling, stand up during the National Anthem while holding a rifle above the head, we will have gun control legislation by halftime! ["The Daily Show" video clip]
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Driver and several others taken to hospital, as truck crashes into the side of a Santa Barbara restaurant.
- This must be the brand of paper towels Trump threw at Puerto Ricans during his visit to the island!
- Clever "Black Lives Matter" T-shirt for science buffs.
- Hurricane Nate's projected path and timeline. [Map]
- A very Parisian way to avoid floodwaters! [B&W photo]
- Rows 1-3 of a triangle are shown in this image. What would the 100th row be if we extend the triangle?
(4) California Avocado Festival: Like many other festivals in the US, this one is mostly about food! Aromas of BBQ and guacamole were very enticing, but I had eaten just before arriving, so they weren't difficult to resist. Being outdoors on a gorgeous day and doing some walking made the trip worthwhile for me. [Music video]
(5) Today's talk about Iran at UCLA (4:00 PM, 121 Dodd Hall): Dr. Kamran Talattof (U. Arizona) delivered the talk "Sexuality and Cultural Change in Iranian Cinema" under the auspices of the UCLA Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran, that began its 2017-2018 program today. Tomorrow, Dr. Talattof will present an English lecture entitled "What Kind of Wine Did Rudaki Fancy" (2:00 PM, 348 UCLA Humanities Building). The lecture series, under the directorship of Dr. Nayereh Tohidi, has become quite popular and serves an important need of Southern California's large Iranian-American community and others who are interested in learning about Iran.
In his research, Dr. Talattof focuses on issues of gender, sexuality, ideology, culture, language pedagogy, and creation of cultural artifacts. Among his many publications is the award-winning volume Modernity, Sexuality, and Ideology in Iran: The Life and Legacy of a Popular Female Artist, which tells the story of Shahrzad, a dancer, actress, filmmaker, and poet, who performed in theater productions, became an acclaimed film star, flirted with journalism and poetry, was imprisoned after the Islamic Revolution, and eventually became homeless on the streets of Tehran. Today's talk can be viewed as an elaboration and expansion on a small part of the latter book.
Dr. Talattof began with a discussion of modernity in Iran and why, despite significant efforts over the past century, it has never really taken hold. There are various theories as to why anti-modernity forces were able to foil attempts at establishing true modernity. As a result, Iranian society has become what Dr. Talattof terms "modernoid": having the outward appearances of modernity, without exhibiting its key characteristics and benefits. His thesis is that lack of attention to, or insufficient treatment of, issues of sexuality is one of the main factors that inhibits progress toward true modernity. In film and cinema, we find excellent examples that allow us to formulate and analyze this problem. Cinema has a long tradition in Iran. It took hold and was viewed as a serious art form shortly after its introduction in Iran, to the point of being deemed on par with poetry and other traditional art forms dear to Iranians.
In the 1960s and 1970s, a decadent form of cinema, named derisively as "FilmFarsi" (literally, "PersianFilm") spread and formed the basis of a profitable and prolific film industry. The formulaic stories of these films often had a poor or rich girl wanting to marry a man belonging to the opposite social class, a man falling for a cabaret dancer or prostitute (the two being viewed as one and the same in Iranian culture of the day), and slapstick comedies, a la "Three Stooges." Women were routinely objectified and depicted as weak, dependent souls who needed the protection of the male protagonist. Manliness was a recurring theme and a big part of many movie plots, where a man's authority or virility was threatened, only to be restored by the end of the film.
FilmFarsi titles were often not shown in top-notch movie theaters, because they were frowned upon by most intellectuals, who preferred foreign films (usually dubbed into Persian). Although depiction of sex and sexuality was by no means explicit, some films were viewed as going too far in their partial nudity and suggestive dialog, given Iran's social norms at the time.
In fact, Dr. Talattof's examination of official documents of that era has revealed that certain government officials openly worried about film depiction of female characters (and the giant, sexually arousing posters that graced movie-theater marquees) had gone too far and likely to create a backlash within the society's conservative elements. These excesses of the film industry are some of the key elements often cited for the success of Islamic Revolution and for cinema becoming dormant for several years after the Revolution. In fact, revolutionaries resorted to burning movie theaters to show their distaste for what they considered decadent forms of culture promoted by the Shah and by his Western allies.
The movie "Gheisar" is often cited as a turning point because of its treatment of more important social issues, although it still had some of FilmFarsi elements. Subsequently, serious filmmakers appeared on the scene and Iranian art films began to make a good showing at international venues and festivals.
The story of Iranian cinema after the Revolution is quite interesting. After the initial hiatus, films emerged that tackled the safe subjects of Shah's secret police, ridiculing the leftists and intellectuals, and later, depicting the Iran-Iraq war. Within a few years, filmmakers had gathered the courage to make films about relationships, social issues such as poverty, and cultural dichotomies, without being overtly political. They often had to change the story-line or dialog to satisfy the censors.
An important challenge for post-revolutionary filmmakers was the depiction of intimate relationships. A man taking a woman home (of course, after officially entering into temporary-marriage with her) would open the door, with the couple going in and the door closing behind them, as the camera remains fixed on the closed door. A scene happening in the bedroom of a married couple presented similar challenges. It would be utterly artificial for the woman to appear in bed with a manteau and headscarf, so the filmmaker had to find alternatives, such as filming in the dark.
One of the remarkable feats of Iranian cinema in recent decades has been the filmmakers' ability to tell interesting and complex stories in the face of restrictions on content and appearance of actors/actresses. Many influential filmmakers have emerged, each with his/her own ingenious schemes for getting around the myriad restrictions, while still telling an interesting story.
The 105-minute lecture was longer than usual, in part because Dr. Talattof showed several film clips to exemplify the points he wanted to make. A brief question-and-answer period ensued, before we had to leave the lecture hall a few minutes after 6:00 PM. [Photos of the speaker and movie posters]

2017/10/07 (Saturday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cover image of Candice Bergen's 'A Fine Romance' (1) Book review: Bergen, Candice, A Fine Romance, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2015.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
In this intelligently-written book, a follow-up to her best-selling autobiography (Knock Wood), Bergen begins with her marriage to French director Louis Malle, and covers a number of subsequent events in her life: The birth of her daughter, Chloe, her successful and controversial TV series "Murphy Brown" (1988-1998), losing Malle to cancer, finding love again with New York real estate magnate Marshall Rose, and raising her daughter to become an independent adult.
Bergen's writing style is charming, honest, and funny. She does come across as privileged and a tad whiny on occasion, but these are small blemishes on an otherwise wonderful book. Of course, the faults are easier to forgive if, like me, you are an admirer of Bergen's acting talent, comic chops, and looks.
Bergen, like Mary Tyler Moore before her, came to represent the modern, liberated, independent, opinionated, professional woman through her TV persona, and thus got into scuffles with the likes of Vice-President Dan Quayle, when her Murphy Brown character decided to have a child without getting married and defied other social norms of her days.
Other readers' opinions about this book are quite varied, with assessments ranging from "painfully boring" to "entertaining and well-written." Many readers who did not like this book praised Bergen's earlier memoir.
(2) Ten brief news headlines and other interesting items from around the Internet:
- Helicopters mimic drones to become safer and easier to fly. [Annotated image: E&T magazine]
- High-winds test: Here's how a typical US home would fare under 100 mph wind.
- Erasing data won't erase the problems: FEMA removed Puerto Rico's unflattering stats from its Web site.
- Logical answer to an ignorant tweet about trucks and guns!
- To-do list, attributed to the late country music star Johnny Cash: He likely meant it as a joke.
- Cartoon of the day: Ant identification. [By John Atkinson]
- Caught a wonderful musical performance last night on PBS SoCal (KOCE). [Sample 1] [Sample 2]
- Tillerson's exit will cost Trump dearly: But that high cost is unlikely to save his job.
- In a thwarted plan, three ISIS-inspired men wanted to bomb NYC's landmarks, the subway, and concerts.
- Can solar solve Puerto Rico's electric-power problems? Elon Musk thinks so and has offered a proposal.
(3) Three teens arrested in Carpinteria (near Santa Barbara): One Carpinteria High student had posted a photo with a firearm along with a threatening text. The other two, identified when the first teen was investigated, also face firearms-related charges.
(4) Trump's tweet of October 7, 2017, 5:04 AM: "More and more people are suggesting that Republicans (and me) should be given Equal Time on T.V. when you look at the one-sided coverage?"
My response: By ending the tweet with a question mark, you seem to agree that your demand is questionable. Anyway, I'm sure they would be glad to comply, if you too gave them equal time on your Twitter feed!
(5) This afternoon at Santa Barbara's La Cumbre Plaza: On a relatively hot day, a keyboardist played tunes from The Great American Songbook [Sample 1] [Sample 2] and people were enjoying various activities, such as reading (me), oversized board games, and more.

2017/10/06 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Sexy Albert Einstein in 1932 A group of samurai from Japan visiting the Sphinx in Egypt, 1863 An 8-year-old coal miner in the early 1900s (1) History in pictures: [Left] Sexy Albert Einstein in 1932! [Center] A group of samurai from Japan visiting the Sphinx in Egypt, 1863. [Right] An 8-year-old coal miner in the early 1900s.
(2) Cats behaving badly: In Australia, cats kill one million birds per day: Some bird species are facing possible extinction as a result.
(3) Ten brief news headlines from Time magazine on-line:
- ICAN, International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear weapons, was awarded the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize.
- Tropical storm Nate is moving north to threaten New Orleans and other Gulf Coast regions in the US.
- NRA chief blames Hollywood for Las Vegas mass shooting (I guess he forgot to mention fake news)!
- After dining with US military leaders, Trump characterizes the meeting as "the calm before the storm."
- Hawaii, the first state to challenge Trump's earlier travel bans, takes on the new ban in court.
- Robert Meuller's team interviews former British spy Christopher Steele (of the "Trump Dossier" fame).
- US-based employees of the Kremlin-linked Russia Today news service are leaving in droves.
- Elon Musk's Tesla company offers to fix Puerto Rico's energy crisis with solar panels and batteries.
- Huge celestial fireball appears in the night sky, as Superboldie Meteorite explodes over China.
- Twelve-mile-wide comet, the furthest such observation, has been spotted hurtling towards the sun.
(4) Gun control and safety: How did a serious discussion of gun control and safety deteriorate into passing legislation banning a single device that converts semi-automatic rifles into automatic ones? Yes, the bump-stock device was responsible for massive deaths and injuries in Las Vegas, but in the grand scheme of things, the total number of deaths that would be prevented by banning the said device is a tiny fraction of all gun deaths. Very few mass shootings involve automatic or converted semi-automatic rifles. And the bulk of gun deaths are not from mass shootings. A good chunk of gun deaths results from children finding guns at home and "accidentally" shooting themselves or a relative. Don't get me wrong, such a ban would be great, but only as part of comprehensive gun control legislation.
(5) The first paragraph from Abraham Flexner's 1939 article, "The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge," on which a 2017 book by the same name (see my blog for Wednesday 2017/10/04), is based:
"Is it not a curious fact that in a world steeped in irrational hatreds which threaten civilization itself, men and women—old and young—detach themselves wholly or partly from the angry current of daily life to devote themselves to the cultivation of beauty, to the extension of knowledge, to the cure of disease, to the amelioration of suffering, just as though fanatics were not simultaneously engaged in spreading pain, ugliness, and suffering? The world has always been a sorry and confused sort of place—yet poets and artists and scientists have ignored the factors that would, if attended to, paralyze them. From a practical point of view, intellectual and spiritual life is, on the surface, a useless form of activity, in which men indulge because they procure for themselves greater satisfactions that are otherwise obtainable. In this paper I shall concern myself with the question of the extent to which the pursuit of these useless satisfactions proves unexpectedly the source from which undreamed-of utility is derived."
Puzzle regarding a fractal shape (6) [As bad news keeps piling up, here is my sign-off post for today to distract you, if you are so inclined!] Math puzzle: Start with an equilateral triangle (image 0 on the left), divide each side of length 1 into 3 equal segments, and replace the middle segment with two segments of the same length that bulge out (image 1, after one step). This will increase the perimeter of the figure from 3 to 4. Repeat this process for 9 more steps (the next two steps, images 2 and 3, are also shown). What is the perimeter of the 10th figure?

2017/10/05 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Screenshot of ResearchGate showing 1511 reads for my article (1) An article of mine has been read by over 1500 people on just one research site: My research publications tend to be highly specialized and are often read by at most a few dozens of researchers with technical interests similar to mine. So, it surprised me to find out that "Low Acceptance Rates of Conference Papers Considered Harmful" (IEEE Computer, Vol. 49, No. 4, pp. 70-73, April 2016), which is somewhat more general in scope and less technical in content, has been read 1511 times already on ResearchGate. This is, in part, thanks to prominent social-media users posting about and discussing it.
(2) At one point, I was hoping for Rex Tillerson's resignation: Now, I hope he stays. According to retiring Senator Bob Corker, Tillerson, Mattis, and Kelly are the only obstacles to chaos in our country.
(3) Examples of posters, from Southern California (left) and Nice, France, announcing the celebration of the ancient Iranian festival of autumn. [Image]
(4) Communication between smart cars: When a car is driving right behind another one, its view of the road ahead is limited. It is possible to acquire a complete view by communicating with the car driving ahead. So, the parallel with the saying "two heads are better than one" is "two smart cars are better than one"!
(5) Iraqi Kurds celebrate the huge 98% approval in their independence referendum, but the practical implications of this win remain unclear. [Photo credit: Time magazine]
(6) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting finds on the Internet:
- The 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature goes to Kazuo Ishiguro, whose novels include The Remains of the Day.
- Here's what the official NRA magazine @AmericanHunter tweeted hours before the Las Vegas mass murder.
- Las Vegas mass shooting: Some memes and cartoons.
- Who was the genius behind the idea that the POTUS should throw paper-towel rolls at Puerto Ricans?
- Lone wolves gather in the wild to issue a joint statement: "Stop comparing crazy white mass shooters to us!"
- The perfect gift for your favorite nerd this Christmas. ["Oh Chemis Tree" T-shirt]
(7) Artificial intelligence benefits outweigh risks: According to Google engineering director Ray Kurzweil, AI will be far more beneficial than harmful, and the "singularity" when computers overtake human intelligence should be welcomed. Kurzweil bases his opinion on human history, where technological innovation has helped humanity more often than worsened it. While Kurzweil acknowledges that all technologies pose risks and that the risks of powerful ones (biotechnology, nanotechnology, AI) are potentially existential, he is certain that the elimination of certain trades will be offset by the creation of new types of jobs. "It creates a difficult political issue because you can look at people driving cars and trucks, and you can be pretty confident those jobs will go away. And you can't describe the new jobs, because they're in industries and concepts that don't exist yet."
(8) Faculty Research Lecture: Annually, UCSB honors one of its faculty members by asking the honoree to deliver a general-audience public lecture. Today, at Corwin Pavilion, Professor Charles E. Samuel, of our MCDB Department, spoke under the title "Viral Threats to Humankind: Antivirals and Lessons Learned from Interferons." Much progress has been made in developing virus-specific vaccines, to the extent that some viral afflictions have been eradicated. However, we do not have vaccines for all viruses and, in many cases, no treatment once the illness sets in. A potent anti-viral agent, interferon, discovered in 1957, interferes with virus growth (non-virus-type-specific) and provides a first line of defense for the human body. Whereas I understood the main message of the talk and the importance of interferons, I was disappointed with the pace and tone of the speaker, which was quite inappropriate for a public talk to an audience of mostly non-specialists.

2017/10/04 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cover image for Abraham Flexner's book 'The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge' (1) Book introduction for science buffs: Flexner, Abraham, with a companion essay by Robert Dijkgraaf, The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge, Princeton University Press, 2017.
The thesis of this book is that focusing solely on short-term applied research is misguided. We should strike a balance between applied and basic research. Basic research that seems to be useless today will inevitably turn valuable in future. For example, the invention of radio is often credited to Guglielmo Marconi, but earlier experimentation and theoretical development by Faraday, Hertz, and Maxwell should not be forgotten. Here is an article by the author from 1939 making the exact same point. Flexner lived from 1866 to 1959, so this book presents some of his work from decades ago, along with modern examples that confirm his thesis.
(2) Engineering identified as the top major for world's wealthiest people: Among the world's top 100 wealthiest people, the largest number (22) have majored in engineering. The list includes Jeff Bezos of Amazon and Larry Page of Google. [Source: Business Insider, based on a poll conducted by British recruiting firm Aaron Wallis]
(3) Don't worry, your personal information will be safe! Equifax, the company that lost to hackers the personal info for nearly half of all Americans, whose execs sold off their stock holdings after they learned about the massive data breach, but before telling us about it, and whose CEO "retired" after the breach with a multi-million-dollar parting gift, has been hired by IRS to help with "taxpayer and personal identity verification service." And I am not joking!
(4) Can you guess the party affiliation of an anti-abortion US Representative who sent a text message to his mistress, asking her to get an bortion?
(5) Why is it that what would have been knock-out punches for any other politician simply make Trump wobble for a while and return to upright position? Question of the day, indeed! [Time magazine cover image]
(6) Gerrymandering, via an example: This chart, from Time magazine, issue of October 9, 2017, shows why it is a good idea for Congressional districts to be drawn by non-partisan entities. It shows a hypothetical state with 60% red voters, 40% blue voters, and 5 districts (thus 5 representatives). Districting map 1 is fair, as it leads to the election of 3 red and 2 blue reps, in proportion to the population's political leanings. Districting map 2 results in 5 red reps, leaving the blue minority unrepresented. Districting map 3 leads to the minority actually gaining a majority 3 out of 5 reps. As I write, there are weirdly-shaped Congressional districts in which geographically separated areas are connected by a road, along with houses on its two sides. You may be in the same district with someone who lives 50 miles away, but in different districts with your left-side and right-side neighbors. See the map of the most gerrymandered districts (from a different on-line source) at the link above.
(7) Tonight's concert by Cory Henry and the Funk Apostles at UCSB: The event was preceded by a party, with DJ music, free goodies, and more in front of the venue, under a nearly full moon. The concert itself was a high-energy program that had the audience members clapping and singing along. The last song performed brought the audience to their feet. Here is an 18-minute video of the group's work from YouTube.

2017/10/03 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Waterfall in Ecuador Transforming war ('harb') to love ('hubbun'), by hiding its middle letter in Arabic Improvising for some fun, with minimal resources (1) Three interesting photos: [Left] Waterfall in Ecuador. [Center] Transforming war ('harb') to love ('hubbun'), by hiding its middle letter in Arabic. [Right] Improvising for some fun, with minimal resources.
(2) Nobel Prize in Physics awarded to three American researchers for the first observations of gravitational waves: Rainer Weiss is honored with half of the prize. Kip Thorne and Barry Barish will share the other half.
(3) Trump in Puerto Rico: He downplayed PR's dire conditions by citing the death toll of only 16. He told Puerto Ricans that they have thrown "our budget a little out of whack," as if they caused or invited the storm.
(4) Trevor Noah's insightful take on the Las Vegas mass-shooting tragedy: Why is it that some people say this is no time to discuss gun safety? Don't we discuss airline and flight safety right after a plane crashes, or infrastructural problems the same day a bridge collapses?
(5) Half-dozen brief items from the news, personal stories, and Internet postings:
- Portraits of Las Vegas massacre victims begin to emerge. And here are more portraits.
- White privilege in action: Criticizing how some media reports try to humanize the Las Vegas mass killer.
- Near-miss: A 100-foot asteroid will pass within a mere 27,000 miles of Earth on October 12, 2017.
- Israel plans to build an artificial island in Gaza, with air/sea ports, power station, and desalination plant.
- Tillerson working quietly to save the Iran nuclear deal, as the October 15 certification deadline nears.
- Mattis contradicts Trump on the Iran nuclear deal: Says US interest lies in sticking with the deal.
(6) You have more in common with the world, including people you hate, than you think: Proud Kurd finds out through DNA analysis that she is mostly Iranian/Turk/Jewish. Interestingly, DNA analysis of this kind is possible because for much of human history, we have been confined to the vicinity of our birthplace. DNA analysis of human remains from various regions allows us to deduce connections for living people who do the test. We are now quite mobile and within a couple of centuries (my guess), differences will all but disappear.
(7) Charity recommendation: Direct Relief International has been the charity of my choice through the recent Atlantic hurricanes and Mexico quakes. If you don't know where to donate or are dissatisfied with organizations you have used in the past, please look into DRI. Reports from Puerto Rico show them to be front and center in a wide array of relief efforts.
(8) The new "Star Trek: Discovery" TV series will have two women of color in lead roles: Just as was the case for the "Ghostbusters" film with female leads, reaction to CBS's casting decision has been nasty. Ever since Gene Roddenberry's creation, "Star Trek" has been a leader in raising awareness of social issues, such as introducing the first inter-racial kiss on American TV in 1968. I, for one, am rooting for the success of the new series. It's about time women are given roles they deserve based on merit. [Adapted from: Time magazine, issue of October 2, 2017]

2017/10/02 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Refrigerator, 1920s Captain Kirk of 'Star Trek' in a scene involving the first inter-racial kiss on American TV How babies used to fly on airplanes (1) History in pictures: [Left] Refrigerator, 1920s. [Center] Captain Kirk of "Star Trek" in a scene involving the first inter-racial kiss on American TV. [Right] How babies used to fly on airplanes.
(2) October 2, 1988, was the day we arrived in California from Canada: Next year will be the big 30th anniversary of arrival in Santa Barbara and working at UCSB. Still love the place after 29 years!
(3) Bernie Sanders digs up a Donald Trump tweet from 2015 about the absolute necessity of saving out social safety nets. Medicare will be gutted according to his budget proposal. Medicaid were to be eliminated altogether according to his healthcare plan.
(4) Gunman (now dead) fires from Mandalay Bay's 32nd floor on attendees of a Las Vegas music festival, using an automatic assault rifle, killing at least 50 and injuring more than 400, many critically. Unfortunately, if past events are any indication, no gun-control law will result from this horrible incident. This isn't a Second-Amendment issue but one of common sense and human empathy.
(5) Half-dozen brief items from the news, personal stories, and Internet postings:
- Tom Petty dead at 66 of cardiac arrest: Here's one of his hit songs, "You Don't Know How It Feels." RIP.
- Summer months wasted, leaving major repairs of UCSB's walkways to this first week of classes.
- Seven hilarious photo pose re-creations. [Pictorial]
- Sholeh-zard emojis. [Photo] [Should make it clear these Persian treats aren't my work!]
- Trump opponents and allies, according to comedian Tony Posnanski's tweet: "Just a reminder ... Hillary—Nasty | Mayor of San Juan—Nasty | NFL Players—Sons Of Bitches | Democrats—Losers | Nazis—Fine People
- Maybe Lady Gaga is on to something: xoxo, Gaga @ladygaga "Oh I see @realDonaldTrump you're not helping PR because of the electoral votes u need to be re-elected #Florida=29 #Texas=38 #PuertoRico=0"
(6) Three American scientists awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine: Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael Young are honored for helping to explain how biological clocks work.
(7) Technical talk: Today, I attended a talk by Hsien-Hsin Sean Lee (Deputy Director of TSMC and Associate Professor at Georgia Tech) entitled "Moore and More: Design Trends and Challenges of Modern Chips." The main focus of the talk was extreme design and manufacturing difficulties as we move into the 7-nanometer regime and the necessity of leveraging various 3D IC technologies to make further progress when Moore's Law expires.
(8) Social/technical gathering: Members of IEEE's Central Coast Section and their guests met at Goleta's Rusty's Pizza for a pizza-and-beer mixer and to hear Dr. Michael C. Wicks of University of Dayton present a talk entitled "Advanced Sensor Concepts, Exploitation, Signal Processing, and Systems Engineering." The focus of the talk was how the availability of cheap sensors and the massive amounts of data they collect is changing many technologies and applications.

2017/10/01 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Our beautiful world: Lake Louise, Canada (1) Our beautiful world: Lake Louise, Canada.
(2) Iran, 33 years after 1984: How PhotoShop is being used to alter historical photographs, a la "1984," to match the narratives of the Islamic regime. A photo of a mosque was PhotoShopped to insert Ayatollah Khamenei's image alongside that of Ayatollah Khomeini. In another instance, photo of a cabinet meeting was cropped in a textbook to remove Mir Hossein Mousavi, who appeared seated on the right edge.
(3) Interesting info about codes on your cell phone: One wonders, though, why the codes are secret and why the associated useful functionalities aren't provided in a more convenient form. I don't want to lock something and then not remember the code for unlocking it!
(4) Women are inferior, according to many Islamic clerics and their followers: In the aftermath of ending the driving ban for women in Saudi Arabia, a prominent cleric, who believed women should not drive because they have only a quarter of a brain, has been prohibited from preaching and other activities. The cleric had elaborated that women only have half a brain to begin with, but when they go out shopping, they end up with only a quarter. Maybe the rule for having four wives stems from this view: it's just a way of getting a complete brain in your women collectively! If I were him, I would stay indoors for a while due to the danger of being run over by the new female drivers!
(5) Ten brief news and other personal/on-line stories of the day:
- Anti-Fascist protesters confront far-right Neo-Nazis, who took to the streets in Sweden on Yom Kippur.
- Cymatics: Science and music linked in awe-inspiring experiments. [6-minute video]
- Chuck Schumer exposes Trump's tax-cuts-for-the-rich plan being peddled as tax-reform plan.
- Afghan soccer player Nadieh Nadim to join Manchester City's women's team.
- Further to my post on Hugh Hefner's passing, this article also suggests that he helped normalize misogyny.
- Women leaders in software engineering: The list compiled by Anita Borg Institute.
- Don't you wish your President would give this speech on diversity and race relations, and really mean it?
- Will Rex Tillerson be the next Trump cabinet member to go? [Trump tweet of 1 October 2017, 7:30 AM]
- Time to set aside Trump and his silly tweets to get some real work done! And here's the result.
- Did some work in the garage to clear up my little workspace, where I do minor repairs and small projects.
(6) Isn't it ironic that the guy who colluded with a country that wants to undermine the American democratic system represented by our flag is demanding that others respect that flag? [Bill Maher's take]
(7) [Final thought for the day] "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match: Tennis star Billie Jean King related in an interview with Seth Meyers that a 12-year-old Barack Obama watched her match against Bobby Riggs on TV and that he later told her that watching the match changed his life as the father of two daughters.

2017/09/30 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
US National Parks fundraising T-shirt (1) US national parks are in grave danger: The Trump administration plans to sell parts of our national parks to mining companies and developers. If you have been to national parks and enjoyed their serene beauty, consider helping the effort to fight these misguided policies. [Fundraising T-shirt]
(2) Puerto Ricans are suffering: San Juan mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz is really upset that Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Elaine Duke called Puerto Rico's recovery a "good news story." "This is a people are dying story; this is a life-or-death story," she said. Later, the Bully-in-Chief attacked the mayor caught in the middle of a humanitarian crisis. Can't get more narcissistic than this. Here's the Trump tweet:
"The Mayor of San Juan, who was very complimentary only a few days ago, has now been told by the Democrats that you must be nasty to Trump."
People are dying, Mr. President! This isn't about you! Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz is living in a shelter, having lost her home. Any normal human being would give her a break, in light of her dire living conditions and feeling of helplessness as her people suffer. [Another Trump tweet, with response]
(3) Puerto Rico may become a testing ground for new electricity grid innovations: Among new methods being considered at Department of Energy's national labs is a collapsible grid system that can come down in high winds but be quickly restorable. Then, small modular nuclear reactors can be transported by cargo planes to the disaster area and plugged into the restored grid to provide temporary power. [Source: Bloomberg]
(4) Ten brief news and other personal/on-line stories of the day:
- Today's pets: My daughter told me she needed to order a book using my Amazon Prime account, because her kittens partially ate a loan copy. I agreed, but suggested that the kittens should at least write a review!
- Target has announced that it is raising its starting pay to $11 per hour, pledging to reach $15 in 2020. The main reason is to be able to attract and keep employees in a competitive job market.
- The US Senate committee investigating Russia ties chides Jared Kushner for failing to disclose his use of a private e-mail account for official WH business when he turned over records of his pertinent communications.
- Whole Foods has revealed a data breach for customers who made in-store purchases.
- Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price resigns amid serious questions about his use of private jets for travel: I guess the "Price" wasn't right for this country!
- The Trump administration is trying to roll back decades worth of civil rights gains: This time, it is proposing that companies should be allowed to consider an employee's "out-of-work sexual conduct" in making decisions.
- Sports Illustrated, issue of October 2, 2017, cover image: SI makes a political statement, but plays it safe by excluding a controversial athlete.
- Can you name the beautiful actress shown in her 20s in this photo?
- Israeli-Iranian singer Rita's 16-minute TEDx presentation, including some music and the story of her family's immigration from Iran to Israel when she was 8.
- "Welcome to the driver's seat": Ford's clever ad, playing on Saudi women's newly gained freedom to drive.
(5) The Equifax massive data breach: After exposing to digital thieves the personal data of nearly half of all Americans due to neglect, the CEO of Equifax, Richard Smith, retires and will get $90 million in payments. If history is any indication, he will not do jail time for what is certainly criminal conduct.
(6) College soccer: Tonight, UCSB men's team played at home against UC Riverside. Riverside scored in the 13th minute and UCSB in the 38th minute, for a 1-1 tie at halftime. In the second half, UCSB scored in the 54th and 86th minutes to win the game 3-1. Having scored 8 goals in the last two games (they got rather unlucky tonight, or they would have had 2 more goals), UCSB's offense seems to have found its touch, just in time for the harder part of the conference schedule. At halftime, kids' soccer teams participated in a banner parade.

2017/09/29 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Skull of a Roman soldier who died during the Gallic Wars, first century BC American soldiers show off their personalized Easter eggs, 1945 Liberated Jewish prisoner holds one of the German guards at gunpoint (1) History in pictures: [Left] Skull of a Roman soldier who died during the Gallic Wars, first century BC. [Center] American soldiers show off their personalized Easter eggs, 1945. [Right] Liberated Jewish prisoner holds one of the German guards at gunpoint.
(2) The GOP tax plan would hit California hard: The federal deduction for state and local taxes, to be eliminated, allowed California residents to reduce their taxable income by a total of $101 billion in 2014. The proposed restrictions on mortgage interest deduction would also hit Californians harder than residents of other states. California is being punished, it seems, by making it the single biggest loser state in a reckless tax scheme. [From: Los Angeles Times]
(3) Shadow theater performance in Los Angeles: A team of talented Artists from New York will present performances of "Feathers of Fire: A Persian Epic" at Bram Goldsmith Theater, October 20-29, 2017.
(4) Brief news items, entertaining clips, and head-scratching thoughts from around the Internet:
- If someone who believes in reincarnation dies, should the gravestone inscription include BRB instead of RIP?
- Simplified but useful view of which jobs will be obliterated and which will survive in our AI-driven future.
- The disastrous system that turned genius in four years! [Two Trump tweets]
- Cutting corporate taxes does not spur job growth: Here is why.
- Talented group of horn players: Street musicians perform a medley of several songs. [6-minute video]
(5) Iran may have faked a missile test to goad Trump: After the Iranian media re-broadcast a failed missile test footage from January 2017, pretending it was a new test, Trump tweeted that Iran is cooperating with North Korea and could reach Israel with this missile. [Source: Maziar Bahari, writing in the Iranwire Newsletter]
(6) Brain-inspired computing: UCLA researchers are constructing a brain-inspired device composed of highly interconnected silver nanowires. The mesh device, which self-configures out of random chemical and electrical processes and executes simple learning and logic operations, contains 1 billion artificial synapses per square centimeter. It enables users to select or mix outputs in a such way as to produce the result for a desired function of the inputs. [Source: Quanta magazine]
(7) Fake "Black Lives Matter" ads were directed at selected groups on Facebook: Russia also bought a wide array of other ads, including the ones shown in these images, using the name of a fictitious organization with no trace in the US. In fact, investigators have linked "Secure Borders" to Russia. Now, these ads do not implicate Trump directly, but each of the ads was precisely targeted to demographic groups in Pennsylvania and other states. It is highly unlikely that a Russian hacker, sitting in Moscow, would have the knowledge about which group of Americans would be most receptive to a given ad. Kushner was Trump campaign's digital media manager and, with help from a data analytics company owned by Steve Bannon, used similar targeting of Trump's own ads. It would be very surprising to me if Kushner's and Bannon's fingerprints aren't found all over Russia's targeted-ad campaign. This sheds some light on Bannon characterizing Trump's firing of James Comey as the biggest political mistake in modern times.
(8) Maryland sues EPA over power-plant pollution from other states: It contends that EPA failed to act on the Clean Air Act's good-neighbor provision, when it allowed pollution from upwind states (Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia) to nullify Maryland's progress in improving its air quality.
(9) Cartoon of the day: Declaration of full equality between men and women would be my preference, but in its absence, small victories in the domain of women's rights should be cherished. Last September, the mullahs in Iran were issuing edicts about bicycling ban for women. Needless to say, Iranian women took to the streets on bikes and, a year later, the mullahs seem to have retreated. [Image: From FB's "My Stealthy Freedom" page]

2017/09/28 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Behrooz Parhami's PQRS Computer Architecture Lab at UCSB (1) Classes began at UCSB today: With the 2017-2018 academic year rolling out, various departmental and campus Web pages are being reviewed to ensure that they provide up-to-date information. Here is my latest lab/research spotlight on the ECE Web site.
[CE Research at UCSB] [Lab Spotlights]
(2) Voter fraud? Newsweek and Wired have confirmed, via access to public records, that White House aide Jared Kushner is registered to vote in both New York and New Jersey, with his gender listed as "Female" in NY and as "Unknown" in NJ.
(3) College soccer: This evening, the UCSB men's team played at home against Cal State Fullerton. Having gone winless in their first 6 games, the Gauchos won the next 3, to come into this first conference game with a 3-4-2 record (or 2-4-2, if the exhibition match against Club America U-20 is not counted). The student section of the stadium was filled to capacity for the first time this season. Fullerton scored first, with UCSB tying the game 1-1 just before halftime. In the second half, after ceding a second goal, UCSB recovered to score 4 goals in rapid succession to win 5-2, in its best game of the season.
On my way to Harder Stadium, I captured this view of the sunset on campus.
(4) While you were distracted by the NFL "kneeling" affair, a lot happened on the sidelines:
- The humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico worsened, with lives being lost or seriously threatened
- Tom Price's scandal regarding excessive use of private jets for business/personal travel worsened
- Republicans unveiled a $5 trillion tax cut plan, which includes a deep cut in the corporate tax rate
- The IRS agreed to cooperate with Special Counsel Robert Mueller in his Russia-ties investigation
- Bill O'Reilly told Fox news' Sean Hannity, "They don't want white people, generally, calling the shots"
(5) Sexual exploiter dead at 91: Everyone is writing about Hugh Hefner's passing. I resisted the urge to compose a blog entry about him, but I feel like I have to say something in the face of all who are making him look like a cultural icon or, even worse, a hero. In my student days, many men pretended that they read Playboy for its articles and interviews. Yes, it did have some good material, but the pretense was laughable. Others defended Hefner and his establishment by stating that they gave women a chance to make inroads into show business and successful careers as performers. They further stated that no one forced the women to pose nude or work at the Playboy Mansion. This is true in the same sense that no one forces women and children to work in sweatshops of Third-World countries. They have a choice between working as slave laborers (which would allow them to eat) and not working (which would mean starvation). Some choice!
(6) SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind lecture: Organizers of the SAGE Center lecture series didn't waste any time by scheduling the first lecture of the new academic year on this first day of classes. The lecture room was packed, with about 20 people standing along the walls.
The lecture topic was neuroeconomics or, more precisely, "How Neuroscience Can Inform Economics." Economics tries to explain consequential human choices and discover what variables change those choices. According to Wikipedia, neuroeconomics studies how economic behavior can shape our understanding of the brain, and how neuroscientific discoveries can constrain and guide economic models.
The speaker, Professor Colin F. Camerer of Caltech, has a long list of achievements and honors, including receiving a MacArthur Genius Award. An unexpected tidbit about him is that he owns his own record label (he lives in the Los Angeles area after all)!
While economics tends to explain human behavior by means of equations and optimizing value functions, neuroeconomics also pays attention to context, values, emotions and the like. An interesting example is provided by the assessment of future rewards. Economics typically models the present worth of a future reward by postulating a constant discount factor d per unit of time, so that the worth after t time units is discounted by d^t. Neuroeconomics, on the other hand, may take many other factors beyond the reward's degree of immediacy into account.
Just another point of learning, and something to follow up on. Coursera has a free on-line course, "Neuroeconomics: How the Brain Makes Decisions" which I may pursue.
Here is a list of other scheduled lectures by the SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind, all held in UCSB's Psychology Building, Room 1312, Thursdays at 4:00 PM. Given the gaps, there is a chance that other lectures will be added to the series.
11/16: John Ioannidis (Stanford), "Towards More Reproducible and Unbiased Research"
12/07: Helen Fisher (Indiana), "Addicted to Love: The Drive to Love, Who We Choose, and the Neural Foundations of Romantic Happiness and Love Addictions"
01/11: Nicholas Carr (tech writer), "Mind-Altering Devices: How Smartphones Shape Our Thoughts"
02/22: Albert-Laszlo Barabasi (Northeastern), "Taming Complexity: From Network Science to Network Control"
06/07: Ned Block (NYU), "A Joint in Nature between Perception and Cognition without Modularity of Mind"

2017/09/27 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Secret kiss Paso Los Libertadores, a winding road in Chile North Dakota under 40 feet of snow, 1966 (1) Our world in pictures: [Left] Secret kiss. [Center] Paso Los Libertadores, a winding road section in Chile. [Right] North Dakota under 40 feet of snow, 1966.
(2) Changes in Twitter's terms of use: In response to many inquiries about why Trump's account is still active, despite violating Twitter's policy against bullying and threats of violence (example tweet), Twitter will update its terms of use and will make them more transparent. The main change is an exception to the prohibitions above for tweets that are deemed newsworthy. So, if you want to spread lies, bully people, and publicly threaten violence, you should first become an important person whose tweets are newsworthy!
[P.S.: Also, some users are being allowed tweets of double the length, 280 characters, on an experimental basis, to see if a systemwide change would be desirable. Trump isn't in this group. Someone quipped: "What would he do with longer tweets anyway?"]
(3) People have not died for the American flag but for the ideals it represents, including freedom of speech.
(4) Trump has deleted certain tweets that reflect badly on him: This has raised the question of whether deleting tweets and other social media postings violates the Presidential Records Act of 1978, which defines and states public ownership of the records and postulates that disposal of any record be done after consultation with the Archivist of the US.
(5) Some good news for education: Trump instructs the Department of Education to commit $200 million in grants for STEM programs, and tech giants, such as Amazon, Facebook, Google, and Microsoft, pledge an additional $300 million.
(6) Giant 10-MB hard disk anyone? And it will cost you less than a new car! I don't have a date for this ad, but guess it to be from the late 1970s or early 1980s. My guess is based on the mention of "inquiry card" at the bottom of the page. In those days, technical magazines came with a card, bearing a number for each ad. If you needed info about a product, you would circle its ad number on the card, mail it in, and wait for 2-3 weeks to get some brochures in the mail.
(7) Slavery is alive and thriving in the US: The latest example comes from NCAA basketball players, mostly black and poor, having replaced plantation workers and coaches acting as slave masters. College sports is supposed to promote athletic excellence alongside academic progress for student-athletes, who are not paid for their participation. Let's put aside, for a minute, the fact that athletic scholarships and some perks provided by schools to athletes violate this spirit. My focus here is on coaches, who, besides drawing obnoxious salaries (they earn more than virtually all professors), have now been caught receiving bribes from athletic agents, and companies seeking product endorsers, to steer the most talented athletes their way. In some cases, the coaches in turn have bribed families of athletes to enlist their help in placing athletes with their clients. A small number of such athletes end up signing lucrative contracts to play professionally, so their pro-bono participation can be viewed as investment in their future. The bulk of players, however, get nothing in return. Any fitness benefits are far outweighed by major injuries resulting from being pushed to the limit on the court. Other money-making college sports, such as football, have similar problems, whereas less lucrative fields, such as soccer, tennis, and water-polo, are truer to the spirit of college sports.

2017/09/26 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
The Rat Pack in Las Vegas, 1960 Cleveland's Balloon Fest, 1986, when over 1.5M balloons were released simultaneously London of the 1930s, in a rare colorized photo (1) History in pictures: [Left] The Rat Pack in Las Vegas, 1960. [Center] Cleveland's Balloon Fest, 1986, when over 1.5M balloons were released simultaneously. [Right] London of the 1930s, in a rare colorized photo.
(2) The villain in the Republican repeal-and-replace horror movie is down again, but assume that it's dead at your own peril!
(3) Four years ago, Donald Trump was against the President telling an NFL team what to do, because "our country has far bigger problems!"
DJT's tweet of October 8, 2013: "President should not be telling the Washington Redskins to change their name-our country has far bigger problems! FOCUS on them,not nonsense"
(4) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Multiple Trump aides used private e-mail accounts for official communications
- In tweets, Trump blames Puerto Rico's excessive debt for its post-storm devastation
- San Juan mayor to Trump: PR's debt crisis and disaster relief are separate issues
- WH Chief of Staff John Kelly displeased with Trump's culture war against NFL
- NASA's Katherine G. Johnson computational research facility opens in honor of the "Hidden Figures" leader.
- More than 100,000 foreign nationals are under surveillance in the US, says NSA
- Bali's Mount Agung volcano can erupt at any time; more than 75,000 evacuated
- Trump-supported Senate candidate is soundly defeated in Alabama's Republican primary race.
(5) A few observations and tweets of the day:
- Puerto Rico needs help: Federal aid is not getting there fast enough. Private citizens should mobilize.
- Lopsided victory: NFL triumphs over Puerto Rico in the total number of Trump tweets 24-4.
- Somehow, I can't get very excited about Saudi Arabian women's newly earned permission to drive!
- Any normal, decent human being would have apologized for calling Americans who disagree with him SOBs.
(6) UCSB College of Engineering welcomes its new students: In today's noon event dubbed "Discover Engineering" and held on the Chemistry Lawn, our new students were greeted by faculty, staff, and their peers who run various professional organizations and technical-interest clubs on campus. And, of course, serving pizza is essential for ensuring good attendance!
(7) This afternoon in downtown Santa Barbara: I have posted about Santa Barbara's wonderful architecture previously, but my focus was on churches, museums, historical theaters, and the like, that are expected to be architecturally impressive. During today's walk on State Street, from Mission Street to the waterfront, and back, I concentrated on photographing run-of-the-mill businesses, such as banks, restaurants, and retail stores, including the just-completed Californian Hotel and its adjacent plaza. [Photos] The exterior gates of this locked-up business reminded me of the von Trapp family's hiding place near the end of "The Sound of Music." I also took a few photos of Santa Barbara's Stearns Wharf and an art installation in a downtown open space.

2017/09/25 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Hajj pilgrimage goes better with Coca Cola, 1953. Hair ironing ritual in the 1960s Result of two bullets colliding in the air, when a Frenchman and a Russian fired at one another in the Crimean war, about 160 years ago (1) History in pictures: [Left] Hajj pilgrimage goes better with Coca Cola, 1953. [Center] Hair ironing ritual in the 1960. [Right] Result of two bullets colliding in the air, when a Frenchman and a Russian fired at one another in the Crimean war, about 160 years ago.
(2) Cyprus is building a spaceship-shaped observatory: The idea is to make it more fun for people to visit. To be completed in 2019, the Troodos Observatory will have a public roof terrace, varied programs, and collaborations with NASA and other scientific entities around the world. [Image]
(3) Selfies at historical sites in 31 Iranian provinces: The maker of this 1-minute video compilation traveled 17,000 km on bus and 1000 km on foot.
(4) A wonderful photo pose re-creation by a couple married since 1947.
(5) Modern Persian poetry: "Window," by Forough Farrokhzad.
(6) Persian poetry: By Mohammad-Reza Shafiei Kadkani. [Persian; my English translation follows]
I can neither join you, nor get away from you | Neither free myself from your snare, nor sit by your side
Oh, the one whose glance is my shelter! Know that it's a sin | To shut your window to a bird fleeing the storm
(7) This Tavaana story (in Persian) reviews how Trump's new multi-country travel ban affects Iranians: Each of the countries included in the ban, to become effective on October 18, 2017, will have different sets of restrictions. For Iranians, only student visas, issued after extreme vetting, will be allowed. Issuance of all other visa types will be permanently suspended. The reason for this action is cited as the Iranian government's lack of cooperation in identity verification and intelligence exchange.
(8) History's best overlooked inventions: In Tim Harford's new book, Fifty Inventions that Shaped the Modern Economy, we see the expected inventions that everyone knows about and appreciates. However, we also see some of the less-appreciated inventions that have had great impacts on the world's economy, without being prominent. Examples include barbed wire, which significantly cut the cost of protecting priave property on the American prairie, replaceable razor blades, and Ikea's Billy bookcase. As explained by the author, Billy "is a symbol of how innovation in the modern economy isn't just about snazzy new technologies, but also boringly efficient system." [Info from Time magazine, issue of September 18, 2017]
(9) Distinguished scientist/engineer featured in ACM Bulletin: Bill Dally, Professor at Stanford University and Senior VP of Research at NVIDIA, has been at the forefront of computer-architecture and interconnection-network research for decades. In a 2011 talk, he predicted that reaching exascale computing would require significant breakthroughs in power efficiency, programmability (viz., ease of programming and program portability), and execution granularity. In a new interview, Dally offers updates on how far we have come in these three areas since 2011 and what we need to cover by the end of the decade. Progress in energy efficiency has been most impressive, amounting to a factor of 10+ over the past 6 years. NVIDIA's new Tesla GPU achieves a computational throughput of 25 gigaflops per watt (this translates to an exaflops machine using only 40 kW for its computing nodes; memory and communication have to be accounted for separately). Programmability is the most problematic of the three areas, as porting a parallel application from one machine to another requires substantial effort at present. We still lack machine-independent languages, along with fully automated mapping to specific target machines.

2017/09/24 (Sunday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Rare vintage photo of an onna-bugeisha, a female warrior of the upper social classes in feudal Japan The two Michaels palying basketball in 1992 Little girl being rescued by a soldier from her London home after a series of bombings, 1944 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Rare vintage photo of an onna-bugeisha, a female warrior of the upper social classes in feudal Japan. [Center] The two Michaels palying basketball in 1992. [Right] Little girl being rescued by a soldier from her London home after a series of bombings, 1944.
(2) Trump has picked the wrong fight: Not only does his criticism of NFL and NBA athletes come at an inopportune time, in terms of distracting attention from the North Korean crisis and his legislative agenda (health care and tax reform), it puts him in direct conflict with two hugely popular leagues dominated by black athletes, reinforcing his image as racist. Early indications are that his attack is backfiring. Trying to backtrack a bit, Trump tweeted today that "... standing with locked arms is good, kneeling is not acceptable ... ," ignoring the fact that the standing pose is to support freedom of speech for those who protest by kneeling or otherwise. My son, who no longer watched football games on TV, is watching today to show his distaste for what Trump is doing. Where are the WH "advisers" to tell Trump that it's morally wrong and politically stupid to attack black athletes more than Russia as threats to American values?
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other stories from the Internet:
- Germany's Angela Merkel wins a fourth term, but exit polls show increased support for the far right.
- With her re-election, Merkel has cemented her role as the West's political and moral leader.
- Syrian-American anti-Assad journalist and her mother murdered in Turkey.
- Tehran traffic on the first day of school. [Photo]
- Aerial view of a scenic road in Japan, mistakenly attributed to being from the Tehran-Chaloos road in Iran.
- Move-in weekend is in progress at UCSB, with fall-quarter classes for 2017-2018 set to start on 9/28.
(4) Planned Parenthood fundraising book sale: The sale, wonderfully organized and featuring 70,000 volumes, was held over the weekend at Santa Barbara's Earl Warren Showgrounds. Today's prices were 50% off from the already very low markings. I bought four books for $2.50 total, and my daughter bought a larger batch (I had better self-control, I guess).
Map of Kurdish regions in the Middle East (5) The Kurdish problem is front and center again: The Kurds, which reportedly constitute 20% of the population in Iraq, 9 % in Syria, 25% in Turkey, and 10% in Iran, have suffered injustice and bias for decades.
Among them, Iraqi Kurds have achieved better outcomes, having gained autonomy even under Saddam Hussein. For them, independence (subject of tomorrow's referendum) is a matter of formality, as they already have all the benefits of autonomy (including an independent army). Whether Iraqi Kurds' bid for independence is just a political ploy to get even more concessions from Iraq's central government or constitutes a serious step to establish an independent country, a positive outcome for the referendum will no doubt lead to additional instability in the Middle East. Not surprisingly, all four countries in which Kurds reside are against the independence movement. The US has warned the Kurds that their actions will distract from the fight against Islamic State and lead to further instability in the region.
Syrian Kurds are the quietest and most oppressed among the Kurdish populations. As far as I know, they have not made any political demands.
Iranian Kurds have been better integrated into the country and they do proudly declare themselves Iranians. But it does not help that the central Iranian government, both under the Shah and under the Islamic regime, has systematically oppressed and, at times, brutally attacked the Kurds and their leaders. Practically speaking, Iranian Kurds have not been given any significant role in running the country.
Despite their larger fraction of the population, the Kurds of Turkey appear to be in the worst shape among their brethren, having been oppressed by their government for many years, under the guise of fighting terrorism.
Even though some Kurds in other countries are supportive of the Iraqi Kurds' independence plight, the disparate Kurdish groups are far from united. Should Iraqi Kurds attain independence, the fate of these other Kurdish groups is unclear.

2017/09/23 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
The final evening of NYC's Twin Towers, September 10, 2001 In the 19th century, firefighters looked like Darth Vader and C3PO Ad for Philip Morris cigarettes, 1952 (1) History in pictures: [Left] The final evening of NYC's Twin Towers, September 10, 2001. [Center] In the 19th century, firefighters looked like Darth Vader and C3PO! [Right] Ad for Philip Morris cigarettes, 1952.
(2) The petty president rages on in a tweet: "Going to the White House is considered a great honor for a championship team. Stephen Curry is hesitating, therefore invitation is withdrawn!" [Please stop tweeting long enough to reflect on what makes the WH no longer honorable?]
(3) Tweet of the day: HBO CEO Richard Plepler on the culture behind hits like "Game of Thrones," "Big Little Lies," and "Insecure."
(4) News from social media: Two-thirds of adult Americans, and more than three-quarters of those under the age of 50, get some of their news from social media. Here is the share of various platforms in supplying the news: Facebook (45%); YouTube (18%); Twitter (11%); Instagram (7%); Snapchat (5%). [Source: Time magazine, issue of September 25, 2017]
(5) Mexico in the news: A 6.1-magnitude aftershock rocked the country today. Meanwhile, an advisory has been issued after meth-laced bottles of 7-Up killed one person and sickened several in Mexicali.
(6) Athletes' silent protest in Seattle: Only Trump can take a harmless gesture of protest and turn it into a national issue that divides Americans. You would think athletes are greater enemies of our country than Russia!
(7) "9 to 5" stars (Dolly Parton, Lily Tomlin, and Jane Fonda) "still refuse to be controlled by a sexist, lying, egotistical bigot." [From their presentation intro at the Emmy Awards ceremony]
(8) US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a self-proclaimed feminist, is preparing for the fights of her life, come the new SCOTUS term beginning in October.
(9) Goleta Sanitary District's plant tour: We tend to take for granted so much of what goes on behind the scenes in our modern society. We open the tap, and water flows out. We flush the toilet, and wastewater disappears, along with other stuff in the bowl. So, I took advantage of an open-house and walking tour to go see the huge campus of Goleta Sanitary District, right across from the airport. The signs I photographed tell part of the story of what they do. The reference to "Jurassic" arises from the fact that the water we use today has existed on earth since the days of the dinosaurs. If you look carefully, you can see parked planes in one photo and a small plane landing in another.

2017/09/22 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
The original 1924 Hollywoodland sign was advertising for a housing development California redwood loggers, early 20th century New York City's Central Park, 1933. (1) History in pictures: [Left] The original 1924 Hollywoodland sign was advertising for a housing development; the last four letters were removed in 1949 to give us the iconic "Hollywood" sign. [Center] California redwood loggers, early 20th century. [Right] New York City's Central Park, 1933.
(2) Bike racks are so passe: Especially in cities where bicycles are heavily used. Uterecht in the Netherlands now has a bike parking garage with spaces for 12,500 bikes. More than 125,000 bikers pass through the city center daily. The new garage will have digital signs for directing bikers to available spots and will offer 24-hour free bike parking.
(3) Comedian Jimmy Kimmel has come under fire for discussing healthcare as a non-expert: It's not like they are listening to experts, such as dozens of groups having medical doctors and other healthcare specialists as members. Also, can our President say a few more words about the plan, other than "It's a great bill, vote for it"? His focus seems to be "repeal," with "replace" thrown in just to pretend that affordable health insurance isn't being taken away from millions!
(4) Eight brief news headlines and other stories from the Internet:
- Facebook will hand over the ads it sold to Russian-linked accounts for the Russia meddling investigation.
- Mexico City moves from shock to action: Citizen groups assist in rescue efforts and distribute supplies.
- My farewell dinner with visiting scholar Dr. Chenggui Zhao, who is about to return home to China.
- The world's richest woman, L'Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt, dies at 94.
- Cartoon of the day: Chains of hijab. [Image]
- Puerto Rico may remain sans power for 6 months: Maria wiped out an already feeble electrical infrastructure.
- A large dam in Puerto Rico has cracked, forcing people to flee and the government to order mass evacuations.
- Hope fades in Mexico: Survivors are still being pulled out from buildings, but rescues are becoming less likely.
(5) Seven of my brief Facebook and Twitter posts about current politicical developments:
- What do the US and Syria have in common? A: They're the only countries rejecting the Paris Climate Deal. [Nicaragua just signed.]
- The frightening thing is that Trump may be tempted to escalate the conflict with North Korea, because it would rally Americans to his side.
- Trump tweet: Rand Paul, or whoever votes against Hcare Bill, will forever (future political campaigns) be known as 'the Republican who saved ObamaCare.' Me: Hush! Don't give other Republicans ideas!
- Doctors: First, do no harm. Republicans: First, do more harm.
- Remember the good-old days when our leaders just forgot names of countries? Now, they can't even read the names from prepared text!
- Why would any country, including NK, negotiate with the US when it sees the previously-negotiated Iran deal unilaterally dissed.
- Trump has neither acknowledged intelligence failures that led to Russia meddling in our 2016 election, nor has he taken any steps to fix them.
(6) As the storms get stronger, so do we: A powerful storm like Irma would have done much more damage before we learned how to prepare for and recover from hurricanes. [Time magazine cover image]

2017/09/21 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Claude Monet in his garden at Giverny, 1905 Burbank High School parking lot, 1966 Finding a place to be alone on crowded Santa Monica beach, 1950 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Claude Monet in his garden at Giverny, 1905. [Center] Burbank High School parking lot, 1966. [Right] Finding a place to be alone on crowded Santa Monica beach, 1950.
(2) Happy International Peace Day! Even though there isn't much to celebrate right now, let's use this occasion to remind ourselves that peace begins with us. It gains life from each of us being peaceful inside and committing to peaceful interactions with others. [International Peace Day logo]
(3) Myanmar's dire situation: I have now seen several statements by, and interviews with, the country's Nobel-Laureate leader, Aung San Suu Kyl, about ethnic cleansing in her country. She has not yet acknowledged the killings by Buddhists and, in one statement, expressed puzzlement over the reasons for Rohingya Muslims fleeing into neighboring countries. Really? She does not read the news? Or does she think, like another world leader, that the news reports are fake?
(4) Silicon Valley's culture of sexual misconduct showcased on NYT's front page: A lawsuit brought by Elizabeth Scott (digital media manager) against virtual-reality tech startup Upload has been settled for an undisclosed sum. Rather than the company's management getting in trouble for supporting a lurid culture, which has changed little since the settlement, Ms. Scott was fired and became virtually (no pun intended!) unemployable, once potential employers learned that she had filed a lawsuit. She has since secured employment, though. Twelve other employees quit in solidarity with Ms. Scott, but they have all remained quiet about Ms. Scott and their own reasons for resigning.
(5) Healthcare debate reduced to trivialities: Which medical conditions will be covered? How are the premiums determined or adjusted from year to year? How are affordability and accessibility ensured? These concerns are missing from debates of the new Republican replacement for Obamacare. And defenders of the new bill, including its two sponsors, refuse to answer direct questions about the details. Discussion is centered around how it will be administered financially (through block grant to states), as if the administrative scheme is important to those worried about losing their health insurance or being priced out of the market. And thinking only about money is not limited to healthcare proposals. It pervades the current administration, beginning at the very top. At the UN General Assembly, Trump paid a "compliment" to African leaders by telling them that many of his friends go to Africa to make a lot of money. He did not say that his friends go to Africa to help, or to create solutions, or to educate. No, none of these. They go there to convert the continent's resources into wealth for themselves! The new healthcare plan too takes resources from the less fortunate and converts them to wealth, in the form of tax cuts, for the rich.
(6) This is why the Republicans are hell-bent on repealing Obamacare: Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley explains their very principled (not!) approach. "You know, I could maybe give you 10 reasons why this bill shouldn't be considered. But Republicans campaigned on this so often that you have a responsibility to carry out what you said in the campaign. That's pretty much as much of a reason as the substance of the bill."
(7) Films for us senior citizens: Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton have agreed to appear in the next "Terminator" movie. It is rumored that the cyborg portrayed by Arnold will appear with a walker! This photo depicts an imagined scene from the fourth "Titanic" sequel.

2017/09/20 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Jewish refugees, as they become aware of their liberation by a group of allied soldiers, 1945 Rejected designs for the Eiffel Tower Priest holding a dying soldier, as bullets fly around them, Venezuela, 1962 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Jewish refugees, as they become aware of their liberation by a group of allied soldiers, 1945. [Center] Rejected designs for the Eiffel Tower. [Right] Priest holding a dying soldier, as bullets fly around them, Venezuela, 1962.
(2) Happy Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, to all who observe it! The new Hebrew calendar year 5778 will start tomorrow and, like all Jewish holidays, its arrival is celebrated beginning with the night before.
(3) Here is a link to Direct Relief International's donations page: The page has a drop-down menu from which you can select "Mexico Earthquakes," "Hurricane Maria," or some of the earlier natural disasters, as well as their ongoing aid programs. The donation process, using a credit card or PayPal, is very quick and painless. DRI is an effective charity, which has been given 100% scores by Charity Navigator on both financial indicators and accountability/transparency.
(4) Interesting series of photographs, showing reactions of UN delegates to Trump's speech: Guess which is the only group shown smiling? (No, it's not the US delegation, all of whose members seem to be in pain!)
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other stories from the Internet:
- Puerto Rico is devastated by Hurricane Maria: It is 100% without power. [Brief video of flooding]
- Mexico City quake's death toll keeps rising; many collapsed buildings remain to be searched.
- The evolution of Dubai over two decades (three photos, covering 1991-2012).
- Thunderstorm over the Golden Gate Bridge: Time-lapse photography covering 3 hours. [1-minute video]
- Quote of the day: "So many of my friends are going to Africa to get rich." ~ Donald Trump to African leaders
- Geographical goof: At a lunch with African leaders, Trump referred to the non-existent country of "Nambia"!
(6) Caving in Parau, Kermanshah, Iran: This 19-minute documentary is about an Italian team's expedition, along with Iranian climbers, to an amazing 562-meter vertical cave. [Screenshots from the film]
(7) Emmanuel Macron's interview with "fake news" CNN: "Loser" French President criticizes our Dear Leader, citing North Korea as an example of why ditching the Iran nuclear deal is a bad idea. He also says that the Paris climate pact isn't up for renegotiation.
(8) Helping out, by translating Trump-speak for non-narcissists: "I have decided how to proceed with the Iran nuclear deal, but won't discuss that decision now" = I have no freaking idea what to do; I have some gut feelings, but General Kelly will get mad at me if I discuss those in public.
(9) Data centers held up well during the recent hurricanes: Some cell towers were disabled, thus cutting access to local customers, but the data centers themselves continued humming with no disruptions, thanks to built-in emergency power sources. In fact, some data centers served as headquarters for US marshals in their emergency response mode. One criterion observed in building data centers is that they be located above 500-year floodplain. [Adapted from: NYT]

2017/09/19 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
US soldier (Vietnam, 1968) keeps photos of his girlfriend with him at all times Mahatma Gandhi as a young lawyer, India, 1893 Former Australian prisoners of war, after they are freed from Japanese captivity in Singapore, 1945 (1) History in pictures: [Left] US soldier (Vietnam, 1968) keeps photos of his girlfriend with him at all times. [Center] Mahatma Gandhi as a young lawyer, India, 1893. [Right] Former Australian prisoners of war, after they are freed from Japanese captivity in Singapore, 1945.
(2) Trump will fall shortly after Jared Kushner resigns, owing to his role (along with a company owned by Steve Bannon) in enabling Russia's targeted Facebook ads.
(3) American healthcare exceptionalism: A popular myth perpetuated about the US healthcare system is that it is the best in the world and the envy of other nations. Not even close! [Image]
(4) The paradox of Iranian-Americanness: I don't fully endorse this letter to Chronicle of Higher Education, but it does present some food for thought. Equating Iranianness and Aryanness smacks of racism and plays into white-supremacist narratives. How do the Iranian-Americans promoting Aryan purity reconcile their views with the brutal fact that we are essentially colored people in this country? As far as our rights or lack thereof are concerned, we are in the same boat as blacks and Hispanics.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other stories from the Internet:
- For someone often dissing the UN, deeming it impotent and inefficient, DJT seems to be enjoying the UNGA!
- Dance montage to brighten your Tuesday! [Video]
- A new magnitude-7.1 quake rocks central Mexico, killing at least 140.
- A new shopping mall in Tehran, Iran: Notice all the foreign store names! [10-minute video]
- Another iconic American business bites the dust: Toys 'R' Us files for bankruptcy protection.
- Equifax hid its massive data breach affecting 40% of Americans, for almost 5 months, before disclosing it.
(6) An embarrassment of a speech: Trump's UN General Assembly speech, full of childish anger and alternative facts, enrages world's diplomats. Later today, watch his clean-up crew put lipstick on the pig by trying to explain the inexplicable! The looks on the faces of Rex Tillerson and Nikki Haley tell it all, as Trump threatens to totally destroy North Korea and repeats his "Rocket Man" insult in front of the entire world.
(7) Hurricane Maria has strengthened to category 5 and is headed for a direct hit to Puerto Rico: Residents have been instructed to evacuate or face possible death. This storm of the century looks devastating. Our thoughts are with the residents and visitors of the island and others nearby who are at risk.
(8) I'm done with not being believed: This is the title of a NYT opinion piece by Amber Tamblyn (about sexual harassment in the entertainment industry), which is gaining a lot of attention and support.
(9) Students are trickling in to UCSB for fall 2017: A bike and a mattress are among the essentials they need early on, so Goleta businesses are catering to these needs. [Photo]

2017/09/18 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
In the 1950s, Vanity Fair cigarettes came in fashionable pastel pink or pastel blue A northern Iraqi women's accessory from the 14th century, which may be the earliest surviving handbag in the world Little boy examining a super-size cabbage, Alaska, 1959 (1) History in pictures: [Left] In the 1950s, Vanity Fair cigarettes came in fashionable pastel pink or pastel blue! [Center] A northern Iraqi women's accessory from the 14th century, which may be the earliest surviving handbag in the world. [Right] Little boy examining a super-size cabbage, Alaska, 1959.
(2) Baha'i leader Mahvash Sabet Shahriari has been released from Tehran's Evin Prison, having served her full 10-year jail term. That she can still smile so broadly is a testament to her iron will and unbreakable spirit. Welcome back! [Or, in the words of Nasrin Sotoudeh, happy relocation from the little prison to the big prison!]
(3) Funny how Trump supporters insist that the election is over and that we should move on! I wonder how they explain Trump's frequent tweets about Obama and Clinton?
(4) Sean Spicer's surprise appearance at last night's Emmy Awards ceremony: His brief entry with a rolling podium (a la Melissa McCarthy), to make fun of his statements about inauguration crowd size, may be a signal that he wants to get out from under Trump's shadow. Many who watched his appearance did not consider it funny at all. What's funny about telling lie after lie to the American people, and then pretending that it was all a big joke? What happened to accountability? I, for one, hope that he will write a tell-all book, but do not consider such an expose as adequate for erasing all of his sins.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other stories from the Internet:
- African-American cop protecting a KKK member during a recent protest in Houston. [Photo]
- Graphic designer, appalled with girls' magazine covers, redesigns one to show what it should look like.
- Hurricane Maria expected to become category 5, as it passes the already devastated Caribbean islands.
- Governor Jerry Brown stands up to Donald Trump's climate-change denial at a UN round-table.
- Governor Jerry Brown's popularity is soaring, in part because of Trump presidency.
- New research shows that stifling a yawn might make it worse! [Source: Time magazine]
(6) Quote of the day: "Your neighbor is still your neighbor regardless of what has happened." ~ Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenyan President, calling for calm, after the country's Supreme Court declared his re-election invalid [Compare this statement from a Third-World-country leader with what might transpire in our country under similar circumstances.]
(7) Trump has cut the advertising budget for Obamacare as part of his plan to sabotage the program. Please share this info about the shorter 2017 open enrollment period, November 1st to December 15th.
(8) Adjective order in English: I hope no one tries to use all the adjective kinds together! [Rules]
(9) And now for something truly unusual: "Black Lives Matter" activists were given 2 minutes on stage at a pro-Trump rally to express themselves, and they used the time wisely. A definite step in the right direction!

2017/09/17 (Sunday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Louis Armstrong and his wife Lucille, Rome, 1949 Golden Gate Bridge opening day, 1937 Mini-skirted girls turning heads in Cape Town, South Africa, 1965 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Louis Armstrong and his wife Lucille, Rome, 1949. [Center] Golden Gate Bridge opening day, 1937. [Right] Mini-skirted girls turning heads in Cape Town, South Africa, 1965.
(2) Iran beats France 3-2 in FIVB volleyball: In the exciting first match, Iran came from behind to win 38-36. Iran emerges from the competition with its first-ever medal, a bronze.
(3) Islands devastated by Hurricane Irma may be hit again: If the developing storm does materialize, it will be called Maria (Lee is trailing Maria in the Pacific). Following Irma's ire, Jose is going north off the US East Coast and can still generate dangerous surf. Katia affected Mexico only.
(4) The horror movie playing out in US Congress: Near the end of many a horror movie, the villain appears dead, only to rise and attack again. And this sequence may happen more than once. Well, the Republican-health-care-plan villain, previously thought dead, is up and about. And this time, the villain may have the votes, according to Senator Elizabeth Warren. Stay vigilant and help put it down once and for all!
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other stories from the Internet:
- Very Presidential: Trump retweets a GIF of him hitting Hillary Clinton with a golf ball.
- Meet potential Senator Kid Rock, as he kicks off his bid for a US Senate seat: Where is this country headed?
- Four American women visiting France are attacked with acid in Marseille.
- Trump's Law: For every new Trump tweet, there is an equal and opposite previous tweet.
- Fake-news methods of the 2016 US elections are being applied in Germany and the rest of Europe. [Image]
- Cartoon of the day: Types of bees. [By John Atkinson] [Image]
(6) Where the trolls live: Analysis of social media comments and rating them according to toxicity levels yields some interesting results. "The South is disproportionately hostile, with Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina all hovering at over nine percent of all comments being toxic. Nevada (10.1 percent) and Iowa (10.3 percent) also have a high proportion of toxic comments. The 'winner' though in the troll wars goes to Vermont. The proportion of toxic comments is higher there than in any other state at 12.2 percent. Neighboring New Hampshire, on the other hand, had the lowest at 4.7."
(7) California Lemon Festival, held in Goleta's Girsh Park: Along with all the lemon-related stuff, fully electric cars were prominently displayed. Could it be the car exhibitors did not pay attention to the connection with lemons? [Photos] There was also a stage featuring live music. I was there for parts of the acts by two bands, both trained at Santa Barbara Youth Music Academy. The first band consisted of junior high and high school students. [Video 1] [Video 2] The next performer, Brandi Rose, and her band are featured in this video.
(8) Exhibition soccer match: UCSB men's soccer team played Club America Sub-20, a Mexican youth team, at Harder Stadium today. UCSB trailed 0-1 at halftime but recovered to score in the first few minutes and again near the end of the second half to win 2-1. Halftime entertainment was provided by a mariachi band. [Video]

2017/09/16 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Major General Horatio Gordon Robley, with his collection of Maori heads, 1895 Snowfight between Republican and Democratic page boys in front of the US Capitol building, 1923 The big three (Winston Churchill, Franklin Roosevelt, Joseph Stalin) at Yalta Conference, 1945 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Major General Horatio Gordon Robley, with his collection of Maori heads, 1895. [Center] Snowfight between Republican and Democratic page boys in front of the US Capitol building, 1923. [Right] The big three (Winston Churchill, Franklin Roosevelt, Joseph Stalin) at Yalta Conference, 1945.
(2) Perhaps the most puzzling aspect of Trump's presidency is the support he received, and continues to receive, from hoards of people who self-identify as devout Christians. [Photo]
(3) The Democratic Coalition, an anti-Trump super-PAC, has filed a complaint against the White House spokesperson for her suggestion that an ESPN employee be fired: "When Sarah Huckabee Sanders called for Jemele Hill to be fired by ESPN, she crossed the line and put herself in dubious legal territory. For Sanders to publicly call for the dismissal of a Trump critic is bizarre and disturbing, to say the least. If anyone is to be fired, it should be her."
(4) United Way's Day of Caring: After gathering at 8:00 AM with other volunteers at the Page Youth Center for signing in, breakfast, introductions, and orientation, I headed to Isla Vista Park and Recreation Department for 4 hours of trash pick-up and community clean-up. I walked along two paths, 5 miles in all, filling 6.5 five-gallon buckets with trash, mostly cigarette butts, food wrappers/boxes, and bottles. An estimated 2/3 of the trash colleted consisted of recycleable items. Here are some photos from the morning gathering, video of a dance/exercise routine to lift the volunteers' spirits, and a selfie of me with the tools for the day (bucket, trashgrabber, and map of the streets to be cleaned).
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other stories from the Internet:
- Quote of the day: "Do the women get to talk around here?" ~ Nancy Pelosi, being interrupted at WH dinner
- The original cast of "Sesame Street." [Photo]
- London terror incident triggers the usual insensitive tweet from Trump and a response from the British PM.
- Simon and Gurfunkel's "Sound of Silence" played by Jamie Dupuis on an 18-string harp-guitar.
- Oxnard, California, may soon get a third commercial high-rise building, according to KEYT news.
- Pardall Road and Embarcadero Del Norte: The busiest intersection in Isla Vista gets traffic lights.
(6) Trump's tweeting record: It has been observed that there is a Trump tweet for every occasion. An on-line, keyword-searchable compilation of all of his tweets would be very useful for finding just the tweet you need to support a particular viewpoint. Soon there will be books of his tweets, neatly organized and indexed. [Funny tweet by Eric Williams] For example, Trump's racist tweets are being dug up. [Two sample tweets]

2017/09/15 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Sketch on a glass panel in front of a ruined edifice helps with visualizing its original form School in Afghanistan: Heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time Clinton's new book is just one piece of the 2016 US election story (1) Photos. [Left] Brilliant idea for historic sites: Sketch on a glass panel in front of a ruined edifice helps with visualizing its original form. [Center] School in Afghanistan: Heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time. [Right] Hillary Clinton's new book is just one piece of the 2016 US election story: Two other key pieces will come in time. One is the outcome of the Russian meddling investigation (the official report, or an insider's account). Another is a tell-all book by a Trump campaign figure motivated by financial gain or revenge. Thus far, resigned and fired aides are keeping mum, but some of them are no doubt shuffling their notes, talking to agents, and weighing their options.
(2) I don't understand. DACA was in place and working well. Trump decided to repeal it and is now trying to reach a deal to keep it. So, at the end, we have a lot of hoopla, with nothing changing, except the sense of security and peace of mind for 800,000 productive members of our society. Talk about destructive behavior!
(3) Atlantic hurricanes are getting stronger: Over the last 40 years, the percentage of hurricanes that reach categories 3-5 has at least doubled. Wind speeds go up linearly in the hurricane rating scale, but destructive power, which is proportional to the square of wind speed, goes up quadratically. Stronger hurricanes also tend to last longer after landfall, thus giving rise to another multiplicative factor (energy = power x time). And this is just direct destructive energy from the winds. Storm surge, a leading cause of destruction in the wake of hurricanes, rises by more than a factor of 2 (up to 2.4 m, vs. an average of 4.7 meters), as we go from category 2 to category 4.
(4) A prime example of where regulations are needed: The real-estate industry still builds rows and rows of Florida oceanfront homes like these, pocketing the profits and leaving taxpayers to shoulder the consequences through government-subsidized flood insurance. And we keep being told that regulations are stifling business growth. We need this kind of growth like we need more poison!
(5) College soccer: Tonight, I watched the tail end of a women's soccer match between UCSB and University of the Pacific, which ended 2-2 after two overtime periods, and a men's soccer match between the the same universities. Pacific men came to Santa Barbara with a 6-0-0 record and a national ranking of 14th. UCSB had lost 4 games in a row and had a winless overall record of 0-4-2, including two scoreless ties, having scored only 3 goals in 6 games. Tonight, UCSB played with much more energy than its previous appearances and was rewarded with a 1-0 win against a strong opponent. On Sunday 9/17, at Noon, UCSB will play Club America, a Mexican youth team.
Cover image for Kelly Carlin's 'A Carlin Home Companion' (6) Book review: Carlin, Kelly, A Carlin Home Campanion: Growing Up with George, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Macmillan Audio, 2015.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Kelly Carlin is a talented writer, who as the only child of comedy genius George Carlin, provides valuable insights into the late entertainer's character, career path, and family life, while relating how her own life was affected by the family's dysfunction and crazy schedule. Kelly, who does not aspire to become a stand-up comedian, does have good comedy chops, providing in her book many funny stories alongside the sad tales.
Adored by his fans, George Carlin had issues at home he would rather not reveal (or let others in the family discuss). Kelly, holder of a master's degree in psychology, has written a book that shows the human side of her father as much as his successful career in comedy, gaining a therapeutic self-understanding in the process. It is safe to say that George would not have approved of this book, were he still alive.
The audiobook contains bits and pieces of Carlin's work and the ups and downs of his career (comedy specials, TV contracts, and so on), which was shaped, to some extent, by the massive sum he owed to the IRS. His path was further complicated, as he struggled with alcohol and drug abuse, and experienced many health scares.
At times, Kelly comes across as a spoiled child who felt entitled to a special place in the world by virtue of being a celebrity's daughter. She was on her father's payroll for quite a while, including periods when she didn't do much for him professionally. Yet, she found herself having to play the adult among "The Three Musketeers," her father's nickname for the family.
As might be anticipated from the title, the book is a cross between Kelly's memoir and George's biography. Fans of George Carlin will love the book for revealing a side of the comedy whiz he himself never discussed. Others might enjoy the writing, but may not find the detailed stories compelling.

2017/09/14 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Man being fined for wearing indecent clothes on the beach, Netherlands, 1931 Margaret Hamilton, lead software engineer of the Apollo Project, stands next to the 5-foot-high printout of her hand-produced code, which was responsible for humans landing on the moon in 1969 African girl on display in (1) History in pictures: [Left] Man being fined for wearing indecent clothes on the beach, Netherlands, 1931. [Center] Margaret Hamilton, lead software engineer of NASA's Apollo Project, stands next to the 5-foot-high printout stack of her hand-produced code, which was responsible for humans landing on the moon in 1969. [Right] African girl on display in "human zoo," Belgium, 1958.
(2) UCSB earns the number-8 spot among public universities in the 2018 US News & World Report ranking. Four other UC campuses are in the top 10 (actually, top 11, due to a 3-way tie in the 9th position). UC Berkeley and UCLA are tied at first, while UC Irvine and UC San Diego share the 9th spot with University of Florida.
(3) Trump denies having reached a DACA agreement with the Democrats: The Democrats may have a strategy here. But then again they may be setting themselves up for failure or ridicule by negotiating with someone who called them losers and much worse.
(4) Quote of the day: "If 97% of engineers agree the bridge ahead is going to collapse and 3% say not to worry, would you keep driving?" ~ Message seen on a sign at a climate-change protest march
(5) Trump's nominee for the number-2 position at FEMA withdrew his application after NBC revealed that he had been investigated by the FBI and DHS for favoritism and other improprieties after Hurricane Katrina.
(6) Swiss robotics firm designs an orchestra conductor: YuMi, as the robot is called, conducted the Lucca Philharmonic Orchestra and tenor Andrea Bocelli in a concert to mark the First Int'l Festival of Robotics.
(7) Half-dozen interesting odds and ends from the Internet and other media:
- Temporary golfing rules for disruptions caused by exploding bombs at Britain's Richmond Golf Club, 1940.
- Comedian John Oliver's highly detailed expose of Sheriff Joe Arpaio and Trump's decision to pardon him.
- Can you identify the four Beatles from these images of their lips?
- Time-lapse video: Constructison of a cruise ship, from structural assembly to putting on the trims.
- Quote of the day: "In my country, we go to prison first and then become president." ~ Nelson Mandela
- Cartoon of the day: Trump eyeing the Democrats! [Image]
(8) DHS bans Kaspersky Lab software in federal agencies: The Russian brand of security software is banned on account of it posing security risks, because of its producer's ties to state-sponsored cyber-espionage.
(9) Susan Rice acted appropriately when she had Trump officials 'unmasked' in US intelligence reports: In closed-door testimony, Rice told the House Intelligence Committee that she was concerned about the motives for UAE Crown Prince's secret visit to NYC (to meet with the Trump team, it turned out), breaking protocol by not informing the US administration about the trip. There was also a subsequent secret meeting in the Seychelles Islands between Michael Flynn, Jared Kushner, and Steve Bannon with the Crown Prince, in which a Russian close to Putin was also present.

2017/09/13 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
George Harrison, 1967 Fleetwood Mac's airplane. The faces of peace in Jerusalem. (1) Photos: [Left] George Harrison, 1967. [Center] Fleetwood Mac's plane. [Right] Faces of peace in Jerusalem.
(2) A nice Wednesday in store, and a great week ahead (weather chart): Makes one feel guilty, as Hurricane Irma victims slowly return to their devastated neighborhoods to see if their houses are still standing and to begin recovery efforts.
(3) Jessica Lange: According to an August/September 2017 AARP Magazine feature on the talented actress, two years shy of hitting the big seven-oh, she is comfortable with where she is today and what she has accomplished (having won virtually all honors available to an actor/actress).
(4) Syria has complained about Iran forcing their women to wear headscarves at a soccer match: It has asked that Iran not host future soccer matches involving Syria, so that Syrian women can watch freely and without being harassed. Interestingly, Iranian women were not allowed to watch the same match, played at Tehran's Azadi Stadium! [Thanks to Masih Alinejad for this photo of Hamshahri newspaper's sports page]
(5) Half-dozen science and technology news headlines of the day:
- China is building the world's largest quantum research facility. (South China Morning Post)
- Hackers can purchase sufficient personal information to rig on-line voting rolls. (Harvard Gazette)
- Healthcare industry intrigued by diagnostic potential of artificial intelligence. (WSJ)
- Energy Department announces that Obama's solar goals have been met early (Bloomberg)
- Texas flood shows need for chemical safety rules. (Chemical & Engineering News)
- iPhone X inches forward on battery life, but major battery advances are just ahead (Scientific American)
(6) Bernie Sanders' Medicare-for-All proposal is gaining support: Healthcare will again be front and center in the 2020 elections, but this time in the direction of strengthening and expanding Obamacare, not repealing it.
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day and other interesting odds and ends:
- CNN reports that of the 42 US Attorney nominations by Trump, only one is a woman.
- Hurricane Irma death toll Rising: At least five dead in Florida nursing home left with no air-conditioning.
- The Obamas announce the fall 2017 launch of their charitable foundation.
- "Tu Vui' Fa' l'Americani": What a wonderful jazzy song!
- Captivating performance of Tomaso Albinoni's "Adagio" by violinist David Garrett.
- Apple mimics Microsoft in announcing iPhones 8 and X in a recent event: Microsoft skipped Windows 9 as well.
(8) A network of more than 50 Web sites create fake 'like's and comments for Facebook posts: Research, to be presented at London's 2017 Internet Measurement Conference, reveals how a Facebook software loophole has been exploited by scammers, who make money through inserting fake 'like's and bogus comments.
(9) College student is helping people sue Equifax: Stanford University student Joshua Browder, who has built a bot to help replace lawyers in routine matters, by helping people quickly fill out the requisite forms, is encouraging its use to punish Equifax. The company apparently had very lax security and almost no empathy in the face of data breach for nearly 44% of all Americans.

2017/09/12 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
You have seen similar photos, with a car going through the tree, but this one's from 1879, when horse-drawn carriages were the norm Natalie O'Donald, service-station attendant, 1943 Black sea bass weighing 384 lb caught with a rod and reel off Catalina Island, 1900. (1) History in pictures: [Left] You have seen similar photos, with a car going through the tree, but this one's from 1879, when horse-drawn carriages were the norm. [Center] Natalie O'Donald, service-station attendant, 1943. [Right] Black sea bass weighing 384 lb caught with a rod and reel off Catalina Island, 1900.
(2) Newly released film of Marzieh from 1963: It shows the popular Iranian singer paying a visit to and performing in the Soviet Republic of Azerbaijan.
(3) Tweet of the day: "Fascinating to watch people writing books and major articles about me and yet they know nothing about me & have zero access. #FAKENEWS!" ~ From @realDonaldTrump
[My tweet in response: "You know, Mr. President, that people write highly accurate bios of long-dead presidents, with absolutely no access to them!"]
(4) UCSB's San Joaquin Villages: The villages form a just-completed student housing complex for ~1000 third- to fifth-year undergraduate students, which hosted an open-house and self-guided tour today. The 6-occupant residences are lovely, each with generously-sized bedrooms (3), bathrooms (2), kitchen, living/dining area, and closets. The complex has study lounges, a market/food-court, and a brand new dining commons, to be shared by San Joaquin and the pre-existing Santa Catalina twin towers (whose old dining commons will be converted for other uses).
Oregon's Eagle Creek fire Washington State's Columbia River Gorge fire (5) Wildfires on the US West Coast: Oregon's Eagle Creek fire (left) and Washington State's Columbia River Gorge fire are just two examples of fires raging in the smoke-filled western United States. Climate change does not just affect weather patterns and produce extreme storms, it is also creating more devastating wildfires.
(6) UCSB North Campus Open Space: This aerial photo (credit: Bill Dewey) shows the southwestern area of Goleta where I live, with Devereux Slough (center right) and decommissioned Ocean Meadows Golf Course that now belongs to UCSB (starting in center left and extending to the right, below the Slough), which includes areas designated for faculty housing. The mountains on Santa Cruz Island are sticking out of the low clouds covering the Santa Barbara Channel. The intersection of Storke and El Colegio Roads, with new student-housing developments, is close to the center of the left edge. The main campus begins near the top left of the photo. The yellow arrow shows about half of the 2-mile distance I walk from home to work, with the other half being within the campus itself. This afternoon, I went for a walk in the open-space area and took a few photos. Much of the area is fenced off due to landscaping and installation of irrigation system. Looking forward to a future visit after the work is completed. Restoration work on the open space is described in this newsletter.

2017/09/11 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Abraham Lincoln's head under construction on Mt. Rushmore What is believed to be the last photograph taken of RMS Titanic, before it sank in April 1912 Lady Liberty's hand and torch being built in a Paris studio, 1876 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Abraham Lincoln's head under construction on Mt. Rushmore. [Center] What is believed to be the last photograph taken of RMS Titanic, before it sank in April 1912. [Right] Lady Liberty's hand and torch being built in a Paris studio, 1876.
(2) Today is the 16th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001: Here is what I wrote last year on this occasion. "It wasn't the scale of destruction and loss of life that made the [September 11] event memorable. Many more people have died in wars of the kinds we are still waging. Much more property has been destroyed by natural disasters we no longer remember. What makes 9/11 memorable is the effect it had on our nation's psyche. The loss of trust it brought about (not only between America and its adversaries but also among us Americans). The end of care-free living it signaled for most of us. But there were also some positives. That horrible event helped open our eyes to deep-rooted ideological, cultural, and economic problems in the world." I went on to express hopes, alas unrealized, that the outcome of the 2016 US presidential election does not move us further in the direction of hatred, division, conflict, distrust, and injustice. Beginning with 2018, September 11 will also mark the anniversary of the widespread destruction of Hurricane Irma, which as I write these lines in the early morning hours, has left 7 million without electric power and many without drinking water and other necessities.
(3) CNN should offer Rush Limbaugh a chance to report live from Tampa to help him prove that Irma is a hoax.
(4) University of California legally challenges the Trump administration over rescinding DACA protections.
(5) EPA chief says this is no time to discuss climate change: Yes, helping victims of Harvey and Irma has high priority, but so does understanding how these monster-storms come about and how we can help slow down the death spiral.
(6) Talk about insensitive: In a post-9/11 interview, Donald Trump had said that a building of his, which was the second-tallest in downtown Manhattan had just become the tallest, after the collapse of the World Trade Center Twin Towers.
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines and observations from the past couple of days.
- I've seen so much rain and wind on CNN that I think I will get soaking wet and blown away if I go outside!
- Photo collection depicting Jews of Mashhad, Iran.
- Sylvia Earle is the first female chief scientist of NOAA. [Time magazine story]
- The photo of Donald Trump and Chuck Schumer that drove the Republicans crazy. [Photo]
- AARP Magazine has published a special feature commemorating "The Summer of Love," Woodstock 1967.
- Look who's celebrating a milestone birthday in August or September 2017! [Image from AARP Magazine]
(8) Old Daneshkadeh-ye Fanni classroom: This photo shows the standard classroom layout when I attended Tehran University's College of Engineering in the mid-1960s. Next year, my classmates and I will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of our graduation in 1968. [Image credit: Fanni Reunion Foundation's Web site]

2017/09/10 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Goodbye kiss, 1960s Children being shown to their grandparents, over a section of the Berlin Wall Wedding day of JFK and Jacqueline Bouvier, 1953 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Goodbye kiss, 1960s. [Center] Children being shown to their grandparents, over a section of the Berlin Wall. [Right] Wedding day of JFK and Jacqueline Bouvier, 1953.
(2) This is a repost from 2013 to honor today's Grandparents' Day: In 1978, President Carter designated the first Sunday after Labor Day as US Grandparents' Day. Here is the "Grandparents' Song" and four fun facts.
- The average age of first-time grandparents in the US is 47 (2012 AARP survey).
- Your grandma is likely on Facebook: Research suggests that 38% of adult social-media users are over 65.
- The average number of grandchildren is 7; almost a quarter of grandparents have 10 or more grandkids.
- Not everyone likes the terms "grandma" and "grandpa"; some may favor "nana," "papa," "granny," etc.
(3) Let's start a Wealther Movement to dig into Trump's claims about his wealth, just as the Birthers questioned Obama's birthplace.
(4) My proposed nationalistic slogan: Make America Respect Truthfulness and Honesty Again (MARTHA)
(5) A question to ponder: Is it true that, even though there are 7 billion more people today than 3 million years ago, the world weighs the same now? [Answered by Neil deGrasse Tyson: Earth gains several hundred tons of mass per day, mostly from (small) meteors. People are in equilibrium with the Sun & food chain.
(6) Trump's NASA pick: True to form, he nominates Jim Bridenstine, who, if approved, will be the first NASA administrator ever with no scientific credentials. He is a climate-change denier to boot! The nominee has reportedly been scrubbing parts of his on-line presence ahead of Congressional hearings.
(7) EU funds a high-performance computing project using ARM Cortex processors and Xilinx Ultrascale FPGAs: Dubbed EuroEXA, the ambitious project aims to provide energy-efficient exascale computing capability within the 2022-2023 time frame. [Source: HPCwire]
(8) Half-dozen brief news headlines and other interesting items from the Internet, encountered today.
- Bannon in hot water with Catholic bishops he accused of having financial motives in supporting DACA.
- Cartoon of the day: "Gone with the Wind: Frankly my dears, I don't give a damn about climate change!"
- Russian artist Mikhail Sadovnikov uses his bare hands to create hypnotizing patterns on spinning wet clay.
- Cassini orbiter to meet its death, by being intentionlly crashed on Saturn, for the benefit of science.
- A great explanation of the origins of most US hurricanes. [2-minute video]
- Feminist Kristen Gillibrand has become the most effective resistance figure in the US Senate.
(9) The eye of Hurricane Irma reaches Florida: More than a million electric-company customers are without power, as the category-4 storm arrives and begins crawling up the state's western coast. Storm surge, on both Florida coasts, is considered the greatest threat to life. [Irma live update link]

2017/09/09 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Dal Lake, Kashmir, 1956 Hikers on a natural rock bridge on Mt. Rainier, Washington, 1963 Gorky Park in Moscow, 1954 (1) History in pictures: [Left] Dal Lake, Kashmir, 1956. [Center] Hikers on a natural rock bridge on Mt. Rainier, Washington, 1963. [Right] Gorky Park, Moscow, 1954.
(2) Responses to Melania Trump's tweet about Read-a-Book Day include "What was the last book you read?" and "Tell your husband to read the Constitution."
(3) A dozen brief, but interesting, news and other items encountered on the Internet today:
- Bill Mahr's take on Irma, the approaching category-5 liberal hoax.
- After telling his radio listeners Irma was a liberal hoax, Rush Limbaugh quietly evacuates south Florida!
- Cuba was spared a direct hit from Hurricane Irma, but Florida won't be
- Largest evacuation in US history underway in southern Florida
- Disney World and other Florida theme parks are closing down
- Get ready for higher prices in your supermarket's produce aisle after Irma
- The US stops short of admonishing Myanmar for attacks on the Rohingya
- NBA encourages pro basketball players to engage on social issues
- Political humor: Vicente Fox, former Mexican president, will be running for US presidency in 2020.
- Can you name the two artists in this photo?
- Cartoon of the day: In search of a brick-and-mortar bookstore. [Image]
- The cast of "Harry Potter," from the fist day they met to their last day on set. [Photos]
(4) Thinking of Florida and Mexico on this beautiful Saturday morning in Goleta: As I sit in my courtyard under a sunny sky, sipping coffee, and reading a book, my mind wanders to the plight of Floridians, awaiting the arrival of category-5 (or 4) Hurricane Irma in their homes, shelters, or other temporary accommodations, and to Mexicans recovering from a devastating 8.1 earthquake, whose death toll of 60 and property damage estimates are certain to rise in the coming days. I try to imagine all my downstairs rooms in waist-deep or chest-deep water, or the roof of my house blown away, or debris strewn in every room. I am donating to funds to help the victims of both disasters right now, even though Irma has not yet made landfall on the US mainland (it is a near certainty that this Chinese/liberal hoax will devastate Florida). Please help now if you can!
(5) Watching/reading reports on Hurricane Irma: It now seems that Irma will go up Florida's western coast, with a more limited, though still severe, impact on the state's eastern coast. I am grateful to storm-chasers and journalists, who are braving extreme weather conditions to bring us up-to-the-minute info about Hurricane Irma, its path, and its impact, and to people working on setting up and staffing shelters.
(6) College soccer: Tonight, UCSB played the prennial soccer powerhouse Akron. My daughter's high-school friend Sydney Kovacs sang the national anthem before the game. Akron led 2-0 at halftime, on goals arising from defensive breakdowns. Akron won the game 3-1 after UCSB scored with a header off a free kick and Akron was awarded and scored on a penalty kick.
UCSB is having one of its poor season starts, remaining winless in 5 games (two scoreless ties and three losses), having scored only 2 goals in all. I hope they can turn it around, but that's doubtful, given the painfully slow defense and impotent offense that did not create a single scoring opportunity in the first half tonight.
Cover image for Jennette Walls' 'Glass Castle' (7) Book review: Walls, Jeannette, The Glass Castle: A Memoir, unabridged audiobook on 10 CDs, read by Julia Gibson, Recorded Books, 2005.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Walls is the product of two uniquely unfit parents, a free-spirit, hands-off mother and a seductive, deeply-damaged father, who seems to have turned out okay at the end, against all odds. The author's adoration for her father and his unorthodox ways comes across loud and clear.
The glass castle refers to a fanciful project of the author's engineer/math-whiz father, who could not hold on to a job and was constantly on the move to avoid bill collectors (the FBI or mobsters, in his euphemistic language). The family would move into a small town, where they stayed until the mounting bills forced them to the next small town.
Because of the oddball parenting, the children suffered all sorts of health and safety hazards. Jeannette was molested by a neighborhood pervert and all the family members got themselves into tight spots, be it at the zoo, while lighting the Christmas tree, and virtually any other routine and non-routine activity. Their unorthodox family life sank the author's mom into depression, but the children were apparently much more resilient and turned out okay at the end, mainly due to escaping their family at the first opportunity.
As a memoir, the book is quite good, with much impeccable detail, along with insights into relationships. The writing is engaging, but the book isn't a masterpiece in any sense of the term. A film adaptation of the book, starring Brie Larson (as Jeannette), Naomi Watts, and Woody Harrelson, was released very recently.

2017/09/08 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
This helmet, dubbed 'The Isolator,' was proposed in 1925 for allowing people to focus on work without the distraction of outside noise One of the first self-serve gas stations in Los Angeles, 1948 Mobile booking cage, 1920. (1) History in pictures: [Left] This helmet, dubbed "The Isolator," was proposed in 1925 for allowing people to focus on work without the distraction of outside noise. [Center] One of the first self-serve gas stations in Los Angeles, 1948 (pictorial). [Right] Mobile booking cage, 1920.
(2) Hurricanes and earthquake: Hurricane researchers have never seen an image like this before (from left to right, Katia, Irma, Jose). Here is the predicted status of Irma over the next 5 days. Katia is less threatening than the other two. It is a low-grade hurricane, which will quickly turn into a tropical storm and then a tropical depression, as it hits the east coast of Mexico. Lucky for Mexicans, as the double hit of a major 8.1 earthquake near its southern Pacific coast, with 60+ deaths, major destruction, widespread blackouts, and possible tsunamis, and a strong hurricane on its opposite coast would have been quite devastating.
(3) Ten brief, but interesting, items encountered over the past couple of days:
- Why was AG Jeff Sessions smiling just before he announced the repeal of DACA?
- DeVos wants to undo the progress made in taking sexual assaults on college campuses more seriously.
- History in pictures: Iran of the 1960s/1970s. [Image]
- Trump's $1M donation to Hurricane Harvey relief efforts, walked back by WH aides, is back on again.
- Finally, with the opening of Luna Grill at 3925 State Street, we have Persian-style kabob in Santa Barbara.
- The 2017 California Lemon Festival will be on Saturday-Sunday, September 16-17, at Goleta's Girsh Park.
- Cool poster for the 2017 California Avocado Festival, October 6-8 (Friday-Sunday), in Carpinteria.
- The cover of this week's issue of Santa Barbara Independent, in support of Dreamers. [Image]
- Cartoon of the day: Lawyer to clients: "He left everything to his friends on Facebook." [Image]
- How an old Israeli folk song ("Mayim Mayim") became a hit on Japanese video game soundtracks.
(4) In this weekly Iranwire newsletter, journalist Maziar Bahari tackles some tough subjects: Topics include women banned from entering stadiums to watch Iranian male athletes compete and rampant nepotism in getting jobs and contracts.
(5) Math puzzle: Famed mathematician Augustus De Morgan reportedly answered a question about his age thus: "I was x years old in the year x^2." When was De Morgan born?
(6) No, America isn't the highest-taxed country in the world: When truth-challenged saleseman Trump makes the claim that taxes in America are highest worldwide, he is referring to corporate taxes, which, on paper, are 35%. However, the same tax code provides corporations with many loopholes, placed there by their lobbyists' efforts. The average tax actually paid by American corporations is around 17%, half the paper rate. Many of our largest corporations pay a measely 3-5%; quite a few of them pay nothing. And this is excluding various illegal tax shelters. In fact, if Trump cuts the paper rate to 20%, while closing all the loopholes, he can get credit for a tax cut, while increasing tax revenues. American businesses will certainly love a "tax cut" of this sort! Such a slight of hand wouldn't be beyond Trump, who tried to sell tax cuts for the rich as healthcare reform! In terms of overall taxes paid, which is a fairer comparison, given that many other countries do not have separate federal, state, and other taxes, the US is the fourth-lowest-taxed country among OECD countries. [Data from a Twitter post by Aimee Lutkin, referring to economic data from several economists]
(7) It turns out that this story I posted to Facebook on September 8, 2016, exactly one year ago, was just the tip of the iceberg: In recent days, new information has emerged, indicating that the Wells Fargo Bank fraud was much more widespread.
(8) A very serious data breach: The Equifax data breach, announced yesterday, entails 143M people and 209K credit card numbers. Given the scope of this breach, I am sharing an e-mail I received today from the UCSB administration in the hopes of being of help to others. Please pay attention to all the recommendations therein, including being wary of fake Web sites pretending to belong to Equifax and offering to help you with your security concerns.

2017/09/07 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Ageless beauties almost everyone knows Super-smart beauties, with a need for introduction (1) [Top-row photos] Ageless beauties almost everyone knows (left to right): Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Grace Kelly.
[Bottom-row photos] Super-smart beauties, with a need for introduction (left to right): The late Dr. Maryam Mirzakhani, Stanford University math professor and Fields Medalist; Dr. Jennifer McCarty, PhD in material science and engineering, currently at Oregon Health and Science University; Dr. Aditi Shankardass, MD/PhD in neuroscience, one of Britain's top young scientists.
(2) Taking the game of golf extremely seriously: With numerous fires raging in the western United States, many activities, including golf, are affected. But not for this guy!
(3) For the first time in history, four Americans are the top four women tennis players in the US Open semifinals: And they accomplished this feat in the absence of Serena Williams, who is on maternity leave.
(4) See if you can recognize these now-famous youngsters, shown in a 1994 photograph.
(5) Houston pastor returns to his Harvey-flooded home to play his piano, perhaps as a last farewell to it.
(6) American energy sector target of hacking campaign: According to the cyber-security company Symantec, a group of hackers previously linked to Russia gained hands-on access to the US power-grid operations, enough control that they could have induced blackouts at will. [Source: Wired]
Cover image of Ashlee Vance's 'Elon Musk' (7) Book review: Vance, Ashlee, Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Fred Sanders, Harper Audio, 2015. [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This is an impressively well-researched book. It appears to be thorough and honest, despite being an authorized biography. Musk was at one point in total ruins, both emotionally and financially. That he managed to pull both of his signature companies, Tesla and SpaceX, out of looming bankruptcies, is a testament to his will and work ethics. He used his own money, earned when he became a multimillionaire in his late 20s, after selling his interest in eBay, and amassed further wealth from other ventures, to pull the companies along, as they struggled to meet payroll and other expenses. Musk was one of the early beneficiaries of the dot-com boom.
There is much detail in this book about engineering challenges, which tech enthusiasts will love. There is also a lot of information about Musk's eccentricities and explosive temper, that reminds one of another tech genius, Steve Jobs. Other similarities between the two tech giants, who played important roles in advancing the US economy, include the fact that Musk was an immigrant (from South Africa) and Jobs, born in San Francisco, was the son of Syrian immigrants.
I enjoyed listening to this wonderful audiobook, which taught me a great deal about electric-car, battery, solar-power, and privatized-space industries. It comes with my highest recommendation.

2017/09/06 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
French little girl kisses American soldier after the liberation of France from German occupation, 1944 Personnel working on the atomic bomb (Manhattan Project) at the Oak Ridge facility in 1943 were warned about gaurding their secrets French Resistance fighters, Paris, 1944 (1) History in pictures: [Left] French little girl kisses American soldier after the liberation of France from German occupation, 1944. [Center] Personnel working on the atomic bomb (Manhattan Project) at the Oak Ridge facility in 1943 were warned about gaurding their secrets. [Right] French Resistance fighters, Paris, 1944.
(2) Hypocrisy to the extreme in Iran: Iranian women are still banned from sports stadiums, yet when Syria's soccer team played in Tehran, women accompanying the team were allowed to watch. Interestingly, Syrian male spectators came to their women's defense against Iran's morality police, which warned them for their improper hijab. Reporter Masih Alinejad has asked Iranian men to similarly support their women by announcing that they won't attend sports games until the ban on women entering stadiums is lifted. The man in this photo has joined the campaign.
(3) Climate change is a Chinese hoax, according to Trump: If so, the Chinese are a lot better at manufacturing hoaxes than actual products; these last two fake hurricanes (Harvey and Irma) were very convincing!
(4) Quote of the day: "Repealing DACA in order to MAGA is a load of CACA." ~ Comedian Steven Colbert
(5) Hurricane humor: Trump is extremely concerned that Jose is following Irma, because he may be a rapist.
(6) Finally, a killer app for Apple Watch: Boston Red Sox found guilty of using a smartphone and Apple Watch to record Yankee pitching signals, analyze them, and signal to the batter the type of pitch he might expect.
(7) A white woman's open letter to White Supremacists and Neo-Nazis.
(8) Oh, the irony! Photo taken at a KKK rally in Atlanta, Georgia, 1992, shows a Klan young child playing with the shield of a black riot policeman. You have to try very hard to teach a child to hate.
(9) After two days of hard work, my e-mail inbox is empty once again: My to-do list has, of course, expanded. I'll finish my social-media posts for the day and take the rest of the evening off to celebrate with a book.

2017/09/05 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Russian bear-hunting armor from the 19th century The first-ever photo of the Rolling Stones Elephant-mounted machine gun from World War I (1) History in pictures: [Left] Russian bear-hunting armor from the 19th century. [Center] The first-ever photo of the Rolling Stones. [Right] Elephant-mounted machine gun from World War I.
(2) Hurricane Irma measures like an earthquake: Having just been upgraded to Category 5, Irma is said to be the most powerful storm to hit the East Coast. It is now more likely than previously thought to hit Florida.
(3) Interesting signs seen on church announcement boards:
- Tweet others as you would like to be tweeted.
- Cremation is your last chance for a smoking hot body.
- Sin is a short word with a long sentence.
(4) Fridge, come here! If it's too hard for you to walk a few steps to your fridge to fetch a drink or snack, this new product is for you. Responding to voice commands, the fridge navigates through your house, avoiding obstacles, to bring itself to you. Just in time for the final lazy days of summer!
(5) Andy Borowitz: Trump is afraid he doesn't have any fake empathy left for Hurricane Irma!
(6) Punish click-baiters by not clicking on their links (social media advice, with implications to journalism and scientific writing): If you see the headline "Trump Leaves for Weekend of Golf," you may or may not click on it to read the full story, depending on your level of interest in Trump's golfing vacations. But if the headline reads "Trump Does It Again!" your interest may be piqued enough to click and thus generate ad revenues for the posting entity. This method of generating clicks by baiting is at best dishonest and at worst immoral.
Unfortunately, many print and TV journalists do the same thing to pull in readers or viewers. Journalism is supposed to be about conveying information to readers/viewers in the most direct and efficient way possible, and such tricks deter from that mission. The fictitious TV-news teaser "The world will end tomorrow; details at eleven" isn't far off the mark.
As a professor who trains researchers, I tell my students that a good research paper begins with a clear and informative title, which does not over-promise or under-specify. Old-style paper titles used to be very long, precise, and super-boring, at times resembling abstracts in the modern sense. Here's a sample from British philosopher Bishop George Berkeley's writings in 1734: "The Analyst; or, a Discourse Addressed to an Infidel Mathematician. Wherein It Is Examined Whether the Object, Principles, and Inferences of the Modern Analysis Are More Distinctly Conceived, or More Evidently Deduced, than Religious Mysteries and Points of Faith."
Recently, it has become fashionable to have catchy or cute titles, but such titles should always be accompanied by subtitles to better define the content. Here is an example from my own work, the title of a forthcoming pair of bilingual lectures at UCLA (Sunday-Monday, November 19-20, 2017): "Fifty Years of Poor Penmanship: How Computers Struggled to Learn the Persian Script." Note how the catchy main title is supplemented by a more informative subtitle, all within a reasonable total length in wordsor characters.

2017/09/04 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
First-ever Labor-Day Parade in the United States, NYC, 1882 (1) A very happy Labor Day to everyone! This historic photo shows the very first Labor-Day Parade in the United States, New York City, September 5, 1882. On that day, 135 years ago, participants began from City Hall, marched past viewing stands at Union Square, and assembled in Wendel's Elm Park for a picnic, concert, and speeches.
(2) The $10 million Oxford comma: Workers sue and win their overtime pay challenge case, because the company interpreted a sentence in its written regulations as if it had a comma between the last two items in a list of exemptions from overtime pay, whereas the judge ruled that the complaining workers were correct in their interpretation without the implied comma!
(3) The North Korean problem seems to be unaffected by sanctions or threats of military action: Kim Jong Un has proven himself smarter and a shrewder politician than he is given credit for. North Korea has absolutely no incentive to attack anyone militarily. So accepting it as a nuclear power and then taking our time in dealing with the problem would be much more logical than acting in haste.
(4) Half-dozen brief news and other items of interest:
- US economy humming along: But the job growth trend is very much a continuation of last year's trend.
- Yesterday's freak storm (microburst) in the Santa Barbara area, captured on video at Arroyo Burro Beach.
- This photograph purportedly depicts the US Border Patrol trying to stop a fugitive from escaping into Mexico.
- Relating the percentages of genetic sharing to family relationships. [Diagram]
- My daughter's "Choice Cuts of Potatoes" (a la the diagram depicting choice cuts of beef).
- Pictorial oddities: Jumping rope at a dizzying height; don't try this at home!
(5) Hurricane Harvey donations: Preacher Joel Osteen has blamed the criticism of his church's inaction in the wake of Hurricane Harvey on "misinformation" and advised victims not to have a "poor me" attitude. White House aides walked back Donald Trump's initial pledge of $1M from personal funds for Harvey victims.
Cover image for Leah Remini's 'Troublemaker' (6) Book review: Remini, Leah and Rebecca Paley, Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the first author, Ballantine Books, 2015. [My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads] ]
[On some versions of this book, Leah Remini is listed as sole author, while on others, Rebecca Paley appears as co-author.]
Indoctrinated into the Church of Scientology as a child, outspoken actress/producer/talk-show-host Leah Remini provides an insider's account of Scientology, based on her three-decade association with the secretive church. Much of her attacks are aimed at Scientology's high-level officials as well as Tom Cruise, who, as Scientology's highest-profile adherent, had achieved the status of an idol in the church. In fact, this celebrity worship is one of the main red flags for an organization having claims of being based on scientific principles.
Remini herself rose to a high status in the church, but then fell out of favor when she began to question certain dubious practices and the fact that punishment (financial and otherwise) administered to low-level church members did not seem to apply to its leaders.
One feature of the church is members ratting on one another, with the resulting "reports" of transgressions becoming part of the person's permanent record accessible to monitors and others charged with programming and reprogramming members. Remini ended up being declared a "suppressive person," or SP, in Scientology speak. Remini eventually succeeded in freeing herself from the bonds of the church and the financial ruin that it had brought to her and her family.
I had listened to Lawrence Wright's book, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, & the Prison of Belief (Random House Audio, 2013) in early 2016 and reviewed it in April of that year. So, many of Remini's revelations aren't new to me. Along with the aforementioned review, I had provided a link to an expose by ABC's newsmagazine "20/20" based on the book Ruthless, by Ron Miscavige, the father of the church's leader. Needless to say, the church dismisses Miscavige Sr.'s book as a shameless effort to make money.
Remini's book does add some personal experiences and anecdotes that confirm previous accusations of financial scamming and cruelty by the church. The trouble with such accounts is that we are left with the unsatisfying feeling of not being able to verify the claims, given that the church never properly responds to the accusations. There is enough corroboration among the various negative accounts about the church to suspect that something is seriously wrong. In other words, there is a lot of smoke, so it would be very surprising if there were no fire!

2017/09/03 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Albert Einstein at 3 Nikola Tesla in his lab JFK with astronaut John Glenn, on February 23, 1962 (1) History of science/technology in pictures: [Left] Albert Einstein at three. [Center] Nikola Tesla in his lab [Right] JFK with astronaut John Glenn, on February 23, 1962.
(2) Those who need health insurance should be reminded that sign-ups for the Affordable Care Act begin on November 1. Please help publicize this fact, because the Trump administration has slashed funding for health-care publicity as part of its efforts to sabotage Obamacare.
(3) Winshield wiper invented in 1902 by a woman who didn't drive: Entrepreneur Mary Anderson thought it made no sense that New York streetcar drivers had to keep jumping off to clean snow from the windshield. She soon won a patent for her "window cleaning device."
(4) Half-dozen brief news and other items of interest:
- North Korean 6.3-magnitude quake believed to be due to a nuclear explosion/test, likely an H-bomb.
- Hurricane attire: And someone must have told Donald to hold the umbrella over Melania's head! [Photo]
- McCain to Trump: Congress isn't the president's subordinate. [CNN story]
- Helpful GIFs explain concepts in trigonometry.
- An interesting photo: Harry Potter portrayer reads Harry Potter on the set of "Harry Potter."
- "Dignity" is the name of a new statue that just went up in South Dakota.
(5) Abstracts of my forthcoming November 19-20 talks as part of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran.
Persian abstract of my forthcoming talk as part of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran English abstract of my forthcoming talk as part of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran
(6) Trump praises the Coast Guard for its Texas rescue efforts: But was it really necessary to slam the media in the same sentence? We are all aware of the extent of devastation and the urgent need for assistance based on media reports. Reporters stood in chest-deep contaminated waters to give us compelling photos and to relay pleas for help. Previously, Trump had referred to "ratings" during the storm coverage, as if this is just another reality show and not a human tragedy.
(7) Evacuation orders have been issued for the Alamo burn areas and flash flood warnings are in effect for much of Santa Barbara County in the wake of a fast-moving massive storm.
(8) Wildfires out west: More than 1000 firefighters are battling the largest wildfire in the history of Los Angeles, to the north of downtown. This is just one of many wildfires raging the western United States.
(9) Multi-tasking in computers and humans: In computing, multi-tasking refers to the presence of several partially-completed tasks in memory, which allows the OS to switch to a different task when one task encounters a glitch that requires waiting. There is some overhead in switching from one task to another, but when potential wait periods are long, the overhead is well worth paying. We humans often take pride in our ability to multi-task, but ours is far less efficient than the computer's. Our brains are super-slow in context-switching. Moreover, gathering all resources (physical, digital, and mental) required to resume an interrupted task takes time and leads to slowdown. Multi-tasking in humans tends to reduce productivity and interferes with developing expertise. [Abridged from an article by Peter J. Denning in the September 2017 issue of Communications of the ACM, where he offers suggestions to reduce the ill effects of human multi-tasking]

2017/09/02 (Saturday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Martin Luther King Jr. being arrested in St. Augustine, Florida, for demanding service at a white-only restaurant, 1964 An African-American girl eating lunch alone, after being newly integrated into a high school, 1959 Until the 1960s, Australian Aborigines came under 'Flora and Fauna Act,' that is, they were considered animals not human beings (1) History in pictures: [Left] Martin Luther King Jr. being arrested in St. Augustine, Florida, for demanding service at a white-only restaurant, 1964. [Center] An African-American girl eating lunch alone, after being newly integrated into a high school, 1959. [Right] Until the 1960s, Australian Aborigines came under "Flora and Fauna Act," that is, they were considered animals not human beings.
(2) How the 1953 CIA-engineered Iranian coup opened the way for religious fundamentalism, and other stories about the coup, in one newsletter.
(3) Start-up provides services for teaching endangered languages that have only a few thousand speakers.
(4) History in pictures: Next time you go to NYC's Madison Square Garden to enjoy a ballgame or concert, imagine the venue filled with 20,000 Nazi sympathizers, aka Friends of New Germany, in the early 1930s.
(5) Test your geographic knowledge: Which US state has the longest coastline? Which European country has the longest coastline? Which world country has the longest coastline?
(6) The Republicans learn that disaster funding is important: Right before Hurricane Harvey, the GOP had proposed $1B cut to FEMA's budget.
(7) About Angelina Jolie's 2015 movie "Difret": I seldom review movies, but this one affected me, not just because of its direct story and message, but also because of an indirect lesson it contains. The film's story is about a 14-year-old Ethiopian girl, who is tried for killing a man who abducted and forced her into marriage. The only thing standing between the girl and the death penalty is a zealous young lawyer determined to save her client's life. In one scene, after the lawyer brings the girl home and feeds her, the girl asks why the attractive lawyer does not have a husband, wondering if she was a "bad" woman who had dishonored her family. Here is a girl who was abducted and forced into marriage, thinking that not being married is unnatural and shameful. We are all conditioned, some more than others, into thinking that we are not complete or functional human beings if we don't have a spouse or mate. And this is the film's indirect lesson referenced above. The film isn't a masterpiece by any stretch of imagination, but it is definietely worth watching.
(8) Today was a big day in Trump news: It appears that General Kelly won't last much longer as Chief of Staff. He is barely tolerated now, given that Trump has no other option. But soon, someone will whisper something in his ears, and his oversized ego will take over in an early morning tweetstorm! Meanshile, Trump pledges $1M to Hurricane Harvey victims, yet Hurricane Sandy victims haven't seen a dime from a similar pledge of four years ago. On the Russia front, Robert Mueller is reportedly looking at a multi-page draft of FBI Director Comey's firing letter for evidence of obstruction of justice. A much shorter version of the letter, with modified justification for the firing, was eventually sent, but the longer version, drafted by Stephen Miller, reportedly hints at the true reasons. Finally, on tax cuts, there is a Persian proverb that "a liar is forgetful." In a speech in Springfield, MO, Trump sang the praises of Reagan's tax cuts, saying that "it was really something special ... Under this pro-America system, our economy just went beautifully through the roof." Here is what he had said at the time about Reagan's tax cuts, which caused property prices to plummet: "This tax act was just an absolute catastrophe for the country."

2017/09/01 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Ballerinas over New York City, 1925 View from the top of the Empire State Building in NYC, 1947 Square du Vert-Galant, Paris, 1960
(1) Some interesting historical photographs: [Left] Ballerinas over New York City, 1925. [Center] View from the top of the Empire State Building in NYC, 1947. [Right] Square du Vert-Galant, Paris, 1960.
(2) Subway cleared to sell 11-inch foot-long sandwiches: A class-action settlement about the shortened sandwiches is thrown out by an appellate court, because its only beneficiaries were the lawyers. But isn't that the case for nearly all class-action lawsuits?
(3) Shady Russian figures emerge left and right in the Trump collusion probe: Here is an insightful summary of new developments by Trevor Noah. (Yes, these days, comedians provide the most insightful commentaries).
(4) Trump administration ditches Obama-era equal-pay data collection rule, with Ivanka Trump's blessing.
(5) The Harvey disaster wasn't just bad weather, but also bad city planning: Houston's sprawling hands-off growth did not take natural disasters into consideration, while boasting about economic performance and creature comforts. The compassionate nation that we are, we will bail them out, but then some other community decides to play Russian roulette with its city planning, and so on.
(6) Half-dozen brief science/technology news headlines of the day
- Humans, cover your mouths: Lip-reading bots are out to get you (ZDNet)
- Software/IT top list of high-paying jobs, with $105,000 average (TechRepublic)
- Machine-learning earthquake prediction shows promise in lab (LANL News)
- US House of Representatives to vote on autonomous vehicle bill next week (Reuters)
- Michael Dell donates $36 million for Harvey; says he rode bike there (USA Today)
- Drones could help in Texas, but emergency responders disagree (Scientific American)
(7) Fox News poll assesses Trump's performance, overall and on specific issues: I post the raw poll data with no interpretation, so that my conservative friends stop claiming that Trump is being vilified by the liberal media.
(8) Odds and ends, in four images: The Beatles taking selfies in the mirror, before selfies were cool. Design evolution of soda cans, from 1948 to the present. Museum/theme-park in Billund, Denmark, built out of Lego-like large blocks. Currently at the letter 'Y,' Sue Grafton is almost done with her alphabet series!
(9) Divination by [conference] program committee: This is the title of a column by Professor Moshe Vardi of Rice University in the September 2017 issue of Communications of the ACM.
The Neural Information Processing Systems (NIPS) conference conducted an experiment in 2014, which was the first of its kind to quantitatively assess the effectiveness of decision-making processes in choosing conference presentations from among a large number of submissions. The program committee split itself into two independent committees and then subjected 10% of the submissions, or 166 papers, to decision-making by both committees. The two committees disagreed on 43 papers, which, given NIPS' acceptance rate of 25%, implies that close to 60% of the papers accepted by the first committee were rejected by the second one, and vice versa [see the analysis by Eric Price]. Vardi then asserts that, in a typical conference, there is broad consensus on accepting the top 10% of the papers and on rejecting the bottom 25%. For the remaining 65%, the acceptance/rejection decision is fairly random. He likens the decision process to "guilty until proven innocent" (reject, unless there is a compelling reason to accept) and suggests that switching to the "innocent until proven guilty" mode of operation may be beneficial.
After reading Vardi's column, I brought to his attention a paper entitled "Low Acceptance Rates of Conference Papers Considered Harmful," about the pitfalls of being too selective in accepting papers, which I published in IEEE Computer more than a year ago [PDF]. He had not seen the paper before, but liked it enough to refer to it both on the on-line version of his column and on his Facebook page, where it has already generated dozens of shares. The latter led to a spirited discussion that is still ongoing. It's quite telling that my paper produced hardly any feedback for more than a year but that a reference to it on social media led to extensive discussion in a couple of days. Kudos to social media!

2017/08/31 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly, backstage at the 1956 Academy Awards Saint Thaddeus, an ancient Armenian monastery in Iran's West Azerbaijan province How the area impacted by Hurricane Harvey compares with California. (1) Some interesting photographs. [Left] Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly, backstage at the 1956 Academy Awards. [Center] Saint Thaddeus, an ancient Armenian monastery in Iran's West Azerbaijan province. [Right] Putting it in perspective: How the area impacted by Hurricane Harvey compares with my state.
(2) Alternative facts, taken to absurd heights: Kellyanne Conway says that Trump's greatest attribute is humility! You can't make this stuff up, believe me!
(3) Female physicist, 23, has the potential of becoming the next Einstein: Cuban-American Sabrina Gonzalez Pasterski, a PhD student at Harvard with full freedom to pursue whatever she wants, has been a standout since age 9, when she flew a plane. She later graduated from MIT in 3 years, with a perfect GPA of 5.0.
(4) Even machines become sexist when exposed to our societal norms: University of Virginia professor Vincent Ordonez and colleagues fed two large collections of photos to train their image recognition software. The built-in biases in the photos (depicting more men than women and containing significant gender bias in objects shown) led not just to a corresponding bias in software but actually an amplified form of it. Conclusion: Algorithms cannot be applied blindly to solve problems. [Source: Wired]
(5) Tone-deaf president: Trump tweets about more important matters, as Houston is submerged. [Image"]
(6) Resignations continue from the Trump administration: New departures at State Department, combined with scores of unfilled positions, leave the government short-handed in the event of a major crisis.
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Harvey's death toll rises to 28, as it is downgraded to a tropical depression
- Flooded Texas chemical plants raise concerns about toxic emissions
- Arizona judge makes pardon of Arpaio contingent upon holding a hearing
- Floods in India, Bangladesh, and Nepal kill 1200
- Kamala Harris is co-sponsoring Bernie Sanders' Medicare-for-all bill
- Whole Foods prices slashed after Amazon's takeover becomes effective
(8) Apple's removal of Iranian software from its App Store punishes the country's techies and ordinary people much more than it affects the government: Some very useful apps have been developed over the past few years, which help both Iranian and international users make productive use of their smartphones. Even more so than in Western societies, smartphones are lifelines for Iranians, who use them extensively for work, play, and, most importantly, political activism on social media. Revenues from the App Store also serve to motivate and sustain many a techie or tech business, with the results benefiting not just them, but also technology development worldwide. I hope that Apple reconsiders this decision, which was likely brought about by pressures from the Trump administration, hell-bent on undoing the nuclear agreement and the associated easing of economic sanctions.

2017/08/30 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Protester at the 1969 Miss America Pageant Earth, as seen from Apollo 17: Africa and the Arabian Peninsula are seen near the top Female Lockheed employee working on a P-38 Lightning in Burbank, CA, 1944 (1) Some interesting photographs. [Left] Protester at the 1969 Miss America Pageant. [Center] Earth, as seen from Apollo 17: Africa and the Arabian Peninsula are seen near the top. [Right] Female Lockheed employee working on a P-38 Lightning in Burbank, CA, 1944.
(2) First announcement of my talks as part of UCLA Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran: "Fifty Years of Poor Penmanship: How Computers Struggled to Learn the Persian Script" (both venues are on the UCLA campus)
[Persian] Sunday, November 19, 2017, Dodd Hall, Room 121, 4:00-6:00 PM
[English] Monday, November 20, 2017, Humanities Building, Room 365, 2:00-4:00 PM
(3) "Confounds the Science": Trump parody, sung beautifully by Simon and Garfunkel look-alikes to the tune of "Sound of Silence"
(4) Time travel added to alternative facts: Obama is blamed on Twitter for not paying enough attention to Hurricane Katrina, which hit 3.5 years before his presidency began.
(5) Sean Spicer finally gets his wish of meeting the Pope: Spicer surprises the pontiff with some alternative facts from Breitbart about Jesus and circumstances surrounding his conception! [Photo]
(6) Half-dozen brief news and other items that came up today:
- Harvey's death toll rises to 28: Years-long recovery needed to restore America's fourth largest city.
- Looking years older, Iranian journalist Hengameh Shahidi released from jail after 6 months.
- Funny protest signs, batch 3: This final batch completes a dozen sign selections. Enjoy!
- A wonderful Persian poem by Mowlavi (Rumi).
- Street in Homs, Syria: 2011 (top) vs. 2014 (bottom). [Photos]
- Looking forward to 2020: No shortage of passionate, highly qualified women to run for US presidency.
(7) Here is a comment I made on a Facebook post 7 years ago, today (August 30): "Let me put in a few last words to close this discussion thread. I hope no one dismisses arguments from the other side without giving them a fair hearing. According to the American way of life, everyone is innocent until proven guilty. And the said guilt should be proven in a court of law; it cannot be inferred from personal statements or newspaper stories. In particular, I cannot be presumed guilty by association, that is, by something that a friend or acquaintance of mine has done. Bear in mind that the situation is quite complex and should not be approached with simplistic generalizations. If a bunch of cousins with the same ethnic background, same religion, and pretty much the same family upbringing cannot agree on an issue, then you can imagine how much more disagreement there will be at the national or global level. Just keep your eyes, ears, hearts, and minds open."
(8) Walking from work to home this afternoon: I paid a visit to the UCSB library to take a look at new books and snapped this photo of the elevators in the old part of the building, which were given a make-over when a new section was added to the building. In this set of photos, subjects include the newly opened Starbucks at the University Center and super-high tide at the beach. [Panorama 1] [Panorama 2] Finally, I filmed some gentle waves at high tide on an Isla Vista beach. [2-minute video]

2017/08/29 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
College dorm room, 1905 Thousands of returning US troops pulling into NY Harbor in 1945. Two-horse street cleaner, NYC, 1905 Boys working in a coal mine, 1911 The shadow of a Hiroshima victim permanently etched on a set of steps Boy reads The History of London amid the ruins of a London bookshop after an air raid on October 8, 1940 (1) History in pictures: [Top left] College dorm room, 1905. [Top center] Thousands of returning US troops on Queen Elizabeth, pulling into NY Harbor in 1945. [Top right] Two-horse street cleaner, New York City, 1905. [Bottom left] Boys working in a coal mine, 1911. [Bottom center] The shadow of a Hiroshima victim permanently etched on a set of steps. [Bottom right] Boy reads The History of London amid the ruins of a London bookshop after an air raid on October 8, 1940.
(2) "Witch hunt" produces "smoking guns": Trump attorney reached out to Kremlin during campaign about building a Trump Tower in Moscow. [CNN story] Also, proposed Russia business deal was seen by Trump associate as helping elect "our boy." [Marketwatch story]
(3) A furniture-store owner offered his store to Hurricane Harvey victims, but preacher Joel Osteen refused to open his church.
(4) Capitalism and socialism at work: Gas stations in the Harvey disaster area are raising prices of gas and other supplies severalfolds (by the way, gas prices will go up nationwide in a day or two). Meanwhile, socialist rescue workers and good Samaritans are working to save lives at the same salaries or for free.
(5) Two dumb statements in fewer than 140 characters: "I don't believe Hurricane Harvey is God's punishment for Houston electing a lesbian mayor. But that is more credible than 'climate change.'" ~ Ann Coulter in a tweet
(6) This is no time to get even: Both Texas Senators and nearly all of the state's House members opposed aid to Hurricane Sandy victims. Hoping that aid to Hurricane Harvey victims is approved quickly and with broad support. Meanwhile, there are reports that South Houston levees have breached and residents are told to get out NOW! This calamity ain't over yet. Many residents who were cleared to return to their neighborhoods discovered there's nothing left to go back to. Please help!
(7) The rise of Iranian-Americans in tech: This insightful article discusses Dara Khosrowshahi, the new Uber CEO, his extensive network of techies, and elements of the Iranian culture that contribute to success in tech. "As The Washington Post noted in an article earlier today, Khosrowshahi's brother, Kaveh Khosrowshahi, is a managing director with Allen & Co. His cousin, Amir Khosrowshahi, co-founded Nervana, an artificial intelligence company that Intel acquired last year for more than $400 million. He is also cousins with Hadi and Ali Partovi, high-powered twins who are both founders and tech investors."

2017/08/28 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
What 1988 Angelinos thought their city would look like in 25 years The most iconic photograph of all time, shot nearly 5 decades ago, on December 24, 1968, from Apollo 8 Segregation in Shady Grove, Alabama, 1956 (1) Some interesting images. [Left] What 1988 Angelinos thought their city would look like in 25 years. [Center] The most iconic photograph of all time: Dubbed 'Earthrise,' it was shot nearly 5 decades ago, on December 24, 1968, from Apollo 8. [Right] Segregation in Shady Grove, Alabama, 1956.
(2) The business of kids' sports: Time magazine, issue of September 4, 2017, has an extensive cover story about how the main goals of kids' sports (physical activity, fun) have been eclipsed by the big-business aspects. Families pay exorbitant sums for equipment and clinics, while the youth leagues serve as free training grounds for big-money college and professional sports.
(3) Heat wave coming this week to our area (100+ degree temperatures): Goleta, Santa Barbara, and other coastal communities will be around 15 degrees cooler.
(4) Ukraine topples Soviet statues: The country has dismantled all 1320 of its statues of Lenin, as well as an additional 1069 Soviet-era monuments as part of a ban signed into law by President Petro Poroshenko in 2015. [US opponents of removing statues and other symbols of Confederacy please take note.]
(5) Ebrahim Yazdi, Islamic Republic of Iran's first FM, dead at 86: A medical doctor by training, he had been battling cancer and passed away in Izmir, Turkey. He was generally viewed negatively as a Western-educated enabler of Khomeini and someone who helped the mullahs solidify their power immediately after the Islamic Revolution. He was later sidelined and jailed intermittently with other opposition figures. As a key member of Iran's Freedom Movement, he also opposed the Shah and returned from exile to participate in the post-revolutionary interim government of PM Mehdi Bazargan.
(6) Persian music: Mojgan Shajarian sings, accompanied by traditional Persian instruments. Mojgan's dad, Mohammad Reza, is a beloved master musician, as is her brother, Homayoun. Talent runs in the family!
(7) Iranian-American Dara Khosrowshahi new CEO of Uber: He is aware of the company's misogynistic past and seems set to make improvements in hiring and promotion policies.
(8) Insurance solicitations: Every time disaster strikes somewhere in the country, insurance companies go into overdrive, trying to use the shock of the event to convince you to buy insurance products. While it is a good idea to review your insurance needs from time to time, try not to make snap decisions in this area based on current events. Insurance companies make money when there is no illness, accident, or disaster. Selling flood insurance, say, to someone who lives in a low-risk area for floods is a gold mine that they would readily exploit. Be alert! In many cases, spending your money to help flood victims is a much better use of the funds than buying flood insurance of your own.
(9) Final thought for the day: This photo shows Nepali men carrying a Mercedes that Adolf Hitler gifted to King Truibhuvan in 1940. A natural question is why the car had to be carried in this manner. It presumably arrived at a port and needed to go to some location where the King could enjoy driving it. Were there no roads for transporting the car, or was it just a matter of economizing on cost, perhaps because slave labor was cheaper than the alternatives?

2017/08/27 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Logo for Santa Barbara Public Library's 100th anniversary event Gaston Rebuffat mountain-climbing in France, 1944 The Williams sisters with the Reagans (1) Some interesting images: [Left] Santa Barbara Public Library System's Centennial; see item 2 below. [Center] Gaston Rebuffat mountain-climbing in France, 1944. [Right] The Williams sisters with the Reagans.
(2) Today is the 100th anniversary of Santa Barbara's Public Library: There are ceremonies and community activities at the central branch, downtown, which I will miss owing to time conflict with a soccer match I am attending. However, I will visit during the week to see all the exhibits and the results of a community-built Lego-block model of our city. Here is a news story from Santa Barbara News Press, dated August 27, 1917.
"Without ceremony, the doors of the new public library were opened to the public at 9 o'clock this morning and the librarians began lending and receiving books. All about the great reading room were signs of unfinished work. From other parts of the building came the sound of hammers and busy workman and carpenters in aprons and painters, with brushes and pails, now and then passed in the library among the librarians and the patrons at the reading tables or the book racks. The library was opened today before the building was finished so that the students who begin their fall term of school today may not be hindered in their work by the lack of library accommodations."
(3) Helping Harvey's victims: Hurricane/tropical-storm Harvey's damages are already quite extensive and they will likely grow in the coming days. If you are wondering about how to help victims of the Texas floods in the wake of Harvey, may I suggest Direct Relief International, which is at the top of the list of best and most effective charities of both Charity Watch and Charity Navigator. If you have another charity in mind, make sure to check it with respect to effectiveness (how much of the money you donate goes to actual aid), using one of the sites linked above.
(4) Instrumental music: Una Despacito instrumental mix. [18-minute video]
(5) The anti-arts/culture president: Donald and Melania Trump won't attend this year's Kennedy Center Honors, "to avoid political distraction."
(6) Cartoon of the day: Guide to Redundantown. [By John Atkinson] [Image]
(7) Funny protest signs, batch 2: One more batch coming on a future date.
(8) Fake-news Oscars night selfie. [Image]
(9) College soccer: In its second game of the young season, UCSB faced Siena College at Harder Stadium, early this afternoon. The 0-0 tie after 110 minutes (including two 10-minute golden-goal overtime periods) was highly unsatisfying, given that UCSB held the upper hand throughout. The inability to score against a weak opponent, despite numerous opportunities that included many corner kicks, does not bode well for the rest of the season, including games against Big West Conference opponents.

2017/08/26 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
First Apple computer ever made Screenshot from an SNL parody of Trump's rally in Phoenix (1) A couple of interesting pictures: [Left] First Apple computer ever made, sold for $667 in 1976 and 1000x that amount at auction in 2013. [Right] Screenshot from an SNL parody of Trump's rally in Phoenix.
(2) Removing a statue is no more a revision of history than impeaching a president: In both cases, we come to realize that what we did was ill-advised and muster the courage to own up to and correct our mistake.
(3) Funny protest signs, batch 1: Two more batches coming on future days.
(4) Exaggeration by a factor of 3.6 isn't really a lie, by Trump's standards: He claimed a crowd size of 15,000 in his tweet, whereas the Phoenix Fire Department indicated a crowd of 4169 in a venue with capcity of 4200.
(5) Twitter is officially banned in Iran, but anybody who is anybody is using it: Thus begins an article about Iran's top tweeters, which include several government officials, conservative and reformist opposition figures, and journalists.
(6) Hurricane Harvey hits Texas with a vengeance: Meanwhile, hurricane Donald, too busy hiring and firing press people, still hasn't gotten around to naming heads for FEMA and NOAA.
(7) Trump pardons Sheriff Joe Arpaio: Arpaio was convicted under Arizona's state laws, which makes Trump's pardon a case of Federal government interfering in state affairs, though he has the authority to pardon anyone. More than a simple pardon of one person, Trump's action is seen as a signal to his current and former aides to not cut deals with the Special Counsel investigating connections with Russia, essentially telling them that Trump would pardon anyone who is loyal to him.
(8) College soccer: UCSB's 2017 season began last night, with a match against St. Mary's. I chose to watch soccer over the last installment of the James Bond summer film series, "Skyfall."
Luckily for UCSB, the score was 0-0 at halftime. A slow-moving defense, routinely circumvented by fast forward and wing players, and imprecise passing were just two of the problems. The goalie performed well, however.
It was still scoreless at the end of the second half, which was a tad more evenly played. Per college soccer rules, there were two 10-minute overtime periods, where the first team to score wins (golden goal).
The overtime periods were also scoreless, leading to the final score 0-0, a desirable outcome for UCSB, given St. Mary's dominance throughout the game.
(9) Today is Women's Equality Day in America: The August 26 observance commemorates the passage of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution, giving women the right to vote in 1920.

2017/08/24 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Turing Laureates at the ceremony to celebrate the award's 50th anniversary (1) Turing Laureates celebrate the award's 50th anniversary: This photo shows 15 of the 22 honorees present at the event celebrating the Turing Award, informally known as the Nobel Prize of computing. [Photo credit: Communications of the ACM, issue of September 2017]
(2) The cleaner, more logical structure of the Persian calendar compared with the Gregorian (Western) calendar. [Image]
(3) Pot to kettle: North Korea criticizes Trump's Twitter habits, calling them weird and ego-driven!
(4) Some fine people among Trump supporters. [Credit: Time magazine, issue of August 28, 2017]
(5) What a difference a year makes: From "Mexico will pay for the wall" (2016) to "If Congress does not pay for it, I will shut down the government" (2017)!
(6) Creative photo editing! [Image]
(7) Anderson Cooper deconstructs Trump's lie-a-minute Arizona speech: Unfortunately, it's no longer about documenting Trump's lies in the hopes of having his supporters see the light. That will never happen. It's now about the sane majority taking the controls away from a hateful, conspiracy-minded minority.
(8) The greatest disservice one can do is to teach naturally happy, trusting, and tolerant children to hate.
(9) Final thought for the day: Yesterday's flight back from Portland to Santa Barbara was uneventful, which is good! But it was quite heartbreaking to see multiple wildfires raging in Oregon, with the largest one being more than a month old. One airline-industry innovation, which I encountered for the first time on this trip, is offering on-board wi-fi access, not just for communications, but also for entertainment on passengers' personal devices. This likely saves airlines a bunch for not having to worry about providing devices on seat-backs and doing away with the associated maintenance and obsolescence challenges.

2017/08/23 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Grande Galerie of Louvre Museum, abandoned during World War II Poor mother and children during the Great Depression (California, 1936) San Francisco's Market Street after the 1906 earthquake (1) History in pictures: [Left] Grande Galerie of Louvre Museum, abandoned during World War II. [Center] Poor mother and children during the Great Depression (California, 1936). [Right] San Francisco's Market Street after the 1906 earthquake.
(2) Our morning in Seattle: We began by taking the monorail downtown and strolling around the city. We next visited the Pike Place Market, sampled the fruit and food, and listened to street musicans. [Photos] [Music video 1] [Music video 2] Google Photos made this nice slide show with music from some of our shots. The final stop on our stroll in downtown was Starbucks Roastery on Pike Street. This is where the now-giant company had its humble beginning. In this expansive store, you can watch coffee beans being roasted and enjoy a large variety of exotic drinks not found in ordinary coffee shops. [Photos] [Video]
(3) Seattle's Museum of Pop Culture: Special exhibits today included the history of science-fiction, a separate section on "Star Trek," a guitar gallery (where both the evolution of guitar as a musical instrument and guitars owned by famous musicians were on display), a digital-games gallery, and a special tribute to David Bowie. A maternal cousin of mine, a long-time resident of Seattle, accompanied us on this visit. [Photos] [Video]
(4) Final activities for the day in Seattle: Picnic-Style late lunch (take-out food) and a stroll in a beautiful park near downtown with a Seattle-resident cousin, followed by a drive-through visit to the University of Washington, so that my daughter could form an idea of the campus. [Photos]
(5) Hurry up: You have only a few hundred million years to catch a total solar eclipse. As the moon slowly drifts away from the Earth, totality will go extinct.
(6) Musical performance in Kermanshah, Iran, nearly five decades ago, 1970. [1-minute video]
(7) Steve Bannon's first all-out attack on Trump: Breitbart slams his Afghanistan speech.
(8) Yesterday in Olympia, Washington: After having a very tasty, authentic Italian pizza in the Capitol district of Olympia, we visited both the old and new Capitol buildings and walked along the magnificent waterfront, before continuing on to Seattle. [Photos] [Panorama]
(9) Last night in Seattle: What should have been a 3.5-hour drive from Lincoln City, Oregon, to Seattle took us 7+ hours (not counting our stop in Olympia), owing to unusually heavy traffic and a large brush fire on both sides of the freeway along the way. Once in Seattle, we walked to the Space Needle from our hotel, leaving the exploration of the Pike Place Market and Museum of Pop Culture for tomorrow. [Photos]

2017/08/21 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
NASA's beautiful capture of today's total solar eclipse (1) The great solar eclipse of 2017: My daughter and I watched from a Starbucks patio in Salem-Keizer, Oregon. We were unable to find viewing glasses, but as we sat trying to figure out the best way to enjoy the experience, a group of Middle-Easterners (perhaps students) sat nearby and began taking out their viewing glasses. I asked one member of the group where they got their glasses. He said that he had an extra pair, and immediately reached into his backpack to retrieve them for us. My daughter and I shared that pair. At 10:10 AM, the area was in a soft glow, like late evening hours. By 10:20 AM, the totality, which lasted a tad under 2 minutes, was over. Here are some highlights of the eclipse in Salem, Oregon. After we watched the eclipse in Salem-Keizer, my daughter and I drove to Salem and went to visit the Capitol Building, just as the crowds shown in this video were dispersing. [Photo by NASA]
(2) On scientific predictions: Several prominent scientists and science advocates have pointed out that whereas we had been told many decades ago about today's total solar eclipse, with precise predictions about the time of occurrence, the event had no skeptics or deniers!
(3) Rescheduling the eclipse: Here is a story on the margins of today's once-in-a-lifetime experience. When a museum in Dallas announced a free solar eclipse viewing event, a mom asked that the event be rescheduled to a weekend day, so that kids don't miss school.
(4) Comedian Jerry Lewis dead at 91: I grew up with his films (many with Dean Martin) and his comedy, which seems quite silly looking back.
(5) Mysterious piano appears at La Cumbre Peak in Santa Barbara: Instagrammer 'Josegarcia_4' said he wanted to add to the peak's beauty. "I thought it would be a great idea to bring these two things that I love together. Music with an incredible view, it's like the cherry on top for La Cumbre Peak."
(6) Today in Salem, Oregon: After visiting Oregon's Capitol Building (including its entry hall, Senate and House chambers, governor's ceremonial office, and its beautiful grounds), we walked to the waterfront, taking some photos along the way and by the river. An interesting feature of downtown Salem streets is the flower pots hung from some light and traffic-signal posts. [Photos] [Panorama 1] [Panorama 2]
(7) This afternoon at Oregon State University: My daughter and I spent a couple of hours on the OSU campus, my MS-degree alma mater (1969-1970). We walked by Sackett Hall, the graduate-student dormitory, whose wing C housed me then, the engineering area, and the magnificent Memorial Union. After grabbing a bite to eat, we were fortunate to be able to have coffee with my dear Facebook friend Nasim Basiri, who had arrived at OSU just days ago to pursue a PhD degree and to teach in women's studies. [Photos] [Panorama]
(8) Lincoln City, Oregon: At the end of today, here is where we ended up, walking on the beach, dining at a seafood restaurant, and relaxing at our overnight airbnb accommodations. We walked a lot, both yesterday (8 miles) and today (5 miles). [Photos]
(9) Yesterday in Portland: As part of our solar-eclipse trip to northern Oregon, my daughter and I explored the city of Portland. We visited the world-famous Powell Books, a city-block-size heaven for book lovers. I took notes at their "New & Recommended" bookshelf, while trying hard not to yield to temptation! While my daughter spend part of the afternoon with an old friend, I visited OMSI, Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, with its wonderful exhibits, hands-on science and technology displays for curious people of all ages, and book/gift shop. And here are some photos from our morning stroll downtown and at Oregon Health Sciences University (one of the schools my daughter is considering for MD/PhD), taking the sky-cabin to the waterfront, and walking over a bridge devoted to pedestrians, bikers, and mass transit.

2017/08/19 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Rolling of the eyes: A picture is worth a thousand words. Traditional strongmen ('pahlavans') are shown holding up elevated roadways in these Tehran murals Funny yard-sale lawn sign (1) Interesting pictures to ponder about. [Left] Rolling of the eyes: A picture is worth a thousand words. [Center] Traditional strongmen ("pahlavans") are shown holding up elevated roadways in these Tehran murals. [Right] Funny yard-sale lawn sign.
(2) The psychology of hate: "In a study by Stanford neuroscientist David Eagleman, the brains of participants were scanned while they watched as six hands on a screen were randomly swabbed with cotton or stabbed with a needle. When people witnessed the hands that were punctured by the syringe, the regions of their brains associated with pain activated. They felt empathy. The study was then replicated and each hand was displayed with a one-word religious label such as atheist, Christian, Jew or Muslim. When participants saw the hands being stabbed of those who shared their religious affiliations, their brains on average showed more activity in the regions known for empathy. Even atheists were more empathetic towards fellow atheists. As concludes Eagleman in his book The Brain: The Story of You: 'It's about which team you're on'." [Newsweek story]
(3) Late-night talk-shows: Even though they have a seemingly inexhaustible daily supply of material for their humor, hosts of all four major late-night talk shows would rather see their source of jokes gone! Seth Meyers and Jimmy Kimmel have had particularly brutal comedy routines about the liar-in-chief.
(4) Persian poetry: A folk tale or proverb from Sa'adi's Boustan, warning against being so self-centered as not to mind the burning of half a city, as long as our own house or business is spared.
(5) The paradox of tolerance: First described by Karl Popper in 1945, this decision-theory paradox states that if a society is tolerant without limit, its ability to be tolerant will eventually be seized or destroyed by the intolerant. Hence, Popper's seemingly paradoxical conclusion that in order to maintain a tolerant society, the society must be intolerant of intolerance!
(6) Quote of the day: "All these folks worried about erasing history when the Confederate statues come down will be thrilled to learn about the existence of books." ~ Jamil Smith
(7) Final thought for the week: Yes, that's for the week, not for the day! I am signing off for a few days, as I prepare to travel to the Salem, Oregon, area to experience the total solar eclipse of 2017 (coming on Monday 8/21, 10:16 AM). My daughter and I will take the opportunity of going to the beautiful Pacific Northwest to visit Portland, Seattle, and the Oregon coastline, and to pay a quick visit to my MS-degree alma mater, Oregon State University in Corvallis.

2017/08/18 (Friday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cincinnati's old main library, demolished in 1955 The German airship Hindenburg flies over NYC in 1937 Candidates for the job of painting the Brooklyn Bridge, showing that they have what it takes A restored photograph of Abraham Lincoln Chevrolet assembly line, 1957 Manhattan Beach, CA, in the 1950s (1) History in pictures. [Top left] A man browsing for books in Cincinnati's old main library, which was demolished in 1955. [Top center] The German airship Hindenburg flies over NYC in 1937. [Top right] Candidates for the job of painting the Brooklyn Bridge: The four men are being put to the test to see if they have what it takes (1926). [Bottom left] A restored photograph of Abraham Lincoln, which was used for the design on the penny. [Bottom center] Chevrolet assembly line, 1957. [Bottom right] Manhattan Beach, CA, in the 1950s.
(2) General Kelly's posture and downward gaze spoke volumes, as he listened to Trump taking back his condemnation of white supremacists and neo-Nazis during a bizarre news conference!
(3) The retweet that was deleted: Donald Trump's retweet showed Trump Train smashing into a man, with his torso and head replaced by the CNN logo. Apparently, the similarity of this image with the car mowing down protesters in Charlottesville did not occur to our high-IQ, tweeting president!
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day and other miscellaneous items of interest:
- Fiat-Chrysler, BMW, and Intel to team up for developing self-driving cars.
- Hundreds dead in Sierra Leone mudslide: Rain continues to fall, creating additional dangers.
- Talk about "top of the world": So impressive! [Photo and video]
- Cartoon of the day: The allies attacked the Nazis from all sides in World War II, and they had no permit!
- Model photographed on a Paris street in 1920. [B&W photo]
- Missouri State Senator urged to resign over expressing 'hope' for Trump's assassination.
(5) The most-liked tweet in history: "No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin or his background or his religion ... " ~ Barack Obama [Photo]
(6) Reactions to Trump's comments on racism: Three prominent magazines (Time, The New Yorker, The Economist) respond with cover images.
(7) Steve Bannon leaves the White House: As we cheer his firing, let us not forget that he was at least partially competent for the job he had, whereas the boss who fired him has zero competence and no credibility! Right after the firing, Breitbart turned on Trump and reinstated Bannon in the position he held before joining the Trump team. Little will change as a result, though. Anti-Trump forces will continue to distrust Breitbart, the original fake-news source. Trump supporters will easily lump it with CNN, NYT, WP, and other sources they consider fake news. Here is a depiction of Trump's White House after seven months: Flynn, Spicer, Priebus, and Bannon aer gone. Can he fire Pence? Sebastian Gorka is rumored to be the next adviser to fall: He served as an assistant to Bannon.

2017/08/17 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Helmet cam from 1966 (1) History in pictures: Formula One world champion wearing an early helmet camera to capture on-board footage in 1966.
(2) Mississippi's first inter-racial couple: August 3, 1970. [Photo]
(3) College soccer season is about to begin at UCSB. [Image]
(4) Goleta Public Library secedes from the Santa Barbara Library System: Conflict had been brewing for some time over what the Goleta staff considered excessive overhead fees and stifling regulations. It is estimated that going solo will save money and lead to more of the donations going toward book purchases. [Source: Santa Barbara Independent]
(5) Stanford computer science lecturer ladysplains the now-infamous Google manifesto and why it has won so much support.
(6) A dozen killed, scores injured in Barcelona's terror attack: Islamic State claims responsibility for a van plowing into a crowd. Two suspects have been arrested.
(7) Finding humor in death: What message would you want etched on your gravestone? Here are a dozen funny ones.
- Merv Griffin: I will not be right back after this message.
- Frances T. Dederich Thatcher: Damn, it's dark down here.
- Robert Clay Allison: He never killed a man that did not need killing.
- Billy Wilder: I'm a writer. But then, nobody's perfect.
- Andrew J. Olszak: Pardoned in old age by wife and children.
- Gay Vietnam veteran: ... they gave me a medal for killing two men and a discharge for loving one.
- Joel Dermid: My loss, but your gain.
- Jerry L. Farrer: I was supposed to live to be 102 and be shot by a jealous husband.
- Anonymous: I was hoping for a pyramid.
- Esther E. Freer: I'd rather be reading this.
- Pancrazio Juvenales: Buen esposo, buen padre, mal electricista casero.
- Steve and Anya: ... Mastercard & Visa still looking for the payment they missed.
(8) Michael Chabon's open letter to 45's Jewish supporters: He addresses all Jews, particularly Jared Kushner, Steve Mnuchin, and others who serve him. "To Sheldon Adelson and our other fellow Jews still engaged in making the repugnant calculation that a hater of Arabs must be a lover of Jews, or that money trumps hate, or that a million dollars' worth of access can protect you from one boot heel at the door: Wise up."
(9) RIP, Trump presidency: Resist racism and bigotry! Insist on your rights! Persist in seeking justice!

2017/08/16 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photos of Neda Agha-Soltan and Heather Heyer (1) Two women freedom fighters: Several posts on social media since the events in Charlottesville have noted the parallels between Neda Agha-Soltan, who died in June 2009, when government-backed thugs and snipers targeted peaceful marchers protesting Iran's rigged elections, and Heather Heyer, who was intentionally mowed down in August 2017 by a bigot's car, because she was peacefully protesting the hateful messages of Nazis, white supremacists, and KKK, newly empowered by the Trump administration.
Neda's death became an inflection point in the opposition and freedom movements in Iran. Will Heather's death advance similar causes in the US?
(2) Turning the body into a cancer fighter: A new approach, awaiting FDA approval converts the body's own cells into cancer-destroying agents. Here is how it works. [Source: Time magazine, August 21, 2017]
- T cells, which can seek and destroy cancer cells, are extracted from a patient's blood.
- The T cells are genetically modified to produce chimeric antigen receptors that make them better fighters.
- The CAR T cells are grown in large numbers in the lab and are infused back into the patient.
- The CAR T cell receptors recognize unique proteins on the cancer cells, latching onto and destroying them.
(3) Advice on the desirability of solitude: "Before you can be with others, first learn to be alone." This is the title of an article by Jennifer Stitt, with Persian translation by Erfan Sabeti. Lately, many sociologists and psychologists have made this same point about the need to be able to spend some time with yourself.
(4) See if you can name these five musicians, photographed at the 1975 Grammy Awards. What about the five musicians in this old photo?
(5) Mesmerizing gif images created by a blind artist.
(6) Many white nationalists who do genetic ancestry testing don't like the results: They aren't as white as they think. One prominent member of the group was determined to be 86% European and 14% African.
(7) Mom-Killing: This is the title of a 76-minute documentary in Persian ("Maadar-Koshi") about the crisis awaiting the human race (Iranians, in particular) in terms of water shortage, resulting from serious abuse of Earth's resources. This abuse amounts to killing Mother Earth, hence the title.
(8) A recurring pattern: Trump embarrasses himself and his party by saying or doing something utterly unpresidential and the Republicans grumble in tweets and on-camera statements. But after a few days, they rally around the bigot-in-chief and liar-in-chief, as if nothing had happened. Taking their congressional majorities away from them is the only way to make them see that their abhorrent behavior has a cost.
(9) James Bond film screening at UCSB's Campbell Hall: In this penultimate installment of this summer's film series, I watched "Goldeneye," with Pierce Brosnan as Bond. Afterwards, I snapped this photo of Campbell Hall, before it went dark.

2017/08/15 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
A statue being toppled in the US Faces of hatred and violence look the same everywhere Anti-nazi protester who escaped the Nazis once (1) Some thought-provoking pictures. [Left] Toppling statues isn't appropriate for citizens of a country where the rule of law is respected; see item 2 below. [Center] The faces of hatred and violence look the same everywhere: Iran, top; America, bottom. [Right] Woman who survived the Nazis in Europe holds anti-nazi sign in a protest against Charlottesville march of racists and bigots; see item 3 below.
(2) Toppling statues is so Third-World: I do understand that honoring traitors and white supremacists is hurtful to groups that have been victimized by their actions and to others who defend justice and freedom for all, but we are a nation of laws and there are much better ways of fielding our grievances. Take your ideas about removing statues or erecting new ones to city councils and other civil bodies. Suggest that statues of historical figures who are not universally admired be moved to museums and be displayed as part of balanced narratives of our country's past. If you don't succeed in having a statue removed, simply accept it like any other unpleasant fact of life and move on.
(3) To my pro-Trump Jewish friends: Trump's support for Israel, like his support for Alt-Right groups, is just a slogan to appease his voters. He would abandon any group of supporters if it is politically expedient. A genuinely pro-Israel president would not appoint a political novice as an emissary for solving a decades-long conflict that has taken thousands of lives. Peacemaking requires a genuine respect for both sides of the conflict.
(4) Floating +pool in NYC: This large plus-shaped pool can float in any body of water and can filter the water intake to make it safe for swimming. It has been deployed on the Hudson River in New York City.
(5) Too bad the e-mails diversion made us miss Hillary Clinton's warnings about the empowerment of white supremacists and other hate groups. [Video]
(6) Enabler-in-Chief: Here is how Trump emboldened white supremacists and gave them permission to attack their opponents. Today, he essentially took back his condemnation of hate groups, by claiming that most of the people gathered in Charlottesville did not belong to the hate groups he had named, that they were there to peacefully protest the removal of a statue of Robert E. Lee, and that alt-left instigated the attacks.
(7) Oklahoma City dodges a second bombing: A 23-year-old man, who activated what he thought was a detonator for a bomb, supplied to him as part of a sting operation, has been arrested and charged. The first OKC bombing was perpetrated in 1995 by anti-government militant Timothy McVeigh.
(8) Google's DeepMind AI teaches itself by watching videos: The new system learns concepts, even when it has not learned the words to describe what it hears or sees. Instead of relying on human-labeled datasets, the new algorithm learns to recognize images and sounds by matching what it sees with what it hears. The potential of learning by analyzing huge unlabeled datasets, such as millions of YouTube videos, is immense. [Source: New Scientist, August 10, 2017]
(9) Final thought for the day: Two-thirds of white men and 53% of white women in America voted for Trump. So, when David Duke warns Trump not to forget that he was elected by white America, he is absolutely right. This is why Trump can't criticize white supremacists (and, by the way, the same reason he can't criticize Putin)!

2017/08/14 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Selfie with a stick, 1934 Paying tribute to horses, donkeys, and mules that died during World War I Woman receiving a ticket for wearing a bikini in Italy This rhino-size 1956 hard disk drive had a capacity of 5 MB VW bug owners watching a 'Herbie' movie at a 1960s drive-in theater Children of Chicago, 1941 (1) History in pictures. [Top left] Selfie with a stick, 1934. [Top center] Soldiers pay tribute to 8 million horses, donkeys, and mules that died during World War I. [Top right] Woman receiving a ticket for wearing a bikini on a beach at Remini, Italy. [Bottom left] A rhino-size 5 MB computer hard-drive being loaded onto a PanAm plane in 1956. [Bottom center] Volkswagen bug owners watching "Herbie, The Love Bug" at a 1960s drive-in theater. [Bottom right] Children of Chicago, 1941.
(2) An oft-ignored Nazi legacy: A thought-provoking film about how children and grandchildren of war criminals deal with their guilt by association. A grim reminder of the legacy of Nazis in the wake of Charlottesville events.
(3) A very talented 16-year-old: Ethan Bortnick, whom I saw on a PBS television concert on Saturday, sings songs of several generations, with a voice that foretells of greatness. He is also a songwriter, pianist, composer, actor, and philanthropist. Here is a 4-minute teaser for his concert, which should not be missed.
(4) Paid maternity leave around the world: I posted an interesting collection of 40 world maps years ago. Here, I'd like to single out one of those maps. Ours is the only major country with no paid maternity leave, accompanied by Surinam, Liberia, and 5 other small Third-World countries.
(5) Racism and bigotry have consequences: Some participants in the Charlottesville rally have been outed through social-media efforts and at least one has lost his job.
(6) An explanation of irregular verbs in English. [4-minute video]
(7) Pets have significant carbon pawprints due to the meat they consume. [Image from Time magazine, issue of August 21, 2017]
(8) Kennedy Center honorees have harsh words for the Trump Administration: They express disappointment over Trump gutting the budget for arts and humanities. One honoree, legendary producer Norman Lear, will skip the White House reception preceding the ceremony, though he doesn't know what he will do if Trump and his wife are seated among the honorees, as is customary, during the awards ceremony. Another honoree, immigrant Gloria Estefan, will try to make a point that immigrants have had and are having significant positive impact on the US. The ceremony will be on December 3, 2017, with CBS broadcasting it on 12/26, 9:00 PM ET.
(9) I have logged off my e-mail account and won't log back on until tomorrow morning. This is to allow our IT staff to complete the transition from campus-based e-mail servers to Google Connect (a UCSB-customized version of "Google Apps for Education" platform), which will provide seamless e-mail (work/personal), calendaring, collaboration, and other services. I have just returned from an information session about the transition process and am excited to set up and start using the new service tomorrow.

2017/08/13 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Professor Lotfi A. Zadeh in his later years (1) Professor Lotfi A. Zadeh dead at 96: Born on February 4, 1921, in Baku, Azerbaijan, and educated at University of Tehran and Columbia University, he was best known for his formulation of fuzzy logic and its later generalization to soft computing. According to Google Scholar, Zadeh's research papers have been cited a total of 150,000 times, with his ground-breaking paper on fuzzy sets alone receiving nearly 60,000 citations. When he settled in the United States, he shortened his name from the original "Lotf-Ali Asgarzadeh." I met him on November 3, 2000, when his BISC research group at UC Berkeley invited me to present a talk entitled "Gaining Speed and Cost Advantage from Imprecise Computer Arithmetic," a precursor of a field of research now known as approximate computing. We kept in touch since then via e-mail, as he kindly endorsed my application or nomination for various honors. May his soul rest in peace!
(2) Separation of powers: It's alarming that Trump thinks members of Congress are there to help and follow him, rather than represent the interests of their constituents. As much as I detest Mitch "do-nothing" McConnell and other Republicans who talked about repealing Obamacare for years, without thinking through a replacement plan, I detest Trump even more for thinking that he can bully his way to legislative victories.
(3) Do you miss a president who was an orator, now that you have one who talks like a NYC cabbie? If so, this 2-minute video clip of Obama talking about climate change is for you.
(4) History in pictures: These aren't Iranian men wearing scarves to show solidarity with women objecting to mandatory hijab laws. They are LAPD officers going undercover to pursue a purse-snatcher in 1960. [Photo]
(5) Piano with Johnny: A ragtime-jazz version of the birthday song for all those who are celebrating birthdays. This talented Disney pianist has many other wonderful performances on YouTube.
(6) Gypsy Kings concert in Tehran: Hard to believe, but there they are, in four photos and a video! Maybe this is what caused flooding in northeastern Iran!
(7) Quote of the day: "The poison spewed by Nazis, white supremacists, and the KKK is not who we are as a country. Takes less than 140 characters to say it." ~ Sally Yates
(8) On the Charlottesville events (march by Nazis, white supremacists, and KKK): This is no time to condemn violence on all sides. You don't blame all sides when a Muslim terrorist mows down people with a car, do you? One by one, Trump aides and apologists appeared on various Sunday news shows to claim that his condemnation of Charlottesville "was perfectly clear"!
(9) Carillon recital at UCSB's Storke Tower: There aren't very many functioning carillons around the world, and UCSB has one of them atop Storke Tower. Today, Department of Music Adjunct Professor Margo Halsted played the carillon for one hour, beginning at 1:00 PM. After the recital, which was streamed live on Facebook, I took the opportunity to photograph Storke Tower and its surroundings, including its pond with colorful flowers and fairly large fish. [Photos] [Video 1] [Video 2, "Music of the Night"] [Video 3] [Video 4]

2017/08/12 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
A photographer, looking like a robot Hidden Buddha statue near Sapporo, Japan The little girl in the movie 'Titanic,' then and now (1) Some interesting photographs. [Left] This isn't a robot, but a photographer holding a camera in front of his face! [Center] Hidden Buddha: A hill of 150,000 lavenders has been built around the giant statue in the outskirts of Sapporo, Japan, because it was deemed too imposing for the pristine environment of the cemetery where it is located. [Right] The little girl in the 1997 movie "Titanic," then and now.
(2) After driverless cars, will come pilotless planes: Research by investment bank UBS indicates that pilotless passenger planes will save the airline industry $35 billion a year and could lead to substantial fare cuts, that is, if people choose to actually fly in them (54% of respondents in a poll said they were unlikely to take a pilotless flight). [Fortune and USA Today have reported on this story]
(3) On anti-Semitism in Iran: The ruling mullahs and a sizable subset of their opposition share in anti-Semitic views. Whereas they all proclaim that they have nothing against Jews, they accuse anyone opposing them as being Jewish, Zionist, or an infiltrator planted by Jews or Israel. Prevailing narratives in this area use several perjorative terms to refer to such undesirable Jews. Even former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was accused of being a Jew pretending to be Muslim (much like the years-long assertions that Obama was a closet Muslim). [Radio Zamaneh's Persian article on this subject]
(4) Blues Beatles' rendition of "You Can't Do That": The Fab Four's music sounds great in any style! Look for other performances by Blues Beatles on YouTube.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines and noteworthy Internet memes of the day:
- White Supremacists hold rally at University of Virginia: Clashes with counter-protesters reported.
- Making America great again, one city at a time: Charlottesville, check! 19,353 cities to go!
- Flooding in northeastern Iranian provinces leaves 11 dead. [Video caption incorrectly says "northwestern"]
- Ridiculously overloaded vehicles from around the world: Pictorial with 23 photos.
- Fire and fury | will not stop | the grand jury!
- How to safely view an eclipse with a cereal box. [NASA instructional video]
(6) Kim Jong Un's major gift to Donald Trump, China, and Russia: North Korea's threat of nuclear attack has given Trump the perfect tool to deflect attention from the Russia probe and other woes, while quieting his opponents, who do not dare criticize him in the face of a dire national-security situation. Meanwhile, China and Russia are playing the good guys by counseling calm on both sides, even though, secretly, they take delight in seeing the US enter an international crisis.
(7) Observation by comedian Bill Maher: How ironic that the two bombs dropped by the US on Japan almost exactly 72 years ago were code-named "Fat Man" and "Little Boy"! We seem to have come full circle.
(8) CNN severs ties with Jeffrey Lord for using a Nazi slogan on social media: Of course, he was just being facetious, not! I didn't know about Lord's Nazi links, but I was outraged by the way he always offered an "explanation" for the most idiotic Trump statements or actions. Anderson Cooper once said to his face that if Trump defecated on his desk, he will come up with a justification! Trump supporters seem to be falling like flies.
(9) Final thought for the day: "Most presidents evolve and become more mature with experience in the Oval Office. Trump may be the only one devolving and turning more infantile with time served." ~ Anonymous

2017/08/11 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Graduating physicians in 1885 Philadelphia Penniless young family hitchhiking in 1936 Young Saddam Hussein joking around with a female companion (1) History in pictures. [Left] Just-graduated physicians in 1885 Philadelphia: Women from India, Japan, and Syria. [Center] Penniless young family hitchhiking on US Highway 99 in California (November 1936). [Right] Young Saddam Hussein with a female companion: Totally irresistible charm!
(2) UC Irvine's admissions snafu: This story about the withdrawal of 500 admission offers by UC Irvine is from several days ago, but now that NYT has covered it, I am sharing the story. Withdrawal of admission over incomplete paperwork or other problems in the dossier isn't uncommon and it has been done by other UC campuses as well. What is unusual is the large number of students affected. The article explains that colleges sometimes underestimate how many students will accept their admission offers, leaving them in a bind to either create room or look for excuses to revoke some of the offers.
(3) Half-dozen brief tech news headlines of the day:
- Chinese developers file antitrust complaint against Apple (WSJ)
- A stretch of road in France has been paved with solar panels (BBC)
- Ford studies fix to carbon monoxide leaks in police SUVs (Detroit News)
- Power plants burning West Virginia coal to get subsidies (Bloomberg)
- Solar power industry prepping for the August 21 solar exlipse (Vox)
- Canada's anti-Google ruling has broad free-speech implications (Yahoo)
(4) Two views of the current stand-off with North Korea: Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper likens it to World War I, when the world blundered into conflict. President Trump, on the other hand, views the situation like a game of poker, tweeting: "Military solutions are now fully in place, locked and loaded, should North Korea act unwisely. Hopefully Kim Jong Un will find another path!"
(5) Trump's response to Putin's expelling 755 US diplomats: Trump makes light of the situation by thanking Putin (jokingly, I suppose) for reducing our payroll costs. Hundreds of people lose their jobs because of Putin's action and Trump jokes about it? No criticism of Putin, no harsh words for him? What roles were the 755 employees playing in Russia? How will their functions be replaced? Even assuming that we want to reduce our payroll, why should we let Putin decide which positions to cut?
(6) Ironic fact: Glen Campbell's final studio album, released just weeks before his death, is entitled "Adios."
(7) SNL's Weekend Update summer edition premiered on NBC to good reviews: Scaramucci was like Christmas in July; actually, he was like Hanukkah in July, because he was around for about a week and it's a miracle he lasted that long!
(8) Meanwhile on Facebook: It's National Book Week. The rules are: Grab the closest book to you. Go to page 56. Copy the 5th sentence as your status. Don't mention the book. Post these rules as part of your status.
"Even if famine, plague and war become less prevalent, billions of humans in developing countries and seedy neighbourhoods will continue to deal with poverty, illness and violence even as the elites are already reaching for eternal youth and godlike powers."

2017/08/10 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
'This Modern World' cartoon by Tom Tomorrow (1) Cartoon of the day: Last panel of "This Modern World" comic strip, suggesting why Trump thinks that he received congratulatory phone calls from the Chief Boy Scout and the President of Mexico.
(2) One of a series of useful PSAs to help us recognize fake news sources: There are fake sources that we all know based on their track records. Then there are fake sources that pretend to be legitimate media outlets we trust by using a trusted source's name within their Web domain names. [Video]
(3) North Koreans hold rally to mock Trump and renew their threat of military action: Thousands vow to "become bullets and bombs" to defend their regime. "[Trump is] bereft of reason," says the kettle to the pot!
(4) Archaeologists uncover "little Pompeii" south of Lyon: Famous for its Roman theater and temple, the city of Vienne was a key hub on the route connecting northern Gaul with the Roman province of Gallia Narbonensis.
(5) Former President Obama sings Ed Sheeran's "Shape of You": Nice montage!
(6) Half-dozen brief Donald Trump news headlines of the day:
- Transgender service members sue Trump over his exclusion order (NYT)
- Seventy percent of Americans think looking at Trump finances fair game in Russia investigation (CNN)
- Trump picks racist birther Sam Clovis to head FDA's science division (Scientific American)
- Trump's Tudor-style early-childhood home is listed on Airbnb (CNN)
- Trump's solution to opioid crisis: Telling kids drugs are 'no good' (NY Magazine)
- Trump says his 'fire and fury' response wasn't tough enough (Yahoo News)
(7) Trump doubles down on his response to North Korea: In fact, he says that perhaps his previous response wasn't tough enough. Here's a question. What is tougher than 'fire and fury' the world has never seen before?
(8) Irreconcilable views: I watched Fox News videos on-line for about half an hour on Tuesday, as I was pursuing stories about a Fox report containing classified material. By the end of the half-hour period, I came to see why those watching Fox News think in a certain way about Trump's presidency. Nowhere in the videos I watched was there a hint of discord in the White House, disagreements between the Congress and the president, the 73% distrust of words spoken by the president revealed by a recent poll, Trump family's many conflicts of interest in their business dealings, and his flip-flopping on scores of issues from his candidacy to his presidency. Let me conclude by citing five news headlines from Fox about the Russia investigation and Special Counsel Robert Mueller; no sign here that the probe is closing in on Trump himself.
- Fox News: Top congressman calls for Mueller to resign
- Judge Jeanine: Russia probe is a phishing expedition
- Fox Nation: Mueller has already destroyed his own legacy
- Sean Hannity: Rod Rosenstein should be ashamed of himself
- Sean Hannity: Mueller's witch hunt is beyond corrupt
(9) History in pictures: Ottoman 1911 calendar page in Ottoman Turkish, Arabic, Greek, Armenian, Hebrew, French, and Hungarian languages.

2017/08/09 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Jovial Afghan girls in traditional costumes at a regional music festival Giant chicken balloon, seen near the White House Distances from North Korea to some US territories and states (1) [left] Afghan girls at a regional music festival. [Center] Giant chicken balloon, with Trump-like hair, seen near the White House. [Right] Distances from North Korea to Guam, Hawaii, and San Francisco: Other US mainland cities may also be within the range of North Korean missiles.
(2) Protocol for the death of a monarch: If and when Queen Elizabeth II passes, the information will be communicated to her private secretary and the prime minister and then, over secure phone lines, to a host of other officials, all by means of the code phrase "London Bridge is down." Next, dozens of countries for which QE II is the official or symbolic head of state will be notified one by one. Eventually, the general public will be informed. Thought you might want to know!
(3) Half-dozen miscellaneous items for your enjoyment.
- The cutest pastry chef ever: She is only 2.5! [Video]
- Amazing graphic art, involving liquid gold. [Video]
- We are fairly comfortable on the CA coast, but it's scorching hot just a few miles inland! [Map]
- The amazing human spirit: Ballet class in a destroyed Russian town during World War II. [Photo]
- Osborne: The very first laptop (for super-strong laps) from 1981. [Photo]
- History in pictures: Taking a screenshot in 1983. [Photo]
(4) Words of wisdom from Moniro Ravanipour: Two statements are forbidden in the Iranian culture. One is saying that you are happy and successful. The other is saying that you don't need anyone's help. You have to play the victimhood and despair cards to be taken seriously. [Persian text]
(5) Income growth, 1980 vs. 2014: The percentage growth used to be higher for low- and middle-income families. Now, not only has the curve flipped, but the discrepancy has gone through the roof. [Source: Bernie Sanders tweet] [Chart]
(6) Half-dozen of today's Trump-related news headlines:
- Donald Trump is fed 'propaganda' every morning to keep him happy
- FBI's raid of Paul Manafort's home indicates that Bob Mueller means business
- Trump calls for acting FBI director's firing after the Manafort home raid
- Trump attacks Mitch McConnell for his failure to repeal Obamacare
- Tillerson and Trump seem to be playing good-cop, bad-cop on North Korea
- Pence is mistaken if he thinks he'll have a political afterlife once Trump exits
(7) This evening on the UCSB campus: After watching "The Spy Who Loved Me," another installment in the James Bond summer film series, I made a brief stop on the way back at a Storke Plaza concert, recorded this sample video, and shot this photo of a nearly-full moon over UCSB's Campbell hall.
(8) Final thought for the day: I'm flattered to be receiving the young-adult e-mail newsletter from GoodReads. They counteract, to some extent, the regular cremation and funeral deals I have been receiving in the mail!

2017/08/08 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) Book review: Barker, Kim, The Taliban Shuffle: Strange Days in Afghanistan and Pakistan, e-book, Doubleday, 2011. [My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Cover image of Kim Barker's 'The Taliban Shuffle' The author of this bittersweet (humorous writing about dire situations) was a reporter at ProPublica and the South Asia Bureau Chief for The Chicago Tribune in the late 2000s. Barker tells us that she got so addicted to the adrenaline rush of war zones that living in the West, along with routine work and family matters, became a downer. Even her relationship with a steady boyfriend suffered in comparison with the thrills of living in a lawless society.
Barker marvels at the utter lack of security in Pakistan and Afghanistan, to the point that even a meeting between the heads of the two states, each with many thousands of sworn enemies, did not have security screening. She argues that two events derailed America's progress in Afghanistan: Diversion of manpower and other resources from Afghanistan to Iraq in 2003 and a US military truck plowing into rush-hour traffic in Kabul some 3 years later, which created much resentment against the Americans.
Barker's book is ultimately about human bonds and understanding the context and circumstances that produce behaviors and customs that appear quite strange at first sight. Another take-away (hardly a revelation) is that incongruities of war bring out the worst in everyone, regardless of why they got involved.
Barker ends on a pessimistic note about the prospects of the US and its allies being able to bring the conflict to a satisfactory resolution. The fragile balance of power in the region and the realities of a harsh environment, with rampant distrust between the warring parties, leaves little room for optimism that a workable system of governance can be implemented. The long-term commitment of the entire world to bring about solutions is simply not in the cards.
The 2016 movie "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot" was based on this book.
(2) President Trump apparently re-tweeted a bot or a fake account: The account @protrump45, whose post Trump retweeted, is a fake account for pro-Trump propaganda, which has since been suspended by Twitter.
(3) US-China relations enter a sensitive phase: Typically, seasoned envoys are sent to deal with China. But, 7 months into the Trump administration, the position of Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia remains vacant. So, Trump is sending novices Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump to lay the groundwork for his own visit. Not only is China too sophisticated an adversary to be handled by novice politicians, but reactions of other Asian countries, especially South Korea and Japan, to such visits requires careful gauging by experienced diplomats.
(4) Climate change draft report published: Fearing that the Trump administration will bury the alarming report, scientists have a draft published by The New York Times as a safeguard.
(5) Two losses in the music world: Country music legend Glen Campbell (81) and Broadway performer Barbara Cook (89) passed away today. I was a regular viewer of Campbell's musical variety show in the 1970s. RIP.
(6) Today is International Cat Day: Our local TV channel, KEYT, celebrates with, what else, cat videos.
(7) The scarred face of a hockey goalie, before masks became mandatory equipment. [Photo]
(8) Leaker-in-Chief: Fox News reported a story containing classified intelligence on US spy satellites detecting movement of anti-ship cruise missiles onto N. Korean patrol boats. President Trump, rather than asking who the leaker was and advocating punishment, tweeted a link to the Fox News story. Ambassador Nikki Haley, on the other hand, refused to discuss the matter with Fox News, on account of it being classified.
[P.S.: The classification and declassification process is dictated by an executive order, which is updated from time to time. Here is the latest version of that executive order.]
(9) A predictable pattern: As usual, Trump has not said a word about the mosque attack in Minnesota. Fortunately, even though worshipers were in the building when a bomb was thrown in through a window, no one was injured. One of Trump's advisers actually said that the attack may have been faked.

2017/08/07 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Newsweek magazine cover, showing Trump sitting on a Lazy Boy recliner (1) Newsweek magazine cover, issue of August 11, 2017.
(2) Northwestern University professor accused of murder.
(3) Smartphones and the future of the young generation: There is increasing evidence that heavy use of smartphones (2 hours a day or more) has a negative impact on young people's mental health. The author of this article in The Atlantic was interviewed on today's PBS Newshour. Girls seem to be affected more than boys. While more detailed studies and controlled experiments are needed, the preliminary signs are unmistakable.
(4) It's the Republicans' turn to be targeted by Russian bots: What goes around comes around!
(5) Google execs denounce engineer's memo attributing gender inequality to biological differences: Both the VP of diversity and engineering VP have criticized the engineer's stereotyping and incorrect assumptions.
(6) Fake news is about to become photo-realistic: Researchers have figured out a method of making fake videos that appear super-realistic. Fake news of the future will be much harder to detect!
(7) Trump may be building a casino in Macau: South China Morning Post reports that DTTM Operations LLC, a Delaware-based company affiliated with the president, filed four trademark applications in Macau under the Trump name, one of which was for gambling and casino services and facilities.
(8) Yesterday in Fiesta events: After spending some time with visiting friends from the SF Bay Area, I attended some Fiesta performances at Paseo Nuevo Mall's outdoors stage. Later in the afternoon, I attended a "Spanish-flavored" concert by the West Coast Symphony Orchestra at SB Courthouse's Sunken Garden.
- Instrumental music performance at Paseo Nuevo Mall.
- A short sample of West Coast Symphony Orchestra's Fiesta concert.
[When I returned home, I found this exotic visitor in my courtyard! I had begun the process of seeking help from the Wildlife Care Network (suggested by non-emergency police dispatch), when it quietly moved away.]
(9) Final thought for the day: Love thy neighbors; not just your English-speaking, highly skilled, rich, self-supporting neighbors but all of them.

2017/08/05 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Iranian women walking near a mosque in Shiraz US price list for selected itens in 1938 Hanging play cage for children from the late 1930s (1) [Left] Iranian women show their colors (and style) in Shiraz!
[Center] The good old days: Some data points for cost of living in the US eight decades ago.
[Right] History in pictures: Baby cage from 1937, for families who did not have outdoors play areas.
(2) Quote of the day: "Give me your wealthy, your rich, your huddled MBAs yearning to be tax-free, your English-speaking, fully insured, to me. I lift my lamp beside the golden door! And lift my leg upon your filthy poor. P.S.: No fatties, please." ~ Stephen Colbert
(3) Kurdish territories in Iran and other countries of the Middle East in the first half of the 20th century: This first slide show focuses on Jews and Jewish traditions of the region. And this second slide show features Kurdish fashions from the region for the same time period.
(4) Two interesting photos: Drive-in movie theater, from 1955, and the amazing tree that refuses to die, bringing to mind the words of Jeff Goldblum's character in "Jurassic Park," that life finds a way!
(5) Obama impersonator says some of the things Trump has said: The Real Obama would have been lynched, believe me! Bill Maher turning facts into brilliant comedy, as usual.
(6) Cartoon of the day: Disappointing moments in evolution. [By John Atkinson] [Image]
(7) The embarrassing way in which Iranian members of parliament competed to take photos with Federica Mogherini: The same men, who deem Iranian women incapable of holding leadership positions, salivate over a powerful, blonde, blue-eyed foreign woman. The accompanying Persian text is a satirical take on what Mogrini might write in her memoirs about how she was treated by Iran's male politicians.
(8) Half-dozen brief items of note.
- Smart folks: Rather than standing in line, they sit down and let their shoes keep their places in line.
- A teacher explains and demonstrates how Hellen Keller (also shown in this video) learned to speak.
- Castle Bazaar in Guilan, Iran. [Photo]
- A wonderful a cappella performance: Iran's Damour Vocal Band performs music from memorable cartoons.
- Simon and Gurfunkel reunited after many years to play "The Sound of Silence," sounding as good as ever.
- "Millennial Song": Different lyrics on Beatles' "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" [3-minute video]
(9) Fiesta celebrations in Santa Barbara: There were musical offerings, dance routines, jovial crowds, colorful costumes, and lots of exotic foods at the historic De La Guerra Plaza and performances at the center stage of the Paseo Nuevo shopping mall.
[10 photos] [Music video] [Group dance 1] [Group dance 2] [Solo dance] [The T-shirt I wore]

2017/08/04 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Trump and Obama talking about the White House Cartoon, showing Santa playing Scarbble with hie reindeer The Titanic compared with a modern cruise ship (1) [Left] Two different views of the White House, from Presidents Trump and Obama.
[Middle] Cartoon of the day: Santa's dilemma in a game of Scrabble with his reindeer.
[Right] The Titanic compared with a modern cruise ship.
(2) Salem and Madras in Oregon are among the best places to watch the upcoming total solar eclipse: I won't be very far from these places on August 21, 2017, as I plan to watch the eclipse from Corvallis, Oregon, the site of Oregon State University (I will also visit Portland and Seattle during the same trip). As they say, it's killing two birds with one stone or, in Persian, "ham faal o ham tamaashaa": experiencing a once-in-a-lifetime event and rekindling memories from 1969-1970, when I was studying for a master's degree in computer engineering at OSU. If you can't experience this event directly, then do the next best thing: follow the eclipse with NASA. This NASA site has detailed state-by-state maps of the upcoming total solar eclipse, safety instruction for watching, and a wealth of other information.
(3) A heart-warming TEDx talk: A successful professional woman, nicknamed "Mother Parisa" at work for her caring ways, shares her experiences at home with her autistic son Payam, who found his voice when he was presented with a letter-board communication device. Ms. Khosravi generalizes at the end, noting that we all have muffled voices and must find our metaphorical letter-boards that would allow us to speak up.
(4) An effective TEDx-Tehran talk (in Persian): Lili Golestan, famed translator and art gallery owner, talks about the challenges she faced as the daughter of an authoritarian, aloof, and disparaging dad, as the wife of a non-committed husband whom she adored, and, eventually, as a single mother of 3 in a misogynistic society. For her, success is something she wanted to happen, so it did!
(5) History in pictures: So, you think new technology is making us anti-social?[Photo]
(6) Congressional Republicans are turning against Trump: In my opinion, even if they do help oust Trump, they should be held accountable for the damage already done, including their yes votes for Trumpcare and their complicity in sabotaging Obamacare.
(7) On curbing legal immigration: Stephen Miller, the young anti-immigrant face of the Trump campaign and administration is the great-grandson of refugee Wolf Lieb Glotzer and his wife, Bessie, who arrived in the US in 1903, after fleeing a dreary life in Antopol, Belarus. Wolf was eventually joined by his son Natan and his brother Moses, who had arrived earlier, having escaped conscription in the czar's army.
(8) A Persian poem written and recited by Noushin Moeini Kermanshahi. [Video]
(9) Commander-in-Cheat fact of the day: Donald Trump's mother, Mary Anne McLeod, immigrated to the US (some say illegally) in 1929. Daughter of a fisherman, with no wealth or marketable skills, McLeod married builder Fred Trump in 1936 and was naturalized in 1942. [Fact check]

2017/08/03 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cover image for Harper Lee's 'Go Set a Watchman' (1) Book review: Lee, Harper, Go Set a Watchman, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Reese Witherspoon, Harper Audio, 2015.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This book, designated as volume 2 in the "To Kill a Mockingbird" series, was published not long before the author's death in 2016. Atticus Finch, the attorney of the highly-acclaimed 1960 novel by Lee (set in the 1930s Alabama), is a character in this novel, as are his daughter Scout (now known as Jean Louise, who is back home from NYC for a visit), his brother Dr. Jack, other members of his family, Jean Louise's boyfriend Henry Clinton, and a black servant.
It was a treat to hear the book in the sweet voice of Oscar-winning actress Reese Witherspoon, an avid book reader herself: "I get crazy in a bookstore. It makes my heart beat hard because I want to buy everything." Here is another of Witherspoon's memorable quotes: "It's funny that it all becomes about clothes. It's bizarre. You work your butt off and then you win an award and it's all about your dress. You can't get away from it." Now, back to the book itself!
The story's surprise (not a spoiler, given that it is widely known already) is that the honorable, conscientious Atticus Finch of "Mockingbird," now in his 70s in the 1950s Alabama, is revealed to be a racist and segregationist, lashing out against the US Supreme Court and its Brown-v.-Board-of-Education decision. This dark side of Atticus Finch, contrasted with his daughter's color-blindness, is the main source of tension and drama in the story.
Jean Louise, who once looked up to her dad and saw him as an absolute role model, now barely recognizes the old man that he has become. An intense argument between the two, near the end of the book, is filled with raw emotions and is quite effective, especially as read to us by Witherspoon. The outcome of the race-related argument, and its eventual resolution, is better left untold in this review.
Interestingly, "Watchman," as originally written in the late 1950s, was an early draft of "Mockingbird." Lee's editor asked her for a rewrite of the draft, putting greater focus on Scout's girlhood some two decades earlier. Lee then reportedly spent two years to transform the draft into "Mockingbird," a vastly different story, with a different outcome for its now-famous trial of a black man for raping a white woman.
For those who grew up to love the Atticus character in "Mockingbird," his racist version in "Watchman" is a bit hard to swallow. The same holds for the different messages of compassion separated by two decades in story time and by some 5.5 decades in author's life. The compassion counseled is for outsiders in "Mockingbird" and for bigots in "Watchman." In this sense, Lee's new old book serves a useful purpose: to make us think about the humanity of racists and for their need for love and understanding.
(2) History in pictures: Hoover Dam (then known as Boulder Dam) under construction in 1936. The thickness of the base and the amount of concrete used to build it are mind-boggling. [Photo]
(3) Trump sounds like a kid trying to write a book report on a book he hasn't read! [Quotes]
(4) Iran's Uber-like ride-sharing service already has 5M registered riders, 100K drivers, and 500 employees.
(5) Half-dozen science, technology, and education news headlines of the day:
- Scientists repair disease-causing genetic mutation in embryos using CRISPR (CBS News)
- DoJ downplays report of university affirmative action policies being under scrutiny (NYT)
- Neural networks are transforming the field of automatic translation (IT Pro)
- Energy-efficient image retouching system developed for smartphones (MIT News)
- 3D printing could save auto industry billions in product development (Automotive News)
- Neutrinos seen scattering off an atom's nucleus for the first time (ScienceNews)
(6) Final thought for the day: The Secret Service sets up a mobile command post near Trump Tower, because they could not come to an agreement with the Trump Organization regarding rent and other conditions of operating from within the Tower. Chew on that for a sec: The Secret Service has to pay rent to Trump for the privilege of protecting him!

2017/08/02 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
The bettterment of human condition over the past two centuries (1) Accentuate the positive: As anxious as we may be about our world and its many problems, let's not forget how far we have come over the course of human history and, particularly, during the past two centuries.
(2) Unbelievable cruelty: Father confesses to killing son and burying his body near Cachuma Lake in Santa Barbara County, because his wife was divorcing him.
(3) UCSB ranked third in the world in the field of automation and control. [2017 Shanghai ranking]
(4) History in pictures: Child workers, before labor laws. Guess old America wasn't so great!
(5) Sara Zahedi wins a prestigious math prize in Europe: The Iranian-Sweideh scientist was recognized for her work on improving computer simulations of the behavior of fluids that don't mix together. She is the only woman among the 10 young recipients of the award that is given out once every four years.
(6) Trump calls the White House "a real dump": Guess what turned it from a revered residence to a dump?
(7) Today's Google doodle celebrates Dolores del Rio, a Mexican actress who became successful in the Hollywood of the 1920s and 1930s.
(8) Russia seems to be baiting Donald Trump: After Trump signed the Congress' sanctions bill, apparently with disdain and while blasting the Congress, Russia's PM characterized the bill as "a humiliating defeat for Trump," words that are sure to trigger Trump's Twitter fingers. Let's watch!
(9) The James Bond summer film series continues: Tonight, I watched "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" at UCSB's Campbell Hall. With George Lazenby playing the title character, this was the first film in the series that does not feature Sean Connery, and it was shown just tonight, due to La Fiesta happening this week at the Courthouse Sunken Garden. The cheesy dialog full of double-entendres (common to almost all Bond movies) aside, the film had some interesting chase scenes involving cars, skis, jetskis, and even luges. During one of the ski chase scenes, James bond and his female companion get caught in an avalanche, with the special effects being excellent for 1969, when the film was released.

2017/08/01 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
History in pictures: Holocaust wedding rings Maryam Mirzakhani depicted as text and math formulas Cartoon by Iranian artist Mana Neyestani (1) Images above, from left to right: Holocaust wedding rings; Azam Rahbari's wonderful depiction of the late Professor and Fields Medalist Maryam Mirzakhani; Mana Neyestani's cartoon, depicting Rouhani's cabinet being introduced to Iran's Supreme Leader on a catwalk, with Minister of Justice strutting by.
(2) Good news on the education front: Number of women and other under-represented minorities taking AP Computer Science nearly tripled between 2016 and 2017.
(3) Tech history in pictures: This photo, suposedly depicting very young Bill Gates and Steve Jobs in June 1973 appeared on Twitter, and I reposted and retweeted it. Later, I was informed by a friend that the duo looked like this in the 1970s. Maybe the guys in the first photo are just a couple of teens playing games.
(4) Funny immigrant Maz Jobrani does stand-up: Why children of immigrants don't want their parents at school events, and other tragic stories made into comedy.
(5) Today in Trump and other political news headlines, from various sources:
- Humor-challenged pres: Not the first time he's used "I was just kidding" to explain a misguided statement.
- Accuser of fake-news media sued for helping spread a fake story on Fox News.
- E-mail prankster successfully tricks several White House officials, before raising any suspicion.
- Republicans in need of "miracle" to pass legislation, despite controlling all three branches of government.
- Donald Trump played a direct role in crafting an explanation to mislead the public about his son's meeting with several Russians bearing damaging info about Hillary Clinton on behalf of the Russian government.
- Trump has a tendency to repeat, when he has no idea what he's talking about: "We will handle North Korea. We are gonna be able to handle them. It will be handled. We handle everything." ~ The Handler-in-Chief
(6) How to stop robots if they run wild and threaten humans: The story of Facebook having to shut down an AI program because it was getting too smart (it developed its own language) turned out to be one of those media fabrications. If robots ever actually threaten us humans, however, a friend's suggestion may come in handy: Simply teach them to speak Persian and let them 'taarof' each other to death!
(7) Alphabet researchers want to store electricity as thermal energy in molten salt and cold liquids.
(8) Final thought for the day: It bothers me to no end that the childish, knee-jerk, and superficial way Trump sees his role as POTUS is being excused by his supporters, who euphemistically call him a "transactional president," as if his is an equally valid, alternative way to act as the leader of the only superpower on earth.

2017/07/31 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Persian goodies in snack-size packs (1) Persian goodies readied in snack-size packages: I bought these three items yesterday from Super Sun (Westwood Blvd., south of Santa Monica Blvd., in West Los Angeles), which has the best roasted watermelon seeds that I have found.
(2) Dr. Nayereh Tohidi writes about Professor and Fields Medalist Maryam Mirzakhani from the perspective of gender & development studies. [Persian article]
(3) After years of battling written and unwritten misogynistic laws, Tunisian women have been granted full equality with men by a law that just passed their parliament.
(4) Women should not laugh in public: This proclamation by Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister has generated posts of women laughing in protest on social media.
(5) Chalk one up for academic integrity: "Disturbed by the many invitations to become editors or reviewers for publications outside their field, researchers at the University of Sussex launched a sting ... , starting with the nom de plume of their fake Polish scholar, Anna O. Szust. The word oszust means fraud in Polish. Armed with fictional credentials from phony universities and a publishing record of nonexistent book chapters, 'Dr. Fraud' applied for editorships at 360 randomly selected open-access journals. Forty-eight offered her a job, the researchers reported recently in Nature. ... Given the pressure on academics to publish, this 'organized industry' seems likely to continue to bilk the naive and undermine genuine academic publishing. As for Anna O. Szust, despite withdrawing her application, her name remains on the editorial boards listed on at least 11 journals' websites, including one to which she never applied." [Source: ASEE Prism magazine, issue of September 2017]
(6) Quote of the day: "Much has been made of the dark web's dangers, but democracy has more to fear from Citizens United and the global surveillance Industry than Silk Road or Tor." ~ Hal Berghel, writing in the July 2017 issue of IEEE Computer magazine
(7) On teaching vs. research: "For students, good teaching is key to understanding and unlocking a promising future. For career academicians, we must grapple with our role's innate duality: through teaching we affect the future, but through research we best secure our own." ~ Sorel Reisman, writing in the July 2017 issue of IEEE Computer magazine [Access to full text requires subscription]
(8) The incredible shrinking airline seats: A judge has asked FAA to set minimum standards for airliner seats. Seat dimensions and spacing, as well as the aisle width, have been shown to directly impact safety and speed during emergency evacuations. Currently, such evacuations take too long, owing to cramped seating.
(9) Final thought for the day: Paris will host the 2024 summer Olympics and Los Angeles the 2028 games. This is the third time LA hosts the Olympics, after the 1932 and 1984 games.

2017/07/30 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Einstein shown at a blackboard (1) History in pictures: Albert Einstein as a professor (1931).
(2) We have a long way to go to democracy and pluralism in Iran: I came across this Facebook status post by chance. Using a slur to refer to Jews, it advocates mass killings of Jews and Baha'is in the next Iranian revolution. My reason for posting it is to reiterate my often-made argument that a peaceful transition to democracy may be impossible in Iran. There are just too many groups that are planning revenge killings, for real and imagined grievances. I hope the profile is fake and does not belong to a real person; I've covered the photo and name, just in case.
(3) Young, good-looking Iranian operatives are on the hunt for certain Iranian men on Facebook: Mia Ash (most likely a pseudonym) is evasive about her relationship status, and very likely, she is a he. S/He has been caught sending infected files to unsuspecting men.
(4) Tehran's Friday Prayers Leader takes on women who oppose mandatory hijab laws through white-scarf Wednesdays: At no time in human history have men wielding absolute power been so scared of a piece of clothing or lack thereof!
(5) Peggy Noonan's opinion piece in WSJ hits Trump where it hurts most: She characterizes him as Woody Allen, without the humor. "He's not strong and self-controlled, not cool and tough, not low-key and determined; he's whiny, weepy and self-pitying. He throws himself, sobbing, on the body politic. He's a drama queen."
(6) A few brief items from news sources and posts on social media:
- A follow-up to my post about the demise of shopping malls, this time a piece from NYT.
- Hidden-camera elevator prank: A light-hearted post for your smelling pleasure, and a break from politics!
- Science teachers battling anti-science celebrities and other fake-news sources. [NPR story]
- Fifteen electric guitarists play Bach, with amazing results! [9-minute video]
- An old Persian song, covered by Leila Marvdashti, accompanied by an all-female band. Wonderful!
- Elon Musk hands over the keys to the first 30 Model 3 electric vehicles at Tesla launch event.
(7) What is Jared Kushner up to? This source may not be entirely objective, but it does make several valid points. It's interesting that Kushner is involved in politics at the highest levels, without speaking on any issue that he is working on. He is supposedly in charge of peace talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians, yet he has not uttered a single word on the recent escalation of conflict in Jerusalem, either directly or through his father-in-law. He has reportedly had a Twitter account for 8 years and has yet to post a single tweet.
(8) Republicans are starting to speak up: And Trump's tweetstorm criticizing the GOP will certainly not help him with this group. The ousted Reince Priebus has so far kept his mouth shut and Trump has tried to buy his silence by a few halfhearted compliments. But I see a book coming pretty soon!
(9) My adventures today: I made a day trip to West Los Angeles, visiting an ailing uncle, photographing the recently installed Freedom Sculpture (on the median of Santa Monica Blvd., at the entrance to Century City), buying Persian books and groceries, having lunch and visiting UCLA's Hammer Museum with a UCLA colleague, and getting together with a couple of college buddies, my daughter in tow.

2017/07/29 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cover image for Carlo Rovelli's 'Seven Brief Lessons on Physics' (1) Book review: Rovelli, Carlo, Seven Brief Lessons on Physics, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by the author, Penguin Audio, 2016.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This isn't really a book, but a long (2-hour) lecture. Rovelli presents a vivid picture of the main achievements of physics and the most vexing problems that remain unexplained. The seven lessons, adapted from the author's columns in an Italian newspaper, are on:
- General theory of relativity ("the most beautiful theory," which tells us that gravity and space/time are one and the same)
- The quanta (quantum mechanics tells us that energy isn't a continuum, but comes in discrete packets or lumps)
- The architecture of the cosmos (the universe contains billions of galaxies, each with billions of stars, all floating in space)
- Particles (the universe is primarily made up of electrons, quarks, making up other subatomic particles, gluons, and photons)
- Grains of space (general relativity and quantum mechanics are contradictory; quantum gravity tries to reconcile the two)
- Probability, time, and the heat of black holes (what are time and heat, and does time really exist?)
- In closing: Ourselves (the beauty and complexity of human body and mind, and how we fit into the picture)
Whether you already know something about these topics or are learning about them for the first time, this lecture is bound to offer something of value to you. It is a concise summary of what we know about our universe and where we are headed in our explorations. In the author's words, we are still in a fog, but the fog is beginning to clear.
The enthusiastic tone of the first six lessons is moderated by this observation in the final one: "I believe that our species will not last long. It does not seem to be made of the stuff that has allowed the turtle, for example, to continue to exist more or less unchanged for hundreds of millions of years, for hundreds of times longer, that is, than we have been in existence. We belong to a short-lived genus of species. All our cousins are already extinct. What's more, we do damage."
(2) Dr. Nayereh Tohidi's 25-minute lecture (in Persian), elaborating on Professor Maryam Mirzakhani's legacy, particularly her impact on women's rights and her status as a role model for greater engagement of women in STEM fields.
(3) The three Republicans who saved healthcare for millions of Americans: I don't know what John McCain's calculations were, but Susan Collins (ME) and Lisa Murkowski (AK) stood up for what they thought was right at immense personal risks. Trump and his Interior Secretary let Murkowski know in no uncertain terms that her no vote will endanger Alaska's federal infrastructure funds. It is inappropriate to threaten withdrawal of federal funding in order to force party-line vote on other issues. Congress may investigate these threats.
(4) Please help! I am trying to decipher this statement from our president: "But the biggest strength we have are these horrendous trade deals, like with China. That's our strength. But we're going to fix them. But in terms of North Korea, our strength is trade." I must admit that he has done a good job of fixing our strengths so far!
(5) US opens a massive $11 billion military base in South Korea: The new base, one of the largest construction projects by the US military, is located in the middle of the South Korean countryside, a safe distance from North Korea's artillery range.
(6) Three key challenges of computer engineering in the next decade result from increased thermal densities: Intense heat in a circuit not only creates cooling nightmares, but also shortens the circuit's useful life and intensifies reliability problems that are already quite severe, given process variations in extremely dense chips. [Source: Page 12 of the July 2017 issue of IEEE Computer magazine]
(7) Science and technology news from the past couple of days:
- Sixteen robotics research teams working on automated box-packing robots for Amazon: The company also runs the annual Amazon Robotics Challenge, a contest for robots to push the boundaries of robot capabilities.
- Moon's interior may contain vast water deposits: Brown University researchers have reached this conclusion by measuring reflecting light from a recent picture of the moon's surface. If true, travel to the moon and back, and statying there for a while, may become much easier.
- Amazon's patent filing hints at its interest in augmented-reality shopping via smartphones: If shop on-line for a watch or bracelet, and you want to see how it'll look around your wrist, you'd point your smartphone camera at your hand, and an augmented-reality app will show you the item superimposed on the camera video.
- Virtual Singapore: The city-state is developing a $73M, 360-degree digital model that will contain hard data about structures, roads, parking lots, and even trees. It is slated to go live by the end of this year.
(8) The glass stadium: Designed to give the spectators the feeling of sitting outdoors, the US Bank Stadium, home to the Minnesota Vikings, has been criticized for its negative impact (many birds migrating between Canada and the US crash into its glass walls). Studies are underway to see if the stadium's impact on migrating birds can be mitigated.
(9) Final thought for the day: What's the rush? Let the train pass completely before crossing the train tracks!

2017/07/28 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Behrooz Parhami's Twitter home page (1) I have joined Twitter (@BehroozParhami), where I plan to focus on science, technology, and equal rights. Part of my motivation to join was the fact that Twitter has become the official US government communications channel, and I didn't want to be left out!
(2) When Trump (jokingly?) said in Ohio that he deserves to be on Mount Rushmore, Twitterspace went wild! Reactions included this image posted by J. D. Weinfeld, @RocketCat88.
(3) Facebook partners with Snopes and other fact-checking entities: Facebook users will flag suspicious stories, which are sent to Snopes.com and other fact-checkers once they collect a sufficient number of flags. Meanwhile, Snopes is facing internal turmoil owing to squabbles over control between the original founder and others who bought shares from his ex-wife co-founder.
(4) Eight brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Three killed by wrong-way driver going 100 MPH in Ventura: The crash occurred on southbound 101 Freeway.
- Third train fatality of last week in SB County: Woman unexpectedly steps in front of train at Goleta station.
- US soccer squeaks by Jamaica 2-1 on a late goal to win the CONCACAF Gold Cup
- Nearly all pro football players, and many younger players, suffer brain damage, study finds
- UK to ban sale of new gasoline and diesel engines by 2040; France announced a similar plan 3 weeks ago
- LGBT champion Ivanka Trump eerily quiet on her father's ban of transgenders in US military
- US Justice Department assaults LGBTQ rights, arguing that a landmark civil rights act does not protect gays
- Extrajudicial killings of ISIS members and sympathizers by "revenge" death squads rampant in Mosul
(5) Cartoon of the day: Trump helping old lady Medicaid cross the street. [Image]
(6) BCS celebrates its 60-year history: The summer 2017 of British Computer Society's magazine, IT Now, reviews the first half (1957-1986) of this history by recalling interesting items that have appeared in the magazine. This IBM ad is from 1957, when the magazine was called Computer Bulletin.
(7) Quote of the day: "Jeff Sessions urges Melania to work harder on campaign to stop cyberbullying." ~ Andy Borowitz, humor columnist for The New Yorker
(8) Obamacare "skinny repeal" failed 49-51 in the US Senate, ending GOP's quest to fulfill a key campaign promise, seven years running. John McCain was the no vote that defeated the bill (two GOP no votes were known ahead of time). Trump's reaction tweet came earlier than I expected: "3 Republicans and 48 Democrats let the American people down. As I said from the beginning, let ObamaCare implode, then deal. Watch!" He will continue sabotaging US healthcare, just to prove he was right. Hoping the Congress stops him. This isn't a game; people's lives are at stake!
(9) Final concert in the park for this summer: Captain Cardiac and the Coronaries performed at Chase Palm Park last evening, with dancing fairies providing part of the entertainment during intermission. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4]

Cover image for Terrence W. Deacon's 'The Symbolic Species' 2017/07/27 (Thursday): Book review: Deacon, Terrence W., The Symbolic Species: The Co-Evolution of Language and the Brain, W. W. Norton, 1997.
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This impressive book by an imminently qualified brain specialist, who also displays a firm grasp of language acquisition mechanisms and associated disorders, is structured in three parts, each having 4-6 chapters (see the table of contents at the end of this review). At 525 pages, each packed with information, it isn't an easy read but persevering pays out handsomely at the end. One appealing feature of the book is its many helpful diagrams and charts.
Deacon begins Chapter 1 with this wonderful quote from Soren Kierkergaard: "[T]he paradox is the source of the thinker's passion, and the thinker without a paradox is like a lover without feeling: a paltry mediocrity."
Deacon's thesis is that a sort of grammar mechanism is hardwired into the human brain, which accounts for the facility with which we learn language. Other species, by contrast, have a very hard time doing so. Many species do develop sophisticated communication systems, but the symbolic nature of human languages, with its immense representational power, is missing from all such schemes. The figure below shows three oft-cited examples of animal communication systems possessing elements that can be likened to a vocabulary. But these systems lack the generality of human language, which requires "symbolic competence" for understanding.
Three species with sophisticated communication skills Having stated his thesis clearly and forcefully, Deacon sets out to methodically describe and argue for the supporting evidence. One key observation is that we should avoid the illusion of progress toward understanding human language acquisition mechanism that results from using more and more precise terminology for what we don't know, rather than actually discovering what is missing. "Linguists have progressively redefined what supposedly cannot be learned in ever more formal and precise terms, and so we may have the feeling that these accounts are approaching closer and closer to an explanation." I have been bothered by a similar phenomenon in astrophysics, where gaps in our knowledge are filled with ill-defined notions such as dark matter, which is, in effect, a way of increasing the mass available in the universe in order to balance our equations, without adding understanding as to why the discrepancy exists to begin with.
In the course of human evolution, language and thinking have become virtually inseparable. "The way that language represents objects, events, and relationships provides a uniquely powerful economy of reference. It offers a means for generating an essentially infinite variety of novel representations, and an unprecedented inferential engine for predicting events, organizing memories, and planning behaviors. It entirely shapes our thinking and the ways we know the physical world. It is so pervasive and inseparable from human intelligence in general that it is difficult to distinguish what aspects of the human intellect have not been molded and streamlined by it."
The reproductive advantages of better language skills are rather obvious, explaining the evolutionary path for human language. Language skills help cooperative behaviors, such the the ability to pass on information about distant food supplies or organizing labor for a hunt. They also lead to more successful social manipulation and deception, such as misleading one's competitors. In fact, it is quite difficult to imagine any human endeavor that would not benefit from better communication.
Despite catchy chapter titles and mostly informal style of writing, this is no popularized science book. Many passages are taxing and require concentration. Nonetheless, the book has my highest recommendation for those who seek to understand human communication and the mechanisms that have evolved over millions of years to support it.
I end this review by listing the book's table of contents.
[One: Language] 1. The Human Paradox. 2. A Loss for Words. 3. Symbols Aren't Simple. 4. Outside the Brain
[Two: Brain] 5. The Size of Intelligence. 6. Growing Apart. 7. A Darwinian Electrician. 8. The Talking Brain. 9. Symbol Minds. 10. Locating Language.
[Three: Co-Evolution] 11. And the Word Became Flesh. 12. Symbolic Origins. 13. A Serendipitous Mind. 14. Such Stuff as Dreams Are Made on.
Notes (19 pp.), Additional Reading (4 pp.), Bibliography (22 pp.), Index (17 pp.).

2017/07/26 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Woman saying no to mandatory hijab laws in Iran Teddy bear and doll leaving dejectedly Photo of young and old hands together (1) Images above, from left to right: No to mandatory hijab [Image credit: Masih Alinejad on Instagram]; Cartoon of the day; Generations.
(2) Sima Bina sings an Iranian folk song in Germany.
(3) Iranian TV program introducing Tehran's Book Garden, the world's largest bookstore: One must add to this description the fact that every book on display at this impressive complex must be government-approved.
(4) The Rosenberg boys: Now in their 70s, Michael and Robbie are the sons of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, the spies who were executed in 1953 for passing atomic bomb secrets to the Soviet Union. Their story is heartbreaking. No family member was willing to take care of them, fearing retribution, so they were sent to an orphanage. As adults, they made it their life goal to prove their parents' innocence. Later, they came to the conclusion that their father had indeed been a spy recruiter, but that their mother, though an accessory, had been framed based on false testimony so as to be given the death sentence. [25-minute CBS video]
(5) The good old days: Pan Am 747 economy-class seating in the 1960s.
(6) Neuron and galaxy networks are similar from an information-theoretic viewpoint: "Despite extraordinary differences in substrate, physical mechanisms, and size, the human neuronal network and the cosmic web of galaxies, when considered with the tools of information theory, are strikingly similar."
(7) Scientists turn frustration into political action: Researchers have traditionally eschewed politics, but with Trump administration's hostility toward science, a new brand of Democratic candidates is emerging. Former New Jersey Congressman Rush Holt, a physicist and now chief executive of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, indicates that he is fielding more calls from scientists considering running for public office. [Source: Politico] [Rallying cry of scientists-turned-activists: Science not Silence]
(8) Fully electric airplanes are coming: Within 10 years, Wright Electric, a Massachusetts-based start-up, wants to sell electric aircraft that carry 150 passengers on journeys of less than 300 miles, using swappable modular batteries that permit multiple flights per day without recharging. Short-haul flights make up 30 percent of the global market, a chunk valued at $26 billion. Electric jets would be both cheaper and cleaner; EPA estimates that aircraft contribute 8% of all greenhouse gases emitted by America's transportation. [Source: ASEE Prism magazine, issue of September 2017]
(9) Summer film series continues: The 1967 film "You Only Live Twice" was screened at UCSB's Campbell Hall tonight as the fourth entry in the James Bond film series. This was the the last of four films shown this summer that feature Sean Connery.

2017/07/25 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Iranian healthcare for the rich/powerful and for the poor (1) Cartoon of the day: Helathcare options for Iranians; top mullahs vs. the rank and file.
(2) Amazon is completing F. Scott Fitzgerald's unfinished novel: Published in 1941, a year after his death, The Last Tycoon showed all the signs of a rough, unfinished work. Amozon's TV series is much more polished, but it shows little resemblance to the book on which it is purportedly based. [Source: Time magazine, issue of July 31, 2017]
(3) The International Olympiad in Informatics returns to Tehran for its 29th edition. (July 28 to August 4, 2017)
(4) The first hyperloop super-fast transport gets verbal go-ahead for connecting New York, Washington, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. The NYC-Washington travel time is estimated to be around 30 minutes.
(5) US Navy ship fires warning shots at Iranian boat in Persian Gulf.
(6) Trump's embarrassing speech to a large gathering of boy scouts: Instead of inspiring them with talk of honesty and trustworthiness, he attacks the press, opponents of his healthcare (I mean, tax cut) bill, and Obama, and elaborates on the life of a businessman who did wild stuff on his yacht.
(7) The death of the shopping mall: As America's malls close down, they take with them not only stores but a good chunk of the American culture. The first enclosed mall in the US, the Southdale Center of Edina, MN, was built in 1956. Mall-building peaked just after the opening of the 4.2M square-foot Mall of America in 1992, reaching the rate of one mall every 2.5 days in the mid 1990s. Shortly afterwards, Amazon and Netflix started the on-line business revolution, leading by the early 2010s to a rapid decline in mall visits. Sears' and K-mart's store closings were followed by downsizing of other brick-and-mortar businesses, as Amazon's share prices soared. [Source: Time magazine, issue of July 31, 2017]
(8) The secret history of the 2016 US election: President Obama came close to calling out the military to guard the vote from a Russian hack. Many reports were coming in that people going to the polls could not vote because their voter registration data had been tampered with and, in quite a few cases, it was verified that hackers had accessed and modified the data. One week before Election Day, the White House went as far as plan for widespread disruptions during actual voting. One unfortunate side effect of the Russian hacking will be diminished confidence of American voters in the integrity of the election process. As new information indicates that the Russian meddling was more serious than initially thought, voter confidence will erode even further. According to post-election studies, the voting systems of 39 states showed forensic evidence of scanning and at least 20 were determined to have been compromised. [Source: Time magazine, issue of July 31, 2017]
(9) Final thought for the day: Must try to remember that the best response to fools is silence. [I keep this English saying, and its nearly identical Persian version, in front of me, to counteract the temptation of responding in kind to certain individuals.]

2017/07/24 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Image: Guide to the Oxymoron Museum (1) Guide to the Oxymoron Museum. [By John Atkinson]
(2) Live-streaming of Sharif Univ. of Technology Assoc.'s memorial for Professor Maryam Mirzakhani: The 2.5-hour proceedings begin at the 10:30 mark of this video.
(3) Hundreds of climate scientists are taking Emmanuel Macron up on his offer of employment in France.
(4) Ceramic implant provides a window into the brain: Developed in a collaboration between Mexican and US scientists (undeterred by talks of a wall and other barriers), the implant helps prevent frequent removals of a portion of the skull to allow the use of a laser beam to treat cancer and traumatic brain injuries.
(5) Here are half-dozen brief international news stories from Time magazine's issue of July 31, 2017:
- Six activists jailed in Turkey: Those imprisoned for alleged links to a terrorist group include Amnesty International's local director.
- A low-caste farmer's son to become India's 14th president: Ran Nath Kovind of the Bharatiya Janata Party is a member of the lowest rung of the Hindu caste hierarchy, historically opposed by higher-caste Hindus. Kovind's presidency is expected to help PM Modi's re-election bid in 2019.
- Iran sentences US graduate student for spying: Xiyue Wang's 10-year sentence was said to result from his "spying under the cover of research" for his dissertation.
- The woman who was photographed wearing a miniskirt in one of Saudi Arabia's conservative towns has been arrested for violating the kingdom's dress code.
- Abuse of German choir boys rampant: Investigation shows that at least 547 members of a Catholic boys' choir in Regensburg, Germany, were physically or sexually abused by church members over seven decades.
- Acid attacks have become a brutal new trend in the UK: Unlike in south Asia, where victims of acid attacks are mostly women, in the UK, two-thirds of the victims have been men, and there is no obvious pattern for law enforcement to use in formulating a response plan.
(6) Here are half-dozen brief Trump-related news stories from various sources:
- Trump lashing out at Republicans in a 2017/07/23 tweet: "It's very sad that Republicans, even some that were carried over the line on my back, do very little to protect their President."
- Trump's business ties to Russia: If a reporter with limited reach into the practices of money-laundering shell companies can unveil so much dirt, imagine how much more the special counsel will discover!
- Forgive our president's grammar in this tweet dissing Jeff Sessions, for he is quite nervous about where the Russia investigations are going: Exposing not just political collusion but also decades of financial dealings with oligarchs and mobsters, who laundered their money through the Trump Organization. It's difficult to sympathize with Jeff Sessions, but talk about back-stabbing a staunch supporter to try to save your own behind!
- WH Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci quotes an anonymous source on TV: The source is later revealed to be Trump himself! Yes, it is absolutely true that the current US President, a former presidential candidate, a rich businessman, a real-estate developer, and a former reality-TV star all think that the Russia probe is a witch hunt!
- Rex Tillerson may quit before the end of the year: He is said to be increasingly frustrated over Trump's unprofessional treatment of AG Jeff Sessions. He has also run into troubles of his own for having violated Russia sanctions while serving as CEO of Exxon Mobil.
- Watch Obama pull out facts and figures to answer Anthony Scaramucci's questions during what appears to be a town hall meeting.
(7) Today's GRIT talk: Speaking at UCSB's Hatlen Theater, Professor Mike Mahan (biology; affiliated with UCSB since 1993) presented an interesting talk entitled "People Aren't Petri Dishes: Why Antibiotics Fail" as the final installment of the summer session's series of public lectures. I will miss these wonderful lectures for the rest of the summer, until normal academic seminars resume in fall.
We have all heard of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria, the so-called "super-bugs." Since the invention of penicillin in 1929, we have made enormous progress in discovering new and highly effective antibiotics. As we discover new antibiotics, bugs discover, through normal evolutionary adaptation, ways of becoming immune to them. It's a race between us humans and the bugs we are trying to defeat, which is quite natural and unavoidable. However, there are two things that we have been doing, and continue to do, wrong. One is overuse of antibiotics in humans and animals that has accelerated the development of super-bugs, now exceeding 2 million varieties. The second, which was the focus of Professor Mahan's talk, is the standard in-vitro testing of the effectiveness of antibiotics.
Research has shown that bacteria behave differently in-vitro and in-vivo, which has two consequences. When the standard AST test indicates that an antibiotic is effective for a particular infection, it may not be very effective inside our bodies, and, conversely, when the test shows it to be ineffective, it may in fact work in-vivo. Interestingly, there are small changes we can make to the in-vitro tests to vastly reduce the mismatch. For example, adding material normally found in the human body (urine, feces, and, in some instances the cheap, lowly baking soda) to the testing environment can make the tests much more accurate in their predictive power. This also gives rise to a hope that antibiotics previously ruled out as ineffective, and already-existing synthesized compounds owned by pharmaceutical companies, may become usable with more accurate tests.

2017/07/23 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Meme showing 'WE ARE SISTERS' morph into 'RESIST' Sign of the times at a bookstore Photo of Mona Lisa statue and the artist (1) Brief descriptions for the images above, from left to right, are presented in what follows.
- Kudos to women for this smart meme: WE A[RE SIST]ERS
- Sign of the time at a bookstore: Post-Apocalyotic Fiction has been moved to our Current Affair section.
- This Mona Lisa statue, by Tabrizi sculptor Ahad Hosseini, was exhibited in Paris more than two decades ago.
(2) Everyone enjoys music and understands this wonderful universal language, regardless on his/her physical or mental abilities. Kudos to Leonardo Barcellos who brought joy to this group of children.
(3) A gathering of Disney cartoon princesses: I guess it's actresses voicing those characters!
(4) The US sides with Qatar: Saudi Arabia and UAE come to regret their failed blockade of Qatar. The US State Department and national-security apparatus support Qatar, despite our clueless president taking the side of Saudi Arabia.
(5) This morning on CNN's "State of the Union": The new WH Communications Director is just as clueless as his predecessors. He is a smoother talker, but in substance, he is ill-informed, avoids answering questions directly, and blindly backs every Trump position (even contradictory ones). He went into a tailspin when asked why Trump's position on the Russian meddling is different from those of every other part of the US government.
(6) Quote of the day: "Mr. President, I demand you do your duty and insult me. Please?" ~ Joel Stein, Time magazine's humor columnist, feeling insignificant and left out, because Trump has not once threatened, mocked, discredited, or belittled him
(7) Hidden data harvesting: You are very kind. You are highly intelligent. Your friends adore you. You look like Audrey Hepburn. These are just some of the flattering outcomes of personality quizzes and similarity comparisons. They flatter you, because they want you and your friends to click on the links again. Meanwhile, with each click, you are making your personal FB data available to a stranger, who is at best someone selling stuff and at worst a scammer who will sell or otherwise abuse your personal information. This NBC-2 story contains useful hints to keep you safe. I'd go further and suggest that you avoid all such click baits.
(8) Musings of a grand ayatollah, immortalized on a wall in Iran: Pay frequent visits to imamzadehs (religious shrines purported to be burial sites for children of imams), for each has its own unique properties and effects [in granting your wishes], just as fruit varieties offer different vitamins.
(9) The worst of the worst in the medical profession: FBI has charged 412 healthcare workers, including 56 physicians, for prescribing medically unnecessary opioids, endangering many lives and collectively defrauding the government of $1.3 billion. [Source: Time magazine, issue of July 31, 2017]

Cover image of Jane Mayer's book 'Dark Money' 2017/07/22 (Saturday): Book review: Mayer, Jane, Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right, unabridged autiobook on 14 CDs, read by Kristen Potter, Random-House Audio, 2016.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Two events in 1980 gave a new hope to US Republicans, who had not controlled either chamber of the Congress or a majority in state legislatures for a quarter century. One was the election of Ronald Reagan as president. The other was Charles and David Koch, super-rich oil businessmen, deciding to begin spending large chunks of their fortune on electing conservatives at all levels of the US government. The strategy doggedly pursued by the Koch brothers for decades bore fruit in 2010, when the Republicans dominated state legislatures and governorships.
Jane Mayer is a staff writer for The New Yorker, who spent five years expanding an article she wrote about the Koch family into this meticulously researched book. The author has used hundreds of sources across the political spectrum, from conservative campaign operatives to liberal political opponents who were targeted by the expansive Koch network. A great deal of what Mayer has penned was already known, but her systematic and detailed presentation ties all the puzzle pieces together and offers new insight into how the conservatives rose from the ashes to control many governance positions and instruments, both nationally and locally.
By spending money on think tanks, advocacy groups with names that sound as American as apple pie (such as "Americans for Prosperity," which opposes climate-change research), funded faculty positions, and similar presumably non-political mechanisms, the Koch brothers avoid limitations on their contributions. Money pouring in from the Koch brothers and like-mined conservatives has allowed them to create a parallel power center rivaling the Republican establishment. Political candidates compete for the attention of these funding sources.
Whether this rise of conservatism represents a hijacking of our democratic system or a return to the roots of this nation as conceived by our founding fathers depends on one's political leanings. At the root of the debate, which has raged in our legal system, going all the way up to the US Supreme Court, is whether spending money is a form of free speech and, thus, whether corporations should have a say in the democratic process. For me, personally, the corrupting influence of money in politics is beyond doubt, whether the money comes from organized labor or from PACs formed around specific political goals.
This book, and its underlying research, leaves no doubt that the rich have succeeded in circumventing the notion of one-person-one-vote, for even though we still go to the polls as individuals to cast our votes, we (who organize locally around small causes that are dear to us) are no match for the vast sums of money, which pay the salaries of high-powered political operatives and fund extensive misinformation campaigns. This book was written before Donald Trump became president, but we now see that the same strategies used by domestic multi-billionaires are also available to our foreign foes, who can perhaps achieve their goals with much less money, to damage our democratic system.
In the age of big data, it isn't difficult to discover, given enough money and other resources, which buttons to push for getting the votes of specific voter blocs. Money buys you access to the airwaves and newspaper pages. It can even buy you your own news channels and newspapers. Taking advantage of our fragmented society, these private communication empires can lock in vast numbers of voters and then look around for on-the-fence voters to attract via carefully-planted fake stories.
To reclaim our democratic system, we have a lot of work to do. The starting point is becoming informed, via books such as this one, of how money influences our (traditional or new-age) media and the way important stories are covered. Next comes reducing the degree of fragmentation that has led to each group listening to or reading only the media that are aligned with their biases.

2017/07/21 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Persian calligraphy, rendered in the shape of a horse (1) Persian calligraphic art: Maece Seirafi's Pointillist Zoomorphic Horse (pen and ink), 2014.
(2) How well do you know the shapes of US states? This Time magazine interactive site allows you to draw each state, be graded on the accuracy of your depiction, and see a US map with the states as you drew them.
(3) Coffee, anyone? I bought these Eight O'Clock beans last month from Amazon.com and have been quite satisfied with them. I paid about half the price of similar Starbucks products for the bag, but prices do vary and I may have hit a promotion or something. Walmart carries the brand as well. Of course, coffee preferences are quite personal, but I thought I should pass on my experience to friends.
(4) Santa Barbara area news: The Whittier fire is now 83% contained. Fire crews have begun studying the already burned areas to see what needs to be done to prevent mudslides, on both sides of the mountains, in the upcoming rainy season. Meanwhile, according to Los Angeles Times, a great white shark bit into a man's kayak, causing beach closure in Santa Barbara on Thursday.
(5) Seems like Iranian women will never be tamed to the satisfaction of the ruling mullahs: There are reports that certain elements of the Islamic regime are floating trial balloons about repealing the mandatory hijab laws (stealthily, of course, like the Facebook page which shows women exercising their freedoms stealthily, for the said regime elements do not dare to openly oppose the top mullah). If this happens, it will be but a small step toward full equality, but an important symbolic victory for women (and men who believe in "Woman = Man"). [Persian version of this item]
(6) Fasten your seat belts, because America is headed full-speed toward a constitutional crisis! Here are some of the latest developments:
- Attorney General Jeff Sessions was dissed, but he is hanging on to his job.
- White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer was fired.
- Special Counsel Robert Mueller was threatened with firing.
- Trump is considering pardoning his family and himself.
- Trump is demanding that the Senate vote on healthcare.
- Many GOPers hate Trumpcare but are afraid of voting no.
(7) A letter from the imprisoned Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi: They say that in this wretched land, one cannot be both a mother and a defender of human rights, as one choice negates the other. Love of family and idealism cannot coexist; you should choose between them. And this advice comes not only from interrogators, who use your womanhood and motherhood as tools of oppression and psychological torture, and not just from certain men who are eager to limit you and urge you to stay within your bounds, but also from some women. [Full letter, in Persian]
(8) Cinema under the stars: Tonight, "Goldfinger" (1964), the third film in this summer's James Bond series (and the third of four featuring Sean Connery) was screened under the auspices of UCSB Arts & Lectures at the Courthouse Sunken Garden. The weather was perfect for the well-attended outdoors cinema event.
(9) Final thought for the day: Today marks the end of 6 months of Trump's presidency. Here is what he has done so far, according to CNN:
Number of tweets: 991 | Days spent golfing at Trump properties: 40 | Major pieces of legislation passed: 0

2017/07/20 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cover image for Lisa Scottoline's 'Most Wanted' (1) Book review: Scottoline, Lisa, Most Wanted, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Julia Whelan, McMillan Audio, 2016.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
A teacher opts for retirement when she finds out she is pregnant after trying for 3 years with artificial insemination. She and her husband are looking forward to the arrival of the baby, until the woman accidentally finds out during her retirement party that the sperm donor may be a serial killer. Catching a glimpse of a CNN breaking-news report about the arrest of a suspect in multiple murders, she notices strong similarities between the suspect and the sperm-donor photos the couple had been shown.
This discovery, early in the story, generates a vast array of emotions and actions. The woman sets out to discover whether the accused is actually the biological father of her baby. The husband considers legal action against the sperm bank for inadequate psychological screening of donors. The events that ensue create a rift between the couple, which they try to work out, while also dealing with the horrible possibility of having a serial killer as their child's biological father.
Scottoline does a good job of discussing the myriad of challenges that such a critical life event would unleash. Is the suspect guilty? Is the suspect really sperm donor 3319? What would they do if the suspect were the donor and turned out to be a serial killer? Is it really the case that the tendency to commit crime is genetic?
All in all, Most Wanted is an interesting and well-crafted mystery, with a wealth of commentary on social and marital issues.
(2) Scientist-turned-whistleblower under an anti-science administration. [Washington Post story]
(3) Poetry meets film: Here are four examples of cinematic-review haikus by Brad Novicoff.
- "The Birds": Sinister events | Defying explanation | Yep, that's the '60s
- "Best Exotic Marigold Hotel": Drop these seasoned pros | In a Barstow Best Western | They'd still be smashing
- "Boyhood": The flesh betrays us | But the spirit within it | Stays largely constant
- "Once Upon a Time in the West": Revenge can take time | But harmonica playing | Eases the waiting
(4) Persian music: A wonderful performance on ghanoon and daf. [1-minute video]
(5) Fake news, Iranian style: The latest story running in Iran about the late Professor Maryam Mirzakhani is that she was poisoned ("biologically assassinated") to prevent her from returning to Iran. Of course, no one here in the US believes this fake story (okay, maybe certain Trump supporters think that this act would have been a genius national-security move), but many Iranians do believe that the West cannot bear to see a successful Iranian or Muslim, as she was earlier portrayed in the media, who isn't in their service. Apparently, some so-called conservatives in Iran could not bear to see a woman dominate the news, along with her real and PhotoShopped images gracing the front pages of many newspapers, even if just for a few days. So, they decided to smear her memory by fake headlines and conspiracy theories. Professor Mirzakhani's family is indignant that amid their mourning, they have to answer questions about these fake stories. They say that she had no intention whatsoever to return to Iran and that they saw up-close the valiant efforts of physicians and other medical workers to save Maryam's life.
(6) Today's concert in the park: Playing at Santa Barbara's Chase Palm Park on a gorgeous, spring-like afternoon was Crooked Eye Tommy, a band whose style is described as "SoCal original blues." The crowd was smaller than usual, perhaps because, with the band playing original material, there were no recognizable tunes and no sing-along possibility. I photographed a few sights around the park during the intermission, including a fountain with four directional signs etched in the concrete around it that provide interesting geographical facts to the visitors. The "E" direction lists Zardak, Iran, as being exactly halfway around the world from the park (12,450 miles). [Video #1] [Video #2] [Video #3] [Video #4] [Video #5]

2017/07/19 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Portrait of the late Maryam Mirzakhani, made from numbers (1) Basking in Maryam Mirzakhani's glow: Suddenly, everyone is praising the math genius and trying to get some attention or claim some credit in the aftermath of her passing. One by one, Iranian politicians with dismal records in the area of women's rights and unwillingness to help with Maryam's specific personal problems arising from her marrying a non-Muslim foreigner, shed crocodile tears and boast about the honors she had bestowed upon her motherland. The mourners and philosophizers include Abdolkarim Soroush, a key member of Iran's Supreme Council of Cultural Revolution in the early 1980s. Yes, people do change, but I have a hard time accepting Soroush's change of heart, having witnessed first-hand the destruction he and his ilk created at Iranian universities. He has never apologized for his role in the purges and atmosphere of terror of the early 1980s, when I was a professor at Sharif University of Technology (also, Maryam's alma mater; of course, she was only a child then). Iran's universities suffered through much indignity, including three years of full closure, under the guise of Cultural Revolution. Establishing a religious litmus test for university admissions and denying education to certain groups like the Baha'is are direct results of the way of thinking he promulgated. [Persian version of this co mmentary on Facebook]
(2) A country that drives its experts away: Maryam Mirzakhani's passing has brought renewed attention to the case of Ghassem Exiri-Fard, one of Maryam's contemporaries and her teammate in science/math competitions. Exiri-Fard, a physicist who returned to Iran to pursue an academic career, was denied employment by the Ministry of Science, on the grounds that his feminine voice would be a distraction to students. So far, he has persevered and has not left his homeland, but he is running out of options for authorities and institutions to contact to intervene for reversing this absurd decision.
(3) My afternoon walk, yesterday: I snapped these photos along the path of my invigorating walk during Tuesday's breezy afternoon. The Devereux Slough is now more or less dry, holding water only in the section closest to the ocean.
(4) The swamp stinks more with each pick: Science-Bible story writer tapped to head important EPA office.
(5) Persian poetry: A verse from Sa'eb Tabrizi, with this rough translation.
When you are mistaken, do exhibit regret | For lack of contrition is but a second error
(6) Today's GRIT talk: Speaking at UCSB's Hatlen Theater, Professor Jean Carlson of our Department of Physics presented an interesting talk entitled "Complexity and Robustness: How Biology, Ecology, and Technology Balance Trade-offs in an Uncertain World" as part of the summer session's series of public lectures. Professor Carlson's work on complex systems spans neuroscience, immunology, earthquake physics, deformations, and ecology. In the latter area, she has been working on modeling wildfires and associated prevention and response measures. With the Whittier fire still raging in our area after a week, this topic was quite timely. Like many complex systems, natural and technological disasters follow the power-law, meaning that there are a very small number of extreme disasters and gradually increasing numbers of smaller disasters, leading to a straight line on the log-log plot of the frequency-versus-impact distribution. The same pattern is observed for natural disasters, technological disasters, and even blackouts. Professor Carlson looked at trade-offs between robustness and fragility that occur in biological, ecological, and technological systems that are driven by design, evolution, or other sorting processes to high-performance states which are also tolerant to uncertainty in the environment and components. This leads to specialized, modular, hierarchical structures, often with enormous "hidden" complexity, with new sensitivities to unknown or neglected perturbations and design flaws. Taking the case of the human immune system as am example, one notes that it adapts to illnesses and develops specializations in dealing with previously encountered threats, but this specialization may make it more vulnerable to new illnesses. Such systems are robust, yet fragile! Understanding these trade-offs gives insights for environmental policy, healthcare, and technologies. [Professor Jean Carlson's Web site]
(7) IEEE Central Coast Section meeting: After eating pizza at the Goleta Rusty's located on Calle Real, we were treated to a talk entitled "Big Bang: Creation of the Universe" by Dr. Brian Williams. In the one-hour-plus talk, Dr. Williams began by discussing our knowledge of what happened during the first 10 seconds or so after the Big Bang: a lot it seems, with much of it happening over the initial microsecond, itself divided into the first picosecond, which led to the quark epoch, and the remainder, when electrons, protons, and neutrons emerged. I keep attending talks and reading books about the Big Bang, and astrophysics in general, until I develop some understanding of what is going on in our universe. At the rate my understanding is developing, it will take many more lectures and books! An interesting chart shown by Dr. Williams indicates that in the first 50,000 years after Big Bang, radiation density dominated, but then matter became dominant. At around 10 billion years, dark energy surpassed matter in density. The second (oval) diagram shows temperature fluctuations in the universe from the cosmic microwave background. The variation is actually tiny and amounts to about 0.0002 K.

2017/07/18 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Verses by Bidel Dehlavi and Mowlavi/Rumi (1) Persian poetry: The image shows a verse by Bidel Dehlavi on top, followed by three verses from a poem by Mowlavi (Rumi). In the latter verses, the master plays on the fact that milk and lion share the same word ("sheer") in Persian and counsels that one should not view similar-sounding/looking things as identical. Then, he employs his linguistic genius to describe the differences between milk and lion in a way that actually makes them appear more similar! Looking up the latter poem on-line, I noticed that it is written in several different forms. The second and third verses shown here don't even appear in some versions. I chose the version that sounded best to me. Now that I am on the subject of poetry, let me share here a couple of love quatrains (left and center in this image), inspired by a Rumi love quatrain (right in the same image).
(2) A dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- US teen birth rate at all-time low, dropping 9% from 2015 to 2016 (Time)
- Pet obesity: About one-third of all cats and dogs in America are too heavy (Time)
- Qatar imports cows from Germany to circumvent blockade by neighbors (Time)
- China to block VPNs used to bypass Internet censorship, starting in 2018 (Time)
- Afghan girls' robotics team allowed into US for competition after reversal (PBS)
- Winnie the Pooh banned in China, after cartoons use the bear to depict Li (Time)
- A California teenager won the scratch-off lottery prize twice in one week (Time)
- Russia talks revenge against the US, after talks end without deal (Reuters)
- Woman calling police to report noise killed by responding officer (Newsweek)
- Trump very upset over the US Senate's failure to pass Trumpcare bill (PBS)
- Support for impeaching Trump higher now than it was for Nixon (Newsweek)
- Turkey has agreed to buy missile defense system from Russia (Business Insider)
(3) US Congresswomen stand for the right to bare arms: Their sleeveless Friday movement is meant to ridicule an archaic dress code resurrected by Paul Ryan. [Photo credit: BBC]
(4) Saudi Arabia is indignant about a woman's photo on Snapchat: She was photographed walking around a fort in the village of Ushaiger. [Photo]
(5) Taking a cue from Sean Spicer, Bill Clinton hides behind the Bushes. [Photo]
(6) The secret life of USC's former med school dean: Carmen A. Puliafito, a Harvard-educated eye surgeon, resigned mid-semester to pursue "outside opportunities." However, weeks earlier a young woman had overdosed in his presence in a Pasadena hotel room. The LA Times investigative team has found photos and videos from his drug-laden parties with young addicts.
(7) [Final thought for the day] What a callous stance: The President of the United States, unhappy that he failed to fulfill his campaign promise on ACA repeal, threatens to let the country's healthcare system (under the existing ACA law) collapse to take revenge on Democrats and the few Republicans who disagreed with him. He is playing with the well-being of millions of Americans as if they were a few worthless poker chips! This morally bankrupt president will no doubt destroy our country if allowed.

2017/07/17 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Reports of Maryam Mirzakhani's passing in Iranian newspapers (1) Reactions to Maryam Mirzakhani's passing in Iran: The Fields Medalist's photo graced the front pages of many newspapers, in some case without the legally-mandated hijab. An official memorial gathering will take place in Tehran tomorrow. [Image: The Guardian]
(2) Seeing and hearing Maryam Mirzakhani teach: Never having seen or heard her lecture, this video, containing a bit of a lecture in normal speed and the rest played at high speed, piqued my interest.
(3) Honoring Maryam: Mahtab Haghighi, an opera singer and a cousin of the late mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani, sang "Jaan-e Maryam" ("Beloved Maryam") for her a day before she passed away.
(4) The Iranian regime's predictable abuse of the memory of mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani: By stating that she chose to pursue mathematics rather than feminism, regime apologists are attacking women activists, despite the fact that many such women have other accomplishments besides being feminists and activists.
Mirzakhani was the practical embodiment of feminism, having climbed to the top of her field, despite, not because of, her upbringing and education in Iran. Sharif University of Technology attracts the very top students in the country, whose raw intelligence and talent, more than the education they receive, are causes of their success. In a number of official photos taken after Mirzakhani's victories in international math competitions, she looked unhappy, while male officials in the photos were all smiles in the glow of her accomplishments.
Some reader comments on official government media Web sites in Iran blame "the Zionist regime" for her death and suggest that her daughter Anahita should be returned to Iran to be raised by her grandparents, rather than grow up with a step-mom. (These are actual comments, seriously!)
Iranian news sources (with a handful of exceptions) either did not include a photo of Mirzakhani in stories covering her passing or else used very old photos of her wearing a hijab, employed drawings, cropped a photo to show only her face and no hair, or PhotoShopped a hijab on her.
Here is an account of how Mirzakhani has been portrayed in Iranian media over the years.
(5) The secret life of USC's former med school dean: Carmen A. Puliafito, a Harvard-educated eye surgeon, resigned mid-semester to pursue "outside opportunities." However, weeks earlier a young woman had overdosed in his presence in a Pasadena hotel room. The LA Times investigative team has found photos and videos from his drug-laden parties with young addicts.
(6) US Congress votes to recognize climate change as a national security threat: The Republican House considers military bases from Virginia to Guam to be threatened by rising sea levels.
(7) Today's GRIT talk: Speaking at UCSB's Hatlen Theater, Professor Rod Garratt of our Department of Economics presented an interesting talk entitled "From Bitcoin to Central Bank Digital Currencies" as part of the summer session's series of public lectures. Bitcoin is built based on past experience with DigiCash, an early system allowing anonymous deposits to bank accounts, and several other innovations, including PayPal and Venmo. Bitcoin is a trustless system, in the sense that no one controls it. Bitcoin's autonomy and anonymity appeal to libertarians, who would like to get rid of central bank authority. In countries such as the US, where the public trusts the banks, Bitcoin does not offer much utility. However, in certain countries, particularly those in Africa, digital currencies are all the rage and the one used most (mPesa) dwarfs Bitcoin in terms of growth (see diagram). Given the significant rise in the value of Bitcoin, which now stands at more than $2000, countries around the world are exploring the benefits of issuring crypto-based central bank digital currencies. There exist many alternative crypto-currencies and it is not clear whether Bitcoin will survive or one of the so-called "alt-coins" will prevail in future. [Good 24-minute tutorial on Bitcoin]
[P.S.: On the way to Hatlin Theater, I snapped these beautiful photos of the campus lagoon, with fog over the ocean in the background.]

2017/07/16 (Sunday): Book review: Rosenthal, Elisabeth, An American Sickness: How Healthcare Became Big Business and How You Can Take It Back, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Nancy Linari, Penguin, 2017.
Cover image of the audiobook 'An American Sickness' [My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This book consists of two parts. In Part 1, the symptoms of the American healthcare's sickness are enumerated. Part 2 deals with diagnosis and treatment. To review the symptoms, Dr. Rosenthal formulates economic rules of our dysfunctional medical market:
- More treatment is always better
- A lifetime of treatment is preferable to a cure
- Amenities and marketing matter more than good care
- As technologies age, prices can rise rather than fall
- There is no free choice; patients are stuck
- More competitors does not mean lower prices
- Economies of scale do not translate to lower prices
- There is no fixed price for a procedure or test
- There are no standards for what can/should be billed
- Prices will rise to whatever the market will bear
Rosenthal then systematically presents examples of each rule in action and shows how, as active patients, we can tame or abolish these unreasonable rules. In the interim, just being engaged in and informed about your treatment goes a long way toward avoiding some of the most egregious abuses on the part of healthcare providers and big pharma. For example, you can challenge referrals to out-of-network specialists, which typically lead to much greater out-of-pocket payments.
Our hospitals have begun to look like luxury hotels, with displayed art and "free" amenities that are anything but free. Having built excess capacity over the past few years, such luxury hospitals have developed a variety of despicable practices to keep the occupancy rate high. Many of our largest hospitals are not-for-profit, which means they cannot show profit on their books. So, they have resorted to adding facilities and increasing executive compensation and bonuses to consume the leftover cash.
While there are many hardworking doctors and nurses in our healthcare system, there are many more who have learned to game the system in order to maximize income for their institutions and for themselves. Kickbacks on prescribing expensive medications and procedures on the part of doctors and bonuses for cost-savings through not prescribing, or denying insurance payment for, other critically needed services are among worrisome traits in our system.
Healthcare systems of European countries, Canada, and Australia are often disparaged by our politicians and those who benefit from the current disarray. Yet, objective data indicate that those countries have succeeded in keeping a lid on healthcare costs, while providing services and achieving end results that are at least as good as ours.
Analyses of cost-effectiveness of procedures and drugs are totally lacking within our healthcare system, whereas other countries have successfully implemented such comparisons. For a new drug to be approved in the US, for example, all its manufacturer has to demonstrate is an advantage over placebo treatment. There is no requirement to show benefits over already-established, and thus much cheaper, drugs, with their generic varieties already available.
Then there is the abhorrent practice of marketing drugs directly to patients, rather than to medical professionals. For example, the drug HETLIOZ (tasimelteon), purportedly targeting blind people with a kind of circadian rhythm disorder known as "non-24," is widely advertised on TV and other media. The number of patients in the target category is so small, that these ads make no economic sense on the surface. However, the manufacturer is implicity pushing for the drug to be prescribed for other patients with sleep problems, even though it costs tens of times more than widely available, and quite effective, sleep medications.
The book's appendices contain a wealth of useful information, including various calculators for learning about fair prices of common medical procedures and drugs and for comparing healthcare providers. Making such comparison-shopping very difficult is the fact that, because of increasing consolidation of hospitals and other healthcare providers, many regions do not have effective competition for exploitation by patients.
There is a lot of very useful information in this book, which makes it difficult for me to try to provide a reasonable summary of all the key points. In this review, I have tried to present a few of the more interesting/important observations. I highly recommend that you read or listen to this book for yourself, perhaps more than once.

2017/07/15 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani has passed away (1) Professor Maryam Mirzakhani [1977-2017]: News of her hospitalization had been all over the social media. Unfortuantely, it seems that she has lost her battle with cancer at age 40. A talented mathematician affiliated with Stanford University, Mirzakhani was the first woman and the first person of Iranian origins to have won mathematics' most prestigious award, the Fields Medal. It is quite sad for mathematics, and science in general, to have lost such a brilliant member of the community, who could have contributed many more important results in the course of a full career. Her mind-boggling success, in the face of difficult conditions for women in Iran, which eventually led to her immigration to the US, is a testament to her smarts, determination, and resilience. May she rest in peace!
[Mother, wife, and daughter: When brilliant scientific minds pass, we mourn the loss to science and to society. Let's not forget Professor Maryam Mirzakhani's loved ones, who are experiencing an even greater loss from her untimely death at age 40. Our hearts go out to them.]
(2) The true story of a family's slave, as told by a Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist. [From The Atlantic]
(3) Russian hackers don't just target politicians: Ordinary citizens like us are in their cross-hairs as well. They are trying to cause discord by spreading disinformation on anything, from medical treatments to cheesecake recipes. Like everything else blamed on Russia, Trump supporters are crying "fake news" and "witch hunt," but the article's contents make sense, when viewed in the light of Russia's embarrassing economy, further wrecked by Western sanctions. [WSJ article]
(4) Joke of the day: [Or, is it really a joke?] A man went to a sage to ask how he can discover his faults for the sake of self-improvement. "It's easy, my son," the sage began. "Tell your wife one of her faults, and she will voice not just a complete list of your faults but also those of your family, friends, and acquaintances."
(5) Cartoon of the day: Messing with the teacher. [Image]
(6) This week's Time magazine cover image: The hunt for Russia ties is bearing fruit.
(7) Promoting common humanity, peace, and love: Message on a T-shirt. [Photo]
(8) Data science may unlock the secrets of mental illness: According to a cover feature in IEEE Spectrum magazine, issue of July 2017, digital psychology will revolutionize the treatment of depression, schizophrenia, and many other disorders. Computers are excellent in connecting the dots, when armed with a wealth of data from your smartphone's wi-fi/GPS (tracking social rhythms), accelerometer/gyroscope (physical activity), light sensor (sleep environment), camera (facial expressions), heart-rate sensor (increased anxiety), touchscreen (response time), and microphone (tone of voice and ambient social environment). [Cover image]
(9) Beware of bullshit: Years ago, I read an article by Harry Frankfurt (Princeton) entitled "On Bullshit," which though in part humorous, expounded on the perils of a society filled with false information. Now, a serious academic department at University of Washington is offering a 1-credit seminar, entitled "Calling Bullshit in the Age of Big Data" which will allow scientists to spot misguided or dishonest scientific claims. The on-line course syllabus contains links to a wealth of sources on the topic. I can't wait to pursue some of the sources!

2017/07/14 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
A math equation to solve for x (1) Math puzzle: A problem, really. And responding that x is an unknown in the equation doesn't count as an answer! Once you solve the problem, consider the more general case when the two instances of 15 in the equation are replaced by an arbitrary known value n.
(2) Fake news augmented with imaginary news: This "Christian" "prophet" claims that Trump has secretly imprisoned 3000 elite pedophiles and that Hillary Clinton is next on that list. It is frightening that such trash has readers/listeners in our country.
(3) Iran's newest robot is a dancing humanoid: Dubbed "Surena-mini," the 50-cm-tall robot was built by a team of researchers at University of Tehran, led by Professor of Mechanical Engineering Aghil Yousefi-Koma, to serve as a convenient platform for robotics research.
(4) Kellyanne Conway should update her signs: Cross out "illusion" and "delusion" and uncross "collusion"!
(5) Cartoon of the day: Pig Latin. [Image]
(6) A page from the history of computing: In 1973, Loving Grace Cybernetics, a group of computer enthusiasts in Berkeley, CA, set up terminals connected to a computer via a modem. The public was invited to read a bulletin board, carrying info on apartment rentals, music lessons, and so on, for free or post a listing for $0.25.
(7) Chinese scientists claim to have teleported an object from earth to a satellite 300 miles above. The object was a single photon, which was teleported based on the quantum entanglement principle.
(8) California central-coast fires are still raging: We had more ash-fall today in our area. The Whittier fire near Santa Barbara has spread to 13,000 acres, with only 52% containment, and it has injured 5 firefighters. At 29,000 acres, the Alamo fire further to the north is larger but is reportedly 92% contained.
(9) Whittier fire late-afternoon update: Shopping at Trader Joe's today, I snapped a photo of this fire map outside the store and listened to a detailed briefing by a fire ranger. The fire started behind the mountains to the north of us, but it quickly went over the ridge and started descending on the south side, toward the ocean. The Xs on the map mark locations (mostly ridges) were bulldozers have removed or are removing vegetation, to stop the fire from moving into densely populated areas. Once vegetation has been removed, firefighters may decide to start backfires that would move toward the fire boundary (shown in dark orange on the map), so as to deprive the spreading fire of new fuel. Unfortunately, sundowner winds predicted for tonight make any backfire quite hazardous, as wind-carried sparks can move a mile or more to start new fires. New evacuation areas were announced as we stood listening to these explanations. I also took this photo from the intersection of Calle Real and Fairview, showing the thick smoke/ash cloud over Goleta that has made air quality quite poor.

2017/07/13 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon about DT Jr. getting some dirt on Hillary Clinton (1) Cartoon of the day: He got some dirt all right!
(2) Iranian diva Googoosh talks about her childhood. [Interview]
(3) US mass killings over four decades: This chart covers the 40-year period 1976-2015, with partial data for 2016. Contrary to conventional wisdom that mass killings are getting much worse, the data shows fairly stable averages, when adjusted for population growth. The federal assault weapons ban led to a slight reduction in averages, and its lifting produced an uptick, as expected.
(4) The Russian connection: Trump, Putin, and other shady characters in the newly revealed secret meeting between DT Jr. and a Russian attorney with ties to Putin. [Image from CNN]
(5) Political humor: The White House denies any ties to the United States. "In a fiercely defiant statement on Tuesday, the White House press secretary, Sean Spicer, denied that any member of the White House staff has ever worked 'in any way, shape, or form' for the benefit of the United States. Angrily addressing the press corps, Spicer said that any allegations that members of the Trump Administration have ever acted in concert or collusion with the United States are 'unequivocally false.'" [Full story]
(6) Trump's personal lawyer assumes his client's persona: He sends a number of expletive-ridden e-mails to a woman correspondent.
(7) Trump in France: A French reporter challenges Trump by quoting his earlier claim that a friend told him Paris is no longer Paris and that no one goes there any more. Trump responds that under their great new President, France will be okay and that people will go there. Insincere flattery saves the day for him; sort of!
(8) Concert in the park: The Hollywood Stones, a Rolling Stones tribute band, performed at Chase Palm Park this evening. ["Paint It Black"] ["Honky Tonk Woman"] ["You Can't Always Get What You Want"] ["Jumping Jack Flash"] ["It's Only Rock and Roll"] The large crowd of Stones' fans in the park included teenagers, octogenarians, and all ages in between. During the intermission, I walked to Santa Barbara's Rainbow Gate on Cabrillo Blvd. and photographed it from various angles. On the way back from the highly enjoyable concert, I photographed a restaurant along Cabrillo Blvd., on a stretch where huge tourist buses line up to let the passengers take a stroll or dine.
(9) Final thought for the day: Those who tried to teach us for decades to hate Russia are now hating us for being critical of Russia.

2017/07/12 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
The amazing nature: A tree within a tree (1) The amazing nature: A tree within a tree.
(2) A "Fig & Quince" Persian podcast: The story of a foodie Kermanshahi girl, who is good-natured, intelligent, street-smart, a software engineer, and a twin. She is full of energy and can eat several meals at once, without losing her slim figure.
(3) Quote of the day: "It will soon come to this: Either Trump goes down forever in disgrace, or America does. You pick, GOP." ~ George Takei
(4) The power of a free press: Donald Trump vastly misjudged the power of our country's free press when he decided to pick a fight with this established pillar of our democracy. Backstabbing and crossing people has consequences and those wronged will inevitably try to get even (hence, leaks coming out of the White House). A real-estate developer can survive such behavior working with small contractors and business partners, because the power of the said parties is limited when they air their grievances. They can go to the press (and many did), but interest in their stories is limited. The same behavior from a president is quite different, especially when the said president constantly hammers the press with fake-news and other allegations. This is why dictators target the press before dealing with any other adversary. And in today's world of instant connectivity, taking on the press is doomed to failure.
(5) What the world would look like if all the ice melted: A rise of 216 ft (~ 30 m) in sea level would submerge vast coastal areas, as shown in this series of maps.
(6) Art in the spotlight: Indigenous Australian art, projected on the Sydney Opera House. [Photo]
(7) Today's GRIT talk: Speaking at UCSB's Hatlen Theater, Professor Debora Iglesias-Rodriguez of our Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology and Marine Science Institute presented an interesting talk entitled "Ocean Acidification and Other Stories—Overcoming Climate Anxiety at a Time of Global Crisis" as part of the summer session's series of public lectures. According to Dr. Iglesias-Rodriguez, oceans are highly stressed by the world's 7.5 billion humans. As ocean acidification, pollution, and deoxygenation continue at a rapid pace, marine animals and plants must quickly adapt to warmer and more corrosive environments. One reason for ocean acidification is increased CO2 levels, which automatically balances with the level in the air in a relatively short time period (months). So, when atmospheric CO2 level rises, so does the ocean's. We are understandably anxious about sustainability of our oceans for recreation and as a source of food. It is therefore incumbent upon us to ameliorate current ocean problems and eventually return them to a sustainable state.
(8) The second installment of the James Bond film series: For this week, I decided to forego the outdoors Friday night screening at the Courthouse Sunken Garden in favor of the indoors Wednesday night version at Campbell Hall. The film this week was the very topical "From Russia With Love," with all of its intriguing collusion stories! It was interesting to hear the audience laugh in scenes that were not meant to be funny! These scenes typically contained cheesy or sexist dialog.
(9) Final thought for the day: G-20 is not G-19.5 (19 adults and one child).

2017/07/11 (Tuesday): Here are four interesting images and nine other items of potential interest.
PhotoShopped image made from combining two famous paintings Calligraphic rendering of a Persian poem Looking back in time, in a single photo Girl and photobombing horse in Disneyland? (1) [Cartoon of the day, on Trump and Putin meeting] Trump: "He 'gets' me!" Putin: "I've GOT him." [Image]
(2) Joke of the day: A little boy was told to study the geography of Iran's neighboring countries for an exam. He didn't spend much time on his assignment and managed to learn only the details about Pakistan. On exam day, he was asked about Turkey, which he had not studied and knew nothing about. So, he answered thus: Turkey is a neighbor of Iran and Iran is a neighbor of Pakistan. And now about Pakistan, ... [My sister reminded me about this old joke in connection with certain people who have a few talking points that they repeat on every Facebook post, regardless of the topic.]
(3) The US President takes on Chelsea Clinton on Twitter and lives to regret his rant! [Image of tweets]
Trump @realDonaldTrump: "If Chelsea Clinton were asked to hold the seat for her mother, as her mother gave our country away, the Fake News would say CHELSEA FOR PRES!"
Shauna @goldengateblond: "Chelsea Clinton has a PhD in international relations from Oxford. She's more qualified to be in that seat than your entire family. Combined."
(4) The witch hunt is closing in on the witches: Someone said that DT Jr.'s explanation that the Putin-linked Russian attorney, whom he, Kushner, and Manafort met, had no valuable info is like a thief setting out to rob a bank but abandoning the effort when he realizes that it's Sunday and banks are closed! Let's see if even one Republican denounces the statement "There was absolutely no collusion!" [NYT story]
(5) Trump has found his soulmate in the press-hating Putin! [The Independent story]
(6) Riddle of the day: What do physicians and computer engineers have in common? Both groups blame a virus when they have no clue about what's going on!
(7) A majority of Republicans consider colleges bad for the US, according to a Pew Research Center poll.
(8) Revenge porn: Charlotte Alter, writing in Time magazine, issue of July 10-17, 2017, wants to warn women to be careful about photos they allow their mates to take. Lured into a sense of security in a loving relationship, they may allow their mates to take take intimate photos of them, not thinking that such photos have a way of finding their way to the Internet. The photos may be obtained via hacking of computers, and some unhinged ex-lovers post such photos to various sites as a way of taking revenge for being dumped. Unfortunately, the situation for women and men is highly asymmetric: women typically do not take revenge in this way and, even if they do, the consequences (career or otherwise) for men is not as severe.
(9) Final humorous thought for the day: After talk of a joint US-Russia cyber-security unit, Al Qaeda has proposed to Trump work on a joint anti-terrorism unit!

2017/07/10 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing the right and left holding Uncle Sam in a precarious position (1) Cartoon of the day: The Divided States of America!
(2) Quote of the day: "Nothing is so necessary for a man as the company of an intelligent woman." ~ Leo Tolstoy
(3) Joke of the day: Grandpa: "Young man, let me tell you a joke about Social Security." Grandson: "Go ahead!" Grandpa: "You probably won't get it."
(4) The media are being warned to vet documents and associated stories very carefully: Trumpians are taking their fake-news strategy to new lows. They are purposefully feeding fake news to the media, with the goal of taking them down if they fall for one of these fake stories and run with it.
(5) The fox guarding the hen house: Trump and Putin want their countries to set up a cooperative arrangement to deal with cyber-security threats. Russia has been a terrible actor in attacking other countries' cyber-infrastructures. Their actions included, as everyone but Trump admits, meddling in the 2016 US election. A recent US intelligence report points a finger at Russia for infiltrating our energy infrastructure, including the computer systems of a nuclear power operating company. On the other hand, we do have a lot in common with Russia, including the colors of our flags and the oversize egos of our leaders!
(6) Trump and Putin exchange pleasantries, as they finally meet face to face: What was discussed in the longer-than-expected meeting isn't very clear. According to Tillerson, Trump raised the issue of Russian hacking right at the outset, but he was vague on Putin's reaction or whether he made any promises not to do it again. Russia, on the other hand, had a different take. It said in formal statements that Trump had accepted Putin's assurances that Russia was not involved and that it had been agreed that the two countries should move on and focus on future relations.
(7) Bill Mahr criticized for racist tweet: I like Bill Mahr and think that many of his monologues make valid points in a hilarious way. However, he has to do something about his racist streak. This isn't the first time he has gotten in trouble for making racist remarks, and someone with the celebrity status of Mahr should know better, especially when he frequently accuses others of racism. Here is the offensive tweet; judge for yourselves: "This N Korean thing is getting tense! I mean, I think it is, I'm on vaca. The ladies at my nail salon are freaking out, that's what I know!"
(8) The witch hunt is closing in on the witches: Donald Trump Jr. met with a Russian lawyer, after being promised damaging information about Hillary Clinton, according to Reuters. Paul Manafort and Jared Kushner were also present at the meeting.
(9) Today's GRIT talk: Speaking at UCSB's Hatlen Theater, Professor Greg Ashby of our Psychology Department presented an interesting talk entitled "I have no idea how I did that: The remarkable learning abilities of the human brain" as part of the summer session's series of public lectures. Dr. Ashby has authored 3 books and more than 150 papers, and he has received many honors, including serving as President of the Society for Mathematical Psychology. According to Dr. Ashby, humans have multiple functionally- and anatomically-distinct learning systems that evolved at different times for different purposes. Progress on understanding these systems, which learn in qualitatively different ways, is slowed by the fact that the most challenging learning tasks draw upon the capabilities of several systems, making it difficult to know which system contributed to any specific performance improvement. For example, in learning to play the piano, both declarative/explicit learning, of the kind that results from reading books or listening to lectures, and procedural learning, that is, learning by gradual/incremental improvement, are involved. The two kinds of learning are distinct. Explicit learning is a function of working memory, so that people who do well in memory tasks have an edge in this kind of learning, whereas procedural learning exhibits little dependence on working memory.
[On the way to the lecture venue, I took a detour and snapped these photos on a beautiful afternoon.]

2017/07/09 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing a library patron asking a librarian about a US history book (1) Cartoon of the day: On different versions of US history.
(2) Quote of the day: "[Trump supporters] don't dig for truth; they skim the media for anything that makes them feel better about themselves. To many of them, knowledge is not a useful tool but a cunning barrier [that] elites have created to keep power from the average man and woman." ~ David Rothkopf, Visiting Professor of International Relations and Political Science, Columbia University, and CEO of The Rothkopf Group
(3) Ivanka Trump represented USA at the G-20 summit for a brief period, as her dad stepped out of the room. Why weren't Tillerson and other high-ranking US officials available for this task?
(4) SoCal Edison announces rate changes: They are introducing a time-of-use (TOU) rate plan, whereby electricity will cost less during off-peak hours and more during high usage periods. My SoCal friends will receive a notification that allows them to opt in for the TOU plan, along with an analysis (based on current usage pattern) of the projected savings, if any. In my case, the projected savings are too little to be worth switching plans, unless the switching is accompanied by a modification of my usage pattern.
(5) Understanding Donald Trump voters: This Forbes article, identifies five types of voters.
31% Staunch conservatives   |   25% Free-marketeers   |   20% American preservationists
19% Anti-elites   |   5% The disengaged
The third group is what propelled Trump to victory. The contradictions inherent in the first two groups forming a coalition with the last three groups in voting for Trump should not be lost on us. Trump is hardly a conservative, given his background and lifestyle, and he is definitely not a free-marketeer, based on his statements and positions on trade.
(6) Tehran now boasts the largest bookstore in the world: And this in a country where there is a dismal record of book-reading and strict pre- and post-publication censorship of everything that goes to print, not to mention self-censorship by publishers. At 700,000 square feet, the center has several movie theaters, science halls, classrooms, a restaurant, a prayer room, and a green roof-top park.
(7) Men engineered the Titanic: But a woman (Stephanie Kwolek) was behind the invention of lightweight material for bullet-proof vests and another woman engineer (Maria Beasly) came up with the idea of life rafts. [Observations from E&T magazine, special issue on how to attract more women to engineering, July 2017]
(8) A few miscellaneous items of note:
- "Leader of the free world" ignores, or is ignored by, other leaders enjoying one another's company. [Photo]
- Yesterday we saw the onset of two major fires (Whittier and Alamo) in the Santa Barbara area.
- Imaginative peaceful protest at the G-20 summit in Hamburg. [Video]
- Has anyone seen the new movie "Now Hiring"? [Photo]
(9) Final thought for the day: The fight against global terrorism isn't a clash of civilizations, but a clash of civilization, Western and Eastern, with barbarism.

2017/07/08 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cover image for Ambrose Bierce's 'Write it Right' (1) Book review: Bierce, Ambrose, Write it Right: A Little Blacklist of Literary Faults, 1909 [Free e-book from Project Gutenberg]
[My 5-star review of this book on GoodReads]
Writing is often pursued as a vehicle of creative expression for the author, whereas it is more a way of making your thoughts understandable to the reader. We read in the introduction to this gem of a book that good writing is "clear thinking made visible." In this sense, we should prefer words that have precise meanings and avoid words that can have different interpretations. Acording to Roman rhetorician Marcus Fabius Quintilianus, usually referred to simply as Quintilian, "The writer should so write that his[/her] reader not only may, but must, understand."
Like a dictionary or glossary, Bierce's book is organized alphabetically, with almost all entries starting with "x for y," which means that linguistic offenders use x to mean y, followed by a terse justification, and whether the usage is awkward/misguided or a serious linguistic faux pas. This book has been very helpful to me in improving my writing.
I went through the entire book from A to W, but will keep a copy (actually, Gutenberg Project's link to the full text) handy for future perusal, as there is just too much info to remember from a single reading. I end my review by presenting a few examples that I found most enlightening. I have included very little of the explanatory narratives for the entries.
Allow for Permit | Appropriated for Took | Because for For | Build for Make | Bogus for Counterfeit | Can for May
Commence for Begin| Critically for Seriously | Dirt for Earth, Soil, or Gravel (dirt means filth)
Distinctly for Distinctively | Each other for One another (when there are more than two persons)
Empty for Vacant (empty bottle, but vacant house) | Essential for Necessary | Experience for Suffer, or Undergo
Gratuitous for Unwarranted | Hereafter for Henceforth | I'm afraid for I fear (it will rain)
Insoluble for Unsolvable (problem) | Integrity for Honesty | Involve for Entail | Jeopardize for Imperil
Less for Fewer | Lunch for Luncheon | Minus for Lacking, or Without | Numerous for Many | Over for More than
Partially for Partly | Preventative for Preventive | Quit for Cease, or Stop (smoking) | Real for Really, or Very
Residence for Dwelling, or House | Roomer for Lodger (see Bedder and Mealer, if you can find them!)
Score for Win, Obtain, etc. | Squirt for Spurt | State for Say | Talented for Gifted
The (a little word that is terribly overworked) | Transpire for Occur | Unkempt for Disordered, Untidy, etc.
Verbal for Oral | Witness for See
(2) A wonderful Persian verse from Sa'eb Tabrizi: Asking dastards for help with your problems is like trying to remove a thorn from your foot, using a scorpion's fang. [Persian text]
(3) Sleeveless dresses/blouses banned for women in the Capitol: Sneakers or open-toed shoes are similarly out. These are actually archaic congressional rules, which Paul Ryan has decided to enforce. Iranian mullahs hail the decision! Paging Ms. Masih Alinejad to fight for women's freedom of clothing choice at the US Capitol!
(4) Trump claims G20 leaders talked about the DNC leaks and Podesta's refusal to give the DNC server to FBI and CIA: Here is DNC spokesperson Adrienne Watson's response tweet: "1) Podesta never ran the DNC. 2) DNC worked with FBI to kick out Russians. Worked with DHS. 3) Putin make you tweet this before mtg?"
(5) A few engineering/technology news items of note:
- World's first spokeless ferris wheel revealed in China: The frame, with its 125-meter diameter, does not rotate, but 10-passenger cars move around it with a built-in running gear.
- Noise isn't always bad: Advocates for the blind demand regulations to force electric-car makers to increase their noisiness for safety reasons (knowing that a car is approaching). [Source: E&T magazine, July 2017]
- Russian hackers penetrate US energy networks: A joint DHS/FBI report names the Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation among companies targeted by the effort to hack into US energy and industrial plants.
(6) Final thought for the day: Remember the hell raised over the Dixie Chicks criticizing the US on foreign soil? Well, let's see what happens after President Trump's attack on Obama, CNN, and intel agencies in Poland.

2017/07/07 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Super-cool Snapchat glasses are now being sold in Europe (1) Goodbye geeky tech glasses: Super-cool Snapchat glasses have arrived in Europe. At this point, they just have a camera and none of the advanced capabilities of the discontinued, geeky Google glasses, but more functionality will no doubt come in time. [Image credit: E&T magazine, issue of July 2017]
(2) Marking 20 years of non-stop robotic exploration of Mars, thanks to indefatigable NASA scientists and engineers. [Video]
(3) Trump and US intelligence agencies: Isn't it interesting that when trump is provided intelligence on Syria, Iran, or North Korea, he uses the info and brags about how good it is, but when he is told by the same agencies that Russia interfered in the 2016 election, he attacks the sources and compares the accuracy of the info to that about Iraq's possession of WMDs!
(4) The "hoax" that's no longer a hoax: Trump has finally come to admit that Russia meddled in our 2016 election, but every time he mentions that it was Russia, he adds something like "and probably others too" to soften his statement. He also blames Obama for doing nothing about it. But Obama did a lot about it (including imposing sanctions that, according to Russia's own admission, are crushing their economy and expelling a large number of Russian spies), as opposed to Trump who has done nil. And Trump hasn't said a word about why he previously thought that the assertion of Russian meddling was a hoax!
(5) NPR tweeted the entire American Declaration of Independence: Many Trump supporters, not recognizing the historic document, took issue with NPR's spreading of "propaganda" and "trying to sound patriotic, while condoning violence." Many of these comments have since been deleted, but not before others captured and preserved them.
(6) Five brief items in the news about Iranians inside and outside Iran.
- Satirist Mr. Haloo takes on the mullah who had said inflation and high prices are the will of God. [Video]
- Three Iranian-born actresses invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. [Image]
- Iranian-Canadians of Vancouver participated in Canada's 150th birthday celebrations. [7-minute video]
- The schoolgirl whose singing video went viral a few years ago has developed into a seasoned singer!
- Nice artwork by Nasim Bahari, showing Tajrish Square and its vicinity, in Shemiran, north of Tehran.
(7) Journalist threatened by Neo-Nazis and other Trump supporters: Jared Yates Sexton, the journalist who revealed the racist and anti-Semitic background of the Reddit user whose video of Trump beating up a CNN meme was tweeted by Trump himself, is getting a lot of hate messages, up to and including death threats.
(8) Cinema under the stars is back: This summer's films, screened Wednesdays at UCSB's Campbell Hall, beginning at 7:30 PM, and Fridays at the SB Courthouse Sunken Garden, beginning at 8:30 PM, are selections from the James Bond franchise. Tonight, I watched, in a relaxing evening under the stars, "Dr. No" from 1962, the first film in the 55-year-old franchise, now containing 26 films.
(9) Final thought for the day: On July 4th, 2017, North Korea fired a missile into the ocean, and so declared independence from American nuclear threat!

2017/07/06 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Persian calligraphy, shaped in the form of a cylinder to honor Cyrus the Great (1) Calligraphic art by Morteza Shabai, shaped to honor the Cyrus Cylinder.
(2) GOPers who voted to impeach Bill Clinton are eerily quiet on Donald Trump!
(3) New poll: Independents trust CNN more than Trump, 55% to 40% [Newsweek].
(4) German patriotism vs. US regular and alternative patriotisms. [Image]
(5) A feat of engineering: Chinese fountain, featuring projected 3D imagery.
(6) Not a SCOTUS opinion, but important to note nonetheless: Chief Justice John G. Roberts speaks at the 9th-grade graduation ceremony of Cardigan Mountain School, a NH boarding school for boys.
(7) Algerian student denied doctoral degree after successfully defending dissertation: Her work was critical of the country's military, so even though her doctoral committee was satisfied with the dissertation after their recommended changes had been made, the university's administration withheld her degree and removed copies of the dissertation from the library. Let's hope the student's body isn't found in a ditch somewhere! This story reminds me of the case of a master's student at UCSB who was denied a degree because he added a disacknowledgments section, criticizing the unhelpfulness of his committee, after the thesis was approved but before filing copies at the library. The UCSB case was eventually resolved in the student's favor, but the critical comments were removed.
(8) The great American solar eclipse of 2017: The last total solar eclipse to traverse the US was in 1918 and the next one will be in 2045. So, understandably, many people want to see this once-in-a-lifetime event. Some 12 million Americans live on the path of the total eclipse, shown in this Time magazine map (which also contains a wealth of other info), and 47 million are within a 2-hour drive. The map also shows the eclipse percentage in other parts of the US; around 60% in my neck of the woods. I may decide to go experience the total eclipse in Oregon or Wyoming on Monday, 8/21.
(9) Summer concerts in the park are back: This evening at Santa Barbara's Chase Palm Park, I enjoyed great music by The PettyBreakers (tribute band to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers). On the way to the concert site, I photographed several sights in and around Chase Palm Park. The crowd was sizable and jolly, dancing and singing along with the band throughout the concert. On the way back, I was impressed by the moon's glory, as I walked to my car along Cabrillo Blvd; these iPhone photos do not do it justice, though. As for the songs performed, there were a lot of good ones. I recorded six samples, arranged from the shortest (1-minute) to the longest (5-minute). [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4] [Video 5] [Video 6]

2017/07/05 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
NYC protest march against the Republican healthcare plans (1) June 4th NYC protest march against the Republican healthcare plans. [Photo credit: Time magazine, issue of July 10 & 17, 2017]
(2) Quote of the day: "To persevere in one's duty, and be silent, is the best answer to calumny." ~ George Washington
[This quote was tweeted by author J. K. Rowling as a reaction to Trump's tweet, which included a video of his beating up a man having CNN's logo as his face; "calumny" is essentially the equivalent of fake news in Washington's day.]
(3) Relaxing piano music by Mohsen Karbassi: I love these 80 (mostly) Persian tracks as background music when I work or play.
[Karbassi's Facebook page (with videos and more)]
[Karbassi's Web site (with sheet music and more)]
(4) Persian music: Homayoun Shajarian sings in this wonderful 24-minute video and in this concert with Simorgh orchestra, conducted by Hooman Khalatbari and performing "Simorgh," a composition by Hamid Motabassem, featuring poems of Ferdowsi.
(5) Hilarious response to Trump's tweet of a video showing him beating up a CNN character.
(6) Chris Christie looks, thinks, and talks like Donald Trump: He tells the media criticizing him for his family members enjoying a beach, which had been closed to the public due to government shutdown in New Jersey, to come to grips with the fact that he is the governor. Trump had boasted in a speech that he is the President and his media critics are not.
(7) Freedom sculpture unveiled: Designed in the shape of the Cyrus Cylinder, the sculpture (installed on Santa Monica Blvd., at the entrance to Century City) is a gift from the Iranian-American community to the City of Los Angeles. It was unveiled in special ceremonies yesterday, as part of the city's July-4th celebrations. Here is the LA Times report. And here is a personal video report, posted by Bita Milanian.
(8) Today's GRIT talk: Speaking at UCSB's Hatlen Theater, Professor Tim Sherwood of our Computer Science Department presented an interesting talk entitled "The Rock We Tricked into Thinking" as part of the summer session's series of public lectures. The "rock" of the title is, of course, the ubiquitous silicon, which we often see in the form of sand on the beach. As usual for these Monday-Wednesday talks, there was significant attendance by summer-session students. Starting with the observation that each of us likely has 5 billion tiny electrical switches in his/her pocket, Professor Sherwood discussed the state of the art in computer technology, which despite mind-boggling advances over the past few decades, still presents us with many unanswered, yet rather basic, questions. Inspired by the human brain, and motivated by the need for energy-efficient and intelligent systems, computer scientists and engineers are hard at work to bring us even more intricate and powerful systems. The latest developments in computer technology are based on the use of nontraditional methods, such as quantum computing and taking advantage of hybrid analog/digital systems to offer super-high performance at low energy cost.
(9) Final thought for the day: All future US presidents should be thankful to Trump for establishing new lows against which they will look super-competent and immeasurably presidential.

2017/07/04 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Lompoc flower field, with red, white, and blue flowers forming the American flag (1) Happy Independence Day to my fellow Americans! A few years ago, the city of Lompoc, about 50 miles north of Santa Barbara and known as "the flower seed capital of the world," had a field covered with red, white, and blue flowers forming the American flag. We once hiked on a nearby hill to get a view of the flag from above. Alas, the flag is now gone.
Also, a belated happy Canada Day (July 1) to my readers north of the border, as their country celebrates its 150th birthday! I almost became a Canadian in the late 1980s, when during visiting appointments at Waterloo and Carleton Universities, I received permanent job offers from Canadian institutions. In the final analysis, however, I chose Santa Barbara as my new city and the US as my new home country.
(2) Confirmation of sugar's link to Alzheimer's: "[A] 'tipping point' molecular link between the blood sugar glucose and Alzheimer's disease has been established by scientists, who have shown that excess glucose damages a vital enzyme involved with inflammation response to the early stages of Alzheimer's."
(3) Astronaut Buzz Aldrin's reactions, as he listens to Trump announcing the re-establishment of the National Space Council (disbanded in 1993), speak volumes.
(4) Comparison of premiums between Obamacare (blue) and Senate's Trumpcare (red) in this chart, an average increase of 74%. [Source: Kaiser Family Foundation]
(5) "Waterfall" by M. C. Escher: One of several Escher drawings creating the illusion of perpetual motion.
(6) The amazing nature: Fantastic fungi, indispensable to nature, shown through time-lapse photography.
(7) Two quotes about freedom, in celebration of the American Independence Day:
"Freedom is nothing but a chance to be better." ~ Albert Camus
"Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves." ~ Abraham Lincoln
(8) Feasts for the eyes in exotic places: The magnificent nature of Heaven's Gate, China, and the colorful lanterns at Istanbul's Grand Bazaar, Turkey.
(9) Final thought for the day: "As President of our contry and Commander-in-Chief of our military, I accept that people are going to call me awful things every day, and I will always defend their right to do so." ~ President Barack Obama, speaking at the 2012 UN General Assembly

2017/07/03 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
An Iranian dish that looks more like a piece of art (1) Iranian cuisine or art?
(2) Burger joints in my city: Cover feature of this week's Santa Barbara Independent. [Cover image]
(3) Same-sex marriage now legal in Germany: Angela Merkel's surprise statement, that she wanted German lawmakers to be free to vote their conscience, allowed members of her coalition to break from the party's position and led to the 393-226 passage of a same-sex marriage law.
(4) Advice from a Facebook friend: "Enjoy and remember every line you read and every smile you see." This FB friend has been losing his eyesight gradually, owing to neural degeneration (as I understand it). He can still see and read from a limited part of one eye's visual field, but is uncertain whether the degeneration will continue. His positive attitude and decision to make the best of what he has are inspiring.
(5) A Persian poem by Abolghassem Haalat: In a semi-serious poem, Haalat laments his soft heart that puts him at a disadvantage in a cold-hearted world.
(6) Trump's treatment of women explained in terms of hostile and benevolent sexism.
(7) What artists circa 1900 thought life would be like in the year 2000. [Pictorial]
(8) Persian music: A talented group of female musicians, the Mah Banoo Band, performs "Jaan-e Aashegh" ("Lover's Soul"), accompanied by their director Majid Derakhshani, who composed the piece. This second piece is Nazli and Roshan Rahmanian's wonderful rendition of "Porsoon Porsoon," an old popular song.
(9) Final thought for the day: "Thank God I am an atheist!" ~ George Bernard Shaw (paraphrased)

2017/07/02 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
B. Parhami's fake magazine cover (1) My magazine cover: Inspired by Trump (and other egotistic rulers around the world)! You can visit yourcover.com to design your own cover. You'll have to register after creating the cover.
(2) New architectural wonders: China is building the world's first forest city and the world's largest airport. Beijing's mega-airport, set to open in 2019, was designed by the late architect Zaha Hadid.
(3) Lecture on Forough Farrokhzad: Professor Farzaneh Milani, of University of Virginia, reviews Farrokhzad's life and poetry in this informative 50-minute talk.
(4) Putin paid Trump? A year ago, a Republican Congressman said in a private meeting that candidate Trump and a pro-Russia Congressman were on Putin's payroll. After initial denial that he had said this, he now claims the statement was a joke. So, why did Speaker Ryan, who was also present at the meeting, swore everyone to secrecy?
(5) Mr. Bean at the emergency room. [Comedy skit]
(6) How to e-mail like a professional: Google exec Eric Schmidt gives us 9 essential rules to follow.
(7) States resist WH request: Under the guise of voter-fraud investigation, WH commission tries to collect a vast array of private voter data, but nearly half the US states refuse to hand over the data.
(8) Former Trump friends: Before they became Trump foes and subjects of his ire, "Morning Joe" hosts supported and empowered him, all the way to a couple of months ago, when his incompetence and character flaws had become obvious to the rest of the press. They are just new examples of friends thrown under the bus by Trump in order to create a few more days of distraction from his serious problems.
(9) Trump's latest juvenile tweet: I would have thought that he might want to hide an old video clip of him engaging in a fake fight with someone at a Wrestlemania event. Yesterday, he tweeted an edited version that replaces the head of the person he is supposedly beating with the CNN logo. I am sure the administration will try to whitewash this token of Trump's anger issues and lack of respect for the First Amendment by characterizing it as humor. While the clip is somewhat funny, "scary" and "disgusting" are the words that come to mind first. Welcome to the United States of Reality TV, as we approach our nation's birthday celebration!

Cover image for 'Astrophysics for People in a Hurry' 2017/07/01 (Saturday): Book review: deGrasse Tyson, Neil, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry, e-book, W. W. Norton & Company, 2017.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]
This is the first e-book that I perused on the OverDrive app that connects my smartphone to the local public library (I had listened to several MP3 audiobooks earlier). The experience, while not as pleasant as that of listening to an audiobook or reading a printed volume, was more than acceptable, particularly given the convenience of having the book I was reading with me at all times to fill waiting times or dead periods between consecutive scheduled commitments.
Astrophysics has always been a mystery to me, and it remains so after reading this book. Perhaps, I have not delved deeply enough into the subject, but I find it extremely unsatisfying when new concepts are created just to fill voids left by our incomplete knowledge of the world.
The universe does not quite follow laws of gravity? Let's say there is invisible "dark matter" that interacts with gravitational forces but not with anything else. Tyson explains these made-up notions as placeholders that are useful until we discover the true causes of current discrepancies (much like ether was used to explain light propagation in a vacuum).
We are told that at the beginning of time, all matter and energy was contained in a volume less than one trillionth the size of the period that ends this sentence. Forgetting that the said period is 2-dimensional and not a volume, and assuming that the author meant a sphere with the same diameter as the period, that volume can be estimated to be about 10^(–10) cubic meters, so the statement tells us that everything was contained in a volume of 10^(–22) cubic meters. A few paragraphs later, we read about the Planck era, the first 10^(–43) second of the life of the universe, when its size grew to 10^(–35) meters. How can something grow to occupy a smaller volume than it had originally? Just because we are in a hurry to learn does not mean that we don't cross-check and analyze the numbers presented to us!
In that early tiny-fraction-of-a-second time interval, all forces were unified and the unification challenge we now face, viz. the desire to formulate a theory of everything, did not exist. Gravity, the force that binds bulk matter, was the first of the four forces to pull apart and distinguish itself from the other three: electroweak force (controlling radioactive decay), strong nuclear force (binding the atomic nucleus), and electromagnetic force (binding molecules).
Contrary to what most people think, the space between galaxies, which are typically many many light years apart, is far from empty. There is, of course, the unsatisfying dark matter noted above, but there are also isolated stars and a very large number of dwarf galaxies, which have millions of stars as opposed to many billions in "normal" galaxies. In fact, given that there are far more dwarf galaxies than the ones we consider normal, perhaps we should revise the designation "normal" to apply to these much smaller galaxies.
The scale of our universe is astounding. To understand it, we need to know something about the tiniest particles that make it up, as well as astronomical distances that separate its parts. Once we have an understanding of the scale, we quickly realize that there is very little that is special about our Earth. Conditions similar to Earth likely exist on many millions, if not billions, of planets, just in our own galaxy, making the existence of extraterrestrial life forms all but certain.
I am an admirer of the author for his role in bringing science to the public and for his gift of explaining difficult scientific notions using simple language and humor. We need more people like him in this age of vilification of scientists and of science denial. But let us agree that certain scientific concepts cannot be explained in laymen's terms, no matter how much we wave our hands and how many jokes we mix in with the presentation.
The book does expose the reader to certain scientific terms, such as black holes, the Big Bang, subatomic particles, and the like, thus creating an illusion of understanding when you hear these terms in the latest science headline. For true understanding of these notions, however, there is no substitute for rolling up our sleeves and studying science in a systematic way, with no shortcuts.

2017/06/30 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing Trump in prison (1) Cartoon of the day: The wall that will make America safe again.
(2) Painter extraordinaire: A well-made 24-minute documentary about Iranian-American painter Ali Banisadr, who took up painting to depict the frightening sounds of the Iran-Iraq war. His more recent paintings also exude unique soundtracks, but contain elements of his new surroundings in Brooklyn. Enjoy this wonderful feast for the eyes!
(3) Volkswagen uses Nvidia GPUs for traffic flow optimization via deep learning: The German auto-maker has initiated research into quantum computing and deep learning to improve traffic flows in dense urban centers. Volkswagen previously purchased Nvidia graphics processing units to perfect its algorithms. [Source: WSJ]
(4) Information systems at US healthcare providers 'in critical condition': This week's ransomware Petya, that affected major shipping, food, and pharmaceutical companies, was particularly devastating to a Pennsylvania healthcare provider. Hospitals and other health organizations are quite vulnerable to such attacks because of poor security practices. The source of the attack has been traced to Ukraine, where officials indicate they have the situation under control. [From various print and Internet sources]
(5) Logical reasoning puzzle: You are shown three boxes and told that they contain 25 identical Burmese rubies collectively, but the distribution of the rubies in boxes is unknown to you. You are allowed to ask for any number of rubies from each box (the number you specify can be different for each box). If the box does not contain enough rubies to satisfy your request, you get nothing; otherwise, you get as many rubies as you asked for. How many would you request from each box in order to guarantee getting the maximum number of rubies in the worst case? Advanced variation: You are allowed to ask for rubies from the boxes one at a time. In other words, you ask for a certain number of rubies from box 1 and based on the outcome, you can decide how many you will ask for from box 2, and so on. What strategy would maximize your guaranteed haul in this case?
(6) Small plane crash-lands on northbound 405 Freeway, near John Wayne Airport in Irvine.
(7) Kansas cut taxes on the rich, while California raised them: Five years later, the economy in Kansas is on life support, with a $1.1 billion budget deficit, while California's economy is one of the strongest in the US, having erased a $27 billion deficit. One more piece of evidence that trickle-down economics does not work.
(8) Trump is clueless on healthcare, as on other issues: Several GOP senators have said openly that, after months of discussion on the topic, Trump knows nil about healthcare. You can't broker a deal, when you don't know anything about what's at stake. They have said that Trump, talking to them trying to gain their votes, just says "vote for the bill, it will be great," rather than engage in an informed discussion, promising something in return for their compromise on other parts.
(9) Presidential embarrassments mount: The feud between the POTUS and two MSNBC morning talk show hosts escalated today, with the hosts claiming that a senior member of the WH tried to have them tone down their critical commentaries by offering to kill an unfavorable National Enquirer story about the hosts.

2017/06/29 (Thursday): Here are four items of potential interest.
(1) Book review: Haas, Richard, A World in Disarray: American Foreign Policy and the Crisis of the Old Order, unabridged audiobook on 7 CDs, read by Dan Worren, Penguin/Random-House Audio, 2017.
Cover image for 'A World in Disarray' Richard Haas is a foreign policy expert who is often compared with Henry Kissinger in terms of knowledge and influence. He was the senior Middle East adviser to President George H. W. Bush and has presided over the Council on Foreign Relations for a decade and a half. His thesis in this book is that the world is becoming increasingly more difficult to manage, as it declines in order and deviates from four centuries of recent history, what we commonly refer to as the modern era.
The end of the Cold War, far from bringing tranquility and peace to the world, has led to greater fragmentation and conflict. The relative stability and restraint of a bipolar world no longer exists in the current unipolar order, with numerous hostilities and hot spots. Haas believes that the US will likely remain the world's greatest power for the foreseeable future and warns that we cannot afford to create sudden or sharp depatures in what we do in the world. In his words, "If America comes to be doubted, it will inevitably give rise to a very different and much less orderly world."
Haas systematically reviews the world's trouble spots and offers insights into how the problems developed and how they got out of control. He believes that a system based on non-interference in the internal affairs of a state is inadequate for the 21st century. Instead, he thinks that states have a "sovereign obligation": to combat terrorism, deal with drug trafficking, prevent nuclear proliferation, and pay serious attention to climate change.
Near the end of the book, Haas offers recommendations on how to deal with the disarray. Some of his suggestions make more sense and are better argued than others, but any person interested in foreign policy challenges, particularly members of the current US administration, would benefit from seriously considering these suggestions. In particular, Haas suggests that success in executing an orderly foreign policy requires that there be order at home.
[My 4-star review of this title on GoodReads]
(2) Does this man ever learn? "Nobody respects women more than I do." Yeah, right! Only women who submit and smile, while being assaulted/insulted. Every tweet confirms, right at the very top, that this is the real Donald Trump, not the picture his supporters paint of him. Trump's latest IQ/looks insults were aimed at Mika Brzezinski of MSNBC's "Morning Joe."
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Cardinal close to the Pope will face sexual abuse charges in court (PBS)
- Seven couples, including rabbi, charged with welfare fraud (ABC7 LA)
- Trump continues on-line bullying, as his wife pretends to fight it (CNN)
- Trump's revised travel ban, as restricted by SCOTUS, takes effect (AP)
- Trump's longtime bodyguard new focus of the Russia probe (ABC)
- Tillerson accuses WH staffers of 'unprofessional' meddling (Newsweek)
(4) Final thought for the day: A true leader leads quietly and selflessly. S/He absorbs pressures and shocks, communicating his/her thoughts and strategies to people in order to reassure and comfort them. S/He does not issue endless statements about how everything is messed up, how wonderful s/he is, and how despicable his/her opponents and critics are.

2017/06/28 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
GIF image of a beautiful geometric pattern (1) A hypnotic, moving geometric pattern.
(2) Trump lawyer's firm steered millions in charitable donations to family members: Trump correctly identified the swamp, but deflected attention from its real denizens, which include his own family and those of his cronies.
(3) The #whitewednesdays campaign (women wearing white scarves to protest mandatory hijab laws) has become a thorn in the Iranian regime's eye, so much so that it is spreading lies about the campaign's originator, reporter Masih Alinejad, and has even sent her death threats.
(4) The beginner's creed: When you begin a new type of activity or enter a new field, celebrate your beginner status. Without becoming a beginner over and over again, you will not make any progress. [Sidebar in an article by Peter Denning, Communications of the ACM, Issue of July 2017] [Image]
(5) The mess created by two separate foreign policy tracks: One is run by Tillerson/Mattis and favors Qatar for its history of cooperation with the US, including bombings it carried out in Libya at our request. The other is run by Trump/Kushner, who are in bed with the Saudis. Tillerson is said to be frustrated by his constant running around, trying to fix the mess created by the latter, which leaves him no time to focus on the much-needed appointments in the State Department.
(6) Guru of the new age of computing: Geoffrey Hinton of University of Toronto is a great-great-grandson of the 19th-century logician George Boole, the inventor of Boolean algebra, which forms a pillar of modern computing. Hinton's work on neural networks, a key tool in the recent resurgence of the field of artificial intelligence, may prove to be equally path-breaking.
(7) Wonderful magic routine by an enchanting young girl. [4-minute video]
(8) Today's GRIT talk: Speaking at UCSB's Hatlen Theater, Professor Jason Marden of our ECE Department presented an interesting talk entitled "The Challenges that Society Brings to Engineering Design" as part of the summer session's series of public lectures. These talks are aimed primarily at students, so it was encouraging to see good attendance by summer-session students. One of the challenges of designing socio-technical systems, whether it is for power grids, transportation networks, or data centers, is the weird and unpredictable ways in which the society will use them, often creating risks and inefficiencies. Professor Marden shed some light on the challenges in designing and controlling such systems. His research entails the application of the mathematical theory of games to system design. Game theory was once confined to studying problems in economics, but increasingly, boundaries between economics, psychology, and engineering are fading. The benefits of a road system, for example, depend on how people use it and the way in which they make trade-offs in travel distance, travel time, and cost (in the case of toll roads). Having an accurate predictive model for the choices people will make is invaluable for successful design.

2017/06/27 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of observation tower in Denmark (1) An impressive new observation tower in Denmark's Camp Adventure.
(2) Persian music: "Ashegham Man" ("I'm in Love"), performed by Delkash (with lyrics).
(3) Hooman Tabrizi's Persian piano on YouTube: Fifty tracks from the Iranian-American pianist's music.
(4) California's extremes: Did you know that California claims the highest and lowest points in the continental US? Mount Whitney, in the Sierra Nevada, rises to 14,508 ft (4422 m) above sea level. Badwater, so named for its super-salty water, sinks to 282 ft (86 m) below sea level and is located in the Death Valley National Park, close to the point where the Earth's hottest temperature ever has been recorded (134 in 1913). [Source: Westways, SoCal AAA magazine]
(5) Nicholas Kristof offers some practical suggestions on standing up to Trump: In his view, broad-based opposition, such as what Stephen Colbert provides, will be more successful than a handful of angry Democratic Senators. "Trump can survive denunciations, but I'm less sure that in the long run he can withstand mockery." Stated another way, "Nothing deflates an authoritarian more than ridicule."
(6) The game-changing potential of AI examined by CBS's "60 Minutes": Among other things, Watson (the program that became a "Jeopardy!" champion several years ago) is shown to learn medicine and start contributing to cancer diagnosis at a level that matches or exceeds the capabilities of highly trained oncologists.
(7) A useful gadget for cyclists: Portable side-view mirror.
(8) Cartoon of the day: The fight between Pythagoras and Einstein. [Image]
(9) Final thought for the day: Having solved all urgent problems in healthcare, education, jobs, energy, manufacturing, infrastructure, and foreign policy, Trump resumes his feud with Rosie O'Donnell on Twitter.

2017/06/26 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of two armed Kurdish women circa 120 years ago (1) Armed Kursidh women thought to be from Kermanshah, ~ 120 years ago.
(2) Trump appears cornered and scared: And he exhibits increased agitation over the Russia investigation. Time magazine, issue of July 3, 2017, features former FBI director and current special counsel Robert Mueller on its cover, referring to him as "The Lie Detector." Mueller has assembled a dream-team of lawyers, but their work, like any legal proceeding, will be methodical and slow.
(2) Oil tanker explosion kills 150 in Pakistan: The tanker had overturned and was leaking fuel. The dead were collecting fuel, when the tanker exploded. It is heartbreaking that when poor, uneducated people in countries like Pakistan are not killed by terrorists among them, they are victimized by their own ignorance. Any schoolchild in a Western country would know to stay far away from an oil-leaking car or truck.
(3) Islamic eid celebration, Bollywood style! [6-minute video]
(4) The latest Trump tweets acknowledge Russian meddling in the 2016 US election: But only to blame Obama for doing nothing about it!
(5) An appeal of the $25M Trump University fraud lawsuit settlement may be allowed to proceed: Both NYT and LAT indicate that Trump may end up back in court due to a Florida woman's dissatisfaction with the 2016 settlement of a class-action lawsuit against him.
(6) [This is political humor, but it rings truer than much of what passes as news these days!] Borowitz Report: Jared Kushner calls Kim Jong-on "totally unqualified person" who only got job throuth nepotism.
(7) True to form, Trump declares victory, even though the bulk of his travel ban was struck down by SCOTUS: Only 3 justices voted to hold up the entire executive order, but all 9 were unanimous in letting stand a limited version of it. Any citizen from the banned countries, who can show some connection in the US (having relatives, admission to a university program, or job offer) will be allowed to enter. This is the overwhelming majority of people from those countries who want to enter the US. In fact, I don't know a single person from those countries who has visited the US as a tourist, without any connections here. They simply cannot afford a US pleasure trip.
(8) Forty top economists oppose the Senate version of Trumpcare: The group, which includes 6 Nobel Laureates, has written a letter to the Senate majority leader, expressing strong opposition to the bill. Meanwhile, 3 GOP Senators have indicated that they won't vote for the bill, dooming it to failure.
(9) Today's GRIT talk: Speaking at UCSB's Hatlen Theater, Professor Katy Craig of our Math Department presented an interesting talk entitled "The Math of Swarming Robots, Superconductors, and Slime Mold" as part of the summer session's series of public lectures. The bulk of attendees were summer-session students. While working at Apple, Craig thought she wanted to do math all day, thus deciding to pursue a PhD at Rutgers University. At UCSB, Craig is working on the mathematical modeling of systems of interacting agents, a field with connections to engineering, physics, and biology. Among other fascinating results, the mathematical models are capable of describing how a swarm of birds, school of fish, band of robots, or pile of slime mold exhibit complex group behaviors, using only very simple local rules. In other words, each individual agent only interacts with a few other nearby agents. These leaderless groups exhibit coordinated behavior, where birds, fish, or robots do not crash into one another, despite the totally distributed control.

2017/06/25 (Sunday): Four interesting memes/signs, along with nine other items of potential interest.
Glue stick, insteas of chapstick Wheel-of-Fortune puzzle being solved Super callous fragile racist sexist not my POTUS Meme reading, 'Drives a Mercedes, owns his own home (1) Let's see who is more crooked/corrupt, the Republicans or the Democrats? Someone researched this, and the answer isn't even close. Over the researcher's lifetime (53 years), Democrats have held the presidency for 25 years (during which they had 3 executive branch officials indicted, with 1 conviction and 1 prison sentence) and Republicans held it for 28 years (when they had 120 criminal indictments of executive branch officials, 89 criminal convictions, and 34 prison sentences).
(2) A bunch of "good guys" (and a "good gal") with guns enter a diner: Yes, it's a joke, but hardly a stretch in this age of road rage and such! [3-minute video]
(3) With cameras banned, CNN sends sketch artist to White House briefing.
(4) Reversible computing needs near-zero energy: According to laws of physics, any loss in information dissipates energy. When you add 5 and 7 to obtain 12, you lose some information, because the computation isn't reversible (you can't deduce the original inputs 5 and 7 from the output 12). Let's consider the scale of power lost in electronic circuits. A vacuum tube of early computers consumed about 5 watts and operated at 1 kHz, which represents about 10^18 kT per gate operation (k is Boltzmann's constant and T is the temperature in Kelvins). A modern transistor is much more energy-efficient, but it still consumes about 30,000 kT per operation. Specially-designed low-power circuits using existing transistors take advantage of energy recycling methods to cut power dissipation. Such circuits are more complex and cost more, but over time, they can pay for themselves through lower energy cost, particularly when energy is expensive or scarce (such as in satellites). The ultimate in energy efficiency is to approach the theoretical limit of 1 kT per operation. The futuristic vision of reversible computing can achieve this limit, at least in theory. A circuit that receives 5 and 7 at input and produces 5, the first number, and the sum 12 at output is reversible, because the two output values contain enough information to reconstruct the inputs. Reversible logic circuits are even more expensive than today's low-power circuits and will likely make sense only for applications where energy should be obtained via scavenging or is super-expensive. [Summarized from: IEEE Computer magazine, issue of June 2017, "Opportunities and Controversies of Reversible Computing," by E. P. DeBenedictis, J. K. Mee, and M. P. Frank, pp. 76-80]
(5) Wonderful high-tech magic routine: Two pairs of identical twins leave the audience and judges amazed.
(6) Tax cuts don't lead to growth: Trickle-down economics debunked once more by a new 65-year study.
(7) Bach on the banjo: Classical music and country instruments do mix! [2-minute video]
(8) Turkey drops evolution from school curricula: Claims it's too complex to teach to high-schoolers.
(9) Final thought for the day: "The love that you withhold is the pain that you carry." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Cover image of David Cay Johnston's 'The Making of Donald Trump' 2017/06/24 (Saturday): Book review: Johnston, David Cay, The Making of Donald Trump, unabridged audiobook, read by Joe Barrett, Blackstone Audio, 2016.
Johnston is a Pulitzer-Prize-winning investigative reporter who clearly has a beef with Trump, so I tried to listen to this book with an open mind, looking for evidence in lieu of opinions.
Johnston lays out a compelling case against Trump, his fraudulent deals, and his association with questionable characters to advance his goals. The book begins with the story of Trump's father, Fred, who constantly operated at the boundaries of what was legal and amassed a fortune through shady deals. Fred Trump was involved in many scandals and was investigated by a US Senate committee for profiteering from public contracts.
The book contains a lot of material about failed real-estate deals that carried Trump's name and were peddled by him and members of his family. In many cases, he had merely licensed the use of the Trump brand to the developers, while misleading buyers and investors by pretending that he was personally involved and had his own money invested in the developments. When lawsuits were filed, Trump distanced himself from the problematic projects and blamed the developers.
The author discusses Trump's Atlantic City casino business in some detail. Trump bullied his way into getting a sweet deal from New Jersey by playing coy and threatening to take his business elsewhere. We learn from this book that financial institutions, big and small, were complicit in Trump's shady deals, as they bypassed many of their own rules and regulations to accommodate him. Even when he drove his casinos into bankruptcy, he managed to get out on terms highly favorable to him.
Then there is the case of Trump University, which engaged in illegal activities on many levels. The "University" wasn't approved by authorities in states where it operated (as the law requires), its instructors weren't qualified (some were in fact convicted felons), and learners were pressured into buying more expensive packages once they enrolled in the basic package (they were coached into applying for higher limits on their credit cards, so that they could pay for the expensive packages). Trump eventually settled the Trump University lawsuit without admitting guilt.
And this is a recurring pattern. Trump threatens his adversaries with lawsuits, and files counter-suits when challenged. Then, when legal cases aren't going his way, he settles quickly. Trump has been a party in thousands of lawsuits. He takes special pride in ruining his opponents via mounting legal fees, which either make them give up or prone to settling on Trump's terms.
The author apparently has a lot of dirt on Trump, but his presentation of the case against Trump isn't systematic. Another book on my to-read list, Trump Revealed: An American Journey of Ambition, Ego, Money, and Power (by Michael Kranish and Marc Fisher), is said to be more extensive, even-handed, and journalistically sound in its treatment. I am looking forward to reading and reviewing that book.
[My 3-star review of this book on GoodReads]

2017/06/23 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Days when Trump spoke or tweeted public lies and falshoods, January-June 2017 (1) The "failing @nytimes" has catalogued Trump's public lies and falsehoods during the first five months of his presidency, January 21 to June 21, 2017.
(2) Candidate Trump vs. President Trump on Saudi Arabia: Hypocricy in the extreme! A good example of why the Saudis want Qatar to shut down Aljazeera, which produced this video.
(3) The committee to protect Iranian men's rights has decided that the first day of summer, the longest day of the year, should be named "Yadollah," to protest the first night of winter being named "Yalda."
(4) Biking from Munich to Venice: If I were younger, I would definitely consider taking this 600-km bike path through the Alps. This travel ad showed up on my Facebook newsfeed this morning.
(5) PhD described graphically: I had seen this picture, or one similar to it, years ago, but coming across it again today, I decided to share. It is eye-opening. A PhD is the result of making a small dent on the boundary of human knowledge, pushing it outward by a tiny bit. After getting the degree, that tiny bump becomes the focus of your life and work. But looking at the big picture, you see that there is a lot more to learn and that broadening your worldview is perhaps more important than the deepening that resulted from your doctoral work.
(6) Facts vs. alternative facts. [Credit: Time magazine, issue of June 26, 2017] [Image]
(7) Why brick-and-mortar stores are closing: Amazon's purchase of Whole Foods triggered much discussion about what might happen to conventional grocery businesses, both big chains and small mom-and-pop stores. Upon each visit to a major department store or bookstore (before the latter went mostly out of business), I wonder how they make any money, given that, at times, there are more salespeople in the football-field-size store than customers. US retailers are highly inefficient. It has been observed that we have 5-6 times as much retail space per capita as other advanced countries. So, it is not surprising that the introduction of streamlined business models would lead to closure of these inefficient businesses.
(8) My $0.02 on the Philando Castile case: Facebook is abuzz with posts about how a killer cop got away with murder. So, let me present another view of this heartbreaking story. I too am upset by what seems to be a case of overzealous, or at least incompetent, police action that took a life and scarred the witnesses for life. But, guess what? We have incompetent surgeons, firefighters, paramedics, prosecutors, defense lawyers, and so on. We can't litigate every legal case on social media. We have a legal system that works pretty well, despite its shortcomings. Every single jury member is approved by both the prosecution and the defense. Jurors see a mountain of evidence and listen to back-and-forth questioning in the courtroom. They weigh various pieces of evidence and assess a multitude of testimonies with respect to relevance and reliability. Yes, there are also "incompetent" jurors who may be challenged in their reasoning and deduction abilities, but we have to work with our imperfect systems (legal, health, education, etc.), while trying to improve them. The assumption that based on a limited (perhaps biased) sample of evidence and without looking the accused in the eyes we can come to a more appropriate conclusion than a properly-constituted jury is quite dangerous.

2017/06/22 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
View of the Pacific Ocean from the top of West Camput bluffs at UCSB (1) Nature-photography challenge: I've just completed a week-long nature-photography challenge, which I had accepted from a Facebook friend. Each day, I was to post a photo of nature, animals, plants, sky, or monuments and to nominate a different friend to take up the challenge. It was a fun exercise! Shown is a bonus photo, along with links to the seven daily photos posted.
- Day 1: Vista point with a bench on the UCSB bluffs.
- Day 2: Drought-tolerant landscaping near my home.
- Day 3: Today, on the Montecito Hot Springs Trail.
- Day 4: Small nature preserve patch near my home.
- Day 5: Goleta's Devereux Slough is now almost dry.
- Day 6: Beach at UCSB's Coal Oil Point nature reserve.
- Day 7: Goleta Slough, shot looking toward SB Airport.
(2) A riddle for you: I was a French lady, but beheaded | Then a female knight, until my tail dropped | I was the first man, who lost his head | Holding back water, my crown fell instead | When to be is all of me | Who am I?
(3) Where 1746 adults think North Korea is located: A NYT scatterplot shows dots nearly everywhere in Asia! Knowledge of the country's location is correlated with preference for diplomacy over military action.
(4) NYT's practical guide on how to raise a reader: Not surprisingly, leading by example is the most important recommendation. A second important point is not to limit your children's reading material to stories.
(5) Wave: Photograph by Ray Collins, known for his masterful depiction of waves. Incredibly, he is colorblind, which has forced him to concentrate more on shapes, lines, and, most importantly, lighting. [Web site]
(6) Uber on the brink of self-destruction: This Time magazine cover feature (issue of June 26, 2017) examines the roots of Uber's troubles. Despite several missteps that could have killed many a start-up, Uber's valuation has grown 17-fold, from about $4 billion in 2013 to $68 billion in 2016. Can the company survive the latest internal problems and the associated bad publicity?
(7) Feeling down? There's an app for that. A couple of days ago, I was listening to an NPR program in which the multitude of apps claiming to provide mood uplifts were discussed. The app-makers are careful not to claim directly that their software provides mental-health counseling, as such assertions would put them in trouble with FDA. However, they do present a lot of misleading claims. The proliferation of medical and mental-health apps is putting health oversight authorities in a precarious position. FDA does not have the resources to follow up on all the apps and their associated claims, so it prioritizes its investigations, focusing first and foremost on those areas that might put lives at risk. The upside is that many people who use and benefit from these apps would not necessarily go to a qualified counselor in their absence.
(8) Deployable flight recorders: In the aftermath of several planes sinking at sea with no trace, Airbus is introducing flight data recorders that are ejectable and stay afloat. This is a step forward, although many experts prefer live-streaming of black-box flight data, which leaves nothing to chance. [Source: Reuters]
(9) Final thought for the day: "Trumpcare is not a healthcare bill. It's a massive transfer of wealth from middle-class and poor families to the richest people in America. It hands enormous tax cuts to the rich and to the drug and insurance industries, paid for by cutting healthcare for everybody else." ~ Former President Barack Obama

2017/06/21 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon about common food described with fancy culinary language (1) Cartoon of the day: Everyday foodie menu. [By John Atkinson]
(2) Pepsico CEO's honest and funny take on the challenges of combining motherhood with a career.
(3) Half-dozen brief science/technology news headlines of the day:
- Rick Perry defends Trump's DoE budget cuts (Houston Chronicle)
- Tesla ramps up production of Model-3 battery cells (TechRadar)
- Astrophysicist issues warning as Asteroid Day nears (Daily Mail)
- China close to overtaking the US in research spending (WP)
- White House may help US solar-panel manufacturers (The Hill)
- ISS crew to experiment with baking bread in space (Time)
(4) Rep. Joe Kennedy's highly emotional appeal about rising to the challenges posed by the Trump agenda.
(5) Power causes brain damage: "If power were a prescription drug, it would come with a long list of known side effects. It can intoxicate. It can corrupt. It can even make Henry Kissinger believe that he's sexually magnetic. But can it cause brain damage?" This intriguing article answers the question in the affirmative.
(6) Women engineers needed: UK's Institution of Engineering and Technology has launched the "Engineer a Better World" campaign to promote engineering careers for women. Currently, only 9% of UK engineers are women (up from 6% a couple of years ago).
(7) Saudi-Qatari conflict escalates: The Saudis deport 15,000 Qatari camels!
(8) Jackpot $358,297,406.81: Most people would be surprised to see a lottery jackpot or a major national budget item specified with this level of precision. In the case of a lottery jackpot, it is enough to know, for the purposes of whether or not to participate, that the jackpot is around $358 million. Scientists and engineers are explicitly trained not to use too many significant digits in numerical estimates, which are approximate anyway, either due to limited-accuracy measurement of the pertinent parameters or imprecise models used to derive them. So, I was surprised as I was reading the prestigious IEEE Computer magazine in the jury waiting room today to see an article presenting the parameters of 32-bit adders and multipliers thus: Adder power 3,818,821.94 nW; Multiplier power 34,033,690.30 nW. There are two fundamental problems with the presentation here. First, these numbers, derived from a power estimation software tool, are definitely not accurate to within 0.01 nW. Second, and equally important, nW isn't the appropriate unit to use here. One million nW is a mW, so the numbers should have been 3.8 mW and 34.0 mW, which are much easier to understand, both in absolute and in relative terms.
(9) X-ray eyes in the sky: UCSB researchers, led by Professor Yasamin Mostofi, have demonstrated 3D imaging of objects through walls using Wi-Fi signals. The method uses two autonomous drones in tandem and can help with emergency search-and-rescue missions, archaeological discovery, and structural monitoring. In a demo, two autonomous octocopters take off and fly outside a house whose interior is unknown to the drones. One drone continuously transmits a Wi-Fi signal, the received power of which is measured by the other drone. The drones employ the imaging methodology to reveal the area behind the walls and generate high-resolution 3D images of the objects inside. [Adapted from ACM Tech News report, based on The UC Santa Barbara Current]

2017/06/20 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Arrows poiting to a water fountain, seen at Santa Barbara's Courthouse (1) If you don't see the water fountain, the sign will help you! [Seen at the jury assembly hall of Santa Barbara's Courthouse, where I reported today but was dismissed due to a delayed trial.]
(2) Trump's Panama Canal comments produce an Internet storm. Here are some examples:
- "I only got a 3 in AP history, because I missed the question about Trump building the Panama Canal."
- "l was surprised that he knew the Panama Canal is in Panama!"
- "The Panama Canal is being recognized more and more."
(3) Humorous/fake news headlines of the day:
- Trump orders execution of five turkeys pardoned by Obama
- Putin: We would welcome former FBI director Comey as asylee
- Trump: Panama should pay us, or we'll take the canal elsewhere
(4) The root of much evil: Drawing congressional district boundaries in a way that ensures the election of certain kinds of people is arguably one of the main sources of dysfunction in Washington. Representatives whose seats are viewed as safe have little incentive to be responsive and/or flexible. The US Supreme Court has just agreed to hear a case about whether there are constitutional limits to how far politicians can go in drawing electoral districts to maximize partisan political advantage. This is perhaps one of the most important cases to come up this year before the Court.
(5) Enjoying a perfect 70-degree day here in Santa Barbara: Feeling the pain of Californians further inland and those living in other regions of western US, where temperatures are in the 90s, 100s, and a few 110s. Phoenix is at a record-high 120 degrees. Many flights have been cancelled due to the extreme heat and power outages abound due to the high air-conditioning load.
(6) lying bots: Facebook taught bots how to negotiate; they learned to lie instead. The bots had been trained to respond based on the likelihood of the direction a human dialogue would take. However, the bots were also taught about maximizing reward, and this skill led to the bots lying, or feigning interest in a valueless item so that they can later 'compromise' by conceding it. [Source: ACM Tech News]
(7) Top 500 supercomputers: For the first time in the list's history, the US does not appear in the top 3 spots of world's most powerful supercomputers. The Chinese Tianhe-2 occupies the first two spots, while Switzerland's Piz Daint is listed as third.
(8) The Freedom Sculpture to be unveiled in special ceremonies on July 4, 2017: Farhang Foundation's crowd-funded public monument to freedom, cultural diversity, and inclusiveness, reflecting the design of the Cyrus Cylinder, weighs 20,400 lbs and is made out of powder-coated high-polish stainless steel. It is located on Santa Monica Blvd. at Century City.
(9) [Final thought for the day] A bullfighter and a boxer have died in recent days: A Spanish bullfighter was gored during a show in France, when he stumbled on his cape. A UFC fighter turned boxer died after he suffered serious injury in a bout in Canada. Cruelty to humans and animals should not even be called "sports." Other sports aren't violence-free either, but at least violence isn't the main goal of those sports.

2017/06/19 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Persian calligraphy: A Rumi poem (1) Master Esrafil Shirchi's calligraphic rendering of a Mowlavi (Rumi) poem from "The Book of Shams."
(2) English translation of the first 18 verses of Rumi's "Masnavi," perhaps the world's most beloved and influential work of poetry.
(3) Ten brief news headlines of the day:
- Trump grows more defiant as Russia probe pressures mount (CNN)
- Russia warns the US on downing of Syrian fighter jet (ABC News)
- Secret health care bill roils Senate Republicans (MSNBC)
- Choice between resignation and impeachment looming (Huff Post)
- Presidency was good for Trump,s businesses (Business Insider)
- Tehran says Saudi Coast Guard killed Iranian fisherman (AFP)
- Car rams police van, explodes in suspected Paris terror act (AP)
- London high-rise fire death toll revised to at least 79 (ABC News)
- US student recently freed in a coma by North Korea dies at 22 (AP)
- Trump reportedly close to hiring new Press Secretary (Bloomberg)
(4) My father, in four visits over thirty years: This is the title of a wonderful Fathers' Day essay by Dina Nayeri, published in The New Yorker. [A day late, but still worth reading.]
(5) Presidential posts on Fathers' Day: Obama writes about how proud he is to be Sasha's and Malia's and Trump cites his 50% approval rating according to the Rasmussen poll and boasts that it's better than Obama's.
(6) A worthy lesson in organization, social behavior, and leadership: What packs of wolves can teach us.
(7) Are 11- and 12-year-old singers taking over the world? A wonderful performance of "'O Sole Mio."
(8) Wonderful musical jam session (jazzy French, reminiscent of Jason Marz's style).
(9) [Final thought for the day] Reaction to congressional shooting: Firstly, US lawmakers are taking this event way more seriously than any school mass-shooting. Secondly, instead of discussing possible reform of gun laws, our representatives are considering improved security measures on Capitol Hill. That will prevent lawmakers from becoming future targets, but does nothing for school children's safety, which is apparently not as important!

2017/06/18 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) Happy Fathers' Day to all!
(2) The race to develop the flying car is on. [Image credit: E&T magazine, issue of June 2017]
(3) For selfie enthusiasts: This selfie-taking drone, from airselfiecamera.com, is the size of a cell phone. It flies for 3 minutes on a full charge and has a range of 20 meters. [Image credit: E&T magazine, issue of June 2017]
(4) A whole bunch of musically talented kids cover Michael Jackson's "Heal the World" in this 7-minute video.
(5) Young boy amazes shoppers in a department store by playing the piano.
(6) Why net neutrality is important: Big corporations and rich people already control the broadcast and print media in the US. They want to gain control of the last frontier where common people, the lowly bloggers, small groups of activists, and the like, can have a say and compete with them in reaching the public. Let's help the politicians and tech leaders who are trying to stop them.
(7) A shortsighted decision: Cuban people are disappointed that the opening with the US, created by Obama, has been rolled back. Look at that smug expression on the photo accompaning the news story, as if signing a piece of paper is a great accomplishment!
(8) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- One dead, 10 injured in London terror attack outside a mosque (ABC News)
- US shoots down Syrian fighter plane (ABC News)
- Iran retaliates against ISIS by launching missiles into Syria (CNN)
- Trump lawyers and surrogates are building a case for firing Mueller (Newsweek)
- Trump and his lawyer give conflicting statements about Russia (ABC News)
- Leo DiCaprio surrenders art, Oscar statue in money-laundering probe (The Wrap)
(9) Fathers' Day hike with my daughter: We went for a 5-mile hike on the Montecito Hot Springs Trail. On Facebook, I joked that the hike was perhaps the most straneous Fathers' Day gift ever! I also took the opportunity to post my day-3 photo for the week-long nature challenge I have accepted from a Facebook friend. [Day-1 photo] [Day-2 photo] And here are a few more photos from today's hike.

Cover image for Carrie Fisher's 'The Princess Diarist' 2017/06/17 (Saturday): Book review: Fisher, Carrie, The Princess Diarist, unabridged audiobook, read by the author and Billie Lourd, Penguin/Random-House Audio, 2016.
Using the term "one-hit wonder" (a rock band which fizzles after producing a single hit song) as a model, Carrie Fisher may be described as a one-film wonder. Her role as Princes Leia in the original "Star Wars" trilogy (later designated Episodes 4-7, when three prequels were made) was forever etched into her acting persona. More people remember the Princess Leia character than the actress who played her. Teenage boys were infatuated with the futuristic princess and Fisher humorously ponders what they may have done with her "Star Wars" publicity photos!
This eighth book of Fisher (whose clever title is what roused my interest) isn't her first autobiographical work. The late actress was only 19 when she was cast in "Star Wars." She came across as being much older, perhaps owing to her leadership role in the film. She apparently kept a detailed diary, with poems and all, during the filming of the original "Star Wars" movie, and she uses some of those writings in this book.
The book has enjoyed a warm reception and excellent reviews. I was less impressed, however. The early parts of the book are honest and revealing. Towards the end, the revelations become a bit too detailed and less interesting to all but her most ardent fans. Fisher's reading leaves much to be desired, as she tends to yell when she wants to emphasize something or show excitement. Her daughter Billie Lourd does a better job of reading the diary segments.
In this book, Fisher acknowledges for the first time her 3-month, on-location affair with Harrison Ford (35 at the time and married with two children), during the filming of "Star Wars" in London. Why so late and why now, one may ask? Here is the reason, in Fisher's own words: "I've spent so many years not telling the story of Harrison and me having an affair ... that it's difficult to know exactly how to tell it now. I suppose I'm writing this because it's 40 years later and whoever we were then—superficially at least—we no longer are now."
Fisher feels bad about throwing these revelations at the intensely private Ford, but apparently not bad enough to continue hiding the love affair, which we are told was rather one-sided. Fisher had become smitten with Ford, who showed little interest beyond the physical aspects of their relationship. Addressing her lover, Fisher writes: "You filled my nights and emptied my days," in apparent reference to the couple's lack of shared interests or meaningful conversations.
Fisher went from Hollywood royalty, as the daughter of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher, tabloid queen and king of their day, to intergalactic royalty. She became a celebrity herself, but, in her own assessment, never a "movie star." Yet, she was treated as a genuine movie star upon her December 2016 death at age 60. She was married to singer/songwriter Paul Simon for a short while and partnered with Bryan Lourd from 1991 to 1994, giving birth to one daughter, who narrates this book with her mom.

2017/06/16 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cover image for IEEE Spectrum magazine, issue of June 2017 (1) Can we copy the brain? This question is discussed as a cover feature in IEEE Spectrum magazine's June 2017 issue. Here is a list of articles, videos, and infographics in the special report.
- From Macro to Micro: A Visual Guide to the Brain (Infographic)
- Why We Should Copy the Brain
- In the Future, Machines Will Borrow Our Brain's Best Tricks
- The Brain as Computer: Bad at Math, Good at Everything Else
- What Intelligent Machines Need to Learn from the Neocortex
- How to Digitize a Rat Brain (Video)
- AI Designers Find Inspiration in Rat Brains
- The Human Brain Project Reboots: A Search Engine for the Brain Is in Sight
- We Could Build an Artificial Brain Right Now
- Neuromorphic Chips Are Destined for Deep Learning—or Obscurity
- Watch This Robot Navigate Like a Rat (Video)
- Why Rat-Brained Robots Are So Good at Navigating Unfamiliar Terrain
- Can We Quantify Machine Consciousness?
(2) Incredible piano performance: How old is this little boy? If you just listen without looking at the video, you'd think an old maestro is performing! And, by the way, he probably needs a higher seat.
(3) Coffee drinks becoming more popular in Iran: Now even small towns have coffee bars and roadside restaurants serve coffee. Up to now, Iran has been tea country.
(4) Persian-style appetizers: Your place is empty! [Photo]
(5) Math's Ten Commandments: Violate at your own risk!
(6) UCSB Arts & Lectures free summer cinema program is back: This year, James Bond films will be featured from July 5 to August 25, Wednesdays at Campbell Hall (7:30) and Fridays at the Courthouse Sunken Garden (8:30).
July 05/07: Dr. No   |   July 12/14: From Russia with Love   |   July 19/21: Goldfinger
July 26/28: You Only Live Twice   |   August 02 only: On Her Majesty's Secret Service
August 09/11: The Spy Who Loved Me   |   August 16/18: GoldenEye   |   August 23/25: Skyfall
(7) Summer 2017 GRIT talks at UCSB: Faculty members from various campus departments showcase their research programs on Mondays and Wednesdays this summer, in an exciting and accessible format. All talks are in Hatlen Theater, beginning at 5:30 PM.
- 6/26 (M), Katy Craig (Mathematics): The Math of Swarming Robots, Superconductors, and Slime Mold
- 6/28 (W), Jason Marden (ECE): The Challenges that Society Brings to Engineering Design
- 7/05 (W), Tim Sherwood (Computer Science): The Rock We Tricked into Thinking
- 7/10 (M), Greg Ashby (Psychology): I Have No Idea How I Did That: The Remarkable Learning Abilities of the Human Brain
- 7/12 (W), Debora Iglesias-Rodriguez (Biology—EEMB): Ocean Acidification and Other Stories—Overcoming Climate Anxiety at a Time of Global Crisis
- 7/17 (M), Rod Garratt (Economics): From Bitcoin to Central Bank Digital Currencies
- 7/19 (W), Jean Carlson (Physics): Complexity and Robustness: How Biology, Ecology, and Technology Balance Tradeoffs in an Uncertain World
- 7/24 (M), Mike Mahan (Biology—MCDB): People Are Not Petri Plates: Why Antibiotics Fail
(8) Final thought for the day: Qatar supports terrorism (according to Trump and his Arab buddies), so let's sell them $12 billion worth of F-15 fighter jets (deal signed by Tillerson).

2017/06/15 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Geographic distribution of my relatives in the 23andMe database (1) My 23andMe genetic ancestry study: Apparently, I am 98.5% Middle Eastern, 0.6% North African, and 0.9% European. My Neanderthal ancestry may be part of the reason for my back being hair-free and for my tendency to sneeze after eating dark chocolate. I have been approached by seemingly unrelated people whose DNA compositions are similar to several members of my family, but so far, I have not explored or reached out to any relatives in the genetic database. Statistics show that I have 11 close family members (up to second cousin), 344 further family members (third and fourth cousins), and 922 even more distant relatives in the database.
(2) Poor Donald Trump: He can't decide whether he should play an unflinching strongman or a suffering martyr, so he alternates between the two! [Martyrdom tweets]
(3) The Trump administration has agreed to sell arms to Qatar: Sure, why not sell arms to both sides of a conflict? Qataris and Saudis will use up their arsenals much faster this way!
(4) What goes around, comes around: After recent stories about Apple poaching a leading Qualcomm engineer for its chip development project, we now learn that Google has snatched a top Apple engineer, Manu Gulati, who is said to have been heavily involved in custom chips used for the iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. [Source: CNBC]
(5) Throwback Thursday: A pencil drawing of mine, from the 1960s, hanging in my sister's home. [Photo]
(6) Find the next term in this series: GS, Cleveland, GS, _____
(7) Zero Days: This is the title of a documentary film about the Stuxnet Internet worm that infected and disabled thousands of Iran's centrifuges during Ahmadinejad's presidency.
The discussion of whether countries are entitled to carry out cyber-attacks against their adversaries is quite complicated, even more so than conventional warfare. This is why, in the US, the president must personally authorize any cyber-attack, whereas in the realm of conventional war, only a nuclear attack needs presidential authorization. Setting this question aside, I will discuss some details of the 2016 documentary film, written and directed by Alex Gibney.
The film's narration tells us that a lot of the information needed to design and execute the attack came from Iran's own propaganda films, showing Ahmadinejad as he toured the nuclear facilities, during which parts of computer screens displaying certain details of the facilities' control systems were visible. So, as Ahmadinejad was ranting about wiping out Israel from the face of the Earth, his simpleton propaganda machine was supplying Iran's adversaries with valuable information.
Apparently, the Stuxnet malware was relatively unsuccessful in that it only put a dent in Iran's nuclear program. On the other hand, the genie of Stuxnet eventually got out of its bottle and was turned into a weapon against the US and other countries. As they say, people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. It turns out that the US digital infrastructure is among the most vulnerable in the world, making it a target of attack by state and non-state actors worldwide.
(8) Final thought for the day: Live coverage of international women's sports on Iranian TV. The censors give a new meaning to "coverage"! And why is it okay for the censors to see the women uncensored?

2017/06/14 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Time magazine cover story about Trump International Hotel in DC (1) The swamp hotel: Time magazine cover story, issue of June 19, 2017, about Trump International Hotel in DC.
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- US has six nuclear plants that are set to retire [Power Engineering]
- Markets favor renewables, natural gas, while Trump clings to coal [AP]
- Apple issues $1B Green Bond in wake of Paris withdrawal [Reuters]
- Disgruntled UPS employee kills 3 co-workers, self in San Francisco [PBS]
- Trump under investigation for possible obstruction of justice [AFP]
- Amid criminal court case, Bill Cosby fighting lawsuits by 10 women [AP]
(3) Iranian women's campaign of wearing white scarves on Wednesdays to protest mandatory hijab laws gets worldwide attention.
(4) Farcical cabinet meeting: In what seems like a "dear leader" exercise worthy of North Korea, senior members of Trump's team compete to flatter him and to thank him for his leadership. No wonder he thinks that in the first few months of his administration, he has accomplished more than any other President!
(5) London high-rise engulfed in fire: At least a dozen dead in the apartment building fire, with the death toll expected to rise.
(6) Shooter who opened fire on Republican members of US Congress identified: Bernie Sanders has confirmed (according to another news report) that the attacker had worked for his campaign. He condemned the attack in very strong terms.
(7) Man kills 9-year-old daughter while teaching gun safety to his sons: I know this sounds mean, but the lesson was quite effective! The shooting is likely just stupid, but it might be sinister. I hope the cops look into the possibility that the shooting was a deliberate act under the guise of an accident (e.g., to hide rape/incest). Don't fault my conspiratorial mind; I have watched too many crime mysteries!
(8) ISIS terrorism in Iran: This film, released by Iranian authorities, shows the carnage created by ISIS terrorists at the Parliament building. It is hard to watch and shows multiple killings as they occur, but it leaves no doubt that there was a real terror attack, as opposed to a fake/staged one.
(9) Final thought for the day [regarding Jared Kushner]: You can't be one of the most powerful government figures in a democracy and not speak a single word to the people. As the Persian saying goes, "A man's faults and virtues remain hidden, until he speaks."

2017/06/13 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Iranian women delight in being admitted to a sports arena for the first time in years (1) A middle-aged woman prays, while young women around her engage in supporting Iran's national volleyball team. Women were allowed to enter the arena for the first time in years.
(2) Hypocricy galore: The Republicans attacked President Obama's inexperience for 8 years. Now, Paul Ryan defends President Trump thus: "Well, he doesn't know how any of this works."
(3) Cartoon of the day: World's first successful operation to detach smartphone from hand. [Image]
(4) Israel takes a quantum leap: The Hebrew University of Jerusalem's Quantum Information Science Center has begun working on a national quantum communications system demonstrator. The project will position Israel on the leading edge of research toward super-secure communication systems. Started in 2013, HU's QISC features a score of physics, computer science, mathematics, chemistry, philosophy, and engineering specialists, tasked with advancing Israel's comprehension of quantum information science and the development of quantum technologies. [Source: ACM Tech News]
(5) Artificial intelligence ready for key role in suicide prevention: Vanderbilt University Medical Center's researchers have developed machine-learning algorithms that can accurately predict suicide attempts. Using data on 5,167 Vanderbilt patients to train their computer to identify people at risk of attempted suicide, the team developed a system to anticipate attempted suicide among 12,695 randomly chosen patients with no documented history of suicide attempts. Trial results found the algorithms to be 80-percent to 90-percent accurate in forecasting a person's attempted suicide within the next two years, and 92-percent accurate in predicting an attempt within the next week. [Source: ACM Tech News]
(6) Cloud capital of the world—Seattle: Microsoft and Amazon have their major operations in the Seattle-Bellevue-Redmond axis and other major cloud contenders, including Google and Oracle, have placed development and engineering offices in the area. [Source: Fortune]
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- DoE labs are bracing for major science-related job losses [Chicago Daily Herald]
- Coal industry rebound likely to be short-lived [Washington Times]
- Search on for 2 Georgia inmates, who killed 2 prison guards before escaping [AP]
- Ohio mom and 2 adult daghters killed; Suspect charged with 2 other slayings [AP]
- North Carolina math teacher accused of sexual contact with 3 students [CBS News]
- LGBTQs react negatively to Trump's tweet on FL nightclub mass murder anniversary
(8) Mideast regional research center set to open in Jordan: Bringing together unlikely collaborators from Iran, Isreal, and other MidEast countries, the center, located in Allan, will boost scientific discoveries in the war-ravaged region with the help of a powerful microscope and other state-of-the-art facilities. The center's opening has been marked by political rows and the 2010 assassination of an Iranian scientist linked to the project. [Source: AP]
(9) Weirdest dream: I dreamt last night that I had walked from San Diego to Los Angeles and was contemplating whether I should walk the rest of the way to Santa Barbara. This morning, I felt pretty tired!

2017/06/12 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
E-mail that asks you to apologize for receiving multiple copies of an announcement! (1) The English language and me: As I was driving to Los Angeles yesterday, I chanced upon an NPR program containing a comedy skit. A young English graduate, just hired by the US Coast Guard, was answering an emergency call. The caller began, "My friends and me are on a boat that is taking in water and ... ," which led to an immediate correction from the dispatcher: "My friends and I, sir." The hilarious conversation continued, with the frantic man pleading for help and the female dispatcher correcting his English at every turn, until the boat sank!
Even though English isn't my first language, I have grown quite fond of it and, just like many native speakers of the language, get irritated when I see "your" where there should be "you're," "it's" pretending to be a possessive pronoun, and "Im" used just out of sheer laziness. In the course of a single day, I receive multiple e-mail messages with silly English errors. For example, it has become commonplace, when posting an announcement on several mailing lists with possibly overlapping memberships, to offer apologies to those who receive multiple copies. The e-mail shown here, on the other hand, asks that you apologize for receiving multiple copies!
(2) Women to former FBI Director Comey: Being told why you did not resign or confront your boss when put in uncomfortable situations is exactly the same criticism women face in sexual harassment cases.
(3) Mathematicians think they can dance!
(4) Quote of the day: "[Kushner] has to tell us one thing: How does a 36-year-old, who never worked in a job his daddy didn't buy, becomes the second most-powerful man in America—right behind Putin?" ~ Bill Mahr
(5) Cartoon of the day: Destructive tweets! [Image]
(6) Feeling accomplished: My new Honda Accord did fit in the newly cleared garage. As in many Californian residences, my garage had become a storage room and workshop. Buying a new car motivated me to clear the garage to help protect it from vandalism. All that's left is the nontrivial task of getting rid of, or finding places for, all the stuff taken out of the garage!
(7) Fake news of the Islamic variety: In Iran, fake news is the norm, yet the rebroadcasting of old, debunked allegations that reporter Masih Alinajad had been raped is a sign of the regime's extreme fear of the highly successful anti-mandatory-hijab activities of Ms. Alinejad. They spread fake news from broadcast and print media under the regime's control, with no opportunity for the accused to say anything in defense. But the Iranian people know better whom to trust.
(8) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Pressure in Britain builds for Theresa May to step aside
- North Korea trolls Trump, threatens to nuke NYC
- Nearly 2.5 million pounds of Tyson chicken products recalled
- Blasphemous Facebook post leads to death sentence in Pakistan
- Trump's approval rating hits a new low
- France offers 4-year research grants to scientists who move there
- Iran beats Uzbekistan 2-0, qualifies for soccer World Cup 2018
- Golden State beats Cleveland in 5th game to become NBA champ
(9) Final thought for the day: "That which the fountain sends forth returns again to the fountain." ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The speakers and moderator of UCLA's Kiarostami symposium 2017/06/11 (Sunday): Symposium honoring Abbas Kiarostami: Held in a conference room on the third floor of UCLA's Royce Hall beginning at 3:00 PM today, the program for "Abbas Kiarostami: The Man and His Arts" consisted of four speakers elaborating on various aspects of the late Iranian filmmaker's life and works, ending with a Q&A segment moderated by Dr. Nayereh Tohidi.
Seated from left to right in the photo are Ahmad Kiarostami (Abbas' son), Dr. Nayereh Tohidi (Cal State Northridge), Dr. Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak (University of Maryland and UCLA), Dr. Shiva Balaghi (Brown University), and Dr. Hamid Naficy (Northwestern University).
Abbas Kiarostami [1940-2016] was known primarily as a filmmaker, who was perhaps better recognized and more appreciated outside Iran than within his own country. For this reason, he was occasionally accused of catering to the tastes of international film festivals in his filmmaking. He was also an accomplished poet, photographer, and graphic designer. As is rather common in Iranian cinema, Kiarostami wrote his own filmscripts.
Dr. Balaghi, a cultural historian, spoke under the title "On Kiarostami's Poetic Landscapes." She noted that Kiarostami was enrolled in Honarkadeh (art school of Tehran University) in the 1960s, where he began designing movie posters to support himself. He was part of a talented group of students, many of whom became giants of Iran's arts scene. Even after he became an established artist, he continued to work on movie posters, including some for his own films. He aspired to bring the two milieus of photography and cinema closer to each other, in the sense of making photographs tell stories in the same way that films do. Nature (trees in particular) forms an important theme in Kiarostami's photographs and films.
Dr. Karimi-Hakkak, whose extensive publications include a volume containing English translations of Kiarostami's Persian poems, spoke under the title "Abbas Kiarostami: The Belated Poet." He was a belated poet in two different senses. First, he followed an 1100-year tradition of Persian poetry. Second, he emerged as a poet in the late 1990s, when he was approaching 60. Dr. Karimi-Hakkak presented several examples of Kiarostami's poems, along with English translations. The poems were all rather simple, yet one can attribute deep meaning to them. Here are a couple of examples:
A white foal / emerges through the fog / and disappears / in the fog
How merciful / that the turtle doesn't see / the little bird's / effortless flight
Dr. Naficy began his talk entitled "The Artful Cinema of Abbas Kiarostami" with the observation that the filmmaker was already well-known in Europe in 1995, when the magazine Cahiers du Cinema put his photo on its cover, referring to him as "Kiarostami le Magnifique" and devoting 50 pages to his life and works. He then proceeded to outline key characteristics of Kiarostami's films, which include frequent use of roads and automobiles, long stretches of time when his films had no significant female characters, temporal precision and economy (from his advertising background), institutional or government-supported filmmaking, frequent use of children as film subjects, apparent realism, sly civility, lone-male characters on a quest, use of non-professional actors and improvisation, and synchronous sound recording (unusual in the cinema of Iran). Dr. Naficy then elaborated at length on the notion of sly civility, which manifests itself as everything being veiled in the Iranian culture. In addition to veiling of women, there are high-walled residences, inner rooms, the khodi-gharibeh dichotomy, ritual courtesy (taarof), dissimulation (taqqiyeh), and inner sincerity (safa-ye baaten).
Mr. Kiarostami Jr. spoke briefly and showed a short film entitled "Take Me Home," assembled from photographs Kiarostami took in Italy over a period of two decades. The photographs show architecturally interesting neighborhoods, in which inclined passageways consist of numerous stairs. A soccer ball is shown bouncing down the stairs, with a little boy eventually coming to retrieve it and take it home. The speaker announced that a film about Kiarostami, "76 Minutes and 15 Seconds with Abbas Kiarostami" will be screened on Wednesday, July 5, 2017, at Santa Monica Public Library. Check out the Facebook page "Docunight" for details.
During the Q&A segment, a number of interesting observations were offered. For example, it is often stated that Kiarostami's films are apolitical, whereas it is possible to interpret his work as containing subtle political messages. His films are a unique genre, sitting between fiction and documentary. They teach us to respect nature, including animals. His films often lack a clear storyline, a style that he pursued even more devoutly later in life. He thought that he should pose questions, not provide answers. He wanted the audience to be active participants in his films, rather than be told a story from beginning to end.
[Note: As I was exiting UCLA's Royce Hall, I caught a minute of music coming from inside the main auditorium, as a performance of "Les Miserables" was concluding. When outside, I snapped these photos of Royce Hall and Powell Library, where this year's graduates were having early photo-shoots.]

Cover image of the book 'Fifty Shades of Grey' 2017/06/10 (Saturday): Book review: James, E. L., Fifty Shades of Grey, unabridged MP3 audiobook, read by Becca Battoe, Random House Audio, 2012.
I remember the hoopla surrounding the release of "50 Shades" more than five years ago and how it was immediately dissed by critics as mediocre soft-porn, aimed at sexually frustrated housewives; I do realize the sexism in the latter statement, but want to set the stage for my review by emphasizing the bizarre success of this book.
Anyway, curiosity got the better of me and I checked out the audiobook version, when it appeared on the list of immediately available titles at my local library, via the OverDrive smartphone app. I could stomach listening to a tad less than 1/3 of the book, before quitting. I will explain why, shortly.
I also noticed the availability of the 2015 book Grey, with the intriguing idea of telling the exact same story from the vantage point of the male protagonist; "50 Shades" is told by the young woman, who succumbs to the charms of a complicated rich man with a sex play/torture-room in his house.
"Grey" also proved uninteresting to me, an avowed feminist, so I listened to less than 1/5 of it. I did fast-forward to the final chapter of "Gray" in hopes of finding a plot twist of some sort that would absolve the boring initial chapters, but found none. This was the first time I was perusing a story told from two different vantage points. In the hands of an abler writer, this device presents interesting possibilities, as each story reinforces the other and supplies the parts between the lines, that is, what one character thinks or what s/he does when alone or not with the other main character.
The female protagonist of "50 Shades" and "Grey" is a university student about to graduate. She goes to interview a successful, but emotionally damaged, business magnate, who is scheduled to deliver the commencement address at her school. She does the interview as a substitute for her close friend, editor of the school paper, who comes down with an illness and fears that the schedule of the busy executive would not allow a rescheduling before her graduation. The rest of the story is a highly predictable Cinderella tale, adorned with the explicit description of sexual acts of all kinds between the domineering, control-freak executive and the role-playing submissive young woman.
There are quite a few interesting tidbits about this book, which is the first volume in a trilogy that also includes Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed, all three volumes having been turned into movies starring Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan. The author is a British woman, who wrote under the gender-hiding pen name "E. L. James" (a la J. K. Rowling), presumably to increase her chances of becoming a successful writer. Sure enough, the book climbed the NYT best-sellers list rather quickly, and it has been selling briskly since (worldwide sales stand at more than 100 million copies, according to Amazon.com).
[My two-star review on GoodReads]

2017/06/08 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest. (1) Putting a face on one of Tehran's terror victims: Mahdieh Harati, university instructor, was visiting the Parliament as an advocate for the homeless.
(2) A whole lotta negotiating going on: The UK will have to renegotiate 759 different treaties when it exits the EU. [Source: Time magazine, issue of June 12, 2017]
(3) When musicians channel Radiohead on a Tehran street!
(4) A serio-comedy Persian poem for readers who speak the language.
(5) Eric Trump complains about lack of morals and civility in society: I hope he sees this compilation, which juxtaposes his comments with very civil remarks by his dad!
(6) Deep learning improves machine translation: What a difference a few years make! The quality of Google's machine translation is steadily rising, owing to the use of deep-learning neural-network technology. An encoder network and a decoder network are trained as a pair for each choice of source and target languages. So, the larger the volume of translations between a pair of languages, the greater the quality improvement. These techniques, along with pre-processing of the text, when dealing with languages from different linguistic families, have led to amazing results. [Source: Communications of the ACM, issue of June 2017] [Image]
(7) Paying attention: While we were absorbed by the Comey testimony, the House was considering gutting the financial regulations known as "Dodd-Frank" and giving banks, that we once bailed out, a free hand to cause havoc again. They are also weakening the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to boot.
(8) Computer engineering capstone project presentation day: The spring 2017 quarter is coming to an end and CE graduating seniors are proud to showcase projects they have been pursuing for the past nine months. One of these projects, FLIR Helios, consists of a wireless motion-detecting camera, with infra-red capabilities, powered by solar cells. [Photos]
(9) [Final thought for the day] Cherry-picking by the Republicans: NYT is a fake news outlet, but when it publishes something nasty about a Trump critic, it is dead on. Comey cannot be trusted. But the President feels exonerated, because Comey confirmed that he had told the President he was not personally under investigation for ties to Russia. Yes, but Comey also said, multiple times in his testimony today, that he believed Trump lied about important issues.

2017/06/07 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image of a robot reading a hypothetical book 'Neocortex for Neophytes' (1) What intelligent machines need to learn from the neocortex: This is the title of an article in IEEE Spectrum, issue of June 2017, opining that with new discoveries, made possible by reverse engineering the human brain and the burgeoning field of artificial intelligence, a new epoch of intelligent machines is finally within reach.
(2) Cartoon of the day: The two Donalds. [Image]
(3) Terror attacks in Tehran: Multiple gunmen and a suicide bomber attack Iran's parliament building in central Tehran and Khomeini's shrine in south Tehran. ISIS has claimed responsibility. Initial reports indicate a dozen deaths and many more injuries. Some sources claim that the gunmen were dressed as women (with chadors). One report indicates that one or more attackers were women.
(4) Persian music: Chorale de Bahar and Darya Dadvar perform a wonderful piece by Mehrdad Baran, who set Fereydoon Moshiri's famous "Koocheh" poem to music.
(5) Incredible athleticism in jump-rope competition! [Video]
(6) Quote of the day: "A man's age can be measured by the degree of pain he feels as he comes in contact with a new idea." ~ Anonymous
(7) Santa Barbara's summer concerts in the parks: This year's series is set to begin on Thursday, July 6, with a performance by the PettyBreakers, a tribute band to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Other scheduled concerts include The Hollywood Stones (Rolling Stones tribute, July 13), Crooked Eye Tommy (SoCal blues, July 20), and Captain Cardiac and the Coronaries (50s and 60s rock-n-roll, July 27).
(8) For-profit college stocks up sharply since Trump's election: Many such colleges have been caught scamming both their students and the federal government and several were forced to shut down as a result of their shady practices over the past few years. Now, emboldened by a President, whose own for-profit "university" was sued and chose to settle by agreeing to $25 million in refunds to students (a virtual admission of guilt, given how Trump operates), these colleges think that the feds are more likely to look the other way, when they make misleading claims about their students' job prospects.
(9) Attending design fair at UCSB: Students of our College of Engineering's ECE and ME Departments presented their very impressive capstone projects and TED-like talks based on a few of them at Corwin Pavilion this afternoon. Computer engineering students will follow suit tomorrow. [Photos]

2017/06/06 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Iranian woman holding a protest sign at an election rally for President Rouhani (1) A question posed to President Rouhani: At a political rally held at the largest sports stadium in Tehran, where men and women co-mingled, this woman's sign asks whether she will be allowed into the stadium even after the election. This is a pointed reference to women being barred from attending most sporting events, on the grounds that the mixing of men and women would be un-Islamic.
(2) Doctors charged in huge insurance fraud scheme: A total of 26 people were indicted for crimes that victimized 13,000 patients and defrauded at least 27 insurance companies. Medical billing/management company owners Tanya Moreland King, 37, and her husband, Christopher King, 38, both of Beverly Hills, are accused of recruiting doctors and pharmacists to prescribe unnecessary treatments and medications.
(3) Obamacare isn't failing: It is being methodically sabotaged to create a healthcare crisis, which will then be "remedied" with Trumpcare. This is like giving to a sick person medications that worsen the condition, so that subsequent placebo treatment would seem like relief!
(4) The British PM defends London's Mayor against ignorant remarks by Trump: How many world leaders with diverse political leanings should diss Trump before his supporters come to their senses? Even in the US, polls show that more people support impeachment efforts than Trump policies.
(5) Child marriages: Hearing about child brides, we immediately think of a backward country in Asia or Africa. In the highly advanced USA, more than 167,000 people under age 17 married in 38 states during the 2000-2010 decade, and 27 states set no true minimum age for marriage. [Source: Time magazine, issue of June 12, 2017]
(6) Cartoon of the day: Table set up for climate talks in Paris. [Image]
(7) NASA's first mission to the sun will launch in the summer of 2018: The sun is actually closer to us, and easier to get to, than Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, or Pluto (which are 4-39 times further). What has prevented NASA from flying to the sun so far has been its inability to make vehicles that can withstand the sun's immense heat as they get close to it. This problem has apparently been solved and NASA is preparing for a close-up examination of our star.
(8) Every moment, a new fruit arrives from this orchard: The heading for this item is the English translation of a Persian saying used to denote a continuing pattern of bad behavior or delivery of bad news. Today, it was revealed that fake news stories planted by Russia may have been responsible for the rift between several Arab countries and Qatar, which has been accused of aiding and abetting terrorist groups.
(9) Final thought for the day: "Memory is a snare, pure and simple; it alters, it subtly rearranges the past to fit the present." ~ Mario Vargas Llosa

2017/06/05 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Jared Kushner on the cover of Time magazine (1) Jared Kushner makes the cover of Time magazine (issue of June 12, 2017), but I bet not in the way he would have preferred!
(2) Alternative diets: The cover story of Time magazine, issue of June 5, 2017, is about the diversity of diet plans, both legit and questionable, that are available. The short version of the lengthy story is that if one plan does not work for you, don't give up. Try other plans, because a match for your specific conditions and needs likely exists.
(3) Nonsensical word of the week: Covfefe. [T-shirt photo]
(4) Jean Sammet dies at 89: She was a pioneer of computing, one of the first software engineers, co-inventor of a major programming language (COBOL), and author of an influential book on programming languages (which I studied as a graduate student). RIP!
(5) Supreme Court manterruptions: Based on analysis of SCOTUS data from 2011 to 2015, female justices were 3 times as likely to be interrupted as male justices. [Source: Time magazine, issue of June 12, 2017]
(6) On the importance of accurate targeting in advertising campaigns: Though I am not a Muslim, I regularly receive donation requests and advertising from various sources that use Islamic notions in their appeals. This donation request from Zaytuna College is the latest example. It uses the start of the month of Ramadan as the pretext. While I might be persuaded to help a worthy cause that happens to benefit an Islamic society, I certainly will not do it because of the month of Ramadan or any other event on the Islamic calendar.
(7) Putin's Sunday night interview with Megyn Kelly: Far from revealing anything about himself or Russia, Putin used the NBC program's platform masterfully to spread propaganda and to demean the US. He claimed at one point that hacking is quite easy, so the US election hacks could have been done by Americans in a way to frame Russia. Previously, he had said that his government was not involved, but the hacks could have been the work of "patriotic Russians," operating independently. While Kelly pressed Putin on a number of issues, she was no match for his dodging and conniving ways.
(8) Tensions rise in the Persian Gulf region: The complex situation created by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and UAE cutting ties with Qatar, over what those countries consider Qatar's support for terrorist organizations (Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas) has raised worries about possible instability in the region. The US is nominally against Qatar, given Trump's very recent reaffirmation of support for the Saudis. However, the US has a large military base in Qatar, which will have to be moved if it is determined that the charges of Qatar sponsoring terrorist organizations are valid. Meanwhile, Iran is all smiles over the prospects of a major rift in the alliance of Sunni-majority countries. Qatar's stance has thus thrown a monkey wrench in what appeared to be a strong display of solidarity of Sunni Arabs in their opposition to Iran's regional aspirations.
(9) Final thought for the day: "[I]n the civilization of the spectacle, intellectuals are of interest only if they play the fashion game and become clowns." ~ Mario Vargas Llosa

2017/06/04 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image of American flag, made of 0s and 1s, being unraveled (1) Hacking democracy. [Image credit: Time magazine]
(2) An amazing piano performance: Saman Ehteshami masterfully mixes classical and Persian music at Tehran's Vahdat Auditorium.
(3) Indian comedian tells hilarious ethnic jokes: Russell Peters is an equal-opportunity offender. I know, with this name, he shouldn't make fun of a Chinese guy named "Anthony"! In one of his funniest routines, he explains why he doesn't do any Arab jokes.
(4) Operatic news: "Impeachera" is inspired by the "Opera Man" skits Adam Sandler used to do on SNL.
(5) The President has been very clear: Yeah, if we don't understand Trump's incoherent and flip-flopping statements, we are the problem!
(6) Quote of the day: "A person who does not read, or reads little, or reads only trash, is a person with an impediment: he can speak much but he will say little, because his vocabulary is deficient in the means for self-expression. This is not only a verbal limitation. It represents also a limitation in intellect and imagination. It is a poverty of thought, for the simple reason that ideas, the concepts through which we grasp the secrets of our condition, do not exist apart from words." ~ Mario Vargas Llosa
(7) This should settle the question of whether the Confederate flag is a symbol of racism. [Image]
(8) Sundays and the new 7:00 PM dilemma: I have been a regular watcher of the CBS newsmagazine "60 Minutes" on Sunday evenings, because I enjoy its in-depth stories and high journalistic standards. Beginning tonight, the new NBC show "Sunday Night with Megyn Kelly" will air opposite "60 Minutes." Given her notoriety, Kelly will likely attract interesting guests, such as Vladimir Putin, who is on tonight. Decisions, decisions!
(9) Final thought for the day: "Reading is a protest against the insufficiencies of life." ~ Mario Vargas Llosa

2017/06/03 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Diagram illustrating the puzzle/paradox due to Torricelli (1) Mathematical puzzle/paradox: Known as "Torricelli's Trumpet," the paradox goes like this. Consider the area on the x-y plane between the curve y = 1/x, the x-axis, and the vertical line x = 1. The area is infinite (why?), so you cannot paint it with any finite amount of paint, no matter how thin the coating. Now, rotate the area around the x axis, to generate a trumpet-shaped volume. This volume is finite (why, and how much is it?), and thus can be filled with a finite amount of paint.
That finite amount of paint now covers not only the surface in the first part of the statement above, but infinitely many other surfaces. How is this possible?
(2) In the year I was born, the most popular book was The Miracle of the Bell, by Russell Janney, which I have not read yet. Have you read yours? [List of books]
(3) Quote of the day: "Concern for the unfortunate is not socialism." ~ Hubert Humphrey
(4) Nations are not like businesses: Deal-making is a hallmark of businesses, which seek the most favorable terms possible in each deal, regardless of past dealings and track records. Countries, and societies more generally, do have interests, which they often try to safeguard against abuse by other countries, but the similarity with businesses ends here. In the case of an international climate accord, advanced industrial countries, which got a head start in advancing their economies via indiscriminate use of polluting technologies (when they were not yet understood to harm the environment irrevocably) must give less developed countries a break, so that they can do some catching up. Fairness of a deal in this context can be defined as a balance in per-capita total pollution, including damage already done. So, if an advanced country has polluted way more in the past than an underdeveloped or developing country, it must be prepared to face deeper cuts in future.
(5) US CEOs show foresight: Major business leaders continue to denounce the US withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord. At least a couple of tech advisers to the President have quit their positions in protest. This is the second mobilization of business leaders against misguided Trump administration policies. The first one came after Trump's travel ban order, which, by the way, appears to be headed to the US Supreme Court for resolution.
(6) Time-lapse video provides an awe-inspiring view of the Milky Way Galaxy.
(7) My little fountain: The pump I had for several years died a couple of days ago. Today, I installed a replacement pump that, to my delight, comes with LED lights. And here is my little fountain at night!
(8) Awards night at my son's Aikido school: Following Aikido demos, Judo demos, and a potluck dinner, students received their certificates and belts.
(9) An evening with UCSB Middle East Ensemble: The thick program booklet for tonight's program at Lotte Lehman Concert Hall offers signs that this is an academic unit. Every piece is meticulously documented with genre, history, lyrics, and translation! A selection from the highly enjoyable 3-hour program follows. [Armenian war dance] [Solo dance to the long instrumental introduction of an Arabic tune] [Greek song and dance] [Music and dance from Luxor in southern Egypt] [Persian santoor composition by Bahram Osqueezadeh] [Persian love song, "Emshab Shab-e Mahtabeh" ("Tonight is a Moonlit Night")] [Iranian folk song "Majnoon Naboudom" ("I Wasn't Crazy—Before You")] [Closing song and dance]

Photos of Shirin Ebadi, Sarah Leah Whitson, and Asli Bali 2017/06/02 (Friday): [Report on a gathering at UCLA] Behind the Veil: Women's Rights in Iran:
A conversation, held this evening at the newly-opened UCLA Luskin Conference Center, included Dr. Shirin Ebadi (Nobel Peace Laureate, and former Iranian judge and attorney, now living in exile) and Sarah Leah Whitson (Executive Director, Human Rights Watch, Middle East and North Africa Division), with Professor Asli Bali (UCLA School of Law) moderating the discussion. Ms. Shirin Ershadi acted ably as translator for Dr. Ebadi, who spoke in Persian. The questions had been supplied to the discussants in advance so as to facilitate the translation task.
This event was sponsored by the Los Angeles Committee of Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the International Criminal Court (ICC) Alliance. Photography and video recording were disallowed, in part to safeguard the identities of participants, who may encounter difficulties during possible future trips to Iran. In fact, for that same reason, four of the seven members of the host committee were listed as "anonymous" in the program leaflet. The organizers video-recorded the event (showing only the panelists) on Facebook Live.
Dr. Ebadi was asked about her views on the re-election of President Rouhani and the impressive 70% voter turnout. She indicated that, given the concentration of power in the hands of the Supreme Leader, Rouhani is unlikely to accomplish more in his second term than he did over the past four years, which is pretty much nothing, particularly in the area of human rights. The situation of political prisoners shows no improvement under Rouhani, who often dismisses questions about political prisoners by saying that the judiciary isn't under his control. This is disingenuous at best. Charges against these political prisoners are brought by the Ministry of Intelligence, which is definitely under Rouhani's control. She deems the voter turnout unimportant, quipping that even if the turnout were 90%, Rouhani would still lack the power and will to introduce change.
Ms. Whitson was less harsh in this regard. She considers the verdict of Iranian people, within the very narrow choice they were given, as being significant, because it signaled their preference for rapprochement with the West as well as the limited opening in the area of citizen's rights that Rouhani promised. Ms. Whitson also questioned the sincerity of some who show support for women's rights in the Middle East, as they appear to be primarily motivated by a desire to ridicule those countries, rather than offer constructive suggestions. This is why HRW recognizes different shades of oppression (Iranian women, e.g., are much more engaged in the country's economy than those in other Islamic countries of the region).
According to Ms. Whitson, HRW uses the governments' own declarations about economic advances and opening up of the society to argue for greater opportunities for women. Even though it is nominally against Iran's own laws, there are still plenty of employment ads that are explicitly directed at men. An HRW brochure, entitled "It's a Men's Club: Discrimination Against Women in Iran's Job Market," was distributed at the event. HRW is working diligently on applying pressure in areas of salary equity, sexual harassment policies, maternity leave, and the like, as practical means for improving women's lives.
Dr. Ebadi related a memory from the early days of the Islamic Republic, even before there was a president or a constitution. The very first law passed was one that allowed men to take four wives. She indicated that Iran's Islamic Revolution, more than representing a political movement, was an uprising of men against women! The feminist movement in Iran is perhaps the strongest movement in the country. Women have scored some victories in correcting certain discriminatory laws, but there is still a long way to total equality. These small victories had a high cost in terms of lives lost and long prison terms served. Nearly all ~30 feminists in Iranian prisons have been artificially charged with national security crimes in order to inflate their jail terms, despite the fact that their activities pertain only to civil rights. Iranian women will no doubt prevail in their fight to attain equality, and their efforts will bring democracy to Iran.
On the subject of Islamist terrorism, Dr. Ebadi complained that the Western media do not give due coverage to terrorism against Muslims in various parts of the world, such as East Asia and Chechnya. She observed that Islamist terrorism in the West is often not carried out by new arrivals (such as refugees), but rather by second- and third-generation immigrants. We must ask ourselves why these immigrants turn violent. Embracing new immigrants and giving them support and skills, instead of isolating and demeaning them, will go a long way toward preventing future acts of terrorism. When, decades ago, immigrants were accepted with open arms and given opportunities, they became key contributors to the progress of America.
On the question of whether Islam can ever be reconciled with women's rights, Dr. Ebadi stated that, just like there are multiple brands of Christianity, Islam has many interpretations. The problem is that clerics with more liberal views, who condemn the subjugation of women under the guise of Islam, have been sidelined by the ruling authorities and most do not dare to speak up. Also, activists must remember that they can effect change only if they speak the language of the people, rather than engage in academic discourse with limited readership.
Dr. Ebadi indicated that she is all for secularism, but that change cannot occur overnight. The cause of women's oppression, in any society, is primarily cultural. We should remember that people of Iran voted to approve a religion-based constitution, so a transition to secular government will take time. Reforming laws can help hasten this transition. The purpose of laws isn't just establishment of order but also elevation of the prevailing culture. Unfortunately, the situation in Iran has been reversed in that citizens are much more enlightened that the laws. We should all strive to work on cultural elevation.
On the question of "blood money" discrimination (fines for crimes being dependent on the victim's religion), Dr. Ebadi indicated that whereas some progress has been made, in that followers of the three "recognized" religions are now treated like Muslims, the problem persists for other minorities, such as Baha'is and Izadis. A Muslim can still kill a Baha'i, without facing any mandatory punishment (doling punishment is at the discretion of the court/judge).
A coffee/tea-and-desserts reception preceded the main event. The Luskin Conference Center Ballroom was jam-packed. The organizers had indicated that there were a limited number of 250 seats, thus requiring pre-registration of attendees. It seemed to me that there were perhaps close to 400 seats in the venue; some of the seats may have been occupied by invited attendees, who were not counted in the 250-person limit.

2017/06/01 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
US map, showing the most frequently misspelled word during 2017 by state (1) The most misspelled words in the US, by state: "Beautiful" and "Vacuum" make multiple showings, which is understandable, but why are "Tomorrow," "Gray," and "Ninety" there at all? In a previous edition of this list, Hawaiians were apparently unsure about how to spell their state's name!
(2) Quote of the day: "We had decided to send medicine to Africa; however, the instructions on all said 'take on full stomach'." ~ Charles Bukowski
(3) Engineering ethics and learning from failures: Many failures of structures and other engineered systems are characterized as "accidents," while they are really due to foreseeable failure mechanisms that were missed or purposefully ignored during the design process. A good example is the collapse of an elevated section of Atlanta's Interstate 85 during a fire in late March. The elevated road passed over a highway department storage area, containing flammable material that contributed to the overly hot fire, which compromised the concrete-and-steel beams under the roadway. So, a natural question is why the possibility of such a fire was not foreseen and the structure not designed to withstand it. Shouldn't ensuring that a super-hot fire cannot start beneath an elevated roadway be part of its design? What about fires on the roadway itself, resulting, e.g., from overturned tanker-trucks? [Based on a column by Henry Petroski in the summer 2017 issue of ASEE Prism magazine]
(4) Governors launching US Climate Alliance: So far, governors of California, Washington State, and New York have joined in the movement to counteract Trump's withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord. Interestingly, Russia, China, and many other countries have reaffirmed their support for the Accord, while France has sharply criticized the US decision.
(5) UCSB Wind Ensemble concert: Tonight, I attended an enjoyable performance featuring the music of Frank Ticheli, currently an artist-in-residence at UCSB. Here is the program, with a brief description of some pieces.
- "Dancing on Water" (2015).
- "Rest" (2011): Inspired by a Sara Teasdale poem and dedicated to a friend who lost his son at age 1.5.
- "Angels in the Architecture" (2011): Depicts a conflict between light and darkness and floats into and out of a popular Hebrew song; comissioned by the Sydney Opera House and first performed there.
- "San Antonio Dances" (2011): Two-movement tribute to the Texas town, the Alamo, and Tex-Mex music.
- "Song for Aaron" (2011; mvt II of a clarinet concerto): Tribute to Aaron Copeland, one of three American composers honored in the three movements.
- "Blue Shades" (1997).
Recording was disallowed, so I am posting a sample of Ticheli's music from YouTube. [16-minute video]
(6) [Final thought for the day] US in dubious company: The only other two countries not signing the Paris Climate Accord are Syria and Nicaragua, with the latter actually indicating that the Accord isn't tough enough!

2017/05/31 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
A muslim woman meets the mother of the hero who died defending two Muslim women (1) This is where heroes come from: A Muslim young woman thanks the mother of the heroic young man who gave his life defending two Muslim women against a bigot. The facial expressions say it all.
(2) Apple snatches top Qualcomm engineer for its chip development project: According to Fortune, Esin Terzioglu, who oversaw the engineering aspects of Qualcomm's core communications chip business, will be joining the team building Apple's A-series processing chips. News of the hire has fueled fresh speculation that Apple, now in the midst of a messy legal dispute with Qualcomm, wants to develop a system-on-chip that pairs a baseband modem (currently obtained from Qualcomm and Intel) with an A-series app processor.
(3) Artificial leaf technology may help combat climate change: University of Central Florida chemist Fernando Uribe-Romo developed artificial leaf technology that can remove carbon dioxide from the air and convert sunlight energy into organic compounds usable as fuels. Harvard University energy professor Daniel Nocera developed a bionic leaf device that uses sunlight to convert water and engineered microbes into energy-dense liquid fuels. University of Illinois at Chicago research scientist Amin Salehi-Khojin developed another artificial leaf that converts sunlight and carbon dioxide into hydrocarbons, including liquid fuels. While these developments are likely many years away from commercialization, artificial leaf technology is seen as a potentially vital tool in the urgent fight against climate change, particularly in developing countries. [Source: ASEE First Bell newsletter]
(4) Water desalination with graphene sieves: University of Manchester scientists have developed a graphene oxide membrane that can filter even nanoparticles out of water, making the water suitable for human consumption. University of Manchester professor of materials physics Rahul Raveendran Nair says, "The problem was that when you put the membrane in water the sieve became larger. Now we've solved that problem, so now we can take this salty water, put it back in our new filtration unit, where we can filter out even the smallest sodium chloride." According to UN forecasts, some 1.8 billion people will face water scarcity by 2025, so producing affordable clean water would be a major help. [Source: Reuters]
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Kabul explosion kills 90, injures 100s, including 11 Americans (ABC News)
- Trump asks world leaders to call him on his cell phone (Huff Post)
- White House Communications Director resigns, other changes expected (AP)
- Kathy Griffin fired by CNN for her beheaded-Trump photo (Variety)
- Hiker plunges to his death, while taking selfie at waterfall (Huff Post)
- White House not inclined to meet Paris accord's emissions goals (Newsweek)
(6) [Final thought for the day] A frightening US brain drain may be on the horizon: France's President Macron repeats his invitation to US climate-change scientists to join European researchers in France, because they will be welcome there. Given pending US budget cuts in all areas of science, mass exodus of researchers in many scientific fields is a distinct possibility.

Cover image for Jared Diamond's 'Collapse' 2017/05/30 (Tuesday): Book review: Diamond, Jared, Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, abridged audiobook on 8 CDs, read by Christopher Murney, Penguin Audio, 2004.
In the course of human history, many societies have collapsed. Examples include the Mayans, Easter Islanders, and Greenland's Norse settlers. The underlying causes of almost all of these collapses seem to have been environmental problems. A collapse is defined as drastic decrease in human population and/or sociopolitical complexity, a much direr fate than a decline. Societal collapse is far from inevitable, as demonstrated by many civilizations that have existed continuously for long periods of time. Examples of long-lived, prospering societies are found in Japan and Java.
Diamond advances a five-point framework for understanding collapses. 1. Human impact on the environment and inadvertent resource exhaustion or deforestation. 2. Climate change. 3. Relations with friendly neighboring societies. 4. Relations with hostile societies. 5. Political, economic, social, and cultural factors. A common characteristic of societal collapses is that they tend to occur a short time, perhaps as little as a decade, after the society reaches its peak in terms of wealth and power (Mayans, the Soviet Union).
In the environmental arena, Diamond takes a middle-of-the-road stance, in the sense of acknowledging the conflict between short-term corporate profits and environmental stewardship, while also providing examples of businesses that prospered beyond all expectations by taking the long-term view and aiming for sustainability.
Considering himself a cautious optimist, Diamond believes that societies can avoid collapse if they take their problems seriously and realize that they won't go away on their own. So, we can solve our problems if we decide to do so, and this is why the word 'Choose' appears in the book's title. We just need political will, a rare commodity these days, to apply a variety of remedies that are already available to us.
An 18-minute TED talk by Diamond based on key ideas in this book is available on-line. There is also "Collapse," a 96-minute documentary film released by National Geographic in 2010 and available via YouTube. To be fair, I should mention that Diamond's ideas have been challenged by ethnographers and anthropologists, including in a collection of articles, published as the 2010 Cambridge University Press book, Questioning Collapse.

2017/05/29 (Monday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Tree of hearts, in honor of the 2017 US Memorial Day observation (1) Politicians and generals start wars, soldiers fight them: Selfless service is possible, even when the war itself is misguided or unjust. Today we honor the ultimate sacrifice made by the US Armed Forces, so that our country and much of the world can live in peace. A few bad apples aside, they have fought with courage and honor, giving us the opportunity to contribute to our societies in much less perilous settings. We salute our heroes!
(2) Fake recommendation: The Art of the Deal is the only book a graduate will ever need. Loser Bill! [Bill Gates recommends to graduates Steven Pinker's The Better Angels of Our Nature.]
(3) Quote of the day: "It became like a god." ~ Ke Jie, world's top player of Go, upon being defeated in his 5/23 match by a Google algorithm
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Angela Merkel: Germany can't depend on Trump's America (Newsweek)
- White House omits Luxembourg's gay First Spouse in photo caption (Newsweek)
- US Defense Secretary Mattis warns of catastrophic North Korea war (Newsweek)
- Waltzing robot teaches beginners how to dance like a pro (ACM Tech News)
- Trump is looking to reverse Obama's Cuba policies (USA Today)
- Suspect in custody after killing spree leaves 8 dead in Mississippi (Huff Post)
Cover image for Dr. Mike Dow's 'Brain Fog Fix' (5) Book review: Dow, Dr. Mike, The Brain Fog Fix: Reclaim Your Focus, Memory and Joy in Just 3 Weeks, unabridged MP3 audiobook read by the author, Blackstone audio, 2015.
Dr. Dow, a psychologist, claims to have the cure for improving your energy, mood and mental clarity. His plan consists of simple changes you can make in your diet, activities, and thinking; nothing revolutionary. There have been so many self-help books of this kind that we have become weary of the claims, but Dr. Dow's book has the endorsement of quite a few medical professionals. The "brain fog" of the title refers to feelings of confusion, memory loss, fading of mental acuity, and lack of focus. Brain health requires the restoration of balance among three crucial chemicals: serotonin, dopamine, and cortisol.
As you listen to Dr. Dow, you will tell yourself that you already knew these facts: cut out the carbs, avoid junk food (including diet sodas), eat high-quality proteins, enjoy a glass of wine, exercise, be social, and, most importantly, reduce your screen time. However, the rigorous presentation in this book, supported by many research studies, makes you understand the reasons for the recommendations and see the connections between various components of a healthy lifestyle. I must admit that I tended to tune out when long lists of ingredients, such as those rich in omega-3 or omega-6 fatty acids, were recited, but getting the main message is more important than remembering all the details, which are available on-line.
Some of the suggestions are rather difficult to follow, such as avoiding electronic gadgets after 7:00 PM and charging your phone outside your bedroom at night, in order to avoid the temptation of checking social media and e-mail. However, even making smaller, incremental changes in your diet and work/play habits is bound to be helpful. Perhaps, over time, you can follow more and more of the suggestions, as you start seeing the benefits. In other words, don't be intimidated by the 3-week plan; taking 3 months or even 3 years would still be okay.

2017/05/28 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Poster designed for the 7th annual Parhami Family Reunion (1) The 7th Parhami Family Reunion: The annual reunion gets together descendents of Dr. Mikaeel Parhami, the family's founder, as he took on the last name "Parhami" (Persianized version of "Ebrahimi"), when the Iranian government under Reza Shah decided to issue identity documents nationwide. Until then, Iranians did not have uniformly-used family names or officially-recorded dates of birth. Renewal of family bonds, be it via large gatherings such as our Memorial-weekend reunions or smaller, more practical ones throughout the year, is quite important and a tradition that my family cherishes. Needless to say, like every aspect of our lives in the era of hate-mongering and political divisiveness, families face new challenges in remaining close and civil in discourse.
(2) What France's President Emmanuel Macron told Trump by his super-firm handshake: "Donald Trump, the Turkish president or the Russian president see things in terms of power relationships, which doesn't bother me ... I don't believe in diplomacy through public criticism but in my bilateral dialogues I don't let anything pass. That is how you get respect."
(3) The tweeter-in-chief is back in the US: And he wastes no time in attacking the "fake news media"! Someone should remind him that he can't simultaneously say that the leaks are manufactured and demand that the leakers be punished.
(4) How much longer will H. R. McMaster last as National Security Adviser? He is already on the way out, according to this Newsweek article.
(5) "One soul in two bodies," practically demonstrated on a guitar.
(6) Unknown older man offers a beautiful rendition of "You Raise Me Up" on the street.
(7) Final thought for the day: You know priorities are misplaced when Iranian authorities dispatch special enforcers to catch and punish those who break their fast in public during the month of Ramadan, but there is no corresponding patrol to find and feed the hungry. [Adapted from various Internet sources]

2017/05/26 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Behrooz Parhami, with his designed poster and family tree (1) Family events: This weekend is family time for me (at least more so than usual). Tomorrow, my mother, all 4 of her children along with two spouses, all 7 of her grandchildren with one spouse, and one great grandchild will get together in Ventura. On Sunday, we will attend the 7th annual Parhami Family Reunion in Mission Viejo with some 100 other family members. Behind me in the photo are a poster I designed for the family reunion and a family tree I drew in 2003, which needs updating.
(2) As usual, NPR comes to our rescue and answers the burning questions we have about the retro Middle-Ages look of the Trump women at Vatican. I hope they can still do this without government funds! Horrific example of the remnants of patriarchy from many centuries ago!
(3) Deep learning comes to the kitchen: French, American, and Japanese researchers have developed a new machine-learning algorithm that can take a given recipe and transform it into an alternative dietary style. The system initially analyzes a large number of recipes and uses them to train a neural network as to what recipe features represent the culinary style of a given region. The model can then be used in a wide variety of settings, including prediction of recipe origins, given lists of ingredients, and recipe transformation to take dietary restrictions into account. [Abridged from: ACM Tech News]
(4) My body (by Masih Alinejad): It's okay to feel sad, but never feel hopeless. Do not fear hateful comments, but be afraid of a lack of strength to endure them. We can't be defeated, except by our own weaknesses. If as a woman, you are offended by an onslaught of negative comments about your appearance, weight, or facial features, look no further for the reason than your dislike of yourself as you are. If you don't love yourself, you can't love others. [Rough, partial translation of original Instagram post in Persian. Go Masih!]
(5) Kurdish dancing, with colorful regional dresses. [2-minute video]
(6) Why smart people sometimes act stupid: Lack of common sense can make anyone, including the smartest people, make dumb mistakes. As Voltaire noted, "Common sense is not so common." The "absent-minded prof" cliche notwithstanding, the mistakes are due to several factors, the most important of which are listed below.
- Overconfidence (leads to not seeking help from others)
- Unreasonably high expectations (pushing people too hard)
- Misplaced pride (the need to always be right)
- Insufficient emotional intelligence (EQ), despite high IQ
- Lack of persistence (giving up after initial failure)
- Lack of grit (not valuing or engaging in hard work)
- Too much multi-tasking (a direct result of impatience)
- Not accepting feedback (undervaluing others' opinions)
Regarding multi-tasking, which our society views in a positive light as a sign of high intelligence and ability, I learned, from a book I am listening to and will review soon (The Brain Fog Fix, by Mike Dow), that new research indicates the superiority of sequential handling of multiple tasks over the parallel or multi-tasking approach. When we multi-task, we are essentially switching between the tasks at a very high rate, and that switching imposes some overhead that reduces our overall productivity.

2017/05/25 (Thursday): Here are three items of potential interest.
Professor Cicilia Heyes lecturing, and a key slide in her presentation (1) An exquisite lecture about cognition: Today, I attended a lecture entitled "Cognitive Gadgets: The Cultural Evolution of Thinking," by Cecilia Heyes, Professor of Psychology, University of Oxford.
Besides the talk's rich scientific content, the delivery was quite impressive. The speaker's perfect enunciation, which one member of the audience characterized as her very appealing "Oxford accent," along with the absence of even a single malformed sentence or an awkward pause throughout the one-hour unscripted talk, created a delightful listening and learning experience.
Professor Heyes' work on the evolution of human cognition explores the ways in which natural selection, learning, and developmental and cultural processes combine to produce the mature cognitive abilities found in adult humans. The following two links lead to her bio and a 47-minute keynote lecture on a different topic, "The Cultural Evolution of Mindreading."
Cultural learning in humans is quite similar to the development of better kayaks over time, that is, by good designs (that float well and move fast) being more likely to be copied by others. This copying of ideas and designs is the analog of copying of genes through reproduction in genetic evolution. Professor Heyes pursues the theory that both the computationalism of evolutionary psychology (which, by the way, is a field created at UCSB) and the selection mechanisms of cultural evolutionary theory play roles in the development of human cognitive abilities, something that can be called "cultural evolutionary psychology."
A key observation of Professor Heyes is that human and chimp attributes differ only in degrees and not in substance. Small improvements in three key attributes create major differences in abilities. These are:
a. Temperament: Humans are much more tolerant of having others around, are less aggressive, and enjoy response-contingent stimulation (we like it when what we do affects something in the world around us).
b. Attention: Beginning with infancy, we like looking at faces and tend to track people's gazes.
c. Cognition: Our memory capacity is larger, we can resist temptation, and are better at associative learning.
The three attributes just listed can be viewed as a "genetic starter kit" that is augmented by "gadget construction" to give us our unique human abilities. The slide displayed in the photo shows some of the cognitive mechanisms that are often viewed as uniquely human. In the rest of the talk, Professor Heyes focused on one of these: the imitation gadget.
Our ability to imitate is fundamental in making and using tools, but it is even more important in social behavior, such as posture and ritualistic dance movements. Recent studies indicate that a human newborn's ability to imitate is extremely limited, thus suggesting that imitation is primarily a learned attribute. In order to imitate someone, our minds develop "matching vertical associations," constructs that link an observed behavior, such as a hand moving in a certain way, to motor responses needed to mimic that behavior. We tend to think of imitation as the correspondence between two images, whereas when we imitate someone, our view of our own motions is quite different from what we see in the other person.
During the Q&A period, it became clear that studies of human behavior are based mostly on how normal individuals act or react. People with disabilities of various kinds or those with abnormally better abilities tend to create problems in such studies.
(2) Harvard drop-out finally gets his degree: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg makes his mom proud at this year's Harvard commencement.
(3) Talk about rude: Trump shoves his way to the front for photo opportunity. What's mind-boggling is that he knows dozens of cameras are photographing and recording the event, and he still doesn't care!

2017/05/24 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon about historical figures updating their Facebook statuses (1) Historical status updates: By John Atkinson.
(2) A 140-year-old Moreton Bay fig tree: Planted in 1876, this majestic tree is located in downtown Santa Barbara, at the entrance of the Amtrak/Greyhound station. I took these photos of the tree, and the plaque describing its history, last Sunday, while I strolled in the area, awaiting the arrival of my mom from the SF Bay Area. An Amtrak train and a historic train car are visible in one of the photos.
(3) "Star Wars" turns 40: The cinematic and cultural phenom that began in 1977 with the first of the three original installments (later renamed "Episode IV—A New Hope," when three prequels were released) is going strong at 40. The musical score by John Williams still amazes after four decades. I am listening to Carrie Fisher's memoir, The Princess Diarist, which I will review when done. The clever title attracted me to this audiobook, and I was not disappointed. [Image]
(4) Donald Trump news: He told the Israelis in Jerusalem that he arrived there from the Middle East. His meeting with the Pope was less than pleasant, as seen in this Vatican photo and this juxtaposition of the Pope's meeting with 44 and 45. Meanwhile, it's becoming more and more difficult to keep track of Trump's flips and flops: The villainous Saudi Royal family is now apparently hunky-dory.
(5) Al Franken: The comedian, who tried to avoid humor in order to be taken seriously as a senator, has returned to his SNL roots in a memoir to be published on May 30.
(6) Modern Persian music: A beautiful song performed by Parva (based on a poem by Hossein Pezhman Bakhtiari), accompanied by wonderful imagery.
(7) around campus on this breezy but otherwise wonderful afternoon, before my 3:30 class.
(8) Science takes a back seat to war machinery in Trump's proposed budget for 2018.
(9) Searching for a soulmate is misguided: This Time magazine article (issue of May 29, 2017) suggests that the ideal partner is the one you create. Here "create" doesn't mean through changing a less-than-ideal mate. Instead, it means focusing on the person's positive attributes and what the two of you can share, rather than dwelling on the attributes that person is missing from your desirable list. There may be a soulmate for you somewhere, but the 10,000 or so people you meet over a lifetime constitute a tiny fraction of all potential mates and will likely not include the handful of people who could be considered your soulmates. Author J. R. R. Tolkien had a lot to say about this subject: "[The romantic chivalric tradition takes] the young man's eye off women as they are—Companions in shipwreck not guiding stars. ... The 'real soul-mate' is the one you are actually married to." I guess the same can be said of women.

2017/05/23 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
WannaCry ransomeware world map (1) Why the WannaCry attack fizzled: The ransomeware was both a smashing success (in terms of its impact) and an abject failure (in terms of what the perpetrators earned). The attackers were simply not prepared for the amount of work needed to collect the loot and thus quietly undid themselves. [Source: Time magazine, issue of May 29, 2017]
(2) Less than a year ago (on June 13, 2016), Donald Trump tweeted: "Saudi Arabia and many of the countries that gave vast amounts of money to the Clinton Foundation want women as slaves and to kill gays. Hillary must return all money from such countries."
(3) Ready ... Set ... Go! Google DeepMind's AI Go-playing program, AlphaGo, will soon compete against the 19-year-old Chinese world champ, Ke Jie, in a 3-game match. Having been previously defeated by an anonymous on-line player, which turned out to be AlphaGo, Jie and others hope to win in future face-offs, because they have been training specifically to play against the machine.
[P.S.: Since this article appeared a couple of days ago, AlphaGo has played and defeated Ke Jie. Next opponent!]
(4) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Deaths in London's Manchester Arena terror attack rises to 22 (multiple sources)
- Terrorist in ISIS London attack identified as Salman Abedi (Yahoo News)
- Former Trump adviser Woolsey blasts Obama on London attack (Huff Post)
- Roger Moore, long-time actor and James Bond portrayer, dead at 89 (NYT)
- Trump refuses to disclose number of lobby waivers he has granted (AP)
- Gorsuch and Thomas dissent on upholding soft-money limits (Huff Post)
- First human ancestor may have come from Europe, not Africa (Newsweek)
- Median household income is now highest since 2002 (Yahoo Finance)
(5) UCSB is migrating to Google G-Suite for Education: Parts of the campus already use the Google e-mail and collaboration service, branded as "Connect." College of engineering will migrate to the new service in waves over the summer. My e-mail address will not change as a result of the migration, but integrated e-mail, calendaring, collaboration, and video-conferencing tools will become available to me.
(6) US and Israeli officials met in a room covered with two Persian rugs from Naein (a town near Isfahan).
(7) Anyone who stands up to Trump is fired: So, will he fire Melania for refusing his hand? [Video]
(8) Sand Pizza slice, photographed on Sunday, May 21, 2017, next to Santa Barbara's Stearns Wharf. [Photo]
(9) The Isla Vista tragedy remembered three years later: The mass shooting of May 23, 2014, by a misogynist who killed 6 and injured 14, is being memorialized this week on the UCSB campus. Last night, I attended a program entitled "Responses to the 5/23/2014 IV Tragedy" at UCSB's Multicultural Center Theater. Six panelists outlined the campus and community efforts in the aftermath of the tragedy to comfort students and to honor the victims, including an award-winning exhibit and archive of items collected from the make-shift memorial sites in Isla Vista and from the victims' families. I am partially visible in one of the photos, taken by Vicky Nguyen of KEYT News. The remaining photos are mine. This UCSB Library page contains a virtual tour of the exhibit.

2017/05/22 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cover image for Margaret Atwood's 'The Heart Goes Last' (1) Book review: Atwood, Margaret, The Heart Goes Last: A Novel, unabridged audiobook read by Cassandra Campbell and Mark Deakins, Random House Audio, 2015.
[My 3-star review of the book on GoodReads]
This is one of the few novels that I have read/heard in recent years. I found the story's premise quite interesting: a down-on-their-luck husband and wife, who have lost their home and are living meagerly in their car on the wife's tips, decide to participate in a social experiment, which provides them with jobs and a house. There is a twist, however: the couple would have to switch back and forth between living in their comfortable house and being confined to a prison, with another couple, their alternates, occupying the house when they are gone.
The couple is manipulated as part of the experiment. Each spouse, unknown to the other, becomes obsessed with his/her mate's alternate, enjoying the extramarital affair and feeling very guilty about it at the same time. However, nothing is as it appears and the couple seems not to understand what is going on, despite valiant efforts. They are put through a harsh, very cruel test, which separates them in a surprising way, thus providing the author with ample opportunities to explore personal challenges resulting from forced conformity, loyalty, guilt, sexual desires, and trust.
The female and male readers alternate, as the focus of the story shifts from one partner to the other. I listened to this audiobook on my iPhone, using the OverDrive app that allows me to borrow audiobooks and e-books from my local library. As I mentioned in a previous review, much about the app's user interface needs improvement, but I liked the fact that I could listen to the audiobook during my walks between home and work, when I shaved, or any other available time slot.
(2) UCLA to honor the late Iranian filmmaker: Entitled "Abbas Kiarostami: The Man and His Arts," the Sunday, June 11, 2017, bilingual program (314 Royce Hall, 3:00-6:00 PM) will consist of presentations in English (by Shiva Balaghi, Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak, Hamid Naficy), screening of his 2016 film "Take Me Home," with remarks by Ahmad Kiarostami, and a round-table discussion in Persian, moderated by Nayereh Tohidi.
(3) Trump's awkward participation in a war dance: Or was it an oil dance? Later, he called it beautiful. This war dance was performed after the signing of the $110 billion US-Saudi arms deal. Just imagine the reaction to Obama participating in a war dance with the Saudis!
(4) Typos vs. thinkos: Using "I misspoke" as an excuse is acceptable only when the speaker knows a fact but accidentally says something different (like a typo in a text). These days, however, "I misspoke" is abused to cover up mistakes and lies arising from ignorance, bias, or partisanship. This article cites some good examples.
(5) Hassan Rouhani's campaign speech in Mashhad: In a bold and direct criticism of the religious leader in charge of the shrine of Imam Reza and its associated business empire, Rouhani said: "You told the people of Mashhad that they should leave the city if they want music concerts. Now you want to take over the country. Will you then tell the people of Iran to leave the country if they have the same demands?"
(6) Complete 79-minute video of the May 2017 meeting between Trump and Saudi leaders in Riyadh.
(7) Six ways in which Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia was bizarre, unethical, and un-American: He seems to be establishing connections for his post-presidency business deals. Soon, all Hajj pilgrims may be staying at Trump properties in Riyadh!
(8) Analysis of Trump speech patterns over decades reveals possible cognitive decline: Here is a recent example of his utterances: "... there is no collusion between certainly myself and my campaign, but I can always speak for myself—and the Russians, zero." And this from a man who was considered articulate years ago.
(9) Final thought for the day: Azeri music, by a talented and good-looking couple. [1-minute video]

2017/05/21 (Sunday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cover image of Oliver Sacks's 'Gratitude' (1) Book review: Sacks, Oliver, Gratitude, MP3 audiobook, read by Dan Woren, Random House Audio, 2015. [My 5-star review on GoodReads]
This short, brilliant book by the well-known and prolific neurologist, who died of terminal cancer at 82, consists of four essays written in the last two years of his life. It is very typical of Sacks to want to give gratitude upon learning that he is about to die.
The first essay, "Mercury," is about Sacks's looming 80th birthday and is filled with musings on the negative effects of aging. Sacks had an obsession with the periodic table of elements and, since childhood, identified his birthdays with the element having the same atomic number; he was sodium at 11, gold at 79, and mercury at 80. He rightly suspected that he would not live to see his 84th birthday (the murderously radioactive polonium).
Sacks wrote the second essay, "My Own Life," when he believed he had a couple of months to live, but later wasn't sure whether he should disclose his fatal disease and thus delayed its publication. Staring at the wall ahead that represented the end of his life, Sacks gained a sudden clear focus and perspective that pushed him to consider only the essentials: himself, his work, and his friends; no watching "The News Hour," no worrying about politics or global warming.
In the third essay, "My Periodic Table," Sacks elaborates on his fascination with physical sciences, "a world where there is no life, but also no death," a refuge in times of stress. In this essay, Sacks continues his musings of the "Mercury" essay. After repeating the observation that he will not see his polonium birthday, he continues thus: "But then, at the other end of my table—my periodic table—I have a beautifully machined piece of beryllium (element 4) to remind me of my childhood, and of how long ago my soon-to-end life began."
In the fourth essay, "Sabbath," Sacks recalls his upbringing in an orthodox Jewish family and the aftermath of admitting to his father that he had sexual feelings for other boys. His mother's shrieking and condemnation made him averse to religion for the rest of his life and strained his family ties. This last essay of Sacks was published in the New York Times on August 14, 2015, a mere two weeks before his death on August 30.
(2) Design seen on a T-shirt: Schrodinger's cat is ... [Image]
(3) Music is joy: For the players, for the listeners, and, in this case, for the little ballerina. [4-minute video]
(4) Question of the day: Should a person who has recently traveled to a radical Muslim country, which awarded him a medal, be allowed to enter the United States?
(5) Here is a principled response to an invitation from Saudi Arabia.
(6) On the rift generated by Iran's just-completed elections: Facebook and other social media are abuzz with news of the just-completed Iranian elections, in which President Rouhani won a second term, much to the delight of young Iranians, who danced on the streets or in victory rallies. Elections in Iran are anything but open and fair. Only half-dozen of the hundreds of candidates who wanted to enter the race were 'approved' and were on the ballot; women are not allowed to run; the domineering government-run media had clear favorites among the candidates; there was speculation that the regime is playing a game of 'good cop, bad cop' by presenting Rouhani as a moderate against more conservative candidates. Yet, to the extent that people were allowed to influence the outcome from among the hand-picked candidates, they participated enthusiastically and wholeheartedly, with a 70% turnout, giving Rouhani a 57% to 38% edge over Ebrahim Raisi, his closest rival.
And now to the main point of my post. A large number of Iranians, both inside Iran and abroad, worked toward boycotting the elections on the grounds that the Islamic regime is illegitimate and must not be aided in its survival in any shape or form. The other side argued that despite lack of diversity in the slate of candidates, there are real differences between them and lack of participation may mean the election of the least desirable candidate, whose supporters are lured into participation. Unfortunately, the boycotters were quite uncivil in their encounters, accusing those who voted of being idiotic, naive, unpatriotic, sold-out, and showered them with a host of other insults. As a non-voter, who has friends in both groups, I think that the voting group remained more civil in their exchanges and more convincing in the arguments they presented. Regardless, the decision to vote or boycott is a personal one and must be respected, no matter what our own views. [Persian summary]

2017/05/20 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Four interesting designs (1) Miscellaneous designs and ideas, in four images.
(2) The Mechanical Universe: This is the title of a 1980s TV series, which was essentially a college-level introductory physics class produced by Caltech and taught by physicist David Goodstein. It features cool demos, animations, and reenactments.
(3) Live in the moment: We are given this advice ceaselessly; stop worrying about the future, be present. The problem is that scientists are increasingly pointing to foresight as the distinguishing feature of us human beings. [NY Times story]
(4) Coexistence of multiple human evolutionary lines: The theory that modern humans (homo sapiens) emerged from one ancestral line has encountered one more challenge by the discovery that homo naledi, a protohuman species with modern skeletal features but with brains the size of a gorilla's, coexisted with homo sapiens and neanderthals. [Source: Time magazine, issue of May 22, 2017]
(5) Previously infertile mice able to reproduce with 3D-printed ovaries: In what appears to be a revolutionary advance in biological 3D printing, scientists created synthetic ovaries by printing porous scaffolds from a gelatin ink and filling them with follicles, the tiny, fluid-holding sacs that contain immature egg cells. The implants hooked up to the blood supply within a week and went on to release eggs naturally through the pores built into the gelatin structures.
Math puzzle involving a square divided into four triangular parts (6) An interesting math puzzle: If the outside shape is a square and numbers denote the areas of three of the triangles, what is the area of the fourth triangle?
(7) Iran's presidential election: President Rouhani has been re-elected after the first round, earning 57% of the vote. This isn't just good news for the current cycle but will likely spoil Raisi's chances of being chosen the next Supreme Leader (as promoted by some hardliners), given his lack of popular support.
(8) Final thought for the day: Remember the good old days, when the nation's gravest concern was the Vice President misspelling "potato"?
(9) Candidate Trump: "Saudi Arabia was behind 9/11." President Trump: "Saudi Arabia is an important ally." And why the change of heart? Aljazeera: "US and Saudi Arabia sign arms deals worth almost $110 billion"

2017/05/19 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cover image of the new book 'The Evolution of Beauty' (1) Beauty alongside fitness drives evolution: "Survival of the fittest," as Darwin's theory of evolution is sometimes called, must be augmented by "survival of the prettiest," according to a new book entitled The Evolution of Beauty, by ornithologist Richard O. Prum. The male club-winged manakin, for example, has ornate feathers that produce music as it flies, a feature that has evolved to attract females. The feature not only does not make the bird fitter, but actually slows it down.
(2) Tehran's road to the sea: Iran changes its path to the Mediterranean to avoid areas where US forces are fighting ISIS.
(3) Young woman emulates the voices of 15 different singers in 12 minutes.
(4) Trump has been reading fake news about exercise: He apparently believes that, like a battery, each person comes with a finite amount of lifetime energy and that wasting that energy on exercise will shorten the person's life.
(5) New TV series for 2017: Some observers believe (hope?) that "Three Men and a ManBaby" will be cancelled after one season. [Image]
(6) Massive cuts to DoE's research budget expected: Amounting to more than 2/3 of its existing $2.1 billion budget, the proposed cuts will essentially wipe out research programs on renewable energy and 'clean coal.'
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Former FBI Director Mueller appointed to lead the Russia probe (WP)
- Roger Ailes, Fox News architect and former head, dead at 77 (NYT)
- Erdogan's security detail attacks, beats peaceful DC protesters (NYT)
- Two Chinese military jets intercept US aircraft (AFP)
- Trump leaves on his first foreign trip amid problems at home (CNN)
- Drunk driver mows down dozens in NYC's Times Square (NYT)
(8) Debunked: The theory that we need businessmen to run the government efficiently. [Image]
(9) Microsoft to offer cloud-computing services from data centers in Africa: Seeking an edge over rivals in targeting local customers, the software giant will open two data centers in Johannesburg and Cape Town as part of an expansion that stretches across 40 regions globally. Previously, companies in Africa relied on Microsoft's European data-center hubs such as those in Ireland and the Netherlands. [Source: Bloomberg News]

2017/05/18 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
The White House partly remodeled to look like the Kremlin (1) Cover of Time magazine, issue of May 29, 2017.
(2) Life may have originated on Mars: A NASA Curiosity engineer has advanced the theory that life got its foothold on Mars and took its journey to Earth aboard a meteor. The theory, triggered by the fact that Mars may have become habitable before Earth, is tantalizing, because it would make us all Martians, but it is not yet supported by firm evidence.
(3) Cartoon of the day: Scarier than Hitchcock's "The Birds"! [Image]
(4) Maz Jobrani's commencement speech at UC Berkeley.
(5) Death by caffeine: A teenager has died after consuming coffee, followed by caffeine-laden energy drinks, according to ABC News.
(6) Defying mandatory hijab: This brave woman challenges Iran's hijab laws by putting herself in danger, not just of being arrested by the morality police, but also of being ridiculed or, worse, attacked by sick men who have no respect for personal freedoms.
(7) And now, something less serious, amid dire Trumpian news: Do women like men with or without beards? Short answer: Don't bother shaving!
(8) If you have no health insurance, stay away from rattlesnakes: Or else, be prepared to receive a bill like this shocking one from 2015 (of course, adjusted for higher costs in 2017).
(9) Is ISIS an Existential Threat to the United States? This was the title of a debate at UCSB's Campbell Hall, presented within the framework of UCSB Arts & Lectures Program, beginning at 7:30 PM. UCSB's sociology and global studies professor Mark Jurgensmeyer, who has authored several books, including Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence, moderated the debate.
Monica Duffy Toft (Professor of International Politics and Director of the Center for Strategic Studies at Tuft University) argued the "no" answer, despite admitting that 83% of Americans view ISIS as a serious threat to our country. Even though it is not currently an existential threat to the US, ISIS can become an existential threat, depending on how we respond to its ideas. Its power comes in part from the knowledge that we Westerners are risk-averse and prone to over-reaction. Even though ISIS has vast support among the alienated Sunnis in both Iraq and Syria, its central organization is on the ropes as a result of territory losses. Furthermore, history tells us that terrorist organizations generally do not last long. The ideology will be hard to eliminate, so focusing on physical elimination of ISIS's leadership and organization appears to be the only viable option.
Marc Gopin (Professor of Religion, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution and Director of the Center on Religion, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution at George Mason University) presented arguments for the "yes" side. He views ISIS not as a religious group, but as a secular, land-grab entity that uses religion as a tool and has been able to fill its coffers by selling oil to Turkey. Historically, many wars have been fought where foot soldiers fight for religion, whereas commanders and leaders are secular, with political ambitions. There is support for extremist groups such as ISIS among wealthy Saudis, including some high-level members of the royal family. ISIS may not be a military threat to the US homeland, but it is an existential threat in the way it has upset the international balance (including deep threats to the Islamic world) and how it has distracted us from addressing more serious problems. Within 50-100 years, many of our coastal cities will be submerged and we still have way too many deaths from smoking. Players such as Russia, Iran, and Saudi Arabia are supporting multiple proxy wars in the Middle East region. Gopin views bringing Iran and Saudi Arabia to the negotiating table as the only way of stopping the proxy wars, which strengthen and nurture ISIS. We must note that the Shi'a-Sunni conflict is nothing new. Various Christian sects fought in Europe for ages, before they came to their senses and decided to abandon religion as a tool for governance and political power.
I was one of the questioners at the end of the discussion. I asked what gave Professor Gopin hope that the Shi'a-Sunni conflict will be brought to an end, noting that conflict between the two sects goes back centuries and even though for several decades Iran and Saudi Arabia kept their hatred for each other in check and followed international norms (they had political relations and embassies), it has been nearly 40 years since the relationship has deteriorated. Both Iran and Saudi Arabia aspire to be considered as leading the Islamic world and are unlikely to compromise on what each side views as an existential threat from the other side. The short answer was that just as the conflict between Protestants and Catholics in Ireland was brought to an end by exerting international pressure and using the carrot-and-stick approach, Iranians and Saudis can be persuaded to negotiate.

2017/05/17 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Photo of Naomi Klein (1) Naomi Klein's lecture at Granada Theater: Journalist and activist Naomi Klein spoke about "Our Environmental Future: Connection, Collaboration, and Creation," within the framework of UCSB Arts & Lectures Program. The talk served as the keynote address in the Women and the Environment Conference, being held in Santa Barbara. As part of the speaker's introduction, it was noted that "well-behaved women seldom make history."
Klein is the author of the acclaimed, best-selling book, This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs the Climate, now also a documentary film. An earlier best-selling book of hers (on my to-read list) is titled The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism. Her just-finished book, No Is Not Enough: Resisting Trump's Shock Politics and Winning the World We Need, will be released on June 17.
Klein observed that we have been desensitized to shocking events. What would have caused severe reactions and radical change (e.g., the Santa Barbara oil spill of 1969) barely causes a ripple now (e.g., Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010). The fossil fuel industry has enormous leverage, to the extent that it influences energy policies and even drives the country toward war, because wars tend to increase the price of oil, which in turn raises profits and makes additional exploration and drilling cost-effective.
She observed that the current resistance movement is unprecedented and it spans many issues, from women's rights and science to the environment and equality. She suggested that all these problems must be addressed in parallel, in order to build a broad enough coalition against misguided policies. We can't afford to say that we will deal with environmental problems first, say, and then tackle poverty and war-mongering. All of these problems are inter-related.
And we can't address all such problems by pursuing existing strategies. We need to look deeper and question prevailing assumptions. For example, one reason for the growing anti-science bias is that scientists are discovering truths that go against the primacy of individualism and competition.
Klein referred to the Canadian "The Leap Manifesto" (so named, because it was conceived in 2016, a leap year; see its Web site) as a good example of coordinated action to care for the Earth and one another. Part of the manifesto is the pursuit of "energy democracy" and "energy justice," in order to allow energy to be produced and dispensed in a distributed manner, rather than being under the control of a few big corporations.
Klein stressed the importance of collective action, as opposed to individual activism. She suggested that everyone get away from the computer screen, and the illusion of contributing to solutions via posting/tweeting, and join action groups and other collectives, where they can advance their causes via human-to-human contacts.
(2) Will Ferrell returns as George W. Bush to mock Trump.
(3) NASA's space fabric: The meteorite-resistant fabric can be 3D-printed, even in space, to satisfy various needs. The fabric has a light-reflecting side and a light-absorbing side, making it suitable for use in regulating thermal energy.
(4) Artist projects a message on Trump's DC hotel: The message reads "Pay Trump Bribes Here."
(5) There was a big shake in the Santa Barbara area at 9:42 PM last night. It was very short in duration, but quite strong. KEYT reports that it was a 4.1-magnitude earthquake, followed one minute later by a 3.1-magnitude shaker, both about 8 miles from Isla Vista (a community near the city of Goleta). Three more smaller aftershocks came a few minutes later. There are no reports of damage or any tsunami warnings at this time.
(6) Brisk walking on campus: The "UC Walks" program sponsors campus walking events, preceded by stretch and cardio warm-up exercises, during lunch hour. Today, we went around the campus lagoon and earned a free T-shirt! After the walk, and before returning to my office, I caught the tail end of a musical performance at UCSB's Music Bowl, as part of the World Music Series.

2017/05/16 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cover of 'Der Spiegel,' bearing a cartoon of Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un on a bomb (1) Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un continue their playground taunting exchanges: In the latest episode, which so far has not drawn a direct response, Un has asserted that his missiles can reach the Continental US.
(2) A beautiful Kurdish song: Vocals only. Enjoy!
(3) Cartoon of the day: Lady Gaga generously donates her old clothes to the homeless. [Image]
(4) Belva Ann Lockwood: First woman to run for US presidency (in 1884).
(5) Trump's mob connections: An explosive Dutch documentary film alleges that Trump has deep ties to Russia's mafia underworld and other shady figures.
(6) Largest distributed file system ever built: The Andrew File System, winner of the 2016 ACM Software System Award, has emerged as foundational technology for cloud-computing techniques. The most notable contributions of AFS are its cloud-storage model and on-demand caching at the edge. [Source: ACM Tech News, May 15, 2017]
(7) An algorithm that summarizes lengthy texts: Researchers at Salesforce have developed a learning algorithm to accurately and coherently condense lengthy textual documents by blending various machine-learning strategies and by being fed summary examples. While lauding the Salesforce algorithm, experts point out the limits of solely relying on statistical machine learning, as producing good summaries seems to require some syntactic and semantic knowledge, in order for the results to be truly fluid and fluent. [Source: ACM Tech News, May 15, 2017]
(8) The Pacific Crest Trail: This first map shows the California portion of the Mexico-to-Canada trail that spans California (~1700 miles), Oregon (~500 miles), and Washington (~500 miles). This second map shows the Oregon-Washington portion of the 2700-mile trail.
(9) We give ourselves too much credit when we succeed: Researchers at UC Berkeley asked randomly selected subjects to play a rigged game of Monopoly, in which some players got extra starting cash and higher bonuses for passing "Go." Not surprisingly, the advantaged players won. As these players prospered, however, their behavior changed, becoming more obnoxious and boasting about how their strategy helped them succeed. Even though they were aware of their head start and extra boosts, they began to think that they earned their success by virtue of being smarter than the other players.

2017/05/15 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Amazing sculpture in Portland, Oregon (1) I hope to be able to see this wonderful piece of art, when I visit Portland, OR, for a mid-September technical conference.
(2) Quote of the day: "What does Trump see when he looks back in history? Mostly he sees ... Trump." ~ Presidential historian John Meacham's "Viewpoint" column in Time magazine, issue of May 15, 2017
(3) Birds' eye views of some major cities. [Photos]
(4) Cartoon of the day: One way flights to Mars are in high demand! [Image]
(5) Gift from Iran: I received this elegantly-bound and lushly-illustrated coffee-table book as a gift from a colleague in Iran, kindly brought to me by another colleague who recently visited there. [Cover image]
(6) Ransomware: By now you have likely heard about the WannaCry ransomware that is making its way around the internet encrypting people's Windows computers and demanding payment to restore files. The infection rate has slowed but there may well be an uptick as the attack software evolves. Vulnerable computers are running the Windows OS with missing patches. The patch addressing the issue has been available since March but if you haven't updated your computer for some reason, do it as soon as possible. This is also a good time to review security practices, outlined in this page.
(7) Gender-neutral award: MTV has taken an important step by presenting a single acting award to Emma Watson for her role as Belle in "Beauty and the Beast." As noted by Watson in her acceptance speech, "Acting is about putting yourself in someone else's shoes. And that doesn't need to be separated into two categories."
(8) Syrian pop singer: Omar Souleyman was performing in a free concert this evening at UCSB's Storke Plaza, accompanied by UCSB Middle East Ensemble (a diverse group of musicians from our area). I could not attend, so I am posting a song of his, "Bahdeni Nami" [8-minute video] as a substitute. He has many more songs on YouTube, including "Salamat Galbi Bidek" [6-minute video], performed at the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize Concert.
(9) Final thought for the day: "[W]e all need to remind ourselves of our advantages: whether it's straight priviledge, or financial privileges, or able-bodied privilege, or whatever extra boost we've gotten." ~ Susanna Shrobsdorff, writing in Time magazine, issue of May 15, 2017

2017/05/14 (Sunday): Here are six items of potential interest.
A one-toman or 10-rial bill from Reza Shah's period and a coin in the same denomination from the early days of the Islamic Republic (1) On "toman" or "toomaan," Iran's currency unit: Iran's currency was originally built on the unit of "dinar," a variant of "denarius" used by Eastern Romans, whose territories were captured by Muslims. Some Arab countires still use dinar as their currency unit. Soltan Mahmoud Ghaznavi minted a 100-dinar or "san'nar" coin, which came to be known as "mahmoudi."
The Samanis minted a 50-dinar coin, which was dubbed "shahi." Units such as "gheran" (1000 dinars) and "toman" (10,000 dinars) were used in financial calculations, but there were no actual coins in these denominations at the time. The word "toman" has Mongol roots, and it means 10,000. King Abbas Safavi minted a 200-dinar coin, which came to be known as "abbasi." Close ties between Iran and Portugal brought the Portuguese "re'al" coin to Iran, which at the time was worth 1175 dinars.
During the Qajar dynasty, the coins in circulation included shahi, san'nar, abbasi, and dah-shahi (500 dinars). Early in the Pahlavi dynasty, it was decided to reduce the worth of a "rial" (the Portuguese re'al) to 1000 dinars in order to make the currency units uniform and consistent. Eventually, toman (10 rials) prevailed as the monetary unit used by the public, although rial remained the official unit of Iranian currency.
(2) A very happy Mothers' Day to all! I celebrated today with two of my sisters to recognize their contributions as mothers. My own mother and my youngest sister are away, so we will honor them remotely. As important as motherhood is, today's women are multi-dimensional, serving their societies in many different ways. All three of my sisters are shining examples of professional women, who are indispensable in their work functions as well.
(3) The whole world is either laughing at us or running scared: Cover image of the May 2017 issue of E&T magazine, a British technology publication.
(4) Last night's Billy Joel concert at Dodger Stadium: I had been waiting to see Billy Joel in concert for several years now, but his tour schedule did not include anything in my area, until, finally, he chose Dodger Stadium for a West-Coast concert! We arrived early at the venue, which looked quite empty. However, but the time he went on stage 45 minutes after the scheduled 8:00 PM start time, the seats had almost filled with an estimated 45,000 fans. The high-energy concert included Billy Joel standards, some with new arrangements or mixed with music by other composers. Joel commanded the stage and interjected personal anecdotes that added color to an already well-designed concert. As a kid, he was a fan of the Brooklyn Dodgers (later, he became a Yankees fan and then a Mets fan), so he was awed by the prospects of performing at the venue of the now LA-resident team. As a young artist, he performed at very small venues, so he marveled at how far he has come. He had two surprise guests. Pink sang a song with Joel and another song of her own. Axl Rose collaborated on a song in the main set and another one in the encore set. Here are video clips from the concert, with the last one showing people waving their lit cell phones from the stands. ["My Life"] ["The Longest Time"] ["The Piano Man"]
(5) Cartoon of the day: "People need to stop obsessing sover my Russian ties." [Image]
(6) Tehran Book Fair, without censorship: In parallel with the Tehran event, where only books that gain the approval of the Islamic regime are on display, events in cities around the world allow Iranian authors and publishers to mingle with readers, while displaying books that either would not see the light of day in their home country, or else would appear with so many mandated changes as to become entirely different books. Government censorship in Iran has recently been augmented with publisher censorship (to avoid confrontation with the authorities and financial losses resulting from post-press confiscations) and author self-censorship (avoiding taboo or controversial topics to be able to publish at all). [Voice of America Persian report]

Cover image of 'Never Broken,' Jewel's memoir 2017/05/13 (Saturday): Book review: Jewel, Never Broken: Songs are Only Half the Story, Blackstone Audio, 2015.
This is the first audiobook I borrowed through OverDrive, the mobile app that links to my local library and allows me to check out books virtually. I recommend the app, which links to many local libraries. The user interface, however, needs improvement, as it is quite confusing and requires many functionally redundant steps. Perhaps it will improve in time. I was given 20 days to listen to the audiobook, and I did so on my cell phone, usually while walking to or from work.
I can put holds on books that are not available to check out and I am notified when the book becomes available (libraries can loan out only the number of copies for which they have purchased licenses, similar to buying a certain number of hard copies).
The following sentiment from the book (not an exact quote) explains the title: You can't break someone's spirit any more than you can break water. If our spirit seems broken, it's because we consider it broken, not because it actually is. This is the sense in which Jewel considers herself not broken.
To say that singer/songwriter Jewel Kilcher, a native of Alaska, had a difficult childhood would be an understatement. Her father was a musician with an explosive temper, who had a large repertoire of classic pop tunes he covered in style. He also wrote original songs on occasion. Her mother sang with the band. When Jewel's parents divorced, her mom moved out and the kids were left with her father, who did his best to raise them, his emotional volatility (a result of his own very difficult childhood, which led him to routinely hit the kids) notwithstanding.
At 8, Jewel found herself filling in for her absent mother, singing with the band. She sang tunes from Elvis, The Beatles, and other artists, never having heard them perform the original versions. Her point of reference was her father's version of the tunes. She identified with the songs and found them interesting, without being concerned with the artists who wrote or performed them. Jewel never had a normal childhood. She began working and writing songs at a young age and by 21, she was a well-known singer with her first album going multi-platinum.
The hardships she endured to attend a prestigious art-academy high school put her through some tough tests, but also increased her resolve to develop her talent and improve her skills. She was homeless for much of her youth, improvising to get by, even as she began to perform on stage. She loved her parents, but was not very close to her mother, who abandoned her as a child, but later returned to her life as a manager. Jewel used songwriting, poetry, and prose as refuges that would help her survive.
Jewel drew inspiration for her songs from famous writers more than from songwriters. This might explain the poetic and inspirational tone of her book. It has the potential of helping many people who suffer from self-doubt, and is a good read/listen for all others as well. Several reviewers, who previously saw Jewel as a light-weight, admit to having been won over by this book.
[My 5-star review on GoodReads]

2017/05/12 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Wedding photo, taken at Mt. Everest's base camp (1) Epic wedding photos taken at Mt. Everest's base camp: Ashley Schmeider and James Sisson spent a whole year planning and training for the expedition and took almost 3 weeks to get to the base camp, where they said their vows.
(2) Radio Israel's Persian service has been discontinued after 60 years of broadcasting.
(3) Trump's proposed budget, in one chart: Cuts, and, in 3 cases, increases, in billions of dollars and in percentage.
(4) Part of Barney Brantingham's humorous column in Santa Barbara Independent, May 11-18, 2017.
(5) Comey was kicked out, a la United, as he was about to fly from Los Angeles back to DC. (New Yorker cover)
(6) Our story, in 6 minutes: Science tells our story, from the formation of the universe 14 billion years ago to 5 billion years into the future.
(7) Multiple BMWs burst into flames spontaneously: The cars had been stationary, with their engines turned off, for hours or even days. One car burned in a garage, destroying much of the house. BMW denies responsibility, but otherwise has not commented.
(8) Forthcoming Iran-related events at UCLA:
- May 19: Dr. Azadeh Tabazadeh talks about her memoir, The Sky Detective (Humanities 365, 12:00-2:00 PM)
- June 2: Nobel Laureate Dr. Shirin Ebadi in conversation with Prof. Asli Bali (Luskin Conf. Center, 6:00 PM)
- June 11: Symposium in honor of Abbas Kiarostami: The Man and His Art (Royce Hall 314, 3:00-6:00 PM)
(9) Final thought for the day: Even Fox News has concluded that Trump is unfit to lead the country! In another story, a Breitbart News reporter got into a verbal altercation with Sean Spicer, when he refused to provide a straight answer to a question about Trump's wall.

2017/05/11 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Composite image of Donald Trump and Richard Nixon Cartoon of Donald Trump saying 'I'm not a crook, either' (1) Richard Trump or Donald Nixon? Quite a few Trump-Nixon comparisons have appeared since Trump fired FBI Director James Comey. Here are two examples, a cartoon and a composite image.
(2) Arrest for child pornography: The Iranian-American co-owner of an Italian Restaurant in Sherman Oaks (northwestern LA) is accused of installing cameras in the restaurant's women's restroom and possession of child pornography.
(3) Trump watch: One day after he fired Comey, Trump attacks his critics in an unhinged tweet-storm. Like a guilty middle-schooler (no offense intended to teenagers), Trump uses the letter sent to Comey to tell the FBI Director he's fired to claim that DJT has been exonerated in the Russia probe. In an interview to defend Trump's firing of Comey, Kellyanne Conway meets her match, someone who calls her on her deceptive alt-facts answers.
(4) The two sides of the upcoming presidential election story in Iran:
One side: A heartfelt essay (in Persian) by a Facebook friend, explaining why she will vote. She argues that, imperfect as the choices are, the act of voting strengthens the second word in the "Islamic Republic" oxymoron and has real implications for avoiding or facilitating armed conflict with the West.
The other side: This essay is by another Facebook friend who believes that in these sham elections, Iran's dictatorial regime is playing the game of "good cop, bad cop" with its reform-minded and hard-line candidates.
(5) Joke of the day: Q: Why did the physics teacher break up with the biology teacher? A: No chemistry.
(6) A step in the right direction: I have criticized Trump's Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos for her lack of educational experience and archaic views. Let me also give her credit where credit is due. She has banned rejection of grant applications over formatting errors. Grant-giving organizations, in science or other areas, have grown too bureaucratic and, rather than focus on improving their principal missions, they issue tomes of guidelines on how to format grant applications. Many would reject a grant application without review if restrictions on page-margin or abstract word-count, just to name a couple, are only slightly violated. It's absurd to pay attention to appearance before substance.
(7) UCSB is 8th among public universities in the new ranking by US News and World Report.
(8) Why healthcare premiums are rising: Part of the answer is that they have been rising at a much higher rate than inflation for many years now. Another part of the answer, which few have pointed out, is that the uncertain climate created by Trump and his supporters has made insurers antsy. Almost any business needs stable markets and policies to chart its course and to operate efficiently. When a business faces an uncertain future, it raises prices to protect itself against possible future losses. The same factor is at work at places where insurers are pulling out of the market. If Trump and the GOP wanted affordable insurance premiums, they should have reassured insurers by laying down a stable policy, rather than constantly talk of repeal, while changing the new replacement program on a daily basis, as they tried to bargain for more votes.
(9) The 2016 ACM Maurice Wilkes Award: Named after one of the pioneers of computer design and architecture, the award is given annually to an early-career researcher who has made an outstanding contribution to computer architecture. Timothy Sherwood, my colleague from UCSB's Computer Science Department, is the 2016 receipient of the award. [From: IEEE Micro magazine, issue of March-April 2017]

2017/05/10 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing Khamenei stuffing a man into the ballot box (1) Cartoon of the day: "Like everyone else, I have only one vote."
(2) Quote of the day: "You have the right to go to a doctor in privacy where it's just between you and the doctor. And similarly, you have to be able to go to the Web." ~ Tim Berners-Lee, Worldwide Web inventor and 2016 ACM Turing Award honoree
(3) Trump in discord with McMaster: White House insiders have talked of verbal clashes between Trump and his National Security Adviser, particularly over Trump's statement that South Korea must pay for the installation of a missile defense system to protect it against North Korea. [Source: Business Insider]
(4) The Panama Papers and dirty money: I am unsure about the reliability of the source of this article, but I, too, am surprised that the scandal wasn't given broader coverage in the US media.
(5) An insider's revelations about Khamenei: Hamid-Reza Forouzanfar talks (in Persian) about his uncle, Iran's Supreme Leader, and his transformation from a minor player before the Islamic Revolution to an absolute dictator, who runs the country via a parallel government consisting of his family members and other confidants.
(6) Eggs and tomatoes to the rescue: From when you buy a new tire to the time you replace it, 10-15 mm of thread has disappeared into thin air. The worn thread is a significant source of air pollution. Drum brakes allow particles resulting from the wear to be relatively safely stored, but disk brakes throw harmful emissions into the atmosphere. A complementary approach for reducing harmful emissions is to replace some of the toxic material in tires with certain food waste, such as eggshells and tomato skins. [Source: E&T magazine, issue of May 2017]
(7) Chip Kidd at the Santa Barbara Public Library: Appearing under the announced title "Judge Your Book by Its Cover," Kidd switched gears from his presentation mode of last night (see my post about his lecture at UCSB) to listening and discussion mode. The small audience of about 50 had brought along hardcover books with interesting dust-jacket designs, which they took turns to display on a screen via an overhead projector, explain why they chose the book and what it meant to them, and let Kidd chip in with his comments on the cover design. The intimate setting was wonderful. The essence of Kidd's comments was that if you like/enjoy a book, then its cover design will grow on you, regardless of its artistic merits. Of course, the book's cover is instrumental in attracting you to the book in the first place. The cover design is ingrained in your memory along with your recollections and opinion of the book. I was sitting next to a bookshelf of new non-fiction books and chanced upon the book, Rumi's Secret: The Life of a Sufi Poet of Love (Harper, 2017). The cover design, with its Islamic motifs of Rumi's time, is quite interesting and very appropriate for the book's content, which traces Rumi's life, stretching over 2500 miles, with many dots that may never be completely connected. The book contains translated verses attributed to Rumi. Here are three examples, from different parts of the book.
"Love stole my prayer beads and gave me poetry and song."
"Don't speak so you can hear those voices | Not yet turned into words or sounds."
"Explanations make many things clear | But love is only clear in silence."
(8) Half-dozen brief science/tech news headlines of the day:
- Chinese researchers win $1M prize for highly accurate CT-based lung cancer diagnosis (Technology Review)
- The $5M IBM Watson human-AI-collaboration XPRIZE attracts 147 participants from 22 countries (Huff Post)
- Carnegie-Mellon researchers create touchscreens by spraying paint-like material on any surface (CMU News)
- IBM sponsors research on algorithms for human odor perception from molecular properties (The Scientist)
- Oxford Univ. develops synthetic, bio-compatible, soft-tissue retina for the visually impaired (Digital Trends)
- Canada's plans to build its AI industry gets major boost from Trump's immigration moves (New York Times)
(9) Final thought for the day: "[T]he paradox is the source of the thinker's passion, and the thinker without a paradox is like a lover without feeling: a paltry mediocrity." ~ Soren Kierkergaard

2017/05/09 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Artist's rendition of the Big Bend, the planned world's longest building (1) A plan for world's longest building: To be located next to NYC's Central Park, the inverted-U-shaped building will not be the tallest, but longest, in the world. When the lengths of both sides and the curved top are added up, the total length will be 4000 feet, compared with Burj Khalifa's 2723 feet, the current record. The Big Bend, as the proposed building is called will have special elevators, with bent paths to get around the curved peak.
(2) [I jumped the gun on May 5 due to an error. Teacher Appreciation Day is today] Happy National Teacher Appreciation Day! In the US, the day is observed on Tuesday of the first full week of May. In Iran, the day was observed last week and I received several kind messages from my former students.
(3) Iran's natural beauty: A 3-minute review.
(4) Democracy distorted: Thirteen white males to draft US Senate's healthcare bill, with disproportionate impact on women and disadvantaged minorities. This is the Republicans' idea of representative democracy.
(5) Why would anyone expect an anti-vaccination guy and his cronies to fix our healthcare system? [Trump's 2014 tweet against vaccination]
(6) Yesterday in Goleta, CA: High tide on a windy afternoon, just before sundown, on UCSB's West Campus bluffs. [2-minute video]
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- FBI Dierctor James Comey abruptly fired by Trump (multiple sources)
- Trump's campaign statements have disappeared from his Web site (WP)
- White House climate change meeting postponed again (AP)
- North Korean and US delegations meet quietly in Norway (IBT)
- New left-leaning South Korean president could be less friendly to US (CNBC)
- Iran's President Rouhani pelted with eggs during campaign visit in Golestan
(8) Half-dozen brief science/tech news headlines of the day:
- Unknown USAF spy plane returns from fourth classified mission (NBC)
- NV Energy to shut down last coal-fired plant in Nevada (Omaha World-Herald)
- Utilities surveyed say Trump's EO unlikely to save coal industry (ClimateWire)
- Hundreds of privacy-invading apps use ultrasonic sounds to track you (ZDNet)
- Ford plans to double its workforce in Silicon Valley (Detroit News)
- SpaceX test-fires its new giant rocket Falcon Heavy (Ars Technica)
(9) An evening with Chip Kidd: The extraordinary designer and art director talked at UCSB's Campbell Hall tonight. He has designed images that appear on dust jackets of numerous hard-cover books and has worked on many best-selling book projects. He described the process of going from ideas and images that appear in a book to a catchy, yet legible cover design that often plays a key role in the book's success. Tomorrow night, he will speak at Santa Barbara's Public Library under the title "Judge Your Book by Its Cover," where attendees are encouraged to bring their favorite book cover designs for group discussion. I am looking forward to that event. Kidd works for Knopf, a commercial publisher, so the process of getting to a final cover design often involves multiple iterations until several players (the boss, sales people, sometimes the author, and occasionally the estate of a dead author) sign off on it. These iterations can be frustrating, but more often than not, they lead to more appropriate designs that do the intended job better. In the course of tonight's talk, Kidd presented several projects, from their inceptions and initial doodles to the final product. His talk was very instructive and also filled with humor. He has a Web site and several TED talks, including this 19-minute gem.

2017/05/08 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Photo of colorful flowers in an unspecified field, with mountains in the background (1) Field of dreams (photo by Aaron Reed). [Location unknown]
(2) Quote of the day: "When you shoot a zebra in the black stripe, the white stripe dies too." ~ African proverb
(3) Universal healthcare can't be a bad idea, if it is embraced by every advanced country in the world. [Chart]
(4) Easy-listening music: For those who like light jazz, here is nearly two hours of Michael Buble's greatest hits.
(5) Retired UC Berkeley professor joins Google: David Patterson will help Google develop a chip for its Tensor Processing Unit. The new chip will run at least 10 times as fast as current processor chips and will be able to handle computations required for AI applications. Patterson, 69, whose UCLA grad-student days overlapped with mine, was a faculty member at Berkeley for 40 years. Patterson is known as inventor/promoter of the RISC and RAID concepts and author of best-selling computer architecture textbooks.
(6) How the just-elected French President defeated the hackers: The same hackers that helped Trump become US President failed in helping Marine Le Pen, because the Macron camp, having learned from the US experience, played along and planted a confusing mix of true and false information on their phishing Web sites.
(7) Obama receives "Profile in Courage" award: In his acceptance speech at the J. F. Kennedy Presidential Library, he addresses the US Congress and asks them to show courage in enacting healthcare legislation.
(8) An interesting tech blog post: Meera Collier of Cadence makes some interesting observations about an AI-related conference she attended and wonders about the dearth of women at such conferences. Here are some of my thoughts about her blog post.
Collier makes three important points. First, she notes the impact of new deep-learning techniques on visual understanding. Second, she notes the dearth of specialists in the subfield of AI known as deep learning. Third, she points to the under-representation of women in AI (and tech, more generally).
Regarding the first point, AI has oscillated between trying to mimic human behavior through understanding its underlying mechanisms and just mimicking the input-output behavior, without caring about how humans do it. The latter approach has prevailed in recent years. At one time, there was an extensive debate about whether computers can ever be considered as thinking. Edsger Dijkstra famously noted that, "The question of whether a computer can think is no more interesting than the question of whether a submarine can swim." His point was that computers can exhibit behavior that is human-like and useful, without truly thinking. Now, deep-learning programs can even exceed human capabilities in some tasks, even though an understanding of the pertinent human mechanisms still eludes us.
Regarding the second point, AI and the overlapping field of data science are enjoying a newfound popularity (in the same way that computer security did, beginning a few years ago) and the dearth of specialists in these fields will be short-lived, especially if additional tech visa restrictions are not imposed.
Regarding the third point, I could write books! In computer science and engineering, we were making good progress in attracting women, but in the past decade or so, we have been going backwards. There is general agreement (though by no means a consensus) that women have lost interest in CSE, not because universities turn them off, but because of the workplace culture, especially in start-ups that more or less demand 12-hour workdays and, even after they hire a token number of women, they do not take them seriously and do not promote them. This Fortune article about problems at Facebook is more broadly relevant. Interestingly, when women have become involved they have shown great insights and made significant contributions. A good example is provided by the black women of Hidden Figures, a book that I reviewed on May 6. The only reason those women were given a chance in the early 1940s, in an age when there was systematic discrimination against both women and blacks, was a shortage of male specialists as WW II raged. Those women turned what they thought to be six-month "war jobs" into long, distinguished careers at NASA.

2017/05/07 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image of a woman, shown trying to pick up her shadow (1) Good advice for when you suffer a setback: Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again! Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers sing in the movie "Swing Time" (1936).
(2) Fred Astaire sings "The Way You Look Tonight" in the 1936 movie "Swing Time." And here is Frank Sinatra's marvelous version, with lyrics under the video. This more modern interpretation by Michael Buble isn't bad either.
(3) Introducing the next great blues singer! [3-minute video]
(4) The 11 most-beautiful mathematical equations: My favorite is Euler's formula, a surprising identity that relates the number of vertices, edges, and faces in a planar graph.
(5) Let the Senate fight begin: Kamala Harris, a fresh Democratic face in the US Senate from California, plans to fight Trumpcare tooth and nail. Contact her office and give her the needed ammunition!
(6) AI aims at predicting Supreme Court rulings: A new study suggests artificial intelligence can outperform legal scholars (77% accuracy, vs. 66%) in the prediction of US Supreme Court rulings. Using the Supreme Court database for 1816-2015 and drawing on 16 elements of each justice's vote, researchers built a model that uncovered associations between case elements and decision outcomes. The model then examined the features of each case for a given year to anticipate rulings, and was fed data about the rulings so it could update its approach and move on to the next year. [Source: Science]
(7) Quote of the day: "[Trump's presidency] is worse than any horror story I've written." ~ Author Stephen King
(8) A long-time conservative talks about Trump: I liked George Will at one time, many years ago (when I read his columns), but he turned too conservative for my taste. So, it is striking that he is writing and talking about Trump having a dangerous disability.
(9) Trump is being sued: Atheists to challenge Trump in court over his executive order allowing religious non-profit organizations to meddle in politics. This case may lead to the first true test of the Supreme Court with its new composition.

2017/05/06 (Saturday): Book review: Shetterly, Margot Lee, Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race, William Morrow, 2016.
Cover image of the book 'Hidden Figures' If asked to name women who were influential in the development of computing technology and applications, most people would only be able to identify a couple: Perhaps Ada Byron Lovelace and Admiral Grace Murray Hopper. Many other female mathematicians and computer scientists, who helped advance computer science and engineering, remain nameless and faceless. This book, and the successful 2016 movie based on it, have brought some of these faces, who served as human computers to the forefront. What makes the group of women in this book even more remarkable is that they were black, at a time when segregation was still in effect and even white women weren't taken seriously in technical fields.
Margot Lee Shetterly, a non-fiction writer, grew up in Hampton, VA, where she came to know many of the women whose lives are described in this book. She has also worked in investment banking and media start-ups, according to Wikipedia. She has won a Sloan Fellowship and several other honors. The 346-page book is well-researched. It ends with a 5-page acknowledgment section, 56 pages of notes, and an 18-page index.
The hidden figures of this book gained a foothold in the early 1940s, when, as a result of the war effort, there was a severe shortage of male technical talent to draw upon, while, simultaneously, there was a greater need for designing and testing airplanes. Later, the space race triggered by the Soviet launch of the Sputnik made aeronautical and space research even more urgent. Two executive orders (EO 8802, on the desegregation of the defense industry, and EO 9346, creating the Fair Employment Practices Committee) were also instrumental in opening doors to women and blacks.
The book's protagonists even had a hard time attending college, let alone emerge as leading scientists and technologist. There were black colleges for undergraduate work, but when it came to more advanced training, they had to fight their way into colleges where they were not very welcome and were expected to fail. At work, they were kept in positions below their level of talent and abilities and were often excluded from meetings where they could contribute immensely. The women began by doing routine calculations, but quickly rose in expertise and stature, and were thus assigned more demanding tasks.
A lot was going on at NACA (National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics), later to become NASA, and other research units at the time. In addition to building, testing, and improving planes for the war effort, the US was at the verge of breaking the Mach barrier, an effort that produced trans-sonic, super-sonic, and hyper-sonic flight ideas in rapid succession.
Much of the book is devoted to the women's personal stories, including the neighborhoods where they lived, how they commuted to work, challenges of going to the bathroom and eating at the cafeteria in a segregated work environment, their family dynamics, and so on. The social impact of their careers was wide-ranging. The diversity of the workforce at Langley turned it into a kind of race-relations lab. An interesting social consequence of the war years was husbands (soldiers and other military personnel) returning home to grown, independent women they barely recognized.
Discrimination was severest against black women, but was by no means limited to them. Irish and Jewish women were also discriminated against, as were married women. In time, the Langley management relaxed the enforcement of separate bathroom and lunchroom rules, a la the "don't ask, don't tell" policy of many years later regarding gay military personnel. The sensitive nature of the work at Langley caused extra scrutiny of those who worked there, especially in the wake of the Rosenberg Trials, which put all left-leaning individuals working for the US government under growing suspicion.
Langley eventually endeavored into space research, at first a bit reluctantly, but rushing to put together a space program, once the Soviet Union launched its Sputnik satellite, kicking off the space race. Americans were told that Sputnik was mapping the US in order to select the best targets for H-bombs. In a similar way, the initial resistance to electronic digital computers as replacements for human computers gave way to enthusiastic pursuit, and "the girls," as the human computers were known, began learning the needed skills. They observed, rightly, that the days of computing with calculators were coming to an end.
Shetterly writes that Katherine Coleman signed her first research report as "Katherine G. Johnson," shortly after getting married in 1959. It's a shame that her own family did not get to enjoy any of the credit and name recognition. Similarly, KGJ's greatest accomplishment, that of calculating the precise requirements for the Lunar Landing Module to be able to take off and meet the Lunar Orbiter, so that Apollo 11 astronauts could return safely, is recorded under her married name. KGJ has received numerous honors, including 3 honorary doctorates and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
As I read Shetterly's book, I was mostly interested in finding out about the technical contributions of the women and how they fit into the grand scheme of scientific research and technical innovation at NASA. I found some of the detours into childhood stories and other details a tad boring. But, one cannot gain a proper appreciation of the enormity of what these women accomplished without learning about the additional obstacles, be they economic disadvantage, racial inequality, gender discrimination, and confidence-shattering professional treatment, which they had to face.
The human computers had gone to Langley for what they thought would be 6-month war jobs, but they ended up establishing careers and growing old there. The fact that, at the time of Sputnik, 1/3 of all Soviet engineering graduates were women, whereas in the US, women were struggling to find a way in, may have played a key role in the US falling behind in the space race.
This book and the movie based on it have done much to raise awareness about the challenges faced by colored people in breaking the barriers of work in predominantly white work environments and industries and the enormous national gain that would result from removing all such barriers. Alas, something that does not seem to be in the cards over the next few years.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]

2017/05/05 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Washington's Mt. Hood, Mt. Adams, and Mt. Rainier in one photo frame (1) Three volcanoes in one frame: This amazing Washington photo captures Mt. Hood (foreground), Mt. Adams (right), and Mt. Rainier.
(2) In the school of life, everyone's a teacher. If you are willing to learn, everyone has something to teach you. Happy Teachers' Day!
(3) Wonderful guitar music: Theme from "The Dear Hunter" ("Cavatina") played by two guitarists and a symphony orchestra. Enjoy!
(4) Behind the lies of Holocaust denial: Holocaust denial has gained some momentum in recent years. In this new 16-minute TEDx talk, Deborah Lipstadt wonders about how the best-documented genocide in history came to be denied and what the denials mean. [P.S.: The excellent movie "Denial," which I watched last week, is the story of a lawsuit brought against Lipstadt in the UK by a Holocaust denier; she won!]
(5) A young Paul Anka sings a medley of his most recognizable songs.
(6) A fascinating film: Opening in theaters on June 16, "Score: A Film Music Documentary" celebrates the contribution of music in telling more compelling stories. Just try to imagine "ET" or any James Bond film without its iconic score.
(7) A group of Iranian miners who perished in a mine collapse a few days ago. [Photo]
(8) Trump's wealthy cabinet will collectively gain an estimated $1.5 billion from his plan to abolish the estate tax, cleverly labeled "death tax" to garner support (a la fictitious "death panels," invented for Obamacare).
(9) Truly sickening: This cleric uses his young daughter to illustrate the wrong and right ways for women to cover themselves according to Islamic edicts. [10-minute video]

2017/05/04 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Victims of 'hono' killings whose photos appear on the memorial page of Karma Nirvana (1) 'Honor' killings: Victims from around the world on the memorial page of Karma Nirvana, a UK charity helping victims of honor-based violence and their families. The UN estimates that 5,000 women and girls die in honor killings worldwide per year. A new despicable trend is the killers taking the victims to other countries where laws against honor killings are laxer. [Source: Newsweek on-line]
(2) Cartoon caption of the day: Husband to wife, as he works in his home-office: "I don't remember—do I work at home or do I live at work?"
(3) Three prominent Civil-War historians take on Trump's ignorant comments about it.
(4) Trump's ad campaign: The guy who said during his presidential run that he didn't need to spend any money on ads unleashed a $1.5 million ad campaign to tout the "successes" of his first 100 days as President!
(5) Half-dozen science and technology news headlines of the day:
- British and other European techies vie to fight fake news in election season (NYT)
- China hits milestone in developing quantum computers (South China Morning Post)
- British researchers develop most accurate 3D model of the human face (Science)
- Twitter data could have predicted outcome of Brexit vote (University of Surrey)
- Cassini encountered less dust than expected in gap between Saturn, rings (LA Times)
- First humans arrived in North America 116,000 years earlier than thought (Sci News)
(6) Twenty House Republicans and 193 Democrats vote "no" on the Obamacare repeal/replace legislation, but it passes narrowly 217-213-1. Trumpcare (aka Obamacare Light) now goes to the Senate! All 14 Republican House members from California voted "yes" on the bill.
(7) Science communication is important: Ira Flatow, host of NPR's "Science Friday," spoke at UCSB's Campbell Hall tonight under the title "Are You Sure? Science, Communication, and Uncertainty." He began with some self-deprecating humor, quipping "I have a face for the radio" and observing that, as a non-scientist, he is usually the dumbest person in the room when he talks with scientist.
Flatow began his role as an explainer of science on the first Earth Day in 1970. His career has been devoted to improving the public's understanding of science and the important role played by scientists in how we live our lives. According to Flatow, half of all Americans don't know how long it takes for the Earth to go once around the sun and a quarter still think that the Earth is the center of our Solar System. On the other hand, people's hatred of science is a myth, because 80% of the public loves science.
Whereas science denial has afflicted our leaders, the public's love for science is evident in the wave of commercially successful and critically acclaimed movies ("The Imitation Game," "The Theory of Everything," "The Martian") and vastly popular TV shows ("The Big Bang Theory," "Scorpion," "Limitless," and the return of "MacGyver"). To spread awareness about science, we need to follow the 95% solution, a reference to the fact that only 5% of the average American's time is spent in the classroom.
Education of politicians is more of a challenge these days. Flatow related the experience of a former NOAA chief who had gone to Congress to ask for funding to replace aging weather satellites. One member of Congress told her that he did not need her freaking weather satellites, because he got all the weather info he needed from the Weather Channel. Contrary to popular belief, scientists do not shy away form engaging in public policy debates; 87% say that they favor greater engagement.
In the course of his lecture, Flatow played sound recordings and showed short video clips to stress his points. One such video was a song by Barber Lab Quartet, which aims to get girls interested in science, while presenting a realistic picture of what lab work entails.
Viewing the problem from the other side, scientists must also be trained to be effective communicators and be able to convey their messages through modern media. On TV, for example, the average soundbite has shrunk from 8 seconds a few years ago, and 15 seconds before that, to just 4 seconds. TV news, which used to be in the business of providing information, has deteriorated to just trying to fill the space between commercials. Scientists must adjust to the new landscape by practicing and refining their messages so that they can make their main points within the shorter time-slices they have.
An interesting occurrence during the Q&A period was a female questioner offering Flatow a pink hat that she had knit during the lecture. Flatow accepted the gift, but quipped that he was sorry the lecture was so boring!

2017/05/03 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
A tree, painted in four panels corresponding to the four seasons (1) A tree representing the four seasons (the artist is unknown to me). And here is a second tree.
(2) Wonderful Iranian music, with some Verdi thrown in: This 50-minute video contains Chorale de Bahar's "Silk Road 2" concert, featuring Darya Dadvar. Enjoy!
(3) Aerial view of Santa Barbara's breakwater and harbor. [1-minute video]
(4) Einstein's theory survives a new quantum test: But unification of the general theory of relativity and quantum mechanics is still elusive.
(5) The corporate campus: Nicoletti's, the coffee shop operating at UCSB's University Center, has been closed and a small temporary operation is set up in front of it, while the premises are prepared for a Starbucks franchise. The new facility will provide broader choices, as well as some familiarity and comfort to campus visitors. Nevertheless, it is sad to see the trend toward elimination of smaller outlets in favor of giant chain businesses.
(6) Trump blames the US Constitution for not getting much done during his first 100 days: Although he had previously claimed that no President had done as much in his first 100 days!
(7) Flip-flopper-in-chief: Trump has not only reneged on countless campaign promises, he has completely reversed a number of them. It seems that he didn't know what he was talking about; and still doesn't.
(8) Joke of the day: Weighing scale to its user: "$50 or I'll tweet this out!" [Credit: Margaret Martonosi's May 1 IoT lecture at UCSB]
(9) Phishing e-mail attack via Google Docs: My department's IT team has notified the staff not to click on links within e-mails that pretend to be sharing something via Google Docs. Google has confirmed that it has now fixed the attack and disabled the offending accounts, but you should remain alert.

2017/05/02 (Tuesday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Hands holding letters that spell 'Teaching' (1) Still learning after 44 years of teaching: Today, I attended a workshop entitled "Teaching in the Present," which was conducted by Ailish Riggs Darmody (Lecturer, UCSB Department of Theater and Dance) and Celia Alario (Lecturer, Bren School of Environmental Science and Management). Effective teaching entails performance and story-telling, hence the relevance of the theater perspective.
The lecturers stressed the importance of one-on-one interaction with students, getting rid of our "invisible gag" (a past event that may have contributed to our fear of public speaking or reduced our effectiveness), using exercises to loosen up before teaching, motion in the classroom (as opposed to stationary lecturing), revealing yourself by relating personal experiences and vulnerabilities, voice variation in terms of pitch, speed, volume, and emphasis, and, of course, body language.
Make sure students perceive you as talking to them, by establishing eye contact and engaging in personal interactions (to the extent that the size of the class allows). Make direct statements without sugar-coating your words. Use group activities in class when the subject matter allows. It is okay to use intervals of silence to allow your statements to "land," and then repeat if necessary. Reciting tongue-twisters is a good way of warming up your articulators.
(2) Academic social media: Janneke Adema, a research fellow at Center for Disruptive Media, Coventry University (UK), spoke this morning at the UCSB Library under the title "Academia.edu & Self-Branding: The Metricisation of Scolars and Scholarly Networks." Having grown uncomfortable with the daily e-mails I receive from ResearchGate and LinkedIn, both of which treat the academic enterprise like a sport match (hey, you received another endorsement/citation, your publications got 5 more reads, so and so published a paper which cites your work), I welcomed the chance of attending this talk.
Academia.edu, ResearchGate, and a number of other Web sites are for-profit businesses that ask researchers to provide them with free content (researchers' profiles and publications) and make money by selling the information they collect, in the form of premium services, sponsored content, and information packages. Researchers fear that their research may receive less visibility than their competitors' if they do not participate. Once you upload your information, however, there seems to be no way to withdraw, and PDF copies of your publications become the property of the service provider.
While entities such as ResearchGate lure researchers by touting the advantages of free access to their publications and thus higher visibility and impact, their service model isn't "open access," because other researchers must register and provide personal information before they can access the posted research.
A dilemma faced by academic researchers is whether they should try to become active participants in such sites (e.g., by serving as volunteer editors) with the hope of improving the service, or to refrain from participation to protest the abuse of free information they provide. Interestingly, such sites do have some benefits, such as getting immediate feedback on one's work and discovering works by other researchers with similar profiles. However, author scores and other quantitative measures of research "success," which are derived based on obscure algorithms, are viewed as damaging.
There are non-profit alternatives to these for-profit services and more are being developed. The Humanities Commons is one such service that is run by academics for academics, as is Domains of One's Own. I have developed and manage my own Web site for posting my detailed profile and publications, but doing so deprives one of the benefits of collaboration and networking.
(3) Imperial presidency: DoJ claims in lawsuit that the President has the authority to fire the head of CFPB, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. This may be a precursor of abolishing the agency altogether.
(4) Tech joke of the day: In the near future, after the Internet of Things has become established, salespeople, who now ask you if you care to purchase an extended warranty for your applicance, will ask: "Can I interest you in a firewall for your toaster?" [Credit: Margaret Martonosi's IoT lecture at UCSB, yesterday]

2017/05/01 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Photo of today's speaker, Dr. Margaret Martonosi (1) Lecture on the Internet of Things (IoT): Dr. Margaret Martonosi of Princeton University spoke this afternoon under the title "Internet of Things: History and Hype, Technology and Policy" at UCSB's Corwin Pavilion. Dr. Martonosi recently ended an engagement with the US State Department as a Jefferson Fellow, a program that has been suspended under the Trump administration. In her role as a resident scientist at the State Department, Dr. Martonosi served as the go-to person on information technology questions and helped formulate US contributions or positions on various technical exchanges and agreements. An example international program that required expert advice is the November 2015 Israeli-Palestinian 3G communication agreement.
Some believe that IoT is more hype than substance. All new technological innovations begin with unrealistic expectations, which peak with increased hype but eventually settle on a more realistic development course, after a post-hype drop. IoT has just passed the said peak and is dropping to the stage of developing practical solutions and applications. Current proposed applications are vast, ranging from very useful farming (irrigation control), health-monitoring, and traffic solutions to weird ideas such as an internet-enabled fork that tells you if you are eating too fast! The 2025 projected IoT market is $4-11 trillion.
In studying IoT, issues to be considered pertain to users, policymakers, technologists, and system architects. Dr. Martonosi's research spans the four layers named above, but in today's lecture, she emphasized energy and security issues.
Concerning energy efficiency, IoT devices must be built to use energy frugally, both to improve battery life and to limit possible problems from heat generation (e.g., in implanted devices, whose overheating can harm human tissues). One key idea is balancing compute energy vs. communication energy. The ensuing trade-off may dictate a deviation from current cloud-based computing strategy that delegates all significant processing functions to the cloud, leading to bare-bones local or "edge" devices. Doing more computation locally (using the "edge-computing" or "near-data-computing" paradigms) may allow the use of energy-efficient computation to save on energy-intensive communication.
Concerning security, compromised IoT isn't a problem only for your devices or your home network, but possibly for the entire Internet. It has been demonstrated that data anonymously aggregated in databases can be manipulated to compromise privacy by using side information available from public sources. A celebrated example from the mid 1990s is an MIT graduate student's extraction of medical information for Governor Weld from a large, anonymized medical records database, using publicly available voter records that allowed her to zoom in on the data of interest via a process of elimination (only 6 of the people in the data set shared the governor's birth date, only 3 were men, only 1 had his zip code).
(2) Help for wildlife: Bald eagle, that lost part of its beak due to being shot in the face, gets a 3D-printed beak.
(3) Automatic translation: On-line language translators are still imperfect, but they fill an important need in allowing people not reading a given language gain access to news stories and other material in that language.
(4) Renewable energy: China is now first in the world in producing energy from solar cells.
(5) Tourists enjoying Iranian cuisine at Parhami Traditional House in Shiraz.
(6) Cartoon of the day: About the recent March for Climate in Washington, DC. "Three percent of scientists say this protest isn't happening." [Image]

Photo of Dr. Pedram Khosronejad lecturing and Dr. Nayereh Tohidi standing to the side 2017/04/30 (Sunday): Today's UCLA lecture on Iran: Dr. Pedram Khosronejad, Farzaneh Family Scholar and Associate Director for Iranian and Persian Gulf Studies at Oklahoma State University, spoke in Persian under the title "Iran-Iraq War and the Creation of the Sacred Defense Art." He will deliver a different talk in English tomorrow at UCLA ("Lost Souls: Photography of African Eunuchs & Female Servants in Qajar Iran," Monday, May 1, 4:00 PM, 365 Humanities Building, UCLA campus).
The 8-year Iran-Iraq War, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988 (Shahrivar 1359 to Mordad 1367 in the Iranian calendar) was perhaps the most defining event in Iran after the Islamic Revolution. Most accounts of the war are one-sided, either told from the viewpoint of Iranian authorities or described by Western observers who have very little in terms of first-hand knowledge and less of a motivation to be impartial. The Iraqi side of the story has never been told, due to that country's instability ever since the war ended. Many of the required documents needed to reconstruct the Iraqi view of the war are unavailable to scholars and other observers.
The speaker lived in Iran as a school-boy during the entire duration of the war and was distressed by bombings and other hostilities, as well as by the loss of his classmates, teachers, and other people he knew, either directly taken by the war or forced to relocate in its wake. There is a lot more to do in terms of documenting the war and its aftermath. New discoveries are still being made, including bodies of fighters lost and never recovered.
The terms used in Iran for the 8-year war with Iraq are "The Imposed War" (because it was Iraq that attacked Iran) and "The Sacred Defense" (referring to sacrifices made by a large number of fighters and their families to defend Iran and the role faith played in such sacrifices). Horror stories abound about what the Iraqi army did to military personnel and civilians once they captured certain areas of Iran, to the extent that some men are known to have killed their female family members so as to prevent their capture by Iraqi forces.
With the context above, Dr. Khosronejad proceeded to enumerate and briefly demonstrate in his slides a number of influential artists, the styles and philosophies they pursued, and their creations. Much of the art went away after the war, leaving little impact, the possible exception being a number of feature-length movies. Efforts are underway to recover and study the art of the Iran-Iraq war and influences that led to their creation, but progress is rather slow. The talk's focus was on art that was created in direct connection with the war, not art that was indirectly influenced by the war and its immense casualties, in deaths and serious injuries, including suffering from chemical attacks on the battlefields and afterwards.
Some of the domains Dr. Khosonejad touched upon are graphics, painting, murals, photography, literature (historical accounts, novels, memoirs, and poetry), and film (both documentaries and history-based and fictional stories). Because of the focus on the work being done and preservation efforts of a particular organization in Iran, music was not discussed, but the speaker acknowledged that there is much to study in the area of music, which unfortunately has not been not documented in print.
Dr. Khosronejad is the editor of two books directly related to his talk today: Unburied Memories: The Politics of Bodies of Sacred Defense Martyrs in Iran, and Iranian Sacred Defense Cinema: Religion, Martyrdom and National Identity. I end this summary with my English translation of a Persian poem by Qeysar Aminpour [1959-2007], which appeared on the speakers final slide.
A martyr, who lay dying on the ground | Dipped his finger in his own blood and wrote | Hoping for real victory | Not in war | But against war

2017/04/29 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
(1) Trading data suggests that UK official stats are being provided to some investors prior to their publication.
(2) Pope Francis gives a surprise TED talk: Speaking from Vatican via a big screen, rather than on stage, the Pope aimed his message at tech leaders and other powerful people. "How wonderful would it be if the growth of scientific and technological innovation would come along with more equality and social inclusion. How wonderful would it be, while we discover faraway planets, to rediscover the needs of the brothers and sisters orbiting around us. How wonderful would it be if solidarity—this beautiful and, at times, inconvenient word—were not simply reduced to social work and became, instead, the default attitude in political, economic and scientific choices, as well as in the relationships among individuals, peoples and countries."
(3) A math teacher's road to success: This article features Reyhaneh Khaze, a highly effective math teacher at Flint Hill Upper School in Washington, DC. She is described as a Baha'i refugee from Iran.
(4) Political exchange of the week: President Donald Trump, to Reuters: "[The presidency] is more work than in my previous life. I thought it would be easier."
David Frum, GWB's speechwriter, in a series of tweets: Yes, "Nobody could have known the presidency was hard."
"All this information was cunningly concealed by being put in books and other forms of writing."
"Also, nobody could have known that 2 year old tweets are retrievable."
(5) Two pages from an old Iranian school text: The lesson on these pages is about the letter "heh" and its four variations (initial, middle, terminal, and solo). The text sings the praises of the Shah and Empress Farah, but let me refrain from political commentary here!
(6) Cartoon of the day: Germans seem to be having a lot of fun! ["Todesspiel" means "death match."] [Image]
(7) Final thought for the day: I leave you with this image, which reflects what's spinning in my head, after a full day of working on revisions of technical papers.

2017/04/28 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Donald Knuth marched for science last Saturday (1) "The Donald" of computer science lets The Donald know about his YUGE support for science: Donald Knuth of Stanford University, a highly-respected researcher and a prolific author, is best known for his multi-volume opus, The Art of Computer Programming.
(2) Comedian Seth Meyers on Trump presidency's first 100 days.
(3) Wonderful combinations of math and art: Sculptures that move and transform into endless designs.
(4) Joke of the day: A public-school teacher was arrested today at JFK Airport, as he tried to board a flight while in possession of weapons of math instruction (a ruler, a protractor, a compass, a calculator). An unnamed security official said he believes the man is a member of the notorious Al Gebra movement, whose members use secret names such as 'X' and 'Y' and refer to themselves as 'unknowns.'
(5) The first microprocessor built entirely of flexible material: Vienna University of Technology researchers have constructed a 1-bit microprocessor out of a flexible 2D material by using a transition-metal dichalcogenide (TMD), which is composed of crystals only one layer of atoms or molecules thick. TMDs form into layers similar to graphene, but unlike graphene, are semiconductors. The Vienna team deposited two-molecule-thick layers of molybdenum disulfide on a silicon substrate etched with their circuit design and separated by a layer of aluminum oxide. The microprocessor uses a set of only four instructions, but the team believes the device can be shrunk while boosting its complexity, thus allowing extension to multi-bit data. [Source: ACM Tech News]
(6) Misogyny continues in Iran: Iranian athlete permanently banned from her sport for appearing sans hijab in a photo. Shiva Amini was a member of the national women's futsal team for 4 years. Recently, she has been involved in coaching and playing for clubs.
(7) 'Frozen' isn't your typical 'princess' story, and therein lies its success: "To understand the psychology behind 'Frozen' Mania, in 2015, CNN reached out to psychologists who are sisters themselves: Yalda Uhls is regional director for Common Sense Media. Maryam Kia-Keating is an associate professor of clinical psychology at University of California, Santa Barbara. Here is our edited conversation."
(8) UCSB Engineering's 50th anniversary alumni reception: Many engineering alumni, campus administrators, and college faculty and staff were on hand to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of our College of Engineering. Before the college got its own corner of the campus, it was housed in the Arts Building. There aren't many engineering programs in the world that have come this far to become a world leader in only five decades. I am proud to have been part of this success story for three decades (I was hired in 1987, but couldn't join physically until 1988, due to visa delays). The shiny metal container seen next to the speakersin these photos is a time capsule being filled with college memorabilia, to be opened in 25 years. Unlike most time capsules, it won't be buried but will be showcased in a special display in the main engineering building. This 2-minute video captures the mood of the reception.
(9) Final Image for the day: Life is full of surprises, good and bad. Enjoy the good and ignore the bad.

2017/04/27 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Smiling Iranian children, looking out a window (1) Happiness is a state of mind: It does not depend on worldly possessions.
(2) Quote of the day: "If Google were created from scratch today, much of it would be learned, not coded." ~ Jeff Dean, Google Senior Fellow, Systems and Infrastructures Group
(3) Judges are all bad, except the ones who rule in Trump's favor or dismiss lawsuits brought against him. [WSJ article]
(4) Patriarchy in action: The potential next president of France is 24 years younger than his wife and is constantly ridiculed for the age difference. But the US President being 24 years older than his wife seems to be no problem. [Read in Persian, with images]
(5) Science aficionados making their points with humor during last Saturday's protest marches in 600+ cities. [Sign held by a protester]
(6) Challenging English assignment: Decode this sentence and transform it into a grammatically correct one.
(7) Facebook friend request: Today, I received a Facebook friend request from a gorgeous blond woman, who is single and lives in North Carolina. Her FB profile contains a single photo and nothing else. There are hundreds of individuals on the friends list of this gorgeous blond woman, if indeed she is good-looking, a blond, or even a woman! This request is easy to dismiss as fraudulent, but I receive friend requests from other impostors and scammers, who are way more sophisticated in their approach. Be vigilant!
(8) Talk on graph databases: Today's 18th edition of the Benjamin Lecture, a vehicle which allows UCSB's Department of Geography to bring outstanding researchers in geographic information science (GIS) to campus, was delivered by Dr. Claudia Bauzer-Medeiras, Professor of Databases at Brazil's University of Campinas. The full title of her talk was "Discovering and Clearing Paths through the World—The Pros and Cons of Graph Databases."
Relational databases (essentially, tables of facts) are currently the most common tools for organizing data. Their main advantages are their more or less standardized structures and query interfaces. Graph databases, which provide a more natural semantics for queries involving paths and movements, are gaining in popularity, but they are not standardized in structure of query interface.
The speaker has used a graph database, and its query language Cypher, to study an outbreak of yellow fever in parts of Brazil with low incidence of vaccination. It was discovered that the spread of the disease had been facilitated by a river flowing through the affected areas, and this spatial relationship made the problem ideal for tackling via a graph database. Other promising applications of graph databases are in archaeology and in compiling organism profiles that allow scientists to study various species from different perspectives.
(9) Muslims in America: Author and essayist Laila Lalami (Professor of Creative Writing at UC Riverside) spoke at UCSB's Campbell Hall tonight under the title "Muslims in America: A Secret History." Born in Morocco and educated in England and the US, Lalami has authored a collection of short stories, Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits, the novel Secret Son, and the historical novel The Moor's Account, in addition to numerous short, non-fiction pieces.
Lalami began by making two key points. First, Muslims constitute about 1% of Americans, yet, judging by the number of media stories about this tiny minority, most people would guess the fraction to be much higher. The same misconception is seen in many European countries, where, as in America, Muslims are viewed as an undifferentiated mass, rather than as a collection of individuals. Second, Muslims are often viewed as new immigrants, whereas their history in America goes back to the 1700s and even earlier. About 20% of African slaves brought to America were Muslims who were forcibly converted.
The "secret history" in the title refers to a history erased owing to the fact that Muslims were, for the most part, powerless and uneducated, so they did not leave much of a trace in history. For example, very few people know that a Spanish contingent landing in Florida in the 1500s included a black Moraccan, who, somewhat surprisingly outsurvived, many other members of the group, even though he did not enjoy the same privileges or even food ration. Despite the long history, the first mosque in America was not built until 1902 (in North Carolina).

2017/04/26 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cover image of Time magazine for its issue featuring 'The 100 Most-Infulential People' (1) The Time-100 issue is out: Normally, I would offer several posts about the annual list, but, with a few exceptions noted below, I am not very excited about this year's selections. There are the predictable Pope Francis, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, Theresa May, Kim Jung Un, and several famous entertainers, atheletes, and business titans, alongside questionable choices such as Reince Priebus, Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump, Major General Qasem Soleimani of Iran's Quds Force, James Comey, Julian Asange, Stephen Bannon, Rebekah Mercer, and RuPaul. In many cases, who wrote the testimonial is more telling than the selected person. Examples include Paul Ryan writing about Trump, Mikail Gorbachev about Putin, and John McCain about Comey. I was delighted to see the following five choices (Elizabeth Warren is also a great choice, but I am excluding her and a number of others whose appeal isn't universal).
- The four organizers of the Women's March on Washington
- Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor
- Civil rights leader and Congressman John Lewis
- Journalist and women's rights advocate Gretchen Carlson
- Actress extraordinaire and Oscar-winner Emma Stone
(2) US Senators, all 100 of them, to go to the White House for North Korea briefing: Perhaps there is a fear that the Senate Chamber might be bugged, or Trump wants to show the Senators who the boss is.
(3) Horrendous day: The next time you think you had a bad day, remember this video.
(4) Quote of the day: "So, uh, what's been going on while I've been gone?" ~ Former US President Barack Obama, beginning a panel discussion at University of Chicago
(5) Made-up news headline of the day: "Obama's barrage of complete sentences seen as a brutal attack on Trump." ~ The Borowitz Report
(6) Trump's AP interview transcripts: Full of blatant examples of unintelligible, mangled sentences.
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Judge blocks Trump's effort to withhold money from sanctuary cities (NYT)
- Trump wants review of national monuments for rescinding/resizing (Reuters)
- Michael Flynn's troubles mount; jail time is likely (Sacramento Bee)
- Thai man hangs his daughter on Facebook Live before killing himself (WP)
- Turkish air strikes target Kurdish allies of US in Iraq and Syria (NYT)
- Lumber tariff complicates NAFTA negotiations with Canada (NYT)
(8) What goes around comes around: It seems that the Taliban, created and supported by the US to fight Afghanistan's Soviet occupiers, are now allegedly being supplied with arms by Russia to fight the US!
(9) USAFacts.org: Retired Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has started a free on-line service that contains a fully searchable database of government revenues, expenditures, and other data, at the federal, state, and local levels.

2017/04/25 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of Iran's Damavand Peak at night (1) Iran's Damavand Peak (a dormant volcano) under starry skies. [Photographer unknown]
(2) The 9 types of intelligence. [Image]
(3) A cleric's open attack on Khamenei: I found this cleric's fiery speech, calling Khamenei an absolute dictator and questioning the legitimacy of IRI's most important founding principle, refreshing. He shames the Supreme Leader for sanctioning crimes against humanity and pulling the strings of all three branches of government, including the judiciary, whose indictments read like opinion pieces in conservative newspapers rather than legal documents.
(4) Jobs and careers to give way to skill-sets for addressing challenges and problems: As boundaries between traditional academic disciplines disappear and multidisciplinary areas such as bioengineering gain prominence, future workers will combine knowledge and skills from several domains, on an as-needed basis, to tackle long-term projects.
(5) Crowd estimate at Santa Barbara's Science March: The March's FB page reports that according to an SBPD report, we had 5000 marchers and that the local TV station KEYT had under-reported the crowd size. Here is what I wrote as a comment on the page. "KEYT at first said 'hundreds,' but later modified it to 'more than 1000,' both technically correct, but not accurate. My own 'scientific' estimate was 4000+. Here is how I did it. The march was at least 1/4 mile long; that's about 400 m. And it was 10 m wide on average. That's 4000 square meters of people. At a conservative estimated average of one person per square meter, we have 4000+ people. QED. :)"
(6) Another Hollywood liberal points out that the emperor has no clothes: "100 days: no wall, no Muslim ban, no health care, no tax reform, no infrastructure, one stolen Supreme Court seat, one stolen election. 1000 lies." ~ Rob Reiner tweet
(7) The US State Department is advertising for Trump businesses: Its London Embassy Web site touts the historical significance of the Mar-a-Lago resort.
(8) Iranian-American State Department official demoted and reassigned: Sahar Nowrouzzadeh had been working since July 2016 on the Secretary of State's policy team as an advisor and strategist in matters pertaining to Iran and other Persian Gulf nations. She was removed from office and reassigned after her loyalty to President Donald Trump was questioned by right-wing media outlets.
(9) Final thought for the day: Many thanks to Facebook friends, and readers of my Blog & Books Web page, who have encouraged me, publicly or privately, to continue with the types of material that I have been posting. Due to memory recall problems, for several years now, I have been taking notes and archiving nearly everything that I read or hear. Sharing some of these notes is my way of spreading the joys of learning. Blog posts also provide an archive in a form that is readily accessible to me on the go.

2017/04/24 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Image: Persian calligraphic art (1) This beautifully rendered Persian verse means "love turns thorns into flowers." The artist is Javad Yousefi (seen on the lower left).
(2) Two genocide remembrance days in one: Today, Israelis observed Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day). The US and many other countries memorialize the Holocaust on the UN-designated January 27, but the Israeli date for the event is the 27th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan (April 24 in 2017; the Hebrew calendar is lunar, so the date fluctuates in our calendar). This year's Holocaust observance also coincides with the 102nd anniversary of the Armenian genocide of 1915 by the Ottoman Turks.
(3) Historical footage from the 1930s: Hungarian Jews dance the Hora and sing in Hebrew, oblivious to what awaits them in the not-so-distant future.
(4) Diversionary tactics: Trump resumes tweeting about Clinton and absurd phone-tapping claims to deflect attention from the tightening noose around his team's ties to Russia.
(5) Helping to outlaw gerrymandering with big data: University of Illinois researcher Wendy Tam Cho has developed an algorithm that can determine whether state legislative districts have been unfairly drawn. The application, when run on the university's Blue Waters supercomputer, produces 1 billion possible district maps using only the criteria required by state law and traditional districting principles. Because no political demographics are used to create the maps, they are inherently nonpartisan. The vast volume of produced maps would provide the court with a statistically relevant dataset from which to infer partisan intent. If a billion different maps are very different from the map being evaluated, then there is some evidence that partisanship was part of the motivation behind the alleged partisan gerrymandering. [Source: ACM Tech News]
(6) "UCSB Reads 2017" book lecture: Author Luis Alberto Urrea, whose 2010 book, Into the Beautiful North, was chosen as a common book to be read and discussed by the UCSB and SBCC communities, spoke at 8:00 o'clock in Campbell Hall tonight.
Urrea grew up in a Tijuana dump with a variety of sheds and lean-tos as accommodations. As he spoke tonight, he confided that he still isn't over how he has gone from destitute to his current acclaim, speaking to audiences in large auditoriums, becoming a successful author, and selling the TV rights of Into the Beautiful North to TNT, which plans to turn it into a series next year. He sometimes imagines how his father (a macho man, who was horrified that he wrote poetry and, as a boy scout, ran around in shorts) would feel and react if he were watching him deliver such lectures.
Urrea was the first in his family to go to college, but struggled to earn a living after graduation. He once wrote to a former professor he had at UCSD, who had gone on to Harvard, asking him for a custodial job (his dad was a custodian). The professor wrote back that he could give him a job, but he needed to submit three published pieces. Urrea then confided in some acquaintances that at Harvard, even custodians must be published! He got the job, which jump-started his career as a writer/poet. Urrea believes that writing truly saved his life.
Urrea grew up in a colorful family. His dad once gave him a Spanish translation of Homer's works and told him he should study those works in the original Spanish language. He had an assortment of weird cousins and an eccentric aunt, who gave rise to the characters in his book, a comedic fictional adventure. The protagonist is Nayeli, a girl whose father went to work in the US when she was young. She sets out to find her father and six other men from her now nearly man-less village to bring them back to protect the village from bandits, a la "The Magnificent Seven" of movie fame. Urrea knew a young girl by this name and promised her to base the heroine of his book on her, at a time when the girl suffered a trauma.
Urrea is working on his next book, The House of Broken Angels, and has another project also in the works, besides his collaboration with TNT on the upcoming series. Urrea made sure in his negotiations that the real Nayeli would get a share of the TNT series' revenue.
Urrea's lecture was a mixture of funny and touching stories. He is a gifted story-teller who can hold the attention of a large audience for an extended period of time. If someone were outside Campbell Hall, the roar of laughter coming from inside would have convinced him/her that the program was a stand-up comedy routine!
(7) Final thought for the day: You can't break someone's spirit any more than you can break water. If our spirit seems broken, it's because we think it's broken, not because it actually is. [Thought (not an exact quote) from Jewel's autobiography, Never Broken: Songs are Only Half the Story, to which I am listening now]

Cover image of Megyn Kelly's memoir, 'Settle for More' 2017/04/23 (Sunday): Book review: Kelly, Megyn, Settle for More, unabridged audiobook on 9 CDs, read by the author, Harper Audio, 2016.
The forty-something Kelly is one of the world's most influential women, according to Time magazine. She has risen to the top of her field of journalism through reporting for Fox News and eventually getting her own show on the network. I have not watched Kelly's Fox News programs but have seen her interviewed on various talk shows and during her moderating and reporting of the 2016 US presidential debates. Like many Fox News personalities, Kelly is viewed with a mix of admiration and disdain.
Kelly grew up in a tough-love family, with parents who detested the trophies-for-everyone mentality. She lost her relatively young father when she was still in high school. Kelly holds her mother in high regard, but is pretty much a self-made woman. She graduated from law school in her hometown of Albany, NY, but later abandoned a lucrative legal career (in which she was on the verge of becoming a partner, and thus enjoying even greater financial rewards) to pursue her interest in the news business, which initially entailed a huge pay cut.
Kelly names Brit Hume, Bill O'Reilly, and Roger Ailes as mentors, who helped her rise through the ranks, after she was hired by Fox News. Kelly's fame skyrocketed when she was chosen as a moderator for the first Republican presidential debate in 2016. Many view Kelly as cold and calculating, and this book reinforces that image. I cite this characterization hesitantly, because she has also been a victim of the misogynistic culture at Fox News.
She got dragged into a confrontation with Donald Trump, before, during, and after the presidential debates. Trump apparently thought that Kelly owed him, because he was a key reason for her fame. What doesn't pass the smell test is that during a period of time, Trump kept sending Kelly gifts in an attempt to woo her. The fact that these gifts and some of Kelly's other dealings with Trump are being disclosed in this book for the first time, is troubling, given that she continued to report on Trump after receiving the said gifts. She claims that she was not swayed by the gifts, but what else can she say?
On her being hired by Roger Ailes, Kelly claims that Ailes was looking for an open-minded reporter, not necessarily a Republican one. This statement is at odds with what Ailes is known for and Kelly's own experiences with him (expectation of sexual favors and all). She wants us to believe that Ailes relented when she shunned his advances, in part because her legal training taught her how to handle powerful men, but the record of serial predatory conduct on Ailes' part betrays these claims. She is similarly rather kind to Bill O'Reilly, who, like Ailes, was recently dismissed by Fox News for sexual harassment allegations.
I listened to this book in parallel with the memoir of singer/songwriter Jewel, Never Broken: Songs are Only Half the Story. The contrast couldn't be greater. The warmth, modesty, and openness of Jewel leaves you with respect for a deeply damaged individual who takes responsibility for her shortcomings and vulnerabilities. Kelly, on the other hand, comes across as someone who believes she can do no wrong; despite her lecturing tone, Kelly does own up to some insecurities, but ultimately blames others for many of her problems.
It is difficult not to feel empathy for her when she describes her feud (to put it mildly) with Donald Trump, who was bent on destroying Kelly and her career. Yet, after Trump called her a bimbo on multiple occasions and hurled many other insults at her, she made amends with him and went to his office to invite him for an appearance on her show, "The Kelly File." If this isn't opportunism and exploiting the feud for money and power, then I don't know what is. Similarly, even after relating Fox News chief Roger Ailes' inappropriate behavior and of her coming forward to accuse him of sexual harassment, she is complimentary about some other aspects of her relationship with him.
Apparently, Kelly's first debate question about Trump's history of demeaning remarks about women had been leaked to him (Kelly doesn't say how or by whom), and Trump, in his typical rage, had called Fox News brass to fume the day before the debate. On the day of the debate, a self-proclaimed admirer of Kelly tried to hand her, and later sent her, a cup of Starbucks coffee (to help her on a very busy day), which she drank and immediately felt sick. She does not say directly that the person had tried to poison her, but that's an inevitable conclusion on the part of the reader. Kelly received death threats and was stalked by deranged Trump followers, which forced her to live with security personnel for a while.
Kelly goes out of her way to appear fair and unbiased, but her comments on and off the air betray her leanings and agenda. She has opined on air that both Santa and Jesus were white men, and kids deserve to know these facts. She has also opined about systematic discrimination in the US being illusory and likening America to a "cupcake nation."
I recommend the perusal of this book, if only because Kelly's stature in the news business warrants a study of her life and psyche. Her commanding voice makes her reading of the audiobook compelling. In fact, one piece of advice she gives to newswomen with soft, feminine voices is to undergo voice training, if they want to get ahead in the business.
I have given Settle for More 3 stars on GoodReads. Of the book's 1848 Amazon reviews, more than 3/4 come with 4-star (15%) or 5-star (61%) ratings. But there is a sizable minority of reviewers (1 in 6 or 16%) who rate the book 1 or 2 stars. The average Amazon rating is a respectable 4.3 stars. The average rating on GoodReads is 3.9, so Kelly's best-selling memoir has struck a chord among its readers.
[My 3-star review of Settle for More on GoodReads]

2017/04/22 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Getting ready for the March for Science, wearing my special T-shirt (1) Today's March for Science in Santa Barbara: Thousands of supporters of science and evidence-based policy-making gathered in De la Guerra Plaza and later marched on State Street, first moving east to the waterfront and then marching north towards Alameda Park, where Earth Day Festival was held. The protesters marched mostly in silence, holding signs about the importance of science, STEM education, and respect for truth and evidence. In these photos from the march, I have tried to capture the front, middle, and back of the crowd, some of the signs, and a number of SB landmarks, as the marchers passed by them. State Senator Hanna Beth Jackson's fiery speech was the first in a series of short talks at the rally preceding the march.
(2) Bill Mahr: Let's put Earth first; Let's make Earth great again!
(3) Today we are celebrating the Earth: But let's not forget the amazing universe in which our Earth lives. Watch this Hubble Space Telescope compilation on a big screen, if you can.
(4) For science aficionados: The Science News Aggregator site Scikon, established in 2012, lists top-10 abbreviated headlines from important publications/sites. They include Science Daily, "BBC News Science," "ABC Science," Scientific American, New Scientist, Nature, and "Science News." Scikon also includes "Top Stories" and "Most Popular News" sections.
(5) Google's AI now gives answers, not just search results: The world's most popular search engine has evolved from a mere string matcher to a powerful deduction machine that uses deep neural networks to extract information from wherever it can find it, including Web sites, databases, and even YouTube videos.
(6) The first major attempt to circumvent economic sanctions on Russia: Exxon applies for a waiver of Russia sanctions to allow it to do oil drilling in that country.
(7) Recognizing speech from EEG signals: Toyohashi University of Technology researchers in Japan have developed technology that can recognize the digits 0-9 with 90% accuracy using electroencephalogram (EEG) readings while a human subject recites the numbers. The technology can also recognize 18 types of Japanese monosyllables from EEG signals with 60% accuracy. The goal is to develop a brain-computer interface that recognizes unvoiced speech, or speech imagery. The technology could enable people who have lost their vocal ability to speak once again. [Source: ACM Tech News]
(8) A personal history in Hebrew: This book was sent to me by a friend from Israel, who tells me that it contains the autobiography of someone who immigrated from Iran's Kurdistan to Jerusalem. His story overlaps with those of my father's and mother's families, who lived in the small town of Saghez at the same time. My father's family eventually moved to Tehran, while most of my mother's relatives immigrated to Israel. I don't read Hebrew, but I am anxious to find some way (maybe OCR with auto-translate?) to read sections of this book to learn more about my family's history in Kurdistan. I typed the text on the book's front cover via an on-line Hebrew keyboard and got a partial translation.
| ??? | ??? | Childhood, Growing up, Mission, Backwoods, Settlement | Personal Story | Benyamin Cohen
(9) Final thought for the day: "Climate change will not go away by removing its mention from a Web site." ~ My wording, based on sentiments expressed during today's March for Science in Santa Barbara

2017/04/21 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
(1) Partisan science policy: With deep cuts for science agencies in Trump's proposed budget, some wonder why NASA has escaped relatively unscathed, its budget being cut by less than 1%. One key reason is that NASA enjoys broad support among Republicans in the US Congress. This, in turn, is because "a lot of the NASA facilities are in Republican states and districts," according to Chris Edwards, Cato Institute's Director of Tax Policy Studies.
(2) Happy to be marching for science with fellow Santa Barbarans tomorrow, starting at 11:00 in De la Guerra Plaza: Already, 2000 people have indicated that they are going and 3000+ have shown interest on the event's Facebook page.
(3) California drought, then and now, in pictures: Good to see our beautiful state returning to its old self.
(4) Is Trump grooming his son-in-law to follow him as President? Or perhaps he is dreaming about the first husband-and-wife team on the ticket as candidates for President and Vice President.
(5) Early human society in New Mexico was run by maternal elite: Chacoan People of 1000 years ago lived in Great Houses with hundreds of rooms, dug from stone. Genetic analysis of Chacoan bodies has revealed that they were run by women, whose elite status was passed down through the maternal line from 800 to 1130 CE.
(6) It's a scorching 90 degrees here in Santa Barbara: This new small backpack of mine, which arrived yesterday and has two mesh pockets for water bottles, came in handy today, as I went for my 3-mile afternoon walk. I just returned home, soaking wet from the heat!
(7) More take-aways from a mindfulness workshop: Yesterday, during the lunch hour, I attended the fourth and final session of a mindfulness workshop offered to faculty and staff by UCSB's Center for Mindfulness and Human Potential, a research center established with the aim of putting mindfulness programs on an evidence-based (scientific) path. Mindfulness allows you to focus on the present and to let go of the need for constantly analyzing the past and fretting about the future and to quit the habit of classifying everything into good or bad and right or wrong. If you catch yourself over-analyzing a situation, try to return to the present and your natural state of mind. One of today's exercises was to describe ourselves with verbs (the normal tendency is to use nouns, such as father, teacher, and so on). We were instructed to come up with one verb or perhaps two. My choice was 'wonder,' and I had to explain the reason for my choice to a partner sitting next to me. I considered other candidate verbs (learn, teach, support, guide, doubt), before choosing wonder. When you describe yourself as a verb, you move from a fixed mindset to motion and flow. Another exercise was to think about the past, the future, and their relationships to the present. We learned that the past is nothing but memories and thoughts of your experiences, both arising in the present. Similarly, the future is simply anticipations that live in the present. So, the present, which starts now and ends now (that is, it has no dimension) actually is expansive and holds everything. After the end of the class, I thanked the instructor and asked if one can say that the present is actually nothing but a vehicle for thinking about the past and anticipating the future. He answered that there is nothing wrong with thinking about the present in this way, provided it does not cause problems and anxieties. If it does, then one should use the mindfulness method to return to one's natural state of mind.
(8) A final thought: Early in life, one strives to become an adult. Late in life, one aspires to be like a child.

2017/04/20 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of Walter Guido Vincenti (1) Walter Guido Vincenti, engineer extraordinaire: Today marks the centennial of the birth of a highly influential, yet most unassuming engineer. Vincenti was an innovative aeronautical engineer and also a deep thinker, whose 1990 book, What Engineers Know and How They Know It: Analytical Studies from Aeronautical History, is a significant contribution to both engineering and history. Vincenti's book advances the argument that engineering is a distinct intellectual endeavor and not merely an applied version of science. The book's examples are drawn from aeronautics, but the lessons and conclusions apply much more broadly. This NASA Oral History Interview was conducted on July 15, 2014, at Vincenti's Palo Alto home.
(2) Fox fires Bill O'Reilly and strips his name from the show he hosted: This is tantamount to admission of guilt over the accusations that Fox and O'Reilly paid a total of $13 million to women who alleged sexual harassment. O'Reilly's contract had just been renewed, so he will likely walk out with millions of dollars.
(3) Keith Urban's wonderful rendition of "To Love Somebody" at the recent Grammy Salute to the Music of the Bee Gees.
(4) The puzzle of Ahmadinejad: The former Iranian president has tossed his hat into the ring of presidential election, coming up on May 19, despite direct orders from Supreme Leader Khamenei that he should stay out. Why is he doing this, and why is the regime tolerating his disobedience, whereas it imprisons many Iranians for the slightest criticism of the top mullah? A prevailing theory is that during his 8-year presidential term, which gave him access to secret intelligence files of the Islamic Republic as well as documents left over from Shah's secret police, he gained access to information that, if released, can bring down many of those currently in power.
(5) UCSB has been selected as the host of 2018 and 2020 College Cups: Lots of NCAA soccer will be coming our way in Santa Barbara! College Cup entails matches between the top four soccer teams to determine the national champion (sort of like NCCA basketball's Final Four). I just bought a soccer season ticket for 2017 and look forward to the August season start.
(6) Watch Melania nudge Donald subtly to place his hand on his heart during the playing of the US National Anthem. He was too busy admiring himself to remember.
(7) My comment on a friends Facebook post, stating "Not once in 8 years of the Obama administration, did I go to bed wondering if WW III would start tomorrow": But it will be the greatest World War, an unprecedented World War, with the most beautiful weapons and largest casualties. It will be led from the command center at Mar-a-Lago, and the commanders will be served the most amazing dishes and chocolate desserts. The first two WWs will look puny by comparison!
(8) The ungrateful refugee: This heartfelt essay by Dina Nayeri, published in The Guardian, touches on many important points on how refugees are treated in the West and how they cope as they try to integrate into a new society. Nayeri's mother was imprisoned and threatened with execution in Iran, after she converted to Christianity. Nayeri went through the refugee/immigrant experience, first in the US and then in France, after she got married. And here is Kayhan London's Persian translation of Dina Nayeri's essay.
(9) Final thought for the day: Every time you pick up a book to read, a tree smiles in afterlife.

2017/04/19 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) Mini-concerts at UCSB's Music Bowl: The World Music Series noon performances on Wednesdays, co-sponsored by our Music Department and Multicultural Center, continue this quarter, but because I teach 12-2 on Mondays and Wednesdays, I am unable to attend. Looking forward to resuming participation next fall.
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- SCE and GE launch world's first hybrid battery, gas turbine systems (AP)
- Boeing to lay off 100s of engineers due to slow aircraft sales (USA Today)
- March for Science to be held in 500+ cities on Saturday, April 22 (NYT)
- Killer in Facebook Live murder broadcast commits suicide (Inside Edition)
- Bannon's sidelining complicates Breitbart relationship with Trump (CNN)
- China OKs trademarks for Ivanka's company on day she met with Xi (CNN)
(3) Bannon's next move anxiously anticipated: There is no question that he is out as a trusted adviser to Trump. What remains a mystery is whether he will stick around, clinging to his limited power, or will depart to become an adversary to 45.
(4) Here's a question for you: When Amazon tells you that only one (or 2 or 3) of an item remains in stock, should we believe it, or is it just a sales gimmick?
(5) Jet Blue Airbus lands safely at LAX after nose-gear failure: This 4-minute video is from 5 years ago, but I found it quite interesting.
(6) This young woman is 19: She is allowed to vote but not to choose her clothes. She is defying two of the backward, misogynistic rules of the Islamic Republic of Iran by riding a bike without a headscarf (and doing so in front of a soccer stadium into which she is not allowed).
(7) Bill Nye joins the March for Science as an honorary co-chair: In this live video, he talks about why the March is important and urges everyone to show up to send a message to lawmakers that our life on Earth wouldn't be possible without science. In his words, you can't take parts off an aircraft and still expect it to fly.
(8) Quote of the day: "The hardest thing to understand in the world is the income tax." ~ Albert Einstein [This isn't a fake quote, as I first thought: It's really from Einstein; I have checked it against several sources!]
(9) CSUN Professor Ponders What It Means to be Muslim in America: This is the heading of an April 17, 2017, news release by California State University Northridge, where Dr. Nayereh Tohidi is Gender and Women's Studies Professor and Director of the Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies Program. I found it an informative read.

2017/04/18 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Santa Barbar Earth Day 2017 logo (1) Santa Barbara Earth Day 2017: Celebrating Earth Day has its origins in the Santa Barbara area, where the massive 1969 oil spill inspired activists to strive for protecting our planet from similar calamities. Twenty million Americans took to the streets and gathered in auditoriums nationwide on April 22, 1970, to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment. The initiative led to bipartisan action in Congress, producing the Environmental Protection Agency as well as the passage of Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts.
(2) Precision marching: The only accomplishment of totalitarianism.
(3) If 100 people lived on earth: Visualizing various subpopulations for better understanding of our world.
(4) Woman runs in Boston Marathon again after 50 years: In 1967, Katherine Switzer registered as "K. V. Switzer" to hide her gender and was almost kicked out of the race a few miles after she began, when an official learned about her trick to enter the all-male race. Today, she ran the race at age 70, surrounded by a large group of supportive women.
(5) This is huuuuuuge: Bill Nye (The Science Guy) to take over the Facebook page for Science March tomorrow.
(6) Half-dozen brief technology news headlines of the day:
- Apple awarded California permit for testing driverless cars (Bloomberg)
- University of Idaho students hospitalized after rocket-fuel explosion (WP)
- SpaceX begins second round of Hyperloop Pod Competition (Fortune)
- Lucid Motors emerges as a serious competitor to Tesla (USA Today)
- SoE Perry orders study of electric grid to boost coal, nuclear (Bloomberg)
- NASA captures images of mysterious crack in a Greenland glacier (IBT)
(7) Foggy/misty morning at UC Santa Barbara, captured in 2 panoramic photos of the campus lagoon today.
(8) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Killer of Google exec jogger in MA identified after 8 months (ABC News)
- South Korea's ousted president indicted and could get life in prison (PBS)
- Erdogan gains extended powers by a slim referendum victory (NY Times)
- Trump indicates that he will not release his 2016 tax return either (CNN)
- Trump calls for probe into last weekend's tax-day protesters (NBC)
- Man who posted video of killing an old man on Facebook sought (CNN)
(9) Facebook and other social media at a crossroad: Posting of gruesome videos of rape and murder, live as they happen or after the fact, has become a serious problem that current countermeasures don't adequately address. Facebook users have no taste for being exposed to gruesome material with no warning whatsoever and worry that their children and other loved ones can be traumatized by such videos, which remain available hours after they have been posted. Facebook says that it is addressing the problem diligently, but this may be just a statement for public consumption, given FB's fear of losing millions of users over the incidents.

Cover image for 'Taxation: A Very Short Introduction'

2017/04/17 (Monday): Book review: Smith, Stephen, Taxation: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, 2015.
This is another fine volume in Oxford's "A Very Short Introduction Series," a collection established more than two decades ago and now containing hundreds of volumes which make diverse topics accessible to non-specialists. At 131 pp., Taxation is shorter than most other volumes in the series, yet it packs a lot of information on the design and implementation of tax policies.
In very rough terms, taxes are about 1/4 of income in the US, 2/5 in the EU, and 1/3 in the UK. As late as the 19th century, taxes constituted less than 10% of the national income (7% in the US). Progressive taxes are generally preferred to regressive ones. However, even when the income tax is progressive, the overall tax burden can be regressive because of the many indirect taxes.
Between 1965 and 2011, income tax, as a fraction of total taxes collected, has remained fairly constant at about 1/4, whereas social-security and sales taxes have increased, while excise taxes have decreased, by more than 50% in each case. In absolute terms, taxes collected nearly quadrupled in constant dollars between 1965 to 2011. Share of tariffs in tax revenues has seen steady decline in most countries, as they participate in freer trade.
Chart showing the tax burden as a fraction of GDP in various countries This chart, from the book's p. 9, depicts the level of taxation as a percentage of GDP in 1965 (white bars) and 2012 (black bars). Taxation costs are of two types. One is the direct costs of tax collection infrastructure ($40 per head in the US; BP75 per head in the UK). Another is compliance costs for individuals and organizations. Just for income tax, each US citizen spends $250 on compliance (about BP60 in the UK).
Efficiency in tax collection is often at odds with the fairness of the tax burden. Income tax is easier to manage due to the relatively small number of origination points where withholding can take place and monitored. Consumption taxes are more difficult to manage due to the large number of transactions that are distributed throughout the economy. Consumption tax comes in the form of value-added tax (VAT) or sales tax. VAT can be 20% or more, whereas sales tax is generally less than 10%.
Chart showing hoew the tax burden is divided between producers and consumers The next diagram, from p. 34 of the book, helps us understand how the burden of a new tax is shared between producers and consumers, using the economic notions of supply and demand. A new tax will raise the prices, leading to a new equilibrium point in the market. The darkly shaded area is the buyers burden and the lightly shaded area is the sellers share.
Raising income taxes has a complex effect on the supply side of the labor market. Some may choose to work less (or not at all), because the (added) income isn't worth it. Others may choose to work more to maintain the same level of after-tax income. Extensive research has shown that raising taxes tends to reduce the labor supply, with the effect being more pronounced for young people with children.
One way of assessing whether a new tax is advisable is to determine whose standard of living will fall when the tax is imposed; this isn't always easy to do. Because of complex interactions in the market, the burden of corporate profit taxes does not fall solely on the share-holders; new research shows that employees end up paying a big share.
Taxes, once imposed, tend to survive, even if the original needs for them disappear. This is because tax reform entail trade-offs and thus have political costs. No one likes taxes, but they are considered necessary evils. Try to imagine a situation where mandatory taxes were abolished and, instead, citizens made donations to their government. Before the establishment of money, taxes consisted of in-kind (crops) and labor (service in the army) contributions. There are tax records dating back to 3300 BCE in the cuneiform clay tablets from Mesopotamia (today's Iraq).
Cheating on taxes is a sensitive topic. Most people would not admit that they do cheat. Cheating is prevalent in many Asian countries, and much less so in Europe. A 2001 US study found the level of evasion for individuals to be around 9% and for corporations around 17% of the total revenue due.
There is an ongoing discussion about optimal taxation: a scheme that would raise the needed revenues but minimizes the excess burden on tax-payers. This is mostly a theoretical discussion, as the mechanisms to implement optimal taxation would be too complex and thus expensive. It is also unclear what should be taxed: wealth, income, or a combination thereof. There have been proposals for taxing earnings potential, rather than actual earnings, the latter being viewed as providing a disincentive for work by some. On the other hand, taxing earning potential might force a person to earn at a level equal or exceeding the taxed level, preventing people from living simpler lives.
Taxation is ultimately a political issue. The optimal tax scheme derived from equations and theorems may be unrealizable, given short-term political goals. Flat tax is more common in Eastern Europe, with the rate being around 25%. Russia has a flat tax rate of 13%. Politically, a flat tax rate is difficult to sell, because most swing voters are in the middle of income scale, whereas flat tax provides the highest benefits to the poor and to the very rich.
I highly recommend this valuable book to everyone who wants to learn about tax policies and their effects on businesses and individuals. I have summarized some of the key concepts presented in the book, but the book contains many more ideas and much more detail about what appears in this review.

2017/04/16 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Smiley pills! Street sign for an alley in Tehran named 'Behrooz' The Cat in the Hat has a message for Mr. Trump! Pork ribs on sale for Passover! (1) After starting today with a dose of happiness, I came across the street sign for a Tehran alley named after me (the "Behrooz" alley), a Dr. Suess coffee mug bearing a message for 45 from the Cat in the Hat, and a store sign advertising pork spare ribs on sale, apparently as a Passover special!
(2) Wishing everyone a happy Easter Sunday!
(3) Stealing your PIN and other info from your phone's various sensors: "Researchers at Newcastle University in the UK have demonstrated that malicious websites and installed applications can spy on people by exploiting movement data from smartphone sensors. The researchers say the movement data can be used to compromise people's four-digit PINs with 70-percent accuracy on the first guess. 'Because mobile apps and websites don't need to ask permission to access most of them, malicious programs can covertly listen in on your sensor data and use it to discover a wide range of sensitive information about you,' says Newcastle's Maryam Mehrnezhad. The researchers found 25 distinct sensors that are standard elements on most smart devices, providing information about devices and users. 'Because there is no uniform way of managing sensors across the industry, they pose a real threat to our personal security,' Mehrnezhad notes." [From: ACM Tech News]
(4) The three MOABs, according to Mark Cuban: "Mother of all bafoons dropped mother of all bombs to create DISTRACTION from mother of all betrayals. Don't get distracted."
(5) Part of Malala Yousafzai's speech at the Canadian parliament on the occasion of being granted honorary Canadian citizenship. Did you know that Justin Trudeau does yoga and has tattoos?
(6) Rare image of England, as it leaves the European Union. [Photo]
(7) Tehran municipality's misogynistic posters: Displayed on the occasion of the Iranian version of Fathers'/Men's Day, they all urge women to attend to their husbands' needs. This one counsels that men should be left alone occasionally, to feel free from marriage bonds and to engage in recreation and other fun activities, because they get tired from the daily grind!
(8) Very bad news from around the world: The top five countries in number of executions are China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Pakistan. The US shows some improvement by no longer being among the top 5. [Chart]
(9) Wholesale energy prices went negative in California for a short while: Solar energy represented 13% of California's power last year, but for three hours on March 11, 2017, some 40% of the net grid power came from solar farms. This abundance of energy caused wholesale market prices to dip and go below zero. Of course, consumers did not see any benefit, because retail pricing is based on averages, not transient conditions. But this highly unusual event will cause energy companies to pay more attention to renewable sources. The solar industry now employs more than a quarter of a million people. [Source: USA Today]

2017/04/15 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Vertical poles which cast no shadow when the sun is directly overhead (1) Lahaina Noon: The shadowless poles in this photo look unreal, as if they come from the screen of a cheap video game. Lahaina Noon is the name given by Hawaiians to the phenomenon of straight vertical poles casting no shadow when the sun is directly overhead. Hawaii is the only state in the US where this can happen.
(2) A wonderful couplet from Abu-Saeed Abolkheir. My English translation follows.
The dew of love turned dirt into essence | Generating much discord and excitement
The needle of love poked the soul's vein | Letting out a drop, later named the heart
(3) Tesla's affordable long-range electric vehicle to be unveiled in July: With prices starting at $35,000 and a 215-mile electric range, Tesla Model 3 will compete with Chevy Bolt. Tesla already has hundreds of thousands of pre-orders for the car and plans to dramatically ramp up production in 2018 to 500,000 annually.
(4) Carpinteria's Salt Marsh Reserve: Just off the 101 Freeway, some 10 miles south of Santa Barbara, sits a pristine coastal ecosystem in the middle of a city.
(5) Santa Barbara's March for Science (April 22, 2017; Earth Day) has announced its list of speakers for the pre-march rally at De la Guerra Plaza (11:00 AM).
(6) Science/Tech news story of the day: Smartphone fingerprint security feature is less secure than you think. Michigan State University researchers have published a paper in IEEE Trans. Information Forensics and Security, claiming that with a set of artificial 'masterprints,' they can trick phones into allowing them access 65% of the time. One reason is that the fingerprint sample taken by the phone is fairly small. A second reason is that a match is indicated if any one of internally stored images is matched. These findings are being disputed, because the tests were not conducted on real phones under real operating conditions. Apple, for example, claims that improper authorization occurs only once in 50,000 instances. Google has declined to comment.
(7) Bicycles for those who can't afford them: Teacher Katie Blomquist raised $80,000 and used it to buy every single student in South Carolina's Pepperhill Elementary a bicycle. [Source: Time magazine, April 17, 2017]
(8) UCSD researchers make themselves look like empty car seats: Their aim is to observe driver and pedestrian responses to driverless cars by wearing costumes resembling empty car seats.
(9) Final thought for the day: In Iran, there are many minority groups. Besides those based on religion and ethnicity, there is a minority of women with their original noses! [From multiple Internet sources]

Cover image of Oxford book 'The U.S. Congress: A Very Short Introduction' 2017/04/14 (Friday): Book review: Ritchie, Donald A., The U.S. Congress: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, 2nd ed., 2016.
After reading American Political Parties and Elections: A Very Short Introduction (see my review), I decided to peruse this book to expand my knowledge of the American political system in the wake of what happened in 2016. Like other books in Oxford's "A Very Short Introduction" series, this volume packs a lot of information in its 146 pocket-size pages, and it has an informal and highly accessible writing style. In the book's preface, the author indicates that even though he has spent his entire professional career on Capitol Hill, he has refrained from being defensive or apologetic, aiming instead to provide a description of how the US Congress works, how it has changed, and how it relates to the states, the voters, and other government branches.
Let me begin by listing the titles of the six chapters, that are followed by 6 pages of further readings and viewings (films).
Chapter 1. The Great Compromise    Chapter 2. Campaigns and Constituents    Chapter 3. In Committee
Chapter 4. On the Floor    Chapter 5. Checks and Balances    Chapter 6. The Capitol Complex
Although "compromise" has become a dirty word in our country's current political climate, the structure of the Congress itself arose from the "Great Compromise," being set halfway between proportional representation (the House) and state parity (the Senate). Though organized differently and having different internal procedures, the two parts of the Congress have equal power, in that "no bill can become law until both houses pass it with exactly the same wording, down to the last semicolon."
The size difference between the House of Representative and the Senate has led to different internal structures and rules for efficient operation. The House is much more hierarchical, having a speaker, for example, whereas the Senate structure is flatter, with Senators acting more or less independently. Both Congressmen and Senators strive to introduce (sponsor) important legislation to build up their reputations and cement their legacies, but as Harry Truman once said, a legislator's greatest accomplishment is often preventing bad laws from passing.
The rules of both houses are archaic and, at times, nonsensical. For example, it is possible to request the reading aloud of a bill of more than 100 pages as a delaying tactic against its passing. Some functions of the Congress are largely ceremonial. For example, in the important area of confirming cabinet nominees, some 95% of all candidates presented are approved. The approval rate is lower for Supreme Court nominees (2/3), largely because their term is indefinite and may span the terms of multiple Presidents.
In the Senate, opponents of a bill may hold the floor through filibuster (from the Dutch word meaning freebooter or pirate). However, the debate may be cut off and a vote forced if 60 Senators vote to do so (the number 60 was arrived at over time, after periods in which 75 or 67 votes were needed). For nearly 50 years, filibuster was a tool of Southern Senators who were intent on blocking Civil Rights legislation. Since parties rarely enjoy majorities greater than 60, the filibuster rule prevents passing of controversial legislation on straight party-lines.
One interesting observation is that a Representative's 2-year term allows no room for political maneuvering, whereas it is said that a Senator's 6-year term permits him/her to spend 2 years as a statesman, 2 years as a politician, and 2 years as a demagogue! An important power of Congress is its investigating authority, which is broad and not necessarily tied to specific legislation under consideration. Younger members of Congress have embraced new technologies and regularly use electronic newsletters, Web-based polling, and social-media communication. By the early 2000s, e-mail accounted for 80% of all correspondence.
As the people's house, the Capitol Building is open to visitors year-round. The typical American visits the Capitol twice in his/her lifetime, once as a kid (with family or on a school trip) and once as an adult, perhaps taking the kids to visit. The history of how the Capitol and its surrounding office buildings developed into their current sizes and complexities is an interesting one.

2017/04/13 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon: Phonetically defined (1) Cartoon of the day: Phonetically defined (by John Atkinson)
(2) Nine brief news headlines of the day:
- Malala Yusafzai granted honorary Canadian citizenship (CNN)
- Assad claims chemical attack in Syria 100 percent fabrication (AFP)
- Dragged United passenger's troubled past a case of mistaken identity
- Trump backtracks on 5 major campaign promises in 12-hour period
- First female Muslim US judge found dead in Hudson River (Reuters)
- Heartbroken Ivanka urged Donald Trump to bomb Syria (Newsweek)
- NASA discovers 'alien habitat' on Saturn's moon Enceladus (Yahoo)
- Trump says strained US-Russia relations may be at all-time low (AP)
- US targets ISIS in Afghanistan with largest-ever non-nuclear bomb
(3) A math puzzle: Take a 3-digit number x with its first and last digits different (say, 542). Reverse the number and subtract the smaller of the two from the larger one, calling the difference y (e.g., 542 – 245 = 297). If the difference is not a 3-digit number, precede it with zeros to make it a 3-digit number (e.g., 99 becomes 099). Add the reverse of y to y (e.g., 297 + 792 = 1089). Why is the final answer always 1089, regardless of the starting number? This puzzle can be the basis of a magic trick, where you direct someone to pick a number and go through the steps above, with you guessing the final result. Of course, you can do the trick only once!
(4) Former Soviet republics are turning into serious threats: They are the only places where a terrorist might hope to obtain nuclear material for dirty bombs. Terrorist organizations lack the sophistication to build an actual nuclear bomb, but including some radioactive material in a conventional bomb can cause a lot of direct damage from radiation and much economic damage from lost business and tourism revenues, as the wide area affected by the bomb is cleaned up. There are reasons to believe that ISIS already possesses about 40 kg of uranium compounds that were stored at a university in Mosul, when it fell to the Islamic State fighters. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 17, 2017]
(5) Immigration history displayed: I'm so glad that these immigrants and others like them came to the US through Ellis Island, making this country a better place for later arrivals like me, through their dedication and hard work. I resolve to do the same for those who come next!
(6) Michael Towbes, prominent Santa-Barbara-area businessman and philanthropist, dead at 87.
(7) Interesting take-aways from a mindfulness workshop I attended during lunch hour today: We can operate with a fixed mindset or a growth mindset. A fixed mindset makes us hide our limitations/shortcomings in personal or professional domains, becoming very private in those areas. With a growth mindset, believing that our capacity can be expanded, we tend to be more open/sharing, and handle criticism better. Mindfulness also makes us more aware of our emotions: fears, anxieties, dislikes. Interestingly, emotions rarely last more than 90 seconds, unless we expend time and effort to extend them. We often expand/prolong the life cycle of emotions, which may do us good or be harmful to us.
(8) The Spy Who Loved Me: New Republic article about how Russian intelligence played Trump and his team.

2017/04/12 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing United Airlines security personnel dragging Bashar Assad away (1) Cartoon of the day: A possible solution for Syria's Assad problem.
(2) Brutal reaction on social media to United Airlines:
- Old slogan: 'Come Fly with Me' | New: 'Comply with Me'
- United now offers both red-eye and black-eye flights
- United Airlines: We put the 'hospital' in 'hospitality'
- UA app v. 2.1.18 supports new drag and drop feature
(3) Quote of the day: "With President Forrest Trump, every day is like a rancid box of chocolates. You never know what kind of shit you're going to get next." ~ Author Stephen King
(4) A math puzzle: Consider forming a 10 x 10 x 10 cube from 1000 sugar cubes, each of size 1 x 1 x 1. Counting all six sides, including the bottom, how many of the 1000 sugar cubes will be visible from outside?
(5) On the sorry state of our infrastructure: Much has been written about the state of disrepair of our dams, bridges, and other major structures. However, the infrastructural problems faced by the US go even deeper and hit much closer to home. Walking to work through the community of Isla Vista today, I snapped these photos showing how electricity is supplied to homes in this community of mostly student residences. Overhead power lines, with ad hoc connections along the wire may be suitable for rural areas, where miles of wire are needed to reach a few businesses or residences. In a dense community such as Isla Vista, this approach is not just ugly, but outright dangerous, especially during foul weather or overload-caused fires in the pole-mounted transformers.
(6) The Hour of Land: This was the title of a talk by Terry Tempest Williams, based on her new book by the same title and with the subtitle "A Personal Topography of America's National Parks." The talk, delivered in UCSB's Campbell Hall, was the sixth and final installment of UCSB Arts and Lectures Program's series of events honoring the centennial of the establishment of our national parks. Williams has been honored for her passionate and lyrical writings and has received Sierra Club's John Muir Award.
With the exception of an introductory acknowledgment/gratitude segment that ran a little too long, the talk was enjoyable. Another drawback, shared by nearly all talks in the humanities, was the total absence of visual aids. One would think that a talk on the US national parks presents ample opportunities for showcasing their breathtaking natural beauty, as the speaker makes her various points. In one segment, Williams imagined organizing a gathering to which she could invite only 12 guests, and wondered which 12 national parks she would invite, citing her reasons for choosing each guest (an ideal place for the use of images).
The speaker got emotional and teared up in a couple of segments. One was during her recollection of a visit to a remote region of a national park, where she was overtaken by her experiences in the pristine nature. Another time was when she related the story of her mother telling her the location of her journals, a week before passing, asking Williams not to retrieve them until she was gone. The dozens of journals from her mother all turned out to be blank, making Williams wonder whether her mother had made a statement through her blank journals. In those days, women were expected to do two things: bear children and write journals. Perhaps by leaving the journals blank, she had defied the norms.
Williams maintained that Americans love their national parks, as the parks host 300 million visitors annually. They are now in great danger as a result of policies of the new US administration. But Williams is optimistic that the American people will not let these national treasures deteriorate or sink into oblivion, and, in the end, the administration will not dare destroy them against a strong national force. In answer to a question about what we can do to help save the parks, Williams said: "Just love them."

2017/04/11 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Yemen's Shibam, the oldest vertically constructed metropolis (1) Yemen's walled city of Shibam is thought to be the oldest metropolis in the world to use vertical construction.
(2) Car tries to beat train by going around crossing gates: It doesn't quite make it but, luckily, everyone survives.
(3) Actress Doris Day now knows her age: She thought she was 93, but thanks to AP, which found a copy of her birth certificate, she now knows for sure that she is 95. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 17, 2017]
(4) Bicyles for those who can't affor them: Teacher Katie Blomquist raised $80,000 and used it to buy every single student in South Carolina's Pepperhill Elementary a bicyle. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 17, 2017]
(5) China and US on collision course: Xi Jinping wants to make China great again. His exact words are "the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." This puts him on a collision course with Trump, if we are to believe Steve Bannon's words, who said in an interview, "We're going to war in the South China Sea in 5 to 10 years." According to Time magazine, issue of April 17, 2017, in the 16 cases over the past 5 centuries when a rising nation threatened to replace an established world power, war occurred 12 times. So, the probability of war with China is 75%, if history is any indication.
[Note added on 4/14: Trump seems to have changed his mind about the evil of China and Bannon no longer has much influence on him. So, perhaps, the threat of war with China isn't as great any more. But then again, another flip-flop can change the situation.]
(6) Half-dozen brief headlines of the day:
- New York becomes the first US state to approve free tuition at state colleges
- Trump considering executive order to reverse offshore oil drilling ban (WP)
- Putin: Fake/planted chemical attacks will be used to discredit Assad (Reuters)
- Sean Spicer takes flack for asserting that Hitler did not use chemical weapons
- North Korea appears to be looking for confrontation with the US (Yahoo News)
- British military restorers find Saddam's stashed gold in T-54 Iraqi tank (IBT)
(7) Trusted products: The "Made in Germany" label tops the list of trusted products. "Made in USA" is 8th; Denmark 15th; Greece 25th; Brazil 30th; Iran 50th. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 17, 2017]
(8) Canada jubilant over its tech future: Vancouver and Toronto are absorbing many foreign-born techies who reside there temporarily, until their US visas are issued, or just give up trying to get into the US and settle there permanently. Amazon alone has a staff of 700 in Vancouver. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 17, 2017]

2017/04/10 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Passover egg-flowers (1) A very happy Passover to all those who observe it!
(2) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Russian accused of hacking US election arrested in Spain (Daily Mail Online)
- Three dead, one critically injured in San Bernardino school shooting (Newsweek)
- Researchers identify core brain region that manufactures dreams (Newsweek)
- Colson Whitehead wins Pulitzer for The Underground Railroad (PBS)
- David Fahrenthold wins Pulitzer for reporting on Trump's philanthropy (PBS)
- Alabama governor Robert Bentley resigns, pleads guilty to misdemeanors (AP)
- North Korea issues warning over deployment of US warships to the region (AFP)
- Former Equinox employee guns down 2 coworkers in Florida gym (People)
(3) Today's fortune-cookie message: I might have been more excited about this fortune ("Good things are coming your way") if I had ever seen one that declared bad things are coming my way!
(4) No cats, dogs, or women allowed: Reporter Masih Alinejad interviews several Iranian officials about a sign at the entrance to a stadium that listed items banned inside. The list includes guns, knives, anything that can be thrown to hurt others, cats, dogs, ... and women! Even though she received assurances that the sign will be fixed, this is likely an attempt at saving face. The way of thinking that produced the sign in the first place is much harder to fix.
(5) Tonight's pink full moon, as seen from my courtyard at 11:08 PM. [Photo]
(6) How to learn any subject using physicist Richard Feynman's technique. [6-minute video]
(7) Apt T-shirt inscription, as we approach Earth Day and Science March on April 22, 2017: "The is no Planet B"
(8) Kansas City's World War I Museum was a focus of attention on April 6, as we marked the 100th anniversary of America's entry into "The Great War."
(9) Final thought for the day: "If in workplace after workplace you can't get along with your colleagues, something is wrong ... Go get the mirror. Hurry." ~ Psychiatrists Jody J. Foster and Michelle Joy, in their advice book, The Schmuck in My Office, about how to deal with problem colleagues

Photo of the speaker, Dr. Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak 2017/04/09 (Sunday): UCLA lecture on Iran (Today, 161 Dodd Hall, 4:00-6:00).
The speaker, Dr. Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak, a Professor of Persian Language, Literature, and Culture at University of Maryland, who is on a visiting appointment at UCLA, spoke under the title "Literature: Its Existence and Its Appearance." This was a book talk for the speaker's latest volume (in Persian) by the same title, which is an edited collection of his prior writings on Persian literature (ISBN 978-1595845382). Dr. Karimi-Hakkak has written/edited 23 books and published 100+ articles. One of his books, The Dawn of Modernism in Persian Poetry, is a highly-regarded textbook used in doctoral programs on Persian literature.
Dr. Karimi-Hakkak indicated that his retirement project will be a multi-volume work on the history of Persian poetry, which will be in Persian, because in Dr. Karimi-Hakkak's opinion, English works on the Persian literature tend to be much less influential, as they are read only by a small number of academics. The book will focus on the Islamic period. Much less information is available from the pre-Islamic period; besides, the speaker is unfamiliar with Middle Persian, the language of the time.
Iran's history is intertwined with poetry, to the extent that poetry is perhaps the most important art form in Iran, and it constitutes one of the main components of the Iranian identity. Poetry thrived in Iran after the Arab invasion for several reasons. First, it is an inexpensive art form that anyone can pursue; all that is needed is a piece of paper and a pencil. Second, it is perhaps the only art form that is sanctioned by Islam.
The central role of poetry in the Iranian culture persuaded nearly all kings to personally engage in the art form, the only recent exceptions being the two Pahlavi kings. Even after the Islamic Revolution, both Leaders (Khomeini and Khamenei) wrote poems. Khomeini's mystical poems lent credence to the school of thought that considers references by Hafiz to wine, beloved, and other potentially worldly desires as being metaphors for God and the pursuit of the scriptures. An interesting question to ponder is the prevalence of advice-giving ("andarz") in Persian literature and the role they play in the Iranian society.
The central role of poetry also brings it to the pages of elementary school textbooks. This love for, and central place of, poetry may be viewed as a plus, but it can also be viewed as diverting the students' attention from social studies and civic engagement. Even the least literate among Iranians can recite poems and parables/proverbs that are derived from poetry. It appears, however, that this is a superficial familiarity with poetry and that the versions recited are often incorrect or butchered (we see this on Facebook, where a large fraction of poetry postings are either improperly attributed or contain gross errors).
Persian poetry, and literature more generally, is not confined to Iran. There are centers of activity on Persian literature outside Iran, the most notable being Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and, nowadays, major world cities such as Los Angeles and London. Tajiks' contributions have become less accessible to us in view of their changing their script. At one point in the past, India was also a major center of Persian literature, but the Persian language slowly died there, given that it was a sort of royal language and not the language of the masses.
Dr. Karimi-Hakkak is of the opinion that there are two distinct kinds of mysticism ("erfan") in Persian poetry. One kind, represented by its founder Sana'ee and later by Attar and Mowlavi (Rumi), he termed "other-worldly" ("asemani"). The other kind, which he called "worldly" ("zamini" or "ejtama'ee") is represented by the works of Nezami and Sa'adi, who emphasized the centrality of love.
Poetry cannot be divorced from its social context or from traditions. Unfortunately, much of the social context and history of Persian poetry has been lost by the practice of organizing poets' collections of work ("divan") in alphabetical order of the poems' endings. In this way, we have lost the insights that could come from knowing the order of the poems' composition and the poet's evolutionary path. Reconstructing this history will take some work, which Dr. Karimi-Hakkak hopes to do in his history project.
During the Q&A period, several interesting observations were offered. Some of them are already weaved into the narrative above. One person asked whether one should bring down the classical poets from their pedestals and point to their imperfections (up to and including having sick minds and deviant behaviors). Dr. Karimi-Hakkak opined that worshiping anyone, even skillful and famous poets, is wrong and that these poets should be viewed as the imperfect human beings that they were. He cited as an example, Hafiz's nihilistic declaration that "The world and its affairs are nothing within nothing," which is at odds with modernity and sociopolitical engagement.
[See the Persian version of this summary, which follows the English text, on Facebook]

2017/04/08 (Saturday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cartoon, showing Putin talking with Bashar Assad while on the phone with Trump (1) Cartoon of the day: Putin to Bashar Assad: "It's Trump. He's gonna bomb one of your airfields. What time's convenient?"
(2) Shampoo ad on Iranian TV: The beautiful woman in this image expects the viewer to take her words about the positive effects of the advertised shampoo at face value, without even showing a single strand of hair, let alone the kind of shiny, flowing hair one sees on American shampoo commercials!
(3) Watch out for fake (self-anointed) data scientists! [Read: "Why So Many 'Fake' Data Scientists?"]
(4) Ventura Harbor Village is one of my favorite places to visit for a stroll and/or dining on great seafood!
(5) A scientific study of why you should always order the bigger pizza: My daughter posted this study published by NPR, which uses 74,476 price points from 3678 pizza joints to argue that bigger pizzas are always more cost-effective. In one example, the amount of pizza in a 20-inch pie (costing $20.77) is equated with two 14-inch pies ($29.59) and six-and-a-quarter 8-inch pies ($51.56) [See the article's interactive chart]. Here is a comment I made on her post.
When you post something like this for scientist friends, you have to be prepared for their peer review of the claims. Having just finished the peer review of a computer engineering journal paper, I might as well use the momentum gained to review this scientific study as well.
Comparing only the areas of pizzas is somewhat misleading. I think bigger pizzas tend to be thicker. Also, the toppings do not cover the entire pizza's surface, and the width of the toppings-less edges must be considered in the comparison, because it affects the amount of nutrition you get from the pizza (assuming pizza toppings have nutritional value).
Additionally, when you buy a pizza that is twice as large and take half of it home, the enjoyment you get from the pizza is not a factor of 2 greater but only a factor of 1 + r greater, where r < 1 is the enjoyment coefficient of cold or reheated pizza.

2017/04/07 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of a village with houses built of upturned boat hulls (1) Boat houses, but not in the way you are used to seeing: A seaside village in France has many houses that are built from upturned boats. The local fishermen of Equihen-Plage have lived under scavenged boat hulls for over a century. Today, their houses are used as unique holiday accommodations for curious tourists.
(2) Amazing street-drummer performance.
(3) A sample of mosque wall art designs.
(4) Three-sixty-degree view of Pink Mosque in Shiraz, Iran: Navigate by swiping.
(5) Trump's own words betray his motive for ordering air strikes on Syria: He wrote in an October 9, 2012, tweet, "Now that Obama's poll numbers are in tailspin—watch for him to launch a strike in Libya or Iran. He is desperate." Yesterday, he said that chemical bombing had a big effect on him. Since when is a president's personal feeling a legit cause for a military attack, and why is gassing 100 or so people less tolerable than hundreds of thousands killed by other means and millions turned into refugees?
(6) Woman engineer campaigns for Congress: Identifying herself as a "rocket scientist" and "data fiend," Tracy Van Houten of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory will be the first female engineer in Congress, if elected. She will campaign on fighting against climate change and advocating for data-driven approaches to infrastructure and public policy. [Source: The Christian Science Monitor]
(7) Discussion of The Underground Railroad with its author: Colson Whitehead appeared at a gathering at Santa Barbara's Public Library (Central Branch) last night to offer insights about his National-Book-Award-winning historical fiction book. This event was a complement to his formal lecture of Wednesday night as part of UCSB's Arts and Lectures Program. I have not yet read the book (I am on the waiting list for the e-book version at our local library), but could not pass up this opportunity to hear from the author first-hand about questions such as how he chose the topic for his book, his research methodology, how writing the heart-wrenching book affected him, and how the book has impacted the difficult topic of race relations in the US. Several audience members related that reading the book, which includes graphic descriptions of violence against the slaves, wasn't easy for them. Whitehead quipped that his book isn't "the Gone with the Wind version of slavery." Armed with the insights I gained tonight, I look forward to reading the book in the near future.
(8) Political discussions on Facebook lead nowhere: Duh, you might say, based on your experiences, but I keep relearning this lesson! A couple of days ago, I made the ill-advised decision to offer a few comments on the post of a dear friend (the subject of the political post is immaterial). My first comment was called an "Empty slogan" (no elaboration, just these two words). My last comment that began thus "Why does the discussion on every post have to cover the entire globe and world order? Can't we stick to the limited subject of the post ..." elicited this response: "At the best, I consider your views to be naiive and at the worst I consider them with unhealthy and untrustable intentions!" (again, a proclamation, with no reasoning or elaboration). I saw no point in continuing to interact on that post, although there were also a few reasonable comments.
(9) On getting by with what you have: Don't let a broken violin string, or a missing piece inside you, stop you from doing your best. Play your heart out with what you've got left. [Itzhac Perlman's story]

2017/04/06 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photos of two women data scientists (1) No, these are not models: They are data scientists, a professor (left) and a doctoral student. [Interview]
(2) Decades-old problem solved by non-career mathematician: In a little-noticed short paper, published in 2014 and entitled "A Simple Proof of the Gaussian Correlation Conjecture," Thomas Royen solved a conjecture dating back to the 1950s, the inspiration having occurred to him while brushing his teeth.
(3) On misusing statistics: Do Nicolas Cage films cause people to fall into pools and drown? Does US spending on science, space, and technology affect the number of suicides by hanging, strangulation, and suffocation? Does an increase in per capita cheese consumption lead to a corresponding rise in the number of people who die by becoming entangled in their bedsheets? Certainly not! But in all three cases, there is an eerily large positive correlation between the two trends, which may suggest causation to the uninitiated. In these examples, relating the two trends seems preposterous. Imagine how much more likely we are to go astray when a cause-effect relationship is plausible (e.g., eating a certain kind of food and obesity). [Full story, with charts]
(4) Interesting illusion: A man's head appears to detach from his neck and get reattached. See if you can figure out how it's done.
(5) Joke of the day: Stan: "My wife treats me like I am a god." Steve: "You mean she worships, honors, and obeys you?" Stan: "No, she ignores me until she wants something." [Source: AARP Bulletin, April 2017]
(6) Presidential fade-away, off-balance jump shot! [Photo of former President Obama]
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- US bombs Bashar Assad's air bases in Syria; Russia stays out of the way
- Tillerson accuses Russia of failing to deliver on its promises on Syria (AP)
- Comedian Don Rickles, known for his insulting style of comedy, dead at 90
- Bannon, ousted from the NSC, at war with Jared Kushner (Business Insider)
- Devin Nunes steps down from his role in Trump-Russia House probe (AP)
- Trump defends Fox News' serial sexual harasser Bill O'Reily (People)
(8) Quote of the day: "It's a pattern with him—he sometimes counterpunches so hard he hits himself." ~ Ari Fleischer, a former press secretary, on Donald Trump
(9) Final thought for the day: It was inevitable that war would come. Just as inevitable was the Trump men falling one after the other, the latest casualties being Steve Bannon (ousted from the NSC) and Devin Nunes (stepping down from his role in the Trump-Russia probe). The unfortunate part is that the war may save Trump himself from falling.

2017/04/05 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image from 'Mad Magazine,' teasing Sean Spicer (1) The Sean Spicer rack: The perfect ingredients in a recipe for disaster. Includes seven unpleasant, bitter flavors. [Image credit: Mad Magazine]
(2) Every person we previously thought to be crazy now sounds sane by comparison: Ah-nold, the Governator, slams the US Congress.
(3) Gibraltar's dilemma: The tiny British Overseas Territory, with a strategic location in south Spain, is dominated by the Rock of Gibraltar and has a thriving tourist economy. It is interdependent with Spain, because many of its workers commute from Spain. Thus, free movement of people and goods from/to EU are important for its survival. With Britain's exit from EU, Gibraltar must also cut its ties, which presents a huge problem. England is unwilling to cede sovereignty to Spain and people of Gibraltar are also against such a move (shades of Hong-Kong). [Source: PBS Newshour]
(4) A popular Iranian wedding song: Rastak Ensemble's wonderful arrangement and rendition of "Vasoonak," a regional wedding song from the Fars Province, which is a staple at nearly all Persian wedding receptions.
(5) Bill O'Reilly and Fox News have paid out $13 million to five women since 2002: The hush money was paid to the women for complaints of sexual harassment and verbal abuse against the Fox News host.
(6) A chess problem that is easy for humans but super-hard for computers: The problem is said to hold the key to understanding human cognition and the limits of artificial intelligence. [White to play and draw]
(7) The woman who ran 1144 miles across Iran to prove a point to her fellow Swedes and other Europeans.
(8) Tim Berners-Lee, the just announced winner of the prestigious ACM Turing Award, known as the Nobel Prize of computing, opined in an interview yesterday that selling private citizens' browsing data is disgusting.
(9) Our Dishonest President: In this first installment of a four-part article by the Los Angeles Times editorial board, we read about how, despite knowing that Trump was a narcissist and an utterly unprepared and unqualified candidate, we were unprepared for the magnitude of the train wreck that is his presidency. It seems that no matter how many newspapers and other news outlets publish pieces like this, they are brushed aside with a few words, "dishonest media" or "fake news." The inevitable downfall may take much longer that we thought. But this is like a needed vaccine. If we survive it, we may become immune to the disease of Trump-like leaders in future. [The article contains links to the other three parts]

2017/04/04 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Front page of 'Towfigh' weekly paper from the 1970s Front page of 'Towfigh' weekly paper from the 1950s (1) Political satire in Iran: As a young man, I was a regular reader of Towfigh, a weekly satirical paper that pushed the boundaries of humor in a politically oppressed society. Not everything in the paper was to my liking, but the daring aspects of the enterprise intrigued me. Jokes and cartoons could go only to the level of prime minister, as kidding the Shah was out of bounds. The paper paid dearly on the few occasions when it ridiculed the Shah, even indirectly. [Images are the paper's front page, circa 1950s (left) and 1970s]
(2) A very good overview of the AI subfield of natural-language processing and the start-ups to watch in this area.
(3) To the bookworms among my friends: Which kind are you? [Short video]
(4) Two Iranian women, shown defying mandatory hijab laws during their visit to a historic site in Yazd.
(5) Half-dozen fake/humorous Confucius quotes:
- A man who wants pretty nurse must be patient
- A man who leaps off cliff jumps to conclusion
- A man who drives like hell is bound to get there
- A man who runs in front of car gets tired
- A man who runs behind car gets exhausted
- War determines who is left, not who is right
(6) Former CIA analyst Nada Bakos presents her take on Donald Trump in this 2-minute video.
(7) Tim Berners-Lee wins the 2016 ACM Turing Award: The Association for Computing Machinery award, now in its 50th year, is known as the Nobel Prize of Computing and comes with a $1 million cash prize, courtesy of Google. Lee is the inventor of the Worldwide Web and the protocols that allow it to work on a massive scale.
(8) An inspiring story: How a printing-house owner transitioned into food business, offering Persian dishes to New Yorkers.
(9) Nerve gas attack in Syria: Observers indicate that Russian bombers were also involved. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson condemned Assad for using chemical weapons but did not mention Russia. President Trump blamed the Obama administration for making the attack possible, without blaming either Assad or Russia.

2017/04/03 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cover image for 'Time' magazine, issue of April 10, 2017 (1) The problem with US infrastructure: A common-sense idea about real assets, such as bridges, roads, locks, and sea-walls, is that when you build them, you are not done. These assets need maintenance and, eventually, at the end of their useful lives, replacement. Even a lowly condominium association knows this fact and has a reserves fund into which money is placed for such repairs and replacements. Every year, a portion of the condo fees are added to the reserves fund and every few years, a professional reviews the fund to ensure that it is adequate for the scheduled repairs and replacements. A pool, for example, needs minor repairs every few years and an overhaul after 2-3 decades. If the reserves don't hold enough money for replacement, the homeowners must go without a pool at the end of the existing pool's useful life. The way our government handles our infrastructure is to come up with just enough money to build the structure or road and then toss it to some city, transport authority, and the like. These entities are often overburdened and short of funds already, which means that resources for maintenance and replacement do not exist. This is like buying a car and not thinking about the costs of gas, repairs, and depreciation.
(2) How to deal with the US infrastructure: Time magazine, issue of April 10, 2017 (cover image shown above), contains a cover story about rebuilding our infrastructure. There are detailed discussions and proposals about modernizing the skies, developing better batteries, designing a safer/smarter grid, fixing outmoded locks and dams, wiping out the digital divide, upgrading aging water and wastewater plants, dealing with critical train arteries, making trains run on time, beating back the sea, and eliminating bridge hazards.
(3) An Azeri song from Iran: Rastak Ensemble's wonderful arrangement and rendition of "Sanin Yadegarin" ("Your Remembrances").
(4) Defiance of mandatory hijab laws continues in Iran: Photo taken at the Constitutional Revolution Museum, featuring statues of a couple of clerics.
(5) Quote of the day: "One difference between Nixon and Trump: When the Republicans nominated Nixon, they didn't actually know he was a crook." ~ Author Stephen King
(6) Iranian-Americans' Contributions Project: IACP is a new non-profit organization that collects data and catalogs the accomplishments and contributions of the Iranian-American community. [Facebook page]
(7) Lightning strikes moving car.
(8) Trump hurls insulting tweets whenever cornered: "When will Sleepy Eyes Chuck Todd and @NBCNews start talking about the Obama SURVEILLANCE SCANDAL and stop with the Fake Trump/Russia story?"
(9) Refugee home in Oregon vandalized with threatening graffiti.

2017/04/02 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Winning entry in the 'Doodle for Google' contest (1) This image by Sarah Harrison (Stratford, CT), entitled "A Peaceful Future," is the winner of the 2016/2017 "Doodle for Google" contest.
(2) Cartoon of the day: White House pets. [Image]
(3) Iraqi girl, a face of war from Mosul: We should look at photos like this one every day, lest we forget the immense human losses that even the most limited wars can bring. War is never "just"!
(4) The next full pink moon: In about a week, Monday, April 10, 2017, 11:08 PM PDT (4/11, 2:08 AM EDT).
(5) A couple of days ago, I received my Albert Einstein doll (the most important scientist of the 20th century), to go along with my Nikola Tesla doll (the most important contributor to electrical engineering). [Photo]
(6) Today is Sizdeh-Beh-Dar: People of Tehran celebrate the 13th day of Norooz, a day of communion with the Earth and nature (and, for the superstitious, getting rid of evil spirits by tossing them in the outdoors). Similar outings are in progress throughout the United States. [Negin TV Pictorial]
(7) An interesting congressional testimony: Espionage expert ponders why so many Russians have been dropping dead around the world, urging investigators to follow their trails.
(8) Quote of the day [on Trump vs. Reagan]: "You mused that a good role model would be Ronald Reagan. As you saw it, Reagan was a big, good-looking guy with a famous pompadour; he had also been a Democrat and an entertainer. But Reagan had one key quality that you don't have: He knew what he didn't know. ... You both resembled Macy's Thanksgiving Day balloons, floating above the nitty-gritty and focusing on a few big thoughts. But President Reagan was confident enough to accept that he needed experts below, deftly maneuvering the strings. ... You're just careering around on your own, crashing into buildings and losing altitude, growling at the cameras and spewing nasty conspiracy theories, instead of offering a sunny smile, bipartisanship, optimism and professionalism." ~ NYT Columnist Maureen Dowd, in a blunt letter addressed to "Dear Donald"
(9) Final thought for the day: "Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot un-educate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore." ~ Cesar E. Chavez

2017/04/01 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
John Wooden and Karim Abdul-Jabbar together, as UCLA coach and player and 40 years later (1) Legnedary coach and legendary player: UCLA's John Wooden and Karim Abdul-Jabbar, together in late 1960s and late 2000s.
(2) Seven April Fool's news headlines of the day:
- April 1 renamed Donald Trump Day to honor our 45th President
- The Mexican government reveals $10.5B border-wall project
- For first time in 4 decades, Iranians can visit US without visa
- Google to change logo to the new Persian "Googel" version
- Trump resigns presidency, citing inadequate time to play golf
- EU collapses, its leaders start reading The Art of the Deal
- New VW shows 10 time less emissions at push of a button
(3) On automatic translation: A friend posted a link to some German Web page which contained a few German words in its URL. Facebook provided a "see translation" link, which I dutifully clicked on, hoping to learn what the link was about. The translation turned out to be an exact copy of the link!
(4) UCSB braces for Trump's budget cuts: Arts and humanities will likely suffer the most in relative terms, but in dollar amounts, science and engineering programs will have the largest setbacks.
(5) Cartoons of the day: Four of them at once, because I couldn't share just one!
(6) Interesting take-aways from a mindfulness workshop I attended during lunch hour on 3/30: According to a recent Gallup poll, only 32% of US employees are engaged, that is, they are involved in, enthusiastic about, and committed to their work and workplace. The worldwide figure is a dismal 13%. To improve this situation, 13% of the US workforce is offered mindfulness programs. The average person is absent-minded 30-50% of the time.
(7) What if browsing histories of all Republicans who voted to strip Internet privacy rights were made public? Without the said privacy rights, Internet providers and service firms can sell their customers' data. So, why not start raising funds to purchase all those lawmakers' browsing histories, once Trump signs the bill?
(8) Travel ban 2: Twenty-five of America's biggest research universities have sent 500+ acceptance letters to students from the six countries affected by President Trump's second proposed travel ban. Schools say the potential ban would have significant negative effects on graduate schools, where Iranian students are accepted in particularly high numbers for engineering programs. Once put in place, the policy would end after 90 days, but it likely would be too late for students to complete the lengthy visa process. For universities relying on international students as research and teaching assistants, the potential loss of these international students is a particularly severe hardship. [Source: Associated Press]
(9) Final thought for the day: The EU just turned 60 and, like any 60-year-old, is having self-doubts.

2017/03/31 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image showing an interesting optical illusion (1) For your visual pleasure and amazement: Four perfectly round circles!
(2) Bumper sticker of the day: "Elect a Clown | Expect a Circus"
(3) Surfing made easy: Inflatable suit, made for body-surfing, extends surfing fun to almost anyone.
(2) Quote of the day: "There are 3 million American Muslims. They teach our children, treat our sick, fight our wars and, despite your attacks, continue to stand proudly on the front lines of keeping all Americans safe. My faith calls on me to help the less fortunate and speak out against injustice. President Trump—look at the math: we do not have a refugee terrorist problem. It simply doesn't exist. But I do feel a not-so-subtle campaign of terror now being waged on our American ideals of justice and equality." ~ Ibtihaj Muhammad, US national-team fencer, in an open letter to President Trump
(4) All the inane jabs and absurd criticisms that the Obamas endured for eight years: I'd take an arugula-loving, fist-bumping, bookish President, who does not take himself too seriously, over an arrogant, emotionless, ignorant one, who considers himself God-sent savior of the masses, any day!
(6) This freely available e-book contains a translation of two very important memoirs of mathematician extraordinaire Georg Cantor on transfinite numbers. [Click on the image to turn pages] Citation: Cantor, Georg, Contributions to the Founding of the Theory of Transfinite Numbers, Translated and Provided with an Introduction and Notes by Philip E. B. Jourdain, New York, Dover Publications, originally published in 1915.
(7) IEEE Central Coast Section Spring Social: We met on 3/29 at a meeting room of the new Goleta Rusty's Pizza location on Calle Real. After pizza, soft drinks, and beer (gratis for IEEE members), Section Vice Chair Brian Williams presented an overview of RF receivers and their applications in a variety of domains, from personal electronics to self-driving cars and beyond.
(8) Isla Vista Beach, yesterday: Given the high tide and super-windy conditions, I knew I couldn't walk home on the beach. Yet, I decided to take a detour to see the waves and clear skies on a gorgeous afternoon. Many surfers were enjoying their ideal day, some with sails attached to their boards and a couple using kite-like sails that allowed them to move up and down the surf with ease, staying afloat for long stretches of time. These photos don't do the roaring waves justice, so here are a couple of videos, the first video taken from the stairs at the end of Camino Pescadero and this second video from the stairs at the end of Camino Del Sur, in Isla Vista. You can see why the bluffs are constantly eroded and why the stairs need continual maintenance and repair.
(9) Final thought for the day: "Equality is like gravity. We need it to stand on this earth as men and women." ~ Joss Whedon (American director, writer, and humorist)

2017/03/30 (Thursday): Book review: Mudde, Cas and Cristobal Rovira Kaltwasser, Populism: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2017.
Cover image for the book 'Populism: A Very Short Introduction' This is another fine volume in Oxford's "A Very Short Introduction" series, a collection established more than two decades ago and now containing hundreds of volumes, which make diverse topics accessible to non-specialists. At 131 pages, Populism is shorter than most other volumes in the series, but that is a reflection of the relative recency of the topic as a field of study. Had this book been written after the inauguration of our 45th President, the authors would have had access to many more examples and case studies from the United States.
Iran's Ahmadinejad and Libya's Qaddafi can be viewed as populists as well, but this book defines populism as arising within democracies; and views it as one of the dangers threatening democracies. Although the notion of populism is rather ill-defined, all forms of populism include some kind of appeal to "the (pure) people" and a denunciation of "the (corrupt) elite," and they are placed as opposites to elitism and pluralism. The wicked elite is variously defined and may include the political establishment, economic/cultural/media leaders, and, quite often, Jews. Of course, the populists' own media are excluded in every case!
Besides democracy, populist movements feed on extreme inequality. In order to overcome opposition by the establishment, including the media elites, populists tend to manufacture artificial crises. The authors list recent populist movements in America as those led by George Wallace, Ross Perot, and Donald Trump, as well as the leaderless "Occupy Wall Street" and "Tea Party." Populism is different from clientalism, which promises access to goods and services in return for political support.
Populist leaders, almost exclusively male, tend to project an image of virility and success with women. For example, Italy's Silvio Berlusconi did not deny that he participated in sex parties, only contesting the claim that he paid for sex. Another commonality among populist leaders is their disregard for expert opinion, going out of their way to act in direct opposition to such opinions. The few women populist leaders tend to use their sex as confirming their outsider status. More often than not, they emphasize womanhood traits such as "good woman" and "mother," rather than projecting the image of a strong woman.
If the outsider status were indispensable to being a populist, then populist regimes would be short-lived. Some are, but many populists tend to redefine the notion of an outsider, once they are in power for some time. In reality, most populist leaders aren't true outsiders but what may be called "outsider-insiders," having never been part of the political establishment but enjoying close ties with those in power. Paul Taggart put this succinctly, when he defined populism as "politics for ordinary people by extraordinary leaders who construct ordinary profiles." Such leaders are often viewed as having charisma (gift of grace), which they use to attract supporters by avoiding difficult topics or sticky situations.
The four major forms of government and transitions between them Taking the four major forms of government, from full-authoritarianism to liberal-democracy (see the accompanying diagram, from p. 87 of the book), populism meshes well with the middle two (competitive authoritarianism and electoral democracy), being most at odds with liberal-democracy, which incorporates minority rights in addition to the rule of the majority. Each of the four forms of government is fairly stable, but populism can play a role in transitions between them.
Populists tend to criticize any independent authority they cannot fully control, the judiciary and the media being prime examples. In the extreme, populism is a paranoid style of politics. It is easy to criticize or ridicule populism, but as Kirk Hawkins observed, "There is a dormant Hugo Chavez or Sarah Palin inside all of us. The question is how does he or she get activated?"
The US is receptive to populism precisely because the fight between "pure people" and "corrupt elite" permeates the American culture; in movies, country songs, and investigative reporting. Liberal democracies tend to fall into the trap of implementing well-intentioned policies, without bothering to sell them to the people. The policies are often described as necessary or inevitable to circumvent direct approval by the people. Populists ask uncomfortable questions about the undemocratic aspects of liberal institutions and policies.
Prime examples of well-intentioned policies mentioned above are found in connection with immigration, taxation, and dealings with international financial institutions (the last one is more important in places like Latin America, where the relationship is rather one-sided). In all three cases, optimal policies, derived from equations and theorems can be devised, but those optimal policies are too complex and expensive to implement.
Even the approximation to an optimal taxation scheme, reflected in many volumes of the typical tax code, is too complex for comprehension by an educated person, and, therefore, impossible to sell to the average voter. On the other hand, flat-tax systems, prevalent in parts of Eastern Europe and in Russia, are simple and easy to justify. The problem is that short-term political calculations make any movement in the direction of simplification and more direct democratic participation in setting of the policies nearly impossible. This is why some people believe that populists actually serve a useful purpose in keeping the elite policy-makers honest.
If you need to learn new ideas or brush up on a topic you once studied, while being frugal with your time, it is hard to beat Oxford's "A Very Short Introduction" series, and this book is no exception. I end my review with this gem of an observation from near the end of the book: "In a world that is dominated by democracy and liberalism, populism has essentially become an illiberal democratic response to undemocratic liberalism."

2017/03/29 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Farhang Foundation's banner for exhibit of Iran-related books (1) Iran through Books: Farhang Foundation exhibits Iran-related books at Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, April 22-23 (10:00 AM to 6:00/5:00 PM), 2017, at USC. The first day overlaps with the March for Science in downtown LA, so I am considering going. Metro's Expo Line drops riders directly at the south end of the Festival of Books. [Event schedule]
(2) Fun fact of the day: The percentage of US adults aged 30 or older who are grandparent has risen to 37%, the highest ever. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 3, 2017]
(3) Honoka and Azita, young girls from Hawaii, play "Bodysurfing": Truly fantastic!
(4) As the Persian saying goes, "Which one should we believe, the rooster's tail sticking out or the fox's denial?" Ivanka Trump and Betsy DeVos attend a screening of "Hidden Figures" at the National Air and Space Museum to promote STEM education, as Donald Trump's proposed budget slashes NASA's funding and defunds its Education Office.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Indonesian man, vanished while harvesting, found dead inside a giant python [MSN]
- Ivanka Trump transitions from advisor to official White House employee [Huff Post]
- Bridgegate scandal lands allies of Governor Chris Christie in prison (NBC News)
- Following their boss, White House staff will also skip Correspondents' Dinner (WP)
- James Comey tried to reveal Russian tampering months before election [Newsweek]
- US budget for the UN will likely be decreased, according to Nikki Haley [Newsweek]
(6) Top US colleges are admitting Baha'i students from Iran: These students are barred from attending public universities and thus learn at an institution led by volunteers (at great risk to their personal safety), which holds classes in a basement in Tehran. A moral shame and a great loss of talent for Iran!
[Note: The article has some problems in its editing and in the inaccurate claim that the post-Islamic-Revolution university closures under the guise of Cultural Revolution was a one-year affair; it actually lasted three years.]
(7) Quote of the day (alt-facts edition): "Why do you say I have to apologize? I am just quoting the newspaper." ~ Donald Trump, in a Time magazine interview, referring to his use of material from National Enquirer
(8) Misrepresentation of sanctuary cities: Some cities vote to ban the use of city funds for enforcing immigration laws. The choice is usually due to the fact that such funds are quite limited and are better spent on fighting crime than on tracking immigration violations. So, asserting that such cities aid criminal elements among illegal immigrants is misleading at best. Fighting crime, regardless of perpetrators' immigration status is hardly the same as helping such individuals.
(9) Final thought for the day: It seems that Trump is truly, though unintentionally, draining the swamp, as his men fall or are discredited one after the other!

2017/03/28 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of an evening literacy classroom, with child and adult students (1) An evening literacy class in Tehran, circa 1950.
(2) March for Science in Santa Barbara: April 22, 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM; begins in De La Guerra Plaza and ends at the site of Earth Day festival. [Related meme, featuring a quote from Joss Whedon]
(3) Every day, the March for Science becomes more important: The House Science Committee aspires to regulate science and punish journals that publish research it does not like.
(4) Seen on a billboard, in huge lettering: "Donald Trump: Putin America First" [Image]
(5) Iran takes another giant step towards qualifying for the 2018 soccer World Cup by beating China 1-0.
(6) Historical photo and message of the day: A scene from the Suffragettes movement. [Source: The UCSB Current, March 23, 2017]
Here is a high-resolution, uncropped version of the photo.
(7) A walk from the UCSB campus to the Goleta Beach Park and Pier, and beyond: Perfect weather for walking on a sunny and pleasantly warm afternoon. [Photos] [Breaking waves, video 1] [Breaking waves, video 2]
(8) Mule women: Because there is no customs-check between Morocco and Cueta, and anything a person can carry is considered "hand luggage," many women earn a living by carrying extremely heavy loads on foot, while enduring tough working conditions and abuse. In one segment of the video, you see a man steering the women, while carrying no load himself!
(9) Final thought for the day: "Citizens are not customers, buddy. We're the board of directors." ~ Michael Mirer, responding to Jared Kushner's musing that "The government should be run like a great American company. Our hope is that we can achieve success and efficiencies for our customers, who are the citizens"

2017/03/27 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Image of Shen Yun wall calendar (1) Shen Yun 2017: I went to one of the three weekend performances of Shen Yun at Santa Barbara's Granada Theater yesterday. It was a unique and pleasurable experience to watch skillful dancers, accompanied by live music, jumping, flipping, tumbling, and executing other difficult moves effortlessly and in perfect harmony. There were also elements of virtual reality, that made dancers flying in the background video suddenly materialize on stage. Filming was disallowed, so I share with you this 9-minute video, which contains brief performance samples and explains technical skill, form, and bearing, the three elements of classical Chinese dancing. The image shows a free wall calendar we got, which features the dates of southern California performances.
(2) Not funny in Farsi: This "passionate educator and khaleh-like figure" (according to my daughter Sepideh) is the person responsible for teaching Persian to many Iranian-Americans, including my daughter, who were either born in the US or immigrated as very young children. Thank you, Dr. Latifeh Haghighi, for your three decades of service in this important area!
(3) Teen girl planned shooting, bombing at her Maryland high school: She wrote a detailed plan for the attack in her journal and had guns and bomb-making material at home, according to police.
(4) A new phone scam: The caller starts by asking a question, such as "Can you hear me?" or "Do you want to be added to a do-not-call registry?" Almost everyone will answer such questions in the affirmative. Your "yes" answer in either case may be recorded and used as authorization for purchases and other charges on a credit card. [Source: ABC News]
(5) Has Michael Flynn turned on Trump? Haaretz speculates that the former National Security Adviser may have cut a deal to become an FBI informant, cooperating in the investigation of Trump-Russia ties. The speculation arises from the fact that Flynn has not been called to testify under oath.
(6) Opening ceremony of the Norooz 2017 celebration in Kurdistan's Palangan Village.
(7) Gang rape, broadcast on Facebook Live: Chicago's police spokesman, describing the March 18 sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl by as many as 6 males, wondered aloud how it was possible that of the 40 or so people who witnessed the assault, not one thought to call the authorities. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 3, 2017]
(8) America emulates Iran in asserting that girls' clothing distracts boys: "[Two teenage] girls were stopped by [United Airlines] staffers at Denver International Airport, who said their clothing was inappropriate and went against the company's dress code. A 10-year-old girl was also wearing leggings but was allowed to board after putting a dress over her leggings. Leggings and other iterations of stretchy pants have long been ubiquitous across the U.S. and are commonly worn at airports and on flights. ... In recent years, a number of U.S. schools have enacted dress codes considered by many to be 'sexist'; the reasons cited by school administrators often include the suggestion that leggings are 'distracting' to boys." Will unisex high schools come next?

2017/03/26 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image: Emticons are taking us back to the age of Hieroglyphs (1) Language development has begun to regress after 4000 years!
(2) Can we stop asserting that we are the greatest country on Earth and start emulating positive programs in other countries?
- In Japan, 100% of people have health insurance
- Healthcare costs are half of what we spend in the US
- They can choose their doctors, and see them twice as often as Americans
- They have world's longest life expectancy and 2nd lowest infant mortality
- Almost all (95%) of healthcare in Japan is not-for-profit
- The government sets all the fees for medical services and drugs
(3) The stock market is overdue for a correction: Trump took credit for the market rally after his election. Stocks are currently over-valued and a crash is inevitable. Watch Trump blame the Democrats for the coming crash!
(4) Capturing spring in my neck of the woods, just north of Ventura, CA.
(5) Complete video of the 2017 Culture Show, celebrating the arrival of spring and Norooz (held on March 11 at UCLA's Freud Theater). [130-minute video]
(6) An Uber self-driving car was recentluy involved in an accident in Arizona: There were no injuries, but the other driver, a human, was cited for a moving violation (for failing to yield).
(7) Painfully funny: Yesterday, while driving, I chanced upon an NPR program with this title, which addressed the question of why many comedians struggle with depression. The program's thesis was that the question was posed backwards. Certain depressed individuals gravitate to comedy because of its therapeutic effects.
(8) Wonderful Iranian fusion music: Mesmerizing performance of a composition by Amir Bayat in San Francisco; detailed credits in the original post and in the video.
(9) For Persian speakers among you: Sharing a humorous message from a friend, on this beautiful Sunday.

2017/03/25 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Rally sign in defense of science (1) March for Science will take place on Earth Day, Saturday, April 22, 2017.
(2) Iran's President Rouhani, seen on a hike with his daughters. These modern women, with minimal hijabs, deemed unacceptable by the country's hardliners, are paraded by the President seeking public approval for his reelection bid.
(3) Another over-rated actress speaks up about Donald Trump: Jessica Chastain accentuates the positive, the helpful impact of having an adversary like Trump on feminism. Whereas many women used to shy away from identifying as feminists, now even men sympathize with the cause.
(4) Quote of the day: "Not only does god endorse Multiculturalism but He seems to have invented it." ~ John Fugelsang
(5) Russia's new nuclear weapon could wipe out France or Texas at once: Known as "Satan 2," the intercontinental ballistic missile that can carry 10 heavyweight warheads at once is said to be behind schedule in development and testing.
(6) University of California reaffirms collaborations with Mexico: UC President Janet Napolitano will visit Mexico next week "to reassure leaders there that the public research university remains committed to academic collaboration—even if some of it, such as climate change research, is at risk under the Trump administration." The proposed Trump border wall and reductions in federal research funding will not affect academic and research collaborations between universities in California and Mexico. [Source: Los Angeles Times]
(7) Trump's Norooz message another one of his many lies: In his message, Trump praised Iranian-Americans as one of the most successful immigrant groups in the US. This statement does not mesh well with his including Iran in his travel ban. Here is the Iranian-American Bar Association's statement on Trump's travel ban order.
"If President Trump's new Executive Order (EO-2) is not changed or stopped, it can become a permanent visa ban against Iranian nationals. It states that after a '90-day pause' to assess security surrounding travel from these six countries, 'if any foreign government on the list is unable or unwilling to comply with any required standards, this 90-day ban could be extended for an indefinite period of time.' Considering the current diplomatic relations between Iran and the U.S., it is unlikely that the required cooperation would happen anytime soon between the two countries—and thus it is very possible that this ban would become permanent."
(8) Paul Krugman's scathing New York Times opinion piece: "The Art of the Scam"
(9) On Internet trolls and free-riders: Like many of you, I have been targeted by Internet trolls, whose comments contain nothing but direct, indirect, or veiled insults. There is another group of people who comment on virtually everything, without offering any new information or insight. I call the latter group "free-riders," because they want to assert their presence without contributing anything of value. A question I ask myself in identifying trolls and free-riders is this: "Have I ever learned something of value from this person's comments or are they mostly content-free?" What do you think?

2017/03/24 (Friday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
(1) Vote on Trumpcare repealed: After Trump issued an ultimatum to the House that if they don't vote on AHCA soon, he will let Obamacare stand, he was forced to pull the bill because they were 10-15 "yes" votes short. Other than Tea-Party conservatives, who were against Trumpcare, because it did not go far enough in cutting benefits, some moderates also had doubts, citing possible backlash when their constituents lost coverage. It was hoped that the latter group might have ended up voting for the bill, because they figured that the Senate would send it back to the House for changes. For the latter group, voting for the bill thus had little political cost, because it allowed them to pretend that they honored their pledge to repeal Obamacare, while, at the same time, not causing any immediate problems for their constituents. It is interesting that Trump, when announcing the pulling of the bill, blamed Democrats for not providing a single "yes" vote. Welcome to realities of governing; you can't insult your opponents and call them names, and still expect them to support you in passing legislation!
(2) The Republicans will now try to make Obamacare collapse: I have a feeling that they are relieved Trumpcare failed, because they would have looked bad when their base started losing health insurance. Meanwhile, they can pretend that they tried to honor their campaign promises, blaming the evil Democrats and Tea-Partiers for the setback. Both Ryan and Trump in their remarks after pulling the doomed bill hinted that they are counting on Obamacare's failure to advance their agenda. Any logical person would have said, upon the failure of Trumpcare, that s/he would work to make Obamacare better, now that "it's the law of the land for the foreseeable future," as Ryan put it. But no, vanity prevents them from making a healthcare program that is not theirs work better. In fact, many of Obamacare's faults arose from amendments suggested by Republicans, who ended up not voting for the modified, watered-down bill.
(3) Trump tries to spin his healthcare loss: "This was a loss for Pelosi and Schumer," he quipped. Oh, really? I know you will do all that is in your power to make Obamacare fail and thus render your statement true. But, there are many states that are working hard to remove wrinkles from the current health plans. I heard one analyst say today that the doom and gloom being projected by the Republicans may be a self-fulfilling prophecy. Health insurance companies need stability and clear rules in order to operate efficiently. Uncertainty leads them to withdraw from healthcare markets or to raise premiums. If the Republicans truly have the interests of the American people in mind, they should stop sabotaging Obamacare right away, now that Trumpcare is dead. They have already done some damage by defunding certain Obamacare provisions and have plans to do more over the coming weeks.
(4) Rock-n-roll pioneer Chuck Berry dead at 90: He was an influence on many musicians, including Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and The Beach Boys. He was a flawed human being, who once served time for tax evasion. But his music will live on, and it has even been sent to deep space on a spacecraft. Here is Berry performing with Tina Turner. And a full live concert of Berry in London, 1972.
(5) Not a single woman in sight, as the Republicans decide the future of healthcare in this country, with major implication to women's health.
(6) Honoring Ebi's 50 years in music: Rana Mansour sings one of Ebi's most famous songs in a gathering to honor his 50th musical anniversary.
(7) White House in the 1930s: Shot by First Lady Lou Hoover, this footage is believed to be the first color film shot at the White House.

2017/03/23 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Chart showing links between Trump and Putin (1) Russia isn't our friend: This chart, posted on a Web site established by SF Bay Area Congressman Eric Swalwell shows the links between 13 close associates of Trump and Putin, or his surrogates and business interests.
(2) Voting on Trumpcare postponed: House Republicans just don't have the votes to pass it.
(3) Every Afghan woman is a novel: Interview, in Persian, with Afghan writer Homeira Ghaderi.
(4) Traditional Persian music: Wonderful performance by Kimia Azari and Maneh Shafie. The description says that they are playing tombak (dombak) and seh-tar, but the string instrument looks like tar to me.
(5) Nine brief news headlines of the day:
- Donald Trump and Paul Ryan go back to the drawing board on Trumpcare (CNN)
- Spicer scolds Republicans for voting to repeal Obamacare earlier but bulking now
- British actress Emma Thompson says she once turned down a Trump offer (AP)
- Hostilities between Trump and The Wall Street Journal escalate (CNN Money)
- Trump-Russia ties: There's more than circumstantial evidence (Business Insider)
- Senate votes to undo Internet privacy rules that protect user data (AP)
- In Time interview about falsehoods, Trump offers several new ones (CNN Money)
- American, in London to celebrate an anniversary, was among terror victims (ABC)
- Former member of Russian parliament and a Putin critic shot dead in Kiev (ABC)
(6) Iran's soccer team beats Qatar 1-0 to get a step closer to qualifying for the 2018 World Cup.

2017/03/22 (Wednesday): Here are five items of potential interest.
(1) Cartoon caption of the day: Student addressing the teacher: "Anyone following me on Twitter already knows what I did this past summer."
(2) Evolutionary AI: "Researchers at Google Brain and OpenAI are applying Darwinian principles of evolution to advance artificial intelligence (AI). Google's neuroevolution project trained 1000 image-recognition algorithms on deep-neural networks to recognize specific images. The more accurate algorithms were then copied and 'mutated' to see if their clones' accuracy would improve, with such mutations allowed to survive and eventually achieve 94.6-percent recognition accuracy. Meanwhile, OpenAI's research focused on using 'worker' algorithms to train a master AI to perform an unknown task. The evolutionary AI tracks how workers learn, thus learning how to extract more insight from the same amount of data. The workers played Atari and reported their scores to the master. The highest-scoring algorithms were copied and randomly mutated, then put back into rotation so subsequent mutations could be copied or deleted, depending on their scoring prowess. OpenAI's approach is considered to be closer to evolution's true biological function." [From: ACM Tech News]
(3) Seven brief news headlines of the day:
- Officer, attacker, three others dead, 40 injured, in London terrorist incident (ABC)
- FBI Director corrects Trump's tweet, sent while he was testifying, in real time (AP)
- Trump issues a statement on Nowruz, the Iranian New Year (The White House)
- Trump businesses keep asking for exemptions to hire foreign workers (Newsweek)
- Paul Manafort, Trump's ex-campaign-chair, paid millions by a Putin ally (AP)
- Pharmacy ex-executive convicted of racketeering in meningitis outbreak (AP)
- Russia losses in Syria three times as high as official tolls (Newsweek)
(4) Embarrassing letter choice on the game show "Wheel of Fortune": Contestant chooses "K" when the puzzle was almost solved: A STREETCAR NA_ED DESIRE
(5) Sharing before reading: A new study by computer scientists at Columbia University and the French National Institute has found that 59% of all links shared on social media were never clicked, which means that most people sharing information on social media do not read it first. [Source: Hidden Potential]

2017/03/21 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest. The Mercator world map
The corrected world map (1) Re-examining our world view: Boston public schools have switched to a world map that corrects 500 years of distortion. The commonly used Mercator projection exaggerates the northern hemisphere, causing Greenland to appear the same size as Africa, which is 14 times as large. The distortion is due to shifting the Equator downward, rather than placing it in the middle.
(2) Quote of the day: "The only bipartisan thing left in America is the fight against cancer." ~ Former US Vice President Joe Biden
(3) My entry for The New Yorker cartoon caption contest #560 (deadline March 20, 2017). "I wonder if this is one of the things they meant to prevent!" [Image]
(4) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Russian organized-crime network operated out of Trump Tower's unit 63A
- Ivanka Trump to get classified information and a West-Wing office
- Conservative commentator Tomi Lahren suspended over abortion comments
- Bill Gates is once again the richest among the world's 2000 billionaires
- Kidnapping victim escaped from trunk of own car using her insulin pump
- US aviation authorities may ban tablets and laptop computers on flights
- Fox pulls analyst Andrew Napolitano from air for wire-tapping comments
- Philanthropist and Chase-Manhattan head David Rockefeller dead at 101
(5) Mechanical bee drones to help with plant pollination: It takes a pretty complicated, quite large, and rather expensive drone to do the job of lowly bees. But such devices may become necessary if pesticides and climate change further reduce bee populations. [Source: Time magazine, issue of March 27, 2017]
(6) Bio-inspired sensors mimick spider webs: "Researchers at the universities of Bristol and Oxford in the UK are examining spider webs to determine their computational capabilities, and based on this research they will develop new sensor technology to measure vibrations and flow. The researchers will examine the structure of spider webs to understand how their designs could be used as a computer, a line of research known as morphological computation. Morphological computation is a design approach, often used in robotics, that considers the body of a robot vital for any intelligent behavior. ... The researchers believe the results of the study could provide insights into the way morphological features of biological sensors are utilized in bio-inspired sensor design."
(7) There is hope for our country's future: A new poll shows that 57% of Americans age 18-30 consider Trump's presidency illegitimate. I bet the fraction is even higher for those under 18. [Source: Newsweek on-line]
(8) Final thought for the day: "The house is on fire, Trump is running with a box of matches, and the GOP demands to know who called the fire department." ~ Tweet by former world chess champion Gary Kasparov

2017/03/20 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon about method of paying for Trump's wall (1) Cartoon of the day: Paying for the wall.
(2) Modern Persian music: Hooniak Band performs Ahmad Ashourpour's "Norooz Waltz."
(3) Iranian-Americans pay a visit to the homeless in Los Angeles, treating them to music, dance, and food!
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day (Trump edition):
- FBI Director confirms months-long probe of Trump-Russia ties
- FBI and DoJ have no evidence that Obama wiretapped Trump
- NSA denies that the British helped Obama spy on Trump
- It's scary that during a national crisis, no one will believe Trump
- Trump likely to change 3 key gun laws within the next month
- German defense ministry denies that it owes NATO money
(5) Paul Ryan is being tested and the results are less than stellar: He was collected and eloquent in opposition, but now that he is in a position of power, he seems clueless. In fairness to him, having to defend Trumpism would take its toll on anyone!
(6) Quote of the day: "Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed." ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower [Eisenhower was considered an establishment candidate, while Trump is viewed as an outsider populist. Go figure!]
(7) Instead of faulting the "Deep State," focus on the "Shallow Man"! [The New Yorker]
(8) Engineer with a 30-year distinguished career terminated when she complained about a bullying attack and intense sexual language from the Executive Director of a University of Southern California institute. The case of Nathalie Gosset, a very active IEEE volunteer, has been supported by thousands of engineers (including yours truly) and by women's rights activist Gretchen Carlson.
(9) Final thought for the day: As I watched the movie "Arrival," which is about an alien mass-landing on Earth, with a brilliant linguist establishing contact and figuring out their intentions, I kept wondering how the story might have gone if the landing happened in the US during Trump's presidency. Aliens from outer space are, by definition, illegal!

2017/03/19 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
B. Parhami's Norooz poem containing a message in the initials of its quarter-verses (1) Wishing everyone a happy Norooz and Iranian New Year with this poem: Each year, I compose a cheerful poem to mark the arrival of Norooz, spring, and the Iranian New Year. In prior years, my compositions spelled a message via the initial letters of verses or half-verses. This year, I decided to challenge myself further by having the initials in quarter-verses ("nim-mesra'e") also be part of the message. Reading downward, from right to left, the initials spell "NOROOZ | SAAL-E NO | BAR HAMEH | MOBAARAK" (Persian for "Happy Norooz and New Year to All").
(2) Donald Trump finally pays a price for his loose-cannon of a mouth: His travel ban was struck down, twice, on the basis of his and his associates' hateful speech during the presidential campaign.
(3) Angela Merkel is the new de facto leader of the free world: "The thrice-elected, soft-spoken former scientist from East Germany, armed with a doctorate in quantum chemistry, doesn't just carry the weight of Germany and Europe on her shoulders, but that of defending freedom and liberalism across the world."
(4) Angela Merkel with US Presidents: These three photos are worth 3000 words, at least! What happened to the German blood Trump was so proud of, referring to it as "good stuff"?
(5) Best companies to work for: The top three are Google, Wegmans Food Markets, and The Boston Consulting Group. Other tech companies among the top 100 include Intuit (13), Nvidia (39), Adobe (60), Cisco (67), Autodesk (71), Cadence (81), TEKsystems (83), and AT&T (93). Somewhat surprisingly, quite a few healthcare providers and several hotel chains appear in the top 100.
(6) Crossing the Atlantic on a paddleboard: Chris Bertish accomplished the unprecedented feat in 93 days.
(7) What a difference a tiny apostrophe can make: "Love Trumps Hate" versus "Love Trump's Hate"
(8) Strawberries top the list of dirtiest produce: There goes my favorite fruit! Spinach placed second on the list of produce with the most pesticide residue. Sweet corn and avocado were at the opposite end of the spectrum, meaning that they are the least pesticide-contaminated. [Source: Time magazine, issue of March 27, 2017]
(9) Final thought for the day and the Iranian year 1395: Norooz mobaarak! I received this Norooz song from several good friends a couple of weeks ago. It is no longer too early to share it; in fact, it is just the right time!

2017/03/18 (Saturday): Maisel, L. Sandy, American Political Parties and Elections: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, 2nd ed., 2016.
Cover image for Oxford's American olitical Parties and Elections: A Very Short Introduction I have been living in the US continuously for more than 26 years (31 years, if I count my student days in the early 1970s). Yet, until very recently, I had paid little attention to how the country's political system works. The 2016 election stoked my interest and I decided to fill the holes in my knowledge. Like other books in Oxford's "A Very Short Introduction" series, this book packs a lot of information in its 179 pocket-size pages. The descriptions and examples are enlightening.
Let me begin by listing the titles of the seven chapters, which are followed by 15 pages of references and further readings.
Chapter 1. The Context of American Elections and Political Parties
Chapter 2. A Brief History of American Political Parties
Chapter 3. Party Organizations: What Do They Look Like? What Do They Do?
Chapter 4. Who Are Republicans? Who Are Democrats? Who Are the "Others"?
Chapter 5. Presidential Elections: Nominating Campaigns and General Elections
Chapter 6. Subnational Nominations and Elections
Chapter 7. Far from the Perfect Democracy
The United States differs from other democracies in the peculiar way it chooses presidential candidates, in the Electoral College system for electing its leader, in the relatively low levels of voter turnout, and in its political system that so strongly favors the Republican and Democratic parties that outsiders have little chance of being elected to office.
Early parties were Federalists and Democratic-Republicans. In his first inaugural address, Thomas Jefferson famously said: "Every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle ... We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists." The Democratic Party was established first, with the Republican Party emerging in the 1850s as a major alternative. Abraham Lincoln, elected in 1860, was the first President from the new party.
Resentment to the Republican Lincoln led to the Democrats making inroads in the Southern states, a dominance that did not end until fairly recently. In 1960, all 22 Southern Senators and 99 of the 106 representatives were Democrats, whereas in 2014, 19 of the 22 Senators and 104 of the 143 representatives were Republicans. The Democratic dominance in the South was chipped at, first by Barry Goldwater and later, by Richard Nixon. The Vietnam War also prompted many Democrats to shift parties.
Later, the credos of the two parties, and thus their followers, underwent significant changes. Roosevelt's New Deal Coalition brought him the support of the unions, as the Republicans became the favorites of big business and the affluent. When women got the right to vote in 1920, following earlier state recognition of this right, the opposition included party leaders, union bosses, the liquor industry, the Catholic Church, and big business.
The Electoral College system, one of the mysteries of our system of democracy, was devised as a compromise that would ensure the election of a desired leader (George Washington), as the country was being shaped by its founders. Electoral College reform, though deemed necessary and discussed from time to time, has seen little action. If anomalies and the associated concerns of the Bush-versus-Gore 2000 election led to no action, it is unlikely that we will see reform in the foreseeable future. We recently witnessed similar problems in the 2016 election, which occurred after the publication of this book and will likely provide examples and case studies for the book's next edition.
In the early 20th century, the nomination authority was taken away from party bosses and given to the people through primary elections. At about the same time, parties began electing leaders for their congressional delegations and offered organized support or opposition to the President's agenda. Legislators from the two parties tend to vote as a block, with little dissent. The Congressional Quarterly Service computes a Party Unity Score for each Senator and Representative. In recent sessions of the Congress, the average unity score has been over 90% for both parties. An ironic fact is that despite widespread dissatisfaction with members of Congress, incumbents tend to be reelected at very high rates.
Imagine a bell-shape curve that reflects the distribution of the electorate, from the extreme left to the extreme right. The bulk of general-election voters are in the center. Party activists tend to be from the fringes. Primary voters tend to be less extreme, but still significantly to the left or right of the center. This is why moderate candidates don't have a good chance of being nominated, particularly in closed primary elections where only members of the party are allowed to vote. Of course, neither of the major US parties has a formal membership mechanism and party affiliation is determined through self-identification.
In recent years, voters self-identifying as independents have constituted 40% of the electorates (compared with Democrats' 35% and Republicans' 25%). Yet, very few independent Senators and Representatives have ever been elected. Independent voters tend to be either very informed and highly concerned, or quite uninformed and unconcerned, with few in-betweens.
In the concluding chapter 7, five criticisms of our imperfect political system are offered as food for thought. These are the low level of participation (the US is in the bottom fifth of democracies sorted by voter turnout), the irrationality of the presidential nomination and election processes, the cost and extent of political campaigns, the lack of competitive elections at many levels, and the acerbic political discourse.
[Read my review on GoodReads]

2017/03/17 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Photo of my Norooz spread, aka haft-seen (1) My Norooz spread (haft-seen): This year, I set it up in my study, where I spend much of my time and thus can enjoy it more. A little over two days left to saal-tahvil and the start of the Iranian New Year 1396, at 3:28:40 AM PDT on Monday, March 20.
(2) Scottish bagpipe music: Nearly identical to Kurdish music! I wonder which came first? Happy Saint Patrick's Day!
(3) Trump's proposed budget would cripple US science and technology, according to AAAS, the world's largest scientific membership organization.
(4) Presidential science advisor speaks up on Trump's budget.
(5) List of science/tech initiatives facing cuts or elimination in Trump's proposed budget.
(6) Power grab: Mary Beard, on the many inappropriate metaphors we all use to describe women gaining positions of power. [Video]
(7) Another foggy afternoon in Goleta: Today's cool and breezy weather made it ideal for long-distance walking. Surfers (two, barely visible in the back of this photo) and paddle-boarders did not seem to be deterred by the fog. Ane here are 15 more photos from this afternoon's walk. There's the obligatory selfie, different kinds of flowers, majestic trees, one of my favorite oceanfront benches, and, of course, surf and surfers.
(8) The great cartoon cliches: Bob Mankoff, cartoon editor for the New Yorker, reportedly set to retire soon, has compiled this exhaustive (and for him, no doubt, exhausting) list of cliches forming the basis of many cartoons.
Abominable snowman | Airport security line | Aliens arrive on Earth | Alien abductions | Asking directions | Atlas holding up the world | Banana peels | Beached whales | Bed of nails | Bedtime story | Big fish eating little fish | Bird versus worm | Bowling pin versus bowling ball | Burglars in masks | Cat versus mouse | Cave paintings | Centaurs | Chalk outline at crime scene | Chicken and egg | Cinderella | Cloud watching and identifying | Comedy and tragedy masks | Counting sheep | Couple caught cheating in bed | Couple on house during a flood | Crash-test dummies | Crawling through desert | Desert island | Easter bunny | Easter Island heads | Equations on blackboard | Eskimos | Evolution | Fountain of youth | Funeral-parlor viewing | Galley slaves | God looking at Earth | Goldilocks | Good cop, bad cop | Greeting cards | Guillotine | Guru on mountain | Hansel and Gretel | Mobsters and victim with cement shoes | Humpty Dumpty | Husband behind newspaper at breakfast | Invention of fire | Invention of the wheel | Judges | King Arthur's Knights of the Round Table | Lawyer reading will | Life-raft survivors | Light-bulb idea | Little Engine That Could | Little Red Riding Hood | Lover hiding in closet | Man in stocks | Marriage counselors | Mazes | Men working | Men's Club codgers | Mental undressing | Mermaid on rock | Metal detector | Military round table | Moby-Dick | Modern art | Moses parting the Red Sea | Moses and the Ten Commandments | Mother-in-law | Mountain climbers | Murphy beds | Napoleon | Noah's Ark | Nudists | Operating theatre | Panhandling | Patent office | Pinocchio | Pirates' buried treasure | Police lineup | Rapunzel | Robin Hood | Robots | Rubik's cube | Sandcastles | Scarlet letter | School of fish with leader | Sisyphus | Snails | Snow White | Song lyrics as captions | St. Bernard rescue dog | St. Peter | Stargazing | Star constellations | Statues | Stock-market graph | Superman / Batman / superheroes | Talking trees | The-End-Is-Nigh Guy | The Thinker | This Side Up box | Three Little Pigs | Tombstone | Traffic cop pulling over speeding motorist | Trojan horse | Tunnel of Love | Turtle and Hare | TV weather forecasts | Two guys in a horse costume | Umpires | Volcanoes showing that the gods are angry | Voting booths | Vultures | Walking the plank | Weather forecasters | Why did the chicken cross the road | William Tell | Wishing Well | Witch's broom | Witch's cauldron | Woman trying on shoes | You-are-here map | Zeus throwing lightning bolts | Zzzzz (sleeping)

2017/03/16 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing the GOP devolution: Lincoln, Nixon, Trump (1) Cartoon of the day: GOP de-evolution.
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Trump's proposed budget entails major cuts for science agencies
- Trump's new travel ban order blocked by federal judges in two states
- Trump may have divulged classified information on Fox News
- Vibrator-maker fined for covert tracking of users' activities
- Trumpcare seems to be headed for defeat in the US Senate
- Congressional Intelligence Committees refute Trump's bugging claim
(3) Mount Etna erupts: The active volcano erupted while many tourists and journalists were in its vicinity. Fortunately, no one died, but flying debris injured 10.
(4) Quote of the day: "Whoever befriends Baha'is is considered to be a Baha'i." ~ Iran's General Naghdi
[Oops, I have several Baha'i friends, so the Revolutionary Guards can kill me as a Jew or as a Baha'i, whichever is more convenient for them! And in the US, I can get in trouble for having many Muslim friends!]
(5) Con artist: One of the early warnings about Donald Trump.
(6) It's now year 105 in North Korea: Their calendar starts from the birth of Dear Leader, who still rules the country, even after his death. [Ten shocking facts about NK]
(7) UCSB Jazz Ensemble, under the direction of Jon Nathan: Last night's concert, entitled "East Meets West," featured selections from East-Coast and West-Coast jazz, separated by an intermission. In this selection from East-Coast Jazz, Reno Behnken offers a wonderful improvisational piano performance within Bob Brookmeyer's "Ding Dong Ding." This selection from West-Coast jazz contains part of Sonny Rollins' "St. Thomas."
(8) Final thought for the day: "Great nations write their autobiographies in three manuscripts—the book of their deeds, the book of their words, and the book of their art." ~ John Ruskin

2017/03/14 (Tuesday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Berry/cherry pie for Pi day (1) Happy Pi Day (3/14)! Did you know that the official animal of Pi Day is the Pi-thon?
(2) Happy Chaharshanbeh Soori (fire-jumping festival, held on the evening of the last Tuesday of the Persian year, before Norooz) to all my Iranian friends!
(3) Quote of the day: "I think there are moments that demand a response, not because you're a public figure but because you're a human being." ~ Actress Ann Hathaway, UN goodwill ambassador advocating for parental leave, when asked if she felt responsibility as a public figure to speak out politically
(4) Final thought for the day: Distractions help Trump and cost us money. Several times a week, Donald Trump distracts us from more important issues, such as his shady business dealings and conflicts of interest, via his carefully-timed, outrageous tweets. As we pay attention to his claims of wire-tapping by Obama and listen to endless discussion of the story by talking heads on TV, hundreds of bills are being quietly introduced to eliminate this or that watchdog agency, cut funding for numerous programs, eliminate life-saving regulations, cut taxes for the rich, put giant holes in the social safety net, and generally redistribute money from the poor and middle-class Americans to the rich and super-rich. Meanwhile, all the lost productivity as a result of spending time on the discussion of worthless issues is costing us money. Each hour of time spent on listening to lies and the spin that follows to explain and justify them, when multiplied by the number of Americans who waste that time (taken away from work, leisure, family activities, and the like) has a hidden cost of many millions of dollars per day. Add this cost to the money wasted on providing security for the Trump Tower in New York City, weekly golfing trips to Florida, and many other aspects of an imperial presidency, and the sum easily exceeds all the "savings" claimed by the administration.

2017/03/13 (Monday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Photo of pedestrian crossing lights, featuring female figures (1) Female figures on pedestrian signs: Melbourne, Australia, is testing the use of female figures on pedestrian crossing lights as a way of reducing unconscious bias. [Source: Time magazine, issue of March 20, 2017]
(2) Cartoon caption of the day [Woman buying movie tickets at a box office]: "One senior and one refuses to accept he's a senior."
(3) Quote of the day: "Feminism is not a stick with which to beat other women. It's about freedom, it's about liberation, it's about equality." ~ Actress Emma Watson, responding to those who criticized her for posing in a revealing top for Vanity Fair
(4) Pentatonix performs John Lennon's "Imagine" and spells out its message (5-minute video).
(5) Final thought for the day: Today, as I walked home from work, it was foggy along the beach and crashing waves presented a mesmerizing soundtrack to an otherwise unremarkable day (weatherwise). Yet, as I think about the blizzard conditions in the Midwest and East Coast of our country, I realize that the weather in California is something to be cherished, not complained about.

2017/03/12 (Sunday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon about Snapchat's IPO (1) Cartoon of the day: Snapchat IPO. [Credit: E & T magazine]
(2) I was in West Los Angeles yesterday and today, first to attend last evening's UCLA Iranian Student Group's Culture Show at UCLA's Freud Playhouse (my daughter was performing) and then to participate in today's Farhang-Foundation-sponsored Norooz celebration at UCLA's Royce Hall and its adjacent Dickson Court. Here is one of the many explanations of the Persian Norooz Festival.
(3) Uplifting T-shirt message, displayed by a little girl: Forget princess, I want to be an astrophysicist.
(4) Humans and beasts: A scene from an Islamic-State-controlled area. The beasts are in the back, in case you are wondering!
(5) UCLA Iranian Student Group's Culture Show: The annual show, consisting of music and dance performances, along with skit and stand-up comedy, was performed last night and tonight, a few weeks ahead of its schedule in prior years. Guest performers included the rock band Chenar [Video 1], Sibarg Ensemble playing traditional Persian music [Video 2] [Video 3] [Video 4], and stand-up comedian Amir K. Student and alumni performances included an Arabic belly dance [Video 5], a traditional-style Iranian medley dance [Video 6], Baba-Karam-style group dances [Video 7] [Video 8], and a finale group dance to "Ronak," a piece by the famed Iranian violinist Bijan Mortazavi [Video 9].
(6) Walking in Westwood, before going to the Norooz celebration at UCLA: These photos show two historic movie theaters and a building that used to be a Bank of America branch 45 years ago, when I roamed these streets as a graduate student.
(7) Some of the more interesting UCLA buildings en route from Westwood Village to the Norooz celebration venue near Royce Hall. [Photos]
(8) Norooz celebration at UCLA: The Farhang-Foundation-sponsored event, held at LACMA in the past few years, has found a new home at UCLA's Royce Hall and its adjacent Dickson Court. As I approached the venue, I recorded my walk and the sound of Kurdish music permeating the area [Video 1]. The same music and dance group performed later during the afternoon [Video 2]. The talented singer/songwriter Ziba Shirazi had an interative performance, which included this song about Norooz khaneh-takooni (spring cleaning) [Video 3]. The last part of the program for me was a Norooz costume parade, in which colorful costumes, both traditional and modern, were on display [Video 4].

2017/03/10 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Persian calligraphic art depicting a verse from a poem (1) Persian calligraphic art by Ebrahim Zeinali, featuring a verse of a poem by Ali Azarshahi.
(2) NEA dead at 52: National Endowment for the Arts has passed away, victim of an apparent homicide. "Arts? I know of no such thing," exclaimed the murder suspect. [Obituary]
(3) March for Science is getting more important by the day: Clueless administration officials have begun their Quixotic fight against science and scientists.
(4) Voting records of the two major parties in the US on a variety of issues: Show these charts to anyone who claims there is no difference between the Democrats and the Republicans.
(5) UCSB choirs in concert: Tonight, I attended an enjoyable concert by UCSB's Women's Chorus and UCSB's Chamber Choir, held at Trinity Episcopal Church on State Street. The program consisted mostly of German pieces (by Franz Schubert, Johannes Brahms, Felix Mendelssohn, Hugo Wolf, and Hugo Distler), with Six Chansons (in French, Paul Hindemith) thrown in. Before the concert, I had a pleasant walk in downtown Santa Barbara. [Downtown SB, at night]
(6) Cyber-security: Education Department and IRS shut down a key FAFSA link, which allowed applicants to directly download information about their parents' tax returns from IRS, over concerns for security.
(7) My colleague, UCSB ECE Professor Yasamin Mostofi, recognized for ground-breaking research: In being awarded IEEE Control System Society's Antonio Ruberti Young Researcher Prize, Mostofi was cited for her "contributions to the fundamentals of communications and control co-optimization in mobile sensor networks."
(8) Biblical king's palace uncovered beneath shrine destroyed by IS: There is a Persian saying to the effect that "even an enemy can do you some good, if God so wills." The tomb of Prophet Jonah in Mosul, wich was destroyed by Islamic State thugs in 2014, was sitting atop the long-hidden palace of ancient Assyrian King Sennacherib. As an expert characterizes the damage to the site, including some tunnels that were dug by IS for looting, but which are now in danger of collapsing, "we will lose a place where Iraq's ancient, medieval and modern cultural heritage rests one above the other."
(9) Final thought for the day: On the occasion of the 2017 International Women's Day (a couple of days ago), this essay and video show a vast array of pejorative and condescending Persian terms used to insult and put down women.

2017/03/09 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Map showing territories lost and gained by Iran over the past two centuries (1) Iran's territorial changes in the 19th and 20th centuries.
(2) Both AMA and AARP vehemently oppose the American Health Care Act, the Republicans' proposed replacement for the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare).
(3) Rotten to the core: The details of Trump's connection to Russia will emerge in due course. But for now, The New Yorker has revealed the US President's ties to a shady deal in Azerbaijan, which was engineered by oligarchs tied to Iran's Revolutionary Guards.
(4) The truth-challenged President: "It is no coincidence that the rise of Trump is concurrent with the rise of 'fake news.' It is no coincidence that his rise comes during an age of severely damaged faith in institutions." [From: New York Times]
(5) House Speaker Paul Ryan is trying to shove a hastily prepared, and widely opposed, health care plan down everyone's throat: Using PowerPoint slides, he threatened his fellow Republicans by implying that it's now or never. He indicated this is their only chance to repeal and replace Obamacare, a promise they have made over multiple election cycles.
(6) On DJT's mental health [thanks to Ken Collier]: "Mental illness does not need to be professionally diagnosed. We don't need to be told by a doctor that the guy coughing and sneezing at the other end of the train car is probably sick, though we don't know if it is a cold, the flu, bronchitis, pneumonia, or an allergy ... When someone is compulsively lying, continuously contradicting himself, imploring the approval of people even as he is attacking them, exalting people one day and abusing and vilifying them the next, then the question of his mental state is moot. The safe thing to do is not just to stay away from him, but to keep him away from situations where he can do harm." [From: Psychology Today]
(7) Limo for the 99%: This photo will resonate with those who have lived in the pre-revolution Iran.
(8) Exploring Goleta's open spaces: I thought I had seen all of the open spaces in my area during my many long walks. Today, walking from the Camino Real Marketplace towards Ellwood Beach, I passed through a previously unexplored open space. Beautiful sunny days, after a long period of rain, are making it easy for me to get back into my daily walking habit. [Photos]

2017/03/08 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Logo for International Women's Day (1) Happy International Women's Day: This year's event uses the hashtag #BeBoldForChange. Women's rights are being threatened under the new US administration. But women activists are off to a good start in confronting sexist policies and institutionalized misogyny, beginning with Women's March on Washington on January 21. An interesting phenomenon is occurring; I have never seen women's causes supported by so many men! Perhaps threats from the Trump administration will lead to an acceleration of women's rights advances.
(2) Girl confronting the Wall Street Bull: A powerful statement on the 107th International Women's Day.
(3) Metamorphosis: Actress Sophia Loren's transformation, over the years.
(4) A wonderful instrumental (guitar) cover of "Careless Whisper": Tribute to George Michael.
(5) Taking the beach path home again: This time, the medium-low tide did allow me to go all the way to Coal Oil Point and, from there, home via the Slough Road. I did have to time my sprints around a couple of bends, so as to get across between two large waves. In one instance, I walked on rocks behind a partially broken sea wall. It was a summer-like beach day, with plenty of bathers and surfers around. Look for the moon in the photo with a broken tree. [Photos]
(6) Cartoon of the day: "Everyone will be covered." [Image]
(7) Noon mini-concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: UCSB Gospel Choir performed today. Here is a short sample from their music.
(8) Honoring a retiring colleague: Yesterday, following the monthly faculty lunch get-together, our Department hosted a reception to honor Professor Larry Rabiner, a world-renowned expert in digital signal processing and speech processing, who is retiring after 15 years at UCSB. Larry, who joined us as a part-time faculty member after his first retirement from Bell Labs, is seen in this photo with Department Chair, Professor Joao Hespanha.
(9) [Final thought for the day] Trump's continuous lying is getting out of hand: It is hard to believe that the President's apologists, when asked about his almost daily lies, refer to his "unusual communication style," which they consider refreshing. Since when is lying blatantly and publicly an acceptable communication style?

2017/03/07 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo collage of female Nobel Laureates (1) Women who changed the world: In anticipation of International Women's Day, tomorrow. [Slide show]
(2) As a first step for turning destructive conflict situations into constructive ones, each of us should pledge to broaden our news sources. I do!
(3) Handwritten Divan-e Hafez discovered: The 700-year-old manuscript, which is signed by Shah Jahan, contains a previously unpublished ghazal.
(4) SpaceX will send private citizens to orbit the moon in 2018.
(5) Iranian music: Pop music star Andy performing a modern Persian tune with La Toya Jackson.
(6) Former President Barack Obama: "In politics and in life, ignorance is not a virtue ... The rejection of facts, the rejection of science—that is the path to decline." [2-minute video]
(7) Today at Goleta's Coal Oil Point: The waves were puny on this gorgeous afternoon, with a clear view of the Channel Islands, yet a few die-hard surfers tried to ride them. Returning home from my walk, I was greeted by these wonderfully fragrant jasmines on my carport trellis.
(8) Yanni plays the piano: Given the ongoing heated political debates, I have not had much in way of musical posts of late. Here is Yanni's "Marching Season" from the album "Winter Light" [6-minute audio file]. Having rediscovered this song, I searched YouTube for other Yanni songs, and here are links to some of what I found (5- to 8-minute videos). Enjoy! ["The Rain Must Fall"] ["End of August"] ["The Storm"] ["World Dance"] ["Playtime"] ["Violin vs. Saxophone"]
(9) Underwater data centers being seriously considered by Microsoft: Such submerged data centers can be less expensive to build and operate, primarily due to lower energy and cooling costs. [Source: IEEE Spectrum magazine, issue of March 2017]

Cover image for 'The Invisible Gorilla' 2017/03/06 (Monday): Book review: Chabris, Christopher and Daniel Simons, The Invisible Gorilla, and Other Ways Our Intuitions Deceive Us, unabridged audiobook on 8 CDs, read by Dan Woren, Random House Audio, 2010.
[My 4-star review on GoodReads]
According to Chabris and Simons, six illusions deceive us on a daily basis. They are known as illusions of attention, memory, confidence, knowledge, cause, and potential. These illusions are ingrained in our intuitions and thus impossible to eradicate.
The illusion of attention is demonstrated through one of the best-known psychological experiments ever. Subjects are asked to watch a video of basketball players practicing and to count the number of passes (aerial or bounce) thrown by members of the team wearing white jerseys, who are intermixed with other players wearing black outfits. At some point during the video, a person in a gorilla costume enters the scene, stays around for a short while, and finally leaves. About half of the subjects totally miss the gorilla, whose presence would be very obvious if you were just watching the video without focusing on counting the number of passes. Our attention is quite limited and when we focus it on a task that is important to us, we miss a lot of other things.
The inattention to details in favor of what is more important is actually a helpful trait of the human mind. In July 2012, I read and reviewed the 2011 book Annoying: The Science of What Bugs Us (by J. Palca and F. Lichtman) in which the NPR journalists review the social and genetic factors in annoyance, noting that one way to fight annoyance is to take advantage of your capacity for "intentional blindness." If you are scanning the rows of a theater for an open seat, you may walk by a close friend without noticing him, even if he waves at you. You are so focused on the task of finding a seat that you tune everything else out. So, when something annoys you, don't dwell on it. Instead, focus on your goals.
The illusion of memory is equally fascinating. Our memories fade over time, not just by losing intensity and details but by being merged with our beliefs, desires, and interests and being influenced by other things we see or hear. In other words, many a time, we remember events as we want or wish them to have happened. We remember events as parts of stories we construct and within such stories, we sometimes incorporate cause-effect relationships that simply aren't there. We may even think that something we heard about another person's experiences actually happened to us. A good demo for the illusion of memory is the number of defendants who have been exonerated (or released after being wrongly jailed), based on evidence that conflicted with eyewitness accounts placing them at crime scenes.
The illusion of confidence needs little elaboration. Even the least informed among us argue with self-assurance about topics we don't know much about, and we would accept offers of jobs whose requirements are way above our abilities.
The illusions of knowledge and potential are similar in that they lead us to believe we know more than we do or our potential is higher than it is. We seldom question our knowledge or its sources and we think we are better than we actually are in a variety of domains. These illusions lead a vast majority of people to think they are above average in their knowledge, skills (such as driving), and even looks.
I mentioned the illusion of cause when discussing memory. We store facts and figures not as individual items but as parts of narratives or stories we construct. Our brains are wired to manufacture stories and to insert cause-effect relationships into narratives. When such a superfluous cause is weaved into the narrative that we store, it compromises our accurate recall of events. It also hinders our ability to be a smart consumer and a responsible citizen. We tend to buy into stories that babies listening to certain kinds of music or to "Baby Einstein" tapes will develp to be smarter or that solving Soduku or crossword puzzles improves our brain health at old age. In fact, while solving such puzzles will make us better at solving those specific puzzles, there is no evidence that they help improve general brain functions or even the ability to solve other kinds of puzzles. Physical activity is still the best way of ensuring the health of the brain, along with other parts of the human body.
It is unlikely that we can change traits that are hardwired into our brains. The next best thing is to be aware of our shortcomings and to compensate for them when making decisions. These traits aren't signs of stupidity or incompetence: each of them developed for very good reasons in the course of human evolution. The fact that they are misleading us at this time in only a sign that our slow evolutionary development lags the demands placed on us by a faster-moving cultural development.

2017/03/05 (Sunday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cartoon, showing a Coast Guard boat approaching the Mayflower Cartoon showing Trump building a wall from pieces of Lady Liberty (1) Cartoons of the day.
(2) Azeri music and dance, from Iran's northwestern region.
(3) Spelling bee humor: Iranian-American Comedian Maz Jobrani apparently agrees with how I have been spelling Norooz for many years. A little over two weeks left to Norooz and the Iranian New Year!
(4) Rube Goldberg machines: I went to Santa Monica Pier this afternoon to see displays of Rube Goldberg machines (silly contraptions that sometimes go through dozens of motions of balls, levers, and other mechanical parts to accomplish a simple task). The high winds had caused many participants to pack up and leave, so we saw only one operational machine. There was also a booth displaying a machine that extracted water from the air, producing 1.5 gallons per hour, using only solar energy. Afterwards, we took a stroll on Santa Monica's Third-Street Promenade, where I enjoyed the works of several street musicians. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]
(5) Today's UCLA lecture on Iran: Speaking in Persian, with English-language slides, under the title "Iran-China Relations in a Changing World," Dr. Manochehr Dorraj (Professor of International Affairs, Texas Christian University) covered the historical background, current state, and future prospects of the sensitive and important ties between two radically different countries, one a large, powerful, communist/capitalist hybrid and the other a struggling economy under theocratic rule.
Iran and china have had a cordial and mutually beneficial relationship ever since they were both threatened by the Mongols. Persian-speaking Muslims moved to western China long ago, which now has a Muslim population of around 30 million, mostly Sunnis. They are, for the most part, well-integrated into the Chinese society. Iran of the Pahlavi era, having been in the sphere of influence of the US, became antagonistic toward China when the US-Chinese relations soured. Similarly, when Nixon went to China to start a new chapter between the two countries, Iran followed suit.
After the Islamic Revolution, Iran's deteriorating relationship with the West created an opening for China to expand its trade in the Middle East region, while providing a "lifeboat" for the Iranian regime, which could not obtain its strategic supplies from previous sources. In 2002, China began pursuing energy resources worldwide, via long-term contracts. China is highly sensitive to energy security, without which its desired high rate of economic growth cannot be sustained. Because China is aiming to replace coal with the cleaner natural gas as part of its efforts to combat air pollution, an alliance with Iran, the world's top natural gas supplier, was in its strategic interest.
On the military front, China has been supplying much of Iran's needed arms, either directly or indirectly (through North Korea), and also helped Iran with developing its nuclear capabilities. Later, it turned out, the Chinese exposed Iran's advanced state of nuclear development and, at least partially, collaborated with the West on punishing Iran for it.
Since 2007, China has been Iran's top trading partner. By 2015, trade between the two countries had exceeded $50 billion. More recently, the two countries have expressed their desire to expand trade more than ten-fold to $600 billion annually by 2020, a goal that is deemed unrealistic. The Western sanctions over Iran's nuclear program drove Iran further into the arms of China, a country that is trying to pull off a difficult balancing act in its relations with the US (a much larger and more important trading partner at $700 billion annually) and with Iran (a key energy supplier for China).
The China-Iran connection is perilous, mainly because of its asymmetry, with China having an enormous leverage over Iran. Two possible scenarios can be foreseen for the two countries. If the US-Iran tensions escalate, China will benefit much more than Russia. The former Soviet Union had a tenuous relationship with Iran, so Iranians view Russia with suspicion, whereas China, having been geographically distant from Iran and lacking a history of border or other disputes, can come in with a relatively clean slate. On the other hand, if Iran continues on its current path of improving relations with the West, expanding trade with Europe (a historically favored trading partner), relations with China will develop at a slower pace.
There are many important developments arising from the expanded trade between China and countries in the Middle East (Iran and Israel in particular). The Chinese have a vision of resurrecting the Silk Road (both on land and through the seas) in order to facilitate trade with the Middle East and Europe. Increased trade via waterways, raises the need for ensuring the safety of shipping lanes in the Indian Ocean, perhaps explaining increased activity by China to beef up its military presence in international waters.
[P.S.: It is interesting to speculate about the impact of the new US administration policies, which are more antagonistic towards both Iran and China, on the future relationships of the two countries.]
[One of the forthcoming events in the UCLA Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran, planned for Sunday, May 21, is a symposium to honor the late Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami. Several speakers and discussants (list to be announced) will participate.]

2017/03/04 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cover of 'Der Spiegel,' issue of March 4, 2017 (1) The cover of Der Spiegel, issue of March 4, 2017: The German caption under the image means "The Double-Agent."
Note added on 3/07: A German-speaking reader of my blog has sent me a corrected caption and added a translation of the sub-caption. Here it is. "Double-Regent: How Much of Putin is There Inside Trump?"
(2) California's new cyber-crime lab: The California National Guard, San Louis Obispo County District Attorney's office, and Cal Poly have partnered to open the new Central Coast Cyber Forensic Lab, which offers everything law enforcement agencies need to uncover and safeguard critical digital evidence. [Source: San Luis Obispo Tribune]
(3) The man who used his privilege to get five draft deferments during the Vietnam War and never served in the US military now pretends to be a military man.
(4) A high school biology teacher's response to a pseudoscientific explanation to justify bigotry.
(5) Romancing the wind: Eighty-something Canadian man flies three kites, controlling them with his two arms and his waist/torso. Watch the amazing landings at the end!
(6) Our President's parallel universes: During the day, he tries to act like a commander-in-chief (with mixed success), but after midnight, he descends into a parallel universe of delirium and childish reactions. In an early-morning tweet-storm between 3:35 AM and 4:02 AM, Trump accused Obama of wire-tapping the Trump Tower in the weeks leading to Election Day.
(7) Donald J. Trump wins "The Least Racist Person Ever Award"!
(8) Political humor: "The Apprentice" terminated due to poor ratings. President Trump considering sending troops to NBC.
(9) Gloria Steinem in Santa Barbara: This icon of women's rights movement, presented a lecture on March 2 at the Arlington Theater, with the overflow crowd accommodated at UCSB's Campbell Hall via closed-circuit TV.

2017/03/03 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon about Trump's address to the joint session of the US Congress (1) Cartoon of the day: Trump's address to a joint session of Congress.
(2) Quote of the day: "Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed. Everything else is public relations." ~ George Orwell
(3) Hypocritical quote of the day: "My two core principles: Buy American. Hire American." ~ Donald J. Trump [Photo showing "Made in China" label on an item from DJT's Signature Collection]
(4) Types of recyclable plastic and their proper use and disposal.
(5) Soprano Monika Jalili accompanied by Montreal Symphony: A beautiful rendition of the Iranian folk song "Jaan-e Maryam" ("Dear Maryam").
(6) Fake poetry: In this age of fake news, another form of fakery is threatening a long, wonderful tradition of Persian poetry. Hardly a day goes by that I do not see a fake, juvenile poem attributed to Rumi (Mowlavi), Forough Farrokhzad, or Simin Behbahani. Ferdowsi's popularity and good name is also often used to spread nonsensical poems, such as this one, that some people share mindlessly, despite tell-tale signs of fakery, such as spelling and grammatical errors. On occasion, the poem attributed to Ferdowsi is structurally sound and even nice, but it was composed by someone else, hundreds of years later, in Ferdowsi's style. The person posting this particular fake poem often claims that it is a Ferdowsi poem that has been banned by the Islamic Republic authorities, which is apparently enough for some opponents of the ruling mullahs in Iran to fall for the narrative, given many actual instances of books, poems, songs, and other works of literature and art being banned. Please be vigilant in protecting our literary treasures.
(7) One-dozen brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Trump signs executive order to reverse Obama-era water protection rule (LA Times)
- Trump expected to sign executive order rolling back clean power plan (Bloomberg)
- Trump blames Obama as being behind protests against him (Marie Claire)
- VP Mike Pence used private e-mail while Indiana governor (Indianapolis Star)
- AG Sessions recuses himself from any future probe of Trump-Russia ties (Newsweek)
- Crews working to bring Oroville Dam's power plant back online (Sacramento Bee)
- Death of 6 Russian diplomats in 4 months sparks suspicion (The Independent)
- Russia reciprocates Trump's kindness by defending Jeff Sessions (Yahoo)
- Austrian court convicts 8 Iraqi nationals in tourist's gang rape (AP)
- US law enforcement searches a Caterpillar facility in Illinois over tax evasion (Reuters)
- Israeli military has told Netanyahu they can't win a war against Iran (CNN)
- Arab nations face a stark choice: Ally with Israel or with Iran (Newsweek)
(8) Iranian-American reporter Jason Rezaian on Trump's speech to Congress: He attended the congressional event and got a first-hand impression of what was said and who was there. He had watched Obama's 2016 SOTU speech from his cell in Iran's Evin Prison.
(9) Walking home along the beach path: Super-high tide made it impossible to advance at several spots, forcing me to backtrack and take the stairs to the top of the bluffs and go back to the beach where possible.

2017/03/02 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon depicting Firouz Naderi and Anousheh Ansari holding Asghar Farhadi's Oscar statue (1) Cartoon of the day: "Dear Asghar ... You know that we are banned from traveling to Iran. How do you want us to send you your Oscar?"
(2) On Trump's speech at the US Congress: "A lot of people are praising his 'shift in tone.' Yes, he shifted from 'unhinged narcissist' to 'hinged narcissist.'" ~ Stephen Colbert
(3) Iraq's Mosul Dam is an engineering disaster waiting to happen: "Built on porous gypsum and limestone, it keeps hundreds of workers busy round the clock, six days a week, pumping tons of cement into the sinkholes, cracks, and caves at its base just to maintain stability ... Should the dam fail, a huge tsunami-like wave would submerge nearby Mosul and in a few days inundate Baghdad. About 500,000 people could die." [From: Prism (ASEE magazine), issue of February 2017] [News story]
(4) This opinion piece addresses the question of why male authors are taken more seriously, even when they write about women. [Not a bad way to greet women's month and prepare for women's day on March 8.]
(5) Western feminists could do more to help women in Islamic countries reclaim their basic human rights: Wall Street Journal opinion piece by Darya Safai.
(6) A beautiful day in Santa Barbara: I shot this photo on the UCSB campus, on my way to attending a seminar. In the afternoon, I walked on the bluffs at UCSB's West Campus, shooting these photos of the ocean. Continuing inland, I was impressed by the lush greenery resulting from heavy February rains has added to the natural beauty of my neighborhood. The down side is that the overgrown vegetation will make for a more dangerous fire season, come September. Near the end of my afternoon walk, I shot this batch of photos that focus on the Devereux Slough wildlife preserve and its thriving bird population.
(7) Vying for the title of greatest library in the world: The Library of Pergamum in Turkey was built in the administrative center of Anatolia, an important city of the Hellenistic Greek age.
(8) University of California sexual harassment/assault stats by campus: This chart and the following UCSB info is from today's Daily Nexus. The six UCSB cases, occurring between April 2013 and November 2015, involved 1 professor, 2 lecturers, 1 faculty (unspecified), 1 staff member, and 1 police officer. According to Daily Bruin, UCLA had 25 cases of faculty, staff and employees who sexually harassed university community members between 2013 and 2016. Perpetrators included a former director of a prominent program at the UCLA School of Law, multiple staff members in the UCLA Health system, and a former chair of the Department of French and Francophone Studies.
(9) Fact-checking Trump: He told many lies and half-truths during his address to the Congress, although less so than in his previous speeches. The lies were also more polished, thanks to speech writers, and thus less obvious. Here is an example claim by Trump: "Ninety-four million Americans are out of the labor force."
Robert Reich responds: "Most of the people who are out of the labor force are retired, students, in jail, stay-at-home parents, or disabled. They aren't looking for work. Only about a quarter of the approximately 90 million people officially listed as being out of the labor force are able to get back in the job hunt if labor-market conditions were to improve."
[Trump has done this before, counting students, criminals, stay-at-home parents, those on disability leaves, retired individuals, and others who can't or don't want to work to inflate the unemployment rate.]

2017/03/01 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of ballerina and flowers in matching shapes and colors (1) What a beautifully composed and shot photo!
(2) George Clooney's acceptance speech, when accepting a film award in France: "We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home."
(3) The Oscar for best censorship in a live broadcast went to the Iranian media for covering up every inch of skin on female presenters and awardees!
(4) World's largest multi-use recreational trail network will soon open in Canada: In the making for 25 years (since 1992), the trail has more than 20,000 kilometers of paths through forests, tundra plains, and icy lakes, and it interconnects most major Canadian cities.
(5) Democratic women members of Congress wearing white to show their protest at today's address to Congress by Donald Trump.
(6) Noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: UCSB's Gamelan Ensemble played on a gorgeous spring-like day. I have posted music from this group before, so here I just offer a photo to show that the full group is appearing today in Indonesian costumes (perhaps they are using this event as a dress rehearsal for a concert), and a 1-minute video of a piece with Gamelan music and dancing. UCSB prides itself of its diverse ethnomusicology program.
(7) An informative 70-minute podcast: Sam Harris interviews Bush's speech-writer David Frum, one of the few conservatives who opposed Trump from the get-go and who still continues as a forceful critic of his inane policies. The interview is long but well worth the listen, as it touches upon a number of interesting and important points. For example, Frum is asked to state the most respectable case for defending Trump, to which he responds with three points: (1) Channeling the unhappiness of rural America with their economic and social conditions; (2) Attacking trade arrangements that were devised with fellow democracies or small economies in mind but that did not work well with giant partners like China; (3) Exploiting perceived problems with immigration policies and their costs to average citizens.
(8) Attorney General Jeff Sessions met with Russian officials twice during the campaign, but failed to disclose the meetings at his confirmation hearing.
(9) On a local hate group in Santa Barbara: Californians for Population Stabilization (CAPS) is a 31-year-old non-profit operating under the guise of environmental sustainability and economic equity, but judging by activities and the inclusion of two White Nationalists and a neo-Nazi among its senior staff, the anti-immigrant group pursues a different agenda. Fortunately, CAPS is the only one of the 79 California hate groups (up from 68 last year) that is based in Santa Barbara, according to an SPLC report.

2017/02/28 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Books arranged in a library to bring to mind Oscar night's last-minute flub (1) A librarian's sense of humor on display after the 2017 Oscars.
(2) Quote of the day: "Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity." ~ Horace Mann, American educational reformer and abolitionist [1796-1859]
(3) Where will America's Gulag be situated? Gulag was a system of labor camps maintained in the former Soviet Union for holding its political opponents from 1930 to 1955. Many people died in these camps, which were scattered throughout the USSR. North Korea has a similar system in place, as do several other dictatorships.
(4) The man who killed an Indian engineer and injured two others, thought he was hunting Iranians: And four days after the incident, there is still no tweet or other mention of the rampage by the bigot-in-chief, who is usually quick in pointing out real and imagined acts of violence by immigrants.
(5) Death Disrupted: This is the title of an article by Alexandra Sifferlin (part of a series of articles on longevity) in Time magazine's double-issue of February 27 and March 6, 2017. The article's subtitle, "How Silicon Valley is trying to hack its way to a much (much, much) longer life," is more descriptive of its content. Topics discussed in different sections include young-blood transfusions, data-mining your own DNA, antiaging superpills, brain drugs, and high-tech fasting diets.
(6) Half-dozen side facts about Sunday's Academy Awards ceremony: [Source: BBC]
- The final flub wasn't the presenters' fault but of a PwC accountant, who was distracted by tweeting
- Several winners talked against prejudice, travel bans, erecting walls, and anti-immigrant sentiments
- Trump told Breitbart News that the evening wasn't as glamorous as it used to be, and that is "sad"
- The prepared ending of the show, involving the host and Matt Damon, was scrubbed after the flub
- The US State Department posted a congratulatory tweet, later deleted, to Farhadi and people of Iran
- While still the most-popular non-sporting TV event, the show's rating was lowest in nearly a decade
(7) Farhadi's Oscar win in Iranian news reports: A member of Parliament faulted Farhadi for using a hijab-less woman as one of the two emissaries for accepting the award on his behalf. Iranian censors Photoshopped presenter Charlize Theron's arms and torso and the relatively modest amount of skin shown by Anousheh Ansari.
(8) Making America Empathetic Again: This was the title of tonight's public lecture at Santa Barbara's Lobero Theater, in which columnist, TV commentator, and Brookings Institution Fellow E. J. Dionne, Jr., made his case for combining activism with empathy. The lecture's subtitle, "The Struggle of the Next Four Years," hints at the need for activism and political engagement to ride out the storm. But these aren't enough, according to Dionne. He suggests that empathy, if not confined to people who happen to think like us, will go a long way to heal our destructive national divide. It is wrong to insult supporters of Trump, even if we think they are misguided or lack understanding of complex issues. We should put ourselves in their shoes and try to understand the hardships and fears that led them to support Trump. This UCSB Current article summarizes Dionne's viewpoints quite well. I just add a joke he told about Trump's view on religion and the Bible. An imaginary tweet from Trump on Jesus would read like this: "Jesus wasn't very good. It took him 3 days to rise from the dead. I could have done it in 3 hours, and come in under budget. Very weak!"
(9) Ending the Black History Month: This 5-year-old girl dressed up and posed as a different iconic black women, each day during the Black History Month.

2017/02/27 (Monday): Here are three items of potential interest.
Cover image for Yuval Noah Harari's 'Homo Deus' (1) A very interesting lecture on the new book Homo Deus: After a long day of teaching, office hours, and meetings, I attended an evening talk by Yuval Noah Harari, professor of history at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and author of the best-selling book Sapiens. As an early arriver at the lecture venue, I received a free copy of Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow (Harper Collins, 2017). The line for having the book signed by the author grew quite long rather quickly after the Q&A period, so I decided not to wait for the signature.
The theme of Harari's new book is that we are moving from the two previous stages of authority in human societies, that is, theism (listen to the Bible or some other holy book) and the more-recent humanism (listen to your feelings or inner voice), to what he calls dataism (listen to the data, that is, to Google and Amazon). In other words, authority is now shifting from human beings to algorithms, which are, or can be, much more accurate in arriving at correct decisions.
Presently, human feelings are the supreme source of authority, as reflected in the sayings "customer is always right," "beauty is in the eye of the beholder," and "if it feels good, do it!" And this kind of humanistic thinking permeates every facet of our lives, be it economics, aesthetics, education, ethics, and so on.
The main threat to this humanistic view is emerging from laboratories, where scientists are becoming convinced that feelings are nothing but biochemical algorithms. Humanism is based in large parts on the notion of free will, which is facing increasing skepticism. The day isn't far when Google or Amazon know you better than you do yourself. This supremacy of data is already a reality in the field of medicine, where genes can predict future ailments, even though the patient "feels" perfectly fine. Today, we are in the process of completing the hacking of human brain. It is possible that we reach the conclusion that the brain isn't the mind or that we can stop the march of technology, which is, after all, not deterministic, but there is an immense momentum in the direction of algorithms taking over our lives.
Technology has already weakened some human abilities. For example, hunter-gatherers had much more acute senses of taste and smell that helped them refrain from eating poisonous mushrooms, for example. They were also better at interpreting environmental cues, because their survival depended on these abilities. Now, you buy your food at the supermarket and put it in your mouth, while watching TV or reading e-mail, barely tasting or smelling what you eat. Likewise, the day may come when we cannot navigate on our own and become totally dependent on Google Maps.
I end my description of Harari's lecture with an interesting personal story he told: Jerusalem is a hotbed of chaos and conflict. However, there is one day each year when Jews, Muslims, and Christians come together and chant the same slogans in condeming the annual Gay Pride Parade!
(2) Some interesting stats about the least-favorably-viewed President of modern times: Americans see 45 as divisive, ill-tempered, dishonest, lacking in leadership skills, not sharing their values, and unable/unwilling to unify the country. These polling results will be viewed as fake news by the Republicans, who adore him and see his fumbling, inarticulate ways as genius at work. But responses by independents, which closely match the national average, cannot be easily dismissed.
(3) Ahamadinejad's letter to Trump: The former President has been sidelined in Iran, so he goes for some international attention by writing a 3500-word letter to the new US President. Ahmadinejad writes that he agrees with Trump's assessment about the US political system being corrupt and urges him to implement policies that value respect towards diverse nationalities and races. And this comes from the former President of a country which routinely imprisons, abuses, and disenfranchises not only ethnic and religious minorities but also Muslims who do not belong to the ruling mullahs' inner circles. See also this PBS report.

2017/02/26 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Persian poem honoring my dad at the 25th anniversary of his passing, observed today (1) My poem for the occasion of the 25th anniversary of my dad's passing, observed at the Santa Barbara Cemetery and, later in the day, at my mom's. And I dedicate this Paul Anka song, "Papa" (with lyrics), to him.
(2) Impressive calligraphic art created by folding book pages.
(3) Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey speaks up on policies and actions during Trump administration's first month. [16-minute video]
(4) Attention Whole Foods shoppers: Much of Whole Foods' organic products come from China, where the organic designation doesn't mean anything.
(5) Pizza rolls made with lavash bread as the dough, and typical pizza ingredients inside. Next time, I will cut the long rolls into finger-food-size bites before baking, because the crispy lavash tends to break easily. [Photo]
(6) On ethics in refereeing research papers: An article by Elizabeth Varki in the March 2017 issue of Communications of the ACM touches upon important points in the way some reviewers sabotage the research mission by careless or overly critical (to the point of unreasonableness) evaluation. This page contains the abstract and you need to sign in as an ACM member to see the full article. I will add a link to the full article later, if I find a freely accessible version.
(7) Talk about fake news! This Fox News program included a discussant billed as "Swedish security adviser" who not only hasn't had any such connection to Sweden, but is quite unknown in the country.
(8) Today, people gathered in London's Trafalgar Square to watch Ashgar Farhadi's Oscar-nominated film "The Salesman," screened there as a protest against Trump's travel ban, which prompted Farhadi and the film's lead actors to boycott the Academy Awards ceremony. The free screening was sponsored by London's municipality.
(9) My closing thoughts on the 2017 Academy Awards [Persian version on FB]: I watched the ceremony inattentively and, since I had seen only a few of the nominated films, I was not invested in this year's awards as I had been in prior years. Here is the complete list of nominees and winners. "La La Land" won in 6 of the 13 categories for which it had been nominated (it had 2 nominations in the Original Song category), including Best Director, Best Actress in a leading role, Best Original Score, and Best Original Song. "Moonlight" was the evening's surprise, winning Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
One film that I had seen and had a definite opinion about, because of its entanglement with the political atmosphere here in the US as well as back in Iran, is Asghar Farhadi's "The Salesman," which won as Best Foreign Language Film. Facebook has been abuzz with political commentary about the film. Before the ceremony, some people thought that it would win for political reasons ("Hollywood's leftist elites"), even though it was undeserving. Among these groups, a few criticized Farhadi for speaking up against Donald Trump, but not against even worse mistreatment of minorities in his home country of Iran. Others were cheering for the film and for Farhadi's firm stance against racial and religious discrimination. I commented on a couple of posts that art and literature have never been apolitical and that, rightly, they shouldn't be. Farhadi's film is by no means a masterpiece, but it should be judged based on its context and resources. Imagine making a film that involves the most intimate discussions between a couple, without being able to show them kissing, holding hands, or expressing affection in any shape or form. Imagine that there can't even be a private conversation between the couple at their home, because in such a private setting, the women would not be wearing a headscarf or manteau. All of these censorship-triggering scenes and material must be removed or cleverly circumvented.
Anyway, Asghar Farhadi joins three legendary directors (Ingmar Bergman, Federico Fellini, and Vittorio de Sica) for having won more than one Foreign Language Film Oscar; a substantial honor.

2017/02/25 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) The mayor of Paris enjoying herself at the Eiffel Tower: She tweeted this photo (she is on the left) from a tourism event promoting France's version of Disneyland. The tweet was addressed to Donald and his friend Jim, who has supposedly quit his habit of annual visits to Paris. Hey Donald, reveal the full name of your imaginary friend; be a model for the media, whom you expect not to publish any story based on anonymous sources.
(2) From a joint statement by the directors of the five films nominated for best-foreign-language-film Oscar: "Regardless of who wins the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film on Sunday, we refuse to think in terms of borders. We believe there is no best country, best gender, best religion or best color. We want this award to stand as a symbol of the unity between nations and the freedom of the arts."
(3) An American wrestler talks about his participation in the Wrestling World Cup, held in Kermanshah, Iran.
(4) Several news outlets blocked from White House press briefing: CNN, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Huffington Post, Buzzfeed, Politico, and multiple foreign news organizations were prevented from attending. The Associated Press and Time declined to take part. The three major broadcast networks and several news outlets with conservative readership (Breitbart, Washington Times, and One America News Network) were invited.
(5) The race to save Jewish heritage in the Middle East: In the early 1900s, one million of the world's 15 million Jews were still living across the Middle East and North Africa. In some countries, only dozens remain. Diarna (meaning "our land") is an organization that has identified 1200 sites for physical or digital preservation.
(6) This disruptor will pay you to drop out of college: Libertarian billionaire Peter Thiel thinks that universities are over-priced and hold back innovation. He recruits talented teenagers by giving them a $100,000 scholarship over two years to start a company, provided they drop out of college to focus on building up their business.
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- New executive order allows mining companies to dump waste into nearby waterways (WP)
- Truck plows into crowd at Mardi Gras, injures 20; likely drunk driving, not terrorism (GMA)
- A majority of Americans want Congress to investigate Trump-Russia ties (Business Insider)
- Famed magician Daryl Easton found dead of suicide in Hollywood's Magic Castle (People)
- Centrist Tom Perez chosen as DNC Chair in apparent snub of Sanders supporters (CNN)
- President Francois Hollande joins Paris Mayor in dissing Trump's Paris comment (Reuters)
(8) Trump tries his hand at book reviews on Twitter: "Low-selling author Isaac Marion wrote an 'apocalyptic' novel that's clearly an attack on me. Biased and very boring. Not a good writer!" [The author responded: "It's more an attack on the selfishness and fear that poisons humanity, but sure, it can be about you if you want."]
(9) Mouth-watering "dizi": The traditional Iranian stew dish "Aabgoosht," prepared in a jug known as "dizi," is usually consumed by separating the broth from the meat, potatoes, and other solid ingredients. Pieces of bread are put in the broth and the solid parts are smashed with a mallet before eating.

2017/02/24 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image of Lady Liberty covering her eyes (1) Lady Liberty in distress.
(2) Joke of the day: A man was seen fleeing down the hall of the hospital just before his operation. "What's the matter?" he was asked.
- "I heard the nurse say, 'It's a very simple operation, don't worry, I'm sure it will be all right.'"
- "She was just trying to comfort you, what's so frightening about that?"
- "She wasn't talking to me. She was talking to the doctor."
(3) Quote of the day: "I have a plan. A very secret plan to defeat ISIS in 30 days." ~ Donald John Trump [In fact, the plan is so secret that more than a month into DJT's presidency, not only we, but also the US intelligence and military, haven't heard about it yet!]
(4) US gymnastics team doctor facing at least 22 charges of sexual assault: He preyed on young girl-gymnasts under the guise of medical treatment (I can't even write about his sick, despicable acts). He is also charged with possession of child pornography and abusing the daughter of a family friend.
(5) "The Salesman," best-foreign-language-film Oscar nominee from Iran: Two prominent Iranian-Americans with connections to NASA (scientist Firouz Naderi and space tourist Anousheh Ansari) will represent film director Asghar Farhadi during Sunday's Academy Awards ceremony. The director and cast of the film have indicated they will not attend the ceremony to protest Trump's travel and visa bans.
(6) Here is your very own on-line Oscars ballot to fill out. And here is Vanity Fair's printable PDF version.
(7) Oops, the FBI does it again: In a private meeting, the Trump administration asked the FBI to leak more positive info about their ties to Russia, including an assessment that the press over-reacted to previous leaks, but the FBI instead leaked the request itself! Meddling in, and trying to influence, an on-going FBI investigation is against the law. Predictably, Trump went on Twitter to lash out against intelligence agencies. "The FBI is totally unable to stop the national security 'leakers' that have permeated our government for a long time. They can't even find the leakers within the FBI itself. Classified information is being given to media that could have a devastating effect on U.S. FIND NOW." [From a Trump tweet and its continuation]
(8) Navy veteran from Kansas arrested in hate crime: He is accused of killing an Indian engineer and injuring two others, while shouting, "Get out of my country!"
(9) [Important warning] A new type of scam: Scammers are getting more sophisticated, so we need to be even more vigilant. They no longer send poorly formatted e-mails, full of spelling and other errors. I received an e-mail today, purportedly about an eBay purchase I made with PayPal as method of payment. The scammer counts on me being alarmed enough to immediately click on the dispute resolution center link near the end of the e-mail. The link does not lead to PayPal or eBay, but is a redirect to some unknown site (put your mouse over such a link without clicking to see the real address of the link). I visited PayPal via my own link and, needless to say, there was no sign of this transaction on my account. I changed my password, just in case.

2017/02/23 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Movie poster for Alfred Hitchcock's 'Rebecca' (1) Hitchcock film series continued tonight at UCSB's Pollock Theater: "Rebecca" (1940), Alfred Hitchcock's first American film, is deemed the director's most "feminine" project, given its subject matter and appeal to female audiences. Later in his career, Hitchcock himself all but disowned the film, which is based on a novel by Daphne du Maurier, for precisely these reasons.
In the post-screening discussion, Professor Tania Modleski, author of the groundbreaking book The Women Who Knew Too Much: Hitchcock and Feminist Film Theory discussed with moderator Professor Patrice Petro both the history and continuing legacy of "Rebecca" for its exploration of women's fears, as well as women's desire for other women.
[Cast: Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine, and George Sanders]
(2) Quote of the day: "We have to come up, and we can come up with many different plans. In fact, plans you don't even know about will be devised because we're going to come up with plans—healthcare plans—that will be so good." ~ Donald John Trump
(3) Court upholds Maryland's ban on assault weapons: The gun lobby is reeling in the wake of this defeat, which, despite Trump's promises to remove all restrictions on guns, may be the new reality in the US. People are tired of losing loved ones to gun violence.
(4) List of most-powerful women engineers announced in honor of the American National Engineers' Week, February 19-25: Despite a fairly poor job by our society in attracting women to engineering fields, and the presence of rampant sexism in the workplace once they get there, many are thriving in their jobs and in leading important tech teams.
(5) Seven brief news headlines of the day:
- Seven potentially-habitable Earth-sized planets discovered in one solar system, 39 light years away (WSJ)
- French military plans on using eagles as low-tech means of countering terrorist drone threats (WP)
- Former House Speaker Boehner: Repeal-and-replace of Obamacare unlikely to happen (Business Insider)
- New poll shows Trump's approval rating down, backing for Obamacare up (NBC / Survey Monkey)
- Revolutionary Guards commander: US will get a strong slap in the face if it underestimates Iran (Reuters)
- Pope suggests being an atheist is better than being a hypocritical Catholic leading a double life (Reuters)
- Trump open to removing Steve Bannon from NSC if new National Security Adviser prefers (Fox News)
(6) Final thought for the day: "The first is that Trump is going to realize that a White House can't really run this way—the president at war with the media, aides at war with each other, fictions at war with facts. Someone needs to get control of the operation, and hopefully before an economic or international crisis comes along to make the dysfunction even clearer than it is. ... The second is that Trump is going to decide he actually doesn't like the job very much—or at least not the part of the job that's all about policy and vote counts and other things you have to think about for more than 90 seconds without changing the subject to yourself." ~ Matt Bai, speculating on how the Trump saga might end

2017/02/22 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of man tying his shoelace (1) Wow, I have been doing this backwards!
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Distracted-driving accidents are pushing auto insurance rates way up (ABC)
- Study finds foreign-educated doctors to have better health outcomes (Time)
- Banner reading 'Refugees Welcome' appears at base of Statue of Liberty (GMA)
- Magic Johnson takes over the Lakers' operations in stunning shake-up (LA Times)
- Trump-Russia link subject of FBI report to Senate Intel Committee (MSNBC)
- Right-winger Milo Yiannopoulos forced out at Breitbart over child-sex remarks (AP)
(3) San Jose neighborhoods flooded from overflowing Anderson Reservoir.
(4) Dress like a woman: This is the latest musing by Trump about how female White House staffers should dress. In response, social media are abuzz with photos like this one, which show women in a variety of professional and personal attire. It is a disgrace that the US President, instead of upholding women's personal freedoms, including their choice of clothes (within the norms of a workplace), issues edicts reminiscent of the Islamic rulers of Iran.
(5) Sculpting a hand. [2-minute video]
(6) Robot-made pizzas: Zume Pizza, a start-up based in Mountain View, CA, is using robots to prepare pizzas, which are then delivered, as they are cooked, in oven-equipped trucks. These innovations reduce the delivery time and lead to warmer, crisper delivered pizzas.
(7) First impact of Trump's travel ban on university faculty: Today, I received the following directive in an e-mail. "If you travel to Iran, North Korea, Sudan, or Syria for business-related travel, please be aware that UCSB cannot reimburse your travel expenses and you will be in violation of U.S. law if you have not obtained a license from the U.S. Department of the Treasury ahead of your travel dates. If you need to travel to these countries, please contact the Office of Research's Export Control staff ... so we can facilitate your license application."
(8) Today's noon mini-concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: Adorable and very talented young siblings (10-13), calling their band "Three for Joy," played Celtic and other music, including a few dance tunes, as part of UCSB's World Music Series. [Video 1] [Video 2, Irish dance] [Video 3, Irish dance] [Video 4] [Video 5]
As I walked from class to the venue for the mini-concert above, I encountered a mariachi band playing in front of the library to advertise an upcoming event. [Video 6]
(9) Muslim-Americans have raised close to $100,000 to help restore the vandalized Jewish cemetery in St. Louis. The following video says over $60,000, but the latest figure, according to PBS, is close to $100,000. [Video]

2017/02/21 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon about the the Iranian regime's distaste for music (1) Supporting a jailed musician in Iran: Belgian cartoonist Luc Vernimmen pitched in on the efforts to free imprisoned Iranian musician Mehdi Rajabian.
(2) Jewish cemetery vandalized: Anti-Semitism wasn't invented by Trump, but his presidency has emboldened and empowered hate groups. We are now descending to the level of Iran, where Baha'i cemeteries are frequently vandalized by government-backed groups.
(3) The April 22 Science March on Washington: The Earth Day march has the full backing of AAAS, the worlds's largest scientific membership organization. People are again caring for science, according to AAAS's President, one of the unintended consequences of Trump's presidency.
(4) Roads are driving rapid evolutionary change in our environment: According to a paper published as a cover feature in Frontiers of Ecology and the Environment, the negative effects of roads on habitats appear to be accerlating and are thus triggering evolutionary changes.
(5) Vibrant coral reef system in the Amazon region: Here are the first photos released by National Geographic.
(6) The woolly mammoth can come back from extinction within two years: Harvard scientists are working on a breakthrough resurrection project that creates the mammoth's blueprint from DNA preserved in the Arctic permafrost. The unique genes of the mammoth will then be spliced into the genome of an elephant embryo to create a mammoth-elephant hybrid with all the recognizable features of a mammoth.
[Note added on 2/23: A number of scientists have indicated skepticism about this timeline.]
(7) Amadeus Electric Quartet plays the "Habanera Aria" from "Carmen," by Georges Bizet.
(8) Sports diplomacy: Iran's warm welcom of American wrestlers in Wrestling World Cup held in Kermanshah.
(9) Kudos to Ashton Kutcher for doing something to help stop child trafficking and the abhorrent practice known as "sexual tourism."

2017/02/20 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
World map, showing the location of the lost Zealandia continent (1) Zealandia: It sounds like the title of a Ben Stiller movie, but it is actually the name given to a just-discovered eighth continent that lies under New Zealand.
(2) Not-My-President's Day: Today we honor the office of the US President and also the checks and balances which limit his power compared with dictatorial rulers in many other countries, along with our constitutional right to speak up against an incompetent leader.
(3) Quote of the day: "Listen, or your tongue will make you deaf." ~ Native American proverb
(4) Level of discourse on Iran-related Web sites: This example is from Voice of America Persian News Service, but the trite or vile, mostly anonymous, comments you see here are quite typical of such sites (in fact, I have other examples that I cannot post, due to their even more vulgar language). When will we learn that no democracy is possible without informed, considerate, and tolerant citizenry?
(5) Forthcoming SoCal events of potential interest in March 2017:
- Sunday 05, Rube Goldberg Machine Contest, Santa Monica Pier, 11:30-5:00
- Sunday 05, UCLA Persian lecture on Iran-China relations, 4:00-6:00, 121 Dodd Hall
- Friday 10 and Saturday 11, UCLA Iranian Student Group's Culture Show, time/venue TBD
- Sunday 12, Farhang Foundation Nowruz Celebration, UCLA Royce Hall, 12:00-8:00
- Saturday 25 (and more) Shen Yun Performing Arts 2017 Tour, various dates/venues
(6) The face of smarts and courage: Young Iranian chess master, Dorsa Derakhshani, 18, has been banned from playing in her home country, because she appeared sans hijab at an international competition. Her 15-year-old brother Borna, also a chess player, has been banned for a different reason, because he played an Israeli opponent in a tournament. [Interview with Dorsa, September 2016]
(7) Side-by-side comparison: The Trumps vs. the Obamas. [Image]
(8) London's response to the US travel ban: Mayor of London plans to have a free screening of Asghar Farhadi's Oscar-nominated film "The Salseman" at Trafalgar Square on March 26 (Oscars night), in response to the director and actors of the film not attending the ceremony to protest travel bans.

2017/02/19 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Trump's tweet about the media being the enemy of the American people (1) President Trump declares the US media "the enemy of the American People"!
(2) An ignorant, uninformed President: This is a schematic of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which Trump claimed "is built right here in South Carolina." And this is just the structure. There are control, navigation, safety, and passenger equipment in this plane that have sources outside the country.
(3) The magic "(R)" makes you immune to all sorts of stuff, up to and including treason: Bill Mahr's take on how flag-waving right-wingers are running down America and blaming others for it.
(4) The Supreme Court will soon find itself face to face with Trump: The Republican majority in both houses of the US Congress seem to be going blindly along with the President. Were it not for a few federal judges, many US Permanent Residents and valid visa holders would have been deported as a result of Trump's EO on visas and immigration. So, the Supreme Court, with or without a ninth member, will have to consider some insane policy or law very soon. Remember that Trump has called Chief Justice Roberts "a disaster" for his role is preserving Obama's Affordable Care ActeR)
- Road and Transportation Builders Association: 55,000 US bridges deficient (WP)
- China's AI boom places it ahead of the US, especially in deep learning (The Atlantic)
- Actor Harrison Ford lands his plane on taxiway, barely missing a jetliner (People)
(7) Quote of the day: "How can you call yourself a patriot and support 33 Benghazi hearings but NOT ONE on whether Russia infiltrated the White House?" ~ Peter Daou, in a tweet
(8) Seventeen false claims by Trump in a single press conference: A record, even for him!
(9) Strongest SoCal storm in years: Flash flood warnings, road closures, wind damage, and power outages have crippled many areas. As much as we welcome the rain (water level in my area's Lake Cachuma is rising steadily), we are apprehensive about its impact, particularly in recently burned areas. Stay safe!

2017/02/16 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Female representatives of the Swedish government meet with Iranian officials (1) Et tu, Sweden? These are representatives of Sweden's so-called "feminist" government, parading with hijabs in front of Islamic Republic of Iran officials in hopes of winning some economic deals for their country.
(2) Iran's judiciary indicates that convicted felon Babak Zanjani won't be executed until he returns all the swindled money. Wow, what a difficult decision for Zanjani!
(3) Cartoon of the day: Executive and Judicial Branches of the US government in action. [Image]
(4) Quote of the day: "It is part of the price of leadership of this great and free nation to be the target of clever satirists. You have given the gift of laughter to our people. May we never grow so somber or self-important that we fail to appreciate the humor in our lives." ~ President Lyndon Johnson to Smothers Brothers, after being thrashed numerous times on their popular TV comedy program
(5) Ten brief news headlines of the day:
- Wrestling World Cup begins in Kermanshah, Iran; the American team greeted warmly
- Fox News under criminal investigantion for hanlding of sexual harassment allegations
- Trump administration and the Saudis are trying to form a broad anti-Iran coalition
- UN warns the US on abrupt change of policy towards Israel-Palestine peace process
- New application software turns iPhone into a fully functional portable scanner
- Sensitive intelligence info being withheld from Trump for fear of leaks to Russia
- Museum of ice cream coming to Los Angeles (I can see a highly profitable gift shop)
- Russian spy ship spotted 30 miles from US Navy submarine base in New London, CT
- Venezuela shuts down CNN's Spanish language service over spreading "propaganda"
- Andy Puzder withdraws, Alex Acosta chosen as new Secretary of Labor nominee
(6) Half-dozen of today's Facebook posts about Trump:
- If he says something, wait, and before long, you will hear the exact opposite. The guy has no moral compass.
- Two law deans let Trump have it in a blistering op-ed piece.
- I know, way more serious stories are going on with 45, but one can't ignore his handshaking style!
- History of USA presidents. [Image]
- Some of 45's Valentine's Day cards, just leaked out of the White House.
- Media no longer pull punches in exposing Trump's meddling in fake news, while labeling other views as fake.
(7) MOXI to open on Saturday, February 25, 2017: Years in the making, Santa Barbara's Museum of Exploration and Innovation (near Stearns Wharf, on State Street) will open its doors in 9 days.
(8) Chorale de Bahar (Bahar Choir) "Voice of Peace" concert in Paris, with Paris East Philharmonic Orchestra.
(9) Proposal for national reconciliation in Iran: Former President Mohammad Khatami's proposal for bringing the reform movement and its leaders, who have been under house arrest since 2009, into the fold of Iran's political establishment was dealt a major blow when Khamenei dismissed it as nonsensical. He went on to say that Iranian people aren't estranged from each other and thus do not need reconciliation. I think someone should arrange a meeting between Khamenei and Trump. They may like each other!

2017/02/15 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) WikiLeaks is becoming irrelevant: Once a darling of anti-establishment types, WikiLeaks has lost the moral high ground as a result of its biased leaks, leaks that endangered the lives of citizens in Turkey and elsewhere, collusion with Russia, and anti-Semitic tweets.
(2) Obama blamed for plot to overthrow Trump: Apparently, the "weak" President has become omnipotent after retirement and spending a couple of weeks in Hawaii!
(3) Watch Trump contradict nearly every statement he ever made: He was a Democrat, no, actually a Republican; He was pro-choice, I mean, pro-life; We should not have interfered in Libya, I mean, should have gone in with full force. Time to replace the moniker "Honest Abe" with "Honest Don"!
(4) Trump-Russia link: Why is everyone surprised that Trump asked Russia to delay its response to sanctions until he took office? Didn't Reagan ask Iran to delay the release of American hostages until he was sworn in?
(5) Leaks about others good, leaks about me bad: The guy who said on several occasions that he loved WikiLeaks now defends his treasonous adviser, while attacking intelligence agencies and the press for leaks. He apparently lives in medieval times, thinking that his past musings are not available on video.
(6) A bill with three sponsors has been introduced in the US Congress to eliminate the EPA: This is Beijing in January 2017. The Los Angeles of the early 1970s, when I was a student at UCLA, wasn't a lot better. This is what we can expect without environmental regulations.
(7) Kellyanne Conway has become a liability for the White House: She loves to book herself on news shows and offer alternative facts to justify the administration's actions, but all indications are that she is in fact not part of White House's key meetings. For example, she said Trump had full confidence in Flynn hours before he was fired.
(8) Today's noon mini-concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: Charlie King & Bev Grant (storytellers, political satirists) performed a variety of original songs in support of labor movements and political activism. [Video 1] [Video 2]
(9) New Iranian studies center at UCLA: A generous gift has led to the creation of an interdisciplinary center at UCLA focused on the history, religion, and languages of ancient Iran and their influence on contemporary Iran. A gift from Dr. Anahita Naficy Lovelace and Mr. James Lovelace to UCLA has established the Pourdavoud Center for the Study of the Iranian World, named in honor of Dr. Lovelace's grandfather, a pioneering scholar of ancient Persia. The resulting endowments support faculty research, graduate students, and public programs.

2017/02/14 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Photo of heart-shaped red candle (1) Happy Valentine's Day to everyone: May your day be sweet and filled with love!
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day (source):
- More than 680 arrested in US immigration raids (Reuters)
- Stephen Miller embarrases the White House with TV lies (Business Insider)
- Foreign creditors dump US Treasuries in warning to Trump (Bloomberg)
- Justin Trudeau meets Donald Trump at the White House (Fortune)
- Russia tried to conceal airstrikes on Syrian hospitals (ABC News)
- Man mistakenly sends 'kill my wife' texts to ex-boss, not hitman (People)
(3) Trump on collision course with Silicon Valley: Several issues have put the Trump administration in conflict with tech CEOs. Key points of contention include immigration, net-neutrality, privacy rules, and national security. In particular, tech companies are concerned about AG Jeff Sessions' musings on government access to data from their customers. [Source: Wall Street Journal]
(4) Renaming at Yale University: Yale's residential college, named after John C. Calhoun (a 19th-century White Supremacist statesman from South Carolina), is being renamed for Grace Murray Hopper, trailblazing computer scientist and US Navy rear admiral, who received both a master's and a doctorate from Yale. A welcome step, but what took them so long?
(5) Oroville dam in northern California in danger of collapse: Some 200,000 residents were evacuated and a high volume of water was let out from the reservoir, despite the erosive effects, on both the main and emergency spillways, so as to make room in the reservoir for an anticipated storm on Wednesday. The main spillway is about half destroyed and water going over the emergency spillway (for the first time in the dam's 50-year history) is eroding the base of the dam, potentially leading to full collapse of the structure. With climate-change deniers in charge, the future of our dams, bridges, and other safety-critical infrastructure looks grim!
[Update, late in the day: Valiant efforts are underway to repair the dam's spillways, which along with their service roads have sustained extensive damage as a result of raging overflows. Temporary repair measures include filling up holes and shoring up support with rocks and gigantic sandbags. Evacuation orders have reportedly been lifted, as the dam appears to be stable. Major repairs will be needed at the end of the rainy season. Here is a photo of the dam before the current state of emergency.]
(6) President Trump's National Security Adviser Michael Flynn has resigned: Information is still coming out about the reasons. This article, published before the official announcement of the resignation, provides some of the background about wrongdoings that led to Flynn's ouster.
(7) Black Iranian actress Yara Shahidi says she cannot possibly support Trump: Dah, black and Iranian, two strikes against her already!
(8) My afternoon walk today: I walked a couple of miles to the Camino Real Marketplace, where a street musician was playing love songs on this Valentine's Day. On the way there, I found this Canadian memento; perhaps PM Trudeau passed this way after his Washington visit? Shortly before getting back home, I shot these photos of a gorgeous sunset over the Devereux Slough.

2017/02/13 (Monday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Cover image for Norman Lear's 2015 memoir (1) Book review: Lear, Norman, Even This I Get to Experience, unabridged audiobook on 15 CDs, read by the author, Penguin Audio, 2015.
This is the candid and highly detailed memoir of a 92-year-old sitcom genius who, at one time, had seven different series with a total of 120 million weekly viewers on the air. His most successful sitcom was "Maude," whose unabashedly liberal feminist title character is rumored to have been based on Lear's former wife, Frances. Lear maintains that of all the characters he created, Maude is most similar to him in social views and politics, but stays mum on whether she was based on Frances Lear.
At the opposite extreme from Maude is the bigoted Archie Bunker, from "All in The Family," another taboo-breaking and highly successful sitcom. Lear brought social issues and politics to the sitcom scene and, in the process, had to fight network censors every step of the way to include discussions of sex, race, and abortion.
In 1981, Lear founded the liberal advocacy group "People for the American Way," one of whose projects was to buy the only privately-held original copy of the Declaration of Independence and taking it on tour across the country.
Lear had a difficult childhood during the Great Depression. His father, H. K. Lear, a con man who served time for fraud, figures prominently in this book, in a rather negative way. His mother does not fare much better, though Lear did seek her approval at every turn. At age 61, when Lear learned that he would be among the first group of inductees into the just-established TV Hall of Fame, he called his mom right away, as if the accomplishment was worth nothing without her seal of approval.
Lear married three times and fathered six children, with an age spread of nearly 5 decades. He used his life experiences to write the film script for "Divorce, American Style" and almost singlehandedly transformed the trite sitcom genre by including serious topics of discussion, without sacrificing any of the laughs.
Audio production could have been better. At his advanced age, Lear has an enunciation problem, which makes listening to the audiobook a difficult experience. For this reason, perusing the hard copy might be preferable.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Imperial Wizard of KKK found dead on the banks of Missouri River (CBS News)
- Trump refers to Elizabeth Warren as 'Pocahontas' in White House meeting (IBT)
- Adele wins multiple Grammy Awards, including for Song and Album of the Year
- Trump rekindles feud with Mark Cuban: 'He's not smart enough to be president'
- ACLU membership and donations continue to surge as it takes on Trump (AP)
- NorCal's Oroville Dam in danger of failure: Thousands ordered to evacuate (AP)
(3) Misspelling in a quotation tweet led to an apology by US Department of Education. But the apology also contained a spelling error. It began, "Our deepest apologizes ... "!
(4) Final thought for the day: "For Valentine's Day, I'm going to do nothing. But the next day, I'll go shopping for discounted chocolates." ~ Anonymous

2017/02/12 (Sunday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cover image of Oliver Sacks' 'On the Move' (1) Book review: Sacks, Oliver, On the Move: A Life, unabridged audiobook on 10 CDs, read by Dan Woren, Random House Audio, 2015.
[My 4-star review on GoodReads]
Sacks has written many acclaimed articles and books. This one's a memoir focusing on his constant motion, as he traveled from one project to the next and from one locale to another. In the process, Sacks tells us about his contributions to medicine and neuroscience through capsule summaries of his other books. Sacks wrote this penultimate book of his shortly before he died in 2015 at age 82. A final book, Gratitude, was published posthumously. His earlier books included Migraine, Awakenings, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, and The Mind's Eye.
In addition to his literal obsession with motion (as reflected in a love for motorcycles and speed), Sacks' desire to explore many areas of medicine and the science behind them took him on a grand tour of neurological maladies. The book is filled with references to Sacks' other books and how/why he wrote them. Scientific discussions are interspersed with pieces of Sacks' personal life, which due to an extreme case of shyness, perhaps intensified by his homosexuality (which he discusses in this book for the first time) and a condition known as face-blindness, led to a 35-year period of celibacy.
Sacks, nevertheless, seems to have lived a full life, both personally and professionally. In addition to motorcycle-riding, he was into body-building, extreme weightlifting, and long-distance swimming. He wrote and kept journals with unwavering resolve. He did suffer from periods of self-doubt, burning the manuscript of a book he wrote during one such episode, because he thought it wasn't good enough.
Sacks believed passionately in taking a patient's entire life into account when making diagnoses and planning treatments. He was an attentive and compassionate listener. And yet, he was sometimes reckless with his own and other people's lives. His life story thus generates both admiration and unease in the reader/listener. Sacks is a recognized and widely honored figure in neuroscience, but he has also received his share of criticism for relying too much on anecdotal evidence and for being exploitative of his subjects. He is considered a peerless science writer, a kind of poet-laureate in the field of medicine. His list of collaborators reads like a who's-who in genetics and neuroscience.
Sacks tells us that the plight of his schizophrenic brother was a strong motivating factor for his work. He did not have an easy relationship with his parents. His mom, a surgeon who was brought up as an Orthodox Jew, considered his homosexuality an abomination. Yet Sacks felt guilt over leaving his family to move to America in pursuit of professional opportunities.
This is Sacks' second memoir, which complements Uncle Tungsten, a book focusing on his boyhood passion for chemistry. The book is well-written and engaging for the most part, but tends to venture into details that some readers/listeners may find uninteresting or tangential. All in all, I found the book quite valuable and recommend it to those who work in scientific fields or who have an interest in discovering how science works.
(2) Willful lying or gross incompetence? Either way, we are experiencing an unprecedented leadership crisis.
(3) Not funny: "Saturday Night Live" has been hilarious in portraying the lying, inept cast of characters in 45's White House. But last night's skit featuring Kellyanne Conway and Jake Tapper was unfunny, mean, and a gift to the media-hating bunch. Watch them exploit it!
(4) Netanyahu will likely be indicted on corruption charges by the Israeli judiciary on police recommendation.
(5) Engineering continues to revolutionize medicine: I have previously written on the impact of engineering on medicine in general and drug delivery in particular. At the leading edge are major research projects, some supported by the NIH, that aim to facilitate drug delivery to precisely targeted body parts via ingestible electronics and other mechanisms. However, there are lower-tech provisions for improving drug delivery. This morning, I saw an ad on a morning news show that touted laser-drilled tiny holes on a capsule that speed up the delivery of the active ingredients inside. This may be just hype in a highly competitive market, but it is conceivable that drug packaging may improve the effectiveness in some cases.

2017/02/11 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing doctors on strike, carrying illegible signs (1) Cartoon of the day: Doctors go on strike. If you want to know what their signs say, show them to your friendly pharmacist!
(2) Syrian President Bashar Assad claims that torture photos and stories are fake: Under intense grilling, the Syrian president dismisses mountains of evidence showing widespread and systematic human rights abuses by his regime as propaganda.
(3) Fifty crazy things said or done by 45 in his first 2.5 weeks in office: That's about 3 per day!
(4) The media strikes back: After being repeatedly accused of trading in "fake news" whenever they pointed out 45's lies and misrepresentations, the media is fighting back valiantly by presenting reasoned revelatory pieces, such as this Web essay by Bill Moyers.
(5) Music still thrives in Iran: Despite restrictions in state-controlled media, folksy musicians, such as this group performing the old pop song "Shaneh" on a street in Tehran, keep the music scene alive and well.
(6) Autonomous cargo ships are on their way: According to IEEE Spectrum's cover feature in its February 2017 issue, self-sailing ships have already been proven feasible and will be rolled out rather quickly. [Cover image]
(7) Final thought for the day: Impeaching 45 gathers support in the polls (46% for, 46% against), as his approval rating falls to 43% and disapproval rating reaches 53%.

2017/02/10 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing the poster for the movie 'Lie Lie Land, (1) Cartoon of the day: A new Oscar-worthy production.
(2) Finger-painting never looked so good: Bigly impressive!
(3) Iranian-American actress Kat Khavari makes a pro-immigrant statement on the red carpet. [Photo from USA Today]
(4) Just an ordinary day in 45's presidency: Will our short attention spans allow us to tally all such abominations to build a case for impeachment, or will we forget them all upon being fed the next manufactured conflict (aka shiny object)? [Day 21]
(5) Fifty-three Iranian-Americans introduce themselves and send a message of peace to those who may not have ever met anyone of Iranian origin.
(6) Remember when we were warned that a female President might be irrational, vindictive, and prone to mood swings?
(7) Fake/humorous quote of the day: "I'm building a wall around New Mexico too. I don't need any New Mexicans when I'm still trying to get rid of the old ones." ~ Donald Trump
(8) Half-dozen brief science news headlines of the day:
- Next-generation ingestible devices will be powered by stomach acid (The Scientist)
- Scientists aim to lower LA's temperature by 3 degrees over 20 years (LA Times)
- Anxiety mounts at national labs over future of climate research (Scientific American)
- Trump named as a defendant in landmark climate lawsuit (Scientific American)
- Scientists just found evidence of a stolen Dead Sea scroll (Popular Science)
- NASA has an unusually bold plan to find life on Jupiter's moon Europa (Popular Science)
(9) Music Beyond Borders: Seattle Symphony and various guest artists perform music by composers from the seven "banned" countries. The wonderful opening piece, by Alireza Motevaseli from Iran, is entitled "Fantasia for Santoor and Accordion." The second piece, by the Iranian-born composer Giti Razaz, is a drama that reflects the transformation and rebirth of a narcissist; no kidding! Also featured is music from Sudan, Iraq, Somalia, and Syria. The 87-minute concert ends with a rousing rendition of "America the Beautiful."

2017/02/09 (Thursday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Cover image of 'Purim and the Persian Empire' (1) Book review: Landy, Yehuda, Purim and the Persian Empire: A Historical, Archaeological, & Geographical Perspective, 121 pp., Feldheim, 2010.
This lavishly illustrated book relates the biblical story of Esther to archaeological finds from ancient Iran and the country's history and geography. Landy was motivated to write this book by an exceptionally rich exhibit named "Forgotten Empire" at the British Museum. The exhibit contained the British Museum's own holdings, material normally held at the Louvre Museum, and artifacts on loan from Museums in Iran. The latter artifacts are rarely on display, even in Iran, given their extremely high values. The author then re-read the pertinent part of the Hebrew Bible multiple times in an attempt to visualize the story's setting, using information gleaned from several visits to the exhibit and its associated catalog that provided background material and details.
The book is organized in two parts and an annex. Part I (42 pp.), entitled "The Persian Empire in Jewish History: An Overview," is composed of the following four chapters:
Chapter 1 (8 pp.): "The Chronology of the Persian Empire According to Chazal"
Chapter 2 (6 pp.): "Persian Kings Known to Us from Other Sources"
Chapter 3 (22 pp.): "The Archaeological Evidence"
Chapter 4 (4 pp.): "Who Is Achashverosh?"
Chazal are the sages of Talmud who used different names for Persian kings than other historical accounts, so reconciling those names with the actual kings and their periods of reign was part of the effort in preparing this book. The archaeological evidence of Chapter 3 includes artifacts from Assyria, Babylonia, and Persia (Pasargade, Shushan, Persepolis, and Hamadan or Ecbatana). We are told that Jews were ruled by the Persians for an extended period of time, including 34 years after the Second Temple, or Beis Hamigdash, was rebuilt in Jerusalem under Artaxerxes (then in his 6th year of rule). Afterwards, Alexander conquered the Jewish lands and eventually proceeded to conquer Iran. As for the king Achashverosh, during whose reign the story of Esther unfolded, the consensus seems to be that he was Xerxes, but a few accounts consider him to be Artaxerxes.
In the opulently illustrated Part II (58 pp.), entitled "Excerpts from Magillas Esther with Related Historical and Archaeological Material," the 10 chapters of the Book of Esther are reviewed, alongside historical and archaeological evidence pertaining to the various personalities, locales, and events therein.
At the end of the book, a 3-page epilogue and 1-page bibliography are followed by a 17-page annex containing the biblical story of Esther in Hebrew, side-by-side with its English translation.
[My 5-star review on GoodReads]
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Linebacker Charles Haley was the first 5-time Super Bowl champ, not Tom Brady
- After meeting with Trump, Intel CEO announces plans to build factory in Arizona
- Appeals court keeps Trump's travel ban blocked; Trump vows to fight the decision
- Kellyanne Conway in legal trouble after touting Ivanka Trump's fashion line on TV
- Trump's botched Yemen raid leaves US Special Forces soldier and 9 children dead
- Trump surprised that being POTUS is so difficult; says he gets 4-5 hours of sleep
(3) Raduan Nassar: The critically acclaimed Brazilian writer who stopped writing and returned to farming.
(4) Four interesting tweets from the past couple of days (shortened or reworded):
- McCain shouldn't talk about mission outcome ... been losing so long he doesn't know how to win anymore.
- I looked it up, not a single member of your family has ever served. McCain gets to say whatever he wants.
- Trump tried to put an American company out of business for not carrying his daughter's made-in-China clothes.
- Sad state of affairs that our President has expressed more displeasure with Nordstrom than he has with Russia.

2017/02/08 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Time magazine's chart of White House occupants (1) Who's who in the Trump White House: Time magazine's power chart.
(2) Sign at the entrance of my niece's school in the San Francisco Bay Area reads: "We welcome ALL races, ALL religions, ALL countries of origin, ALL sexual orientations, ALL genders. We stand with YOU. You are SAFE here."
(3) Noon mini-concert: UCSB Brass Ensemble played at the Music Bowl on campus today. Here are two sample pieces from today's performance. ["The Entertainer" by Scott Joplin] ["The Trumpet Tune" by Jeremiah Clark]
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Sixteen states on alert for powerful snow storm tomorrow; 50 million people affected
- President Trump attacks Nordstrom for dropping his daughter's fashion products
- SCOTUS nominee Gorsuch: Trump's criticism of the judiciary disheartening and demoralizing
- Betsy DeVos confirmed as Secretary of Education when VP Pence cast the tie-breaking vote
- Trump threatens to destroy the career of a Texas State Senator who opposed asset forfeiture
- Melania Trump asserts in her lawsuit that she has lost a lot of money due to the allegations
(5) Trump uses both his personal and presidential Twitter accounts to attack Nordstrom: Nordstrom's shares dropped after Trump dissed the company for discontinuing Ivanka Trump's fashion products (the stock subsequently recovered). This is certainly abuse of power and cause for impeachment. Marshalls and T. J. Maxx have also dropped the line.
(6) The desert mountain fortress of Masada in Israel: Archaeologists have returned there to continue the exploration of its vast underground structures.
(7) Nasty women persist!
(8) Employees of major tech companies who were educated in Iran: Chart from a Huffington Post blog by Ramin Naderi-Alizadeh.
(9) Trump administration's faces for higher education: The two most relevant federal figures for us higher-education workforce are Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Our future, including important issues such as quality, accessibility, and student loans, are impacted by federal education policies, while the problems of academic freedom, and freedom of speech in general, are within the Justice Department's domain. Please pray for us!

2017/02/07 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
UCSB celebrates the 50th anniversary of the 1966 establishment of its College of Engineering (1) Celebrating 50 years of UCSB Engineering: Special events to commemorate the 1966 establishment of UCSB's College of Engineering will continue until June 2017 (these events began in July 2016). A highlight will be a college-wide reception on Friday, April 28, 2017, during which a first-ever time capsule filled with items representing our past, present, and impact on the future will be planted.
(2) Historical photo from 1935 during the construction of Hoover Dam (original B&W and colorized versions).
(3) Ten reasons the Holocaust really happened: Here is some ammunition to use against Holocaust deniers.
(4) Restaurant owner's statement about immigration ban appears on customer bills.
(5) NASA develops AI for exploration of subsurface oceans in space: Submersible vehicles are intended for use on icy moons, like Jupiter's Europa.
(6) Stay healthy: Practical suggestions by Arianna Huffington to avoid the unhealthy state of perpetual outrage over the barrage of crazy ideas and alternative facts spewed by President Trump and his administration.
(7) Trump taps two male CEOs as his advisers on women in the workplace: Women can't possibly know what's good for them!
(8) Assembling the pieces of the Trump-Russia jigsaw puzzle: This investigative piece by Greg Olear, entitled "Dah, Donald: Russian Blood Money and the FBI's Case Against Trump," is quite detailed and richly linked to sources. Nonetheless, like any piece on spying and intelligence operations, one must take the claims herein with a grain of salt. The short of it is that both Assange and Snowden are Russian operatives. I have read it quickly and plan to go back for a more careful read soon, assuming it stays up for a while and does not disappear!
(9) Webster Dictionary's word of the year: The word "surreal" was chosen, because it was looked up significantly more frequently by users during 2016 than it was in previous years. The look-up frequency peaked following the US presidential election in November.

2017/02/06 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Migration trends among major US cities (1) Americans are moving to smaller cities in droves: Northeasterners are moving primarily to Florida and Angelinos to Las Vegas and Phoenix. In both cases above, there is a small reverse flow, but not for Chicago, whose residents prefer Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Atlanta.
(2) An enlightening TEDx talk: Methodical or discovery-based reasoning (scout mindset) versus motivated or fear-based reasoning (soldier mindset). This 12-minute talk by Julia Galef carries Persian subtitles.
(3) Making simple Valentine's Day treats. [Video]
(4) Pianist extraordinaire: How Beethoven, Chopin, Brahms, Bach, and Mozart would have played the birthday song. A masterful performance by Nicole Pesce on piano.
(5) Trump continues to praise Putin: In a Super-Bowl Sunday interview with Bill O'Reilly of Fox News, President Trump restated that he admires Putin. In response to the follow-up question asserting that Putin is a killer, Trump invoked an equivalency with the US: "Lotta killers. We got a lotta killers. What, you think our country's so innocent?" Now, under normal circumstances and coming from a credible person, the statement might have been viewed as an honest confession. But, given Trump's background and rumors of blackmail threats from Russia, it leaves a bad taste in one's mouth.
(6) Remember when Donald Trump said that Wall Streeters were getting away with murder and that both Ted Cruz and Hillary Clinton were unacceptable choices because they were influenced by Goldman Sachs? Now, let's count the number of Wall Streeters surrounding Trump as he begins his quest to deregulate financial institutions that, according to Trump, paid very little in taxes (talk about hypocrisy). [Video]
(7) Quote of the day: "The enemy in any democracy is not dissent, from either within or without. Dissent, in fact, is essential. The enemy is dishonesty, ignorance, indifference, intolerance." ~ Nancy Gibbs, Time magazine editor, issue of February 13, 2017
(8) Half dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Volkswagen overtakes Toyota as world's largest car manufacturer (Time)
- ACLU gets record donations since Trump's immigration order (Fortune)
- Mexicans may elect a left-wing populist in 2018 to stick it to Trump (Time)
- Alleged serial rapist may have preyed on kids for 40 years (People)
- Republicans seek distance from Trump's comments on Russia, US (AP)
- Goldman Sachs economists are starting to worry about Trump (Bloomberg)
(9) Three UCSB students affected by the recent travel ban: A fourth student has put her wedding plans on hold due to the uncertainty of her parents' travel to attend. Visa uncertainties are also putting internship and career opportunities in jeopardy for some students. There are 37 graduate students and 3 undergraduates from the 7 banned countries at UCSB. All but one Syrian undergraduate are from Iran. [Daily Nexus story]

2017/02/05 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Lady Liberty and Lady Justice wearing protest pussy hats Lady Liberty reassuring Lady Justice that she can handle the assault on freedoms (1) Cartoons of the day: Two cartoons featuring Lady Liberty and Lady Justice.
(2) Quote of the day: "There are certain truths that are not alternative but self-evident." ~ Journalist Dan Rather, in a Facebook essay
(3) Alternate-reality humor from a British computer technology magazine. [Image]
(4) Sister Mary: This woman, now an Iranian Vice President, was among the US Embassy occupiers in Tehran. Her son is studying management in the US. This video splices segments of a new TV interview she gave with some of her statements, speaking near-perfect English, as the spokesperson of the 1971-1981 hostage-takers.
(5) Aladdin on his flying carpet: "I can show you the world ... except the United States." [Image]
(6) Making a statement: Photo of a blue cap, bearing the slogan "Make Racism Wrong Again"!
(7) Half-dozen recent Science/technology headlines:
- Dubai's Transport Authority signs a deal for hyperloop feasibility study to connect Dubai to Abu Dhabi
- University of Calgary waives its application fee for new or transfer students affected by the US visa ban
- The largest solar farm in the world (2500 acres) has been constructed in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu
- The number of mobile subscriptions in Africa has surpassed one billion and will reach 1.33 billion by 2021
- Japan's government has allocated 1.95 billion yen to build a world-leading 130-petaflop supercomputer
- China allocates 247 billion yuan to improve rail transport between Beijing and Jing-Jin-Ji, a planned megacity
(8) Anti-Semitism is on the rise in the US: Photos from NYC subway.
(9) Party of marriage sanctity: These four Republicans have 13 marriages and at least 4 affairs between them.

2017/02/03 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
'Der Spiegel' cover image, showing Trump beheading Lady Liberty (1) America, the new laughingstock of the world: The up side is that perhaps our new world image will help us understand that a country's people and its leadership are not the same.
(2) Ten brief news headlines of the day:
- Nordstrom drops Ivanka Trump fashion line, citing poor sales
- Neiman Marcus Web site no longer lists Ivanka Trump's line
- World's first 3D-printed bridge unveiled in Madrid (Daily Mail)
- Howard Stern concerned about Trump's mental health under pressure
- Melania Trump hires Bush administration vet as Chief of Staff
- Back from vacation, the Obamas settle into rented DC home
- US House scraps background-check regulations for gun purchase
- March on Washington for Science set for Earth Day, April 22
- Rouhani's opposition has no candidate yet, 110 days to election
- Saudi Prince trolls Trump on Twitter: "I bailed you out twice"
(3) Quote of the day: "Mexico does not believe in walls ... Mexico will not pay for any wall ... Mexico offers and demands respect." ~ President Enrique Pena Nieto [Video]
(4) Network representation of 1500 individuals and organizations that are tied to Trump: Zoom in or click on an entity to see the details.
(5) Alternative facts are getting out of control: Kellyanne Conway cites the nonexistent "Bowling Green Massacre" in justifying Trump's travel ban.
(6) Scientists of Iranian origins ponder the effects of Trump's immigration ban. [PRI story]
(7) Newly discovered original edition of George Orwell's book, later renamed "1984." [Image]
(8) Get to know one of the men at the pinnacle of power in the US: "I'm a Leninist ... Lenin wanted to destroy the state, and that's my goal too. I want to bring everything crashing down, and destroy all of today's establishment." ~ Steve Bannon, in an interview with the Daily Beast
(9) Final thought for the day: "There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest." ~ Elie Wiesel

2017/02/02 (Thursday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cartoon: Donald Duck wants to change his first name (1) Cartoon of the day: Donald Duck wants to change his first name.
(2) Ten brief news headlines of the day:
- The Pentagon contradicts White House assertion that Iran fired on US warship
- Uber boss quits Trump's economic advisory board
- Trump threatens funds cut at UC Berkeley for cancelled Breitbart editor speech
- Trump will repeal ban on political endorsements by tax-exempt churches
- Trump calls NFL Commissioner Roger Goodel "a dope" and "stupid"
- Trump preparing new sanctions on Iran in the wake of ballistic missile test
- Trump hangs up on Australian PM after calling the refugee deal "dumb"
- Schwarzenegger offers to trade places with Trump after his TV ratings criticism
- J. K. Rowling responds on Twitter to Trump trolls burning her books
- Heroic mom dies in house fire right after she tosses her newborn from window
(3) Look what I found during a Google search today! Screen capture of Google's birthday wish for me.
(4) May God help our universities: President Trump has asked Jerry Falwell to lead a presidential task force charged with trimming college regulations and curbing interference by the US Department of Education. This move was widely expected, given Trump's own foray into a private university that recently folded after settling a class-action lawsuit alleging fraud.
Cover image of 'The Mathemagician and Pied Puzzler' (5) Book review: Berlekamp, E. and T. Rodgers (eds.), The Mathemagician and Pied Puzzler: A Collection in Tribute to Martin Gardner, A. K. Peters, 1999.
This 266-page book consists of 38 short chapters, each having different authors, organized in three parts: Personal Magic; Puzzlers; Mathemagics. The book honors Martin Gardner, the puzzle-master whose Scientific American columns were eagerly anticipated by many readers, including yours truly. Gardner, who had no formal math training, wrote many books on recreational mathematics and was described by John Conway as bringing "more mathematics, to more millions, than anyone else."
Not surprisingly, most of this book's chapters deal with puzzles, but a few also contain biographical tidbits and testimonies. Additionally, there are humorous pieces and oddities, exemplified by the theorem "All governments are unjust" and its proof: "If a government is arbitrary, it is obviously unjust. And since this is true of an arbitrary government, it is true of all governments."
Here is one of the more interesting puzzles in the book, titled "Mathematical black hole." Start with any number, such as 432,568,721,622,304. Count the number of even digits, odd digits, and the total number of digits and write them consecutively. The result for the number above is: 10,515 (10 evens, 5 odds, 15 total). Now repeat the process, successively getting 145 (1 even, 4 odds, 5 total), 123, 123, ... , with 123 repeating indefinitely. It is hard to believe, but this process always leads to 123!
In one of the most interesting and accessible chapters, entitled "Puzzles from Around the World," Richard I. Hess presents many puzzles in the categories of easy (17), medium (20), and hard (20). The following is an interesting example from the medium batch: Find all primes p such that 2^p + p^2 (2 to the power p, plus p squared) is also a prime; then prove that there are no others.
[My 4-star review of this book on GoodReads]

2017/02/01 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Celebrating my 70th birthday (1) My big, fat 70th birthday: One birthday isn't any different from another, but, somehow, having a 0 at the end of your age seems special, perhaps because there aren't very many such birthdays. But there aren't very many birthdays ending in 3 or 7 either! Reaching 70 is bittersweet for me: I am grateful for having come this far, but apprehensive that there won't be many more 0-ending birthdays! I looked up the properties of 70 as a number on Wikipedia and would like to share here some of my findings.
- Seventy is a sphenic number, because it factors into three distinct primes.
- Seventy-squared equals the sum of the first 24 squares, starting from 1.
- Seventy is a Pell number and a generalized heptagonal number, one of only two numbers to be both.
- In Far-Eastern cultures, 70 is called the "Rare Age of the Olden Times."
- In French, 70 does not have its own name but is called "sixty-ten" (soixante-dix).
In addition, the number seventy appears several times in the Torah: seventy elders of the Jewish nation, seventy languages and nations of the world, and seventy members of Jacob's family who went to Egypt.
(2) I never learned how to write in cursive English, but here is an interactive test for those who learned the skill and think they remember how to do it.
(3) Hollywood East: China aspires to compete with with US's film industry, according to a feature article in Time magazine, issue of February 6, 2017. It is noteworthy that in 2015, an average of 22 new movie screens opened in China, per day! [Photo]
(4) Noon mini-concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: Mariachi Las Olas de Santa Barbara performed today as part of the World Music Series. Of course, no Mariachi concert is complete without a rendition of "La Bamba."
(5) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Apple regains the title of top smartphone seller due to iPhone 7 (Reuters)
- Trump's immigration order could cost colleges up to $700M (Bloomberg)
- Trump reportedly has heated exchange with Australian leader (CNN)
- Delaware prisons go on lock-down due to hostage situation (WPVI)
- Military operation in Yemen kills a Navy Seal, multiple civilians (Salon)
- Russia arrests FSB officers for treason in connection with US (Bloomberg)
- Walmart offers free shipping to undercut Amazon Prime (ABC)
- Ivanka Trump visits the Chinese Embassy to celebrate New Year (AP)
(6) Steve Bannon believes we have too many Asian tech CEOs: He is on record as saying that Asian immigrants are taking jobs away from Americans. Ironically, on the November 2015 Breitbart radio program where Bannon made this proclamation, Donald Trump was a guest and proceeded to contradict Bannon by saying that we should keep talented individuals whom we educate in the US.
(7) Believe it or not: PG-13 movies in the US contain, on average, 23% more gun violence than R-rated films. [Source: Time magazine, issue of February 6, 2017]
(8) Modern rendition of a regional song from Kerman, Iran: It is heartwarming that, despite many restrictions on music performances (especially by women), talented musicians, such as those in the Rastak Ensemble seen here, are keeping Iranian music and its traditional instruments not just alive, but thriving. The song "Sakineh" bears influences from Indian music, given the proximity of Kerman to Pakistan.
(9) A final thought (fancied future news headline): "President Trump resigns under threat of impeachment!"

2017/01/31 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Book page describing the symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder (1) Narcissistic personality disorder: Such a perfect fit!
(2) Bibliomania: This article contains an enlightening review of the strange history of compulsive book-buying over the past couple of centuries.
(3) Many major companies join tech execs in criticizing Trump's immigration ban.
(4) It is now a bit easier to climb Mount Everest: Scientists estimate that following earthquakes in Nepal, the highest mountain on Earth has become 1 inch shorter. [Source: Time magazine, issue of February 6, 2017]
(5) This Baha'i girl, herself oppressed and denied basic human rights by Iran's Islamic government, declares her support for the rights of Muslims.
(6) Time to brush up on your knowledge of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 and George Orwell's 1984 and Animal Farm. Here is the first installment. [Cliff Notes on Fahrenheit 451]
(7) UCSB Faculty Club grand reopening: The renovated and expanded facility, renamed "The Club and Guest House at UCSB," formally opened today. In one of these 21 photos taken at today's reception, UCSB campus architect Marc Fisher is speaking. Seated (left to right) are philanthropist Betty Elings, Chancellor Henry Yang, and the current Club President.
(8) Eastern Mosul is slowly moving towards normalcy after the ouster of ISIL by Iraqi and coalition forces.
(9) University of California's statement on President Trump's executive order on visa bans: The statement, signed by UC President Janet Napolitano and all 10 campus Chancellors, declares the ban contrary to what they hold dear as university leaders.

2017/01/30 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Distribution of nuclear weapons, shown on a world map (1) Distribution of the world's nuclear weapons: Some of the figures are educated guesses. [Source: Federation of American Scientists]
(2) It's funny how the national-security implications of the Russians' hacking of the US election have been pushed to the side by Trump's distractive maneuvers.
(3) The apple that never browns: Years in development and regulatory red-tape, the genetically modified apple is about to go on sale in the US. The apple will be sold in sliced form, under the brand name Arctic Apple.
(4) Terrorist attacks Canadian mosque: The Canadian student who killed 6 (ages 35-70) and injured 17 (some critically) at a Quebec mosque is a right-wing nut. Quoting NBC News: "A former classmate of Bissonnette's told NBC News that he was shocked by the arrest but said that the suspect was known to troll Facebook pages dealing with immigration issues and that he had seen him comment on pages linked to a far-right, nationalist, anti-immigration movement. A local refugee group said in a Facebook post that Bissonnette was known to it for anti-immigrant and anti-feminist stances."
(5) Trump to visit UK in June: There are already two challenges for this trip. One million Brits have signed a petition to prevent Trump from entering their country. And sources close to Trump have warned Prince Charles to refrain from lecturing Trump on global warming and green energy during his visit.
(6) Trump diagnosed with mental disorder: As much as I detest Trump, l am alarmed by the in-absentia diagnosis that has been published and how its wording can impact our country's view of mental illness. We should not try to correct wrongs with other wrongs!
(7) Artists continue to tick off Trump: There were several snide remarks about Trump and his taking liberties with our freedoms in last night's SAG Awards. No doubt the Oscars will generate more fireworks next month. Bryan Cranston, who won a best-actor award for portraying President Lyndon B. Johnson, related that he is often asked about the advice that Johnson would have given to Trump, had they met: Johnson would have wished him success and offered his trademark, "Just don't piss in the soup that all of us gotta eat."
(8) Should government be run like a business? Some believe that it should, citing efficiencies arising from business management practices. Others argue that profits and share values have no counterparts in government, be it at the local or national level. A CEO reaps financial rewards if the business makes more money or generates higher value to shareholders. A politician should be more concerned with human dignity, fairness, and justice. To quote President Calvin Coolidge: "[It's no secret that we Americans] want wealth, but there are many other things we want much more. We want peace and honor, and that charity which is so strong an element of all civilization. The chief ideal of the American people is Idealism."
(9) Final thought for the day: "The war on facts is a war on democracy." ~ Jonathan Foley, in a Scientific American guest-blog

2017/01/29 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
My #IAmAnImmigrant meme (1) I'm proud to be part of the #IAmAnImmigrant movement.
(2) Microsoft and Apple are leading the opposition to Trump's immigration ban: Both CEOs have indicated that they are providing resources and legal help to employees.
(3) [Political humor] A White House conversation. Trump: "The less immigrants we let in, the better." Pence: "The fewer ..." Trump: "Shhh, don't call me that in public, yet!"
(4) For computer history buffs: Much has been written about the history of computing devices in the United States and UK. Far less is known about computing history in the rest of the world. This 4-minute video reviews selected milestones in computing history from Continental Europe.
(5) The apple that never browns: Years in development and regulatory red-tape, the genetically modified apple is about to go on sale in the US. The apple will be sold sliced and marketed under the brand name Arctic Apple.
(6) A moment's pause from political worries to marvel at a beautiful multicultural experience: Mahsa Vahdat performs a song based on a Hafiz poem in Norway, accompanied by The Choir SKRUK.
(7) For computer history buffs: Much has been written about the history of computing devices in the United States and UK. Far less is known about computing history in the rest of the world. This 4-minute ACM video reviews selected milestones in computing history from Continental Europe.
(8) Norooz festivities at UCLA: This year, Farhang Foundations's celebration of Norooz and Iranian New Year will be held at UCLA's Royce Hall and its adjacent Dickson Court on Sunday, March 12, 2017, from noon to 8:00 PM. Musician/singer/songwriter Mohsen Namjoo will be the featured musical performer.
(9) Many traveling immigrants have been detained at LAX: Protesters have converged on the airport, as have attorneys doing pro-bono work. Detainees should not sign any document before talking with an attorney.

2017/01/28 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Design depicting the 2017 Chinese New Year (1) Happy Chinese New Year! The year of the rooster begins today.
(2) Lady Liberty supports the women who marched in protest.
(3) Greenpeace activists hang a huge "RESIST" sign from a construction crane near the White House.
(4) Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg takes a firm stand against Trump's gag order to stop funding international organizations involved in family planning.
(5) My workstation at home: I have added a decorative touch within my field of view. Behind the photos of the kids are a Nikola Tesla doll, Da Vinci's rendition of the Vitruvian Man, and a balloon serving as a placeholder for a second doll, perhaps Einstein's.
(6) Protest songs from the 1960s are hip again: It seems that we need these songs and the messages therein desperately now! Most of the videos on this top-ten list are blocked for copyright violation, but you can search for them on YouTube and elsewhere.
Along the same lines, here is singer/songwriter extraordinaire Janis Ians "I'm still Standing Here."
(7) Precision and order: Very impressive maneuvers by marchers and motorcycle riders.
(8) UC bureaucracy in action: New policies established by University of California require faculty members to undergo basic training on various topics, such as sexual harassment and ethical behavior, and to take refresher courses on these topics from time to time. I have no problem with the two topics above, but was recently asked to take a refresher course on cyber-security. This is a case of bureaucrats just automatically asking the staff to do unnecessary stuff, without thinking about effectiveness and outcomes. Here is what I wrote to the office asking me to complete the training by a certain deadline:
"I really don't understand the indiscriminate assignment of training refreshers. For someone who is in computer engineering and lives and breathes cyber-security issues daily and even teaches them to students, having to go through a basic training course is simply a waste of time."
And here is their boilerplate response, which does not address my objection:
"Cyber Security is required training that must be completed on a periodic basis in order to keep the UCSB campus in compliance with federal, state, and UC requirements on these topics."
So, within the next month or so, I'll be taking an on-line cyber-security refresher course, alongside my colleagues in English, History, and Music Departments!
(9) [Final thought for the day] Proposed border tax on imported wives: People who marry foreigners are denying opportunities to decent, hard-working Americans. The Trump administration should immediately impose a border tax on foreign brides equal to the cost of giving birth to, raising, and educating an American woman. Each child of such a marriage should also be taxed, because s/he takes resources away from real Americans. The tax should be made retroactive and applied to all living individuals, so as to generate maximum revenues. Let's bring our marriages back to the United States!

2017/01/27 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon by John Atkinson (1) Cartoon of the day: Associative memory function.
(2) Some Muslim-majority countries excluded from Trump's proposed immigration ban: Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Turkey, Azerbaijan. These are countries where Trump has business ties. The immigration ban applies to Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, and Libya. [Source: Bloomberg News]
(3) Balcony collapse in Isla Vista: Fortunately, no one was hurt, but 28 people must find alternate accommodations. That huge piece of concrete on a beach segment where I walk regularly is quite frightening!
(4) Economics 101: A 20% tariff doesn't mean Mexico will pay for the wall. It means US consumers of Mexican goods will!
(5) Origins of the atoms in your body: Here is where the 7 x 10^27 (7 octillion) atoms in an average adult human body come from.
(6) Passport index: The quality of a passport is measured by the number of countries that are accessible to its holder without requiring a visa. Based on this metric, Germany has the highest-quality passport, followed by Sweden and Singapore (rank 2), and Denmark, Finland, France, Spain, Norway, UK, and USA (rank 3). Some of the other rankings include Canada (5), Israel (19), Mexico (22), Russia (43), Cuba (67), China (70), India (82). At the bottom of the list is Afghanistan (98). Iran, Eritrea, and Sudan share the rank 91, a notch below Palestine, Nepal, and Libya (90).
(7) Robust Digital Computation in the Physical World (12:00 noon, HFH 1132): This was the title of an interesting talk at UCSB by Dr. Jackson R. Mayo (Sandia National Labs) about how insights from physics, formal methods, and complex systems theory can aid in extending reliability and security measures from pure digital computation to the broader cyber-physical and out-of-nominal arena.
Our digital systems are remarkably robust, primarily because physical uncertainty has been removed in having their parts operate in one of two states. However, any digital system is implemented with analog (continuous) hardware. All known physical processes have continuous dependence on initial conditions. Given a sufficiently large number of digital devices, as we have in top-of-the-line supercomputers or networked systems, some of them will encounter operating conditions that put them in the uncertainty zone between the two stable states. In such cases, the system may become unstable, not reaching the required decision in the allotted time.
This difficulty in decision is a reflection of Buridan's Principle, colorfully illustrated by a donkey being positioned at the exact same distance from two equally attractive bales of hay, and asserting that the beast will starve from indecision, because it has no basis for selecting one bale over the other.
Like all other complex systems, large-scale digital systems are chaotic. They behave deterministically as long as operating and initial conditions are within the norm, but it is inevitable that they can become unstable and misbehave under some conditions. The insights gained from this line of research find applications in the design and analysis of high-consequence controllers and extreme-scale scientific computation.
(8) This afternoon at Goleta Beach: After attending an interesting technical talk at UCSB (see item 7 above), I went for a walk on this sunny, spring-like day. My eastward walk was cut short, because the creek at Goleta Beach had a significant flow that made crossing it impossible (at least in my work clothes). So, I turned around and walked in the other direction.

2017/01/26 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of a broadly smiling President Obama (1) The President who smiled and loved: "A great deal of how we see the world depends on our outlook. For eight years, President Obama gave the American people the example of his careful consideration, compassion, rigorous intelligence and, wonder of wonders, love. ... Obama, who was never short on discipline, seemed to believe that rigor was not undermined by kindness and joy. ... He saw the good in us, he saw the love, and he told us so." ~ Ann Patchett, writing in Time magazine, issue of January 30, 2017
(2) Persian New Year and Norooz: The Spring Equinox, which begins the Persian New Year 1396 is at 3:28:10 AM Pacific Time on Monday, March 20, 2017.
(3) The Netherlands has made a fantastic English-language video to introduce itself to President Trump.
(4) Trump registered eight companies in Saudi Arabia alone during his presidential campaign.
(5) Recording for future annual comparisons: On Trump's first full day of presidency, January 21, 2017, we had these facts (real facts, not alternate facts).
Gallon of gas $2.31   |   Dow 19,827   |   Nasdaq 5,555   |   Unemployment 4.7%
(6) Quote of the day: "A big part of feminism is making room for other women to make choices you don't necessarily agree with." ~ Actress Lena Dunham
(7) Tonight's lecture by Douglas Brinkley at UCSB's Campbell Hall: Presented as part of the US National Parks Centennial series that began in 2016, Brinkley's talk, entitled "Presidents and the National Parks: From Theodore Roosevelt to Barack Obama," was highly informative and very timely, given the threats facing our environment and the EPA. The biggest national parks will likely survive the Trump administration, given their popularity with the general public, but there will be damages and exploitation here and there, according to Brinkley, a Rice University professor and a presidential historian, with multiple best-selling books to his credit. Theodore Roosevelt, an avid outdoorsman and environmentalist, established our national park system, getting around an uncooperative Congress at times by designating sensitive areas as national monuments at first. Other US Presidents who were supportive of environmental protection included Franklin Roosevelt, John Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, and Barack Obama. JFK actually did not pass any legislation, but he was quite open to suggestions by environmentalists who surrounded him. Nixon, a surprise name in the list above, was actually dismissive of such efforts, reportedly writing "Bullshit" on the memo proposing EPA's establishment. However, he found environmental protection politically expedient when he faced Edmund Muskie of Maine in the presidential election. Also, he was apparently moved by the Santa Barbara oil spill, given that he had a home in southern California. Nixon not only helped establish the EPA but went on to sign the Endangered Species Act. We have now transitioned from a most pro-environment President to one who has already begun waging wars on environmental and clean-energy regulations.
(8) Space-travel experts are eyeing human hibernation for long missions, as previously suggested in sci-fi.
(9) Final thought for the day: "Find something you would die for, and live for it." ~ Peter H. Diamandis

2017/01/25 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image showing 3G, 4G, and 5G cell-phone technologies as the sides of a right-angled triangle (1) Understanding different cell-phone technology generations (3G, 4G, and 5G)!
(2) The wall that needs to be built is between Church and State: Perhaps the Vatican can be made to pay for it!
(3) Actress Mary Tyler Moore dead at 80: She was the star of a family comedy and a workplace comedy that both set the standards for their respective genres. Though not wearing her feminist leanings on her sleeve, she was an early icon of smart, strong, and independent women.
(4) Governor Jerry Brown's response to Donald Trump: In his State-of-the-State speech, Brown was emphatic that "California is not turning back."
(5) NYC Mayor lashes out at Trump: Bill de Blasio calls Trump's planned action on sanctuary cities "immoral."
(6) Scientists are planning a march on Washington: The scientists' march is the third one against Trump's policies, after the successful "Women's March" on 1/21 and an announced "Tax March" on April 15.
(7) New Horizon spacecraft is headed to the outer Solar System: Already two years past Pluto, New Horizon is being directed to explore the icy outer reaches of the Kuiper Belt early in 2019. The new target, discovered by the Hubble Space Telescope and dubbed "2014 MU 65," has a special kind of orbit that makes it possibly a type of object that is primordial and left over from early solar system formation. Its study will thus provide a chance to find out what the building blocks of the solar system were like.
(8) NASA creates video of an imagined landing on Pluto based on New Horizon images.
(9) Afro-Cuban music: Miguelito y Grupo Maferefun performed in a noon mini-concert at UCSB's Music Bowl today. In this photo, there are three drums in the front row. The larger "mama drum" in the middle is the lead, the mid-size "papa drum" on the right follows along, and the little "baby drum" is the most important one, because it connects the other two beats. How's that for a statement on the importance of family and for feminism? [4-minute video of music and dancing]

2017/01/24 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Abstract image of dancer representing the film 'La La Land' (1) Complete list of Oscar-nominated films: "La La Land" ties all-time Oscar nominations record at 14. Asghar Farhadi's "Forushandah" ("The Salesman") is among the "Best Foreign Language Film" nominees, alongside films from Australia, Denmark, Germany, and Sweden. We will have a family outing this coming Saturday to see Farhadi's film at Santa Monica's Laemmle Royal Theater.
(2) Too hungry to sleep, too sleepy to eat! [27-second video of cute baby]
(3) Political humor: White House's Spanish-language Web site is reportedly gone, soon to be replaced with a Russian-language version.
(4) Los Angeles, CA, shot on Friday, January 20, 2017. [Photo]
(5) One of the signs from Saturday's protest march read: "What do we want? Evidence-based science. When do we want it? After peer review."
(6) Introducing Trump's Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, or our country's next Teacher-in-Chief!
(7) Alt-President: Elected with support from the Alt-Right; governing with alt-facts.
(8) Quote of the day: "Nobody respects women more than I do." ~ Donald J. Trump [Photo]
(9) On inaugural crowd size comparisons: It is interesting that some of my conservative friends, after arguing endlessly about Trump's inauguration-day crowd being larger than Obama's, realized that they were fed wrong data and now post about the crowd size being unimportant and that, instead, we should focus on issues. All this after THEY, following their Dear Leader and his Press Secretary, started the discussion by accusing the media of lying. Here are the results of my research. The crowd size this past Saturday was estimated to be from 300,000 to 800,000 by various sources. Obama's first inaugural in 2009 had 1.8 million attendees. When the photo is taken from the Capitol side, showing primarily those sitting right in front of the steps, it looks full, because those sections contain better seats and invitees are more likely to attend. In this front view of the crowd, you can barely see the back sections, normally holding the bulk of attendees. Each of these back sections is reduced to a narrow band which would not show the empty white space, as long as there are a few rows of people standing in the front part. The photos showing large empty spaces are taken from the other end of the National Mall. The figures above are consistent with DC Metro's rides statistics as well as travel and traffic data.

2017/01/22 (Sunday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Map of birth states of US Presidents (1) Map of birth states of US Presidents: Come on people of California! Make sure you are better represented among US Presidents! Right now, with just one President, you are on par with Kenya; or was it Hawaii? And look at Florida! It just spoils elections, without contributing a President of its own.
(2) The outgoing and incoming First Couples.
(3) The Obamas will take much-deserved break before returning as citizen-activists.
(4) Human body's natural and enhanced (engineered) defense mechanisms seen at work, under a microscope.
(5) Yesterday's massive protest march in Santa Barbara: The crowd of 6000-7000 was the largest anyone can remember in this community. Everyone was upbeat and many pledged to continue their efforts via the network of like-minded people they met at this event, which began and ended with rallies at the historic De La Guerra Plaza and included marches on State Street's roadway to the ocean and back. Mayor Helene Schneider spoke at the starting rally. One of the more interesting chants during the rally and march was: "What do we want? Women's rights. When do we want them? 100 years ago." My sign for the march was this inscription on a T-shirt I wore: "Fem.i.nism (fem-uh-niz-uhm): The radical notion that women are people." Several female and male marchers approached me and asked for my permission to take photos of my T-shirt. Here's a 3-minute video taken about midway through the march.
(6) My excellent adventure with Mehrangiz Kar: Today, I traveled to Los Angeles to attend a Persian talk entitled "Ups and Downs of Women's Quest for Equal Rights under the Islamic Republic of Iran," as part of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran. The drive south was very challenging due to pouring rain, large patches of water on the freeway, and low visibility, making my travel time quite long. The return trip wasn't as bad, despite flash-flood advisories. After having a late lunch with my daughter Sepideh at a French-Moroccan restaurant (Cafe Chez Marie, on Santa Monica Blvd.), I arrived at the lecture venue (121 Dodd Hall, UCLA) around 4:00 PM. The program began at 4:15, to accommodate late arrivals, in view of weather-related traffic delays.
The speaker, Mehrangiz Kar, has been at the forefront of women's, civil, and human rights struggles, both in Iran and abroad. She is the author of 15 books in Persian and a couple of volumes in English. She was summoned to court for interrogation in Iran, defamed by the regime's mouthpieces, and banned from publishing or even reprinting of her already published books. The topic was particularly timely, coming on the heels of yesterday's protest marches throughout the world, that brought more than 5 million women and men to the streets to remind everyone that women's rights are human rights.
Ms. Kar began by stating that the story of women's rights in Iran is long, complex, and multi-faceted and thus cannot be adequately summarized in an hour or two. Accordingly, her focus was the part of this story that unfolded after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, ignoring what came before.
Women were deeply involved in the course of the Islamic Revolution, which is quite surprising, given the clerical leadership of the movement. In the lead-up to the Revolution, the clerics, perhaps for the first time ever, actively promoted the participation of women, encouraging them to attend protest marches side by side with men. There was no segregation of participants by sex or religious devotion. Separating women from men and the eventual forced hijab rules came gradually and gently, and, even then, was not rigorously enforced for several years.
One of the first acts of the Islamic rulers was to dismantle protections afforded women in the pre-revolutionary Family Support Law, along with special family courts that administered the law. Legal marriage age for women was reduced from 18 to 9 (later on, age 13 was specified as a compromise). The option for divorce became the exclusive privilege of men. Women, who had been allowed to become judges only a decade before the Revolution, were denied judicial positions and the apprenticeships of younger women who were being trained for such positions were discontinued. More than 100 practicing women judges existed at the time. Also, women were barred from consular positions and ambassadorships, and educational programs that trained them for such positions were discontinued. Women singers and performers were issued stern warnings and they, or their male guardians, were forced to sign promisory notes to quit such "disreputable activities."
When Khomeini finally came around to issuing a directive for mandatory hijab, women did not obey the order, leading to extensive purges of women employees in government bureaus over a 3-year period. Many preferred being fired to wearing the hijab. Women lawyers underwent a period of uncertainty, before they could secure a religious decree from a cleric who interpreted Islamic laws more flexibly. He dug up sources that indicated a Muslim can hire a representative, even if the latter is foolish. So, the right to serve as lawyers came at the cost of being equated with fools! Eventually, however, quite a few women lawyers decided to leave their jobs, when it got much harder for them to work in the hostile atmosphere of the judiciary. Many ended up leaving the country. Those who remained in their positions are now given more leeway, going to work in chic outfits and elegant briefcases. About 1000 women now work in the judiciary as Judges' Counselors. These women participate in trials but cannot issue their own rulings.
Women's sports also suffered a number of setbacks, and they were banned from public swimming pools. Extensive anti-hijab protests were organized, which met with push-back from the regime and its supporters, including a number of women. In the period of lawlessness that preceded the passing of Islamic penal laws, self-appointed individuals would arrest couples walking on the streets, taking them to the local mosque for interrogation and immediate administration of punishment (flogging) in case they weren't legally married or blood relatives ("mahram").
The resistance against mandatory hijab dwindled for at least a couple of reasons, forcing women to accept the Islamic covering reluctantly. One was the Iran-Iraq war, which made the demands seem petty in comparison with the continuous stream of casualties and an atmosphere of mourning and despair. The slogan "Sister! Your hijab is more powerful than my blood," known as the martyr's message, was hammered at every opportunity, making opposition to hijab seem unpatriotic. The other reason was the occupation of the American Embassy and the ensuing hostage crisis, prompting hardliners to label any opposition as being directed by the US and other Western powers. Furthermore, left-leaning groups discouraged women from pursuing their rights, arguing that opposition to mandatory hijab should not become a means of weakening the Revolution or of questioning the anti-imperialistic credentials of Ayatollah Khomeini.
Another roadblock to women entering various professions was the establishment of the High Council of Cultural Revolution, a made-up entity that was not foreseen in the newly minted constitution. Similarly, the Special Court for Clerics was established to keep opposing mullahs in check by administering punishments such as defrocking.
Nevertheless, more subtle forms of resistance continued by Iranian women. A prime example is the publication of the Zanaan (Women) magazine, which tried to address women's issues in a way that seemed consistent with Islamic laws, as interpreted by more modern and lenient clerics, so that their material could not be construed as un-Islamic or against the law. This strategy of appealing to Islamic scriptures in opposition was later emulated by the Green Movement.
The women's movement is now in the hands of young women who proceed with greater caution, focusing their activities in limited areas such as preventing violence against women and improving employment laws, currently favoring married men to married women (prioritized within each group by the number of children), who in turn have higher priority than unmarried women.

2017/01/20 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Composite photo comparing the crowds at the 2009 and 2017 inaugurations (1) Inauguration, eight years ago and today.
(2) Issues removed from White House's Web site immediately after the transition included civil rights, climate change, and LGBT rights. A good indication of the new administration's priorities.
(3) Hope triumphs over disgust: Countdown to the next Inauguration Day!
(4) Steve Bannon is the Inauguration Day winner: Donald Trump's inaugural address was filled with references to corrupt politicians and a country ravaged by rusted-out factories, disappearing jobs, and gangs/crime.
(5) Cartoon of the day: A better caption would have been, "Ask not for their permission; just grab them ..."
(6) Ex-President Obama shows unusual grace: I don't think I would have been able to embrace a man who questioned my legitimacy as President and called me names for more than eight years.
(7) Ten brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- The Trump name appears 3540 times in the Panama Papers
- Trump considers anti-intellectual David Gelernter as Science Advisor
- US Navy developing smart mini-missiles to take out drones
- Deadly avalanche hits hotel in earthquake-stricken central Italy
- Mom sentenced to 43 years for killing her 11-year-old daughter
- Rabbinical waiver lets the Kushners ride in a car this evening
- Eiffel Tower lit green, white, & red to honor Iranian firefighters
- Trump continues blaming ills on other countries in inaugural address
- Anti-Trump protesters/rioters clash with police in Washington, DC
- Trump cabinet nominees grilled extensively by Congress
(8) One of the initial actions of Donald Trump as President: HUD's suspension of a planned cut in FHA mortgage insurance premiums; 40,000 potential home-buyers will be hurt, according to Senator Elizabeth Warren.
(9) Planeloads of women are headed to Washington, DC, for tomorrow's protest march.

2017/01/19 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Photo of indoor mall in Tehran's destroyed Plasco Building (1) Fire destroys an iconic building in Tehran: Known as Plasco Building (the photo shows the building's indoors mall), the 54-year-old tower, housing some 600 small businesses in a business district I frequented as a young man, burned for a couple of hours before collapsing. Dozens lost their lives and many others were injured, mostly firefighters. News reports indicate that cars and pedestrians stopping to take videos and selfies impeded the firefighting and, later, search and rescue efforts. Apparently, no terrorism was involved, but political exploitation of the event is underway, given the proximity of Iran's presidential and parliamentary elections. The event also has residents, living in even taller residential towers in northern Tehan, worried about the adequacy of firefighting and safety provisions in such buildings.
(2) Quote of the day: "The world is divided into men who have wit and no religion and men who have religion and no wit." ~ Persian polymath Avicenna [980-1037], who wrote on astronomy, chemistry, geology, religion, logic, mathematics, and physics, while also producing some poetry
(3) Productive nations: Rank / GDP per hour worked / Average workweek (hours) / Country
- 1 / $93.40 / 29.0 / Luxembourg
- 2 / $87.30 / 33.5 / Ireland
- 3 / $81.30 / 27.3 / Norway
- 4 / $69.70 / 29.8 / Belgium
- 5 / $68.30 / 33.6 / USA
(4) Hitchcock's "Blackmail": I just returned from a screening of the 1929 silent film at UCSB's Pollock Theater with live piano accompaniment by Michael Mortilla. The film, the story of a couple's indiscretions and an eventual murder watched by a third man (the blackmailer), features a stunning chase sequence through the British Museum. The film was released in both silent and sound versions, with the latter release being the first British sound film production. The silent version was actually released a bit later, because many theaters in those days were not yet equipped for sound films.
(5) Ellen honors the Obamas' 8 years in the White House. [Video compilation]
(6) Free stuff from UCSB Arts & Lectures: A pair of tickets to Douglas Brinkley's 1/26 lecture "Presidents and the National Parks: From Theodore Roosevelt to Barack Obama" and a copy of Colson Whitehead's The Underground Railroad are what I got as special treats to UCSB's faculty and staff.
(7) Final thought for the day: "Many a dead man lives on through knowledge." ~ Iraqi logic theorist and physician Yahya ibn Adi [893-974]

2017/01/18 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Photo of the nearly completed Bioengineering Building at UCSB (1) A new bioengineering building is taking shape on the UCSB campus.
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Former First Couple George and Barbara Bush hospitalized
- Obama defends decision on Chelsea Manning in last press conference
- Trump promises 'insurance for everybody' in replacing Obamacare
- One child dead, another seriously injured, in Atlanta pit bull attack
- Houston-area teacher pregnant by student gets 10 years in jail
- FBI and other agencies probing possible Kremlin cash to Trump
(3) An open letter from the US Press Corps to President-elect Trump, about his banning various reporters and news organizations, kicking the Press Corps out of the White House, and otherwise making access difficult: "We are very good at finding alternative ways to get information; indeed, some of the best reporting during the campaign came from news organizations that were banned from your rallies. Telling reporters that they won't get access to something isn't what we'd prefer, but it's a challenge we relish."
(4) UCSB's World Music Series: Today, I attended the first of the winter 2017 concerts at UCSB's Music Bowl (Wednesdays at 12:00 noon). [Video 1] [Video 2: "Fried Grease"]. Here is the complete list for the quarter.
- January 18: UCSB Jazz Ensemble (Dave Brubecks's "Fujiyama," Woody Shaw's "Katrina Ballerina," more)
- January 25: Miguelito y Grupo Maferefun (Afro-Cuban singing and drumming)
- February 01: Mariachi Las Olas de Santa Barbara (Dia de la Candelaria, or Candlemas, Music)
- February 08: UCSB Brass Ensemble (repertoire from the Renaissance to modern jazz)
- February 15: Charlie King & Bev Grant: A Century of Song, Still Going Strong (storyteller & political satirist)
- February 22: Three for Joy (Padula siblings, Angela Rose 10, Joseph 11, and Dominic 13, perform Celtic music)
- March 01: Gamelan Music from Indonesia (ancient style of Gamelan from Cirebon and West Java)
- March 08: UCSB Gospel Choir (traditional & contemporary songs from African-American religious traditions)
(5) UCSB among top 10 schools nationally in terms of mid-career salary potential in engineering.
(6) UCSB Faculty Association's Day of Democratic Education: Given all the uncertainties among students and staff about personal/press freedoms, gender/racial equality, access to health care, and climate-change policy upon the takeover of the new US administration, multiple seminars, panel discussions, and town halls were held on the UCSB campus today. I was able to sample a couple of the sessions in the time slots between my class, office hours, a technical seminar, and other commitments.
- "Why Is the Temperature on Venus 950 Degrees?" Robert Antonucci, Broida 1610, 2:00-3:00 PM
- "Democratizing Education, Race & Privatization." Diane Fujino, Tricia Rose, Kim Yasuda; Girvetz 1004, 3:30-4:45
- "Politics of Fear / Politics of Hope." Claudio Fogu, Howard Winant, Robert Samuels; Corwin Pavilion, 4:00-5:00
(7) [An amazing 47-minute documentary film] The boy who can see without eyes: After Ben Underwood lost both eyes to a rare form of cancer, he taught himself to see using echos of sounds that he makes (known as echolocation). He lives a nearly normal life, shooting hoops, playing video games, riding a bike, roller-blading, and walking (even without a cane). UCSB, where he went to participate in a research study, is featured in the video. Unfortunately, this remarkable boy passed away in 2009, when his cancer relapsed.
(8) Final thought for the day: Everyone made fun of Sarah Palin when she said she could see Russia from her house (she actually said from Alaska). Now Trump and everyone else can see Russia from the Trump Tower!

2017/01/17 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Chart showing US housing price trends (1) US housing price trends: The mid-2000s housing bubble is clearly visible on both the nominal (blue) and inflation-adjusted (red) curves. As a long-term investment, a house's value just barely makes up for inflation, staying less than 0.5% above it (a rise of 20%, from $150K to $180K, in the 40 years between 1972 to 2012). This is why many economists advise against buying a house, recommending instead renting as a better option for most people.
(2) For the ninth year in a row, respondents to a Gallup poll ranked Barack Obama as the most admired man in America.
(3) Kellyanne Conway, before she became a Trump apologist: She says in this video clip that Trump, far from being a champion of the little guy, has built his business empire on the backs of little guys!
(4) Let's call the Trump presidency the comb-over years: A period when bald lies are covered with other lies.
(5) A couple on an Iranian beach: What exactly goes through the mind of this man about it being okay for him to stroll freely in a revealing swimsuit (I am imagining the front side!), while his significant other is forced to appear fully clothed in the scorching heat?
(6) Future winter-quarter events under the auspices of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran:
- Sunday 1/22, 4 PM, Mehrangiz Kar (Persian): "Ups and Downs of Women's Quest for Equal Rights under IRI"
- Thursday 2/09, 3 PM, Nasrin Rahimieh (English): "Contested Terrains of Iranian Culture"
- Tuesday 2/14, 3 PM, Abbas Daneshvari (English): "Metaphysical Subversions in Contemporary Iranian Art"
- Sunday 3/05, 4 PM, Manochehr Dorraj (Persian): "Iran-China Relations in a Changing World"
(7) Santa Barbara will have its own Women's March on Saturday, January 21, 2017. The event will start with a noon rally at De La Guerra Plaza.
(8) Quote of the day: "When a woman thinks she is nothing, the little sparrows cry. Who can defend them on the terrace, if no one has the vision of a world without slingshots?" ~ Fatema Mernissi [1940-2015], Moroccan feminist and sociologist; see the next item about Islamic philosophers you should know (9 men and this woman)
(9) Islamic philosophers you should know: These under-appreciated philosophers produced original thoughts of their own and they were also instrumental in our regaining access to the thoughts of Aristotle and Plato. In each of the 10 cases (9 men, 1 woman) listed, an image and a brief introduction are followed by a quote.

2017/01/16 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Google doodle for 2017 MLK Observance Day (1) Celebrating MLK Day: This year, Martin Luther King Jr. Day takes on a new significance. MLK's message of love, peace, unity, and respect must be repeated more than ever, in order to counteract the hate, conflict, division, and discourtesy practiced by President-elect Trump and his team. [Image credit: Google]
(2) President Obama's reference to Atticus Finch in his farewell speech is multi-layered: It goes beyond what we understand on the surface (racism has been around for many years and it is abhorrent). It also acknowledges the need for us liberals to put ourselves in the shoes of economically disadvantaged lower- and middle-class white men and to see their plight, which in the absence of enlightened/tolerant leadership, manifests itself as racism.
(3) For book lovers: Books played an important role in President Obama's surviving the White House years.
(4) Humor: Scottish Sunday Herald TV Guide's description of Trump's inauguration coverage.
(5) A case of "follow the leader": Connecticut Republican, arrested for pinching woman's genitals, is relieved he no longer has to be politically correct.
(6) Trump's attention is focused on his business deals and "Celebrity Apprentice" ratings, leaving little time for the economic and social problems of his fellow Americans. [Article]
(7) He has a point: "Feh! In my day, if a politician compared the CIA to Nazis there'd be a dead hooker in the trunk of his car by week's end. Not like today!" ~ John Fugelsang
(8) The secret intelligence report on Trump-Putin ties: I just finished reading on BuzzFeed the recently-leaked 35-page secret document on Trump's ties to Russia and the compromising dossier Russia has compiled on the US President-elect. The report was prepared by a private investigator hired by Trump's Republican and, later, Democratic, election opponents. Given all the details and names in the document, I think it is highly unlikely that the entire thing is made-up. There may be exaggerations and falsehoods here and there, but the overall story is credible in my assessment. There is just too many explosive facts about intelligence exchanges and secret meetings in the report for it to be swept under the rug. There will no doubt be extensive investigations of the allegations, and this is what makes Trump so angry whenever the report is brought up. An interesting point, that I have not heard in the coverage by the US media, is that there is a significant outrage about these ties within Russia. Some members of the Russian government and of its intelligence agencies think that Putin has gone too far and that his actions have damaged relations between the two countries. If true, then the recent sanctions imposed by the US will intensify the rift within Russia.
(9) Signing off with half-dozen Martin Luther King Jr. quotes, on the occasion of his day of remembrance:
- "Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
- "In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."
- "We may have all come on different ships, but we're in the same boat now."
- "Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase."
- "We need leaders not in love with money but with justice. Not in love with publicity but with humanity."
- "Men of humane convictions must choose the protest that best suits their convictions. But we must all protest."

2017/01/15 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cartoon illustrating the absurdity of trickle-down economics (1) Cartoon of the day: Trickle-down economics.
(2) There is a store in NYC that allows you to snap and print a 3D selfie.
(3) Real-life soap opera: A sterile man hired his neighbor, a married man with children, to impregnate his wife. When 72 attempts produced no result, he had the neighbor tested and, sure enough, he was also sterile. The man is now suing his neighbor. And the neighbor's wife has "some splaining to do."
(4) On Iranian laws: As a rule, laws in Iran are applied selectively. They don't look at what you have done to see whether it is against any laws. They decide whether you are a person to be detained, harassed, or blackmailed and then look for laws that can be used against you. The new law forbidding dual citizenship helps in their quest to punish reporters and other pesky individuals.
(5) Kurdish kids in traditional clothing. [Photos]
(6) The remodled and expanded Faculty Club on the UCSB campus has reopened for business.
(7) Persepolis after Alexander: This was the title of a very interesting Persian talk this afternoon by Dr. Ali Mousavi as part of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran (121 Dodd Hall, 4:00 PM). The talk covered the story of the ruins of Parseh, City of Persians, or Takht-e Jamshid (The Throne of Jamshid, a mythological king) since it was set on fire by Alexander nearly 24 centuries ago. Its construction and more than two centuries of use were outside the scope of the talk, although the topics did come up during the Q&A period.
Dr. Mousavi was born and raised in Iran, earned BA and MA degrees in art history and archaeology, respectively, from University of Lyon, and a PhD degree in archaeology of the ancient Near East from University of California, Berkeley, and is now teaching art and archaeology of ancient Iran at UCLA. Among his many publications are the book Persepolis: Discovery and Afterlife of a World Wonder and the edited volume Ancient Iran from the Air.
Dr. Mousavi presented a century-by-century account of what went on at the ruins through periods of destruction/looting, neglect, linkage with fables/myths, new discoveries, and transformation. I learned from this talk that the destruction of Persepolis was gradual, for even though the fire set by Alexander razed many structures, others remained erect and usable for decades afterwards. Over the centuries, interest in preserving and reviving Persepolis arose at various times. Many Western experts on Iran have traveled to the site, leaving mixed legacies. They helped in the understanding of the site's significance and history, but they also removed many artifacts that were usurped by Western museums and private collectors.
Interest in restoring and maintaining the Persepolis ruins as symbols of Iran's illustrious history dates back to Reza Khan's rise to power, who upon becoming king, founded the National Monuments Council of Iran, a governmental body which is still active with a slight change of name. In the 1960s, the Shah ordered major improvements and renovations, including the design of a park next to the ruins, in preparation for the arrival of visiting foreign dignitaries on the occasion of the 2500th anniversary of the founding of the Persian Empire.
Over the years, many additions and improvements have been made to preserve or restore Persepolis. The southeastern palace has been partially reconstructed to give a feel of the original structure to the visitors of the museum it now houses. There have also been efforts to build a 3D model of Persepolis as it looked during its heyday. These days, the ruins host nearly 0.5 million visitors each Norooz. Steps taken to minimize wear and tear include the installation of wooden planks (so that the visitors do not walk on the original stone walkways), guard-rails, glass enclosures, and making certain areas off-limits.
The palace complex is built atop a rectangular platform of approximate size 450m by 350m. The tallest columns are about 20m high. Considering the 20m elevation of the platform and allowing another 10m for ceiling rafters and roofs, the height of the structure as seen by an approaching visitor would have been an impressive 50m in ancient times. [Persepolis from the Air]
I was curious as to how much virtual 3D modeling has been done for Persepolis (excellent work is in progress in Syria, Iraq, and Libya, where recent destructions of historic sites by Islamic extremists have prompted archaeologists to preserve as much data as possible). The 3D model of Persepolis that does exist appears primitive compared with what is now possible with modern computer graphics. In fact, UCLA's Urban Simulation Team has produced a wonderful model of Jerusalem Temple Mount's Second Temple, as it looked before destruction nearly 20 centuries ago. Perhaps with suitable direction and financial support, a more advanced 3D model of Persepolis can be produced.

2017/01/14 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cover image of Time magazine, issue of January 16, 2017 (1) The Swiss-army-knife of medications: Developed and approved for wrinkle removal, Botox is now being used to treat some 800 ailments.
(2) Half-dozen sci/tech news headlines of the day:
- Facebook job postings hint at R&D on brain interface
- Alcohol stimulates brain cells that pruduce the urge to eat
- Ants need work-life balance, research suggests
- Uber to supply aggregate ride data to city planners
- Giuliani to advise Trump administration on cyber-security
- Scientists cool microscope drum below quantum limit
(3) Scientists have twisted molecules into the tightest knot ever: Just as tying knots in ropes, braiding, and weaving have led to all sorts of breakthroughs, such as fishing nets and clothing material, doing the same at the molecular level can produce many scientific advances in smart materials and nanotechnology.
(4) 17 for '17: Seventeen women scientists at Microsoft Research around the world present their views on what to expect in 2017 (and 2027).
(5) Quote of the day: "Experts claim that 55 percent of communication is body language. Amid Trump's more obvious, aggressive forms of communication (yelling and finger-pointing) lies a message that the president-elect is on the defensive and perhaps has a little something to hide." ~ Jessica Firger, writing in Newsweek on-line
(6) Traditional Persian music by the Sarvan Ensemble: Full credits listed with the video.
(7) Amazon's Alexa steals the show at CES: The voice assistant is slated to facilitate interaction between humans and the Internet of Things.
(8) Arch2030: A vision of computer architecture research over the next 15 years is presented in this report of the Computing Community Consortium, by Luis Ceze, Mark D. Hill, and Thomas F. Wenisch (2016).
(9) Trump, as the elected President, should get our support: This is what conservatives are hammering every chance they get; through social-media posts, comments on posts, and so on. I don't know where this idea that we must support an elected President comes from. Going back to the early days of the Republic, a President always had his critics within the government (even his own cabinet and, sometimes, his VP, when the latter was elected independently of the President), Congress, state officials, and ordinary citizens. Some states went to war with the elected President because they disagreed with him on slavery. It is our right as citizens to oppose a President whose policies we do not agree with and to work, individually and collectively, to make sure he is not re-elected. Even working toward impeachment of a President is within our rights.

2017/01/13 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon representing the US presidential transition (1) Cartoon of the day: US presidential transition.
(2) Iconic California "Tunnel Tree" toppled in Calaveras Big-Tree State Park after heavy rains and flooding.
(3) Quote of the day: "Take your broken heart, make it into art." ~ Meryl Streep, relating an advice she received from her friend, the late Carrie Fisher
(4) Laurel and Hardy's slapstick comedy montage.
(5) President Obama's heartfelt address at a White House ceremony to honor VP Joe Biden, ending with awarding him the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction.
(6) President Obama publishes a policy note in Science: The note, entitled "The Irreversible Momentum of Clean Energy," has a one-sentence tweetable abstract ("Private-sector incentives help drive decoupling of emissions and economic growth."). Under author affiliation, it lists the author's contact address after January 20 as contact@obamaoffice44.org. Here is an important passage from the note: "Since 2008, the United States has experienced the first sustained period of rapid GHG emissions reductions and simultaneous economic growth on record. Specifically, CO2 emissions from the energy sector fell by 9.5% from 2008 to 2015, while the economy grew by more than 10%. In this same period, the amount of energy consumed per dollar of real gross domestic product (GDP) fell by almost 11%, the amount of CO2 emitted per unit of energy consumed declined by 8%, and CO2 emitted per dollar of GDP declined by 18%."
(7) Trump and AG-nominee Sessions may gut the H1B visa program: The program that brings highly skilled tech workers (from India and other countries) to the Silicon Valley may disappear or become highly curtailed, hurting the tech industry in the US.
(8) Graph isomorphism continues to be a hard problem: Theoretical computer scientist Laszlo Babai thought he had a nearly polynomial-time algorithm for determining whether two graphs are isomorphic, but the proof turned out to have a subtle error. Still, his algorithm represents a major improvement over the prior state of the art. Yesterday (January 9, 2017), Babai claimed that he has fixed the snag in the proof and is renewing his claim. Stay tuned for the final verdict!
(9) Final thought for the day: The scariest Friday this month isn't the 13th but the 20th!

2017/01/12 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing humorous titles for updated classics (1) Cartoon of the day: Literary classics updated (by John Atkinson).
(2) Nine brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Six VW execs indicted, $4.3 billion fine paid, for emissions fraud
- Fox News defends CNN against Trump belittling its reporter
- Christopher Steele is the spy behind salacious report on Trump
- George Soros lost $1 billion in post-Trump stock market rally
- Keeping a busy schedule helpful for better aging of the brain
- True to form, Trump asks vaccine skeptic to lead safety study
- President Obama advises hope, thanks many, in farewell address
- Rafsanjani's funeral procession turns into anti-regime rally
- LA's Expo Park will be home to $1 billion George Lucas Museum
(3) New allegations about President-elect Trump: Juicy revelations about the relationship between Trump operatives and Moscow, and Russia's intelligence agencies holding damaging personal and business info about Trump himself, dominated the news cycle yesterday and will likely continue to unfold over the next few days.
(4) The most ironic quote of the day: "Rich celebrities such as Meryl Streep should stay out of politics." ~ Some Trump supporters
(5) Comic (fake) news headline of the day: Canadian PM Trudeau appoints new Minister of Keeping Trump Away from Me [Source: CBC Comedy]
(6) Joke of the day: Businessman with 6 bankruptcies in his past calls actress with 157 awards "over-rated"!
(7) Trump's web of lies keep growing: And no matter how much his apologist Kellyanne Conway tries to sugar-coat his foul-tasting words and actions, the foul taste still dominates.
(8) Trump is picking too many fights: For someone who made a name for himself on TV, Trump does not seem to understand the news business. He is attacking reporters and news organizations constantly, thinking that he is punishing them by not answering their questions. This approach will definitely backfire. Investigative reporters have a myriad of ways of getting information, from leaks and anonymous sources to officials in the government who may not have the same views as Trump. He cannot fight on all fronts forever by ticking off the media, the Congress (some of whose members have at best a shaky support for him), intelligence agencies, the nation's industrial giants, our major trading partners, and virtually everyone else. Getting info directly from the President is a formality and a courtesy; the real info does not come from the President's mouth but from back channels. Just acting angry will not make any allegation go away.

2017/01/11 (Wednesday): Book review: Steinem, Gloria, My Life on the Road, unabridged audiobook on 8 CDs, read by Debra Winger, Random House Audio, 2015. [My 3-star review on GoodReads]
Cover image for Gloria Steinem's 'My Life on the Road' This is 82-year-old Steinem's first book in more than two decades. In it, she focuses on her travels through the years and chance meetings (with taxi drivers, airline stewards/stewardesses, truckers, and the like) that shaped her views and strengthened her resolve to work on behalf of women and other oppressed groups. This isn't a book from which to gain detailed knowledge about Steinem's life and activism, although the important parts do appear: causes pursued, conventions attended, campaigns supported, speeches given, politicians met, and so on. However, the book is first and foremost a travel diary.
Steinem came from a dysfunctional family and her stunning good looks served as a double-edged sword for her: they got her noticed but also tended to make people dismiss her as just another pretty face. She drowned herself in activism, organizing, and writing, never caring much for personal success or wealth and not getting married until late in life (she married at 66 a South African businessman, who died of cancer 3 years later and whose role in the author's life is curiously missing form the book).
Steinem was active in the presidential campaigns of Eugene McCarthy (with whom she became disillusioned when he appeared uninspired and started attacking Robert Kennedy) and George McGovern (who never fully embraced women's rights). In 2004, she fiercely opposed the re-election of George W. Bush due to his hostility toward women's equality and reproductive freedom.
When Steinem worked for Hillary Clinton's campaign before the 2008 presidential election, she was torn because she viewed both Democratic candidates as equal, given Clinton's pursuit of minority rights and Obama's feminism. She gives us this gem of an observation about the Clintons' marriage and why it survived the act of infidelity and the ensuing public shaming of both Bill and Hillary. She notes that when a woman's place in a man's life is primarily sexual, affairs become morbid events, as they show the woman that she is replaceable. Whereas when sex is only a (small) part of the attraction, and the couple shares in dreams and aspirations, affairs might become survivable.
Steinem's life would not have proceeded as it did, were it not for a British doctor who helped her with a then-illegal abortion, saving her from the burden of single motherhood in her early 20s. The sheer number of unusual characters Steinem meets during her travels and the level of engagement and knowledge they exhibit makes one suspect that not all described personalities and events are accurate reflections of reality.
I enjoyed listening to this audiobook, in part because of the warm, engaging voice of Debra Winger and partly because I really respect Steinem for all she has done over several decades to advance the cause of women's rights, to the detriment of her own well-being and prosperity. Her commitment to the cause shines through this otherwise unremarkable book.

2017/01/09 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image depicting the fact that love is the key to happiness (1) Here is your key to happiness!
(2) Quote of the day: "We in this room belong to the most vilified segments of American society. Think about it: Hollywood. Foreign. Press." ~ Meryl Streep, in accepting the Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award at last night's Golden Globe Awards ceremony (she went on to deliver the most powerful take-down of our President-elect, referring to his heartbreaking performance in imitating a disabled reporter, who was much lower than him is status and power)
(3) It was bound to happen: In a series of three tweets, between 3:27 and 3:43 AM today, Trump called Meryl Streep an over-rated actress and a Hillary flunky. Streep is just Trump's latest victim. Previously, he had tweeted that Jon Stewart, Megyn Kelly, and Jerry Seinfeld are over-rated. The irony is, of course, that Trump himself is the most over-rated celebrity of all!
(4) Q: How many politicians does it take to change a lightbulb? A: Two; one to change it and a second one to change it back.
(5) Iran's Hashemi Rafsanjani takes many of the Islamic regime's secrets to his grave: But just as Ayatollah Montazeri's son divulged secrets pertaining to his father's activities decades after they happened, Rafsanjani's children will no doubt not let their father's notes and documents be buried by Khamenei's hard-liner allies.
(6) An unlikely alliance: Putin, France's Le Pen, and Trump. [Photo from Time magazine, January 16, 2017]
(7) Realistic male mannequins coming to stores near you! [Photo]
(8) A proposal to the US Congress: Apparently, Trump has asked the Congress to allocate funds for building a border wall, whose cost will be reimbursed by Mexico at some future time. I suggest that the Congress make a business proposal to Trump that will benefit him and US taxpayers. He should go ahead and build the wall as a Trump project, using his personal funds and loans. When he recovers the cost from Mexico, he can keep any leftover funds as tax-free profit.
(9) Intermittent- or mini-fasting diets: These "Feast-Fast-Repeat" diets are all the rage now. The most common ones are "The 5:2 Diet" (limit intake to 500-600 calories on two nonconsecutive days per week), "Every-Other-Day Diet" (feast days, when you can eat all you want, alternate with 500-calorie diet days), and "Prolonged Nighttime Fasting" (limiting eating period to an 8-hour window per day). These diets have no known risks for healthy individuals, but they are not recommended for pregnant women, frail elderly individuals, or those with diabetes or otherwise prone to high blood sugar levels. [Source: AARP Magazine]

2017/01/08 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon about a baby having produced her first emoji (1) Cartoon of the day. [Source: AARP Bulletin]
(2) Andre Rieu's wonderful performance of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" brings tears of joy to some audience members.
(3) Nothing like the original: No one can do justice to "The Sounds of Silence" like Paul Simon and Art Gurfunkel, even after 52 years.
(4) Iran to annul the citizenship of those who acquire a second citizenship: Dual-citizenship will no longer be recognized. It would be interesting to see how the new decision will affect certain members of President Rouhani's cabinet and a number of ayatollahs' children who are citizens of other countries.
(5) Q: How many cars does it take to fill a mall with shoppers? A: A whole lot.
(6) Q: How many politicians does it take to change a lightbulb? A: Two; one to change it and a second one to change it back.
(7) Boss: "Send me some funny messages." Employee: "Can't. I'm working now." Boss: "LOL. Send another."
(8) Iran's Ayatollah Rafsanjani dead at 82: A peer of Khamenei during the early years of the Islamic Revolution and complicit with him in the regime's most brutal acts against dissidents, he had been sidelined, along with all other former presidents of Iran, as a result of Khamenei's power grab. But he worked behind the scenes and was instrumental in Rouhani's election to presidency. He was starting to gather momentum in influencing who will succeed Khamenei, even though he was too old to be the successor himself. Now, Khamenei will mourn and praise him in public, while he is likely jubilant that a troublesome adversary has been removed.
(9) Final thought for the day: The most critical thing in the new US administration will be Bannon vs. Trump. One has an ideological agenda and will do anything in his power to advance it, the other has no attention span and sees a lot of shiny objects. ~ David Brooks (not an exact quote)

2017/01/07 (Saturday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Photo of two-layer pudding dessert (1) Two-layer chocolate/lemon sugar-free pudding dessert, with chocolate wafers between the layers (not seen) and fruit toppings.
(2) Joe Biden's final interview as VP: Listen to this PBS interview to get a sense of what a grown-up politician sounds like. Interestingly, he tells Trump to "grow up"!
(3) Mural honoring women engineers: Case Western University's colorful 10-meter mural celebrates women's many contributions to engineering.
(4) Superhero vision coming soon: IBM researchers predict that hyper-imaging technology, using a large array of mini-sensors and many parts of the electromagnetic spectrum, will allow us to see much more than is otherwise visible (human eyes can see only 0.1% of the spectrum).
(5) An island in a lake on an island in a lake on an island: Lake Taal on the island of Luzon, in the northern end of the Philippines archipelago, is one of only two lakes in the world to have a third-order island within it. Volcano island in Lake Taal has a crater lake with a tiny island of its own, Vulcan Point, barely visible in this photo, taken from the International Space Station. [Source: Amusing Planet]
(6) I read the following statement three times, before I got the humor: Media reports that people in Dubai don't understand the humor in 'The Flinstones,' but I know for a fact that people in Abu Dhabi do.
(7) Mina's Revolution: This is the title of a 75-minute play by playwright Paul-David Halem, based on a 260-page novel of the same name by Iranian-American author Mehrnoosh Mazarei. The story follows the life of its title character, from the 1970s Iran to 2001 in New York City. [The stage-play as PDF file]
(8) 'Tis the season for tax fraud: Tax filing season is upon us and criminals can't wait to get your tax return check and spend it for you! Each year, many people are surprised to learn upon trying to file their taxes that someone has already filed and received the refund. This is usually done via identity theft over the holidays, when people tend to pay less attention to their bank and credit-card statements. Be vigilant! If you become a victim of identity theft, California's Attorney General has some useful information for you.

2017/01/06 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing Trump taking the Oath of Office (1) Cartoon of the day: Donald Trump taking the Oath of Office.
(2) One dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- US auto industry reports record-breaking sales in 2016
- For-profit Sage College closes, leaving students in limbo
- Living near busy roads increases dementia risk
- China tells President-elect Trump to lay off Twitter
- Black church bombing in Mississippi stirs race debates
- Four blacks charged with hate crime in beating of white man
- Swift action curbs potential measles outbreak in Santa Barbara
- Snowden not pardonable due to inconsistencies in his story
- Army Secretary nominee violated trade rules for years
- Obama's farewell party will feature many A-list stars
- Alaska Airlines has begun flying between Los Angeles and Cuba
- Russia's election interference went far beyond computer hacks
(3) Dr. Saud & Mr. Jihad: Saudi Arabia's two faces in the political universe and in its relationship with allies.
(4) Rumi of Westerners vs. the real Moulana Jalaluddin Balkhi: Rumi, as known in the West, is a mystic poet, bearing no signs of a religious scholar whose epic work "Masnavi" has been called "the Persian Quran" by many and "the roots of the roots of the roots of religion" by himself. [Rozina Ali's New Yorker article]
(5) The unclassified version of the Russia hacking report is out: "Russia's goals were to undermine public faith in the US democratic process, denigrate Secretary Clinton, and harm her electability and potential presidency. We further assess Putin and the Russian Government developed a clear preference for President-elect Trump."
(6) I don't understand this, but I'm excited: NASA's concept starship IXS Enterprise could reach Alpha Centauri, the nearest star system (at 4.3 light-years), in just 2 weeks, by distorting the space-time around it.
(7) Finally, Billy Joel in SoCal: My daughter and I have been wanting to see Billy Joel in concert for some time now, but it seems he prefers to perform on the East Coast (Madison Square Garden, in particular); you might say he is in a New York State of mind! Well, he will be performing at LA's Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 13, 2017. Not the ideal venue for a concert, but we are going.
(8) Final thought for the day: The strictest parents raise the most skillful liars.

2017/01/05 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Trump luxury tower ad on a street littered with the homeless (1) Trump billboard in Mumbai: What irony!
(2) Scientific quote of the day: "You matter, unless you multiply yourself by the speed-of-light squared ... then you energy." ~ From "Neil Tyson Fan" Facebook page
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Mobster Joey 'No Socks' hosted by Trump at New Year's bash
- Ivanka Trump set to move to Washington, not far from the Obamas
- Trump promises to reveal his information about alleged hacking
- Protests expand in Mexico over a sudden spike in gasoline prices
- Blacklisting plan for Israeli companies follows UN settlements vote
- New York governor Cuomo unveils plan for free college tuition
(4) Drone light show set to classical music: A world-record collection of 100 drones dazzle in this musical light show.
(5) Mariah Carey's agent: "I am sorry, Mariah, but all I can get you booked on now is the Inauguration." ~ New Yorker cartoon caption
(6) Trump repeatedly disparages "intelligence" reports about the Russian hacking, then reverses himself, while blaming the dishonest media for making it look like he dislikes US intelligence agencies! [The quotes around intelligence are Trump's, presumably to mock their abilities.]
(7) Redefining respect: Donald Trump has said, on multiple occasions, that nobody respects women more than he does. Watch this interview of his with Howard Stern and see for yourself what he means by "respect."
(8) These are the people who now say we should accept and respect our President-elect!
(9) Joke of the day: Jack asks his friend Max if it is okay to smoke while praying. Max tells him to go ask the priest. Jack goes to the priest, who answers the question with an emphatic "no." When Max hears about what happened, he tells Jack that he did not ask the question in the right way. Max then goes to the priest with Jack in tow and asks whether prayers are allowed during smoking. The priest answers that there is no bad time for praying. The moral of this story for Iran's Islamic officials is that they should ask their spiritual leaders whether thieves and con men can pray, not the other way around!

2017/01/04 (Wednesday): Book review: Sedighim, Fariba, Liora (in Persian), Nogaam Publishers, 2016.
Cover image for Fariba Sedighim's 'Liora' I received a copy of this book in December 2016 from the author, whom I got to know (virtually) through a friend's introduction. I also learned a bit more about Ms. Sedighim as well as her books and writing style from a segment of the radio program "Breakfast with Homa Sarshar" (aired on December 17, 2016, and available on-line).
Let me preface my review by mentioning that Liora is the first Persian-language book I have read in many years. It is also the first fiction book in quite a while. In recent years, my focus has been English-language nonfiction. I mention these facts to warn the readers that my skills in judging Persian books and works of fiction are quite rusty.
This well-written book, organized in three uneven chapters, comprising 249, 93, and 14 pages, is the story of Liora (a Hebrew name and term of endearment meaning "my light" and related to the English name "Laura"), a Jewish woman born within a dysfunctional family in Nahavand, a city in the western Iranian province of Hamadan, and raised there and, later, in the capital city of Tehran.
Influenced by an authoritarian mother, incapable of emotional engagement, and a weak, mostly-absent father, who disappears for a year with another woman, Liora suffers from inner conflicts that make it difficult for her to lead a fulfilling life. Her life story is riddled with instances of indecision and emotional paralysis, unable to make a decision even after all the pertinent information is available to her.
Despite the dysfunction at the top of her family, there are characters who nurture and support Liora or strengthen her resolve, preventing her from going completely berserk. These include her grandmother, older sister Edna (the target of her mother's undeserved wrath, because she had Edna when she was only 14), and her brother Yousef, who is an imaginary companion during Liora's frequent daydreams. One can't help but think that Liora's adventurism, including dangerous political activism and her craving for attention (particularly from men, perhaps as a substitute for her emotionally-distant father and physically-distant brother) are nothing but covers for her inner conflicts and self-doubts.
Sample half-page from Fariba Sedighim's 'Liora' In her early 20s, Liora is torn between two men, the decent and reliable Homayoun (4 years her senior, a Jew, a soulmate, an easier choice from the family-approval standpoint) and the artful, adventurous, and cunning Kian (a Muslim she meets at work during Homayoun's absence for two years of graduate studies in the UK). She and Homayoun had decided to wait for each other. And it is quite evident from the story that Homayoun intended to keep his end of the deal (but there is a twist, of course). Much of the fictional tale, happening in Iran and, later, in Los Angeles, pertains to Liora's relationship with these two men and her eventual regrets for choosing Kian over Homayoun.
The story, told in first-person, begins on a cloudy autumn day in Los Angeles, where Liora, sitting on a park bench, daydreams about her birth city of Nahavand. This flashback style of story-telling continues throughout the book, until the figurative concluding scene at her father's grave, where Liora seems to finally be able to bury the ghosts of her past insecurities and cheating husband.
The conflicts experienced by Liora and their effects on her paralysis and inability to pursue meaningful attachments, are not atypical among Iranian women (and men). The conflict between marrying within the faith or outside of it are also quite common for Iranian Jewish women and, to a lesser degree, men. One suspects that at least some elements of the story (including those pertaining to the lifestyles of Jewish families in Iran) are autobiographical. In the words of P. D. James, "All fiction is largely autobiographical and much autobiography is, of course, fiction."
Liora is a fun-loving and sensitive woman. She needs a purpose in life, is mildly suicidal, and feels incomplete without a man. Her marriage to Kian goes south after they emigrate to Los Angeles. She is almost sure that her husband is seeing another woman, based on his coldness, frequent late returns from work, and a couple of pieces of physical evidence, but she has never met or run into the other women. He has a habit of belittling Liora and dismissing her opinions, which she tolerates for some reason and even interprets it as affection, in a typical instance of dependency. At the end, Liora decides to leave the unfaithful Kian, having lost hope in rekindling their intimacy and romance. We are led to believe that Liora will follow through on her resolve, but the author does not totally slam shut the door to a possible reconciliation with him.
It appears that Liora's relationship with Kian arose from sexual attraction and her youthful infatuation with the unknown and the mysterious. At one juncture, just before Liora goes to meet Kian after office hours, when he would be alone at his workplace (presumably to start an intimate relationship with him), Liora characterizes her feelings towards Homayoun as love and her attraction to Kian as a compulsion, a viral ailment, a brain-eating cancer, a madness. Near the book's end, thinking of her dead father, Liora pours out her bitterness over his absence and weakness toward women, which is ironic, given her own feebleness towards men.
I happened to be listening to the audiobook version of Gloria Steinem's My Life on the Move in parallel with reading this hard-copy book. One of Steinem's observations, pertaining to the relationship between Bill and Hillary Clinton, struck me as relevant to Liora's predicament. Steinem states that if the relationship of a woman to a man is primarily sexual, then infidelity may be unbearable, because the woman thinks that she may be replaceable at any time. This feeling of temporariness and replaceability may be at the heart of Liora's troubles.
Having been born and raised as a Jew (though a non-practicing one) in Iran, I can identify with many elements of Liora's story. There are major differences between life in Tehran, where I was born, and life in Nahavand, and between the experiences of a man versus a woman, but there are also many commonalities. This familiarity made the story more absorbing to me. On the other hand, the part of the story happening in Los Angeles is rather shallow, devoid of details and insights, other than what goes on between Liora, her husband, and, to some extent, her ailing parents.
Because of the flashback story-telling style, reading this book feels like detective work, an activity that Liora herself seems to enjoy. The reasons for behaviors and decisions come to light many pages later, when the pertinent pieces of the story have been told. This is why it would be easier to read the book in a small number of sittings within a few days, rather than as a longer-term perusal.
[My review of Liora on GoodReads] [Persian version of the review on Facebook]

2017/01/03 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) Jump up for joy in 2017!
(2) Adorable 4-year-old has a New Year's message for you.
(3) Six brief news headlines of the day:
- Israeli PM Netanhahu to be investigated for misconduct
- Ford cancels $1.6 billion plant in Mexico under Trump pressure
- Fox News ratings will take hit from Megyn Kelly's departure
- Trump criticizes Time magazine's PC title "Person of the Year"
- New US Congress opens, prepares to battle over Obamacare
- Four Texan kids die from mouse poison gas release into home
(4) Young Iranian woman's plea: As she walks on the street wearing no headscarf, she calls on women, and men, to express their opposition to compulsory hijab laws, which are insults to both sexes.
(5) BBC Persian's report on widespread academic dishonesty in Iran: Many research papers and theses/dissertations are copied from other sources or bought from academic merchants for large sums of money.
(6) Republicans vote to gut Congressional Ethics Office: Ethics is a Chinese hoax for reducing US productivity!
[Addendum: Plans to gut the ethics watchdog scrapped in GOP emergency meeting after Trump reaction.]
(7) Math humor: Too much "pi" gives you a large circumference!
(8) Donald Trump's most outrageous lies: A partial list of 101 instances.
(9) Trump's understanding of cyberspace flawed: The President-elect's assertion that computers can never be made secure is toxic for research programs to protect our country's cyber-infrastructure. Computers aren't just used to send e-mail, so that couriers can replace them, as suggested by Trump.

2017/01/02 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of the entrance of The California Science Center (1) Visiting the California Science Center: Today, my daughter and I visited "The Science Behind Pixar" exhibit and the Space Shuttle Endeavour at the California Science Center, near the Los Angeles Coliseum. Both exhibits are fascinating and highly educational. The Pixar exhibit allows visitors to participate in animation, lighting, and other production steps in creating a computer-animated film.
Video 1: A Pixar animation display showing digital 3D modeling.
Video 2: The nine stages of creating a computer-animated film.
[P.S.: Why the British spelling for Endeavour? The orbiter is named after the British HMS Endeavour, the ship which took Captain James Cook on his first voyage of discovery (1768-1771).]
(2) Creative problem solving. [1-minute video]
(3) President Obama dances "Baba Karam" (a Persian dance) with his Iranian-American assistant. [Photo]
(4) Fair/impartial justice in Iran: The bonds for imprisoned political activist couple Arash Sadeghi and Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee have been set at 5000 and 3000 times that of Saeed Mortazavi, a murderer and a mass rapist. Fair indeed!
(5) Humorous quote of the day: "Trump to cancel agreement between subjects and verbs." ~ Andy Borowitz
(6) Donald Trump, when asked why Lincoln was a successful President: Replace the words Lincoln/President with Einstein/scientist, Hitchcock/director, Elvis/singer, or Francis/Pope and the exact same answer would apply.
(7) Persian poetry and music: A timeless Rumi poem, sung by Marjan Vahdat.
(8) Then and now: It used to be that if people saw a hazard or an obstacle on the train track, they would run in the direction of an oncoming train to warn the engineer. Now, they just stand there with their cell-phone cameras out and ready!
(9) A final thought: Did you know that Santa gives more expensive presents to rich kids than to poor kids?

2017/01/01 (Sunday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Happy New Year 2017 (1) Happy New Year! Wishing all my family members and friends a very happy, healthy, hopeful, and prosperous New Year 2017!
(2) Kurdish musical ensemble: Sheno Band plays a medley of Kurdish and other regional music from Iran.
(3) A fine example of Arabic calligraphic art. [Image]
(4) Half dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Trump: Paper documents sent by courier solve cybersecurity problems
- Istanbul night club attack during New Year's party leaves 39 dead
- Mexicans upset after waking up to 20% gas price hike in the new year
- Recovery efforts starting for plane that disappeared with 6 on board
- Portugal's Antonio Guterres begins his term as UN Secretary-General
- In Acapulco, Mexico, 3 men decapitated, 2 more slain over New Year's
(5) Hypocrisy at its worst: Evangelicals think that Donald and Melania Trump will make a fine First Couple. What's wrong with a POTUS who has violated nearly all of the Ten Commandments? What's wrong with a womanizer, who lusts after his own daughter, as the US President? What's wrong with a First Lady who was a nude model (she was just showing off the beauty of God's creation), even though a Miss America was forced to resign for the same offense? What's wrong with a President's wife whose last educational experience was at a Slovenian school for soft-porn models?
(6) President Obama's New-Year message: He reviews his accomplishments over the past eight years and pledges to remain politically active as a private citizen.
(7) My 8th Facebook anniversary: Yesterday, I was reminded by Facebook that I have been a member since December 31, 2008. And today, I was reminded that I have been FB friends with my daughter for 8 years.
(8) The number 2017: As we begin the new year, let's consider the properties of the number 2017. It is the 306th prime number (the next prime year will be 2027). Not much else is notable about the new year's number; it's not a Fibonacci or any other special kind of number. We will witness a prime-sequence date, 11/13/17 late in the year. The new year will also contain the Pythagorean-triple date 8/15/17 (8^2 + 15^2 = 17^2). Can you add to this list? Also, can you insert math symbols in 2 0 1 7 to make an expression that evaluates to various numbers between 0 and 20? Here are the first five to get you started.
0 = 2 x 0 x 17  |  1 = 2 + 0 – 1^7  |  2 = 2 + 0 x 17  |  3 = 20 – 17  |  4 = –2 + 0 – 1 + 7

Blog Entries for 2016

2016/12/30 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image of a heart-shaped rope knot (1) A year-end wish: As we approach the end of 2016 and look past the gloom and doom predictions to 2017, may your final days of this year be filled with joy and may the new year bring you much hope, health, happiness, and success.
(2) In memoriam: Some of the entertainers and other notables lost in 2016. Let's hope the list does not expand further over the next couple of days!
(3) Quote of the day: "Sandwiched between Bush and Trump, the Obama years will be remembered as an odd period in American history when the President spoke in complete sentences." ~ Humorist Andy Borowitz
(4) Racists coming out in full view: After 8 years of covert and elusive attacks on President Obama and the First Lady, racists have been emboldened and are now attacking and insulting the First Family overtly, on social media and in print. A shameful chapter in US history!
(5) Trump dismisses sanctions against Russia as focusing on the little things: "It's time for our country to move on to bigger and better things. Nevertheless, in the interest of our country and its great people, I will meet with leaders of the intelligence community next week in order to be updated on the facts of this situation," he wrote. If he had not skipped the daily intelligence briefings, he would already know the facts. Perhaps, he doesn't really want to know certain inconvenient facts!
(6) Free towing by AAA on New Year's Eve: Though not available everywhere, this life-saving service takes a drunk person and his/her car home at no charge, even for non-members.
(7) Kurdish wok? Cuisine, lifestyle, and music from rural areas of Iran's Kurdistan province.
(8) A powerful and highly informative film: Today, I watched the 2016 docudrama "Rabin, the Last Day" on Netflix. I usually don't write movie reviews, only book reviews. But this film about the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin 21 years ago really moved me. It presents evidence that some influential rabbis had indicated a desire for bringing Rabin to justice in a religious court, calling on everyone to help toward this goal (the Jewish version of a fatwa). There were other extremist groups that were unhappy with PM Rabin's policies and wanted him eliminated. We see that at a Netanyahu rally, supporters chant "Death to Rabin," "He is a traitor," and "We'll get rid of Rabin with blood and fire." The rabbis were apparently never prosecuted. In one scene, seeming like an official hearing, the country's then Attorney General says that he does not have enough evidence to bring charges against the rabbis. This could be an indication of the high standards of Israel's system of justice for indictments. It could also be due to at least two other reasons: The rabbis were too powerful and the government did not want to rock the boat, or the establishment was itself complicit in Rabin's assassination. There are many elements that feed conspiracy theories, such as the car taking the still-alive Rabin to a hospital only 500 meters away getting there after 8+ minutes, and inconsistencies in the bodyguards' testimonies. If you have the patience for a slow-moving 2.5-hour film, I recommend it to you. [Trailer]
(9) Final thought for the day: "It is the men who are attacking the women—if there is a curfew, let the men stay at home." ~ Israeli PM Golda Meir, when asked to establish a curfew for women to end a series of rapes

2016/12/29 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
(1) President Obama orders sanctions against Russia and some of its officials: These measures, which include the expelling of 35 Russian nationals, are meant as retaliation for Russia's meddling, through hacking, in the 2016 US election.
(2) John Kerry delivers a very well-crafted and comprehensive speech about why the continued growth, and recent accelerated building pace, of settlements on the West Bank is killing the prospects of the two-state solution, and thus peace, between Israel and the Palestinians.
(3) One dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Singapore unveils its first petascale supercomputer
- Free tool estimates your worth to Facebook
- Trump tweet helps Boeing, hurts Lockheed Martin
- Trump attacks media over coverage of his foundation
- Trump and Obama engage in a nasty war of words
- White Nationalists unhappy over inauguration guest list
- Taliban behead woman for shopping without husband
- Next year's "Star Wars: Episode VIII" features Carrie Fisher
- Montana lawmakers denounce plans for Neo-Nazi rally
- George Michael's death was due to heroin overdose
- Microsoft admits to serious abuse in Windows 10 auto-update
- Japanese PM Abe pays respect to victims at Pearl Harbor
(4) A new kind of hoax: I have been receiving messages from multiple Facebook friends about not accepting Facebook friend requests from Christopher Davies and Jessica Davies, because they are hackers and will try to infect your computer. This is a hoax that has been going around for at least a couple of years. The motivation for the hoax is unknown: could be just someone having a sick kind of "fun" or trying to smear the names of their enemies. These two names and others have been used in variations of the hoax. Don't accept any claim that does not cite a verifiable source. Statements like "it was announced on the radio today" or "it has been reported" are worth nothing.
(5) Brain drain: Marjan Davoudi, a Baha'i woman wo was denied university education in Iran, is now a clinical psychologist based in San Diego and a former part-time faculty member at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology. [Dr. Davoudi's Web site]
(6) Worth remembering: The so-called "weak" candidate was brought down narrowly by a collusion between RNC, FBI, Wikileaks, and Russia, and she still won nearly 3 million more votes than the elected President.

2016/12/27 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo showing three books about Iran (1) Books about Iran, which I found among our public library's excess-book sales (offering books at $1.00-2.00 per volume).
(2) Saddam Hussein's unfinished mosques: Of the three grandiose mosques that the Iraqi dictator planned to build in the late 1990s to bolster his Islamic credentials, only one was completed. This article contains photos of all three.
(3) A musician in tears: A female violinist, playing in the band of pop music star Benyamin, was prevented from performing in the singer's concert in Tehran. The concert went on and there was no overt protest by the band or its audience.
(4) In case you forgot, we have entered the weight-gain saving time: Remember to set your scale back 10 lb!
(5) Roasted corn on the cob, dipped in saltwater, a yummy treat offered by street vendors in Iran. [Photo]
(6) Tehrani homeless living in pre-dug graves: In a section of Tehran's municipal cemetery, pre-dug graves have become shelters to many homeless people. This is while Iran is providing billions of dollars in military aid to Lebanon and Syria and spends large sums on renovating gilded Shi'i shrines in Iraq and elsewhere. Asghar Farhadi, the Oscar-winning Iranian film director, has written an open letter to Supreme Leader Khamenei, expressing shame that Iran with its vast resources isn't taking better care of its own citizens.
(7) Israel increasingly isolating itself: Netanyahu has reportedly ordered cutting back Israel's ties with 12 UN Security Council members that voted for the resolution criticizing the Jewish state on its settlement-building activities. The extent of restrictions against Britain, France, Russia, China, Japan, Ukraine, Angola, Egypt, Uruguay, Spain, Senegal, and New Zealand is unknown at this time.
(8) Facebook's Persian font is illegible: On-line fonts must be designed for comfortable reading on a variety of desktop and mobile devices. Desirable traits of on-line fonts are different from those used in print, where there is higher contrast and better resolution. For the English language, numerous fonts exist and Web designers can conduct many experiments before choosing a font that satisfies their goals. In Persian, however, the choices are much more limited and the default font used for Facebook posts is among the worst. For better legibility, it should be improved, for instance, by increasing the minimum line thickness, enlarging the dots appearing above or below some letters, and improving the spacing within and between words.
(9) Final thought for the day: "Religion is needed to interpret science because maybe it's just propaganda." ~ HUD Secretary nominee Ben Carson [Good that his cabinet position doesn't have much to do with science!]

2016/12/25 (Sunday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Book light that looks like a book when closed (1) Book light: This holiday present of mine closes to look like a smallish-size hardcover book. It comes with a USB charging cable for its battery and cycles through four different light colors, moving to the next color each time you open it for use.
(2) Half-dozen news headlines of the day:
- Singer George Michael (ex-member of Wham) dead at 53
- Pakistan threatens Israel with nuclear attack in Twitter feud
- FBI warns of possible attacks on churches over the holidays
- Russian military jet carrying 92 crashes en route to Syria
- Trump's WH Communications Director backs out of job
- First female Afghan military pilot seeks asylum in the US
(3) This couple challenges Iranians by kissing in public, in a country where open display of affection is prohibited but public executions are the norm.
(4) A man from Tabriz (Iran) feeding animals during a cold winter night; he has been doing this for 10 years.
(5) Signing off by again wishing all a merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah, and a joyous holiday season!

2016/12/24 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cartoon image for Christmas and Hanukkah greeting (1) Wishing everyone a merry Christmas and a happy Hanukkah! May you have a joyous holiday season. Christmas Day and first day of Hanukkah coincide this year, with festivities beginning tonight for both holidays.
(2) Notable anniversaries coming up during 2017 [Source: Time magazine]:
- 500th: Martin Luther nailing his 95 theses to a church door (October 31)
- 100th: The United States entering World War I (April 6)
- 80th: Golden Gate Bridge's official opening (May 27)
- 75th: FDR's executive order to relocate Japanese-Americans (February 19)
- 60th: Little Rock's Central High School being integrated (September 25)
- 50th: Six-Day War between Israel and its neighbors (ended on June 10)
- 30th: AIDS drug AZT getting federal approval in the US (March 20)
- 20th: Madeleine Albright's swearing in as first female US SoS (January 23)
- 10th: Apple's release of the iPhone to US customers (June 29)
(3) Predictions market not so hot: It has become a tradition in the US for talking heads and pundits to present their predictions for the coming year during the holiday season. After what happened in 2016, I have serious doubts that such predictions will carry much weight! Nonetheless, if you want to try your luck, answer these half-dozen questions posed by Time magazine in its last 2016 issue regarding what will happen in 2017.
- The most interesting political figure not named Trump will be ___
- The most dramatic domestic-policy change will be ___
- Rex Tillerson's nomination as Secretary of State will ___
- The decade-long boom in Miami condo sales will ___
- The most likely headline in religion will be ___
- The big news from the Korean Peninsula will be ___
(4) Political humor: Donald Trump has decided to retweet the presidential Oath of Office, instead of reciting it.
(5) Moore's Law just wouldn't die, despite repeated predictions that its end is near: Both computational power and communication bandwidth have been growing exponentially for decades. The January 2017 issue of Communication of the ACM contains an article focusing on Moore's and other exponential laws of computing.
(6) Koomey's Law on energy efficiency in computing: Over the past six decades, computational power in our digital systems per kWh of energy has doubled roughly every 1.6 years and no slowing is in sight, yet. Details can be found in the same article cited in item 5 above.

2016/12/23 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Painting, depicting a wolf on a cliff, jumping off to attack a bird (1) A lesson for everyone, especially our President-elect: It's not wise to respond to every provocation!
(2) Maz Jobrani hushes his mom who utters "Allah-u Akbar" during air turbulence!
(3) A super-funny retelling of how the US states got their 2-letter abbreviations.
(4) Now for something different: Not Russian hackers, but Russian dancers!
(5) Trump suggests that the US should expand its nuclear capability: This guy knows only real estate and treats everything according to what he knows. If you own a house you renovate and expand it to increase its market value and, of course, you use it in some way (no sense owning a house if you don't live in it or rent it out). So be prepared for an expanded arms race with Russia after decades of mutual containment, as well as suggested uses for our nuclear arsenal!
(6) American English, eastern vs. western: In his book, Speaking American, Josh Katz shows that people in the eastern (no, western) United States talk funny! Sneakers to the easterners are tennis shoes in the west. Here are some more examples of eastern (western) American English.
Yard sale (Garage sale); Skillet (Frying pan); Scrap paper (Scratch paper); Scallions (Green onions); Highway (Freeway); Lightning bugs (Fireflies). [Source: AARP magazine, issue of December 2016 and January 2017]
(7) EVs and grid capacity: Here is an interesting question. We all agree that electric vehicles are good for the environment, but as EVs rise in popularity, how will they affect the electric grid and its ability to supply the needed energy? Some forecasts put the number of EVs on the road as 1.5M by 2025. If each vehicle uses 10 kW, a total of 15 GW of new power will be needed. Generating this additional power is only one side of the story. Currently, 4-7 US homes are served by each customer-side transformer. These transformers typically have extra capacity, so when one home in the group acquires an EV, the load can be readily accommodated. But eventually, the added load will dictate capacity upgrades on the transformers, quite an expensive proposition. Current regulations require homeowners to pay a big chunk of upgrade costs when they introduce sizable added load. How will this be worked out for EVs? Can we hope that home-based solar power will offset much of the load?
(8) Someone who seems to be enjoying his line of work! [Image]
(9) An investigative researcher exposes how the sugar industry got us hooked: Describing herself as a proud introvert, former dentist Dr. Cristin Kearns started investigating the sugar industry after attending a dental conference on diabetes. In her interview with Time magazine (double-issue of December 26, 2016, and January 2, 2017), she discusses her research, including her take on an industry memo, entitled "Sugar in the Diet of Man," sent out to its PR guys, which concluded that sugar did not have a role in heart disease, diabetes, tooth decay, obesity, and other ailments. From the interview, we also learn how the sugar industry funded research to blame fat, instead of sugar, as the leading cause of heart disease.

2016/12/22 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Art created from fallen leaves by Japanese artists Photo of seven different emoticon cushions Desert for Yalda Night in Santa Barbara (1) Interesting photos, from right to left: Fallen-leaves art from Japan, apt for the just-ended automn season;
My growing collection of emoticon cushions—time to give them away as holiday gifts;
Quick dessert made with banana, kiwi, pomegranate (or persimmon slices), and chocolate syrup or Nutella.
(2) Trump at a rally: See if you can spot his African-American! [Photo]
(3) Kurdish female fighters: And here in the US we are still arguing whether women can serve in combat roles!
(4) Maps showing different countries' claim to fame: This Daily Mail article presents maps on which countries are marked with what they are famous for. The entry for the US? "Nobel Laureates and lawnmower deaths"!
(5) Tic-tac-toe variant on an infinite checkerboard: The goal is to place four pieces in a row. Show that white going first can win in 5 or fewer moves.
(6) Quote of the day: "When I was 45, the idea of being 70 was 'Arghhh!' But you only have two options in life: Die young or get old." ~ Actress Helen Mirren, 71, in an interview with AARP Magazine
(7) The "liberated" city of Aleppo: Thank you Bashar Assad, Russia, and Iran for razing a proud, historical city, and thank you USA and Turkey for your support of "rebels" who had a part in bringing about this devastation.
(8) A cheerful group of Jews on Macy's Day Parade: Good to see the jolly spirit, but it does not take me long upon watching such a video to ask, "Where are the women? Why don't they participate in the fun?"
(9) Obama administration to adopt pipeline safety rules in its final days: Despite concerns that President-elect Trump might cancel them, the White House is expected to push through long-delayed safety measures for the sprawling network of oil pipelines in the US. This is good news, because transporting oil by pipeline is many times safer than using trucks or trains, so additional safety measures will make pipelines even more useful. [From: AP]

2016/12/21 (Wednesday): Course review: Whaples, Robert (Professor of Economics, Wake Forest University), Modern Economic Issues, 36 lectures in the "Great Courses" series, The Teaching Company, 2007. [Includes a guidebook and is packaged in 3 parts, each comprising of 6 CDs]
Cover image for the audio-course 'Modern Economic Issues' This course is about economic implications of making choices, be they at a personal level or pertain to public policy. It shows the reader that life is about making trade-offs, both consciously and unconsciously, as we go from event to event and crisis to crisis. In the process, we learn to become wiser consumers and better managers of our economic future.
The coverage includes standard economics topics, such as Social Security, inflation, unemployment, immigration, and taxation, alongside less common, even surprising, topics, such as gambling, overeating, and sports franchises. One striking example of the insights gained from this course is that the reduced birth rate in the US is in part explained by Social Security's safety net, which has removed one incentive for couples to have more children to benefit from their support in later years.
One drawback of the course is that it was published in 2007, right before the 2008 start of the Great Recession. So, the lessons we learned from the crash under President George W. Bush and the ensuing recovery during President Barack Obama's two terms aren't included in the lectures and associated discussions.
One interesting resource mentioned in the course is the Web site MeasuringWorth.com, which has a host of data on GDP (nominal, real, per-capita), CPI, purchasing power, inflation rates, stock market, and so on.
A useful fact I learned from the book is that dividing 72 by an annual rate of growth yields the number of years needed for something to double (the same works for the growth of investments with given interest rates). For example, if a country's GDP grows by 2% a year, it will take roughly 72/2 = 36 years for it to double. The 0.72/r rule, or 72/r when r is stated in percentage points, is an approximation of the precise expression ln(2)/ln(1 + r), with the denominator approximated by r when r is small. The actual number in the numerator should be 69.3 (yielding the rule of 69.3), which provides more accurate results when the rate of growth is small. The rule of 72 provides fairly good results for growth rates up to 20%, overestimating the doubling period for small values of r and underestimating it for larger values of r.
Here is another interesting tidbit. An indicator of social mobility in a country is father-son income correlation. A correlation of 1 means that a son will make exactly the same as his father, so the poor will remain poor and the rich will remain rich. Conversely, a 0 correlation means that a son's income has no relationship with his father's. Using Social Security data, the US father-son income correlation has been determined to be 0.6.
For a full description of the course contents and a list of lecture titles with a brief description of each, see The Teaching Company's Web page for the course.

2016/12/20 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Traditional Yalda Night celebration treats (1) Tonight is the Persian Yalda/Chelleh: The eve of the first day of winter is celebrated by Iranians as the night when forces of evil (darkness) have reached maximum strength and the Sun begins its offensive as the days get longer. Poets have written about this festival, at times likening a loved one's dark hair or a long period of separation to Yalda. Here is the Engllish translation of a verse from Sa'adi.
The sight of your face each morning is like Norooz
Any night away from you is the eve of Yalda.
(2) New signs of water on Mars: Veins of calcium-sulfate were found on Mars surface by NASA's Curiosity rover, and the veins contain the element boron, signs of once-flooded sites, where the water has evaporated away. [Sources: Washington Post and Spaceflight Now, reporting on last week's American Geophysical Union Conf.]
(3) Harvard researchers build a radio receiver from tiny components the size of two atoms: Here is the holiday song "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" played through the radio.
(4) Scientists measure light from antimatter for the first time.
(5) Quote of the day: "Reconstruction of Aleppo is one of our priorities." ~ Ali Akbar Velayati, Iranian official (former Foreigh Minister) [Images showing neglected parts of Iran and its poor.]
(6) What made Donald Trump 'sad' in 2016, according to his tweets.
(7) Drones are transforming wildlife photography: Tigers in deep snow, up close and personal.
(8) "Corruption" redefined as "Smart business": Deutsche Bank stock has shot up 37% since Trump won the election. Why, you might ask? The bank gave Trump a $170M loan for his Washington, DC, hotel. Trump's go-to bank faces $14B in fines from the US Department of Justice (recently slashed to less than half that amount). Trump's appointed AG will soon take over the Department of Justice! Now, see if you can make Trump supporters connect the dots!
(9) Iran has three universities that admit Twelver Shi'ites exclusively: The universities train graduates for assuming key government positions. So, not only minorities are illegally banned from attending regular universities or have a higher admission bar, they are lawfully excluded from these three schools which overtly admit only Shi'i Muslims.

2016/12/19 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of Donald Trump kissing his daughter Ivanka (1) Ivanka Trump to take on "First Lady" role in the White House: She will move into the office reserved for the President's spouse and will play an active role in the Trump administration. [Note added on 2016/12/21: Snopes.com deems this story false.]
(2) Terrorism in Berlin: A truck plowing into crowded Christmas market kills at least 9 and injures 50. After a similar attack in Nice, France, police had issued warnings about an uptick in vehicular terrorism by Islamic extremists.
(3) Volkswagen agrees to $200 million settlement: The company will pay the sum to offset emissions from 80,000 diesel vehicles in the US. [Source: Reuters]
(4) Russian ambassador to Turkey assassinated: The gunman, also killed at the scene, was an off-duty police officer who shouted, "Don't forget Aleppo. Don't forget Syria." Putin has characterized the attack as a provocation aimed at disrupting the normalization of Russian-Turkish relations. Three others were wounded in the attack.
(5) A sickening example of what ails the world today: Man kicks unsuspecting woman down the stairs at the Berlin metro. Fortunately, the woman is unhurt and a security camera captures a clear view of the man.
(6) Quote of the day: "I am a marvelous housekeeper. Every time I leave a man, I keep his house." ~ Hungarian-born Actress Zsa Zsa Gabor, who passed away yesterday at age 99
(7) Oddities of nature: A walking fish.
(8) Fascinating time-lapse videos from Google Earth, showing how our planet has changed over 30 years.
(9) I spent a crisp, sunny afternoon at a local Starbucks, listening to beautiful harp music by a street musician, with an arts/crafts market in the background.

2016/12/18 (Sunday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Santa Barbara's Stearns Wharf at sunset (1) Santa Barbara in winter, due to arrive in days.
(2) Iranian regional cuisine: From the western province of Lorestan.
(3) Oklahoma police officer saves woman's life: He administers CPR to an unresponsive heart-attack sufferer being driven to hospital in a speeding pick-up truck. Excellent news amid stories of violence by and against the police!
(4) Impressive wooden furniture designs that become completely flat for storage.
(5) Pedophile abuse network busted in Norway: While we were occupied by the Pizzagate fake scandal in the US, Norwegian authorities uncovered a vast pedophile network that included a police officer and prominent individuals, arresting 20. Other sources report that he ring was uncovered when the computer of a man suspected of an unrelated crime was searched.
(6) Another conflict of interest in the Trump administration: Secretary-of-State nominee Rex Tillerson is a long-time director of a US-Russia oil company registered in the tax haven of Bahamas.
(7) CBS "60 Minutes" newsmagazine's report on the horrors of Aleppo: Amid the destruction and air attacks on civilian targets (including dropping bombs on rescue sites), the only bright side is a group of Syrian rescuers called "The White Helmets" who help those buried under the rubble or otherwise affected by the brutal military attacks on the city. The US supplies about a quarter of the budget for the rescue group.
(8) Beware of charity scams: Scammers take advantage of natural and other disasters to target kind-hearted people who are moved to help. The Aleppo tragedy is the latest tool for these scammers. Do not donate to a "charity" unless you know it from past experience or do on-line research about its status and reputation.

2016/12/17 (Saturday): Here are three items of potential interest.
(1) Book review: Boo, Katherine, Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity, unabridged audiobook on 7 CDs, read by Sunil Malhotra, Random House Audio, 2012. [Read it on Goodreads]
Cover image of Katherine Boo's 'Behind the Beautiful Forevers' In this fascinating nonfiction book, Pulitzer-Prize-winning Katherine Boo describes in heart-wrenching detail the lives of a multitude of residents in Annawadi, a shantytown near Mumbai's airport. The trash of fancy airport hotels provides the livelihood of a number of individuals in the slum who are engaged in garbage sorting for sale to recycling and other businesses.
As if their miserable lives and works aren't enough, the young and old in the settlement are further squished by corruption, both of people living among them and politicians who begin promising reforms and new entitlements, as elections approach. No one can accomplish anything without paying bribes to a multitude of clerks, officials, cops, and middlemen.
For example, a program of bank loans is set up to allow the establishment of job-creating businesses, but by the time all the people involved in the loan's approval have taken their cuts of the proceeds, what is left may be inadequate for the actual purpose of the loan, and no one checks or follows up to see that the net amount is put to appropriate use.
Despite all these afflictions, even the poorest of Annawadians live with hopes of achieving "the full enjoy" someday. They perform their daily chores, pursue educational opportunities, and try to comfort and help their loved ones. This is simultaneously a sad tale of the debilitating effects of caste, religious dogma, envy, illicit sex, and cruel exercise of power, alongside the supremacy of the human spirit in rising above the fray and ensuring that the next generation fares better than the present one.
Boo's narrative is difficult to hear or read, but closing our ears and eyes to the pain arising from injustice, corruption, and a cold-hearted globalization regime isn't a good alternative to learning about life in such slums, even if the tale comes to us through the filter of a privileged white person.
Sunil Malhotra does an excellent job of reading, complete with emulating multiple voices and accents.
(2) A new tissue engineering method approved: The US Food and Drug Administration has approved "Maci," a tissue engineering technique involving growing a patient's own cartilage on scaffolds and then implanting the cell-covered device back into their damaged knees. There is a great deal of hope that the new technique will help many patients with cartilage defects. [Source: The Scientist]
(3) A brisk, wonderfully sunny end-of-fall afternoon in Santa Barbara: As I strolled through downtown Santa Barbara today, I snapped these photos of a church and a lush private garden, located on the northern side of State Street, on the two sides of Micheltorena Street. The (commercial) spirit of the holiday season was everywhere. An then, I returned home to this gorgous sunset over Goleta's Devereux Slough.

2016/12/16 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Map of the Middle East, showing the distribution of Kurds (1) Half of the world's Kurds are in Turkey: I wonder if the distribution shown on this map has changed much since the ravages of war and IS in Iraq and Syria?
(2) Tweet of the day: "What's that, America? A foreign gov helped install a puppet leader? Sorry, I can't hear u over the sound of ALL of Latin America laughing." ~ Derrick Lemos [P.S.: Somehow, I think the US will benefit in the long run, having been on the receiving end of political meddling.]
(3) Modern Iranian orchestral music: Unfortunately, I don't have any info about the composer, the orchestra, or the venue. Will post the info if I get it.
(4) Tehran of 60 years ago: Laleh-zar street, featured in this 2-minute video, was a hub for retail businesses in those days. You see even fewer women on the street then than you would today.
(5) Quote of the day: "We've got the scientists, we've got the lawyers and we're ready to defend. ... Keep it up. Don't flag. We've got a lot of work to do." ~ California Governor Jerry Brown, addressing the American Geophysical Union conference in San Francisco, indicating that California would go it alone should the federal government mess around with the state's renowned science facilities or impede efforts to thwart climate change research
(6) IBM's Watson is said to have discovered five genes linked to ALS: This is Watson's first discovery in neuroscience, and raises hopes for potential new research discoveries relating to other neurological diseases.
(7) Joke of the day: Older man to woman at the bar: "Where have you been all my life?" Woman to man: "The first two-thirds, I wasn't born yet."
(8) DeVry University agrees to pay $100 million for misleading ads: After being targeted by the feds, private colleges and universities are admitting to wrongdoing and deceptive advertising to pocket students' money and leave them in huge debts, without any real job prospects. All indications are that such institutions of higher deception will be back in business soon.
(9) Is our democracy in danger? Yes, it clearly is! "The clearest warning sign is the ascent of anti-democratic politicians into mainstream politics. Drawing on a close study of democracy's demise in 1930s Europe, the eminent political scientist Juan J. Linz designed a "litmus test" to identify anti-democratic politicians. His indicators include a failure to reject violence unambiguously, a readiness to curtail rivals' civil liberties, and the denial of the legitimacy of elected governments."

2016/12/15 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Syrian artist's Statue of Liberty, built from Aleppo's bombing rubbles (1) Syrian artist builds Statue of Liberty from bombing rubbles in Aleppo.
(2) Quote of the day: "Beauty without intelligence is like a hook without bait." ~ Moliere
(3) This is an in-car phone holder I was considering buying for $6.95 on Tuesday. Luckily, I spotted the disclaimer "'IPHONE' NOT INCLUDED" on the bottom left of the package and changed my mind!
(4) Three of Trump's adult children and his son-in-law attended his meeting with tech execs yesterday: I am starting to think that maybe Trump has some sort of attention deficit or learning disability, so he uses his children, who are super-loyal to him, to help him remember stuff or explain to him what happened at the meeting. Otherwise, why would he need his children, when he has so many older and wiser advisers? Interestingly, Twitter chief, who had rejected a Trump request for introducing a special emoji for "Crooked Hillary," was not invited to the meeting. Childish vengeance and bullying continues!
(5) Palindromic lyrics: After I posted the palindromic sentence "WAS IT A CAR OR A CAT I SAW?" on Tuesday, I learned that there is an entire Weird Al Yankovic song (called "Bob") with nothing but palindromic setences as lyrics.
P.S.: Weird Al Yankovic also has an interesting song called "Word Crimes."
(6) Presidential transition: Exxon-Mobil at State, Goldman-Sachs at Treasury, fast food at Labor, anti-gay Attorney General, "King of Bankruptcy" at Commerce, public-education foe at Education, World Wrestling Entertainment at SBA, climate-change denier at EPA, Mitch McConnell's wife at Transportation, and the guy who famously forgot Department of Energy as one of the three government agencies he wanted to abolish (along with Education and Commerce) at, where else, Energy! What could possibly go wrong?
(7) Facebook unveils new tools for preventing the spread of fake news: The tools make it easier to report fake news and will warn viewers if an item in their Newsfeed has been challenged or reported to be fake by reputable third-party sites, such as Snopes.com. The tags are advisory in nature and won't prevent a user from reposting a fake news story.
(8) Final thought for the day: "A pedestal is as much a prison as any small space." ~ Anonymous

2016/12/14 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) Widespread destruction and mass killings reported, as Syrian army gains control of eastern Aleppo.
(2) The 12 Cellists of the Berlin Philharmonic play "Libertango": Wonderful music and performance.
(3) Why did the fish cross the road? Because there was flooding in Washington State and the road looked like a shallow stream. [Video]
(4) Nail-less and glue-less assembly: Japanese wood joinery techniques that are 1000 years old and do not require nails or glue.
(5) Women's rights in the Middle East: German Defense Minister causes furor in Saudi Arabia for showing up at a meeting without a hijab. Good for her! Saudi Arabia recently arrested a young woman for posting a hijab-less photo of herself on-line. Elsewhere, I read that some Iranian musical groups have begun a self-censuring practice by giving female musicians less prominent roles, or no role at all, when performing in certain cities. These abhorrent practices must stop, and Western diplomats visiting these countries are uniquely positioned to help.
(6) Tips on how to detect fake info on-line: Very informative, especially the part about a quick way of checking who links to a site that you suspect of fakery. Do a Google search "link:URL" using the site's URL. [Note added on 12/15: I was misled into believing that a regular Google search would produce a list of links to a given site. It is evidently a bit more involved. You have to sign up for Google Webmaster Tools, a free service.]
(7) One more step toward draining the swamp (!): "I've come to appreciate him. ... He's like a fine wine. Every day ... I appreciate his genius more and more." ~ President-elect Donald Trump on House Speaker Paul Ryan
(8) Quote of the day: "Trump is changing his slogan from 'draining the swamp' to 'fill her up.'" ~ Comedian Jimmy Kimmel, referring to the nomination of Exxon-Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State
(9) A final thought: I hate it when I see an old person and then realize that we went to high school together.

2016/12/13 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
The newly introduced hand-on-face emoji (1) Hand-on-face emoji: Recently introduced, just in time for the next four years.
(2) Improve your vocabulary: Strong words to use in lieu of the weak form "very X."
(3) Before virtual reality was cool: These 1963 prototype "teleyeglasses" contain two tiny CRT displays for viewing 3D TV programs using battery power. [Image credit: IEEE Spectrum, issue of December 2016]
(4) Palindromic sentence: WAS IT A CAR OR A CAT I SAW? [One of the very few examples in the English language, ignoring spaces and punctuation.]
(5) Golden Globe Awards nominations: The full list of nominees is available on this Web page. The musical "La La Land" fared well by garnering 7 nominations. Asghar Farhadi's "The Salesman" is among foreign-language nominees (from Iran/France). The Sunday, January 8 awards ceremony will be hosted by Jimmy Fallon.
(6) A Harvard education not what it once was: Incidents leading to negative media coverage in recent months have eroded Harvard's reputation as the epitome of an academic institution. Harvard was featured prominently in the documentary "The Hunting Ground" (about campus sexual assaults) and its men's soccer team was recently exposed as rating the sexual appeal of individuals on the women's team. [Source: The New York Times]
(7) Bill Gates among those backing $1 billion new-energy fund: Dubbed "Breakthrough Energy Ventures," a new fund, backed by more than a dozen of the world's wealthiest individuals, aims to pump money into risky, long-term energy technology for dramatically reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. [Source: Bloomberg News]
(8) Women's Rights and Feminist Movements in Iran: This is the title of a highly informative article, with the subtitle "An Overview of How the Iranian Women's Movement Has Emerged in the Face of Unique Contexts," written by Nayereh Tohidi of Cal State Northridge. According to Professor Tohidi, stages of Iranian women's struggles for their rights parallel the stages of political developments in the country. These stages are: * Constitutionalism, 1905-1925; * Modern nation-state building, 1920s-1940s; * Oil nationalization, 1940s-1950s; * Modernization, 1960s-1970s; * Islamization, 1979-1997; * Post-Islamist reform, 1997-2005; * Populist backlash, 2005-2013; * Era of moderation, since 2013.
(9) The short-list for Time magazine's Person of the Year: Donald Trump was chosen, with the following five also on the short list: * Hillary Clinton, the aspirant; * The Hackers, the disrupters; * Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the autocrat; * The CRISPR Pioneers, the trailblazers; * Beyonce, the messenger.

2016/12/12 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Puzzle about three triangles and their angles (1) Find the sum of the green angles in this diagram, without making any assumptions about the three triangles.
(2) Masih Alinejad's passionate speech (in Persian) about compulsory hijab laws and numerous other women's rights violations in Iran.
(3) Underwater caves at Zakynthos, an Island in Greece.
(4) Persianized music: A duo plays a Persian dance-music version of "Jingle Bells" and comedian Maz Jobrani demonstrates the Persianized version of the US National Anthem.
(5) A thought experiment in feminism: One of the best things you can do to advance the cause of feminism is to imagine Clinton and Trump each being of the opposite sex, pondering who would have won the election.
(6) Learning about "deep learning": Hardly a day goes by when we don't hear about some emerging application of, or a new result in, the subfield of artificial intelligence known as "deep learning." Where does one start to get into this red-hot area? Open courses on the math prerequisites (linear algebra, statistics, optimization), basics of machine learning, and deep learning notions are compiled in this Web page. A very helpful resource!
(7) Book interview: Michael Lewis, best-selling author of The Blind Side, Moneyball, The Big Short, and Flash Boys, talks to Steven Colbert about his new book, The Undoing Project, a fascinating treatise on how we think and why stereotyping is so prevalent. A lot of our bad decisions arise from projecting certainty, via justifications and story-telling, where there is none. [6-minute video]
(8) "Never again!" isn't just for Jews: "The Japanese race is an enemy race and while many second and third generation Japanese born on American soil, possessed of American citizenship, have be come 'Americanized,' the racial strains are undiluted. ... It, therefore, follows that along the vital Pacific Coast over 112,000 potential enemies, of Japanese extraction, are at large today. There are indications that these are organized and ready for concerted action at a favorable opportunity. The very fact that no sabotage has taken place to date is a disturbing and confirming indication that such action will be taken." ~ General John L. DeWitt, head of US Army's Western Defense Command
(9) The GOP already at work on cutting Social Security benefits: Legislation just introduced will cut revenues by $2.0 trillion by eliminating income taxes on SS benefits for affluent retirees and will reduce expenditures by $13.9 trillion by changing the benefits formula, reining in cost-of-living adjustments, and increasing the normal retirement age. A preview of what to expect in the next 4 years.

2016/12/11 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of Fidel Castro giving a speech in the early 1960s (1) Quote of the day: 'In the immediate aftermath [of Castro's death], the world waxed nostalgic about the younger, 20th century Fidel ... He seared that picture [of a revolutionary] into our imaginations with his cigars, fatigues and beard, the hours-long speeches slinging Davidic defiance at his 'imperialista' Goliath, ... But most of those admirers didn't have to live in Cuba. ... To his fans, the fact that Fidel died with his revolution still intact means he won. But the shambles it has left in Cuba—the fact that Raul has had to adopt capitalistic reforms and reestablish relations with the U.S. to keep it alive—signals a failure that only Fidel couldn't see." ~ Tim Padgett, writing for Time magazine, issue of December 12, 2016 [The photo is from the early 1960s]
(2) Exactly 68 years before yesterday, UN's declaration of human rights was born. Let's celebrate these rights and redouble our efforts to make them accepted and honored in countries such as Iran, which change the subject every time human or women's rights are mentioned.
(3) Beautiful song, wonderful singers: "Hey Jude" performed by Paul McCartney and several other musical legends, with impressive orchestration and back-up vocals.
(4) Bob Dylan a no-show at Nobel Prize ceremony: He cited other commitments. American singer-songwriter Patti Smith, performing Dylan's classic "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" forgot the lyrics midway through, telling the audience, "I apologize. I'm sorry, I'm so nervous," before starting over. Wonderful song, and a confirmation that songwriting and writing literature are not really different.
(5) Chimpanzee reacts to iPad magic tricks.
(6) Our President-elect doesn't like the CIA: Trump has been skipping intelligence briefings (no intelligence needed?) and his transition team has just attacked the company for its findings that Russia was definitely involved in hacking to influence our just-concluded presidential election. The rift and lack of trust is sure to lead to national security crises. Putin's dream realized, whether or not his intervention was actually effective!
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Nigerian church collapses, killing 160
- Explosion in Turkey kills 38, mostly police officers
- Blast at cathedral near Cairo kills 25
- Ford's small-car assembly moving, despite Trump's threats
- Boeing sells 80 passenger jets to Iran for $16.6 billion
- Rand Paul threatens to block Bolton nomination
(8) Viruses to the rescue: How a patient's untreatable bacterial infection was tamed by a bacteria-eating virus.
(9) Mr. Trump: Please talk to yourself and your daughter about bringing jobs back to America. Surely for products that are being sold at 10 times their cost, you can afford to do that, much more so than other companies like Apple, which have a 50% mark-up at most. [Image]

2016/12/10 (Saturday): Book review: Moaveni, Azadeh, Honeymoon in Tehran: Two Years of Love and Danger in Iran, Random House, 2009, 340 pp. [My five-star review of this book on Goodreads]
Cover image for 'Honeymoon in Tehran' This is an interesting and rather unusual book from the author of Lipstick Jihad: A Memoir of Growing up Iranian in America and American in Iran. For someone born outside Iran, learning about the country's culture second-hand before she went to visit and live there, Moaveni has some very profound and spot-on observations about the country and its people, as evident from the rest of this review and this example of relating her fear of raising a child in Europe, where mothers and infants lead pretty isolated lives: "The culture of proximity I had found so cloying when I was single now seemed sensible and wise." The unusual part starts at the very beginning, where there is no foreword: only an English translation of a few Rumi verses leading directly to Chapter 1.
Moaveni, a girl born and raised in California, ended up in the Middle East and eventually decided to live and get married in Iran, the country she fell in love with during short visits from her base in Beirut for reporting assignments. It helped that she was given easy access to authorities for her news stories by virtue of her family connections. Eventually, though, Moaveni discovered the hard way that she and her newly formed family really did not belong in that society. Moaveni's life challenges did not consist solely of the Iranian government's heavy-handed treatment of journalists. She was subjected to the same double-life that many Iranians live (private, public), while also having to fit in a third life—the Western one. Contradictions show up everywhere, such as in people who fast but also enjoy an occasional drink. Humor plays an outsize role in making the double life tolerable. And, of course, humor also comes in the two private and public varieties.
As she settled in Iran, Moaveni met with her government minder at unoccupied apartments or secluded hotels (always in a room, not at the lobby), trying to secure permissions for various reporting projects and receive instructions about taboos and red lines. During one of her dealings with the authorities, a man with two wives propositioned her, perhaps taking pity on her for being single at an "advanced" age. After falling in love with the Western-educated Arash Zeini and getting married, she tried to resort to the authorities' Islamic sensibilities to get out of the secret meetings on the grounds that her husband was uncomfortable with them, but they would not budge. Moaveni found it ironic that Iran had turned into a society where neither Islamic arguments nor secular humanitarian ones carried any weight.
In the words of an advice-giver, talking about those who live in Iran while trying to maintain Western sensibilities: "If you want to live a German life, you need to live in Germany. If you are going to live in Iran, you need to live as everyone else does. The same cereal, the same schools, the same [outdated] vaccines. You can't live like an alien in your own society." Alas, Moaveni and her husband did not heed this advice and suffered as a result, including one time when they decided to vaccinate their son in Europe and went through a great deal of trouble in trying to transport subsequent doses of the modern vaccine, which was unavailable in Iran and required refrigeration, back to Tehran.
As a modern, financially independent woman, Moaveni's values and lifestyle, such as not considering premarital cohabitation and sex a big deal, were in conflict even with members of her own family. Now, imagine having to hide different aspects of your life from your family, from neighbors, from your circle of friends, from the society at large, and from government enforcers! No wonder psychotherapy has become prevalent, at least in Tehran, and is no longer a taboo subject it once was. And then there is the all-important issue of proper disposal of nose parts resulting from rhinoplasty, a very common cosmetic operation in Iran.
Photo of Azadeh Moaveni, the author The author relates her own experience with a therapist (when the pressures of wedding arrangements, combined with family feuds got to her and her husband), who mostly talked about himself and his plans to immigrate to the West! Part of the stress came from the need to hide her pregnancy before and during the wedding ceremonies. In fact, Moaveni confides that she was surprised by her own feeling of shame due to the premarital pregnancy. We people of Iranian origins, who have lived in the West for decades without going back for visits, learn from this book that Iranian wedding packages now come with a "security" arrangement, whereby for a sum of money, the security company provides physical protection and also pays off local authorities to insure their non-interference in the festive gathering.
Then there was the matter of Moaveni preserving her personal rights after becoming a wife. Many modern marriages include prenuptial agreements about the husband forfeiting some of his rights according to Islamic laws, such as barring his wife from traveling alone. Young, educated Iranian women sometimes do not worry about such issues, as they believe their equally modern and educated husbands would never exercise such rights. However, "every family had instances of sound marriages in which the secular, civilized husband used the country's discriminatory laws to exact revenge or harass a wife."
Interestingly, Moaveni found that people's expectation for a dignified life had been transformed under the brutal Islamic regime. They are now satisfied that the police force showing up to destroy satellite dishes on rooftops went about its business without insulting, abusing, or fining the tenants! She was pleasantly surprised when the topics of women's sexual fulfillment and health were discussed at the educational sessions held by the marriage health bureau, where men were advised not to roll over and go to sleep immediately after sex. Some baby names are forbidden outright, but others are on the fringe of acceptability and can be gotten by giving a suitably large bribe to the officials. You typically mention the name you want and then fake disinterest by mentioning other names, in an effort to get away with a smaller bribe!
Infants present many challenges to parents, who must spend time and much money on necessities such as good-quality baby formula and diapers. The difficulties multiply once the kids grow up, as they must be trained to respond appropriately to trick questions at school, such as "Whose parents consume alcohol at home?" Then there is the matter of school curricula. The third-grade textbook, for example, follows the life of a devout Muslim family whose fun outings consist of going to religious shrines; on rare occasions when the family goes on a road trip, they skip important cultural/historic sites, such as Persepolis near Shiraz.
Upon returning to work three months after giving birth, Moaveni discovered that the political scene had changed and she would no longer be able to file edgy stories that even during the reform period, rubbed the authorities the wrong way (she received warnings and even threats for her work). She began writing benign news stories and, at first, thought that perhaps too much focus on the negative aspects of the Iranian society and government wasn't the right thing to do anyway. But this kind of bland reporting turned out to be unsatisfying at the end. These professional hurdles, combined with social inconveniences, the problems of raising a child, and a cancer-stricken mother in California convinced Moaveni and her husband that it was time to return to the West. They settled on Europe as their new base, which allowed relatively easy access to the Middle East for reporting assignments, in case they required travel.
Moaveni, her husband, and their son left Iran in the summer of 2007, around the time of gasoline rationing by the Ahmadinejad government and the unrest it caused on the streets, which went unchecked because the police had not been informed of the sudden change from unlimited supply at subsidized prices to quotas, beyond which free-market prices would apply. This state of affairs made it easier for the couple to abandon sentimentalism and to accept that they did not belong in the country. The couple settled in London's Kilburn neighborhood, which they had chosen because of its affordability and multicultural composition. They learned only later that the neighborhood they soon dubbed Little Riyadh was more like a joyless Muslim village, featuring markets named "Ashoura," whose Pakistani owner refused to sell haram candy to Muslim customers, and "Al-Mahdi." Moaveni found it rather discomforting to have fled an Islamic theocracy only to land in the middle of an even more repressive form of the Islamic culture and the scornful looks of the white Brits.
Moaveni writes that she went back and forth between a feeling of exaltation for living in a free country and longing for the country and culture that she had left behind, unable to resolve whether she had made the right decision to leave Iran. These doubts gave way to certainty when she and her son went on a 2-week vacation in Tehran. As they were headed back to London, her son's finger got crushed by a moving stroller part, because it had to be dismantled again for a second x-ray examination at the airport. Paramedics not only arrived very late but dismissed the injury as not requiring any treatment. It became clear back in London that antibiotics were required to prevent infection and other complications. This incident served to remove any doubt that leaving Iran was the right decision.
Moaveni realized that living in Iran took a toll due to the constant outrage it exacted on a modern person. Censorship, through heavy-handed oversight and permit requirements for various professions, jamming of satellite signals, blocking and intentional slowing of Internet connections, was unbearable to a free-thinking person like Moaveni. However, much of the social and administrative difficulties was likely due to human incompetence, a condition that is also present in the West. In short, Moaveni realized that even though the lack of composure and balance in her Iranian life could not all be blamed on the government, it was still the case that she needed these qualities for a rewarding family and professional life and that she should be satisfied wherever these qualities existed, even if not in perfect forms.
Let me end my review by this final sentiment on the last page of the book. The rich heritage of Persian literature, especially the work of its great poets, "are a reminder that though today Iranians are diminished by the cruel laws of unjust tyrants, it has not always been so, and thus will not always be."
[Postscript: The book's acknowledgment section reflects the nature of relationships that afforded the author access to government officials in Iran. She thanks many friends and mentors, her husband and mother-in-law, Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi (a close friend whom Moaveni helped with a book she was writing), three female employees of the Ministry of Guidance and Islamic Culture, and Ambassador M. Javad Zarif (currently Iran's FM).]

2016/12/09 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) Time magazine names Donald Trump "Person of the Year" for 2016: The cover caption reads "President of the Divided States of America."
(2) The future of for-profit colleges: In the past couple of years, the US federal government has exerted a great deal of pressure on for-profit colleges which have been scamming students and the US government alike (via student loans). They have been forced to return the monies and pay punitive damages in many cases. The Wall Street Journal reports that such colleges are hopeful about Trump reversing some of the regulations and/or a more benign enforcement regime. Remember that Trump himself ran one such university and was forced to settle for $25M a class-action lawsuit against him.
(3) Iran's government officially changes the country's monetary unit from rial to toman (= 10 rials). I think they should have taken this opportunity for change to go directly to a larger unit such as 1000 tomans (~ $0.25 at the current exchange rate), which is already being used as the de facto unit in many transactions.
(4) Gene-editing technology for battling cancer: Interview with Jennifer Doudna about CRISPR and its impact on research and healthcare.
(5) Interesting Web content I discovered on the Internet today:
- Ann Patchett's list of must-see bookstores in the US.
- History of the Cuban-American relations in 6 minutes.
- A selection of amazing sculptures from around the world.
- Photo of the Obamas on the 2016 White House Christmas card.
- Cardio exercises to Persian dance tunes. [Persian Zumba]
- The Persian dessert "sholeh zard" is "saffron custard" in English.
(6) Brave Iranian student criticizes many years of misguided policies by the Islamic Republic, from the hostage crisis and mass executions during the early years to more recent oppression, corruption, and helping with the genocide that has produced half a million deaths in Syria. [Speech in Persian]
(7) Old drivers in Japan given incentives to turn in their licenses: Free or discounted food, such as ramen noodles, coupons for buses and taxis, and other incentives are intended to reduce the number of very old drivers, responsible for a large fraction of traffic accidents, on the roads.
(8) Sexist double standards: General David Petraeus and Paula Broadwell had an extramarital affair during which, Petraeus disclosed loads of classified information (including battlefield directives) to her because she was writing his biography. Both were married at the time, and still are. Not only did he disclose classified info to his lover, he actually hid several binders full of them inside a wall at his home, where they were potentially accessible to anyone. As a US citizen, Broadwell should have been wary of receiving unauthorized classified info, so she isn't innocent either. But look what is happening to the lovers' lives now. Petraeus is being considered for the top cabinet job in the Trump administration and Broadwell, after losing her security clearance, being demoted, and getting a reprimand, has been struggling to follow a normal life since their affair ended. [Info from stories on CNN.com, The Guardian, and CBS News]
(9) A final thought: I hate it when I type "dead" instead of "dear" and don't catch the error before posting.

2016/12/08 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) Full-size replica of Titanic being built in China: The replica will be docked permanently on a reservoir in a rural area of the Sichuan Province.
(2) Saman Ehteshami's playful mixing of classical music with Iranian dance tunes during a concert in Tehran.
(3) When you see an accident that's about to happen: And It does, but not in the way you thought!
(4) So, you think you can dance, Jack Trapper? [Video]
(5) Apparently, Fidel Castro, who lived through 11 different US Presidents and antagonized most of them decided he could not bear the twelfth!
(6) Quote of the day: "It's been almost a month, will I ever get used to Trump? Hell no. It's like watching a toddler playing with a gun—You're always nervous." ~ Bill Mahr
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- American astronaut and former Senator John Glenn dead at 95
- Paris curbs car use, offers free bus/metro as air pollution chokes city
- Knife-wielding student shot by officer at Nevada high school
- Multiple deaths in 40-vehicle pile-up during Michigan snowstorm
- In rare speech after the election, Clinton warns of fake news dangers
- Apple represents biggest test case for Trump's offshoring policy
(8) USA-Japan relations: Following President Obama's unprecedented visit to Hiroshima, Shinzo Abe will be the first Japanese PM to visit Pearl Harbor. The 75th anniversary of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor was observed yesterday at Hawaii's World War II Museum and around the US.
World map, marked with locations of societies/cultures with relative and absolute styles of cognition (9) The Golledge Lecture (UCSB's Department of Geography): Dr. Stephen C. Levinson, Co-Director of the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, and Professor of Comparative Linguistics at Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands, spoke on "Spatial Cognition and Language Evolution." The bottom line of the theory he presented is that we humans pay a price for our linguistic and social networking abilities in terms of reduced navigation skills, because part of the hippocampus where the navigation circuitry of humans and other animals reside has been repurposed for language and social networking.
The map above shows the distribution of two distinct cognitive styles around the world. Red dots represent societies/cultures where the style is relative and blue dots represent absolute frames of reference. In the latter case, if you teach someone a dance move by demonstration and then turn the person around and ask him to do the move, he will move his arms and legs in the same absolute direction (east, west, etc.) rather than in the same relative direction (left or right).
Here is the talk's very informative abstract: "In this lecture, I will argue that language evolution may have been closely tied to spatial cognition. We are natively poor navigators, compared to many animal species (although we make up for this with cultural prostheses, including language). This may have to do with the recruitment of the human hippocampus for things other than spatial navigation, namely memory and language. That cooption of spatial mechanisms may have left its mark deep on the conceptual structure of language, providing conceptual primitives differentially exploited in different languages—easily illustrated in the spatial domain. Reasons for that recycling of neuronal circuitry from space to language may have to do with the natural preoccupations in human communication with spatial and social concerns, both of which have a network structure coded in the hippocampus. Above all, gesture—a spatial modality ideal for indicating spatial concepts—seems to have anteceded spoken language in human communication, and may have been the Trojan horse facilitating the invasion of spatial circuitry by language. A crucial additional ingredient, explaining why other animals haven't gone the same route, is the development of an interactional infrastructure for communication, which is exclusive to humans. A long-standing strand of linguistic thought, together with increasing evidence about the deep history of language (including its gestural origins), seems compatible with this story."

2016/12/07 (Wednesday): Book review: Piketty, Thomas (translated by Arthur Goldhammer), Capital in the Twenty-First Century, unabridged audiobook on 21 CDs, read by L. J. Ganser, Audible Inc., 2014.
Cover image for 'Capital in the Twenty-First Century' Piketty's book can be viewed as an update of Marx's Das Kapital for the 21st century, the era of big data. The two books are similar in their global or macro views in historical context. Marx considers the development of inequality an inherent part of capitalism and a cause of its eventual downfall. Piketty, with his access to huge income and wealth data sets from several different countries, believes that capitalism and free markets can survive but that conscious action is needed to reign in inequality, which if unchecked, can have dire consequences.
I learned quite a bit from this book, including two simple, yet powerful, laws of of economics at the national level. Piketty calls them fundamental laws of capitalism, but there is nothing specific to capitalism where these laws are concerned, as they are essentially accounting identities.
The first law is a = rb, where b is the ratio of national capital to national income (or the capital/income ratio, typically in the 3-6 "normal" range, with possible outliers), r is the rate of return on investment, and a is the share of national income from capital. National income is usually close to GDP, differing from it by less than 10%. If b = 5 and r = 0.05, for instance, about a quarter of national income would come from capital and 3/4 from labor and production.
The second law is b = s/g, which yields the value of (the ratio of national capital to national income) b as the ratio of savings rate and growth rate. A country whose citizens save 10% of their income and has a growth rate of 2% will have b = 5.
The fundamental structural contradiction of capitalism, according to Piketty, is represented by the inequality r > g, where r is the rate of return on capital (hovering around 5%, net) and g is the rate of growth. The latter parameter has two components: the population growth and productivity increase. Many developed countries have near-zero population growth or will soon reach that state, making growth rates in the range of 1-2% the norm for the near future. The parameter g is what allows people to move up the social ladder and get rich, while the parameter r is an indicator of income one can receive from accumulated or inherited capital. When r > g, capital tends to accumulate, growing in value from generation to generation, increasing the role of capital vis-a-vis labor and/or creativity in wealth and widening the wealth gap. This is what has been happening in the West, most seriously in the United States, leading to unprecedented income and wealth gaps.
According to Piketty, economics (a social science) is imprecise and formulas and inequalities are useful to the extent that they describe expected or average behaviors. In the end, economic decisions are made by people, for whom optimization and personal or social well-being are only parts of the overall picture. They are also affected by emotions, connections, prejudices, and so on.
Piketty's book, with its constant allusion to various data sets and deduction methodologies, reads more like a research monograph than a popular book. But there is something in the book for everyone, including non-specialists. Rather than reproduce informative charts from the book here, I refer interested readers to the Web page "A Piketty Primer: 'Capital' in 10 Graphs" (see, in particular, the graph at the beginning of the page, appearing again later as Figure 1.1, which depicts the share of national US income by the top 10% rising to around 50% in the late 1920s, falling to and hovering around 33% in the 1940s through 1970s, and shooting up at a steady rate toward today's 50%, beginning in the Reagan years).

2016/12/06 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Puzzle image showing the three angles x, y, and z (1) Math puzzle: What is the sum x + y + z of the three angles shown in this diagram composed of nine 1 x 1 squares?
(2) Will there be anyone in heaven? [Photo]
(3) An unusual jigsaw puzzle: Instead of a landscape or portrait, the completed form of this 1000-piece puzzle contains the full CMYK color spectrum, with each piece holding a specific hue.
(4) Giraffe and would-be predator. [GIF image]
(5) Wonderful, space-saving furniture designs.
(6) Trump's nominee for National Security Adviser is a fake-news spreader, as is his son. Truly a match made in heaven! Some comedian said this in response to Trump's musing that with him as President, everyone will say 'Merry Christmas' again: I don't know about that, but there will be lots of people uttering 'Jesus Christ'!
(7) Unexpected benefit of Trump presidency: American Jews and Muslims putting aside divisions to combat a new wave of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. I think Christians should also join in, as Trump is hurting their causes as well. Most devout Christians are for helping refugees and other needy individuals.
(8) Trump's 15 flip-flops in 15 days: Remember the good old days when a single flip-flop would get a politician in deep trouble?
(9) A thin-skinned, reckless President-elect: Shortly after Boeing's management criticized Trump's anti-trade policies, his factually incorrect tweet about the company and Air Force One wiped $1B off Boeing's share values. The pair of planes (one to serve as a spare) haven't been ordered yet and are in preliminary design stage. What kind of President cancels a multibillion-dollar order with a tweet?
Here is Trump's 12/6 tweet: "Boeing is building a brand new 747 Air Force One for future presidents, but costs are out of control, more than $4 billion. Cancel order!"

2016/12/05 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon illustrating abusive language (1) Automatic detection of abusive language: Having endured a great deal of abusive language, holier-than-thou lecturing, condescending comments, hateful behavior, and trolling during this past election season, I have given some thought to what makes comments and other Facebook reactions abusive or hateful. The boundary between abusive/hateful language and ordinary comments is rather murky. Abuse/condescension/hate can be as subtle as a "laugh" reaction to a serious post, or it can he as overt as calling someone a "naive liberal/lefty."
Facebook and other social media operators are hard at work to find the process for detecting slurs and hate speech. I don't know what they will do with it once they find the magic algorithm, but one can imagine hiding the comment and replacing it with a link such as "strongly abusive comment" that one can pursue if so inclined. If, someday, the algorithm is offered as an app that accepts a piece of text and rates it on predefined scales with respect to abuse, condescension, and hate, I will use it to evaluate some of the comments on my posts. I am willing to bet that the various rankings in comments to my posts will be several notches higher than the corresponding figures for the text of each post of mine.
(2) Supersonic passenger planes will be back soon. [LA Times story]
(3) What is intelligence? Artificial intelligence is being discussed intensely these days and many of those discussing it won't be able to define what it is, if asked. Before defining artificial intelligence, we need to have a clear idea of what constitutes intelligence. The dictionary definition is of limited help: "The ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills." Recently, while attending a conference session, I encountered this more technical defition of intelligence: "Making accurate and desirable decisions with limited data and computational resources in a robust, flexible, and adaptable fashion." The limitations in data and computational resources in this definition are important because they rule out exhaustive analysis based on nearly-unlimited data and computational resources, the latter allowing complicated modeling and gradual refinement from many iterations performed in a very short period of time. Robustness, flexibility, and adaptability of decision-making imply that if some aspect of the problem at hand changes, or if an equivalent problem is encountered in a different context, an intelligent agent will not reprocess the data from scratch, but will adapt the previous analysis to the new situation.
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- The feds step in to put plans for North Dakota Access Pipeline on hold
- Trump names Ben Carson to head Health and Urban Development
- John Huntsman added to long list of Secretary-of-State candidates
- Al Gore meets with Donald Trump "in search of common grounds"
- Baldwin offers to stop impersontating Trump if he releases tax returns
- Oakland warehouse operator mourns loss of venue, not victims
(5) Are Trump's business interests in conflict with our national interests? This article seems to give a positive answer to the question.
(6) Persian music: Old-time folksy Iranian singer Sousan performs "Douset Daaram" ("I Love You").
(7) I know the US presidential election is over, but these word/name inventions of Trump (such as Department of Environmental, DEP) will stay with us at least for the next four years. We might as well learn and get used to them!
(8) Results of a multi-year art creation effort by a Japanese artist are stunning in scope and detail.

2016/12/04 (Sunday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Photo of the speakers and moderator at today's UCLA book talks (1) Two Persian-language book talks at UCLA: Today's installment of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran (4:00 PM, 121 Dodd Hall) was devoted to a pair of book talks that were quite different but overlapped a bit in covering the events leading to the nationalization of Iran's oil industry under the leadership of Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh in the 1950s and his eventual downfall at the whim of big-oil interests.
In the photo above, you see, from left to right, Ghobad Fakhimi, Fredun Hojabri, Goel Cohen, and Nayereh Tohidi (Director of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran and today's moderator).
Cover image of 'Thirty Years Iran Oil' In part 1, Ghobad Fakhimi was to talk about "Iran's Thirty Years of Oil History: Personal Memoirs Intersecting Declassified Documents" (focus on 1969-79), based on his book of a somewhat different title. Unfortunately, however, Fakhimi did not really talk about his book but related some disjoint facts and anecdotes that sounded more like name-dropping. From the very beginning, the author was defensive and seemed eager to justify his actions and those of his peers at the National Iranian Oil Company vis-a-vis their loyalty to the Shah. Even though the lead role of the US in Mosaddegh's ouster and return of the Shah to power and, subsequently, the outsize influence of the US in controlling oil prices by playing OPEC members against each other are now indisputable, some of the events and cause-effect relationships that the author put forward did not match what other memoirists and oil industry insiders have related in their writings. Such diversity is generally not a problem, as it is indeed the case that history is best understood by each actor telling his/her side of the story. In this case, however, the story, as told in the lecture, was quite disjointed and did not add to my understanding of the events (I admit to not having read the book, which I will pursue at the first opportunity). The Arab oil embargo as a result of the Yom Kippur War and the subsequent rise to power of Muammar Gaddafi in Libya were key events that led to a sudden irreversible rise in oil prices and the beginning of greater intervention by the West to ensure the smooth flow of oil, at what industrialized countries deemed a reasonable price. The speaker's story lacked a focus on Iran's internal players and conflicts (even though the Shah made all major decisions with regard to oil production and pricing, he had influential advisers and quite a few experts that would pull the strings behind the scenes).
Cover image of 'Bar Ab o Atash' In part 2, Fredun Hojabri was to talk about his book, Bar Aab-o Aatash (Upon Water and Fire) a memoir on oil nationalization, student movements, and formation of Arya-Mehr (now Sharif) University of Technology (AMUT/SUT), where he served as a faculty member and, briefly, as Vice-Chancellor for Education. Instead, this part consisted of Hojabri's editor, Goel Cohen, talking about him and his contributions to Iran's sociopolitical, technical, and academic scenes. It is highly unusual that in an event advertised as a "book talk" and with the author present, someone else would talk, not about the book per se, but about its author. At times, the speaker seemed to be apologetic for the convictions and actions of Hojabri, as he tried to explain and justify them. We were told that Hojabri begins his book with the oil nationalization period in Iran's history, because Mohammad Mosaddegh is his hero. Indeed, with the exception of a couple of names arising tangentially during the Q & A period, this talk was devoid of any other name (besides Mosaddagh and Hojabri himself), leaving the audience with the impression that Hojabri achieved a great deal single-handedly and without anyone else's help. Even Mohammad Ali Mojtahedi, the driving force of the newly established university and its founding Chancellor, widely considered a highly effective leader, was not named during the talk. This is misleading, as there were both overt and covert bodies of faculty members and staff, as well as several visionary administrators, that made the flourishing of AMUT and the survival of its Tehran campus possible, despite the Shah and his cronies wanting to close the campus and transfer all the faculty and other resources to Isfahan, where a new campus had just been established. This relocation was, for the most part, a reaction to the extreme activism of students and a sizable subset of faculty members, who were not disposed to following orders blindly.
(2) Pointy-haired boss to Dilbert, after learning that showing interest in employees' well-being increases their productivity: "How's your wife, or girlfriend, or same-sex partner, or loneliness?" [From a "Dilbert" cartoon]
(3) Invisible cities: Using neural-network learning, a team of engineers has designed a machine that can take an aerial photo of a city and transform it to match the distinct look of a different city (say, changing Naples to look like NYC). The machine can also dream up entirely new cities, with realistic-looking satellite images, given only a hand-drawn sketch of the city's general design.
(4) Death toll in the Oakland warehouse fire climbs to 33: The building apparently had many known safety violations, including housing units without appropriate permits.

Cover image of the audiobook 'A House in the Sky' 2016/12/03 (Saturday): Book review: Lindhout, Amanda and Sara Corbett, A House in the Sky, unabridged audiobook on 11 CDs, read by the first author, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2013.
[Amanda Lindhout is the founder of Global Enrichment Foundation, which focuses on development, aid, and educational projects in Somalia and Kenya. Sara Corbett is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, who has also written for several other publications.]
Lindhout survived a childhood with a violent family, finding refuge in the pages of National Geographic, which instilled in her a passion for exploration and travel. As a young woman, she backpacked through several Latin American countries, Laos, Bangladesh, India, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, and Somalia, using saved tips from a waiting job and, on occasion, making additional money as a reporter.
A few days after her arrival in Somalia, Lindhout and a former boyfriend, who was traveling with her in Africa to rekindle his passion for photography, were abducted by masked men and held hostage for 460 days. To survive, she converted to Islam and took "wife lessons" from a captor. One of her Somali captors began raping her first, and then most of them joined in, visiting her room from time to time. The titular "house in the sky" alludes to what Lindhout imagined, laying on her back and looking at the ceiling, being raped: a safe place, an imaginary place she could occupy to divert her mind from the brutality and cruelty she experienced in captivity.
Lindhout and her former boyfriend eventually attempted a daring (unsuccessful) escape, whose details are hair-raising and awe-inspiring. They were eventually released when their families, after much struggle, put together $1M to pay the ransom money (significantly discounted from the original amount, once the captors realized that the families can't meet the asking price) and a host of intermediaries, such as private investigators and "facilitators." In an epilogue, Lindhout writes about her feelings toward her captors; about the difficulty and necessity of forgiveness.
The book touched and horrified me. I have read many stories about women abducted (in Somalia, and more recently in Iraq and Syria) for monetary gain and/or as sex slaves. Yet, hearing a story first-hand, from the person who suffered at the hands of beasts, masquerading as human beings, was eye-opening for me.
A movie based on this book is in development and reportedly features Rooney Mara in the title role.
[Here is my 4-star review of the book on Goodreads.]

2016/12/02 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's image on a German billboard (1) This billboard showing a photo of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei with a message inviting readers to learn about true Islam from reliable sources, has appeared in two German cities, in this case paired with a rather ironic Italian lingerie ad.
(2) Joke of the day
CNN: How do you feel about Trump winning the election?
Gary Johnson: Winning what? When was the election?
CNN: Yesterday.
Gary Johnson: ???
(3) Sarah Palin calls Trump's offer of tax credits to Carrier to save a few hundred jobs crony capitalism and a source of corruption. Who knew?
(4) Ann Coulter joins Sarah Palin in criticizing Trump: While Palin hammered the President-elect for crony capitalism in connection with his Carrier jobs deal, Coulter's beef is with his reneging on the promise of building a wall and with his picking Nikki Haley as UN Ambassador. I hate to be on the same side as Palin or Coulter, but ...
(5) Photo of private citizen Hillary Clinton on a hike, wearing a 22-year-old patterned fleece, goes viral.
(6) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Tennessee wildfires have killed at least 11
- CNN reportedly trying to recruit Megyn Kelly after she left Fox News
- Breitbart urges boycott of Kellogg's products after the firm pulled its ads
- Hillary Clinton's popular-vote lead surpasses 2.5 million
- Parents discover missing guns, rush to school to avert a disaster
- Charles Barkley describes the Warriors' style of basketball as "girly"
(7) Something to think about: Having determined that the average number of goals scored in a soccer game is 2.5, two friends argue whether having 2 goals scored is more likely than 3 goals. One says the two outcomes are equally likely, given the half-way average. The other thinks that in any given game, it is more likely to have 2 goals scored than 3. Who is right and why? [Source: E&T magazine, issue of December 2016]
(8) True or false? Glaciers are found in both North and South America. [Source: See the previous item]
(9) The 'Pizzagate' fake scandal and how it spread on the Internet: A baseless Alt-Right conspiracy theory is picked up by Pro-Erdogan forces in Turkey for their own propaganda purposes and, before you know it, becomes a worldwide sensation, with millions re-posting and re-tweeting the story with absolutely no idea about the original source or its credibility.

2016/12/01 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) Remember the hungry at each meal. [Image credit: UNICEF]
(2) Anna Popovic Live in Amsterdam: In this 75-minute concert, the fabulous Belgrade-born, LA-based guitarist/singer plays funk, rock-n-roll, and blues, including covers of Jimmy Hendrix songs.
(3) Threatening journalists, and now blacklisting professors: Certainly, not restoring greatness to our country.
(4) How UC is dealing with the new wave of hate speech: University of California President Janet Napolitano has convened a working group to develop responses to possible changes in US immigration policies in light of an uptick in hate messages posted on-line and incidents of intimidation, harassment, and violence against targeted UC student groups. In a separate statement, Napolitano has asked campus police forces not to contact, detain, question, or arrest any individual solely on the basis of his/her suspected undocumented immigration status.
(5) The outrageously funny Mr. Bean makes a sandwich.
(6) Trump on Obama's visit to Hiroshima: what a striking difference in humanity and empathy!
(7) Quote of the day: "A drawing is simply a line going for a walk." ~ Paul Klee
(8) The case against reality: I am often characterized as an optimist, but I tend to think of myself as a realist, one who places a high premium on the truth. So, this article in The Atlantic piqued my interest. It is based on research by Donald D. Hoffman, a professor of cognitive science at UC Irvine, who maintains that the world is nothing like the one we experience through our senses. In other words, there are as many different worlds or realities out there as there are human beings on earth. I do not argue with the facts that our senses are imprecise and our perceptions limited by our experiences and world views. However, I have a hard time accepting that there is no fundamental reality underneath our different perceptions. Hoffman cites, as an example, the field of quantum physics which asserts that particles do not have an objective, observer-independent existence. "So while neuroscientists struggle to understand how there can be such a thing as a first-person reality, quantum physicists have to grapple with the mystery of how there can be anything but a first-person reality. In short, all roads lead back to the observer. And that's where you can find Hoffman—straddling the boundaries, attempting a mathematical model of the observer, trying to get at the reality behind the illusion."
(9) Final thought for the day: "One-fifth of the people are against everything all the time." ~ Robert Kennedy

2016/11/29 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon about Trump's tweet advocating punishment for flag-burners (1) Cartoon of the day: Master of distractison at work (viz. Trump's tweet advocating punishment for flag-burners).
(2) Quote of the day: "I was chilled when [Trump's] first tweet after the election was about professional protesters incited by the media. First the media is accused of inciting, then sympathizing, then associating. And then suddenly they find themselves accused of being full-fledged terrorists and subversives. And then they end up in handcuffs, in cages, in kangaroo courts, in prisons, and then who knows what." ~ Chief CNN International Correspondent Christiane Amanpour, during her acceptance of the Burton Benjamin Memorial Award from the Committee to Protect Journalists [Full speech]
(3) Second quote of the day (see the previous quote for source): "It's time to recommit to robust, fact-based reporting, without fear or without favor, on the issues. Don't stand for being labeled or called 'lying,' or 'crooked,' or 'failing.' I learned a long, long time ago ... never to equate victim and aggressor. Never to create a false moral or factual equivalence ... So I believe in being truthful, not neutral. And I believe we must stop banalizing the truth. We have to be prepared to fight especially hard right now for the truth." ~ Christiane Amanpour
(4) A brief excerpt from Nasim Basiri's forthcoming book, A Feminine Voice from Southern Iran: A Response to Sexual Violence and Oppression.
(5) Scientists are concerned about the future of science and technology under Trump: "Trump operatives didn't do any outreach to the scientific establishment, and its agenda wasn't addressed during the campaign."
(6) Brazil devastated by soccer team's plane crash: A plane carrying Brazil's Chapecoense soccer team, on its way to the final match of Copa Sudamericana, crashed near Medellin, Colombia. Of the 77 on board, 71 died and 6 miraculously survived.
(7) Violin virtuoso David Garrett plays "Adagio." [5-minute video]
(8) Cellist Mahsa Ghassemi plays "Libertango." [3-minute video]
(9) Holoscope: A cube with its corners cut off, allowing light to enter trough the triangular openings and bounce off its interior mirrors to create interesting 3D patterns. [Demo 1] [Demo 2]

2016/11/28 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Fruit plate with berries, grapes, and pomegranate (1) Nursing a nasty cold with a variety of fruits (berries, grapes, pomegranate) as well as tea with lemon juice and honey.
(3) Israeli police detains 23 on suspicion of arson: With active fires reduced to a handful and fire crews dealing mostly with hot-spots and clean-up, Israel has shifted its focus to identifying the terrorists whose acts devastated large areas of the country and destroyed countless homes.
(2) US reaction to Fidel Castro's passing: As usual, conservatives live in the past and look backward. Newt Gingrich has said that President Obama, VP Biden, or SoS Kerry should not attend Castro's funderal, because he was a tyrant. As expected, President Obama has sent a very thoughtful message to Cubans: "... we extend a hand of friendship to the Cuban people. We know that this moment fills Cubans—in Cuba and in the United States—with powerful emotions, recalling the countless ways in which Fidel Castro altered the course of individual lives, families, and of the Cuban nation. History will record and judge the enormous impact of this singular figure on the people and world around him." Instead of dwelling on the past, we should look forward to the economic and cultural future of two countries separated by a fairly narrow waterway.
(4) How to cut a pomegranate: There are many on-line videos about the best ways of preparing and serving fruit. Here is one about a clean, simple way of cutting a pomegranate.
(5) ISIS sympathizer carried out terror attack at Ohio State University: He rammed his car into a crowd and then slashed a number of people with a butcher's knife; 11 have been hospitalized. He was taken out by a police officer less than a minute after he began his hideous attacks.
(6) Donald Trump, a master of distraction: He did it during the campaign by manufacturing artificial crises and timed "leaks" to distract the attention of voters from serious issues, about which he knows next to nothing. He is doing it again now by issuing baseless tweets about voter fraud (something that even many of his supporters admit is inappropriate) to deflect attention from unprecedented and very serious conflicts of interest that must be resolved before he takes office in January. Many of the businesses that Trump licenses in other countries are under full or partial control of the governments of those countries. So, his business interests will definitely conflict with the US national interest. Even if Trump and his family members act ethically (an iffy proposition), those governments may offer unsolicited favors to Trump (going to his golf courses, approving new businesses, and speeding up business permit processes, to gain favors in return.
(7) Final thought for the day after a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with the family: "I am grateful for what I am and have. My thanksgiving is perpetual." ~ Henry David Thoreau

2016/11/26 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Ancient monestery in Israel's Judaean Desert (1) This monestery, more than 1000 years old, stands fast in Israel's Judaean Desert. [Credit: National Geographic]
(2) Former Cuban President Fidel Castro dead at 90: Perhaps his death will lead to a new chapter in US-Cuba relations.
(3) Artificial intlligence will fuel the next tech revolution: Technological revolutions occur when some fundamental activity becomes simple and cheap. It was communication, then searching, that produced earlier leaps. Now, it's prediction. Driving a car and diagnosing a disease, just to name two areas, will benefit from the prediction ease and accuracy afforded by ubiquitous artificial intelligence.
(4) Cartoon of the day: There is absolutely no racism or sexism in this cartoon, if you believe Trump supporters!
(5) Poster seen in front of Whole Foods in Thaousand Oaks. [Photo]
(6) One of four Persian bookshops on Westwood Blvd. in West Los Angeles, between Wilshire and Santa Monica Blvds. This one also sells calligraphic art and accepts custom orders for artistic Persian writing. [Photo]
(7) Scores of Iranians dead in two separate incidents: A suicide truck bomb, targeting Iranian pilgrims returning from Karbala and the collision of two trains in north-central Iran left many people dead or injured. ISIS has claimed responsibility for the first incident. Three railroad employees have been detained over the latter incident.
(8) The fake-news life cycle analyzed: How a now-deleted ignorant tweet by someone with a few dozen Twitter followers snowballed into widespread accusations of paid/bussed anti-Trump protesters.
(9) Millions of women to march the day after Trump's inauguration: The main march will be in Washington, DC, from Lincoln Memorial to the White House, but marches on Los Angeles and other cities are also planned.

2016/11/24 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Thanksgiving turkey maze puzzle (1) A very happy Thanksgiving Day to everyone! Let's all celebrate the day (Native) Americans fed undocumented aliens from Europe! What's Thanksgiving without a turkey? So, here is a turkey maze for you to solve while recovering from eating too much turkey with stuffing and cranberry sauce! [Move from green dot to red dot.]
(2) Pre-Thanksgiving gridlock in Los Angeles: One more reason for those of us who do not live in LA to give thanks!
(3) Time magazine's 100 most influential photos of all time.
(4) Malware that turns PCs into eavesdropping devices: Researchers at Israel's Ben Gurion University of the Negev have demonstrated a scheme for turning even microphone-free computers into eavesdropping devices. The vulnerability arises from the little-known facts that headphones, earphones, and speakers are physically similar to microphones and that the role of a PC's audioport can be reprogrammed from output to input.
(5) US to build two exascale computers starting in 2019: Assuming that the Trump administration does not scrap the plans, the $200M+ machines, with different architectures, will become ready for use by 2023. There are fears that science and technology funding, including support for this project, may falter under Trump.
(6) Not done giving thanks, after spending Thanksgiving Day with family: Persian Poem by Shokoufeh Taghi.
(7) Full-scale model of the 1964 Ford Mustang, made entirely of Lego blocks.
(8) [Diary of a highly motivated dieter] Day 1 of my new diet: I removed all the bad food items from the house. They were delicious!
(9) Final thought for the day: What is less likely than being struck by lightning? Being struck by a piece of space junk. A woman in Tulsa, OK, felt something brush her shoulder while on a walk in 1996. She was not hurt and is thought to be the only person ever to be struck by re-entering space debris. [Source: Time magazine, double issue of November 28 / December 5, 2016]

2016/11/23 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon about a man who can no longer communicate without PowerPoint slides (1) Cartoon of the day: For PowerPoint aficionados and haters.
(2) Twitter suspends the account of alt-right leader Richard Spencer: The broad purge includes other alt-right hate-mongers.
(3) Half-dozen brief tech news headlines of the day:
- Google to open AI-focused (machine learning) division in Montreal
- Samsung smartphone owners remain loyal, despite Note 7 debacle
- EPA downplays Trump's ability to stop shift away from fossil fuels
- Zuckerberg sells $95M in Facebook stock to fund philanthropy efforts
- Two female tech pioneers honored: Grace Hopper, Margaret Hamilton
- Post-election backlash spurs fake-news crackdown on social media
(4) Remember the names of these five Baha'i women arrested in Shiraz, Iran, for merely practicing their faith: Lala Salehi; Parisa Sepehri; Samar Ashnaee; Nasim Kashaninejad; Rezvan Yazdani.
(5) Low-tech smoothing of a freshly-made cement curb. [1-minute video]
(6) Quote of the day: "It was Han and Leia during the week, and Carrie and Harrison during the weekend." ~ Actress Carrie Fisher, admitting for the first time that she had an affair with the then married Harrison Ford during the filming of "Star Wars" some 40 years ago
(7) Electric and hybrid vehicles are just too quiet: Lack of strong audible sign of a vehicle approaching increases the chance of collision with pedestrians. US Department of Transportation is asking the manufacturers of such vehicles to add some audible noise to them in an effort to prevent an estimated 2400 injuries annually.
(8) Foreign students at US colleges: The top 10 countries are China (329K), India (166K), Saudi Arabia (61K), South Korea (61K), Canada (27K), Vietnam (21K), Taiwan (21K), Brazil (19K), Japan (19K), and Mexico (17K). Iran (12K) is ranked 11th. [Source: Institute of International Education]
(9) Final thought for the day: It is worrisome that Trump is so passionate about the Second Amendment but apparently has no regard for the First!

2016/11/22 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Side-by-side comparison of the Ryan and Trump tax plans with the current marginal rates (1) Guess who gets a tax hike under both Paul Ryan's and Donald Trump's tax plans? Those with (adjusted gross) incomes under $18,550 will see their rate rise by 2%, from 10% to 12%. Everyone else sees either no change or a tax break, with the biggest tax cut of 6.6% (39.6% to 33%) going to those earning more than $466,950 annually. Both plans essentially transfer money from low-income individuals to the rich. And if the transfer isn't enough to make the plans revenue-neutral, we will also see rising deficits. [Chart source: Time magazine, double-issue of November 28 / December 5, 2016]
(2) "Hamilton" actor a hypocrite: I have seen enough stories about racist and misogynistic tweets from the actor, who read a statement to VP-elect Mike Pence, to conclude that the show's cast and crew made a mistake in choosing him as their spokesperson.
(3) I found a message on my answering machine from Costco about recall of some Sabra Hummus products. The recalls are general for the listed products and do not apply only to Costco.
(4) Old movie dances put to new music: Incredible editing job!
(5) After distribution of Nazi propaganda material in its area, Montana's Har Shalom Synagogue has asked for and received greater police protection.
[To those who ask, "So what that White Supremacists and Neo-Nazis support Trump? He isn't racist just because racists support him": There are consequences to making racist statements, even if you did not mean them and used them only to get votes.]
(6) An elaborate spiral-shaped domino chain-reaction design that took 25 hours to set up: Provides a 1.5-minute visual feast.
(7) This tower, slated for mass production in 2019, extracts drinking water from the air via condensation.
(8) President Obama awards his last Presidential Medals of Freedom: Among the 21 honored are Bruce Springsteen, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Bill and Melinda Gates, Ellen DeGeneres, Diana Ross, Tom Hanks, Robert De Niro, Lorne Michaels (wait for the tweet on the medals being rigged), Frank Gehry, and Margaret H. Hamilton.

2016/11/21 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon of high-ranking cleric in Mashhad, Iran, who defies Iran's central government (1) Cartoon of the day: Mashhad embassy reopens in Iran. [The cartoon alludes to the differences between a high-ranking cleric in Mashhad, who has become very hostile to Rouhani's government, preventing scheduled musical concerts from being held and cancelling lectures by members of parliament and government officials, essentially establishing self-rule in the eastern Iranian province. Pointedly, the cleric has his own picture on the wall behind him, instead of photos of Khomeini and Khamenei.]
(2) Music on a street in Tehran: Leonard Cohen's "Dance Me to the End of Love," played the day after his passing. [6-minute video]
(3) Middle-Easterners love to laugh and dance: Westerners won't believe these claims, because they have never seen a laughing or dancing Middle-Easterner on TV or in film; okay, maybe they have seen "evil laughters"! Comedian Maz Jobrani does another one of his trademark stand-up routines (in English, with Persian subtitles).
(4) Hail Trump: Both the New York Times and The Atlantic have covered a gathering of 200 White Nationalists, members of the National Policy Institute, at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, DC, where they discussed their organization's tenets of safeguarding the "heritage, identity, and future of people of European descent in the United States, and around the world." They also celebrated the election of Donald Trump with the salute "Hail Trump, hail our people, hail victory!" The report includes a video clip of some of the event's highlights.
(5) Political humor: After meeting with some generals as part of his transition efforts, the President-elect is considering holding a 2-day intensive course at Trump University to teach them about ISIS, for a mere $20K apiece. [He had said during his campaign that he knows more about ISIS than the US military generals.]
(6) Iranian-American refugees supporting Trump: I'll never understand certain fellow Iranian-Americans who, after fleeing Iran on mules via the country's smuggler-infested mountains on the southeastern or northwestern border or being admitted into the US as political asylees, agree with Trump's policy of slamming the door shut on new refugees.
(7) Iranian music: Maureen Nehedar sings "Dokhtar-e Man" ("My Daughter").
(8) Iran arrests 12 of its nuclear negotiators on espionage charges: It seems that Iran's Supreme Leader won't wait for Trump to annual the nuclear deal. I won't be surprised if Rouhani and Zarif are forced out or resign over these arrests.
(9) Parhamis in Iran: I used to believe that all members of my family had left Iran by the end of the 20th century. A few years ago, I received a tip that there is at least one member of the family living in Iran, but the person providing the tip didn't want to say more (I have no inkling why). Having no idea about the identity of this mystery family member, I began doing some research. My on-line probes did not identify the said person, but they led to a Parhami family, unrelated to ours, in Shiraz. The family includes a filmmaker and at least a couple of post-graduate researchers. It also runs a boutique hotel, Parhami Traditional House, mentioned and positively reviewed on several travel sites. I became friends on Facebook with one member of that family to establish a connection and look forward to learning more about them.

2016/11/20 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest (presidential transition edition).
(1) Quote of the day: "[Trump] is an insult to our history ... Do not be deceived by his momentary good behavior. It is only a spoiled, misbehaving child hoping somehow to still have dessert." ~ Filmmaker Ken Burns, speaking at Stanford University's commencement last June
(2) Those pesky liberals, always talking about rights and stuff: I saw a picture of VP-elect Mike Pence leaving a "Hamilton" performance and he wasn't very happy. Now I know why! [PBS report about a "Hamilton" cast member reading a statement to Mike Pence.]
(3) "Hamilton: The Musical" in the spotlight: Following a cast member reading a statement addressed to VP-elect Mike Pence during his visit, and Trump supporters calling for a boycott of the show, there is a surge of support for the highly-regarded modern musical, which is sold out on Broadway until August 2017 and has enjoyed similar success in San Francisco. Here is the show's full soundtrack on YouTube.
(4) Governing by tweets: Here are two Donald J. Trump tweets from early this morning.
- "The cast and producers of Hamilton, which I hear is highly overrated, should immediately apologize to Mike Pence for their terrible behavior."
- I watched parts of Saturday Night Live last night. It is a totally one-sided, biased show—nothing funny at all. Equal time for us?"
(5) Irony of the day: Mitt Romney, one of the people who was most forceful in calling Trump a know-nothing con artist, is now considering becoming his Secretary of State. Absolutely no principles left among our politicians!
(6) Peaceful protests against Trump/Pence in Santa Barbara: About 2000 people participated in a march on State Street, according to Santa Barbara Independent. Earlier, according to other local sources, about 1000 individuals protested on the UCSB campus, where a few men shouted rape threats to participating women.
(7) Trump settles lawsuits against his University for $25M: And this after emphatically stating during his campaign that he would never settle, on principle.
(8) In full-page NYT ad, ACLU urges Trump to reconsider his racist and discriminatory plans: He is threatened with the unleashing of the full force of ACLU's legal and human resources, if he proceeds with implementation.
(9) On Jared Kushner's admission into Harvard: According to Business Insider, a little-known book, The Price of Admission, which is experiencing strong sales after the election of Donald Trump, claimed in 2006 that Trump's son-in-law Jared and his brother Joshua were admitted into Harvard shortly after their father (a real estate developer with a criminal record) made a $2.5M support pledge to the school. Neither of the Kushner brothers was a noteworthy student in high school.

2016/11/18 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon, showing a monster in a girl's bedroom (1) Cartoon of the day: "I know you're scared, honey. But he's already in your room. Why not give him a chance?"
(2) Animated cartoon of the day. [GIF image]
(3) Quote of the day: "When I meet President Trump, I may first grab his crotch—to get his attention—then discuss Science with him." ~ Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson
(4) Draining the swamp? Elizabeth Warren's take on how Trump, instead of draining the swamp, is just putting clean shirts on the worst of the swamp monsters that now run his transition team.
(5) Never may be now: Many of us Jews will register as Muslims if a registry of Muslim citizens is ever set up in the US. "We will not forget the Holocaust!" and "Never again!" aren't just empty slogans. We are all Muslims!
(6) Top five fake election news stories in terms of Facebook engagement (shares, comments, and reactions): Three of the five are from the site "Ending the Fed," which had many other outrageous false stories. One is from "The Political Insider" and the final one is attributed to the nonexistent Denver Guardian.
(7) Colorful clouds and their reflections in Devereux Slough, at sunset yesterday. [Two photos]
(8) Persian poetry: A wonderful love poem by Parinaz Jahangir.
(9) Immigration by the numbers: This presentation, with its compelling visual aids, will please anti-immigration conservatives. There is just one problem: its conclusions are based on the misleading assumption that immigration is advocated as a cure for all of the world's problems, including poverty. It isn't. Immigration policy in the US is primarily a selfish ploy to benefit our country by selecting physicians, entrepreneurs, tech specialists, and other capable individuals from around the world and bringing them to our country, and then making them stay by allowing their loved ones to also come here. Immigration also saves lives in the case of refugees and persecuted minorities. Some poor folks come here among the second group, but only because we believe their lives are in danger, not because we want to cure poverty. We do work on helping the poor in their own countries through various governmental aid programs and NGOs, such as Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Clinton Foundation, the latter currently being the object of much hateful propaganda by the right wing.

2016/11/17 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing supplements and pacebos on store shelves (1) Supplements no better than placebos: Americans spend about $100 per capita annually on dietary supplements, vitamins, minerals, herbal products, and the like. Studies show that many such products are unnecessary or of doubtful benefit.
(2) Quote of the day: "We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence enourages the tormentor, never the tormented." ~ Elie Wiesel
(3) Fake news items generated more comments and shares on Facebook than genuine news items during the last three months of the presidential campaign. [Buzzfeed News investigation result]
(4) Registry for Muslims inches toward implementation: In this interview, a Trump surrogate cites the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II as precedent allowing the President-elect's proposed registry of Muslim-Americans. There's no talk of a scarlet letter 'M' yet!
(5) Advice to my friends on social media: Ignore trolls, and if they become unbearable, block them. No one has the right to disturb your peace and that of your friends. [Troll definition, from Wikipedia]
(6) Sting's new song, "Inshallah," acknowledges refugee hardships. [6-minute video]
(7) Iranian women continue to be persecuted: These women were flogged because they attended mixed-gender parties. Barbaric!
(8) Why Chris Christie was ousted from Trump's transition team: According to MSNBC, Charles Kushner, father of Trump's son-in-law Jared, was convicted in 2005 by Christie when he was a criminal prosecutor.
(9) Democrats may try to exploit the rift between Trump and establishment Republicans: In matters such as infrastructure spending, preventing businesses from taking their operations and money overseas, paid maternity leave, and dismantling trade agreements, there is much alignment between President-elect Trump's proposals and long-time goals of Congressional Democrats. The first case of Republicans shooting down a Trump proposal will come soon. It will be interesting to watch the fireworks and read the ensuing tweets. Equally interesting, but perhaps less likely, would be a Trump proposal passing with support from Democrats and dissident Republicans.

2016/11/16 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Persian calligraphy image (1) Calligraphic rendering of a Rumi verse: "Kay shavad in ravaan-e man saaken?"
(2) Quote of the day: "The nation will not be healed from the White House. It has to be healed in backyards, in halls of worship, in public parks and clubhouses." ~ David Wolpe, Senior Rabbi of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles
(3) Our four-year mission: "Make America smart again." ~ Neil deGrasse Tyson
(4) UN calls on Iran to end the house arrest of its political opponents: Not that it will make any difference. Iran's rulers wear any international criticism of their actions as a badge of honor, using them to brand opponents as foreign agents.
(5) Today's noon concert at The Music Bowl: UCSB's Gospel Choir performed some much-needed and appreciated cheerful music.
(6) Please do not fall for smear tactics: Several people have posted photos purported to be from a Washington, DC, anti-trump rally, in which a protester is holding up a sign that reads "Rape Melania." This message is so repugnant that I took it upon myself to do some research about the photos. My go-to site for such topics is Snopes.com. While not saying outright that the photos are fake, Snopes.com presents some evidence that they are doctored, including side-by-side comparison of two photos from different distances and angles in which the sign remains the same size and video still images showing the same protester holding a different sign.
(7) Get to know Steve Bannon: Former head of Breitbart News responsible for these racist, misogynistic, and anti-gay headlines.
- Birth control makes women unattractive and crazy
- Hoist it high and proud: The Confederate Flag proclaims a glorious heritage
- Would you rather your child had feminism or cancer?
- Gabby Giffords: The gun control movement's human shield
- Gay rights have made us dumber, it's time to get back in the closet
- The solution to online 'harassment' is simple: Women should log off
- Bill Kristol: Republican spoiler, renegade Jew
- There is no hiring bias against women in tech, they just suck at interviews
- Science proves it: Fat-shaming works
- Suck it up buttercups: Dangerous Faggot Tour returns to colleges in September
(8) Many Jewish historians voice concerns over the election of Donald Trump. And here is the same story, as reported by Haaretz.
(9) Did you read the Denver Guardian article about an FBI agent, assigned to Clinton's e-mail probe, being found dead in a case of murder-suicide? If you think you did, you aren't alone. Millions of others think they did too. There are just a couple of problems: There is no publication named "Denver Guardian" and no FBI agent was found dead. You were probably duped by a Facebook post or a tweet. Social media, which had the potential of transforming our lives for the better, have become instruments of mass deception and ideal tools for demagogues to spread lies and hatred. Be vigilant and do not accept claims from dubious sources. Examples of such sources include YouTube videos (YouTube isn't a news source; anyone can post anything there) and images bearing a statement with no attribution. An example of the latter is a photo of Melania Trump wearing a see-through blouse, accompanying a snide remark about the future First Lady. The image is fake, although the doctoring isn't obvious. It is just safer to ignore all unsourced or dubiously-sourced material.

2016/11/15 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Dinner plate photo (1) Clam chowder in a bread bowl, with Persian herbs.
(2) Quote of the day: "It's important that we show President Trump and his Republican allies the same respect and cooperation that they showed President Obama." ~ Anonymous
(3) Introducing Donald Trumps newly appointed misogynistic Chief Policy Adviser: "These women [Sarah Palin, Michele Bachman, and Ann Coulter] cut to the heart of the progressive narrative ... That's one of the unintended consequences of the women's liberation movement—that, in fact, the women that would lead this country would be feminine, they would be pro-family, they would have husbands, they would love their children. They wouldn't be a bunch of dykes that came from the 7 Sisters schools." ~ Steve Bannon
(4) The glass ceiling is still standing: Yes, it has another huge crack, but it doesn't show any signs of shattering to pieces. Hillary Clinton is done. Elizabeth Warren is too old. Perhaps the new generation of Democrats, such as Kamala Harris or Kristen Gillibrand, can show more courage in assuming progressive positions to confront the Republicans' newfound populism. Ironically, female politicians toeing the establishment line and not being bold are byproducts of the same patriarchal way of thinking that erected the glass ceiling, and which now uphold it.
(5) It was sexism after all: "It's possible that a male candidate with Clinton's political baggage would have been allowed to transcend his mistakes and outrun his errors. It's possible that a male candidate would not have faced the same scrutiny and suspicion, or have been held to the same impossible standards. It's possible that a male candidate would not have been dogged by questions of likability and stamina. There's simply no way to know, except to look at all the other male politicians with less accomplished resumes (like Bill Clinton, Barack Obama and Joe Biden, for example) who faced fewer obstacles and more goodwill." ~ Charlotte Alter, writing in Time magazine, issue of November 21, 2016
(6) Donald Trump's coalition isn't hierarchical: As he reneges on his campaign promises one after another, there is no mid-level leadership in his support network to keep him accountable (traditional Republicans are all too happy to see his fringe ideas thrown out). The farmers in Idaho or the factory workers in Wisconsin have no way to demand that he keep his promises. Yes, they voted, but lack of organization will keep them in the background, until they are awakened, if at all, four years from now. It is him and his cronies at the top and millions of supporters at the bottom; nothing in between. This is why he wants to keep his Twitter account as President. Twitter is an ideal communication channel for a dictator. He will write a short accusatory statement and his supporters will cheer. If the media and pundits bring up his flip-flopping and reneging on campaign promises, he will just tweet that they are continuing their elitist agenda, and his followers will cheer some more.
(7) The modern weather forecast: Just heard on the KEYT Santa Barbara local news about tomorrow's forecast. According to the weatherman, he used two different models, one predicting a clear day with no rain and the other predicting measurable precipitation. I kid you not!
(8) Ben Carson removes himself from consideration for a cabinet position, citing lack of experience. Apparently, a cabinet position needs more experience than the presidency!
(9) Final thought for the day: "It's like you came to a party and now it's a funeral." ~ Michael Zorek, father of 10-year-old Diana, who had gathered with his family to celebrate the election of the first female US President

2016/11/14 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Map of the city of Konigsberg at the time of Euler (1) The seven bridges of Konigsberg: This classic puzzle dates back to the time of Euler, who developed methods for analyzing problems of this kind. The city of Konigsberg in Prussia, set on both sides of the Pregel River, included two river islands, with seven bridges connecting the islands to the mainland and to each other. Is it possible for a person to walk (no swimming allowed) in Konigsberg in such a way that s/he crosses each of the bridges exactly once? [Source: Wikipedia]
(2) Quote of the day: "Trump went to the White House and showed how brave he is by meeting with the man who founded ISIS." ~ SNL Weekend Update (November 12)
(3) SNL's November 12 reflection on Clinton's election loss incorporated a tribute to Leonard Cohen.
(4) Did Trump win the election or did Clinton lose it? Yes and yes. Trump won Florida, despite Clinton getting way more votes there than Obama, because Trump increased the Republican turnout by an even wider margin. Clinton lost Wisconsin, even though Trump got fewer votes there than Romney. [Insight from yesterday's "Meet the Press" program.]
(5) New Facebook posts: Over the past couple of days, my conservative friends have posted nothing but gloating rants, previous predictions of a Clinton victory followed by "I told you Trump would win," continued attacks on Hillary Clinton and President Obama, and doctored photos of protesters displaying despicable signs such as "Rape Melania." Then there are testimonials by a couple of celebrities endorsing Trump, posted by many individuals, after the same individuals dismissed numerous celebrity endorsements of Clinton as a sign of weakness for "needing statements by clueless Hollywood elites." I guess even in victory they have no idea about what needs to be addressed and what Trump plans to do.
(6) Incidents of hate crimes spreading on college campuses and elsewhere: CNN, ABC, BBC, and other major news outlets have reported many recent hate-crime incidents, ranging from harassment and threatening graffiti to fake deportation letters handed out to Hispanic students. The crimes have been characterized as even worse than post-9/11. Breitbart News has called the reports "fake."
(7) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Gwen Ifill, long-time PBS news anchor dead of cancer at 61
- In highly unusual move, Pepsi CEO attacks Trump on his misogyny
- Donations in Mike Pence's name pour in to Planned Parenthood
- Network of immigration sanctuaries being built by some US colleges
- Trump chooses White Supremacist Steve Bannon as Chief Policy Adviser
- Iran signs a military cooperation pact with China
- Powerful 7.8-point quake hits New Zealand, trapping tourists in a coastal town
- Russian fighter jet crashes at sea while trying to land on an aircraft carrier
(8) Looking at the bright side: My home phone has stopped ringing ever since the election night!
(9) Where are the conspiracy theorists? I am waiting for conspiracy theorists to step forward and present the theory that Trump was supposed to become President all along according to clandestine plans, and that Hillary Clinton and her e-mails were just clever distractions.

2016/11/13 (Sunday): Here are four items of potential interest.
US presidential election votes by educational attainment level (1) Trump's victory, analyzed by race, gender, and education: This article and its highly informative charts provide Pew Research Center's breakdown of how Americans of various races, genders, and educational attainment levels voted in the last 10 US presidential elections, from 1980 (Reagan's first term) to 2016 (Trump). Some of the charts go back to 1972 (Nixon's second term).
(2) Here is to patriotism and compassion, combined. [Image]
(3) Quote of the day: "Three things [are] extremely hard: steel, a diamond, and to know one's self." ~ Benjamin Franklin
(4) Why Donald Trump isn't my President: This is a fairly long essay, so let me clarify at the outset what my statement means. Many of my conservative friends are impatient and read only the first couple of lines, before opining that I better wake up and smell the coffee or lecturing me about democracy. Trump is the rightful next President of the United States and I accept that. Voters have spoken and, ignoring voter manipulations and external influences, which have always been parts of our political scene, he was elected through the same process that put Barack Obama and those preceding him into the White House.
Still, Trump isn't "my President," because I do not share his guiding morals and world view. I am thankful that my adopted country allows me to vote and to express disagreement with its elected leader. I understand and appreciate democracy, having lived a good chunk of my life under two different dictatorial systems. Here, I can express my discontent, without fearing a knock on the door within hours. I condemn any kind of violent protest, or gloating celebration, preferring instead to express my opinions with pen and paper (or, actually, keyboard and screen). Accepting Trump as the US President at this time does not mean that I will sit idle and won't work hard to expose his glaring shortcomings; to ensure his withdrawal or defeat 4 years from now; to plan ahead for the next congressional elections in 2 years.
Trump has claimed, and his supporters cheerfully echo, that he will fix this or that economic problem; bring jobs back to the US; double the country's economic growth. Having studied economics as a hobby and knowing about the workings of Washington after living in this country for half of my life, I doubt the simple-minded assessment that everything will become "wonderful." But, this isn't my entire objection. If the US President locked himself up in the White House with his economic and military advisers and ran the country away from the public eye to achieve the stated goals, it would be a different story.
Alas, the US President is the face of this nation. The assertion that a President shouldn't be viewed as a role model for our children does not hold water. He is seen and heard daily on TV, in print media, and on social networks, as he travels in this country or around the world. He will host and be hosted by business and tech leaders, mingle with world authorities, visit schools and factories, send greetings on national and international occasions, and try to comfort us when a natural or man-made disaster strikes. The videos of him demeaning women or mocking a disabled person will persist forever and will be viewed not just by our children and grandchildren, but by the entire world.
On a different front, having a President who has been in and out of courtrooms for his entire adult life isn't something to cherish. Dozens of legal cases are still pending against him and only future can tell whether any of them is meritorious. True, any famous person will get his/her share of frivolous lawsuits. But, for a super-rich tycoon, with access to the best legal counsel, having financially settled numerous legal cases doesn't pass the smell test. We will see if some of the pending cases are also settled without trials.
So, I will continue my public and private efforts to expose and defeat Trump, while also working on understanding and rectifying the underlying reasons for his success in the face of mounting evidence that a person who has lived in the lap of luxury since childhood, and who, by his own admission, does not read books, cannot possibly understand the plight of the downtrodden.

2016/11/12 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Safety pin signals 'You are safe with me.' (1) The safety-pin movement: Immediately after the Brexit vote, some Brits began wearing safety pins to convey the message "You are safe with me. I stand beside you." to comfort those who were fearful of the vote's implications and the xenophobic mindset that led to it. An anti-Trump safety-pin movement in afoot in the US.
(2) Don't agonize, organize: I wonder if we'll see a million-woman march on Washington any time soon.
(3) A fond farewell to our classy First Family: Hope they find peace in their private lives, after facing eight years of obstruction, false accusations, and outright hostility (not even counting the campaign that preceded it). I do hope that the youthful First Couple will consider serving this country in official positions, after a suitably long period of rest, of course!
(4) It seems that Donald Trump has gotten his Twitter account back. Sad! He is apparently being coached to sound more presidential. Note the change of tone from tweet 1 to tweet 2, separated by 9 hours.
"Just had a very open and successful presidential election. Now professional protesters, incited by the media, are protesting. Very unfair!"
"Love the fact that the small groups of protesters last night have passion for our great country. We will all come together and be proud!"
(5) The leading candidate for DNC Chair is a Muslim-American: Keith Ellison is the first Muslim-American ever elected to US Congress. Apparently, this push is part of the Democratic Party's plan to move left in order to increase its appeal to working-class people, who voted for Trump. Part of me applauds the Democratic Party leaders who have proposed and endorsed Ellison. Another part of me fears that among the thousands of people connected to him by 1-3 degrees of separation, there might be someone who talked about, met with, or wrote a letter to a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, or similar organizations. I am visualizing the presidential election in four years and the fear-mongering that may ensue (in the same way that Clinton Aide Huma Abedin was demonized by false accusations).
(6) Women have become marriage-shy in Iran: According to Los Angeles Times, more than 3M educated Iranian women over 30 are unmarried. These women have discovered that it is quite difficult to find an open-minded man willing to embrace an independent, liberated woman.
(7) After Trump said that he will keep some elements of Obamacare (despite previously promising to repeal and replace it right away), the following joke is making the rounds on the Internet.
Trump: "Let's get that Muslim band going!"
Pence: "Band? We thought you said ban!"
Trump: "No way, that's harsh! Also, how's that Mexican border mall coming along?"
(8) Previous lie to make kids feel good, and current truth: "Anyone can become President."
(9) Dance Me to the End of Love: This is one of the better-known songs of Leonard Cohen, the poet, novelist, musician, songwriter, and singer who passed away a few days ago at 82. I particularly like the 6-minute video.

2016/11/11 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Map of US, color-coded with the intensity of cyberattacks on October 21, 2016 (1) Heat map of the October 21 cyberattack: A collective calling itself "New World Hackers" has claimed responsibility for the widespread attacks that affected the US and several other countries. [Source: Time magazine, issue of November 7, 2016]
(2) Happy Veterans' Appreciation Day: We remember and honor the courage, resolve, and sacrifices made by members of the US armed services in protecting the United States of America and the freedoms we cherish.
(3) If this isn't racism, I don't know what is: Genetics is real, but flaunting your abilities, your height (Trump has boasted about his 6-foot-plus frame), your money, your beautiful women, and the like to imply superiority is a sure sign of low class; maybe there is a gene for that!
(4) TRUMP is actually an acronym: Tacky; Racist; Unqualified; Misogynist; Prejudiced.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Musician/singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen dead at 82
- If only people 18-25 voted, Clinton would beat Trump 504-23 in electoral votes
- VP Mike Pence will head Trump's transition team in lieu of the ousted Chris Christy
- Memoir of Megyn Kelly, Fox News anchor, reveals details of exchanges with Trump
- North America flooded in warmth; no signs of winter
- Trump says he will keep parts of Obama's Affordable Care Act
(6) [Since everyone's occupied these days with voting and voting outcomes, this post might interest you.]
On the mathematical theory of voting: Voting seems like a simple process of selection and counting, but this simplistic view is far from the reality. Voting schemes have been studied by sociologists (under the heading of social choice), political scientists, mathematicians, and computer scientists/engineers. Safety-critical computer systems, such as those guiding spacecraft or bullet trains, use replicated computers with voting to counteract the effects of malfunctioning units by making sure their potentially incorrect outputs are masked by other correctly functioning units when the bad units are in the minority.
Because of my longstanding research interest in fault-tolerant computing, I have studied voting schemes in some detail. Here is a tutorial/survey paper of mine, if you are interested in learning more about the latter application domain.
So, why is voting non-trivial? There is a mathematical theorem, known as Arrow's Theorem, that states that, under some reasonable assumptions, no voting scheme is perfect, in the sense that any system, no matter how complicated or carefully devised, is subject to tampering and yielding non-optimal or absurd results. There are voting procedures that come close to being ideal, but they are not the ones in widespread use.
Let me explain this by way of an example. Consider a set of three candidates {A, B, C}. With respect to their preference for these candidates, voters can be divided into 6 categories:
A > B > C   |   A > C > B   |   B > A > C   |   B > C > A   |   C > A > B   |   C > B > A
(the symbol > represents preference, so that B > A > C voters prefer B to A and A to C).
Our commonly-used simple "first-choice" voting scheme forces the first two groups to vote for A, their first preference, the next two groups to vote for B, and the final two groups to vote for C, regardless of how they view the other two candidates.
Now suppose C is a third-party or fringe candidate with little chance of winning. Then, a C > A > B voter may strategize and vote for A instead, so that s/he has a say in the outcome. If voters were allowed to present an ordered list of candidates, instead of voting for a single candidate, many of the problems would go away. In this scheme, the votes for first-choice candidates are counted as usual, but at the end of this first counting phase, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated and the votes shift to second-choice candidates in those cases. The process of eliminating the candidate with lowest support continues until we are left with just two candidates and can use straightforward counting. This voting scheme allows people who prefer a candidate, say C, to put him/her in first place, without fearing that they don't have a say in the choice between A and B, should C not win.
Another approach is known as "approval voting," where each voter can mark the names of as many candidates as s/he wants, essentially indicating that the remaining candidates are unacceptable to him/her. This voting scheme isn't as trouble-free as the ordering scheme, but it also allows voting for third-party candidates without apprehension. It is also easier to implement (many voters would get confused if they had to rank-order a large number of candidates).
For both of the voting schemes above, primary elections can be eliminated, but again having a long slate of candidates may confuse the less-educated voters.

2016/11/10 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
'I'm still with her' poster (1) I'm still with her: "I'm with her" does not end with electoral defeat, nor is it tarnished by e-mails and other manufactured scandals. It represents the belief that every little boy and girl should be able to grow up without fear of being bullied or sexually harassed. It means that education is a vital national resource, not an expense item to be minimized. It means that a country cannot be deemed prosperous or great, unless all of its citizens enjoy free healthcare and a social safety net. It means that science and scientists are treasured not demeaned.
It means that people whose ancestors came here a generation or two before others don't consider themselves the country's rightful owners. It means that freedom of speech and other basic freedoms, including freedom from fear of being killed by a gun-crazy individual, are honored in deeds and not just in words.
(2) A multi-ethnic, multi-cultural musical tribute to Iran.
(3) Quote of the day: "Inhabiting a novel can be transformative in a way that using a self-help book isn't." ~ Ella Berthoud, bibliotherapist
(4) Borowitz Report (humor): President Trump to create jobs for unskilled white workers, beginning with Rudi Jiuliani and Newt Gingrich!
(5) Let the reflection / action begin in light of the following facts about the just-completed presidential election. Have I missed anything, my fellow Democrats?
- Electoral landslide was predicted by some, but in the wrong direction!
- Confirmed: A highly qualified woman can still lose a job to an unqualified man.
- Trump outperformed Romney among all three groups: women, blacks, Hispanics.
- There were hidden Trump voters after all!
- Late-stage undecided voters went predominantly with Trump.
- Industrial states (Michigan, Pennsylvania) turned red.
- Blaming the Clintons, Sanders, Comey, turnout, pollsters, racism, sexism, ... will get us nowhere.
(6) Color-coded word puzzle: Complete each of the following words.
_ R _ E _ D | _ B L _ _ U E | _ G R E E _ _ N _ | _ _ O R _ _ _ A N G E | _ E C R U _ _ | _ _ _ T A _ _ U P E
I _ V _ _ _ O R Y | _ A M _ _ B E R _ | I N D I G _ _ O _ _ | _ P U _ _ _ C E | M A _ _ U V E _ | B E _ I _ G E

2016/11/09 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Sketch portrait of Donald Trump with an American flag in the background (1) Donald Trump, 45th President of the United States: Do not panic! This is the only advice that comes to my mind on this shocking day.
"Tomorrow is another day," and I, personally, will begin reflecting on where, we Democrats, went wrong. The good news is that Trump will be humbled and kept in check by his own party, now in full control and thus owning any mishaps. He can no longer ignore his reluctant allies, Speaker Ryan and VP Pence.
Trump will find out, soon enough, that he can't do all that he said he will do and that he must share power with other egos in Washington; a very difficult thing for him to do. Our jobs are much easier than Hillary Clinton's, in conceding to DJT, and President Obama's, who will be shaking his hand on Thursday and helping him during the transition period. With hopes of better times for our beloved country!
(2) Hillary Clinton bows out: People who showered Clinton with insults such as crooked, nasty, corrupt, power-hungry, adulterer, murderer, and ISIS founder, are expressing disappointment that she was not more gracious in her concession speech.
(3) Did you know that the common swift (a bird) can stay in the air without landing for up to 10 months? [Source: Current Biology] [I bet this is the bird that often stains my car!]
(4) Sleepless bunch: In a study of 13 countries, UK emerged on top with 37% of its population saying they did not get enough sleep. The US came in fourth with 31%. India with 9% was last. [Source: Time magazine, issue of November 14, 2016]
(5) Quote of the day: "Is telecommuting work? The answer isn't in the fridge. (I already looked.)" ~ Title of a humorous essay by David Von Drehle, in Time magazine, issue of November 7, 2016
(6) What I learned from this awful election cycle: I learned that liberalism and social democracy are the only way to go. Nearly all of the free world has embraced social democracy as the best way of combining the efficiency and productivity of capitalism with tolerance and human compassion, our beloved US being one of the last holdouts (now, perhaps, moving further away from this ideal). I learned that racists and bigots do not consider themselves racists and bigots, so arguing with them gets you nowhere. I learned that blaming others will do you no good, so I will refrain from blaming the Clintons, Sanders, Comey, the pollsters, talking heads, or anyone else. I learned that some of my relatives, whom I have tolerated in social settings, because the discussion never went deeper than catching up with what everyone is doing in his/her personal life, are really not the kinds of people I'd like to associate with. So, I guess it wasn't so awful after all!
(7) Ending a long day: A day that began with attending several conference talks in Pacific Grove, followed by an audiobook-assisted 4-hour drive to Santa Barbara, and continued with a faculty meeting, a class, an office hour, and a master's comprehensive exam, came to an end with a Big West Conference semifinal playoff soccer match between UCSB (10-6-3) and Cal State Fullerton (9-8-4) at Harder Stadium. After sleepwalking for about 60 minutes and falling behind 0-2, UCSB woke up and scored a goal deep into the second half, too late to turn things around. So, the Gauchos' season ends with this 1-2 loss. Better luck next year!
(8) Final thought for the day: Well, maybe the next President can make America great again!

2016/11/08 (Tuesday): Here are eight (pre-election) items of potential interest.
Time magazine cover photo, issue of November 14, 2016 (1) Wishful thinking? I can't believe that even if he accepts the seemingly inevitable election outcome, Trump would fade into the sunset come tomorrow. More importantly, it will be extremely difficult to return the genie of hatred and distrust that he has unleashed back into the bottle, even if he does not revert to tweeting absurdities.
(2) "Brexit" tops the list as word of the year; "Trumpism" makes the short list.
(3) Good for a chuckle in these final hours before the end of a brutal presidential campaign: Hacked e-mails show nasty Clinton refused to assist a Nigerian prince.
(4) Women supporting Trump: Sure, he doesn't have much support among women in relative terms but, still, some women adore him. Why? This is a question for my sociologist friends and women's rights specialists to address in the coming months. [Photo credit: Time magazine, issue of November 14, 2016]
(5) My early afternoon walk today: After eating a huge fish-sandwich-and-chips dish for lunch, I set out to explore the Asilomar beach on foot. Because the conference had no interesting talks for me until 3:30, I took a long 3-mile stroll up the coast, from Pacific Grove toward Monterey. The intermittently foggy/cool and sunny weather and the rocky shoreline with its crashing waves made my walk quite pleasant. Along this stretch of California coast, one can climb on some of the rocks and be surrounded by foaming water and the soothing sound of the surf, as it meets the rocks (being careful not to slip or lose one's cell phone, of course) [1-minute video]. The winding coastal road is lined with bear-proof trash and recycling bins, to help preserve its pristine beauty. Earlier today, I spotted some deer roaming the Asilomar conference grounds.
(6) The big news is still unfolding, but here are a dozen brief headlines for the week, all from Time magazine:
- Iraqi army discovers mass grave with 100 headless bodies in Mosul
- Iran emerges as champ in Men's Sabre World Cup
- Pope Francis reiterates that women will never be priests
- World's most expensive parking space sold for $620K in Hong Kong
- President Obama insists that his wife will never run for office
- Russian warships have been situated off Syria's coast
- New Lebanese president, Michel Aoun, aims to keep regional fires at bay
- South Korean president in trouble for sharing classified info with old friend
- Swedish "Schindler" Raoul Wallenberg declared dead 71 years after vanishing
- McDonald's pays $3.75M to settle lawsuit by franchise workers in California
- Americans' seafood consumption rose by 1 lb (~ 7%) from 2014 to 2015
- Groundbreaking 1970 discrimination lawsuit by women working for Newsweek comes to film
(7) Cartoon of the day: Generator for 4096 different horror-movie plots. [Credit: John Atkinson]
(8) Signing off with this quote: "Listening to a complicated argument without interrupting, negotiating patiently with her opponents, looking before she leaps. These are not qualities exclusive to women, but they are more common to humans who do not suffer from testosterone poisoning. And given the profusion of masculine bluster in our politics, the unseemly leap into silly wars and overambitious programs, these are qualities that may nudge us toward a less hypercaffeinated politics." ~ Joe Klein, writing in Time magazine, issue of November 7, 2016

2016/11/07 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
The fireplace at the guest commons of the Asilomar Conference Grounds (1) Asilomar Conference Grounds: The Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems, and Computers, which I am attending until Wednesday, is held at a California state park and nature preserve, featuring peaceful historic guest houses (no TV or other distractions). The fireplace at the guest commons has already been lit, providing a cozy atmosphere for mingling and networking. The conference is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. I have been attending fairly regularly since 1971.
(2) Comedy of errors: FBI clears Clinton ... again!
(3) If you have already voted, thanks. If not, please vote on Tuesday. Democracy thrives only if everyone participates.
(4) Public flogging in Indonesia: I am very surprised that in a country often cited as having a moderate interpretation of Islam, such acts of public shaming and torture take place, apparently with blessings from the police! I hope this is just a misunderstanding and the event is some form of educational display to condemn this sort of punishment.
(5) Today at lunch: As I moved, food-plate in hand, to join a table, I noticed a young man talking on his cell phone in Persian. The Iowa State graduate student failed to notice me when I took a seat next to him and continued to report on his conference experience to his father in Iran. He mentioned among other things that he had met 7-8 Iranians at the conference already. When he finished, I told him that he can add one to his count, as I introduced myself. He seemed embarrassed and apologized profusely. We chatted for a while, as I ate my Cobb salad (he had already finished eating).
(6) A half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Midnight Election-Day voting has begun on the US East Coast
- Former Attorney General Janet Reno dead at 78
- Former Attorney General Kathleen Kane sentenced to 10-23 months in jail
- STD cases reach record high in the US
- Coffee is the most tweeted-about food in America
- Snoopy character "fired" by MetLife after 30 years
(7) The wonders of Pacific Grove: I spent part of my lunch break today walking to the beach via a boardwalk going through sand dunes that have been wonderfully restored with native vegetation. I watched and listened to crashing waves, before returning for the afternoon conference sessions.
(8) Truth-challenged Fox News and other conservative media made it possible for Trump to rise with a whopping 2-to-1 lie-to-truth ratio.
(9) Final thought for the day: Think by using your roots, not your leaves.

2016/11/06 (Sunday): Here are five items of potential interest.
(1) My four-day absence: I am headed north to the Monterey area (Pacific Grove, to be exact) to attend a conference, where I will have a busy schedule of paper presentation and technical discussions. I'll be watching the election night returns up there in my hotel room. I'll be back Wednesday night to celebrate the election of President Clinton and to hear on the news an endless barrage of opinions about how her programs are going to be obstructed at every turn and how she will eventually face an attempted impeachment! So, don't think that you'll have peace of mind come Wednesday!
(2) Fall back: Remember to set your clocks back by one hour today, but come Tuesday, make sure you don't set your country back by 50 years!
(3) Khamenei's calculated risk: He has said publicly that, with regard to America's problems, Trump's views coincide with his (reminds me of the time when he said that Ahmadinejad's views were more like his). With this pronouncement, Khamenei has put himself in a win-win situation, while also pleasing his Russian ally. If Trump wins, Khamenei will brag about predicting the extent of dissatisfaction in the US. If he loses, then Khamenei will go along with Trump's rhetoric of a rigged election. I guess the two despots' agreement is in more than mere politics. They both agree on the place of women being at home and on men taking much younger wives!
(4) The so-called "assassin" at a Trump rally was a protester holding a sign: He displayed a sign reading "Republicans Against Trump" and was wrestled to the ground. All hell broke loose when someone shouted "he has a gun!" Before any info was released on the incident, certain Trump supporters were pointing fingers at Clinton for "assassination" attempt!
(5) [Final thought for the day.] It's not just Trump: Imagine Rudi Jiuliani and Chris Christie in cabinet positions!

2016/11/04 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Photo of Pamela Samuelson, lecturing at UCSB (1) Software likened to novels and plays: Pamela Samuelson, a UC Berkeley law professor with extensive writings on the various aspects of software intellectual property (IP), spoke today as a Computer Science Distinguished Lecturer at UCSB. The title of her talk was "The Past, Present, and Future of Software IP Protections."
Software, being both a technology and a form of writing, has presented complex challenges to the courts, which have to work with the tools they have (existing laws and precedents). In one noteworthy case, an 1879 US Supreme Court decision on the Baker-v-Selden case involving a new method of bookkeeping was referenced in presenting a decision on a software litigation case.
Software patents were pursued vigorously in the 1980s, but they are now deemed inappropriate as a form of IP protection. Some 85% of software patents that have been litigated in recent years have been struck down. Copyright protection has been more successful of late (US Congress passed a law in 1980 to extend copyright protection to object codes), but copyright does not extend to ideas, procedures, processes, systems, methods of operation, concepts, principles, or discoveries. One particularly difficult challenge is that software is often fine-tuned to become as efficient as possible. It would be ridiculous to expect someone adopting the idea to render the derivative software less efficient in order to avoid copyright infringement.
Samuelson used as a case study the ongoing software copyright litigation involving Oracle's claim that Google appropriated 37 packages of the Java API in the Android platform. Oracle's ownership of Java came about when it acquired Sun Microsystems in 2010. Part of Oracle's claim in the trial that began in 2012 was that, with 9 million Java programmers worldwide, Google's use of the technology cut into their market and profits. Working against Oracle was the fact that it had no competing product in the smartphone OS market.
Oracle's case resembles in many ways an earlier case that Google had won by likening the structure of computer programs to the plots of novels and plays. This new case is important in establishing how much protection software does and should get from copyright law. Upon the return of the case to the trial court, a jury ruled in favor of Google's fair-use defense. Oracle has pledged to appeal that ruling. Samuelson reviewed the issues that will be brought up in the appeal, generalizing from the specific Oracle-v.-Google case to the implications of such cases for software developers around the world.
[For more details, see Pamela Samuelson's "Legally Speaking" column entitled "Fair Use Prevails in Oracle v. Google" in the November 2016 issue of Communications of the ACM, pp. 24-26.]
(2) Melania Trump seems to be living in a fantasy world inside Trump Tower: In her first campaign speech after the Republican Convention, she said that our culture has gotten too mean and that social media, while powerful, has a bad side. No kidding!
(3) Colleges disguise tuition hikes by labeling some charges as "mandatory fees": The fees are given euphemistic names, but they essentially cover what used to be covered by tuition. Since 1999, such mandatory fees have risen 30% more than tuition has.
(4) Smart algorithms allow pocket-size high-quality cameras: Cell-phone-size multi-lens cameras, combined with sophisticated image-processing algorithms, can produce photos that are competitive with those from bulkier and more expensive SLRs. For example, one company uses 16 cameras of different focal lengths to provide the raw data to an image-processing algorithm, which recomposes the image. Fitting 16, or even more, cameras in the small case of a cell phone is one of the challenges of bringing this idea to market. [Source: IEEE Spectrum, issue of November 2016]
(5) Atomic pens: Believe it or not, in the early 1960s, Parker Pen Company built a prototype atomic pen containing a tiny packet of radioactive isotopes that would heat the ink to allow a selectable range of line densities. Crazy, right? But around the same time, when everything atomic was cool, people also imagined atomic cars and planes!
(6) Some Web sites and their contents betray their dial-up roots: When I access the table-of-contents for certain scientific journals, the list is typically split into several pages, each with 5-10 articles. Limiting the amount of data transmitted for each page download made sense with the low bandwidth of dial-up connections, but, today, even a TOC bearing hundreds of items (tens of thousands of characters) will be downloaded in the blink of an eye. In fact, the TOC itself has a negligible size compared with the page formatting info. There is no need to inconvenience the users with page-to-page clicks. [Commercial sites take this approach so that they can show you a new set of ads with each page advance, but here I am talking about scientific and technical organizations.]

2016/11/03 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon of candidates Clinton and Trump sitting on a girder (1) The British are watching, the British are watching: In fact, the entire world is watching our presidential election. This 2-page cartoon in the British tech magazine, Engineering & Technology, is part of a cover feature about US infrastructure renewal to the tune of $3.6 trillion and which of the two main candidates is better-equipped to deal with it. Foreigners, it seems, are far less interested in e-mails and other scandals du jour.
(2) 3D printing applications spreading: Airbus has constructed its testbed aircraft Thor from sixty 3D-printed structural segments.
(3) 3D-printed sculptures come to life when spun under a strobe light.
(4) The longest ongoing championship drought in baseball reduced by 40 years: The Chicago Cubs have just won the 2016 World Series after 108 years. Their opponents, the Cleveland Indians, now have the distinction of being the team with the longest (68-year) drought. And the Cubs did it in a dramatic way, winning in extra innings in game 7, after trailing in the series 1-3.
(5) China funds 3 research institutions to develop an exaflops computer: The 5-year plan will aim to increase the computational power of the Sunway TaihuLight supercomputer, the current world leader in performance, by a factor of 10. The participating institutions include Sugon, the National University of Defense Technology, and the National Research Center of Parallel Computer Engineering and Technology. [Source: South China Morning Post]
(6) All-wooden skyscrapers: Until recently, wooden buildings could be only a few stories high. Cross-laminated timber, with fibers in successive layers being perpendicular to each other, is changing all that. Structures with 10+ stories have already been built and a 42-story building is in the design stage. Once the infrastructure for erecting such buildings is in place, taller buildings may materialize.
(7) It's impossible to vote via texting or any other remote electronic method: You can vote for Clinton by texting [something] to [this number]. This is the latest scam by Trump supporters. I guess they are betting on uninformed individuals who would fall for this wicked plan to keep voters away from polling places.
(8) Final thought for the day: Try to live in peace now; don't just rest in peace after death!

2016/11/02 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of Lucky Knot Bridge in Changsha, China (1) Lucky Knot Bridge in Changsha, China.
(2) We need a mother in the White House: Comedian Louis C.K. Talks to Conan O'Brien about his choice.
(3) Revealed for the first time by Borowitz Report (The New Yorker): FBI is investigating Hillary Clinton's ties to Bill Clinton.
(4) Afghan children perform "Dokhtar Astam" ("I Am a Girl"): Produced by Afghanistan's National Institute of Music. Wonderful!
(5) Mariachi music: Today's noon concert at UCSB's music bowl featured Mariachi Las Olas de Santa Barbara. [Video 1] [Video 2]
(6) A scientific embarrassment for Iran: Springer and Biomed Central have retracted 58 articles by Iranian authors due to the discovery of plagiarism, compromised peer review process, and authorship manipulation issues. Researchers from University of Tehran and Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences have been named in the mass retractions. Retraction Watch has published a list of the retracted papers. I hope Iranian universities and the Ministry of Science punish these dishonest researchers.
My latest quatrain poem in Persian (7) Persian poetry: My latest quatrain.
(8) Iran defeats USA 6-2 in beach soccer: The game was played in Dubai as part of the Beach Soccer International Cup. Beach soccer is fast-moving and fun to watch. [8-minute highlights]
(9) Vote wisely next Tuesday: This is Comedian Jon Stewart's advice in the face of some Twitter exchanges he had with Donald Trump.

2016/10/31 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
My Halloween treats table, with decorations (1) All set for the little trick-or-treaters, who will start knocking on my door shortly. And here is the same table after dark. Earlier in the day, I wore this T-shirt as I headed to class to spook my students with a midterm exam!
(2) Walking home on a sunny afternoon via the beach path.
(3) The gorgeous new addition to the UCSB library looks unfinished in this corner. Perhaps the unfinished surfaces are for art students and faculty to decorate some time soon.
(4) Unlawful acts by the law-and-order candidate's companies: In connection with court orders, Donald Trump's companies destroyed or hid documents, causing lawsuits against them to drag on for years, exhausting the claimants' resources and making them more disposed to out-of-court settlements.
(5) Unsubstantiated attacks on Hillary Clinton continue: Having exhausted the various angles of using e-mails to weaken Clinton, some conservatives have begun attacking her long-time aide Huma Abedin (a Muslim), claiming that she is a spy with connections to the 9/11 attacks; I am not making this up folks! They are, of course, mum on why over the many years she has been associated with the Clintons, intelligence services of the most powerful country on earth have been unable to root out this spy and expose her illicit activities, whereas a bunch of rag-tag conservative bloggers have been able to do so.
(6) Sex as an Algorithm: This is the title of an intriguing article (by Adi Livnat and Christos Papadimitriou) in Communications of the ACM, issue of November 2016, bearing the subtitle "The Theory of Evolution Under the Lens of Computation." Ideas from the theory of evolution, such as mutation and survival of the fittest, have long been used in computation under the banner of genetic algorithms. For example, the traveling-salesperson problem can be solved heuristically by starting from various random, suboptimal solutions and iterating with changing a few links and keeping the new solution if its fitness index is higher than the previous one. Reasonably good solutions to difficult optimization problems can be obtained via this method, which can be characterized as asexual evolution. This mutation-based approach to algorithm design has evolved into the highly successful simulated annealing, which is used widely for solving a variety of problems. Bringing sex into the mix requires us to maintain a population of solutions and allowing them not only to mutate but also to recombine, just as sex allows features from a male and a female to appear in their offspring. This latter approach is much harder, because often it's not obvious how two different solutions (to the traveling-salesperson problem, say) can be combined. If we can figure this out for a particular problem, the rest is easy. Allow the beneficial recombinations to occur more often than others (let the fit "couple" have more children) and convergence to an excellent solution is virtually guaranteed. I recommend this highly readable article to anyone interested in algorithm design.

2016/10/30 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
(1) College soccer: In today's game between UCSB and UC Davis, the Gauchos gave up a goal early in the rainy first-half and could not recover in the sunny second half, losing 0-1. Despite this loss in the final game of the regular season, UCSB is headed to the Big West playoffs, having sealed a first-place finish in the northern division of the Conference. UCSB will play its first playoff match against an as-yet unspecified team at home on 11/9.
(2) Investors' fear of a Trump presidency: Each time the probability of a Trump win rises (as when the FBI said it had of new Clinton e-mails), the markets stumble, and vice versa (as after each of the three presidential debates). It seems that Trump's affinity for keeping people guessing does not sit well with investors.
(3) The toxic aftermath of Donald Trump's failing presidential campaign: Writing in Time magazine, issue of October 31, 2016, Joe Klein observes that staunch Trump supporters (not the Republicans holding their noses as they vote for Trump), who number in the tens of millions, will not be easily brought back into fold by establishment Republicans, especially if Trump continues to court them to settle various grudges. The possibility of a split in the Republican party is very real, something that will make it even harder for opposition members in the Congress to work with the President.
(4) Fighting cancer with quantum dots: The atomic-scale technology of quantum dots, which is being used to build faster and lower-power computational circuits (including some being considered in my own research) may also hold the key to new processes that zap tumors and deliver cancer drugs.
(5) New ultralow-power transistor can function for years without a battery: A new transistor designed by University of Cambridge researchers captures a tiny leakage of electrical current and harnesses it for its operations. The transistor's operating voltage is less than a volt, with power consumption below a nanowatt. The new transistor isn't very fast, but it is suitable for applications where power efficiency trumps speed. [Source: University of Cambridge Web site]
(6) Inexact computing can help produce more accurate answers: This highly counter-intuitive statement represents something that Rice University researchers have demonstrated. Complex scientific simulations, usually run on top-of-the-line supercomputers, are energy-intensive. Inexact computing focuses on saving energy where possible by paying only for the accuracy that is required in a given situation. Using the Newton-Raphson tool of numerical analysis, a Rice team demonstrated the possibility of leapfrogging from one part of a computation to the next and reinvesting the energy saved from inexact computation at each new leap to increase the quality of the final answer, while retaining the same energy budget. [Source: Rice University Web site]
(7) The foul smell of data leak: The US government requires that a sulfur smell be added to odorless natural gas to signal leaks. A pair of Dutch inventors have proposed a similar idea for data leakage from computers. A device they are marketing syncs with smartphones and computers and emits a metallic odor when users visit an unprotected Web site or connect to a nonsecure hot spot. [Source: Time magazine, issue of October 31, 2016]

2016/10/29 (Saturday): Here are three items of potential interest.
Poster for the film 'Dust--Flower--Flame' (1) Today's screening of the documentary film "Dust–Flower–Flame" at UCLA [Dodd Hall, Room 121, 2:00-4:00 PM]:
Shabnam Tolouei's film, narrated mostly in Persian with English subtitles, is the life story of poet, theologian, and women's rights pioneer Tahirih Qurratul Ayn, who lived in 19th-century Iran.
Tolouei's interest in TQA dates back to her childhood, when growing up in a Baha'i family, her father told her stories about the poet and her sad fate. At age 13, Tolouei asked a question of her teacher about TQA and was admonished for mentioning someone of ill repute.
Tolouei later graduated with a degree in theater studies from Paris 10 University. She has devoted 2.5 years to making this film with help from a wide variety of scholars, including Saghar Sadeghian, a specialist on non-conformist thinkers ("degar-andishan" in Persian) in the Qajar period, who did the research for the film. The list of credits at the end of the film is rather long. At this time, the documentary has not been scheduled for screening at film festivals and there are no plans for its mode of distribution.
TQA was ahead of her time in many ways. She was a theologian, much to the dismay of her male contemporaries. Her family viewed her as a lunatic for her nontraditional behavior and beliefs. She had four children, 3 sons and a daughter, from a rather unsuccessful marriage. The divide between TQA and her husband, Mullah Mohammad, a cousin of hers and the son of a prominent Friday Prayers leader, grew, until she asked for a divorce, a daring act at the time.
When TQA's father-in-law was murdered, she was accused by her husband and others of plotting the murder. In the late 1940s, contemporaneously with the women's movement in the US, TQA mingled with men and challenged them to debates and theological discussions. In one gathering, she appeared without the traditional hijab and delivered a lecture, causing some to flee in horror and others to accuse her of immodesty.
TQA wrote to Seyed Ali Mohammad Bab and was chosen by him as of his disciples in the Bab movement, which was later transformed into the Baha'i faith. She emerged as one of the leaders of the movement, which started within the confines of Islam but later rebranded itself as a new faith.
Portrait of Tahirih Qurratul Ayn When TQA become a headache for the government, she was taken to Tehran and kept under house arrest, where she was even denied the use of pen and paper in order to prevent her from communicating with the outside world. Nasir-al-Din Shah Qajar asked her to stop following the Bab, aspiring to make her the lady of his harem. When Bab was killed by the King's men and some of Bab's followers tried to assassinate the King in revenge, he becomes outraged and had a large number of followers of the Bab killed. The mullahs insisted that TQA must also be killed and the King followed their wishes.
TQA never explicitly discussed women or women's rights, yet it is quite appropriate to consider her a pioneer of women's rights in Iran by virtue of her bold actions that defied the traditional women's role at the time and of her speaking up where women did not dare to speak.
I learned of TQA many years ago, first as a poet, with compositions that were structurally and semantically rich. Only later did I learn of her role as a leader of the Babi movement and of her losing her life for her convictions and defiance of backward restrictions against women. According to today's film, some believe that the beautiful poems attributed to her aren't really hers. I wonder if this is a misogynistic pronouncement, essentially saying that women are incapable of producing such magical poetry.
The film screening was followed by Q&A and discussion in Persian, with English translation.
(2) Joining the campaign to urge the Iranian government to free Narges Mohammadi, a human and women's rights activist sentenced to a 16-year prison term.
(3) The best places to be a girl: Sweden tops the list. Israel at 17th and South Korea at 27th fare better than the 32nd-ranked United States. Niger at 144th is the absolute worst, preceded by Brazil at 102nd, India at 90th, and Syria at 78th. For the full ranking, see the PDF report entitled "Every Last Girl." [The full ranking is given in a chart at the beginning of Section 6, p. 24]

2016/10/28 (Friday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
(1) Humorous quote of the day: "Sure, it feels like this Presidential election isn't about issues and is instead a barrage of insults, anger and ugly revelations. But as anyone who has ever been in a romantic relationship can attest, a barrage of insults, anger and ugly revelations is how you know you're talking about issues. When you're having a calm, rational discussion, one person is talking and the other is thinking about what there is in the house to eat." ~ Joel Stine, writing in Time magazine, issue of October 31, 2016
(2) Giant jade stone unearthed in Burma: At 210 tons, 14 feet high, and 18 feet long, the stone is worth an estimated $170 million.
(3) A tribute to Hooshang Seyhoun [1920-2014]: Architect and artist extraordinaire, who is considered by some as the most influential Iranian artist in modern times.
(4) Let your children be bored: Don't rush in with ready-made solutions. Let them figure it out by themselves. Also the inner quiet is good for them. [1-minute video]
(5) A church bottles industrial bleach and markets it as a miracle cure for all ailments, from autism to cancer. The ABC program "20/20" runs an expose.
(6) Norah Jones sings "My Dear Country," one of the songs she performed at her Santa Barbara Bowl concert last night. Quite topical, because it mentions both Halloween and election day, and funny! Lyrics follow.
And here's another beautiful song from the concert: "How Many Times Have You Broken My Heart?"
And here's Norah Jones' wonderful slow version of Kris Kristoferson's "Help Me Make It Through the Night."
'Twas Halloween and the ghosts were out, | And everywhere they'd go, they shout, | And though I covered my eyes I knew, | They'd go away.
But fear's the only thing I saw, | And three days later 'twas clear to all, | That nothing is as scary as election day.
But the day after is darker, | And darker and darker it goes, | Who knows, maybe the plans will change, | Who knows, maybe he's not deranged.
The news men know what they know, but they, | Know even less than what they say, | And I don't know who I can trust, | For they come what may.
'cause we believed in our candidate, | But even more it's the one we hate, | I needed someone I could shake, | On election day.
But the day after is darker, | And deeper and deeper we go, | Who knows, maybe it's all a dream, | Who knows if I'll wake up and scream.
I love the things that you've given me, | I cherish you my dear country, | But sometimes I don't understand, | The way we play.
I love the things that you've given me, | And most of all that I am free, | To have a song that I can sing, | On election day
(7) The social cost of solitary confinement: Solitary confinement, which is justifiable when the prisoner's life or those of others are at risk, is grossly overused in the US. Not only it is three times as expensive as regular imprisonment, it exacts psychological problems (due to sensory deprivation) that the society eventually pays for, either during the inmate's term or after his release. [Source: Time magazine, issue of October 31, 2016]

2016/10/27 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing Trump's campaign ship about to go over a waterfall (1) Cartoon of the day: "Relax ... I can turn this around!"
(2) Shameless and increasingly desperate Trump supporters are now faking endorsements by politicians and popular celebs. [Snopes.com, on the claim that Tom Hanks supports Trump.]
(3) Will we have artisans and handicrafts in a century? The answer isn't clear. A robot has erected at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London a glass-and-fiber canopy that covers more than 200 square meters and weighs less than 2.5 metric tons. The University of Stuttgart design is inspired by the lightweight filament shells that protect flying beetles. [Source: IEEE Spectrum, issue of October 2016]
(4) The megaprocessor: The term "microprocessor" has been used for several decades to refer to a microchip that contains a computer's central processing unit in a small space. Such microprocessors now come with gigabytes of memory integrated on the same chip. James Newman's living room houses the exact opposite, a gigantic processor, with seven 2-meter-tall panels holding a CPU and a whopping 256 bytes of memory, composed of painstakingly hand-soldered discrete transistors. He built his megaprocessor as a learning tool for himself. [Source: IEEE Spectrum, issue of October 2016]
(5) Brace yourselves for posts like this one: Crooked Hillary Clinton nearly crashed the plane of the Republican VP candidate Mike Pence by causing extreme weather conditions, including heavy rain, near NYC's La Guardia Airport. All passengers are okay after the plane skidded off the runway today.
(6) UCSB earns 24th ranking in the world: US News and World Report has placed UCSB in the 24th position among 1000 top universities worldwide and 7th among US public universities for 2017. Two UC campuses are in the top 10: Berkeley at #4 and UCLA at #10.
(7) Everything isn't a disaster: It's good to see and report positive developments in a world filled with negativity. During 2014-2015, the last academic year for which we have data, 83.2% of US high school students graduated on time, setting a new record for the fifth year in a row. [Source: Time magazine, issue of October 31, 2016]
(8) Norah Jones at Santa Barbara Bowl: Tonight's concert, composed of an 80-minute main set and a 15-minute encore was held under intermittent mild rain. It was nevertheless quite enjoyable. Jones began on the piano, switching to guitar for some of her songs. In her own words, she likes the piano, which represents her roots, and has tried to use it more in her new album. I had my best seat ever at SB Bowl, due to a combination of very early purchase and the fact that I bought a single seat. Opening for Jones was Valerie June. [A different 88-minute concert by Norah Jones] [The song "You Cant Be Told" by Valerie June]

2016/10/26 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Gretchen Carlson on the cover of Time magazine (1) Gretchen Carlson aspires to lead the fight against sexual harassment: The fired Fox news anchor, who took on her boss Roger Ailes, plans to testify before congress about forced arbitration, a common clause that muffles women's voice in sexual harassment cases.
(2) Microsoft speech recognition technology now performs on par with a human professional transcriptionist: Microsoft researchers continue to develop ways to make sure speech recognition works in places where there is a lot of background noise, can assign names to individual speakers when multiple people are talking, and can accommodate a variety of voices, regardless of age, accent, or ability. [Source: Network World]
(3) Hillary Clinton turned 70 today: Happy birthday to our future President! Also, according to AARP Magazine, issue of November 2016, two talented actresses turn 70: Susan Sarandon had her birthday on October 4 and Sally Field will have hers on November 6.
(4) The 2016 US election could be the most expensive ever: The two presidential candidates have spent $200M more than the $913M spent at this time in 2012. The total cost is projected to be $6.6B. [Source: Newsweek]
(5) Trump rose not in spite of his incendiary talk but because of it: A new area of science, called "sociophysics," models and predicts how a minority viewpoint can prevail over the majority opinion in a democracy. "Trump, by shocking people, by making outrageous statements, was awakening prejudices inside some of the voters that had been frozen, provoking discussions and driving the tipping point in Trump's favor. His success wasn't in spite of the shocking statements he made; he succeeded because of them. Trump's opponents' less incendiary remarks, meanwhile, failed to activate prejudice to the same degree."
(6) Donald Trump's post-election plans: In these final days of the campaign, rather than focusing on extending his support, Trump has aimed to intensify the sense of grievance for his own post-election plans. Now that he has resigned to losing, he wants to maximize his financial gain after the loss. He is also looking to blame his loss on others, because, of course, Trump can't lose. He is already looking into a new media entity, both to make money and to settle scores via birther-like campaigns against Clinton and other foes. It's no accident that former Fox News and Breitbart heads are among his closest advisers. [Adapted from: Time magazine, of October 31, 2016] This Vanity Fair article also predicts a Trump News Network, suggesting that it will be "a total disaster"!
(7) Alternative universes: This video clip from Megan Kelly's interview with Newt Gingrich has been posted by the right, with claims that Gingrich destroyed Kelly and exposed the corrupt and biased media, and by the left, with narratives about Gingrich being humiliated by Kelly. I guess each person hears what s/he wants to hear!
(8) Today's noon concert at UC Santa Barbara's Music Bowl: Ensamble Viento del Sur played rumba, bolero, cumbia, and other kinds of Latin American music as part of the World Music Series. The unusual instrument on the right in this video is charango, originally built out of armadillo shells but now carved out of wood. Here is another sample of music played at the concert. Many of the songs were rearranged to make them suitable for performance by a small band of 3 players.

2016/10/25 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Portrait of John Lennon, made with coffee beans and two coffee cups (1) John Lennon portrait, for your mornings!
(2) Pomegranate fall harvesting festival in Iran's Guilan province. [Photo]
(3) Amazingly realistic 3D drawings.
(4) Justice in the Islamic Republic of Iran: A rapist, a murderer, and a terrorist are at large and holding positions of power, while human-rights activist Narges Mohammadi is serving a 16-year prison term. [Image]
(5) An insightful analysis on how Clinton used Trump's weaknesses to prevail in their debates. [8-minute video]
(6) Quote of the day: "He's not trying to win—he's using donors to build an audience for Trump TV." ~ Trump biographer Michael d'Antonio, in a comment that may explain why Trump is aiming for strengthening his base rather than attrcting the new voters he needs for a victory
(7) An Annotated Bibliography of the Writings of Amnon Netzer: In doing on-line searches to find a book I have just learned about, From Saghez [Saqqez] to Jerusalem (by Benjamin Cohen), I came across a PDF document, issued by the Institute of Asian and African Studies, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (first draft, 2004), that lists a treasure-trove of books, articles, recordings, and so on, in Persian and Hebrew, about Jews of Iran through the ages, including their literature, spoken language, religious rites, education, art, and culture. Amnon Netzer (Professor of Persian Language and Literature), who compiled his writings in this bibliography, was born in 1934 in Rasht, Iran, and died in 2008 in Los Angeles, CA. I reproduce here the first and the final three paragraphs of the bibliography's preface:
"For many years I could not find time to embark on preparing a list of all my writings. The idea of preparing such a list originated from friends, colleagues and students who noted the scarcity of historical documents regarding the more than two millennia of Jewish life in Iran. It was especially emphasized at the gathering held at the Hebrew University (April 9, 2003) on the occasion of my retirement."
"To make the bibliography useful to scholars and students, I separated the academic works from the writings published in general forums. The latter, as stated before, contain 3 important information and impartial evaluation concerning communal events which merit scholarly attention. These writings are, in a way, first hand contributions to the history and culture of the Jewish Persian communities in Iran, Israel and the United States. I hope my critical observations and comments regarding the socio-economic structure as well as the leadership in various Jewish Iranian communities will be appreciated. I tried my best to preserve scholarly objectivity, intellectual integrity and unbiased judgement in these writings."
"This bibliography reflects my work as published to date. My travels to many remote cities and villages in Iran during the years 1971-1978 still remain to be written. These travels, which seemed to me of imperative need, involved considerable physical hardship. They were made in search of Jewish communities as well as Muslims who were apparently Jewish converts. The all-embracing culture and local traditions of both communities appeared to me immensely interesting and worthy of academic investigations."
"Finally, I hope that my voyage into the history, culture and traditions of Persian Jewry ... will prove to be a humble contribution to Judeo-Persian studies."
[Amnon Netzer's obituary] [Wikipdia entry for the linguist, writer, historian Amnon Netzer]

2016/10/24 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon captioned 'An alpha male's scarlet letters' (1) Cartoon of the day.
(2) Fifteen dead in crash of tour bus near Palm Springs in California.
(3) The colorful pebbles of Montana's Lake McDonald in Glacier National Park.
(4) Fall foliage in Vancouver, Canada. [Photo]
(5) Rewards for Muslim men in Heaven: This prominent Iranian cleric says that men will be rewarded with many virgin girls, who have just developed breasts and will remain virgins even after the act, and young handsome boys, who take care of one's every whim. Shame on IRI, which not only does not condemn these superstitious musings and legitimizations of child abuse, but gives people like him multiple platforms to preach their nonsense.
(6) The year of newcomers: Newcomers are dominating more than politics these days. The two baseball teams to begin the World Series tomorrow have not won a championship for about 7 decades. The Chicago Cubs last played for championship in 1945 and have not won the series for more than a century (since 1908). The Cleveland Indians last won the series in 1948; they have made it to the championship series 3 times since then, coming back empty-handed each time.
(7) Mike Pence calls Michelle Obama "vulgar": Referring to her criticism of Donald Trump's sexual-assault talk, Pence has said that it isn't lady-like for the First Lady to bring up Trump's words; I assume he thinks that Trump's uttering of those words is gentleman-like!
(8) SNL's presidential debate skit from last Saturday (in case you missed it): Tom Hanks, who hosted the show, plays Chris Wallace.
(9) Political humor—Trump's Gettysburg Address (written by Sidney Blumenthal for Newsweek): Four polls and seven news cycles ago, our dishonest mainstream media brought forth on these television channels a totally rigged system, conceived in corruption and dedicated to the proposition that the least racist man you've ever known who should have won the Emmy for The Apprentice is created unequal. ...

2016/10/22 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Raytheon's microwave 'stove' from 1946 (1) When nuking food was a novelty: This 1946 Raytheon microwave "stove" led to the first consumer microwave-oven in 1955. The fridge-size oven looks quite different from today's compact models. It seems, however, that the use of attractive women to promote or sell products hasn't changed much! [Info from: IEEE Spectrum, October 2016]
(2) How the presidential election would turn out if only certain categories of people voted: These electoral maps show Clinton's and Trump's support among various groups. In an earlier post, I noted that Clinton has a 15-point edge among women and Trump has a 5-point advantage among men. So, Clinton will win just on the basis of women's support. The "people of color" map seals the deal. And the Republicans knew this since Romney's loss, but failed to act on this information. Putting Trump forward was the equivalent of a Hail-Mary pass in football.
(3) Anoushirvan Rohani's song, "Maybe I Maybe You," performed in a Ukranian talent show.
(4) A 2500-year-old water duct (ghanaat, in Persian) from the Achaemenid period in Iran's Khorasan province, whose topmost well is 300 meters deep, has become a UNESCO World Heritage site.
(5) Quote of the day: "I grew up behind U.S. barbed wire fences ... It's important to tell the story of this time in history emotionally, reaching people through both the heart and intellect." ~ Actor George Takei, 79, who was interned between the ages 5 and 9, on his plans during 2016, the 75th anniversary year of Pearl Harbor
(6) The amazing soccer rivalry between UCSB and Cal Poly: Known as the Blue-Green rivalry, it is rated by CollegeSoccerNews as the greatest soccer rivalry in the US. Attendance in the last five meetings between the two teams has not fallen below 13K, and it was at or above that number tonight in an exciting game that ended 0-0 after two overtimes. The cumulative record of 46-18-9, which includes both tonight's match and a recent 2-1 UCSB win at Cal Poly, heavily favors UCSB. However, recent results have been more even. In fact, the Gauchos have not won both matches in a season since 2006. The goal difference in 17 of the last 20 matches has been 0 or 1. The Gauchos can clench a Big West regular season title by winning against Sacramento State in their upcoming match next week.

2016/10/21 (Friday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
The famous Shah Mosque of Isfahan (1) Shah Mosque in Isfahan, Iran: Photographed by Mohammad Reza Domiri Ganji.
(2) Here is how the first real WMD terrorism case played out: Federal authorities in the US have charged three men with conspiring to use a WMD with the intention of blowing up an apartment complex and a mosque in a predominantly Muslim Kansas neighborhood. The men belong to a group calling itself "the Crusaders," which believes that the US can be awakened and turned around only with a bloodbath. Yes, ironically, it wasn't ISIS or some feared immigrant group in this first case.
(3) These "Nasty Woman" T-shirts were almost inevitable.
(4) And one more result of Trump's vocabulary during Wednesday's presidential debate: Restrooms for "Nasty Women" and "Bad Hombres" at the Trump Tower.
(5) Modern Persian music: Nostalgic song performed by the late Delkash, who sounded just as wonderful in old age as she did at the height of her incredibly successful career.
(6) Andalib ensemble: This wonderful group performs Guilaki and Kurdish folk songs, in addition to traditional Persian music. Here is a sample.
(7) In the year of character, issues still matter: This is the title of an article by editor Nancy Gibbs in Time magazine, issue of October 24, 2016, at the beginning of a comprehensive special feature about issues in the current US presidential election. Here is a checklist I made for myself (adapting them from the section headings), which I hope you find useful as well.
Beating ISIS, and saving Iraq  |  The crises in Syria and Libya  |  The Iran paradox
Battling lone-wolf terrorists at home  |  Russia: friend or foe?  |  Relations with Cuba and other neighbors
Shrinking the earnings/wealth gap  |  The candidates' tax plans  |  Rebuilding of our infrastructure
Has the world reached peak trade?  |  The middle ground on social security  |  The child-care problem
Caring for the caregivers  |  Illicit drugs and opioid addiction  |  Skyrocketing drug prices
Obamacare: curable or terminally ill?  |  Zika and the politics of abortion  |  Race and police violence
Restoring order to the rule of law  |  Guns and gun safety issues  |  Illegal immigration and refugees
Freedom of speech and political correctness  |  The education tab and student loans
The future of engineered food  |  US identity and American exceptionalism  |  Role of the Supreme Court
Environment and climate change  |  Over-expansion of executive powers  |  Science & technology policy

2016/10/20 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon postulating click-baits in the Old Testament (1) Cartoon of the day: Click baits, or their low-tech equivalents on TV ("The world will end tomorrow; details at 11:00"), are annoying facts of life these days. Here are some click baits you might see in an on-line version of the Old Testament.
(2) Going out with style: The Obamas at their last state dinner.
(3) How women are defeating Trump: Nate Silver's analysis shows the gender gap in the current US presidential election; Clinton is leading among women by an average of 15 points, while Trump leads among men by 5 points.
[And no, it's not because women would vote for any woman, it's because women would not vote for a misogynist who has said the vilest things about them, day in and day out.]
(4) #TrumpBookReport on twitter: This hashtag relates to humorous takes on how Trump interprets literary works. Here is an example; read the rest of the dizzying collection for yourself.
"The Hunger Games are rigged, folks. Everyone knows Katniss won b/c she played the woman card. Nasty woman. Very rigged." | "Ahab, not a winner. I'd bomb the hell out of the whale. Btw, the whale got so big and nasty under Obama." | "To Kill a Mockingbird? Nobody kills Mockingbirds better than me. I will kill the families of Mockingbirds. Believe me." | "To Kill a Mockingbird? Didn't read it but many people are saying the African American—those people love me btw—is guilty." | "Nasty woman. Drops a house on a job creator. Steals her shoes. Melts her. I would send her back to Kansas, Believe me."
(5) A hatchet-job of a book: I have read several reviews of Clinton Cash, including this review from Newsweek and, accordingly, decided against reading it. The Newsweek review ends: "'Even if nothing illegal occurred,' Schweizer writes, 'one has to wonder about the political judgment involved.' A very fair point. Clinton put herself in any number of compromising positions over the years. But throwing up a bunch of dots and not connecting them isn't great judgment either." I was also not impressed that the book was made into a film by Breitbart in an attempt to alienate women and the LGBT community.
(6) Hila Sedighi displays her support for the imprisoned Narges Mohammadi.
(7) The sage and the con artist: The third and final presidential debate reminded me of this legend I was told as a kid. A con artist goes to a village, gathers the people around, and challenges the local sage. He says, we both will write "snake" with a stick on this sand and let the people judge which one of us is more knowledgeable. The sage goes first, takes the stick, and writes the word "snake" as neatly as he can. The con artist goes next, draws a wiggly line and then asks the villagers: Which one of these is a snake? The villagers roar in approval, pick up rocks, and chase the sage out of their village.
(8) Following politics is like watching sausage being made: If you think that the internal squabblings of the Clinton campaign revealed in e-mails leave a bad taste in your mouth, wait until Trump's come out, either in leaks or as part of memoirs written post-election. In particular, Trump's campaign manager Kellyann Conway, 49, who appears to be quite intelligent, already shows signs of discomfort with defending Trump's incoherent musings on various topics.

2016/10/19 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Official university portrait of Behrooz Parhami, taken October 2016 (1) My departmental portrait: This photo was taken last week by a UCSB photographer for use in official university publications and Web sites.
(2) What I did during lunch break today: I watched and listened to the The "Gap Tooth Mountain Ramblers" quartet, playing a variety of fiddle and country music, with band members switching effortlessly between instruments (fiddle, banjo, guitar).
(3) Cartoon of the day: Gropegate. [Image]
(4) Endorsement of Hillary Clinton by 70 Nobel Laureates: Nobel Prize winners in science, medicine, and economics believe that Clinton's election is crucial to safeguarding freedoms and constitutional rule. And it's also good for the advancement of science and technology.
(5) It bears repeating: Trump did not sexually assault one particular women is not the same as Trump did not sexually assault any woman.
(6) Quote of the day: "After [major financial] crises, right-wing populist parties and politicians typically increase their vote share by about 30%." ~ Rana Foroohar, writing in Time magazine (issue of October 24, 2016), about the results of a team of German academics, examining 800 elections over 140 years in 20 advanced economies
(7) Mars landing, a short history: There have been some 15 attempts to land on Mars.
NASA has by far the best record, with 7 successful landings.
The Soviet Mars 3 probe landed softly, but transmitted data for only 15 seconds.
The European Space agency had a failed attempt in 2003 and another one days ago. Will try again in 2021.
(8) Observations on Donald Trump and tonight's third and final presidential debate: Firstly, Chris Wallace did a much better job than I expected, particularly with regard to not allowing the candidates exceed their alloted times. Secondly, Donald Trump continues to think that he can dismiss a charge by uttering the single word "wrong"! Thirdly, everything is a disaster or rigged in our country and the world, according to Trump! Clinton did a good job of listing Trump's decades-long history of complaining and saying that things are rigged against him, including his blaming the Emmy Awards when his show wasn't honored; also, the expensive ad he took at the time of President Reagan to allege that the country was not being run properly. Trump made two huge mistakes that will cost him big time! He continued to defend and praise Putin and he refused to say that he will accept the voting outcome. Immediately after the debate, Trump's surrogates claimed that he won, but the match wasn't even close. One of the many "oops" decisions by Donald Trump was to invite President Obama's estranged half-brother, Malik, as his guest at the debate. He is a Kenyan-born US citizen, but reportedly self-identifies as a Hamas sympathizer and a proponent of Palestinians ruling the entire land of Israel, "from the river to the sea." And here's a final point. Comedian Jimmy Kimmel quipped tonight that given the number of disagreements between Donald Trump and his chosen VP, there should be a debate between them to discuss the issues on which they disagree!

2016/10/18 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Official portrait of Barack and Michelle Obama (1) Barack and Michelle Obama: A decent and eloquent couple who got a raw deal from overt and covert racism and who will be judged favorably by historians.
(2) President Hillary Clinton will face challenges: Having given up on Donald Trump's chances of becoming POTUS #45, the Republicans are already talking about continuing their negativity, blocking legislation, and obstructing presidential appointments. I do hope that low voter turnout due to disappointment with those topping the ticket does not lead to the Republicans gaining House and/or Senate majorities. Furthermore, just as overt and closet racists exploited racial tensions and then blamed President Obama for the worsening race relations, expect sexism and misogyny to grow under Clinton.
(3) Leshan Giant Buddha, China: An impressive 233-foot statue, whose construction began in the year 713.
(4) Trump quote of the day: "How stupid are the people of Iowa?" ~ Addressing Iowans at a campaign event in Iowa [Bill Maher has quipped that since Trump is leading in Iowa, his question might have been justified!]
(5) Donald Trump's campaign is hoping for a low-turnout election: Having lost hope for broadening their support in view of scandalous revelations, Trump's campaign is intensifying efforts on ensuring low turnout by independent, women, and minority groups. They are becoming increasingly aware that they need to win with the same, nearly constant, low-40s support among voters.
(6) How thinking like a kid can spur creativity: The observation isn't new, but the practical tips offered by Peter Himmelman in this viewpoint piece (Time magazine, issue of October 24, 2016) are quite useful.
(7) Observations on the evolution of English. [xkcd.com Cartoon]
(8) Last evening's Faculty Research Lecture at UCSB: Professor Joseph Incandela spoke at 5:15 PM, following a 4:00 PM reception. His very interesting talk, entitled "Searching for the Genetic Code of our Universe," covered a variety of heavy scientific notions, such as Higgs boson, supercolliders, and dark matter, mixed with some welcome humor. His last two slides poked fun at the current US presidential candidates and their support for science. This slide pertains to Donald Trump. Hillary Clinton's included a reference to possibly finding dark matter hidden somewhere in her e-mails.

2016/10/17 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Photo of the just-completed Baha'i temple in Chile (1) The new Baha'i temple in Chile, like several of its counterparts around the world, is a fine example of inspiring architecture.
(2) Great pizza idea: I will definitely try this recipe soon.
(3) The law-and-order candidate's dubious plan for making America "great" again.
(4) Donald Trump quote of the day: "I love women. They've come into my life. They've gone out of my life. Even those who have exited somewhat ungracefully still have a place in my heart. I only have one regret in the women department—that I never had the opportunity to court Lady Diana Spencer. I met her on a number of occasions."
(5) Typical post defending Donald Trump against accusations of improper sexual conduct: Ms. X says that Mr. Trump never groped her or walked in on her when she was undressing, so he didn't do it to other women either.
(6) Comedian/author Jim Gaffigan: Hilarious "Hot Pockets" stand-up comedy routine by Gaffigan, who specializes in fatherhood and food topics, according to Wikipedia. And here is his "Holiday Traditions" routine.
(7) Half-dozen brief news items of the day:
- The battle to retake Mosul and driving ISIS out of the Iraqi city has begun (CNN)
- Galaxy Note 7 banned by FAA; Samsung discontinues the model (ABC News)
- Microchip implant could deliver birth control, osteoporosis treatment (The Guardian)
- Solar array just opened in Maricopa County, AZ, delivers 150 MW (Washington Post)
- Uterus transplants raise hopes for women unable to conceive (Time)
- Glow-in-the-dark bike paths eliminate the need for expensive lighting (Time)
(8) My comment on a misleading post that claimed Hillary Clinton reduced her tax bill by $1M by donating $1M to the Clinton Foundation: Even ignoring the fact that giving to the Foundation isn't putting money from one pocket into another (as the poster claimed), there are other serious problems with the post. Please, please do not spread sourceless garbage, often taking the form of an image or a YouTube video, with no attribution.
"You are either ignorant about the tax code or malicious about spreading misinformation. First, giving $1M to charity reduces your income, not your taxes, by $1M. If you are a high-income person paying the top marginal rate, your taxes are reduced by at most one-third that amount. Most high-income individuals pay alternative minimum tax, in which charitable and other deductions are capped. Even in my case with a much lower income, it does not matter whether I give $500 or $50,000 to charity; my tax liability remains the same due to AMT."

2016/10/15 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
The late John Ritter with four other now-famous people (1) See if you can name a couple of the people in this photo with the late John Ritter.
(2) The universe has 2 trillion more galaxies than previously thought: The revised number is up to 20 times more than the previous figure.
(3) Pocket printer: This robotic printer that moves over a sheet of paper, instead of pulling in the sheet into its print mechanism, was invented by two students from the Jerusalem College of Technology.
(4) President Obama announces more than $300M in sci/tech funding: Wired magazine reports that by announcing the new initiatives during the White House Frontiers Conference in Pittsburgh, Obama seeks to cement his legacy as a booster of science and technology. A separate news report indicates $70M in new funding for brain research.
(5) Trump debates himself via contradictory opinions uttered over the years. [6-minute video]
(6) Donald Trump quote of the day: "I think the only difference between me and the other candidates is that I'm more honest and my women are more beautiful."
(7) Trump debates himself via contradictory opinions uttered over the years. [6-minute video]
(8) Capital ideas (a word puzzle): Complete the following ten words.
_ O _ _ S _ L O _   |   R _ O _ M _ _ E   |   S E _ _ O U _ L _   |   _ A T H E _ _ N _ S   |   C _ A I R _ O _ _ _
B _ _ _ E R L I N _   |   H _ _ A N O I _   |   _ _ Q U I _ _ T _ O _   |   _ _ A C _ C R A _ _   |   _ L _ I M A _ _
(9) College soccer: The UCSB men's soccer team continues its undefeated streak against Big-West opponents. Tonight, UCSB defeated arch-rival Cal Poly 2-1 in an away game to improve its conference record to 4-0-2. Their return match will be next Saturday 10/22 at UCSB's Harder Stadium, where a record crowd is expected.

2016/10/13 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Hundreds of humans form a giant peace sign to honor John Lennon (1) Imagine a human peace sign the size of a football field: Formed last year at NYC's Central Park, in honor of John Lennon.
(2) US federal budget explained in simple terms.
(3) The 2016 Nobel Prize in literature goes to songwriter/musician Bob Dylan for creating new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition. Some people find this choice hard to stomach. But if literature is written to be read and to affect humanity, one cannot exclude songwriting out of hand as one of its forms.
(4) If you want to defend a woman against predatory alpha-males, defend her as a human being, not because she is someone's sister, mother, daughter, or wife.
(5) Hidden camera prank played on Iranian-American mother and daughter by the other daughter, who tells them she is in love with and wants to marry a poet. As if the guy's lack of medical or engineering degree isn't bad enough, he isn't just a regular poet, but an aspiring rap artist.
(6) Donald Trump quote of the day [a new feature on my timeline]: "The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive."
(7) Ten brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- President Obama says he will sleep for two weeks after leaving the White House (VoA)
- Refugee suspected of terrorism commits suicide in German prison (VoA)
- Saudi Arabia admits that it bombed Yemeni civilians, killing 140 (VoA)
- Iranian women were barred from Iran-Korea soccer match; Korean women were allowed in
- In 2015, TSA pocketed $765,000 in loose change left on security-screening trays (AARP Bulletin)
- Donald Trump apologizes to Serbia for US/NATO bombings under Bill Clinton (Newsweek)
- US launches strikes in Yemen to retaliate for missiles aimed at American ships (MSN)
- King of Thailand, world's longest-reigning monarch, dead at 88 (PBS)
- Hurricane Nicole, worst for Bermuda since 2003, moves eastward (PBS)
- Russian television warns of nuclear war amid US tensions (ABC News)
(8) Trump does not just cater to alt-conservatives; he also seems to be fond of alt-reality, in which he won both debates and leads in every poll.
(9) Tom Hanks, the most likable American actor, speaks up against Trump and his "locker-room" talk.

2016/10/12 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Time magazine's covers of August 22 and October 24, 2016 (1) The Donald Trump meltdown, featured on Time magazine's cover of August 22, 2016, is back two months later on the cover of October 24 issue.
(2) An imaginitavely designed office building in Hamadan, Iran.
(3) Be thankful for the 19th Amendment: Various polls show that Trump would win if only men voted. This is why some Trump supporters are tweeting #repealthe19th!
(4) If Donald Trump wrote a research paper.
(5) Donald Trump quote of the day [a new feature on this blog]: "I think apologizing's a great thing, but you have to be wrong. I will absolutely apologize, sometime in the hopefully distant future, if I'm ever wrong."
(6) Here is a page that contains live-streaming links for programs on Iran's TV and radio channels. Under the national TV tab, there are live links to 5 networks, plus news, children's programming, sports, documentary, and several others. Other tabs include regional and international (English, Arabic) outlets.
(7) The tech-savvy Clinton campaign unveils a tool that allows users to see side-by-side what each of the two candidates was doing at a selected point in time.
(8) Hillary Clinton as the sane alternative: "Like her, don't like her, criticize her, but leave off the venom, please! Your vitriol hurts women—all of us. It reinforces the archetypes that see women's power as dangerous and malicious, the same archetypes that contributed to the burning of Witches and that make women vulnerable targets of male rage."
(9) College soccer: Tonight, I attended a disappointing 1-1 soccer match between UCSB and Sacramento State at Harder Stadium. UCSB scored first and Sacramento tied the match in the first half. The second half and both overtime periods went scoreless, despite UCSB having many more scoring opportunities.

2016/10/11 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Artwork paying tribute to pioneering women (1) This image, "Feminism at Work" (by award-winning cartoonist David Trumble), pays tribute to pioneers who moved women's history forward.
(2) Gunmen attack Ashura mourning rites in Kabul : At least 14 were killed and 26 injured.
(3) This message resonated with me, because I saw it right after reading a story reporting that some students at Washington University of St. Louis, site of the second presidential debate, held up signs that read: "George Washington grabbed Martha by the p****." It seems that Trump's vile language is entering our lexicon, and that such statements now pass as humor, not the demeaning, misogynistic filth that they are.
(4) How Trump was fooled by Kremlin's sloppily manufactured "news" story, that was later withdrawn by the original source: "This is not funny. It is terrifying. The Russians engage in a sloppy disinformation effort and, before the day is out, the Republican nominee for president is standing on a stage reciting the manufactured story as truth. How did this happen? Who in the Trump campaign was feeding him falsehoods straight from the Kremlin?" [Newsweek article]
(5) Donald Trump quote of the day [a new feature on this blog]: "Women have one of the great acts of all time. The smart ones act very feminine and needy, but inside they are real killers. The person who came up with the expression 'the weaker sex' was either very naive or had to be kidding. I have seen women manipulate men with just a twitch of their eye—or perhaps another body part."
(6) Trump's sorry, lonely existence: I have read multiple analyses about how behind the fanfare and bravado, Trump is a lonely, friendless man. His permanent pout and rarity of smiles are telling signs. Whereas other political candidates surround themselves with advisers and run ideas by them before they speak publicly, Trump does not even confer with his VP nominee. Just as he runs his business in a strictly hierarchical manner, he seems to believe that the US Presidency will be similar, with a bunch of yes-men following his every whim.
(7) Iran beats South Korea 1-0 in a soccer World Cup qualifier: Iran now sits alone on top of its group, with pretty good odds of qualifying for the 2018 World Cup. The match was played in Tehran's Azadi Stadium on one of the most important mourning days for Shi'i Muslims. The Iranian authorities tried to postpone the match but, not succeeding, they asked the spectators to mourn at the stadium; the half-time program consisted of solemn religious songs. [Highlights]
(8) The 2016 Nobel Prize in economic sciences has been awarded in equal shares to US-based researchers Oliver Hart (Harvard) and Bengt Holmstrom (MIT), for their contributions to contract theory. The work honored pertains to a sort of optimization under incomplete information, that is, they "demonstrated how a principal (e.g., a company's shareholders) should design an optimal contract for an agent (the company's CEO), whose action is partly unobserved by the principal."

2016/10/10 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Time magazine cover for its issue of October 17, 2016 (1) The White Helmets of Syria: Much is posted on-line about the misery in Syria and the plight of civilians who have perished or become homeless and/or refugees. With this post, I want to draw everyone's attention that amid the destruction in war-torn Syria, there is a group of selfless rescue workers who have saved an estimated 60,000 lives. [Image credit: Time magazine, issue of October 17, 2016]
(2) Republicans' fake moral outrage: GOP big-shots, who are fleeing Trump in droves (supposedly over his vile language in a recently released video), are really trying to distance themselves from a losing candidate. Everyone knew, and was telling anyone who would listen, what kind of man he is. His record was available on-line for all to see. So, how is it that this one incident has embarrassed the GOP more than all the previous revelations about Trump, including his own words?
(3) Last night's second presidential debate: Trump took the bait again! He talked about Sydney Blumenthal, accused Anderson Cooper of bias, and called Clinton a liar multiple times. And the sniffling continued!
(4) Who won last night's presidential debate? The consensus seems to be that by not self-destructing on the debate stage, Trump "stopped the bleeding" in his campaign, without changing any minds. Explicitly disagreeing with his running mate, threatening to prosecute and jail his opponent should he become President, repeating the accusation that Clinton has not changed the laws that he took advantage of in not paying taxes (forgetting that there are 99 other Senators, including the oppose-everything Republicans), and answering many specific questions about what he would do as President by generalities about how awful things are now, will come back to haunt him. Various polls indicate that Clinton did better but that Trump exceeded expectations.
(5) One of the most promising applications of IBM Watson, and artificial intelligence more generally, is in healthcare. This episode of "60 Minutes" is devoted to the topic.
(6) On the outrageous lie that Hillary Clinton helped set free a rapist and then laughed about it: Here is a Snopes.com article that assesses the allegations and rates them mostly false. The only true parts are that she was appointed as the attorney in a rape case (against her will), which ended in a plea bargain.
(7) Let this lighthearted 1-minute video erase at the end of day all the bitterness of nasty political posts.

2016/10/08 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Swiss musicians from the south of the Alps, photographed in the early 1900s (1) Switzerland, south of the Alps: A recently discovered photo from the early 1900s.
(2) College soccer: With the Big-West record of 2-0-1 (overall 6-5-1), the UCSB Gauchos hosted Cal-State Northridge tonight at Harder Stadium. After scoring two goals in the first half, the Gauchos gave up a goal in the second half and narrowly escaped another goal seconds from the end of the match, to win 2-1. Tonight's win improves UCSB's Big-West record to 3-0-1 (overall 7-5-1), putting the Gauchos at the top of the conference's northern division. Next will be a home game against Sacramento on Wednesday 10/12.
(3) When Donald Trump talks about women, he doesn't speak with the best of intentions. He delights in locker-room filth, he demonstrates perversion, he conveys sexism, he wants to grab them by their ... whatever. [A composite of several posts and comments I have seen on-line]
(4) Quote of the day: "No man has a good enough memory to be a successful liar." ~ Abraham Lincoln
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Iranian-Americans: 52% Democrats, 8% Republicans, 40% independents (Zogby poll)
- Ash Carter accuses Russia and Bashar Assad's regime of war crimes in Syria (AP)
- Kerry openly warns Russia about interfering in the upcoming US election (Newsweek)
- GOP leaders are abandoning Trump in droves after his lewd comments (Yahoo News)
- Cholera breaks out in Haiti in the wake of Hurricane Matthew, surge expected (Reuters)
- US Pacific Command forces told to prepare for possible North Korea provocations (UPI)
(6) Today at my mom's: A second cousin of mine, who is touring the US with two buddies, stopped by to visit. His family emigrated from Saghez, Kurdistan, to Israel, where he was born a couple of weeks after their arrival. I learned from him that a man named Benjamin Cohen has written a book, From Saghez to Jerusalem, which contains references to my paternal grandfather and the rest of the Parhami family. I can't wait to get my hands on this very interesting book.

2016/10/07 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
GIF image that visualizes Hurricane Matthew (1) This GIF image visualizes Hurricane Matthew. Here is Matthew, seen from the International Space Station as it passes above. Incredibly, a 'truther' movement has emerged, claiming that the government is exaggerating the dangers of Matthew to promote its political agenda regarding global warming. I hope people on the path of Matthew don't fall for these reckless claims that may cost many lives.
(2) Minimum wage goes up, employment comes down: Right? No, there is absolutely no empirical evidence for this assertion.
(3) The 2016 Nobel Peace Prize goes to Juan Manuel Santos, President of Colombia, whose efforts to bring the country's 50-year-old civil war to an end (the peace deal was recently voted down by Colombians) took resolve and courage. Had he been successful, the Western hemisphere would have become conflict-free for the first time in modern history.
(4) I am posting these easy-to-follow recipes for my own reference, but you may find them of interest as well.
[Three-ingredient BBQ popcorn chicken] [Layered ham & cheese potato bake (it's turkey for me)]
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- India courted, as it gets ready to place a multibillion-dollar order for fighter jets (WSJ)
- NRA the biggest spender, outside the two major parties, on Senate races (Newsweek)
- Hurricane Matthew stays off-shore, as it moves up the coast toward Carolinas (NPR)
- Emergency declared after flesh-eating screwworms found in Florida Keys (Newsweek)
- Obama's approval rating matches Ronald Reagan's at this time in his presidency (VoA)
- Clinton's lead over Trump is slowly growing ahead of their second debate (Bloomberg)
(6) Recitation of a funny Persian poem about the perils of virtual worlds and friendships.
(7) Some fantastic buildings. [Video]
(8) Norah Jones playing requests live.
(9) On lies about the Clinton Foundation: I find myself in the awkward position of having to respond for the n-th time to lies perpetuated about the Clinton Foundation, that it gives only 5-15% (depending on the liar) to charities, implying that the Clintons pocket the rest of the money. The Foundation does give grants to other charitable organizations, but that is not its primary mode of operation. Rather, it employs professionals, such as healthcare workers, buys medications and other supplies, and ships these items to where they are needed. Millions of lives have been saved by the Foundation's work. Those who repost these lies are either uninformed, simply repeating the malicious accusations of conservative mouthpieces, or else are acting out of their own malice. Either way, I am sorry to see such utter disregard for facts. Unfortunately, in the current political climate, facts are sacrificed for political gain.

2016/10/06 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
(1) Quote of the day: "Trump is not a man of ideas. He is a demagogue, a xenophobe, a sexist, a know-nothing, and a liar." ~ Editors of The Atlantic, in endorsing Hillary Clinton (taking sides for only the third time in history)
(2) What's with the tie colors during the VP debate? Shouldn't the colors be reversed?
(3) Chatting Shemr: This man playing Shemr (an armored villain in Imam Hussein's saga, with is often re-enacted at Muharram mourning rituals) is chatting during his break.
(4) The beauty hidden in pi: These art pieces are created based on a large number of digits in the number pi.
(5) College soccer: UCSB Gauchos entered Big-West Conference play with a 5-game losing streak at the tail end of their preseason, a rarity for the highly-ranked team. After tying UC Riverside 2-2 and prevailing over Cal State Fullerton in overtime 2-1 in away games, UCSB Gauchos are continuing their Big-West Conference play in a 3-game home-stand, beginning with UC Irvine tonight, in which they prevailed 1-0 on a first-half goal. This was a rather unsatisfying win against a team with a much weaker record playing on UCSB's turf. There were many lost opportunities for the Gauchos and several defensive errors that luckily did not lead to opponent goals.
(6) Following an article in UCSB Current last week, UCSB's student paper, Daily Nexus, has also covered my new freshman seminar, "INT 94TN: Puzzling Problems in Science and Technology" as a science/technology feature written by reporter Kelly Shi in its October 6, 2016, issue. [PDF file of the complete issue]

2016/10/05 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Algebraic equation of a heart-shaped curve (1) The love formula.
(2) Sony World Photography Award: Ten breathtaking entries in the prestigious competition.
(3) The 2016 Nobel Prize in chemistry goes in equal shares to three scientists from US, France, and Netherlands (J. Fraser Stoddart, Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Bernard L. Feringa), for the design and synthesis of molecular machines.
(4) Major networks way behind in 2016 Emmy wins: NBC, ABC, CBS, and CNN won 6, 4, 3, and 2 Emmy awards, respectively, with the bulk of the awards going to HBO (22), FX (18), Netflix (9), and PBS (8). [FX ad in Time magazine, issue of October 10, 2016]
(5) As Mike Pence was denying during the VP debate last night that the Trump campaign in insult-driven, Donald Trump was tweeting insults such as: "Kaine looks like an evil crook out of the Batman movies."
(6) On double-standards: In an insightful essay (Time magazine (issue of October 10, 2016), Susanna Schrobsdorff criticizes Donald Trump's "crude machismo" and serial misogyny, but also touches upon our oversensitivity to certain topics: it's okay to make fun of Chris Christy's weight but not a woman's.
(7) Believe it or not [From Time magazine, issue of October 10, 2016].
- Listening to music: Playlists (31%) are more popular than albums (22%), but not as popular as singles (46%).
- Spelling pigeons: After learning dozens of words, 4 pigeons picked out correct spellings from multiple choices.
- Kids and allergies: Children who grow up on farms tend to have fewer allergies.
(8) Floating dorms: High costs of land and construction have motivated the Danish start-up company Urban Rigger to team up with architect Bjarke Ingels to design floating dorms, using recycled shipping containers. The cost-effective method is being considered for constructing refugee housing as well.

2016/10/04 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cover of Time magazine, issue of October 10, 2016 (1) Behind Russia's efforts to hack the US elections: In a cover story, Time magazine (issue of October 10, 2016) discusses the ways in which Russia is trying to influence and undermine the 2016 US presidential election. Evidence of Russia's active meddling include the DNC hack as well as hacking of local election offices that hold voter records. Earlier, Russia is believed to have meddled in multiple European elections.
(2) Biggest data breaches: Top dishonors go to LinkedIn (167M user records compromised), Heartland (card-payment processor; 130M), and Dropbox (68M). [Source: Time magazine, issue of October 10, 2016]
(3) Three scientists (David Thouless, Duncan Haldane, Michael Kosterlitz) share the 2016 Nobel Prize in physics, for theoretical discoveries of topological phase transitions and topological phases of matter.
(4) Ten times Donald Trump admonished people for not paying taxes: The list includes this priceless 2012 tweet: "@BarakObama who wants to raise all our taxes, only pays 20.5% on $790k salary. Do as I say not as I do."
(5) Iran and the Holocaust: Holocaust denial by Supreme Leader Khamenei and former President Ahmadinejad has painted an unjust, anti-Semitic picture of Iran. Iran actually provided shelter for many thousands of Europeans, particularly children, who were seeking safety. This 9-minute video reviews the Iranian efforts to help persecuted Jews.
(6) Trump campaign: "Donald Trump will be live-tweeting during the VP debate tonight." Clinton campaign: "Oh, good!"
(7) Let's set the record straight: Trump beat Clinton 55-11 in their first debate; that is, in the number of times one candidate interrupted the opponent or the moderator. [Source: Joe Klein, writing in Time magazine, issue of October 10, 2016]
(8) Behind-the-scenes political power-players: Hedge-fund boss Robert Mercer and his daughter Rebekah are supporting or opposing candidates through their allies and huge donations to super-PACs. [Source: Time magazine, issue of October 10, 2016]

2016/10/03 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Side-by-side comparison of presidential candidates on various issues (1) US presidential candidates compared on key issues.
(2) The 2016 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine goes to Yoshinori Ohsumi for discovery of mechanisms for autophagy (cells that eat themselves), a fundamental process for degrading and recycling cellular components.
(3) Logical reasoning puzzle: Police detectives have 3 murder suspects and they know that one of them is guilty. They also know that exactly one suspect told the truth when they made the following statements. Who did it?
Alice: "I am not the murderer."
Bob: "Alice is the murderer."
Chris: "I am not the murderer."
(4) Cybersecurity is everyone's responsibility: This is the slogan of the cybersecurity awareness month, October 2016.
(5) Honoring Professor Mohammad Ghodsi on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Computer Engineering Department at Sharif (formerly Arya-Mehr) University of Technology in Tehran, Iran. [8-minute video]
(6) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- I stopped an Israeli attack on Iran: Shimon Peres in a 2014 interview (Jerusalem Post)
- Category-4 hurricane Matthew hits Haiti, headed to the US East Coast (ABC News)
- Gravity fluctuations hint at subsurface ocean on Saturn's moon Dione (Popular Mechanics)
- Hackers targeting Internet-of-things devices for cyber-attacks (Boston Globe)
- New York orders Trump Foundation to stop taking donations in state (Apple News)
- Colombian voters reject peace deal with rebels for ending 5 decades of conflict (PBS)
(7) The Hive: This award-winning open-air installation by Wolfgang Buttress was the centerpiece of UK's Pavillion at the 2015 Milan Expo. It was brought back to the UK and reinstalled at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The LED lights scattered throughout the structure and the musical soundtrack are dynamically affected by activity within an actual hive nearby.

2016/10/02 (Sunday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Image showing Jewish New Year goodies: apples, honey, and pomegranates (1) On the eve of Rosh Hashanah, I wish a wonderful time with family and other loved ones and a peaceful and prosperous year for all who observe the Jewish New Year!
(2) Political humor: Seth Meyers blasts Donald Trump over his long stream of lies about President Obama's birthplace, even as he retracted his claims: "You don't get to peddle racist rhetoric for five years and decide when it's over." In its opening skit, "Saturday Night Live" featured a reenacment of the first debate between Clinton and Trump (played wonderfully by Alec Baldwin).
(3) Anniversary of my family's arrival in the US and in Santa Barbara: It was 28 years ago, on October 2, 1988, that my family arrived in the US from Canada, landing at LAX and driving north in a rental car. It has been a long time, filled with bitter-sweet memories, the sweetest ones being of the kids growing up in this South-Coast paradise (the boys from ages of about 4 and 3 and my daughter born here 6 years after our arrival).
(4) People are desperate for a break from politics: Everyone is so tired of the nasty political climate prevailing these days that they talk/write tons about other matters, whenever they get a chance. We have a lively discussion going on at UCSB's faculty housing complex about ant invasions in several units (including mine). Apparently, such massive invasions are common during droughts, and a number of people have related their experiences from the last drought more than 2 decades ago. Each person has suggestions about how to deal with the ants, from poisoning them to using environmentally friendly solutions. One UCSB colleague shared a memory from years ago, when someone lectured him that killing the ants en masse, using ant stakes or other methods, amounted to practicing genocide! [Article about kitchen ants]

2016/10/01 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing Samsung phones used as fire-lighters (1) Cartoon of the day.
(2) Marking the Iranian Mehregan Festival: Tens of tanboor players gather on September 29 in one of the villages of Kermanshah province (western Iran) to celebratd. [5-minute video]
(3) Film director Asghar Farhadi talks (in Persian) about vicious attacks by Iran's conservative faction on him and his work.
(4) Quote of the day: "If you do not obey the Supreme Leader, he will either be martyred like Imam Hussein or vanish like Imam Zaman." ~ Ali Saeidi, Ayatollah Khamenei's appointed representative to Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps
(5) Nobel Peace Prize: Several high-ranking Iranian officials are said to have been nominated. I hope these are false rumors. Rewarding liars, who insist that there are no political prisoners in Iran and no curtailing of the rights to education and other citizens' rights for any group, would be akin to a kick in the face for Iran's human rights activists, one of whom has just been given a 16-year term.
(6) Emoji literature: A volume by Chinese author Xu Bing, Book from the Ground: From Point to Point (MIT Press), is written using emojis only. Here is a sample.
(7) Quantum computing breakthrough: Israeli scientists at Technion have invented a cannon that can spew entangled photon clusters.
(8) Giants of information technology join forces on AI: Amazon, Google, Facebook, IBM, and Microsoft have formed a non-profit entity to advance the field of artificial intelligence.
(9) UCSB Engineering turns 50: We have just welcome the 50th class of engineers to our campus. Having joined UC Santa Barbara in 1988, I have been part of its College of Engineering for more than half of its existence. Among planned activities to celebrate this momentous occasion is the burial of a time capsule at the end of the year, to be recovered in 2066 for our 100th anniversary.

2016/09/30 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Number of transistors in microprocessor chips over the years (1) Moore's law is dead, long live Moore's law: Shrinking of transistor sizes, in the exponential manner predicted by Intel co-founder Gordon Moore in the 1960s, is bound to stop as we approach transistors that are not much bigger than single atoms. In an intriguing article, forthcoming in IEEE Trans. Circuits and Systems II, Kia Behnam, Kenneth Mobley, and Willam L. Ditto propose the use of non-linear integrated circuits that can do the work of many different circuits, thus allowing performance to proceed on the path of exponential growth, without transistors getting any smaller. If successful, the new method of combining transistors in non-linear and chaotic circuits will allow Moore's law to continue in spirit, if not technically.
[Diagram, from one of the slides in lecture 1, "Predicting the Future," of my fall 2016 freshman seminar course (INT 94TN), shows the number of transistors on chips corresponding to various microprocessors introduced over the past 45 years.]
(2) San Andreas Fault may move this weekend: Some 200 recent undergraound shakers near Los Angeles have led scientists to predict such an event. [LA Times article]
(3) Before and after photos from Aleppo, Syria.
(4) US chess champion foregoes the world championships held in Iran to protest mandatory hijab for Iranian and visiting foreign women.
(5) Andrea Bocelli and Liel Kolet perform "Ray of Hope," a song with lyrics by Shimon Peres.
(6) Clear and present danger: The media, which has been playing along with Trump's candidacy, finding his antics amusing and good for business (viewership, ads), is coming to realize the dangers of his presidency.
(7) We were just kidding: Just like Trump himself, who discounts every previous statement of his that contradicts his current musings as "sarcasm" or "joke," many of his supporters will likely say "we were just kidding" or "we were playing the Devil's advocates" once he is finally exposed and self-destructs.
(8) California Governor Jerry Brown signs a law to expand computer science education: State Superintendent of Public Instruction is directed to create a 23-person advisory panel to develop a long-term plan to make CS education a top priority within one year. The state's Instructional Quality Commission will decide by July 2019 whether to develop and recommend to the State Board of Education content standards for K-12 CS education.

2016/09/29 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
New monument in NYC, featuring intersecting stairs that are 15 stories high (1) A new monument for NYC: With so many iconic landmarks throughout New York City, it is difficult to introduce a new monument that would impress and attract visitors. Slated to open in 2018, The Vessel will be a centerpiece of the new Hudson Yards development. It comprises 154 bronzed-steel staircases, rising 15 stories in the air and intersecting at 80 landings. For those who can't climb the nearly 2500 stairs, there will be an inclined glass elevator to the top.
(2) A thoughtful Guardian article: Imagine how you would view Donald Trump and his behavior if he were a woman. You can't, because no woman ever behaves this way.
(3) Ulysses Jasz (that's the original spelling of "Jazz") in concert: The wonderful octet, performed this evening on behalf of the "Angels Bearing Gifts" charity at Santa Barbara's La Cumbre Plaza. I could record only this short snippet, before my phone ran out of memory. Here are samples of music by this wonderful band on YouTube. [Sample 1] [Sample 2] ["Happy Feet"] [Sample 4] [Photo]
(4) Dr. Shokoufeh Taghi's new book: Entitled A Topology and Classification of Three Literary Genres: Songs, Folktales, and Initiation Tales in Iranian Oral Literature and their Educational Function and published by Uppsala University, this first book in a planned 3-volume series is a welcome addition to works on Iranian literary traditions. I look forward to reading it soon. [Persian description]
(5) One-dozen brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Former Israeli President/PM Shimon Peres dead from stroke at 93 (BBC)
- Jamshid Amouzegar, Iranian PM under the late Shah, dead at 93 (VoA)
- Bernie Sanders: Protest vote will have dire consequences (Washington Post)
- Breaking with Trump, Mike Pence says humans do affect climate change (AP)
- Human rights activist Narges Mohammadi's 16-year jail sentence upheld (LA Times)
- US Senate votes 97-1 to allow 9/11 victims to sue Saudi Arabia (NY Times)
- Republicans admit that the 9/11 bill, passed 97-1, needs to be fixed (Reuters)
- Trump Hotels had illegal business dealings in Cuba during US embargo (Newsweek)
- NJ train plows through terminal wall, killing 1 and injuring 108 (Yahoo News)
- Two men charged in Fullerton triple-homicide of couple and friend (LA Times)
- World leaders arrive in Israel for Shimon Peres' Friday burial (Jerusalem Post)
- Oil prices surge in the aftermath of OPEC deal to reduce production (Reuters)
(6) Raggae version of "Hello": Jamaican singer Conkarah and Rosie Delmah from Solomon Islands do a great job of covering Adele's song.
(7) Music without boundaries, featuring Jun Rong. [6-minute video]

2016/09/27 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
The newly completed National Museum of African-American Culture and History (1) National Museum of African-American History and Culture: The museum was established 13 years ago after decades of planning, but it is very fitting that the new, spacious building designed for it by David Adjaye was completed on the National Mall and opened a few days ago under President Obama.
(2) Go ahead, conservatives: Blame the moderator, the microphone, the podium (they claimed that Clinton insisted on having a bigger one, whereas she wanted a shorter one, given her height, so that the audience wouldn't just see her head and neck), Clinton wearing an earpiece, and whatever other excuse you will produce from this point on to justify Trump's poor performance in the first debate.
(3) Why radical Islam cannot thrive in the US: "When the young jihadists who carried out the terrorist attacks on Paris fled that city, they melted into an underground of sympathetic neighbors in a Muslim ghetto at the very heart of Europe ... There, the most wanted man in Europe hid out for four months before he was finally discovered blocks from his family home. Where was Rahami's [the NY pressure-cooker-bomber's] sanctuary? He was, in the end, alone ... His arrest [while sleeping on the street, outside a bar] after just 50 hours at large demonstrates how much a would-be attacker is up against [in the US]." ~ Karl Vick, writing in Time magazine, issue of October 3, 2016
(4) Homa Hoodfar's release: While I share in the joy that distinguished Iranian-Canadian scholar Homa Hoodfar has been freed from Tehran's Evin Prison, I can't help but feel unease about Iranian officials pretending to be the good guys in releasing her on "humanitarian grounds." In other words, they are saying, implicitly, that she deserved her multi-year prison sentence for "delving into feminist topics" (her official charge), but that the very kind Iranian judiciary is freeing and deporting her instead, for health reasons (no mention of the fact that her health problems resulted from imprisonment). While we should be grateful to those who worked tirelessly to secure Dr. Hoodfar's release, this kind of ad-hoc, one-person-at-a-time fight for very basic human rights (to speak up about feminism or any other subject) and giving brownie points to the Iranian regime each time it releases someone who should not have been imprisoned in the first place, is highly unsatisfactory.
(5) Comedian Maz Jobrani's take on extreme vetting of immigrants under President Trump.
(6) Trump vs. Clinton in their first debate: Since last night, many Trump supporters have claimed that he did well in the debate or even that he beat Clinton. I just quote, verbatim, an example of Trump's incoherent responses and leave it up to the readers to decide whether this is how a US President should sound on a serious topic, in his words, "the cyber."
"As far as the cyber, I agree to parts of what Secretary Clinton said. We should be better than anybody else, and perhaps we're not. I don't think anybody knows that it was Russia that broke into the DNC. She's saying Russia, Russia, Russia—I don't, maybe it was. I mean, it could be Russia, but it could also be China. It could also be lots of other people. It also could be somebody sitting on their bed that weighs 400 pounds, okay? ... We came in with the Internet. We came up with the Internet. And I think Secretary Clinton and myself would agree very much, when you look at what ISIS is doing with the Internet, they're beating us at our own game. ISIS. So we had to get very, very tough on cyber and cyber warfare. It is a huge problem. I have a son—he's 10 years old. He has computers. He is so good with these computers. It's unbelievable. The security aspect of cyber is very, very tough. And maybe, it's hardly doable. But I will say, we are not doing the job we should be doing. But that's true throughout our whole governmental society. We have so many things that we have to do better, Lester. And certainly cyber is one of them."

2016/09/26 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Bookmark and pamphlet given out at the Goleta Public Library during a lecture on banned books (1) Lecture about banned books: I attended a talk by Librarian Allison Gray of the Goleta Public Library yesterday afternoon. She talked about some three dozen books, while showing the audience the book covers and occasional picture inside that was deemed offensive, leading to local or national bans or, in some cases, unsuccessful challenges by various groups. The list included several Dr. Seuss books, a Where's Waldo book (that includes a topless sun-bathing women, laying face down, as a tiny character among hundreds on a page), versions of Little Red Riding Hood, Black Beauty (banned in Apartheid-era South Africa, which deemed the juxtaposition of "black" and "beauty" inappropriate), Charlotte's Web (talking animals are blasphemous), Little Women, Diary of Ann Frank (in Lebanon, for positive depiction of Jews), The Great Gatsby (drinking, allusion to sex), several works of William Shakespeare, Merriam-Webster Dictionary (for containing a definition of oral sex), Tarzan books (because he co-habited with Jane in the jungle without being married to her), The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (her self-examination to detect cervical cancer was deemed pornographic), all seven Harry Potter books, and the most ironic of all, Fahrenheit 451 (a book about banning books).
(2) Mere bumps along Iranian women's path to reclaim their rights, including the simple joy of riding bicycles against the recent fatwa by Khamenei banning the activity in public.
(3) Super-hot day in Santa Barbara: On this record-setting, 100-plus-degrees day, I walked to and from work (2 miles each way), and was wet with sweat at each end of the trip. A colleague sent me this photo of two thirsty crows picking ice off the liquid-nitrogen heat-exchanger outside an engineering building on campus.
(4) This man is allergic to the truth: Fact-checking a week's worth of statements by Donald Trump. This should be a very busy evening for fact-checkers!
(5) We need to know the candidates' stance on science: About the push, now several presidential cycles old, to hold a debate focusing on science-based issues. Will it ever happen?
(6) The first presidential debate: There seems to be broad consensus that Clinton outperformed Trump in this first debate. Trump started well by sticking to his rehearsed points. But talk about stamina! He got impatient and defensive 30 minutes in, and it was all downhill for him from there! Clinton must be feeling good tonight. She has been posting several Instagram photos, such as this one.

2016/09/24 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cover image of a Persian-language textbook on data structures and algorithms (1) Data structures and algorithms textbook in Persian: I received this book yesterday, courtesy of its author, my friend and (former) colleague Dr. Mohammad Ghodsi. The book has set a new standard among Persian-language college textbooks in terms of coverage, originality, writing, and production values, including diagrams of very high quality. I hope other faculty members in Iran follow suit and improve the reference material available to Iranian students.
(2) Scenes from the beginning of fall quarter at UCSB: Local merchants are ready to sell stuff to new and returning students (two photos taken on Thursday at the Goleta K-mart). The third photo shows a major road improvement project on a key access road to UCSB, which campus officials and City of Goleta, in their infinite wisdom, chose to roll out on Thursday, the first day of classes, instead of during the summer months.
(3) Mr. Haloo's latest poem, "Mottaham" ("Accused"), recited by him at a poetry-reading venue.
(4) A piano maestro who can't button up his shirt: A gifted musician who is severely disabled in nearly all facets of life.
(5) Andre Rieu: Fourteen immortal love songs. [53-minute video]
(6) Dictator-loving Americans: Here is my partially sarcastic reaction to several Facebook posts, singing the praises of how well the Iraqis and Libyans lived under Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gaddafi: "Yes, Muammar Gaddafi was a great man and so was Saddam Hussain. Look at the sorry states of Iraq and Libya now! If I could, I would return the pair to power in some Third-World country and force all of their admirers to go live under their rule. In the case of Putin, no such wishful thinking is needed: He is alive and ruling an actual country now. I am sure he would accept devotees with open arms."
(7) College soccer: This evening, UC Berkeley defeated UCSB 3-2 in overtime. The Gauchos lost their fifth game in a row, but they played much better than in their previous two losses at home. Both teams had many opportunities to score. Several spectacular saves by the UCSB goalie and a couple of goal-line defensive returns of balls that had eluded the Berkeley goalie prevented the game from being even higher-scoring. Harder Stadium's student section was full, but the other sections were very sparsely occupied.

2016/09/22 (Thursday): Here are Eight items of potential interest.
Logo for 'Concert Across America to End Gun Violence' (1) The Concert Across America to End Gun Violence: On Sunday, September 25, 2016, more than 200 venues in 38 states bring together communities across the country to remember those lost to gun violence and to sing out for gun reform.
Santa Barbara's version of the concert, held at Arlington Theater (9/25, 7:00 PM) will include UCSB campus groups and Gaucho alum Zach Gill, as well as Christopher Cross, Kenny Loggins, Michael McDonald, Ozomatli, Venice, and others. The event is chaired by Bob Weiss, whose daughter Veronika was murdered in the 2014 Isla Vista massacre.
(2) Iran beats Brazil 7-6 in futsal World Cup (3-3 in regulation, 1-1 in overtime, and 3-2 on PKs), ousting the five-time world champion from the competition and advancing to the quarterfinals. [Highlights]
(3) Medley of several country songs, with an all-star cast.
(4) Pastors pray against Satanic attacks on Trump: Every day, Trump and his supporters sound more like the populist Ahmadinejad and his clan in Iran.
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- CBS sued for film suggesting JonBenet Ramsey's brother killed her (Newsweek)
- MacArthur Foundation announces 2016 'Genius, awards (Newsweek)
- North Korea has only 28 Web sites using the .kp domain (Washington Post)
- FBI confirms complaint against Brad Pitt for child abuse (Yahoo News)
- Man caught drowning 3-year-old jailed for 100 years (Int'l Business Times)
- Donald Trump paid $8.2M to own businesses from campaign funds (Politico)
(6) Woman bioengineer receives a MacArthur 'Genius' award: The $625,000 no-strings-attached grant given to Rebecca Richards-Kortum, a Rice University bioengineering professor, is "a nod to the global work she's done to deliver low-cost medical technology to Third World countries, [including] a piece of machinery she helped develop that assists babies who struggle to breathe and has significantly decreased mortality rates in countries using it." [Source: Houston Chronicle]
(7) SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind lectures: UCSB campus, Thursdays, 4:00 PM, in Psychology 1312.
09/22, Elizabeth Phelps, NYU psychologist and neural scientist, "Changing Fear"
10/20, Tomas Ryan, Trinity College (Dublin) neuroscientist, "Information Storage in Memory Engrams"
12/01, Dacher Keltner, UC Berkeley psychologist, "On Awe and the Evolution of the Sublime"
[Speakers for 2017 include Itzhak Fried (UCLA, 01/30), Karl Deisseroth (Stanford, 03/09), David Anderson (Caltech, 04/20), Joshua Greene (Harvard, 05/18), and Cecilia Heyes (Oxford, 05/25), with talk titles TBD.]
(8) A new freshman seminar at UCSB: I am excited to be teaching during fall quarter the 1-unit freshman seminar INT 94TN ("Puzzling Problems in Science and Technology"), which I designed along the same lines as my 10-year-old required computer engineering seminar, but for non-science/engineering students. This UC Santa Barbara Current article discusses my seminar and a similar one offered by Daryl Cooper, a Mathematics Department colleague. Here is the Web page for the new course, with PowerPoint slides for the first two lectures coming by the end of this week and the rest posted a few days before the corresponding lecture.

2016/09/21 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
(1) Open letter regarding climate change: A group composed of 375 members of the US National Academy of Sciences, including 30 Nobel Laureates, has published an open letter that outlines the real threats of climate change and the dangers of withdrawing from the Paris Accord.
(2) A sample of Donald Trump's supporters: Okay, the sample in this video may be biased, given the source, but it is scary how many people have their minds made up without data or evidence. One woman cites Twitter as her news source!
(3) College soccer tonight: In a disappointing game (not just because of the score, but also poor quality of play on the part of UCSB), Loyola Marymount defeated UCSB 4-3 at UCSB's Harder Stadium. After trailing 0-1 at halftime and 0-2 early in the second half, UCSB came back to tie the game at 2-2, and later at 3-3. But there was no time to recover from a 4th LM goal very late in the game. This was UCSB's fourth loss in a row, two on the road and two at home. I hope that Saturday's home match against the powerful UC Berkeley turns out better.
(4) Quote of the day: "I thought a Bush would never vote for a Clinton. I guess Donald Trump was right: He is bringing people together." ~ Comedian Jimmy Kimmel, after Bush senior indicated that he will vote for Clinton
(5) Challenging Khamenei's edict against women riding bikes: The "My Stealthy Freedom" Facebook page is teeming with women posting photos on bikes, after Iran's Supreme Leader issued a fatwa, barring women from riding bikes. This is how dictators fall: they take themselves too seriously, overreach, and micro-manage people's personal lives, discrediting themselves in the process.
(6) Where the hatred for Hillary Clinton comes from: She has been accused of numerous misdeeds and given shameful names by both men and women. This long article in Rolling Stone attempts to answer the question.
(7) Discussion of race touches raw nerves among Iranians: It's no secret that racial tensions in the US have increased, particularly in the wake of instances of police shootings of unarmed African-Americans over the past few months. This afternoon, I chanced upon a short Facebook status post by Touraj Daryaee (a UC Irvine professor), chastising those who refer to Iranians as Aryans, pointing out that people of many racial, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds live in Iran and that the notion of race (not to mention a privileged one) has been debunked. This appeared to be a harmless commentary, expressing a particular viewpoint. Far from it! By the time I read the post, it had been shared by 46 others and there were 95 comments, some with reply streams that ran 20 deep. I read the comments and replies for about half an hour, before I lost interest due to the vulgar tone and extraneous nature of many of them. Needless to say that before the idea of a democratic Iran is realized, people of Iranian origins must embrace the notion of civil discourse, even where there are severe differences of opinion. [My Facebook post of this item also contains the Persian version of my commentary.]

2016/09/20 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing a man taking a selfie as he donates money to the needy (1) Cartoon of the day: Selfie.
(2) Blondes for Trump: Other than his daughter and current campaign manager, there are many blondes in Trump's inner circle. Even his pastor, Paula White, described as long-time spiritual advisor, is a gorgeous blonde!
(3) Fish consistently mislabeled in restaurants: Studies from around the world have found that restaurants in many different countries often mislabel fish. Sometimes this is because they want to increase their profits by using cheaper fish, a questionable, but relatively harmless practice. At other times, however, the replacement fish used may cause stomach problems and other ailments for unsuspecting customers. [Source: Time magazine, issue of September 26, 2016]
(4) Compact books (around 150 pages) I found today in the new-books section of the UCSB library for perusal over the next 7 weeks. Both are 2016 editions in Oxford's famed "A Very Short Introduction" series.
- Ritchie, Donald A., The U.S. Congress: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, 2nd ed., 2016.
- Maisel, L. Sandy, American Political Parties and Elections: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, 2nd ed., 2016.
(5) I don't know if this Twitter exchange between Donald Trump and George Takei is real, but I found it quite funny and a good example of what in Persian would be called a "tooth-shattering response."
(6) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day
- Comedian Jim Carrey sued for wrongful death of ex-girlfriend (Newsweek)
- Angelina Jolie files for divorce from Brad Pitt over 'parenting issues' (TMZ)
- Two missing California toddlers found dead in neighborhood pool (AP)
- China's space station, Tiangong-1, falling back to Earth (Popular Mechanics)
- Chopper destroyed after crashing into cow; cow walks away (Business Times)
- German goalkeeper arrested after conceding 43 goals in one game (Yahoo News)
(7) Walls around the world: Donald Trump's border wall isn't the only wall being proposed or built worldwide. Here is a partial list from Time magazine's issue of September 26, 2016.
- Thai and Malaysian PMs have discussed a border wall to help prevent transnational crime
- Israel is building an underground "wall" to thwart tunnel-building efforts by Hamas
- Hungary wants to build a wall along its border with Serbia to reinforce an existing razor-wire fence
- Norway plans to build a steel fence to deter migrants entering from Russia via the Arctic Circle
- Kenya has resumed building a wall along its northeastern border with Somalia to stop terrorism
- Ukraine has been building a wall along its border with Russia to prevent aid for pro-Russian forces

2016/09/19 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cartoon listing reasons why Batman might be a jerk (1) Cartoon of the day: Is Batman a jerk?
(2) Late-night comedians chime in about presidential politics: Stephen Colbert, Samantha Bee, John Oliver, Trevor Noah, Seth Meyers, and Jimmy Kimmel have become increasingly partisan, according to a cover story in Time magazine's issue of September 26, 2016.
(3) Quote of the day: "Can we just admit we may have taken this 'anyone can grow up to be President' thing just a bit too far?" ~ Anonymous
(4) Outlook and social ties affect the way you age: According to Time magazine, issue of September 26, 2016, to gain the most benefit from the extra years we are given due to increased life expectancy, we should embrace technology, lean on family, welcome aging, lighten up, set goals, take risks, and expect the best.
(5) Our campus wakes up from sleep: Pre-instructional activities for fall quarter started today, with classes slated to begin on Thursday 9/22 (my own classes begin next Monday). I held an office hour and attended an interesting talk on engineering education (description follows in a separate blog entry). I also checked out the classrooms where I will be teaching and familiarized myself with computer and projection equipment. Next to one of the classrooms, I snapped this photo of a large area which is fenced off for construction. This happens every fall: the campus misses the opportunity of summer months, when there are far fewer students and faculty on campus and begins road repairs and other projects just as the students begin to arrive.
(6) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- New York bombing suspect Ahmad Khan Rahami arrested (Newsweek)
- China launches Tiangong Space Lab aboard a Long March 2F rocket (AFP)
- The "Dieselgate" scandal still affects Volkswagen one year later (AFP)
- Appeals court suspends construction on Dakota Access Pipeline (Bloomberg)
- Drone registrations exceed 500,000, according to FAA (AP)
- Economists anticipate major public-works push by next US President (NYT)
- Southern California Edison selects Tesla to build battery storage site (USA Today)
- Disasters compared: Health impact of 9/11 on par with Chernobyl (Newsweek)
(7) [This is a rather long blog entry, but if you have an interest in engineering education and its future, you may benefit from reading past the introductory summary paragraph.]
The future of engineering education: Today, I attended a distinguished lecture by Richard Miller, President of Olin College of Engineering, founded in 1997 (using a $500M gift from Franklin W. Olin) with the mission "to rethink what it means to be educated in the 21st century, and rethink what it means to be an engineer." His talk, with the title "Shaping the Future of Undergraduate Education: Lessons Learned from Experimentation at Olin College," explained Olin's learning culture, benefits of not having traditional academic departments, Olin's decision not to offer tenure to its faculty, and why everything at Olin comes with an expiration date.
With the summary above, let me describe some of the details that I found interesting. Olin is a small, private engineering school based in Massachusetts that many people have not heard of, but it ranks quite high in quality of its graduates. It was conceived in 1997, hired its founding faculty member and began campus construction in 2000, offered its first courses in 2002, and had its first commencement in 2006. The school size has been kept small intentionally to make curricular experimentation possible. Olin also has partnerships with schools in the US and internationally to help them modernize their curricula.
Olin realizes that we have already moved past the "knowledge economy," whose educational system was optimized for transfer of content from a "sage" to students seated in rows, who would later be judged by what they knew. The emergence of the Internet and Google created the "maker economy," characterized by the imitate-and-perfect educational philosophy, in which professors are viewed as guides and learning occurs within small groups of students working on projects that teach them how to do things. We are now moving into "innovation economy," where learning occurs in a peers-and-mentor setting. Graduates are judged not by what they know or what they can do, but by what they can conceive. Such students are well-positioned to deal with global challenges in security, sustainability, health, and life quality matters.
Note that innovation is different from creativity, defined as "the process of generating original ideas and insights." If you augment the definition of creativity with the phrase "that have value," you get inventiveness, and if you further add "then implementing them" to the end of the definition, you get innovation. Innovation requires that we combine the feasibility mindset of engineering and science with the viability mindset of business and economics and the desirability mindset of psychology, arts, and humanities. Innovations change our world so completely that we don't remember how it was before they came about. Think of credit cards, whose introduction did not require scientific or engineering breakthroughs, but a gathering of already known concepts.
Entrepreneurs by definition cannot be cynical. So, having hopeful faculty members to mentor students is a must. In the words of an author and UC Davis faculty member, whose name I did not write down and don't remember now, "Hopeful faculty members spread hope, while cynical faculty members spread cynicism."
The speaker presented the following sobering thought: One of the major misconceptions of educational systems throughout the world is the presumption that teaching is necessary for learning. It is not! We need to change knowledge transfer to knowledge construction, the follow-orders attitude to follow-your-passion, the learn-in-class expectation to 24/7 learning, the learn-alone mentality to team learning, and problem-based curricula to design-based. These changes can make our universities and engineering schools places that are exciting, creative, and adventurous.
US educational institutions must overhaul existing programs and methods or do a better job of explaining to the public why things are done as they are, prime examples being the need for tenure, heavy focus on research, sharply rising tuition and fees, and perceived political bias. Nationally, we need to prioritize engineering education. The fraction of US college graduates whose fields have some bearing on engineering is around 4%, while it is 3 times as high in Europe and 7 times as high in Asia.

2016/09/18 (Sunday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Colorful photo of rice fields in Vietnam (1) Nature's painting: Rice fields in Vietnam.
(2) Eight brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Deliberate pressure-cooker blast injures 29 in NY [USA Today]
- Nine injured in Minnesota mall stabbing [The Daily Express]
- Pipe-bomb explodes at Jersey Shore charity race; no injuries
- Asghar Farhadi's "The Salesman" is Iran's Oscars submission
- Giraffes are actually four separate species, not one [Time]
- ISIL beheads alleged Russian spy, perhaps others [CNN]
- Family cleans house, finds pet tortoise missing since 1982 [Time]
- Posting on social media can boost your memory [Time]
(3) A young Iranian girl living a lie and being herself. [Photos]
(4) Last night in college soccer: In a game played in Harder Stadium, 7th-ranked UCLA prevailed over 13th-ranked UCSB 2-1 in overtime. UCSB scored a goal early on and led 1-0 until 5 seconds to the end of regulation, when a foul was called just outside UCSB's box. Normally, in a situation like this, time runs out before the free kick is taken. The referee, however, stopped the clock against the rules, leading to a UCLA goal 3 seconds from the end. UCLA scored a golden goal early in overtime, ending the game 2-1. Very disappointing, especially since UCSB dominated throughout. Attendance wasn't as high as expected, perhaps due to students just having begun to move in. A few years ago, the match drew 16,000+ spectators, an all-time NCAA record.
(5) Three samples of Persian calligraphy.
(6) Daf playing by a large group of Kurds in Iran's western city of Sanandaj. [Video]
(7) Looking forward to the VP debate on October 4: I was very impressed with VP candidate Tim Kaine on "Meet the Press" this morning. I found him to be a decent, prepared, and well-spoken man.
(8) An interesting book, which I have placed on my to-read list: From the back cover (Harper Wave, 2016): "In Feminist Fight Club: An Office Survival Manual for a Sexist Workplace, acclaimed journalist Jessica Bennett blends the personal stories of her real-life fight club with research, statistics, and no-bullsh*t advice for how to combat today's sexism (and come out the other side). Part manual, part manifesto, Bennett offers a new vocabulary for the sexist archetypes women encounter every day—such as the Manterrupter, who talks over female colleagues in meetings; or the Bropropriator, who appropriates their ideas—as well as the self-sabotaging behavior women sometimes exhibit themselves. With original illustrations and fascinating historical research as well as a straightforward assessment of the gender gap that continues to plague the American workforce, Feminist Fight Club offers practical strategies, stealthy hacks, and much-needed camaraderie for women battling their way through the modern workplace.

Cover image for Maz Jobrani's book 'I'm Not a Terrorist but I've Played One on TV' 2016/09/17 (Saturday): Book review: Jobrani, Maz, I'm Not a Terrorist but I've Played One on TV: Memoirs of a Middle Eastern Funny Man, Simon & Schuster, 225 pp., 2015.
Iranian stand-up comedians were a rare breed, until very recently. Now, there are quite a few such comedians, with Maz Jobrani being perhaps the best-known among them. This memoir is predictably written in a humorous style that pokes fun at both the Iranian-American lifestyles and the American discomfort with all Middle-Easterners, and dark-skinned people more generally.
The book consists of an introduction, an epilogue, and 12 chapters between them which are arranged in three 4-chapter parts. Chapter titles are names of locales where Jobrani has lived and worked (Dallas; Tiburon, CA; Hollywood; Dubai; Beirut; and so on). This is a memoir that portrays Jobrani's real life, but it is difficult to separate stories where he is relating actual events in his life from where he stretches the truth for comic effect.
Jobrani discusses his youth, growing up in an affluent neighborhood of the San Francisco Bay Area. To fit in, he tried to befriend guys with all-American names, particularly during the hostage crisis, when incidents of bullying by his classmates reached new heights. However, pretending to be Italian did not work, as his father's driving a Rolls Royce and the entire family showing up to pick him up from soccer practice foiled his efforts to blend in.
He draws from movies such as "Not Without My Daughter" (a film that "did more to hurt the dating lives of Iranian men in America than the hostage crisis") and "Argo" to depict how Iranians were portrayed in the media. Jobrani was encouraged by his parents to pursue a PhD degree in political science (they would have preferred medicine or law, of course), so when he showed interest in acting and comedy, they were horrified. The types of roles he landed initially made his mother even more uncomfortable: "Vhy you always terrorist?! ... Vhy you couldn't be doctor?!"
After his parents divorced, Jobrani was forced to give up a PhD admission with full financial aid from NYU to play his "man of the house role" for his mother. So, he decided to attend UCLA, but had to quit the program very soon, when he could not reconcile the theoretical discussions of poli sci with the very real tuition bills he had to pay. Shortly thereafter, Jobrani enrolled in a stand-up comedy class. He then went on a long trek of performing at lesser venues, before he became a regular at Hollywood's Comedy Store.
For a while, after being unsuccessful in changing their son's mind, Jobrani's parents played the community card: "People in the community will talk!" When he turned 26, however, his parents finally accepted that being an actor and a comedian was an honorable profession, and not the result of Hollywood liberals turning their son gay, preventing him from going to "law eh-school" or getting a PhD.
A recurring theme in Jobrani's book is the way Middle Easterners, young men in particular, are viewed with suspicion and disdain. He observes that after the end of the Cold War, "Mustafa has replaced Yuri because someone had to be the bad guy." Elsewhere, he observes, "It was not too long after the [9/11] attacks when I began to notice how patriotism was blinding people to basic morality." He jokes that so much fear and distrust from others often made him be suspicious of himself and his motives.
A big chunk of the book is devoted to Jobrani's travels to Arab countries (he cannot travel to Iran, given how many jokes he has told about the mullahs). He never ceased to be surprised that his humor was a big hit in places such as Jordan, Lebanon, and Dubai. In Labanon, he almost performed a set for a group of Hezbollah fighters, but got cold feet and withdrew. In Dubai, the modernity and pace of development impressed him, but there was also chaos typical of Middle Eastern countries. For example, the hotel Jobrani had booked was already built, but there was no road leading to it. In Jordan, King Abdullah attended one of his shows. After Jobrani did some regular touristy things in Jordan, he thought to himself: "I wonder if that happens to everyone no matter how cool they are? When George Clooney goes to the Leaning Tower of Pisa, does he take a picture where it looks like he's the one holding up the tower?"
Jobrani writes that his life changed after he got married and, particularly, after he had a child. He elaborates at length about the challenges of tugging young children on airplanes and of raising them in general. "When you have young kids at home, your entire goal, from the moment they wake up, is to make them tired," so that they collapse into sleep to give you some adult time with your spouse.
I chose to read Jobrani's book after getting rather tired from a long series of deep, challenging books about philosophy, science, and economics (look for my review of Thomas Piketty's Capital in the 21st Century). Jobrani's book is a good, lighthearted read that is, surprisingly, difficult to put down. I recommend the book to you, regardless of whether or not you are already familiar with the author's humor. You will enjoy it either way.

2016/09/16 (Friday): Here are five items of potential interest.
(1) Hours of fun with maps of America: The map below, from Business Insider, shows the most popular boys' names in the 50 states. Apparently, states most affected by the recent drought have a biblical-scale flood on their minds! This amazing collection of 22 maps has one for girls' names plus the following, among others.
US map, with the most popular boys' name for each state - Disproportionately popular/well-paying jobs
- Population change (domestic, immigration, ...)
- Fraction of people with high school diploma
- Federally owned land (mostly in the west)
- Marriage rates among adults 25-54
- Median age of residents
- Biggest Fortune-1000 company in the state
- States renamed for countries with similar GDPs
- Income ratio between top 1% and bottom 99%
- Median income for millennials
- Gender pay gap (women's to men's pay ratio)
- Relative cost of living (regional price parity)
- Biggest export/import trading partner
(2) Campus dialog during the fall 2016 quarter: Anticipating the possibility that the current political climate might make the campus inhospitable to respectful dialog as we approach the November 8 presidential election, UCSB's Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs has written letters to current campus denizens and incoming students, urging them to honor UCSB's traditions of listening, courtesy, and open-mindedness.
(3) Colin Powell's leaked e-mails: The former Secretary of State's e-mails, in the lead-up to his endorsing the Iran nuclear deal, indicate that Israel might have around 200 nuclear bombs, further elaborating that the Iranians know it would be madness to use a nuke, even if they get one, in view of Israel's 200 warheads all aimed at Tehran, as well as thousands possessed by the US.
(4) An invigorating 10-mile walk along Santa Barbara's waterfront: The walk took me from around Stearns Wharf along Cabrillo Blvd. to the Bird Sanctuary, Santa Barbara Cemetery, and beyond, back to the beach and past the Cemetery on the beach, back along the beach to the Harbor, and back to the starting point. This may well be my final long walk for the summer, as UCSB classes begin next week. These 14 photos show a couple of hotels, a wedding ceremony at the East Beach, and a book that I have just started to read.
(5) On the Dakota access pipeline: The ND Native Americans may have legitimate concerns about the impact of the proposed oil pipeline on their livelihood and quality of life, issues that must be addressed. However, some activists have turned this protest to one against any oil pipeline. This is seriously misguided. Yes, oil pipelines have negative effects on the environment, but the risks must be weighed against the benefits. If we were at a point where we could switch to renewables entirely, then obviously no new oil pipeline should be built. However, as long as massive amounts of oil need to be transported from production sites to refineries, and from there to consumption sites, oil pipelines represent the safest alternative, when compared with the use of tanker trucks or rail. To provide an analogy, we build bridges and freeway overpasses, even though we see that from time to time one of these collapses, with disastrous effects. However, these structures are useful enough for us to willingly tolerate their risks.

2016/09/15 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Optical illusion: Disappearing black dots (1) Optical illusion: This image contains 12 black dots that cannot all be seen at once.
(2) Trump's proposed child-care plan is a joke: The plan does not entail 6 weeks of maternity leave at employer's expense but eligibility for 6 weeks of unemployment benefits; big difference! The employee will essentially be fired for 6 weeks (very Trump-like!), so that she can draw unemployment benefits.This provision, along with his plan to let parents deduct the full amount of child-care expenses (up to the state average), constitutes a major expansion of government's role. Even conservatives are crying foul! And how are we supposed to square these pronouncements with Trump's musings such as a pregnant employee representing an inconvenience for a business, putting one's wife to work being a dangerous thing, and women's bathroom breaks being disgusting?
(3) Former news anchor Paula Lopez back in the news: The Santa-Barbara-area anchor, who was demoted when she was involved in a drunken driving incident and fired upon a second incident, is suing the local ABC affiliate KEYT and its parent company, alleging discrimination because of being middle-aged, Hispanic, and a sufferer from alcoholism. [Source: Santa Barbara Independent, issue of September 15-22, 2016]
(4) Forced marriage in the US: This evening, I watched on the PBS Newshour the second part of a report on forced marriage in the US. In most cases, the marriage itself does not take place in the US but in other countries to which girls and young women are taken. The victims, who have no recourse in a foreign land, are then married according to local laws, which makes it much harder for US officials to intervene.
(5) Paddle-boarders at UCSB's West Campus beach, as the sun goes down and the moon rises.
(6) Too bad the Olympics games are over or this Bakhtiari woman from Iran's southwestern region could have earned a medal in weightlifting!
(7) Modern Persian music: Ahdieh sings "Rizeh-Rizeh" in concert, with masterful piano accompaniment of Anoushirvan Rohani and his son Reza. The Persian text erroneously attributes the video to Shahdad Rohani.
(8) Birthers have become healthers: It appears that Hillary Clinton's faux health issues serve the same purpose as doubts spread about President Obama's birthplace and religion in the past two presidential elections, that is, to divert attention from the Republicans' internal discord and serious issues with their platform and candidate. [This observation has appeared on several Web sites, so I don't know where the credit should go.]

2016/09/14 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon, depicting Disney's seven dwarfs (1) Cartoon of the day: The seven ages of man.
Sleepy; Happy; Dopey; Bashful; Doc; Sneezy; Grumpy.
(2) School of the future: In a Nova program, that premiered at 9:00 PM tonight on PBS SoCal, Dos Pueblos High School and its Engineering Academy were featured. DPHS also had a special program at its Elings Performing Arts Center, where the creator of the Academy, Amir Abo-Shaeer, offered some remarks at 8:45, before screening the Nova program live.
(3) Quote of the day: "One cannot and must not try to erase the past merely because it does not fit the present." ~ Golda Meir
(4) Both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are tech-challenged: Their TV generation thinks in a completely different way from the smartphone generation.
(5) Teresa Barnwell has been impersonating Hillary Clinton since 1993, but she isn't Clinton's body double, as claimed by some.
(6) Keith Olbermann's 17-minute take-down of Donald Trump, presenting 176 reasons why he should not be President. The list already needs expanding!
(7) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Natlie Portman offers award-quality performance in the biopic "Jackie" (Newsweek on-line)
- Flooding around border river with China is North Korea's worst disaster since WW II (AFP)
- New York Attorney General opens inquiry into Trump Foundation (ABC News)
- Rapist ex-mayor claims the 4-year-old girl was willing participant (Washington Post)
- Two men, 65, arrested for the 1973 slaying and sexual assault of 2 California girls (People)
- Iowa man, who as a teenager sexually abused 1-year-old baby, won't serve jail time (Tribune)
(8) How 'big sugar' enlisted Harvard scientists to influence our diets: When, in the 1960s, articles were published linking sugar to heart disease, the Sugar Research Foundation (SRF) funded a research project at Harvard (overseen by a Harvard faculty member who was also on SRF's scientific advisory board), culminating in a review paper that, to their delight, pointed to cholesterol and saturated fats as the only things to watch for in preventing heart disease. Just like the tobacco industry, the sugar industry not only ignored scientific evidence, but also attacked researchers whose results they didn't like. These nuggets have been revealed by UC San Francisco researchers, in a paper just published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

2016/09/13 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
A 5-year-old girl, without and with hijab (1) Iran's mandatory hijab isn't just for adult women: Very young children also face the compulsion. These photos are from a 5-year-old who was forced to wear the hijab for her passport photo on grounds that the passport is valid for 5 years and by the end of its validity, the girl will have reached the age of consent. As schools open in Iran for the new academic year, children will again be forced to wear the hijab. What is it exactly about this innocent child's face or hair that tempts men and causes them to lose control?
(2) When George W. Bush's White House 'lost' 22 million e-mails: These weren't run-of-the-mill communications but highly consequential e-mails, both from the Oval Office and VP Cheney's office, on a private server run by the RNC, that could have shed light on the reasons for going to war in Iraq. [Source: Newsweek on-line, September 12, 2016]
(3) GM recalls millions of defective vehicles: The 4.3M recalled vehicles, spanning model years 2014 to 2017, have a software defect that may prevent airbags from deploying.
(4) Samsung Galaxy Note 7 phone owners should power down and stop using them immediately: FAA and US Consumer Product Safety Commission have confirmed that the phone's lithium-ion battery tends to catch fire spontaneously. Several airlines have already banned the device based on FAA's concerns. Samsung is offering free replacements and has stopped selling devices from the affected batch.
(5) Musings on architecture: As I walked on the UCSB campus this afternoon, I snapped these photos of the old Chemistry Building (on the right) and its more recent extension named "Physical Sciences North." The old building shows the simple lines and curves from the 1960s style of architecture in the US. The extension, built in the 2000s, is a mishmash of old (the columns) and modern styles, whose designers apparently made no effort to blend it in with the nearby structures.
(6) Building precariously balanced on pillars: I snapped this photo of a building on the beach side of Del Playa Drive in Isla Vista, as I walked home from my office via the beach path. In some sections, the waves reached all the way to the bluffs (this is what causes bluff erosion and the need for shoring up the buildings), creating a need for me to time my movements carefully to avoid being doused, sprinting on occasion to get around a corner ahead of an advancing wave.
(7) Abusing hardware race conditions to perform useful computation: This was the title of a talk by Advait Madhavan that I attended this morning (his PhD dissertation defense). Race in hardware, that is, the varying speeds of signal propagation through different paths in a circuit, is often viewed as a negative condition that must be avoided, as it can compromise the stability and correctness of computed results. In race logic, one takes advantage of race conditions to make computations faster and more energy efficient. Race logic is based on encoding information not by voltage levels (the common choice) but by the timing (delay) of signals. So, if a signal transitioning from 0 to 1 at time x represents the value x, the representation of x + 2 is obtained from x by passing it through 2 unit-delay elements. Madhavan has explored how the use of this time-based representation allows faster, lower-power realizations of a number of computations in application-specific circuits. One example is DNA sequence matching.

9/11: we will never forget! 2016/09/11 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
(1) Today is the 15th anniversary of a dreadful event that changed the world: It wasn't the scale of destruction and loss of life that made the event memorable. Many more people have died in wars of the kinds we are still waging. Much more property has been destroyed by natural disasters we no longer remember.
What makes 9/11 memorable is the effect it had on our nation's psyche. The loss of trust it brought about (not only between America and its adversaries but also among us Americans). The end of care-free living it signaled for most of us. But there were also some positives. That horrible event helped open our eyes to deep-rooted ideological, cultural, and economic problems in the world. Let's hope that the outcome of the upcoming US presidential election does not move us further in the direction of hatred, division, conflict, distrust, and injustice.
(2) Donald Trump's Foundation is collecting and spending other people's money: It began accepting donations in 2001, and since 2008, trump himself has donated nothing to his Foundation.
(3) Navid Kandelousi playing the violin: He is a rising young star from the Iranian-American community.
(4) Key technical specs for the new iPhones: The common processing section of iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, based on Arm's Fusion 10 architecture, uses 4 CPU (2 high-performance and 2 high-efficiency) and 6 GPU cores to provide unprecedented performance. Memory capacity ranges from the basic 32 GB to 256 GB. The 7 Plus model sports a 5.5-inch (1080 x 1920) LED-backlit LCD display with 3D touch capability, compared with iPhone 7's smaller 4.7-inch (730 x 1334) device of the same kind. Both versions have 7-magapixel selfie cameras. The main (back) cameras are different, with the 7 Plus model's having dual lenses and a host of other advanced features that will revolutionize smart-phone photography. Battery life is said to be 2-3 hours longer than iPhone 6s.
(5) Millionnaire Iranian-American living in a mansion is being investigated for Medicaid and Foodstamp fraud.
(6) Sexism on full display: Hillary Clinton has faced the question of why she doesn't smile more by talking to Humans of New York on two separate occasions. It is only with women that criticisms such as not smiling enough, smiling too much, dressing too conservatively, showing too much cleavage, wearing the same hairstyle, changing hairstyles too often, and the like become topics of public discussion. To be fair, Donald Trump's hair was also blown out of proportion. But no one has ever mentioned his permanently dour facial expression. A sickening covert sexism still thrives in our society.
(7) We heard from Trump that climate change is a Chinese conspiracy. Now we learn that he considers the bad rap about asbestos a mafia plot. Stay tuned for more revelations and new pronouncements of this kind.

2016/09/10 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Transistor size trends, according to ITRS (1) Transistors may stop shrinking after 2021: As late as 3 years ago, the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS) predicted continued shrinkage of transistor size in high-performance integrated logic circuits for at least 15 more years (to 2028; blue line in the graph). The latest ITRS report predicts a flattening of transistor size trend, beginning in 2021 (red line in the graph). [Source: IEEE Spectrum, issue of September 2016]
(2) Cartoon caption of the day: The three ages of man.
- Younger than your doctor
- The same age as your doctor
- Older than your doctor
(3) High-performance optical switching: This 32x32 multi-stage optical switch, built of 448 simple 2x2 thermo-optic MZ cells, has been integrated on a single chip by the advanced photonics team at Huawei Technologies Canada. [Source: D. Celo et al., Int'l Conf. Photonics in Switching, Niigata, Japan, 2016.]
(4) Kurdish dance music at a wedding: Beautiful, except that the bride does not seem very excited, or mobile!
(5) Kurdish music: Talented young woman sings, while playing divan (a Kurdish stringed instrument).
(6) Today at Ventura Harbor: I visited Ventura's Art and Street Painting Festival with some family members, snapping these 7 photos of the art exhibits and chalk paintings.
(7) Thank you, Facebook: Friendships on Facebook are often described as superficial and no substitute for the real thing. This is true to some extent. Facebook friendship can only go so far, before face-to-face contact is required to deepen and expand it. However, I do have a few Facebook friends whom I know better than most of the friends I have acquired through face-to-face contacts. This shouldn't be surprising. Status posts, selection of reposts, and comments on other people's opinions reveal a great deal about one's personality. This holds throughout the social spectrum, from family members to casual acquaintances and political candidates. I have discovered over the past few years that certain individuals that I tolerate in the realm of safe electronic interaction aren't the kinds of people I would normally associate with in the physical domain. Prior to Facebook, contacts with such individuals consisted of exchanging pleasantries and "catching up" at occasional social events, such as weddings, whereas there are sometimes weekly, if not daily, interactions on Facebook. Differences of opinion exist everywhere, and I have no qualms with that. It is hateful and/or condescending demeanor that gets me.

2016/09/08 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Message in a special 'sign language' (1) A special "sign language": See if you can decipher this message and find the typo in it.
(2) Letter to the UN about the 1988 massacre in Iranian prisons: In a letter to the United Nations Human Rights Council and the International Criminal Court, 100 prominent Iranians in exile ask that the massacre of thousands of Iranian prisoners in 1988 be recognized as crime against humanity.
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- F. Scott Fitzgerald's "lost" stories set for 2017 release (Newsweek)
- Eyptian officials under fire over stance on FGM (Newsweek)
- For-profit ITT Tech shuts down after losing federal aid (CBS News)
- Clinton pledges child care on college campuses (Washington Post)
- Stanford develops fabric that keeps skin cool (Washington Post)
- Matt Lauer criticized for lack of follow-up questions (USA Today)
(4) On mandatory hijab in Iran: Masih Alinejad speaks about why mandatory hijab isn't a trivial issue; far from being the minor inconvenience of wearing a piece of cloth, it is an assault on human dignity. She takes down in a lucid and comprehensive manner the following four reasons stated by female dignitaries from other countries to justify their wearing a headscarf while visiting Iran. Well done, Ms. Alinejad!
- Hijab is the law in Iran and must thus be obeyed.
- Hijab is a cultural tradition which merits respect.
- Iran's hijab law is an internal matter.
- There are bigger problems to address than the hijab.
(5) Twistable wings for airplanes: The optimal wing shape for an airplane is different, depending on speed, altitude, and weather conditions. Yet present-day aircraft have fixed wings, whose shape is a compromise among the different optimal shapes. According to IEEE Spectrum on-line, shape-changing wings using new smart material are on the way and will lead to substantial savings in fuel costs, which constitute more than 25% of operating expenses for airlines. [1-minute video]
(6) Wells Fargo pays $185M in fines, refunds millions to customers, and fires 5300 employees for wrongdoing: Since 2011, the bank has been opening new accounts for customers without their knowledge. The stealth accounts then accumulated fees and penalties, costing customers substantial sums. Wells Fargo employees were motivated to open the bogus accounts by the bank's compensation policies and award of bonuses. This is yet another great accomplishment of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a brainchild of Senator Elizabeth Warren.

Cover image for Michael Brooks' 'At the Edge of Uncertainty' 2016/09/07 (Wednesday): Book review: Brooks, Michael, At the Edge of Uncertainty: 11 Discoveries Taking Science by Surprise, Profile Books, 2014.
Science is full of surprises, whether in the form of discovering X, when no one saw it coming, or discovering Z, when looking for or trying to prove Y. Yet, even though scientists are trained to be prepared for the inevitable surprises, sometimes a discovery is so unexpected that they can't help but scratch their heads. Brooks reviews 11 such discoveries in depth, providing, in the process, a background for the scientific discipline involved, a description of the discovery itself, and an assessment of the scientific and everyday consequences of the advancement.
Brooks begins his introductory chapter with this quote from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe: "Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward. They may be beaten, but they may start a winning game." This represents the spirit of science. For every Darwin or Einstein, there are hundreds of scientists who pursue research problems that lead to insignificant results or to dead ends. Even a highly productive and successful scientist encounters lulls and impasses from time to time. To make things worse, any revolutionary advance creates suspicion and resistance at the outset.
Here are the titles of the book's 11 chapters, sandwiched between Introduction and Epilogue and averaging a tad over 20 pages:
01. Triumph of the zombie killers: The science of consciousness has risen from the grave (p. 11)
02. The crowded pinnacle: Human beings are nothing special (p. 33)
03. The chimera era: We are ready to make a whole new kind of creature (p. 56)
04. The gene genie: There's more to life than DNA (p. 76)
05. Different for girls: Men and women all in very different ways (p. 100)
06. Will to live: Your mind has power in your body (p. 120)
07. Correlations in creation: Biology is putting quantum weirdness to work (p. 143)
08. The reality machine: Our universe is a computer, and we are the programmers (p. 163)
09. Complicating the cosmos: Our story of creation is far from complete (p. 186)
10. Hypercomputing: Alan Turing had another good idea (p. 209)
11. Clocking off: Time is an illusion (p. 231)
There is a bit of hand-waving in the descriptions, and the analogies don't always work. Nevertheless, the book is utterly readable and thought-provoking. Brooks succeeds in conveying the important notion that science does not consist of iron-clad facts, but is rather about dealing with uncertainties that permeate both experimental and theoretical work. At its best, scientific research is about open-mindedness, imagination, dismissing nothing out of hand, and thriving at the edge of uncertainty.

2016/09/06 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Beautiful calligraphic design (1) Arabic calligraphy: Writing meets design.
(2) I prepared these burrito bowls today: Garnish will be added once they are heated before eating. [The video recipe which I approximated.]
(3) BBQ chicken mini-pizzas (before baking): A good use for some leftover BBQ chicken from the family's Labor-Day weekend gathering.
(4) It's okay that our kids type rather than write: The typed word can be just as intellectual as longhand. We are in fact in a golden age of writing, because most Americans write substantially more than they did a couple of decades ago. [Based on Sarah Begley's "Book in Brief" piece in Time magazine, double-issue of September 12/19, 2016.]
(5) Israel cashes in on its cybersecurity know-how: Cybersecurity firms have mushroomed in Israel, making the country the second-largest exporter of cybersecurity products and services, after the US.
(6) Khamenei instructs Iranian officials to lie when negotiating with the West: Give them promises, he counsels, but nothing concrete. He then tells a joke to stress his point. A poet goes to the caliph and recites a poem in his praise. The caliph likes the poem and writes a note, promising the poet a sum in gold coins. The poet takes the note to the caliphate's treasurer, who refuses to give him the coins, saying: "You wrote something the caliph liked and he wrote something that you liked, so all's even."
(7) Why we ignore the facts that will save us: This is the subtitle of the book Denying to the Grave, by Sara E. and Jack M. Gorman. In a short piece in Time magazine, double-issue of September 12/19, 2016, the Gormans advise us not to dismiss people who deny facts. "Research has proven that humans are distinctly uncomfortable with events and phenomena without clear causes, and when we don't know something, we tend to fill in the gaps ourselves. ... Because we are fundamentally empathetic creatures, we respond more to stories than to statistics." Thus, the story that someone's child was diagnosed with autism after being vaccinated has a greater effect on us than stats about the effectiveness and safety of vaccines. The piece concludes by reminding us that changing minds is easier with compassion and understanding than with disdain.

2016/09/05 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Logo for Labor Day in red, white, and blue (1) It is Labor Day in the United States: I have been listening to the audiobook version of Thomas Piketty's Capital in the Twenty-First Century, which I will write about once I've heard all the 24 CDs. A striking piece of information I have already learned from this book is that national capital-to-income ratio hovers in the range 3-7 for most societies (there are very few outliers), regardless of their social and political structures.
Assuming a long-term net return of 5% on capital, this translates to 15-35% of a country's national income being generated by capital and 65-85% (i.e., roughly 2/3 to 5/6) by labor. It is such an eye-opener to look at economics and associated trends on a macro-scale. Happy Labor Day, everyone!
(2) Bahareh Hedayat, women's and human rights activist, has been freed from Iranian prison after serving 6.5 years of a 9.5-year sentence for anti-state propaganda. [Info: Wikipedia] [Photo, courtesy of Masih Alinejad]
(3) The Mansoorian sisters from Iran display their Asian Games medals (2 gold and 1 bronze) in this selfie.
(4) Kurdish dance music mix. [11-minute video]
(5) Scientists have discovered a sixth taste which explains our love of carbs: The new flavor, "starchy" (now added to salty, sweet, sour, bitter, and umami), is associated with carbohydrate-rich foods. So, the next time the smell of a freshly-baked loaf of bread makes you salivate, you'll know why!
(6) A Nobel Laureate's letter to his teacher: After winning the Nobel Prize, French philosopher Albert Camus wrote a letter to one of his elementary-school teachers. The third and final paragraph of his letter, dated 19 November 1957, reads: "I don't make too much of this sort of honour. But at least it gives me the opportunity to tell you what you have been and still are for me, and to assure you that your efforts, your work, and the generous heart you put into it still live in one of your little schoolboys who, despite the years, has never stopped being your grateful pupil. I embrace you with all my heart."

2016/09/04 (Sunday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Line drawing of Clinton and Trump portraits (1) Presidential and VP debate schedule set: September 26 at New York's Hofstra University, moderated by NBC's Lester Holt; October 9 at Washington University of St. Louis, moderated by CNN's Anderson Cooper and ABC's Martha Raddatz; October 19 at University of Nevada, Las Vegas, moderated by Fox News' Chris Wallace. The sole VP debate will be on October 4 at Longwood University in Farmville, Virginia, moderated by CBS' Elaine Quijano. C-SPAN's Steve Scully will be the back-up moderator for all debates.
(2) On a possible US-China war: According to a Rand Corporation report (link to the full report is provided in this Newsweek article), the probability of such a war is increasing, given China's posture and aggressiveness in the waters around it. If there is a war, naval warfare, limited to the Pacific region, will be its primary component. US mainland will likely not be attacked, except in the cyber-warfare component. "War between the two countries could begin with devastating strikes, be hard to control, last months if not years, have no winner and inflict huge losses on both sides' military forces."
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Lowe's to begin using in-store robots this month (Business Insider)
- GM plans SuperCruise as response to self-driving cars (Bloomberg)
- Amazon saved billions in taxes via Luxembourg tax shelters (Newsweek)
- Mexican soldiers kill 10 after highway ambush near US border (Reuters)
- Japan braces for new typhoon after 15 die from hurricane (AFP)
- Thousands flood Vatican to see Mother Teresa made a saint (NY Times)
(4) Iranian women's team defeats N. Korean team in Asian volleyball. [Full 2:22:37 video]
(5) Cat plays the piano with big orchestra: I rarely post animal videos, but this one is special. Apparently, the cat's contribution was pre-recorded and edited, and the orchestra played along with the recording.
(6) Man realizes that skipping physics classes has real-world consequences. [Funny video]
(7) Cartoon of the day: Idiomatic dietetic schematic.
(8) A math lover's T-shirt: It bears the inscription "integral, from birth to death, of struggle.dt = life"

2016/09/03 (Saturday): Book review: Cline, Ernest, Ready Player One: A Novel, Crown Publishers, 2011.
Cover image of 'Ready Player One' by Ernest Cline I came to know this book from an announcement by the Santa Barbara Public Library System that it has chosen the book for summer reading by adults (an extension of its successful childern's and teens' reading programs). The book's title alludes to an old video game's opening message, indicating the system's readiness after the player has logged on.
The library's announcement used the following quotation from Random House to lure readers: "At once wildly original and stuffed with irresistible nostalgia, Ready Player One is a spectacularly genre-busting, ambitious, and charming debut—part quest novel, part love story, and part virtual space opera set in a universe where spell-slinging mages battle giant Japanese robots, entire planets are inspired by Blade Runner, and flying DeLoreans achieve light speed."
The book opens with the news of an insanely rich game developer passing, leaving behind no heirs or even friends. We soon learn that the mogul has recorded a video in which he divulges that he has hidden an "Easter egg" inside OASIS, his most famous MMO (massively multiplayer on-line) game, and he provides the first clue for those who wish to play to win his entire fortune. The hunt quickly becomes a global phenomenon.
The events take place some three decades into the future, when it is quite routine for individuals to have avatars and spend time in virtual worlds, while obsessing about the 1980s pop culture and its retro video games. Avatars have to follow rules, particularly at schools, where it is required that "all student avatars be human, and of the same gender and age as the student. No giant two-headed hermaphrodite demon unicorn avatars were allowed. Not on school grounds, anyway."
The 2040s society where the story unfolds has many ills, including a severe energy crisis and a decades-old recession. People escape these real-world problems by logging on to OASIS and going anywhere their permissions and "credits" allow. The virtual environment includes many planets, plus worlds created over the years for a large collection of video games.
The protagonist, teenager Wade Owen Watts (who lives in a slum with his aunt), believes himself to have a good chance of winning the fortune, given his extreme skill in exploring OASIS and knowledge of the 80s pop culture. He surmises that finding the hidden Easter egg likely entails venturing into dangerous parts of OASIS, which requires skills and a lot of resources. So, Watts sets out to become a full-time "gunter" (short for "egg hunter").
Watts, known on-line as Parzival, is the first to decipher the clues for obtaining the copper key to open the first gate. He achieves this breakthrough early on (page 84 of the book). Along with getting the key, he earns 50,000 experience points, which allow him to raise the level of his avatar. As the sole player atop the scoreboard, Watts knows that he is envied by other players and that his life may be in danger, given the high stakes.
The rest of the story consists of efforts by Watts and a number of rivals in looking for the hidden egg, helping or blockading each other in the cut-throat competition. His most formidable rival is a woman, Art3mis, and their rivalry has a romantic subtext, albeit of the nerdy variety. When the two finally meet in person near the very end of the book and hold hands, Watts revels "in the strange new sensation of actually touching one another." Then comes the inevitable kiss that feels "just like all those songs and poems had promised it would."
If you are a digital gaming fan, you will enjoy this book. For others, the near-exclusive focus on gaming and virtual worlds may be a turn-off. Be aware, however, that even the very nerdy protagonist of this story discovers that the real world, which he had been trying to escape for his entire life, isn't such a bad place.
Interestingly, about a year after the book's release, Cline revealed that the book itself contained a hidden Easter egg and that there would be a grand prize for whoever finds it. A movie based on the book is in the works by Steven Spielberg (2018 release), with Cline, plus Zak Penn and Eric Eason, credited for the screenplay. No major movie stars are involved in the film project.

2016/09/02 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cover images of 'Girls' Life' and 'Boys' Life' side by side (1) This is how sexism is nourished and reinforced in our society: Girls are prompted to pursue their dream hair; boys, to explore their future. [Image credit: Matt Frye]
(2) Quote of the day: "Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please." ~ Mark Twain
(3) On mass executions in the 1980s Iran: Revelations (in Persian) by Mehdi Khaz'ali about summary execution of thousands of prisoners at Tehran's Evin Prison, some 20,000 nationwide, under direct orders from Ayatollah Khomeini and overseen by a panel of three men, one of whom is President Rouhani's Minister of Justice.
(4) Creative labeling of the tip basket at a cafe: "If you're afraid of CHANGE, feel free to leave it here."
(5) Today, at the Santa Barbara waterfront: There was hardly a wave on this rather windy day. Kayakers and paddle-boarders seemed to enjoy the unusually calm waters near Santa Barbara's harbor. I ended my afternoon walk, when my daughter's train arrived at the station, bringing her home for the Labor Day weekend.
(6) On nonuniversality of computational devices: For decades, theoretical computer science rested on the premise that any computable function can be evaluated by a Turing Machine, that is, there exists no computation that cannot be carried out by a suitably programmed (universal) Turing Machine. This axiom of "universality" is known as the Church-Turing hypothesis. The opposing 2005 result that "no computer capable of a finite and fixed number of basic operations per time unit can be universal" is known as "the nonuniversality in computation theorem (NCT)." This is a deep discussion that I cannot reproduce here. If interested, you can read the expository article by Selim G. Akl, entitled "Nonuniversality Explained," in the May-August 2016 issue of Int'l J. Parallel, Emergent & Distributed Systems (Vol. 31, Nos. 3-4, pp. 201-219; PDF). Many examples in Akl's exposition demonstrate the genuine power of parallel processing, which allows easy computation of certain well-defined functions that cannot be computed by any sequential machine.

2016/09/01 (Thursday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Evidence for the start of a new geologic epoch (1) We may have entered a new geologic era: Some time around 1950, we left the 11,700-year-old Holocene geological epoch and entered a new era with the proposed name "Anthropocene," according to some geologists. "Most other geologic epochs, which are defined by world-changing events such as mass extinctions, have lasted millions of years or even tens of millions of years. But humans have found a way to disrupt the Earth's natural patterns, and many geologists think it's high time this impact be made official." The new epoch is characterized by the proliferation of radioactive elements, plastic pollution, and an abundance of materials such as concrete, soot, and, I am dead serious, chicken bones!
(2) Quote of the day: "What is the Republican Party today? What is it you're endorsing in this campaign? If you believe the GOP stands for racism, xenophobia, protectionism, nuclear proliferation, torture, war crimes, the reckless use of military force and fanboy support for a powerful and conniving dictator who threatens America, then please proceed. But I am sure you support none of that." ~ Part of an open letter from Kurt Eichenwald to House Speaker Paul Ryan
(3) World Cup 2018 match in Tehran: Today, Iran beat Qatar 2-0 on a minute-94 goal (Reza Ghoochannejad in the middle of 6 minutes of added time), when the Qatari goalie's poorly cleared ball was intercepted, and a minute-101 bullet shot (Alireza Jahan Bakhsh, after more time was added due to a lengthy brawl).
(4) Art installation: Artists express concern over the drying of the Shiraz River and many other rivers in Iran.
(5) Formal spying charges filed against Texan Sandy Phan-Gillis, after an 18-month detention in China.

2016/08/31 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Chart showing some of the national ranks when medals are considered per capita (1) Olympics rankings by medals per capita: From top to bottom, you see the rank, country, number of medals, population per medal, and total population. [Source: Time magazine, issue of September 5, 2016]
(2) Men continue to support Iranian women's fight against mandatory hijab: By taking photos alongside their wives, sisters, mothers, and daughters, while switching head-wear, Iranian men are proving that the government's labeling them as morally loose ("bi-gheirat" in Persian) will not deter them from doing what is right to help earn equal rights for half the population.
(3) Good-size waves brought many surfers to the Coal Oil Point Beach near UCSB today. Some remained to surf, even after the sun set.
(4) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- A man named "Vladimir Putin" was arrested in a Florida supermarket (Esquire)
- Americans feel their lives improved markedly over the past 8 years (Gallup poll)
- Queens car crash leaves 3 dead, 9 others injured, 2 critically (NY Post)
- Trump and Mexico's President give conflicting accounts of their talks (CNN)
- Hillary Clinton's negative rating has risen to near Trump's (Business Insider)
- Brazil's Senate ousts President Rousseff through impeachment (USA Today)
- Mid-air collision of two private planes kills 5 in Alaska (BBC)
- Typhoon Lionrock kills at least 11, causes wide destruction in Japan (WSJ)
(5) The bright side of darker emotions: Book intro. [Source: Time magazine, issue of September 5, 2016]
(6) The August 24 quake in Italy: The town of Amatrice was razed almost completely by the magnitude-6.2 earthquake. [Photo credit: Time magazine, issue of September 5, 2016]
(7) Robots learn to make eye contact and facial expressions: This is only the beginning of the way. As we learn from such experiments, the quality of interactions between robots and humans will improve. A human-like robot isn't that far away.
(8) An enjoyable Glenn Miller Orchestra concert: Last night, I attened a concert by GMO at Santa Barbara Junior High's beautifully renovated Marjorie Luke Theater. One piece the band played, "American Patrol," was dedicated to US veterans (there were quite a few of them in the audience). My recording of this tune did not turn out well, so I am using a version available on YouTube. Other tunes in the two sets included "The Lady Is a Tramp," "I've Got a Gal in Kalamazoo," and "Chattanooga Choo Choo." My final video from last night's concert is a newer tune from the late 1950s, "Fly Me to the Moon."
GMO's story: The Orchestra was formed in 1937, disbanded in 1938 due to lack of success, recorded many hits during 1939-1943, went to England in 1944 to play for the troops, and lost its leader that same year, when he boarded a transport plane to Paris, never to be seen again. GMO played many of Glenn Miller's own compositions, tunes specifically written for the orchestra and arranged by GM, and a number of movie tunes.

2016/08/29 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
My modest Plan-B dinner Persian chelow-kabob, with two kinds of beef-kabob and one chicken-kabob (1) Dinner, Plan A (left; my favorite smiley-face emoticon) and Plan B (I have no idea how to execute Plan A)!
(2) Boeing at 100: A flagship US technology company with its aircraft prominently on display at airports around the world, Boeing was incorporated on July 16, 1916. This article about Boeing's centenary contains a number of photos from Boeing and aviation history.
(3) Airbag safety recalls: The safety problems at the center of auto industry's biggest recall were known more than two decades ago, when the industry opted for the cheaper Takata airbags to save a few dollars per vehicle.
(4) Quote of the day: "Knowledge is free. Ignorance costs a lot." ~ Anonymous
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- GE moving to become world's top software company (NYT)
- Federal $2.5B loan funds Amtrak upgrades in northeast US (AP)
- Texas embraces development of wind, solar power (WSJ)
- Native Americans protest in ND over major oil pipeline (LA Times)
- Huma Abedin announces split from Anthony Weiner (CBS News)
- Comedian Gene Wilder of "Willy Wonka" fame dead at 83 (CNN)
(6) Final thought for the day: Children need active protection from sexual predators, who are most likely people they know, not strangers. One in 5 girls and 1 in 20 boys are victims. Don't say it won't happen to my kids.

2016/08/28 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Persian poem commemorating Badri Ghaffari-Vala (1) In memory of Badri, mother of Bahman and mother-in-law of my cousin Farkhondeh, with condolences to the Ghaffari-Vala and associated families. The first letters of this poem's half-verses spell "Badri" in Persian.
(2) Quote of the day: "When you try to stay on the surface of the water, you sink; but when you try to sink, you float." ~ Zen proverb
(3) Burkini ban overturned: France's Supreme Court has overturned the ban on burkinis. A small victory in the battle against the subjugation of women, but a step in the right direction nonetheless.
(4) Elon Musk's plan to kill big oil: Electric cars, solar panels, batteries, and software to efficiently manage power and its trading are parts of the plan.
(5) Vice-Presidential candidate Tim Kaine playing the harmonica on "The Late Show."
(6) The Kurdish spirit: Female soldiers take a break from fighting the most sinister forces in the world.
(7) Traditional Persian music: Twin sisters Mehrnaz and Farnaz Dabirzadeh perform on santoor and tonbak.
(8) A movie for math affectianados: If you have a deep interest in mathematics, you are probably familiar with the name "Srinivasa Ramanujan." He was a self-taught Indian mathematician who discovered some of the deepest and most beautiful results in mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series, and continued fractions, despite a total lack of formal training. In the 2016 film "The Man Who Knew Infinity," Dave Patel plays Ramanujan, with Jeremy Irons portraying his discoverer and mentor G. H. Hardy, the renowned math professor at Cambridge's Trinity College.
(9) Biking in Goleta: For today's late afternoon outing, I began on the UCSB West Campus bluffs, where high tide had made the beach inaccessible via the stairs. After going to my favorite rest stop at Coal Oil Point on this gorgeous Sunday and enjoying the view there, I biked northwest to explore an area that used to be a run-down 18-hole golf course, before being purchased by UCSB. Some of the land was used to build new student and faculty housing and the bulk of it is now public open space. The boarded-up building is the old clubhouse.

2016/08/26 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Image of woman with shackles on her feet (1) Quote of the day: "The Elders are not attacking religion as such ... We all recognized that if there's one overarching issue for women it's the way that religion can be manipulated to subjugate women." ~ Mary Robinson, President of Ireland (1990-1997) and UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights (1997-2002)
[The Elders is a group of world leaders convened by Nelson Mandela, Graca Machel, and Desmond Tutu "to contribute their wisdom, independent leadership and integrity to tackle some of the world's toughest problems." (from Wikipedia)]
(2) Freeway signs for Persian Square: Part of Wilshire Blvd. in West Los Angeles, previously named "Persian Square," now has directional signs on both southbound and northbound 405 Freeway.
(3) Words to live by: "Live without pretending. Love without depending. Listen without defending. Speak without offending." ~ Mystery of the Journey (Facebook page)
(4) These are nuns on a beach: So, why are burkinis banned?
(5) Foundations compared: People have begun putting the Clinton and Trump foundations side by side and comparing them. And the picture isn't pretty for Donald Trump, who has made attacks on the Clinton Foundation a centerpiece of his campaign.
(6) Kurdish music: New performance of a 50-year-old song. Kurdish lyrics provided, with Persian translation.
(7) Seeing beyond e-mails, health, and other smoke screens: Three key elements of Trump's economic plan are reduction of the top tax rate from 39.6% to 33%, cutting the corporate tax rate from 35% to 15%, and eliminating the estate tax, paid only for massive estates. All three of these elements will benefit almost exclusively the top 1% (and please don't invoke the utterly discredited trickle-down economic theory). Meanwhile, Clinton will raise the tax rate and estate tax for the super-rich and use much of the added income for infrastructure improvement. So, don't let distractions and smoke screens hide these fundamental differences. Meanwhile, lost in the hoopla is the fact that a US Supreme Court nominee has been waiting for more than 4 months to get a hearing and be either confirmed or turned down by the US Congress.
(8) More on Donald Trump's health: His personal physician has told NBC News he needed just five minutes to write a glowing public assessment of Trump's health as a limousine waited to carry the letter back to Trump. The letter remains the only publicly released information on Trump's medical history.
(9) Cinema under the stars: After spending part of the afternoon reading in my courtyard and enjoying the soothing sound of a small fountain, I headed out for a walk downtown, followed by seeing the last installment of this summer's Bogart-Bacall film series at Santa Barbara Courthouse's Sunken Garden. The film, "How to Marry a Millionaire," is a lighthearted comedy from 1953, starring Marilyn Monroe, Betty Grable, and Lauren Bacall; and no, it isn't a biopic about Melania Trump!

2016/08/25 (Thursday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cover image for Stephen King's 'On Writing' (1) Brief book review: King, Stephen, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Scribner, 2000. (Also available in audiobook format.)
Stephen King writes a lot! In fact, while not a fan of his stories, I do respect his work ethic, productivity, and gripping narrative style, which, according to him, emphasizes character development over plot details. He says that he likes to get 10 pages a day, which means he can complete a largish book in about 3 months, working on a continuous schedule, including Christmas, July 4th, and his birthday.
So, it came as a surprise to me to find this book a mere 288 pages long. Part biographical and part composed of tips for aspiring writers, the book ends with a detailed account of the author being hit by a Dodge minivan while jogging on a rural road in 1999, and how writing literally saved his life after sustaining serious injuries from the near-fatal accident. He began writing slowly at first, but was soon back to his normal pace.
King covers his childhood, early influences, college days, and development as a writer. The writing advice itself is rather standard, but the presentation is friendly and inspiring. In addition to the key advice that good writing requires a lot of reading, King offers techniques one can learn from a diverse set of authors, including H. P. Lovecraft, Ernest Hemingway, John Grisham, Richard Dooling, and Jonathan Kellerman. All in all, a pretty good read, in my opinion.
[An aside: I read on Amazon.com that King is a member of a writers-only rock-n-roll band, which also includes author Amy Tan, and that the audiobook version of this work begins with samples of the band's music. Although, if you want to take King's "read a lot" advice to heart, you should pursue the printed version.]
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of thw past couple of days:
- Earthquake in central Italy, measuring 6.2, kills 200+
- New rocket fire from Gaza leads to Israeli air strike
- Fake Syrian passports given to ISIS members discovered
- Gunmen storm American University in Kabul
- Donald Trump to meet with black, Latino activists
- Traffic deaths rising due to cheaper gas, distractions
(3) A new market in my neighborhood: The conversion of the short-lived Fairview Ave. Hagens (before that, Vons) to Sprouts Farmers Market is finally complete. The store was overflowing with shoppers and merchandise on its 8/24 grand-opening day. I had a wonderful panini for lunch at its sandwich shop and stocked up on bargains, such as $1-per-pound strawberries and $0.33 avocados.
(4) An observation: It took 37+ years for Iran to complete its slow transition from an American base in the Middle East to a Russian base.
(5) A couple of questions, and a film recommendation: How many human beings have walked on the moon? How many Americans? The last person to walk on the moon was Gene Cernan, and his story is the subject of the documentary film "The Last Man on the Moon" (2016). [Trailer]

2016/08/23 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Abandoned island with a fort in Key West, Florida (1) Twelve abandoned islands and their back stories: A stretch of islands in Key West, Florida, was first discovered by Juan Ponce de Leon, who named them "Las Tortugas" (the turtles). The most interesting part of the islands is this abandoned fort, which, for some reason unbeknownst to me, is surrounded by a moat (as if the ocean isn't enough of a hindrance)! This article contains the back story of this and 11 other abandoned islands.
(2) Time-lapse video of Santa Barbara's Rey Fire.
(3) Human rights abuses continue in Iran: Attorney Nasrin Sotoudeh has been summoned to court again, with no charges specified. She will represent herself to avoid getting other colleagues in trouble, as happened to three who previously represented her.
(4) Trolling and Internet hate speech: There are two aspects to hateful conduct on the Internet, social media in particular. One aspect pertains to the absence of eye contact and body language in electronic communication, thereby making people less inhibited as well as more prone to misunderstanding. Many studies have shown that people tend to be ruder on electronic media than in face-to-face or even voice communication. This article provides a good overview
The second aspect, known as trolling, has to do with taking pleasure in posting irksome or insulting comments on various discussion threads for no particular reason. The word "troll" is from fishing, which means dragging a baited line through water or trying to find a particular type of fish. Nearly all on-line trolls are anonymous and some engage in trolling full-time. Even though most trolls just want to annoy their targets, some go further through bullying, or even issuing threats of rape or murder. If we want to have an on-line presence, we have to learn to avoid or deal with trolls. Remember that first and foremost, trolls seek attention, so ignoring them is perhaps the best policy. Here are some other tips for dealing with trolls.
Let me end by providing Time magazine's list of ten popular social media sites, from the most trolly to the least (Joel Stein's cover feature, issue of August 29, 2016).
On-line troll: cartoon - 8chan: Trolls' last refuge, where taboo topics are discussed freely
- 4chan: Troll-dominated, with few regular people to be trolled
- Voat: Number of users surged when Reddit nixed certain threads
- Reddit: A favorite place for hate groups to organize and infiltrate
- YikYak: Local, anonymous posts have led to bullying on campuses
- Twitter: Anonymous users can tag people they don't know
- YouTube: Nasty comments by organized groups are commonplace
- Facebook: Lack of anonymity and focus on safety drives away trolls
- Instagram: Relatively safe, despite some high-profile incidents
- Snapchat: Pictures disappear too quickly to allow hate build-up
(5) Celebrities turning 50-90 in August and September 2016, according to the August/September issue of AARP magazine: Halle Berry (50), Salma Hayek (50); Joan Allen (60), David Copperfield (60); Joe Greene (70); Robert Redford (80); Tony Bennett (90)
(6) The lights of Los Angeles and surrounding communities. [4-minute time-lapse video]

2016/08/22 (Monday): Book review: Dulchinos, Donald P., Neurosphere: The Convergence of Evolution, Group Mind, and the Internet, Weiser Books, 2005.
Cover image of 'Neurosphere The difference between brain and mind has occupied philosophers, scientists, and lay people for decades, if not centuries. Much is known about the electrical (electromagnetic) nature of brain's signaling, and progress has been made in connecting the brain's circuitry to external devices, for both extracting information and influencing human behavior. A key thesis of this book is that while our bodies, including the parts in our heads, are separate from one another, each contained in its own physical frame, our minds are much more connected than we realize.
According to neuroscientist/philosopher Sam Harris (a prominent atheist), whose book Waking Up I previously reviewed (see blog entry for May 17, 2016), the notion of self, or the "I" in our head, is purely psychological; we are part of the world and the boundaries between individuals are quite artificial. Dulchinos restates Harris' secular sentiment thus: "All of us together, we are God." Thus, the book has religious overtones, but rather than being a treatise on religion, it really focuses on spirituality and on all human beings constituting parts of the same entity, whatever you want to call it.
The word "neurosphere" of the book's title is a variation of "noosphere." According to Paleontologist Pierre Teilhard, "[w]ith social convergence comes traditions and collective memory. This is the beginning of the group mind of humanity, the noosphere." Teilhard places noosphere on top of biosphere, the world of plants and animals, which is itself at a higher level than barysphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, and atmoshphere.
We have likely come to the end of our physical evolution in biosphere (we may be the only species that has stopped branching into other species), but our world-encompassing consciousness and collective memory allow us to evolve further in neurosphere. The brain's extreme adaptability (evident in the production of workarounds when parts of it are damaged) along with an emerging science of consciousness will help us evolve in the new domain much faster than we did in the physical domain.
Interfacing the brain with external electronic devices is clearly feasible. Mind control of prosthetic limbs is already a reality and will become mainstream in a few years. Auditory and visual prosthetics for the deaf and the blind are under intensive study and should become marketable soon. Mind machines emit certain frequencies that brain waves adapt to, causing relaxation. We now know that mountaintops receive ions swept up by prevailing winds and the electrical interaction of these ions with the brain may be the cause of visionary experiences.
Commonalities between brain functions and computing are now well understood. Scientists in the field of parallel and distributed computing have built computer programs to mimic evolution. Such programs, typically, change very little over extended periods of time and then generate significant change over a relatively short time period. It isn't a stretch to think that, just as computer software is ported from one hardware platform to another, some day the mind may be ported to other platforms, electronic or otherwise. This is the premise of a speculative field dubbed "transhumanism." Computers that can replace human brain, or allow for "repairing" certain lost functions, are entirely imaginable.
We have evolved to communicate, and this has been true for a long time, certainly way before computers appeared on the scene. In the words of physician Lewis Thomas, "[w]e spend our time sending messages to each other, talking and trying to listen at the same time, exchanging information. This seems to be our most urgent biological function; it is what we do with our lives." We have reached a critical mass of being able to develop a collective intelligence, in the same way that termites, in large enough numbers, create beautiful columns and curving arches, joining them in just the right way to erect mind-numbing architectures.
Evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins (another prominent atheist) coined the term "meme" for the unit of cultural transmission, in the same way that "gene" engenders biological transmission. So, the Internet, and telecommunications in general, constitute the "soup" of a new evolutionary stage in our existence. Whereas biological transmission requires physical proximity, ideas spread far and wide through verbalization and, eventually, perhaps even without verbalization. For this spreading to happen, however, free information circulation within the neurosphere is a must.
Carl Jung's deduction from common elements (themes, images) of his patients' dreams was that there must be a collective consciousness. According to Jung, archtypes evolved from endless repetition of inner experiences, just as instincts evolved from repeated learned behavior. The existence of similar mythologies in diverse cultures lends credence to Jung's theory. The notion of oneness was given a huge boost by space flight. Having seen the Earth as a whole, with no borders or other dividing lines, astronauts returned with altered perspectives on nationalism and ethnic violence.
Visionary inventor Nicola Tesla had made the following prediction: "We shall have no need to transmit power at all ... our machinery will be driven by a power obtainable at any point of the universe. ... it is a mere question of time when men will succeed in attaching their machinery to the very wheelwork of nature."
Cells band together to create a human being and, thereby, give rise to consciousness. That consciousness cannot be said to belong to any one cell. Similarly, global consciousness supersedes any one human being. It has been estimated that some 10 billion cells are needed before consciousness emerges. So, too, one can say that around 10 billion interconnected individuals are needed to give rise to global consciousness. We are fast approaching that number and the exponential rise of telecommunications technology will ensure that a significant fraction of that population will be interconnected.
Given that global consciousness develops faster with openness and ubiquity, a natural question to ponder is: "How do we secure an asset whose value increases exponentially with the number of computers—or conscious nodes—connected to it?" The conflict between openness on one side, and privacy and safety on the other, is a deep and troubling one. As Dulchinos observes: "For every knee-jerk libertarian encrypting his banal emails, there is a Webcam exhibitionist begging you to look and see." The ongoing war on terror is a prominent form of conflict within the neurosphere. The conflict is not between geographic regions or confined to some areas. Rather, the conflict will rage within the population of a single local entity, where it is nearly impossible to use traditional forms of warfare. You cannot bomb regions of Florida, say, where terrorists might reside.
Dulchinos writes on the final page of his book, before concluding with 21 pages of notes and 3 pages of references, "[t]his is one system that can not allow exclusion. There are no infidels, no heretics, in the neurosphere. You are part of it whether you acknowledge it or not. And so is your worst enemy. Moreover, until you liberate him or her ... , you yourself will never be free." And this may be the perfect basis for a more humane relationship between nations.
This book isn't an easy read. For me, each page required reflection, extensive note-taking, and looking up words/concepts. It took me several months to finish the 193-page book, as I had to take breaks from it to read (or listen to) less challenging material. I am glad I finally finished it, as it has given me a new perspective on the world we live in and on the future of humanity.

2016/08/21 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Donald Trump and one of his many statements that are demeaning to women (1) Trumpian speak: Contrary to the commonly held view of Trump as a blabbermouth, he does choose his words carefully and he does mean exactly what he says. Recently he said that he regrets making certain remarks, and some in the media interpreted it as an apology. Trump is incapable of apologizing, and he has said this himself, because he thinks he is above making mistakes. Firstly, he never identified the remarks that he regrets, leaving it up to speculation to figure out which ones he meant. Did he regret one or two statements, or where there a whole bunch of "hurtful" remarks? Secondly, you may regret an act (such as hitting someone), because it got you in trouble, which is different from being sorry you did it or thinking that you owe the victim an apology. You simply regret the act, because it had negative consequences for you.
(2) It's about time the leadership of this country reflects the facts that 53% of our voters and 47% of workers are women. [3-minute video]
(3) Quote of the day: "It's not a virtue for a woman to extend her leg, kick someone, and win medals. Her virtue is bearing and raising children." ~ Iran's Ayatollah Javadi Aamoli (Kimia Alizadeh's first-ever Olympics medal for an Iranian woman, a bronze in taekwondo, is an apt "kick in the mouth" for this backward mullah)
(4) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Child suicide bomber kills 50 at Turkey wedding (VoA)
- Japan's ambassador arrested in Tehran party serving alcohol (VoA)
- The 2016 Rio Olympic games come to a spectacular close
- USA earns 121 Olympics medals: 46 gold, 37 silver, 38 bronze
- China in 2nd place with 70 medals: 26 gold, 18 silver, 26 bronze
- GB impressive 3rd with 67 medals: 27 gold, 23 silver, 17 bronze
- Iran ends Olympics journey with 8 medals: 3 gold, 1 silver, 4 bronze
- Brazil wins soccer gold medal against Germany on penalty kicks
(5) A very timely topic: I think social studies programs should address the problem of the culture of hate on the Internet in depth. I will post a brief essay once I have read Time magazine's cover feature on this topic in its issue of August 29, 2016.
(6) Joke of the day: Mexicans have started training for Donald Trump's border wall.
(7) Emmylou Harris over the years: Harris is a wonderful performer, with a decades-long history. Here is a sample of her many performances. ["Save the Last Dance for Me"] ["C'est la Vie" (1977)] ["Jambalaya" ("On the Bayou")] ["How She Could Sing the Wildwood Flower"]
(8) Norah Jones' 2002 concert: This 56-minute video, from a live performance at New Orleans, begins with the wonderful song "Cold Cold Heart."
(9) Peculiar fact of the day: Why a marathon is 26.2 miles long.

2016/08/20 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cartoon depicting the first-ever woman to win an Olympics medal for Iran (1) Cartoon of the day: Cartoonist Mana Neyestani's take on the first-ever Olympics medal for an Iranian woman (bronze in taekwondo, earned by Kimia Alizadeh Zenoorin, 18), despite all the restrictions placed on women by the ruling clergy.
(2) Montreal botanical gardens. [1-minute Video]
(3) What it is like to have never felt an emotion: The condition known as "alexithymia" (people with this so-called "emotional colorblindness" refer to themselves as "alexes" or "the alex community") is found in around 50% of people with autism, but many of those afflicted do not show autistic traits. In an NPR program I recall hearing some time ago, there was a discussion of treatments for turning the emotions back on, but I cannot find a link or other reference to that program.
(4) An American genocide: This is the title of a book that depicts what happened to California's Native Americans in the mid-19th century. In this Newsweek article, Alexander Nazaryan discusses the events of 150 years ago and how the systematic slaughter of Native Americans in California "was not all that different from what happened to Jews, Armenians or Rwandans."
(5) This guy on the Berlin metro has a poignant message: The Arabic text on his bag means, "This text has no other purpose than to terrify those who are afraid of the Arabic language."
(6) A treasure trove of puzzles and exotic mathematical facts: A few months ago, I introduced Clifford A. Pickover's book, A Passion for Mathematics: Numbers, Puzzles, Madness, Religion, and the Quest for Reality (Wiley, 2005) and posted a sample tidbit from it. Here is another sample tidbit.
The special number 7: In ancient days, the number 7 was thought of as just another way to signify "many." Even in recent times, there have been tribes that used no numbers higher than 7. In the 1880s, the German ethnologist Karl von Steinen described how certain South American Indian tribes had very few words for numbers. As a test, he repeatedly asked them to count ten grains or corn. They counted "slowly but correctly to six, but when it came to the seventh grain and the eighth, they grew tense and uneasy, at first yawning and complaining of a headache, then finally avoided the question altogether or simply walked off." Perhaps seven means "many" in such common phrases as "seven seas" and "seven deadly sins." (These interesting facts come from Adrian Room, The Guinness Book of Numbers, 1989.)
(7) Talk is cheap: I can read from a teleprompter the text of a speech someone wrote for me about helping the poor in Nepal, feeding the hungry in Rwanda, or curing the sick in Burundi. That won't make me a philanthropist, unless my actions match those words. Now, Trump's speech-writers want us to forget everything he has ever said and done and believe that he is a caring and compassionate person, who represents the only hope for disadvantaged African-Americans and other minorities. Forget that he bankrupted many businesses (his own and those of contractors he cheated), paid little or no taxes, makes virtually all of his merchandise overseas, and panders to White Supremacists and anti-immigrant groups. As the governor of Louisiana has said, flood victims need volunteers and financial help, not people showing up for photo-ops, which not only aren't helpful but also drain law-enforcement and other resources that are needed elsewhere.

2016/08/19 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Photos showing the similarities between Mariska Hargitay and her mom, Jayne Mansfield (1) Eerie similarities: Actress Mariska Hargitay and her mom, Jayne Mansfield.
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Justice Dept. announces end to private prisons (Washington Post)
- Uber to use driverless cars in Pittsburgh within weeks (LA Times)
- In a first, Donald Trump regrets using hurtful words (ABC News)
- Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort resigns (Yahoo News)
- Fox employees with ties to Roger Ailes quietly depart (Variety)
- AT&T, Apple, Google, others join FCC to end robocalls (CNET)
(3) Donald Trump's lack of respect for science is alarming: This is the title of a new editorial from Scientific American, which also issued a similar warning about antiscience sentiments four years ago.
(4) Phonetically defined [From a cartoon by John Atkinson]: Lackadaisical: Not enough daisies; Realize: Genuine ocular organs; Sirloin: Knighted cut of beef; Bigotry: Large woody plant; Truculent: Pickup borrowed by a friend; Syllable: Peculiar male cow.
(5) The US media is under-reporting a major disaster (a 1000-year flood, with heartbreaking loss of life and property in Louisiana), while giving wall-to-wall coverage to a stupid prank by a group of privileged young athletes in Rio. Meanwhile, the Louisiana flood is just one of many 100-plus-year events we have witnessed in recent years. What would it take for climate-change deniers to wake up and smell the coffee?
(6) Michigan launches campaign to keep auto companies from relocating to California: Facing competition from high-tech companies in Silicon Valley, traditional auto giants are toying with the idea of moving some of their operations to the Golden State to exploit the information-technology skills needed to design cars of the future.
(7) Message in a brain scan: UCSB neurologist Scott Grafton is using brain scans of musician Sting to learn how he forges musical connections in his mind.
(8) My walk this evening: I walked from Santa Barbara Courthouse to the end of Stearns Wharf and back. I photographed what appears to be an almost-completed new hotel on State Street, near the train station, and part of the "La Entrada" mixed commercial/residential development across the street, which is set to transform the touristy waterfront area for the better. This sign, essentially saying "no diving on the sand," and this man, photographing the waves, were among the other photos I took. The sunset, as seen from Stearns Wharf, was hazy, likely because of a nearby wildfire raging in Santa Barbara and another one in San Luis Obispo County. And here are two photos taken looking toward the mountains, beyond which the Santa Barbar fire is raging. Smoke clouds are visible in both photos. On the way back, I passed by this building on Carrillo Street in downtown Santa Barbara, a building whose interesting architecture caught my eyes for the first time, despite having passed by it dozens of times before. Finally, I went to Santa Barbara Courthouse's Sunken Garden for cinema under the stars, screening the film-noir (crime-drama) "Key Largo" (starring Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, and a very young Ernest Borgnine).

Cover image for Lynsey Addario's 'It's What I Do' 2016/08/18 (Thursday): Book review: Addario, Lynsey, It's What I Do: A Photographer's Life of Love and War, unabridged audiobook on 8 CDs, read by Tavia Gilbert, Blackstone Audio, 2015.
Nowadays, photography and reporting from battlefields and other conflict zones are quite different from what they were several decades ago. Fierce competition forces journalists to take greater risks in trying to get as close to the action as the military allows (and sometimes without authorization). Armies too, well aware of the importance of public relations in conducting wars, go out of their way to accommodate journalists in what has come to be known as "embedding," meaning that the journalists work, sleep, and eat with, or very close to, the troops.
In wars such as those in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya, journalists are particularly vulnerable, given that their capture by the enemy is tantamount to mistreatment, being used as hostages, and, in many cases, summary executions. The dangers are multiplied for female reporters, thus making Addario's memoir particularly compelling. In many areas of the Middle East, being sexually touched or groped is a routine part of a female reporter's experience, even when working among non-combatants.
Addario, whose honors include a Pulitzer Prize (shared) and a McArthur Foundation Genius Grant, has been to many conflict zones, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, and several other parts of the Middle East and Africa. She worked under extreme conditions and survived multiple near-death experiences, including a car crash and an abduction.
Addario's stories about civilians caught in brutal conflicts are heart-wrenching, particularly those of women in Afghanistan under the Taliban regime. These stories are interwoven with Addario's personal life, including a couple of long-distance relationships friendships with other members of the press corps who traveled with her, and occasional flings with another half of a long-distance relationship.
For many years, the need to pack up and leave at a moment's notice to cover a new conflict zone made a fulfilling personal life impossible for the author. She chose her career, which satisfied her curiosity and adventurous nature, over the needs of her male lovers, but eventually settled down with a partner who understood her compulsion for covering war zones and their collateral casualties, and was secure enough to let her pursue her passion.
The narrative ends shortly after Addario gives birth to a son and settles down into working on longer-term magazine pieces, rather than fast-breaking news stories. In the "Afterword" chapter, Addario describes her return to work in Syria and the Kurdish region of Iraq, where each young refugee or hungry/sick child reminded her of her own son at home. She acknowledges that, in her line of work, there is a trade-off between having a successful career and child rearing.
This is a captivating book, which I recommend highly. From now on, I will have a much greater appreciation of war-zone photos accompanying news stories. If you can, get the hard-copy version, which I have seen described as containing many photographs.

2016/08/17 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Ultra-Orthodox Jews protesting against the government of Israel (1) On extremism: [On a Facebook post of a friend, I got engaged in a discussion about religious extremism. Some criticized me for daring to suggest similarities between extremist versions of Islam and Judaism. Here is my reply to these criticisms.]
Ultra-Orthodox Jews enjoy the security of living in Israel, are paid by the government without working, don't serve in the military (in fact they hate the state of Israel just as much as extremist Muslims do), demand and get segregated bus lines for men and women in their neighborhoods, abuse women (their own, as well as passersby on the streets if they are not properly attired), set fire to stores selling merchandise they don't like (such as MP3 players), brainwash their children, and clash with police whenever they don't get something they demand.
And all this is in the name of religion and culture, against their Jewish brothers and sisters. So, exactly how are these different from radical Muslims?
(2) On the health of presidential candidates: Clinton has released a standard certificate from an internist that attests to her health and also touches upon her family health history. Recently, conservatives have launched an attack against Clinton, citing all sorts of alleged health problems that make her unfit to serve as US President. This Newsweek article analyzes the ridiculous document that the Trump campaign has released as evidence of his health. It is clearly written by a non-medical-professional and signed, not by an internist, but by a gastroenterologist Trump has been seeing for 26 years. It asserts that all evaluations showed "only positive results" (which, in medical terminology, means that he had every possible disease imaginable)! It ends with this preposterous claim: "If elected, Mr. Trump, I can state unequivocally, will be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency." You can sort of tell who wrote the text of the letter from the foregoing statement, from all test results having been positive (of course, nothing about Trump can be "negative"), and from the claim that the test results were "astonishingly excellent." Will we hear the standard explanation that Trump was just kidding, or was being sarcastic, in forging this letter?
(3) On Clinton's health: After forging his own clean bill of health, Donald Trump and his cronies are circulating forged documents suggesting that Hillary Clinton is suffering from various ailments. Clinton's longtime physician, whose name appears atop the forged documents, has issued a statement calling the documents "false" and reiteraring her previous declaration that Clinton is "in excellent health and fit to serve as President of the United States." It's the same kind of campaign of lies that Obama faced during his run for presidency (and will no doubt yield the same results).
(4) A dozen brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Russian planes based in western Iran for Syria bombing missions (BBC)
- Man bought gun, killed family, three weeks after wife called cops (AP)
- Wall Street Journal to Trump: Start acting presidential or exit race
- Arsonist arrested, charged with northern California fire, 17 others (AP)
- US makes major Guantanamo transfer of prisoners to UAE (AFP)
- New York City teen, a bullying target, takes own life (ABC News)
- Apple to open R&D facility, increase investment in China (WSJ)
- Ford announces plans for fully-autonomous cars by 2021 (LA Times)
- Tools of hacked NSA's elite cyber-spy team offered for sale (IBT)
- Three die in India, throats slashed by glass-coated kite string (AP)
- Louisiana flooding damages at least 4000 homes (multiple sources)
- Federal officials eye interest rate hike later this year (Reuters)
(5) Daesh in Iran: Islamic Republic authorities claim to have busted the safe house of a Daesh/ISIS terror cell in the western city of Kermanshah. Whether this is an actual Daesh cell or the label is used to crush another dissident group remains to be seen.
(6) University of California loses a second chancellor: One week after UC Davis' Linda Katehi resigned in the wake of allegations of nepotism and financial improprieties, Nicholas B. Dirks of UC Berkeley has also resigned, after investigation into his mishandling of sexual harassment charges against faculty and personal use of public funds.

2016/08/16 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Ledecky, Phelps, and Biles with their Olympics gold medals on the cover of 'Sports Illustrated' (1) Look at all that gold! Swimmers Katie Ledecky and Michael Phelps, and gymnast Simone Biles, flaunting their gold medals. Biles has won a fourth gold medal since this photo was taken.
(2) A dozen brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Four members of US swim team robbed at gunpoint in Rio
- Ten Iranians arrested by Kuwait's coast guard
- Trump's campaign chief named in Ukraine corruption probe
- Syrains in Manbij shave, lift veils after ousting ISIL
- Northern California's Clayton fire casues 1000s to flee homes
- Alleged Saudi bombing kills 10 children at Yemeni school
- Woman and suspect die in Swiss train attack; 2 seriously hurt
- Thousands left homeless by rising floodwaters in Louisiana
- SpaceX rocket sends Japanese satellite into orbit, lands safely
- California lawmaker to introduce zero-emission vehicle bill
- Cannes burkini (burka-bikini) ban leads to heated exchanges
- Revolutionary Apple iPad changes forthcoming by 2018
(3) Shanghai ranking of world universities for 2016: There has been some rearrangement in the top-10 category, but the same 10 institutions appear at the top (Harvard, Stanford, UC Berkeley, Cambridge, MIT, Princeton, Oxford, Cal Tech, Columbia, Chicago). Seven other University of California campuses are in the top 100 (Los Angeles 12, San Diego 14, San Francisco 21, Santa Barbara 42, Irvine 58, Davis 75, Santa Cruz 83). Two Asian universities (Tsinghua, Nat'l U. Singapore) broke into top-100 for the first time. University of Tehran is bunched with 99 other universities in the 301-400 tier.
(4) Perfect example of a rhetorical question: We all know why Sharif University of Technology no longer occupies a top spot among highly ranked universities in Asia. This "Voice of America" news clip is from SUT Association's August 12-14 reunion in the Washington, DC, area, addressing the question above, among other topics.
(6) Final thought for the day: The Internet makes language more, not less, important. You have to know many words to precisely describe what you are looking for and to engage in thoughtful discourse with people who may not have the same background as yours. You have to know synonyms, and shades of differences between them, for successful searching.

Cover image of 'The Secret Holocaust Diaries'

2016/08/15 (Monday): Book review: Bannister, Nonna (with Denise George and Carolyn Tomlin), The Secret Holocaust Diaries: The Untold Story of Nonna Bannister, unabridged audiobook on 7 CDs, read by Rebecca Gallagher, Oasis Audio, 2009.
This is the life story of a Russian girl, who fled the horrors of Stalinist Russia, bound for a German labor camp, only to come face to face with the Nazi atrocities. At first, Nonna and her family chose not to evacuate, when Germany invaded Russia in 1941. Nonna and her mother were sent to a different village, which was deemed safer, while her father stayed home in hiding. He was eventually discovered and killed, prompting Nonna and her mother to flee.
Throughout her ordeal, Nonna coped by holding on to the memories of her happy, privileged childhood. She kept diaries in five different languages, which she eventually translated into English when she learned the language after making a life for herself in the US as the lone survivor of her family. Nonna and her mother survived the labor-camp stint and found work in Germany, Nonna as a clerical translator, due to her knowledge of multiple languages, and her mother as a nurse's aide.
During their train ride to Germany, Nonna's mother had been seen trying to help a Jewish boy, tossed to her and her group of women travelers by a panicked mother on a station platform, as their train was pulling away. The boy was later killed in a massacre, while helping save Nonna, who was inadvertently caught in the skirmish. Nonna's mother was arrested by the Gestapo, sent to a concentration camp, and was allegedly killed at the camp.
Nonna never allowed bitterness toward the savagery she witnessed and experienced destroy her faith and positive outlook. She kept the diaries and their contents to herself, locked in a green trunk in the attic; even her husband didn't learn about the diaries and their translation, until 40 years into their marriage. The extra material at the end of the book include an interview with Nonna Bannister, as an elderly woman.
Bannister's book is a stark reminder not only of the genocide experienced by European Jews, something that is still being denied by many, but also of what might have happened to other Europeans (Poles, Czechs, Russians, and others), had the allies not prevailed. This is an important book, but not an easy read/listen; there are frequent editorial commentaries that interrupt the flow of the narrative, which isn't very smooth or engaging to begin with. However, this is someone's real life and one should expect bumps and discontinuities that would have been smoothed out by editors, were the book a novel.
I chose to take the events described in this book at face value and give the author the benefit of doubt when certain passages didn't quite make sense. However, I'd like to point out that several other reviewers have expressed doubt about the veracity of the tales and have even questioned the honesty of the book's title, given that very little of the events occur at a concentration camp.

2016/08/14 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
(1) Quote of the day: "For every knee-jerk libertarian encrypting his banal emails, there is a Webcam exhibitionist begging you to look and see." ~ Donald P. Dulchinos, in Neurosphere, a book that I will review soon
(2) Word of the day: Disinfotaiment, an apt replacement for infotainment, given the current mass media trends.
(3) How a 125-year-old mass lynching of 11 Italian-Americans tried to make America great again.
(4) A dozen brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Turkey seeks 32 fugitive diplomats in post-coup inquiry
- Turkey's getting closer to Russia worries the West
- About 2000 Delta flights cancelled over 3 days
- Michael Phelps ends Olympics career with 23 golds
- Iran wins second Olympics gold medal in weightlifting
- Russian hacking compaign extends to Republicans
- Syrian opposition recaptures Manbij, a key ISIL post
- Afghanistan/Pakistan IS leader killed in US strike
- Imam, assistant fatally shot after leaving NYC mosque
- Unprecedented flooding slams US Gulf Coast; 3 dead
- California wildfire spreads, as crew brace for heat
- Health emergency declared in Puerto Rico over Zika
(5) Chimney fire burns 4000 acres in San Luis Obispo County: Hundreds of firefighters have been called to the scene of the fire, which is only 10% contained and is expected to grow significantly in the upcoming heat wave.
(6) Outdoor cafes alongside streams in Iran: This quaint joint, with special island booths, is located in a Kermanshah village (western Iran). And this inviting rest stop is one of the many along the popular Darband hiking trail in northern Tehran.
(7) Abhorent behavior of insurance companies: Tonight's CBS "60 Minutes" program contained a segment about how insurance companies made billions of dollars from life insurance policies, when beneficiaries did not come forward. Perhaps the policy was stuck in a shoebox and forgotten about, or the insured simply neglected to tell beneficiaries about the policy. In many cases, the companies knew about a policy holder's passing, yet they did not contact beneficiaries. They simply cancelled the policies for non-payment of premiums! In some cases, the companies continued to withdraw the premium from the policy holder's retirement account, despite the fact that their files contained information about the death.

2016/08/13 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Chart showing the level of support for Trump and Clinton over the past month (1) The rise and fall of Trump: His 4.5-point lag of a month ago turned into a slight lead, post convention, and is now at about 7.5 points. [Image credit: Time magazine, issue of August 22, 2016]
(2) Cartoon of the day: Trump supporters read from top to bottom; Clinton's, from bottom to top. [Image]
(3) History on Santa Barbara's de la Guerra Plaza: City Hall (with sidewalk arches) and the SB News Press building. [Photos]
(4) Santa Barbara's amphibian tour vehicle passes through a downtown street.
(5) Quick recipe for bite-size or snack pizzas: Yesterday, I used skinny sandwich buns as the base. These "buns," which come in packages of 8, making 16 tiny pizzas, are sold at Costco and many supermarkets. And here's a 12-second video that Facebook made from my posted photos.
(6) Graffiti artists use crocheting to add a splash of color to the streets of Stockholm.
(7) The inevitability of another war between Israel and Hezbollah: In southern Lebanon, Hezbollah has amassed at least 10,000 short- and medium-range missiles and a smaller number of long-range ones, collectively capable of reaching every population center in Israel, according to Newsweek on-line. Either Hezbollah will be tempted to use its arsenal or Israel will be tempted to try to eliminate it.
(8) Violinist Katica Illenyi plays "Jealousy Tango": Look for her version of the themes from "The Godfather" and "Schindler's List" and many other songs on YouTube.
(9) Humorous saying of the day: "If you love someone, set them free. If they come back, it means nobody liked them. Set them free again." ~ Anonymous (from the "English Jokes" Facebook page)

2016/08/12 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Chart depicting eight virtues and their deficiency and excess extremes (1) The virtue continuum: This is an old chart which I chanceed upon today. It illustrates eight virtues, along with the terms used to denote their deficiency and excess extremes.
(2) A quiet genocide: A documentary exposing how Iran's ruling clerics are bent on systematically and quietly eliminating the country's Baha'i minority.
(3) Quote of the day: "I've come to realize that opposing [Mr. Trump] is no longer a political decision. It is a moral one." ~ Brandon Stanton (of the "Humans of New York" fame)
(4) Putin comes to Trump's aid: The honoray Trump campaign worker explains how Obama created ISIL.
(5) Penguin can't muster the courage to dive, but eventually slips on the diving board and falls into the water. [Video]
(6) I think Trump is outsourcing his campaign ads to China, just like his clothing line and other merchandise. There are at least four errors in this short message.
(7) The US women's soccer team fell to Sweden in the Olympics quarterfinals 1-1 (4-5 in penalty kicks).
(8) I'm an Iranian-American Muslim: Comedian Negin Farsad's take on what it means to be an Iranian-American Muslim in the current climate.
(9) You should be thankful you don't live at the geographic center of the US: Here is why. The company MatchMind offers a service that matches IP addresses to geographic locations. The process is imprecise to begin with and, sometimes, there just isn't a way to tell. In the latter cases, the company has been using a default location that represents the United States. That default location, associated with some 600M IP addresses, happens to be a farm in Kansas, where a couple and a few other tenants live. The couple has sued the company, because over the past few years, they have been living in "digital hell," as targets of investigations for all sorts of crimes, from identity theft to child abduction. The local sheriff's department has been receiving "weekly reports about fraud, scams, stolen Facebook accounts, missing person reports" linked to the residence.

2016/08/11 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Time magazine cover image, depicting Donald Trump's meltdown (1) Meltdown: Donald Trump makes the Time magazine cover for the fifth time, but not in the way he would have liked!
(2) A diverse group of super-talented women gymnasts brings home the "team all-around" gold medal in Rio Olympics.
(3) UCSD Chancellor resigns: Linda Katehi had been suspended in April amid allegations of nepotism and misuse of student funds. UC President Janet Napolitano has issued a statement, saying that an internal investigation has found "numerous instances where Chancellor Katehi was not candid, either with me, the press, or the public (and) that she exercised poor judgment and violated multiple university policies." [Adapted from: San Francisco Chronicle]
(4) Olympics opening ceremonies: A journey through time, from 1908 to 2016.
(5) At Yugoslavia's prehistoric settlement known as "The Salt Pit," a 6300-year-old golden artifact has been discovered: The 2-gram sophisticated jewel appears to be made of nearly-pure (24 carat) gold.
(6) Norah Jones sings "Love Me Tender": Inspired by the just-announced October 27 concert at the Santa Barbara Bowl, I looked for her songs and found this Ken Darby classic tune, made famous by Elvis Presley.
Love me tender | Love me sweet | Never let me go | You have made my life complete | And I love you so
Love me tender | Love me true | All my dreams fulfilled | For, my darlin', I love you | And I always will
And here is Norah Jones' sultry rendition of Carole King's "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow."
(7) Is there another Republican candidate hidden in the wings? I am no conspiracy theorist, but ...
Could it be that all these Republicans who hate Trump are playing along and ignoring his absurd behavior, because they hope Trump will destroy both his own and Hillary Clinton's credibility, paving the way for an alternate candidate to prevail at the end?
(8) On mass executions in the 1980s Iran: An audio file has surfaced which includes the voice of Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri (Khomeini's protege, who later became persona non grata in the Islamic Republic and lived his final years under house arrest) addressing members of Iran's judiciary in 1988. He is heard directly admonishing those present for buckling under pressure from above in executing thousands of political prisoners who were serving jail terms of various durations, without any new indictments or evidence. Khomeini personally authorized the executions, but it seems that his son Ahmad was the instigator and the one who persuaded Khomeini to issue the edict.

2016/08/09 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
My new three-screen workstation at home (1) My new work station at home: Inspired by high-tech work stations seen in movies, I had been wanting to set up a large-screen laptop with two external monitors for some time. The multiple screens allow me to have my diary, ideas notebook, e-mail, contacts, a spreadsheet, my calendar, and several reference documents open and visible at once, as I work on research articles, books, and other writings. I finally finished the project over this past weekend and am now fine-tuning and enjoying the new set-up.
(2) Women of Marivan in western Iran protest a ban on their riding bicycles. [Photo]
(3) Olympics women's soccer: USA advanced to the quarterfinals stage after solidly beating New Zealand 2-0, edging France 1-0, and playing to a 2-2 draw in a disappointing match against Colombia today. The quarterfinals match for team USA will be on Friday, 8/12, 12:00 noon PDT.
(4) "Rows Garden" puzzles: A few days ago, I chanced upon a new kind of puzzle similar to a crossword (it has intersecting words), but much more challenging. There are rows of triangular boxes, with each row coming with clues, but the boundary between one clue answer and the next one is unknown. The triangles are also grouped into hexagons or blooms of three different kinds (light, medium, dark), each holding a 6-letter answer in clockwise or counterclockwise direction. The bloom clues are given for the tree groups, but are not associated with specific blooms. Here is an example from WSJ.
(5) Norway's awe-inspiring nature. [Video]
(6) Weeds or beautiful flowers? These purple and yellow flowers are weeds that have grown in the same flower strip that holds my beloved jasmines. They are obstructing both the walkway to my entry gate and part of the carport, yet I am hesitant to call in the gardeners for removing them.
(7) A four-decade-old memory: I had told this incident to family members several years ago and, recently, one of my sisters reminded me of it. One day, at Sharif University of Technology, I went to class and noticed that no one was there. On the blackboard, someone had written the message "class beh ellat-e naghs-e fanni ta'til ast" ("class cancelled due to technical difficulties'). Later, I discovered that a significant number of students had suffered from food poisoning at the school's cafeteria.

2016/08/08 (Monday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cumulative GDP growth chart under the two US parties (1) Cumulative US GDP growth under Democrats and Republicans.
(2) A dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Suicide attack targets lawyers at Pakistani hospital, kills 70 (Reuters)
- Pennsylvania couple and 3 children dead in murder-suicide (KABC)
- Both sides in Syria brace for for crucial battle over Alepo (CNN)
- Trump promises deep tax cuts to jump-start the economy (CNBC)
- Two US sky-divers dead after tandem chute fails to open (UPI)
- Swimmer Michael Phelps wins record 19th Olympics gold medal (UPI)
- Former Iran President writes to Obama over $2B court ruling (AFP)
- Young man murdered while playing Pokemaon in SF Park (LA Times)
- South Carolina girl dies from brain-eating amoeba (Reuters)
- Boy dies on 168-foot water slide in Kansas water park (AP)
- Stanford working on 1000x-faster memory chips (ACM Tech News)
- College Board reports theft of unpublished SAT exam material (WSJ)
(3) Egypt vs. Germany in beach volleyball: This BBC image from the Rio Olympics has stirred much controversy on Facebook and elsewhere. Some point out that both of these athletes must be respected for their clothing choices. Others compliment the Egyptian woman for her modesty and point out that hijab protects a woman's beauty. A third group maintains that the Egyptian woman's outfit isn't sufficiently Islamic. Still others criticize the Egyptian for even playing in front of men. A few hurl insults at the Egyptian woman for her backwardness. There are several other shades of the comments above. A final group blames the messenger, questioning BBC's motive in publishing this photo. Lost in all of these discussions is the match itself and the entire point of competitive sports in general. No doubt the Egyptian woman, and her sisters back home, gain some benefit from this opportunity to participate in the Olympics, but with modern technology, proper attire is as much part of competitive sports as technique and training. It's one thing to play beach volleyball with friends for fitness and fun. It's another thing to compete against the world's best athletes with one hand tied behind your back, metaphorically speaking.
(4) White House 2018: Comedy sketch featuring President Trump and his advisors in the Oval Office.
(5) Final thought for the day: One Facebook post saying that geniuses are often messy people, and every messy person in the world thinks that s/he is a genius!

2016/08/07 (Sunday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon: Hillary Clinton shown feeding a whining Sanders supporter a dose of reality (1) Cartoon of the day.
(2) Amazing artwork made from strings: I am sharing this video, even though I don't quite understand how it works, which makes me somewhat suspicious. An artist connects nails placed around the perimeter of a circular frame by threading strings between them, thereby creating a portrait. It is quite understandable that the dark areas representing the subject's hair or eyebrows are formed by denser placement of strings. What is unclear to me is how the eyes, eyelids, and lips are formed by controlling the string density.
(3) New sculpture made of silver streamers that float above a public square in Los Angeles.
(4) Understanding Donald Trump's rise: An eye-opening piece that suggests hatred for Trump should not extend to the bulk of his supporters. Writing in The Atlantic, the author draws from a book of history and a memoir, addressing the plight of the white underclass, all but forgotten by the elites on both sides of the political spectrum. The article can be viewed as sociopolitical commentary or as a double-book review.
(5) A wave of new executions in Iran includes some one dozen Sunni Muslims and a nuclear scientist.
(6) Members of an Iranian women's association at the time of the Constitutional Revolution 110 years ago.
(7) Old Spanish Days (Fiesta) celebrations: Yesterday and today, I attended a number of events and performances near downtown Santa Barbara, where large crowds and a wide array of street merchants participated in the festivities. On Saturday, there were quite a few music and dance performances. Here are a few music samples from a local band performing at the Paseo Nuevo Mall [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]. The Santa Barbara Courthouse was abuzz with people lounging on the lawn, awaiting the start of entertainment, or taking advantage of free guided tours of the historic building. I bought a few standard Fiesta souvenirs for loved ones, as I walked the streets.
On Sunday, I had my cartoon portrait drawn during a special Fiesta edition of the arts and crafts exhibits along Santa Barbara's Cabrillo Blvd. I had one of these done some 25 years ago in Hawaii, with mostly black hair, which needed updating! On the beach near Stearns Wharf, a group was protesting runaway military spending. One of their banners read, "More than 50% of our $18 trillion dollar debt is from our Mid East wars." Off the end of Stearns Wharf, sailboats, large and small, were taking advantage of a windy day. Strolling along Cabrillo Blvd., I photographed a few of the arts/crafts booths that had Spanish or Fiesta themes. As Fiesta celebrations were winding down, I captured this Mariachi band offering one of the last performances at the Paseo Nuevo Mall.
(8) Signing off with this advice to Iranian women: If you encounter a purse-snatcher on the street, remove your headscarf immediately. The morality police will get there much faster than the regular police. [From an uncredited Internet post]

Cover image for Mark Levin's 'Liberty and Tyranny'

2016/08/06 (Saturday): Book review: Levin, Mark R., Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto, unabridged audiobook on 6 CDs, read by Adam Grupper (with an introduction by the author), Simon & Schuster Audio, 2009.
I borrowed this audiobook from the public library in order to educate myself about the tenets of conservatism and the reasons for the widening liberal-conservative gap that has engendered uncivil behavior in executing the daily business of our country, such as the filling of important judicial and administrative positions. Levin, an attorney who had positions in President Reagan's administration, now hosts a syndicated radio show bearing his name. Prior to having his own radio show, Levin was a frequent guest on conservative talk shows such as "The Rush Limbaugh Show" and "The Sean Hannity Show."
There are two ways of evaluating a book such as this volume. One is to assess the ideas, that is, the tenets of conservatism with regard to strengths and weaknesses; structural consistency and contradictions. A second way is to assess how effectively the author expresses the ideas, that is, focusing on clarity and completeness. Levin does a pretty good job of communicating the tenets of conservatism as he sees them. I understand that not every conservative agrees with his formulation, but what he does present is clear and easily understood by a non-conservative such as myself. So, I devote the rest of this review to content.
If I were to summarize the conservative tenets, as presented by Levin, I would say that conservatives favor walls over open interactions. These walls aren't necessarily of the brick-and-mortar kind; they can be virtual or emotional walls between cultures, religions, races, and so on. For instance, conservatives abhor multiculturalism and bilingualism. They see nothing wrong with a small population consuming a lion's share of limited earth resources, because people on the other side of the national border are simply not as important as those inside the border. They hate to view America as one country among many, just as they hate to view themselves as one human being among many.
Conservatives view national healthcare as the mother of all entitlements, based on the theory that it limits a patient's choice, ignoring the fact that many patients have zero choice now, because they lack access. They are against campaign finance laws and believe that people with more money should have greater influence in elections. They are against any kind of restriction on personal rights to achieve a social good, because "God-given" rights should not be curtailed by humans.
Levin views liberals as "soft tyrants" and refers to them as "statists" (people for whom "the state," as opposed to the individual, is of prime importance). His criticism of government intervention is harsher at the federal level than at the state level, on the grounds that local politicians are more familiar with economic and cultural parameters of the citizens they represent. However, it is not clear why this granting of control should stop at the state level, rather than at the county or city level. State boundaries are just as arbitrary as national boundaries, often running through population centers and even tribes. Furthermore, large states such as California and New York are really countries by world standards.
A key problem with the book is that Levin's "statist" is a classic example of a strawman, built to be destroyed. What Levin attributes to this strawman is a large collection of actions and opinions with no attribution, using leading phrases such as "according to some" and "it is observed that." So, unless you are predisposed to accepting these accusations, you will be unlikely to subscribe to conclusions subsequently drawn from long chains of dependent statements.

2016/08/05 (Friday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cindy Lauper, 63, on the cover of AARP magazine (1) Girls just wanna have fun, even at 63: Cindy Lauper is featured on the cover of the August-September issue of AARP magazine, with an accompanying cover story about her life, which included an abusive childhood.
(2) Quote of the day: "Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony." ~ Thomas Merton
(3) Eight brief news items of the past couple of days:
- Apple offers bounties of up to $200K for finding security bugs (Reuters)
- Texas campus-carry-law goes into effect, stirs controversy (Chris. Sci. Monitor)
- Father charged in hot-car death of 15-month-old twin girls (Associated Press)
- British porn star travels to Iran for a nose job (Newsweek on-line)
- GOP sources: Donald Trump is expected to endorse Paul Ryan (CNN)
- Show-trials on Chinese TV signal new phase in attacks on rights (NY Times)
- Donald Trump hints at giving cabinet position to his daughter Ivanka (CNN)
- Rio Olympics open under a cloud of security and health risks (USA Today)
(4) Old Spanish Days (Fiesta): The annual celebration has been going on since Wednesday and will end on Sunday, August 7. I will sample some of the events this evening and over the weekend.
(5) Spectacular Olympics opening ceremony: A city representing Sao Paulo rises from the field, with performers dancing on rooftops and climbing buildings. Amazing effects and choreography!
(6) The final book of Nobel Laureate in Economics John Nash (of "A Beautiful Mind" fame) will be published posthumously: Co-authored with Michael Th. Rassias and entitled Open Problems in Mathematics (Springer, 2016), the book consists of essays on a number of beautiful math problems.
(7) This Iranian man wanted to feel, even if for a brief moment, what his sister feels at work all day under a mandatory headscarf.

2016/08/04 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Brewed coffee with dried rose buds added for flavor/aroma (1) Dried rose buds in coffee: I sometimes add dried rose buds to hot or iced tea for enhanced flavor and aroma. Today, I decided to try them in brewed coffee, with excellent results.
(2) A few one-liners, old and new.
- If in Poland we have Poles, what do we have in Holland? Holes?
- If love is blind, why do we need lingerie?
- If a piano player is a pianist, shouldn't a race-car driver be a racist?
- If "I am" is the shortest sentence, how come "I do" is the longest?
- Isn't smoking section in a restaurant like peeing section in a pool?
- When cheese gets its picture taken, what does it say?
- Why is the person investing your money called a "broker"?
- Why are "a wise man" and "a wise guy" opposites?
- Why do "overlook" and "oversee" mean opposite things?
- Why doesn't anyone say "it's only a game" when his team is ahead?
(3) Quote of the day: "We need to keep changing the attitude that raises our girls to be demure and our boys to be assertive, that criticizes our daughters for speaking out and our sons for shedding a tear." ~ President Barack Obama, who is celebrating his 55th birthday today
(4) President Obama pens a feminist essay in Glamour magazine: "... perhaps the greatest unexpected gift of this job has been living above the store. For many years my life was consumed by long commutes—from my home in Chicago to Springfield, Illinois, as a state senator, and then to Washington, D.C., as a United States senator. It's often meant I had to work even harder to be the kind of husband and father I want to be."
(5) Our amazing universe: This video takes you from a patch of lawn out to the boundary of the known universe, and back, and then journeys inside the body to the level of smallest physical particles known, and back, all in one continuous shot.
(6) Final thought for the day: What would Donald Trump's reaction be if someone told him that it is impossible for an overweight man with a potbelly and a combover to be a ten? Just wondering!

2016/08/03 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Salads and yogurt dips (1) My assembly-line production of salads and two kinds of Persian yogurt dip (maast-o-khiaar and maast-o-moosir).
(2) Cinema under a roof: There's no "Cinema under the Stars" this week, because of Fiesta events at the Santa Barbara Courthouse. So, I decided to see this evening's screening of "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" at UCSB's Campbell Hall. This B&W western, starring Humphrey Bogart (no Lauren Bacall in this one; in fact, no significant female character), features a dizzying number of plot twists. It is quite naive in many senses, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
(3) Quote of the day: "Some have commented on my Facebook [page] that the reason I don't have a picture of myself together with my wife in here, is "gheirat" [a word used to refer to a controlling, protective behavior that a man in certain cultures shows towards the women of his family by not allowing them to be or act sexy in presence of other men. Showing the woman's body/face, unless necessary, is considered sexy by some people affected by this culture]. I should say what these people call "gheirat" is in fact vile perversity. [Real] Gheirat means to be sensitive to [well-being of] your loved ones [and not how much skin they show], to defend their rights and freedoms, and to share in their pain." ~ From a post on "My Stealthy Freedom" Facebook page, with minor corrections in spelling and punctuation
(4) I can't decide whether this is an actual musical instrument or consists in part of virtual-reality elements. Either way, it is impressive!
(5) Fourteen brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Khamenei dismisses talks with the US on regional issues (Newsweek on-line)
- Five killed after bus collides with pole on California highway (ABC News)
- US Navy's massive show of force in the Pacific aimed at China (Business Insider)
- Trump won't support Paul Ryan's and John McCain's reelection bids
- US looking into allegations of toxic gas dropped on Syrian town (Reuters)
- The so-called "ABC proof" may lead to giant math advance (New Scientist)
- Flossing teeth not as beneficial as previously claimed (New York Times)
- Trump says he will give Christianity power in the US (Business Insider)
- US government expands research efforts and funding for drones (USA Today)
- Six charged with concealing lead levels in Flint, Michigan, water (ABC News)
- Private college presidents slam Clinton's free-college plan (Politico)
- Plane crash-lands in Dubai and explodes; a firefighter is killed (ABC News)
- First-ever cop charged with aiding ISIS arrested in New York (ABC News)
- US women beat New Zealand 2-0 in Olympics soccer (Associated Press)
(6) Shardad Rohani to lead the Tehran Symphony Orchestra on a permanent basis: Earlier, he led the orchestra as guest conductor, but his new role has led to some resistance and controversy.
(7) Final thought for the day: I sure hope that Trump isn't assassinated. Political assassinations are morally wrong in every case, but this particular one would also turn him from a failed presidential candidate into a martyr.

2016/08/01 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Google search trends for 'eu' and 'brexit' immediately after the UK referandum (1) Did the Brits know exactly what they were voting for? According to E&T magazine, issue of August/September 2016, the number of Google searches for "what is the eu" and "what is brexit" continued to climb in the UK for more than 8 hours after the polls closed on June 13.
(2) Jumping 7600m from a plane without a parachute (landing in a 30m-by-30m net).
(3) Throwable-ball 360-degree camera: This Panono camera has 36 lenses placed around a ball the size of a large orange. You can throw it up in the air and capture a fantastic 3D view of your location. At around 1500 euros, it is quite pricey at this time.
(4) The BuzzBee nanodrone: This 7-gram quadcopter fits inside a cube of side-length 3 cm.
(5) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Donald Trump escalates feud with Muslim soldier's family
- Trump tries to clarify comments about Russia and Ukraine
- FBI employee pleads guilty to acting as agent of China
- Rebels shoot down Russian helicopter in Syria: five killed
- Violent weekend produces at least 20 deaths in Mexico
- Hot-air balloon hits power lines in Texas, killing 16 on board
- Maryland town devastated by floodwaters after 7 inches of rain
- Average Iranian not benefiting from nuclear deal: Khamenei
(6) Boy plays the Iranian song "Jaan-e Maryam" on the piano, but with a twist!
(7) The art of Maxim Grunin, condensed into this 1-minute time-lapse video.
(8) Abbas Kiarostami's final resting place in Lavasan, Iran, and a Rumi verse (with English translation) about flowers growing on dirt, not on rock.
(9) The Mathematics Department at Sharif University of Technology in Iran has named its library after alumna and first-ever female Fields Medal winner Maryam Mirzakhani.

2016/07/31 (Sunday): Book review: Klein, Naomi, This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate, unabridged audiobook on 17 CDs, read by Ellen Archer, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2014.
Cover image for Naomi Klein's 'This Changes Everything' In his 1961 UN address, President Kennedy spoke of the need for every single person on Earth to "contemplate the day when this planet may no longer be habitable." He might have as well been speaking about climate change, although his comments were triggered by the potential devastation from hydrogen bombs.
In this anti-globalization manifesto, Klein maintains that the consumption mentality promoted by capitalism makes it impossible to save our planet. She presents an extensive list of arguments and case studies that seem to support her views. She criticizes not only "Big Oil" (which continues to view the atmosphere as a waste dump, while receiving government subsidies), but also "Big Green" (which accepts contributions from major polluters and promotes remedies that are drawn up by such offenders).
As I listened to Klein's impressive compilation, I was constantly torn between her extreme, but utterly impractical, proposals and the stepwise plans of mainstream advocates of clean energy and environmental stewardship. A good example is the cap-and-trade scheme, which uses market forces to make a dent in the pollution caused by fossil fuels. It isn't a perfect system and some corporations manipulate it to their advantage. But rather than proposing fixes for the problems, Klein wants to throw the baby out with the bath water. Perhaps in a perfect world, we could leave fossil fuels where they are and stop extraction altogether, but this plan isn't workable in the absence of a global world government.
Similarly, Klein's argument that advanced countries should contribute more to the clean-up effort and to promoting alternative energy makes perfect sense. After all, such countries had a head start in using polluting technologies to advance their economies and thus cannot expect others to forego the same advances, just because they arrived late at the game. But rather than resorting to shaming and guilt for activities that were not seen as harmful at the time, win-win strategies (something that Klein ridicules) should be formulated, if all countries are to be persuaded to pitch in according to their resources and technological prowess.
Despite the criticisms above, I highly recommend this eye-opening book. The problems enumerated are spot-on; it is with Klein's solution strategies and remedies that I disagree in part. The engineer in me also disagrees with her wholesale dismissal of technological solutions, even as temporary fixes until we develop the means and the will to pursue more permanent solutions.

2016/07/30 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
US election day is Tuesday, November 8, 2016 (1) End of political discussions on Facebook for me: Following initiatives by several like-minded friends, who grew tired of lengthy and time-consuming political discussions on Facebook, where each posting garners likes and positive remarks from the same camp and endless repetition of talking points (often with no direct bearing on the post's subject) from the other side, with no mind ever changed by the arguments presented, I am suspending my FB political posts and commentaries for 2016.
If, by some miracle, constructive and civil exchanges become possible on FB, I will reconsider this decision. Meanwhile, I will continue with posts on science, technology, education, music, books, curiosities, and puzzles.
(2) Quote of the day: "Like Nixon before him, only more so, Trump seems to view the presidency as personal spoils for the victor, rather than a public trust." ~ Michael C. Dorf, writing in a Newsweek opinion piece
(3) The fake app that fooled many: Pooper, an app that summons others to scoop up your dog's poop, is an overnight success, except for one minor detail ... It's a spoof!
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Dozens of Russian athletes banned from the Rio Olympics (those banned include track stars and weightlifters)
- Zika spreads in the US via local mosquitoes (one woman and three men infected in Florida)
- Instagram introduces new feature to fight on-line harassment
- Snowden and WikiLeaks feud over ethical disclosure of secrets (WikiLeaks is against even modest curation)
- No tsunami expected from the 7.7-magnitude Pacific quake
- The deadly Big Sur wildfire is expected to grow severely (5000 are fighting the blaze at a cost of $6M/day)
(5) Campaign against mandatory hijab in Iran: First it was women taking hijabless photos and posting them on the "My Stealthy Freedom" Facebook page. Now, men have joined in by experiencing first-hand the humiliation and discomfort of forced hijab, particularly on these hot summer days. Here is my contribution to the campaign (I had only a Gauchos soccer scarf to use for this selfie).
(6) Finally, with party conventions over, we can look forward to more pleasant news coverage. Let the summer Olympics begin!
(7) Last night at LA's Greek Theater: I attended an enjoyable concert by Chris Botti (trumpet maestro) and The Tenors (Canadian vocal group). The Tenors opened their set with the old favorite "Besame Mucho" (written in 1940 by Mexican songwriter Consuelo Velazquez) and performed many other classics. Here is a jazz favorite, performed by Botti and his fabulous group of musicians. Both groups had David Foster join them as a surprise guest, with Botti performing an improvised version of "Summertime" with him. Botti also summoned The Tenors to the stage for this joint performance of "Time to Say Goodbye."

2016/07/29 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
(1) Concert in the Park: Last evening's final installment of the summer 2016 concert series at Santa Barbara's Chase Palm Park featured The Tearaways, self-described as "the British invasion meets California surf." The band played many songs, including several by The Beatles. ["Chains"] ["Can't Buy Me Love"] ["One after 909"]
(2) Quote of the day (long, but worth reading): "I would be 'dead rich', to adapt an infamous Clinton phrase, if I could bill for all the hours I've spent covering just about every 'scandal' that has enveloped the Clintons. As an editor I've launched investigations into her business dealings, her fundraising, her foundation and her marriage. As a reporter my stories stretch back to Whitewater. I'm not a favorite in Hillaryland. That makes what I want to say next surprising. Hillary Clinton is fundamentally honest and trustworthy. ... Many investigative articles about Clinton end up 'raising serious questions' about 'potential' conflicts of interest or lapses in her judgment. Of course, she should be held accountable. It was bad judgment, as she has said, to use a private email server. It was colossally stupid to take those hefty speaking fees, but not corrupt. There are no instances I know of where Clinton was doing the bidding of a donor or benefactor. ... I can see why so many voters believe Clinton is hiding something because her instinct is to withhold ... Clinton distrusts the press more than any politician I have covered. In her view, journalists breach the perimeter and echo scurrilous claims about her circulated by unreliable rightwing foes." ~ Jill Abramson, a journalist who has followed the Clintons for more than two decades, writing in The Guardian
(3) The puzzle of some Bernie Sanders supporters: I know who to blame if Donald Trump becomes our 45th President. I see a minority of Bernie Sanders supporters who are going all the way in making Hillary Clinton look bad, more so, in many cases, than the efforts by her Republican opposition. Their doing the bidding for Trump may be because they think this corrupt and dysfunctional political system cannot be fixed unless it is completely gutted. Let's hope they don't succeed or, if they do, the entire world is not gutted as a result of conflicts that would make the fight against ISIL look like a minor skirmish by comparison.
(4) The incredible dinosaur wall of Bolivia: Dinosaur tracks are clearly visible on this near-vertical limestone slab that is 300 feet high. The 462 discrete trails on the wall reveal more than 5000 footsteps. No, the dinosaurs did not defy gravity; millions of years ago, this immense wall was a muddy plain upon which dinosaurs frolicked. The strange footstep patterns have prompted palaeontologists to call it "the dinosaur dance floor."
(5) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Melania Trump's Web site has mysteriously disappeared (it now redirects to Donald Trump's official site)
- Egypt jails doctor found guilty of female genital mutilation (the first-ever such punishment)
- Amazon founder Jeff Bezos becomes world's third richest (he owns 18% of Amazon's stock)
- US slated to get its first offshore wind farm (Deepwater Wind and GE Renewable Energy are partners)
- Catholic demographic has picked the US President for 4 decades (as the Catholics go, so goes the nation)
- ISIL seizes Syrian village, executes 24 civilians (village was seized from US-backed Kurd-Arab alliance)
(6) Hope versus darkness: Only conservative racists can interpret a message of hope and possibility as a divisive one. Michelle Obama said in her DNC speech that she wakes up every morning in a house built by slaves and is heartened to see her daughters play with their dog on the lawn. Her message of "look how far we have come" has been flipped on social media to "I hate this place." There is nothing a black woman can say that would not offend bigots and racists!

2016/07/28 (Thursdsay): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Persian poem to commemorate Mrs. Parvin Shadi's passing (1) Rest in peace, Parvin Shadi! Yesterday, I attended a memorial service for an uncle's mother-in-law, during which her children and grandchildren spoke lovingly about her and what she meant to them. I was inspired to write the following Persian poem, which I dedicate to Mrs. Shadi's family.
(2) Joe Klein, on the US presidential election: Closing of his column in Time magazine, issue of August 1, 2016.
(3) Several right-wing Web sites have claimed that American flags (in physical or digital form) were banned at the DNC Convention in Philadelphia. Here is evidence from Snopes.com that the claims are false.
(4) Anti-Trump delegates nearly upended his candidacy: A majority from seven delegations was needed to force a roll call, and the rebels initially got nine. GOP leaders and Trump campaign staff managed to reverse the results of three delegations by pressuring some delegates to take back their signatures in the nick of time. [Source: Time magazine, issue of August 1, 2016]
(5) Fantastic speech by Michelle Obama: If Trump runs again in four years and if he is still married to someone with limited English skills, we may hear parts of this speech again!
(6) Not even a hint of subtlety: "This uprising is a gift from God to us because this will be a reason to cleanse our army." ~ Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of Turkey
(7) Messaging services on the rise. [Chart] [Source: Time magazine, issue of August 1, 2016]
(8) Interesting fact about the number of days in a year: 365 = 10^2 + 11^2 + 12^2 = 13^2 + 14^2
(9) Costco French baguettes are the best in my neck of the woods and they make excellent pizzas!

Cover of the audibook 'Why We Want You to Be Rich' 2016/07/26 (Tuesday): Book review: Trump, Donald J. and Robert T. Kiyosaki (with Meredith McIver and Sharon Lechter), Why We Want You to Be Rich: Two Men — One Message, abridged audiobook on 5 CDs, read by John Dossett and Skipp Sudduth, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2006.
I chanced upon this audiobook at the Goleta Public Library, and not having read any book by the Republican presidential candidate, decided to check it out. Going in with low expectations, I can't say that I was disappointed.
The authors, billionaire businessman Donald Trump and millionaire writer (Rich Dad, Poor Dad) Robert Kiyosaki, clarify early on that this isn't a how-to book. Their thesis is that the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer, with the middle class gradually disappearing. So your options are to get rich or to become/remain poor.
Social Security and Medicare are ridiculed as welfare programs that nurture dependency, totally ignoring the fact that Americans pay into these programs, which are, or should be, if correctly managed, forms of savings/investment, not welfare. To be fair, the authors also attack corporate welfare. Leveraged investment is praised, without specifying how everyone can engage in them, without there being ordinary savers whose savings are used (in the form of loans) to provide the requisite leverage.
This book isn't a typical collaborative work between two authors (four, actually, but the role of the two female authors is unclear). Rather, it reads like a set of interview questions to which the two rich men provide separate answers, quoting and lavishly complimenting each other in the process. Trump, in particular, does not seem to have invested (pun intended) much time in preparing his answers. This gem from Trump, about the challenge of forecasting, is typical of his content-free statements: "The future has changed dramatically from what it was a few decades ago."
Both authors use cliches and general statements we have heard many times and from many different sources before. The same empty slogans, such as "investing to win," are repeated in multiple contexts. There is one piece of advice, though, that is well worth heeding: It is important that we pay attention to our own and our children's financial education. Currently, high schools and colleges teach next to nothing in this regard.
Bottom line: I don't think this (audio)book provides adequate value for the time spent on it, unless, like me, you want to learn firsthand what the current Republican presidential candidate is all about.

2016/07/25 (Monday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cartoonish image of Trump and Clinton in US flag colors (1) The Republicans' women problem: The upcoming US presidential election is shaping up to be historic for women. Not only is the first major-party female candidate slated to win, but she will win with unprecedented support from women voters (a recent poll gives her a 52-to-36 percent edge among women voters; Obama won the women's vote by 12% [Source: Newsweek]).
Recognizing their problem with women, the RNC lined up a wide array of women speakers at the GOP convention last week. However, in his 75-minute acceptance speech, Trump himself mentioned women only twice. Heckling of Ted Cruz's wife, who was removed from the convention hall for fear of her safety, T-shirts worn and sold at the site with inscriptions such as "Trump that Bitch!" and "Clinton sucks, but not as much as Monica," and a smear campaign against Ivana, Trump's ex and Ivanka's mom, are more telling in this regard. [Image adapted from a recent New Yorker sales ad.]
(2) Fourteen brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- Ten killed in Munich shooting by German-Iranian teen
- Democratic VP pick Tim Kaine appears with Clinton in Miami
- UC to curb study-abroad programs after student deaths
- Syrian refugee kills woman, injures two in Germany
- DNC chair, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, resigns post
- Democratic National Convention opens in Philadelphia
- Sanders, vindicated by e-mail leaks, still backs Clinton
- FBI to investigate the hacking of DNC computers
- Yahoo sold to US telecommunications giant Verizon
- Southern California wildfires cause mass evacuations
- Turkey issues arrest warrants for 42 journalists
- Nintendo shares crash as Pokemon Go's value revised
- Japan Sagamihara knife attack leaves at least 15 dead
- President Obama's half-brother supports Donald Trump
(3) Lesson from the past: During the 2000 presidential election, Nader won 97,488 votes in Florida; Gore lost the state (and, therefore, the presidency) by 537 votes, that is, 0.55% of Nader votes. In other words, had Gore won 50.3% of Nader votes to Bush's 49.7%, the election would have flipped. In the wake of DNC's e-mail leaks, Donald Trump just praised supporters of Bernie Sanders, claiming that Sanders gave up too soon. Think carefully about what Trump is trying to do.
(4) Iranian-American Rudi Bakhtiar joins the group of woman alleging sexual harassment at Fox News.
(5) Quote of the day: "I am ninth-generation American. We did not cross the border, the border crossed us." ~ Actress Eva Longoria, speaking at the Democratic National Convention, alluding to the fact that Texas was once part of Mexico

2016/07/23 (Saturday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Two samples of Persian calligraphy (1) Persian calligraphy has endless variations: Sometimes it's just the words; at other times, it includes ornamental designs.
(2) Human cells are regenerated at various rates: Your skin, bones, and red blood cells are replaced completely after a while. But half of your heart remains the same from birth to death, as does 100% of your eyes' lenses.
(3) Iran is one of the countries that will experience extreme drought in the coming decades: Cruelty to animals and indifference to the destruction of nature have been the norms in the past. But a vigorous environmental movement is afoot and is expanding rapidly.
(4) I posted this photo of Trump's home on someone's Facebook status that criticized Hillary Clinton for being an elitist, because she wore an expensive jacket.
(5) A star is born: Jayna Brown is only 14, which makes her voice and this highly seasoned performance even more remarkable.
(6) Honda has recalled a large number of Civic models (2006-2011): The defect that prompted the recall has to do with "over-aggressive combustion" when the passenger-side airbag is activated, leading to a number of metal fragments passing through the airbag and causing serious injuries. As if the 2-5 months of delay before the availability of replacement parts isn't bad enough, Honda suggests, rather nonchalantly, "that you avoid having a passenger sit in the front passenger's seat until the recall repair has been performed." Just a minor inconvenience, I guess!
(7) Today's walk around Santa Barbara Harbor's breakwater: After reaching the end of the concrete wall that separates the harbor from the ocean, and taking photos in various directions (Stearns Wharf, downtown SB) and of a memorial for those lost at sea, I proceeded to walk on top of an 8-inch-wide wooden wall, shored up on both sides with rocks, to get to the entry channel for the harbor. There is a fairly large beach at the end of the narrow wooden walkway. It's hard to believe that all the people enjoying this sunny Saturday got there through the same narrow path. Some likely got to this wonderful beach on canoes and paddle boards rented on the other side of the entry channel. Finally, I made my way back, first atop these rocks and then over the wooden wall. And here are a couple of videos shot from the top of the rocks. [Video 1] [Video 2]

2016/07/22 (Friday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Friedrich Bayer Bridge in Sao Paulo, Brazil Infinite Bridge in Aarhus, Denmark (1) Unusual bridges: Infinite Bridge in Aarhus, Denmark, and Friedrich Bayer Bridge in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
(2) These six British siblings have been playing music together for most of their lives. [3-minute video]
(3) Donald Trump paints a gloomy picture of today's America: Fact-checkers have already pointed to serious errors and gross exaggerations in Trump's 75-minute acceptance speech, the longest in four decades. Regardless of whether the errors were deliberate or represented lack of perspective on the US economy and national security, Trump should be asked why the markets and consumer confidence have not plummeted as a result, a characteristic reaction to a dire state of affairs in a capitalistic system? Quite the opposite, both DJ and S&P are up by about 6% for the year. And what was with Ivanka Trump sounding like Hillary Clinton in talking about child care, family leave, and other women's issues? Why haven't any of these topics been discussed by Trump himself?
(4) Movie under the stars: Tonight's screening of "To Have and Have Not" (based on a novel by Ernest Hemingway) was the third in the summer 2016 series of films at Santa Barbara Courthouse's Sunken Garden, featuring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. I missed the first two, "The Maltese Falcon" and "Casablanca," due to travel and other commitments.
Cover image for Lahiri's 'In Other Words' (5) Brief book review: Lahiri, Jhumpa, In Other Words, unabridged audiobook on 6 CDs, read by the author in English and Italian, Randomhouse Audio, 2016.
Lahiri, who earned three MA degrees in various fields and a PhD in Renaissance Studies from Boston University, rose to fame when she received multiple honors, including a Pulitzer Prize, for Interpreter of Maladies, a collection of short stories set in India and the US. This autobiographical book is Lahiri's love letter to the Italian language, which she studied for many years, before moving to Rome to immerse herself in the language.
Lahiri believes that writing in a different language allows her to break the molds and express herself more freely, perhaps even finding a new voice in the process. Yet, no matter how hard she tried in Italy, she was not accommodated by the local population, because she does not look Italian. Her husband, on the other hand, found it much easier to blend in, because of his southern European looks, despite being less proficient in the language than Lahiri.
I listened only to the introductory parts of the book, which are written in English, sampling the Italian chapters to get a sense of the language and the author's passion for it.

2016/07/21 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Photo of the 1949 solar-powered death ray built in the French Pyrenees (1) Hot! Hot! Hot! "Constructed in 1949 in the citadel of Mont-Louis in the French Pyrenees, this solar-powered death ray used concentrated photonic energy to melt just about anything that wandered into its 3000 °C beam. It was never used in combat due to an easily exploitable 12-hour safety lockout (otherwise known as nighttime) and was eventually repurposed to fire decorative pottery." [From: IEEE Spectrum magazine, issue of July 2016]
(2) Is Donald Trump a sociopath, as claimed by his biographer and ghostwriter? This article in The Atlantic presents a convincing case.
(3) It's not about supporting Clinton: It's about safeguarding the Environmental Protection Agency, Clean Air Act. Clean Water Act, Social Security, Medicare, Voting Rights Act, gender equality, marriage equality, affordable healthcare and public education, etc. To make a long story short, preventing 80 years of progress from being wiped out in a few years. [Adapted from multiple sources.]
(4) Jon Stewart returns to his Daily Show style on Colbert's Late Show and exposes the hypocrisy of some conservatives, who embrace in Donald Trump the very qualities they said they hated about Barack Obama.
(5) Wonderful ventriloquist routine, with live dummies.
(6) My walk along Santa Barbara's East Beach: One sees all sorts of strange vehicles along the SB waterfront. The blue barge is a mystery, as it does not fit in with sailboats and house boats one usually sees in this area. The beach volleyball courts are deserted on this very hot afternoon. Having walked all the way to Santa Barbara Zoo's bird refuge and SB Cemetery, I decided to try returning to Chase Palm Park for this evening's concert from the other side of the lake, but, alas, the trail ended about 3/4 of the way around, forcing me to trace my steps back via Cabrillo Blvd. On the return path, I saw a beachside inn, with very expensive breakfast! And this hotel, which my family should recognize, was getting ready for a wedding reception.
(7) This evening's concert in the park: Queen Nation, a Queen tribute band, was featured in this evening's concert at Santa Barbara's Chase Palm Park. Other than rock tunes with fantastic, complicated rhythms, Queen Nation's music includes some impressive ballads, with guitar and keyboard improvisations. Queen Nation performed "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" to the attendees' delight. Of course, no Queen tribute would be complete without "Under Pressure" and "We Will Rock You." Tandem bicycles and other unusual transports were parked everywhere at Chase Palm Park this evening.

2016/07/20 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Science answers the chicken-versus-egg question (1) Science answers an age-old question: Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
(2) A dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Film and TV legend, director Garry Marshall, dead at 81
- Pro-Hamas protesters trap Jews in a Paris synagogue
- Roger Ailes of Fox News ousted for sexual misconduct
- Failed Turkey coup attempt poisons relations with US
- As many as 50,000 purged in the aftermath of Turkey coup
- Erdogan supporters attack and destroy a bookstore
- NY to host 1st presidential debate after Ohio bows out
- Ben Carson connects Clinton to Satan in RNC address
- More than 100 Chinese Muslims have joined ISIS
- Two dozen children killed by airstrikes in Manbij, Syria
- Moroccan man stabs woman and 3 daughters in French Alps
- Philippines' ex-president Arroyo freed from jail after 5 years
(3) Welcome to politics, Mr. Trump! Insults and mockery have a way of catching up with you. Getting things done requires gathering smart and influential allies, at least within your own party, if not across the aisle and within the mass media. [With reference to Donald Trump's tweet: "The media is spending more time doing a forensic analysis of Melania's speech than the FBI spent on Hillary's emails."]
(4) At tonight's GOP convention: Newt Gingrich, a man with many skeletons in his closet, lectured Americans about the importance of honesty in elected officials. He is guilty of: "Repeated adultery with younger women, while each successive wife was seriously ill. Attacking mortgage lender Freddie Mac, while secretly getting paid $1.6 million as a lobbyist for them. A half-million charge account at Tiffany's Jewelers for his latest, youngest woman (that we know of). Attacking Congress for gridlock, when he personally led the destruction of Congress' civility and traditions in the 1980s as a 'bomb-thrower' and evil genius tactician."
(5) It's been a while since I posted a flashmob: Children's symphony orchestra and choir pull it off beautifully at a shopping mall (or maybe it's a department store).
(6) Long walk on Goleta Beach: It was a beautiful afternoon for my planned 6-mile walk, going east from Goleta Beach. However, after about 1.5 miles, I encountered this impasse, at least with the shoes I was wearing and the prevailing tide level. I will have to come back to this section of the beach, which I explored for the first time today, after living in the area for 28 years. This photo was taken from atop a wall of rocks, placed along the east shore to prevent further beach erosion. Here are a few more photos from my walk. Goleta pier begins and ends this 360-degree video, with novice canoeists and UCSB campus appearing in the middle.

2016/07/19 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Three cartoons about the future of Earth and Earth Day (1) Cartoons of the day: The future of Earth and Earth Day.
(2) Remembering Nelson Mandela: Champion of human rights around the world. Yesterday was Nelson Mandela Day.
(3) Ten brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- GOP convention opens amid chaos, inside & outside the hall
- Melania Trump accused of plagiarizing her convention speech
- Paul Ryan and Chris Christie spoke on RNC's second day
- Chilcot report: Bush ignored warnings before Iraq invasion
- Mercedes deploys first self-driving city bus in Amsterdam
- Germany to require "black boxes" for self-driving vehicles
- Pakistani brother strangles his model sister in honor killing
- Indian rape survivor gang-raped again by the same men
- Taiwan tour bus inferno kills 26, mainly Chinese tourists
- SoCal beaches closed after massive raw sewage spill
(4) There is no end to the ingenuity of scammers for stealing your personal info. Be vigilant!
(5) Plagiarism in the spotlight: I believe that Melania Trump is a victim in the raging plagiarism controversy. In many countries of the world, copying someone's words (or homework or designs) isn't viewed as a moral transgression. She has been ill-served by advisers who should have known better than to leave this newcomer to the ocean of politics to swim on her own. She should have been given crash courses in the English language and the American culture.
(6) Chris Christie wants to be Attorney General: After Christie spoke at tonight's GOP convention, pundits pointed out that his speech sounded like he was auditioning for the AG position. He read out a list of Clinton offenses, asking the crowd for a "guilty" verdict after each item. Ironically, nothing disqualifies someone from assuming a legal position than trying an accused with no legal representation, based only on prosecutorial claims and cheers from a friendly crowd.
A Rumi quatrain and two of mine inspired by it
(7) Persian love poetry: My latest quatrains (above, left and middle), inspired by a Rumi quatrain (above, right). I composed these couplets on recent long flights between Los Angeles and Taipei, as a way to pass time.

2016/07/17 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Calligraphic rendition of a couple of verses from Rumi (1) Beautiful calligraphic rendition of a couple of verses from Rumi: Artwork by Esrafil Shirchi.
(2) A hard pill to swallow: US male doctors make on average $20,000 per year more than equally experienced female doctors. [Info from: Time magazine, issue of July 25, 2016]
(3) A fascinating optical illusion.
(4) The little pianist, with amazing talent and focus.
(5) President Obama's personal side: His opponents have called him "the worst President ever," "divisive," "traitorous," and "Manchurian President." I, for one, will miss this cultured, eloquent, and self-deprecating man, who did a great job of cleaning up the mess left by his predecessor, no matter who replaces him next year.
(6) This app (Photomyne) was suggested to me by Facebook: Maybe I'll finally be able to digitize all the old photos in my albums.
(7) Here are half-dozen one-liners from Jewish comedians.
- A Jewish man said that when he was growing up, they always had two choices for dinner—Take it or leave it.
- I've been in love with the same woman for 49 years. If my wife finds out, she'll kill me!
- My wife and I went to a hotel where we got a waterbed. My wife calls it the Dead Sea.
- I just got back from a pleasure trip. I took my mother-in-law to the airport.
- Judge to drunk: "You've been brought here for drinking." Drunk: "Okay, let's get started."
- The Doctor gave a man 6 months to live. He couldn't pay his bill, so the doctor gave him another 6 months.

2016/07/16 (Saturday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Bugs changing a friend's burned-out bulb (1) Cartoon of the day: Another one involving light-bulbs!
(2) The military coup, which began unfolding in Turkey yesterday, seems to have been neutralized by government forces.
(3) Obama's peer-reviewed scholarly article in JAMA is a first for a sitting US President: The article's title is "United States Health Care Reform: Progress to Date and Next Steps."
(4) Obon Festival and Dance: Obon, or just Bon, is a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one's ancestors. The tradition, which includes a dance known as Bon-Odori, has evolved into a family reunion holiday, during which people return to ancestral places and clean their ancestors' graves. Today's festival, held at the Buddhist Church of Santa Barbara, included music (flute, drums), dancing, and Aikido/Judo demonstrations by my son, Sepehr, and other members of his school. [Aikido 1] [Aikido 2] [Aikido 3] [Judo]

Cover image for the course 'Emerson, Thoreau, and the Transcendentalist Movement' 2016/07/15 (Friday): Course review: Nichols, Ashton (Professor of English Language and Literature at Dickinson College), Emerson, Thoreau, and the Transcendentalist Movement, 24 lectures in the "Great Courses" series, The Teaching Company, 2006.
How did America evolve from its colonial past, where slavery was more than tolerated and education was meant to break the will and subdue the spirit, to its current version, a country that champions human rights and encourages students to learn through independent thinking and active participation?
The thesis of this course is that Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau played key leadership roles in defining and championing a number of American values, including rugged individualism, respect for human (as well as women's and minority) rights, love of nature, and more. Boston and the town of Concord, Massachusetts, were major centers of thought in the 1800s that created and nurtured what later became known as Transcendentalism, a world view that considers divinity pervading all nature and humanity; an antidote to rationalism. The titles of this excellent course's 24 lectures follow.
01. Emerson, Thoreau, and Transcendentalism    02. The Roots of American Transcendentalism
03. Emerson and the Idea of America    04. Emerson and Transcendentalism
05. Emerson's Influence    06. Thoreau—An American Original
07. Thoreau at Walden and Beyond    08. Thoreau's Politics
09. William Ellery Channing and Unitarianism    10. Theodore Parker—Social Reform in the Pulpit
11. Amos Bronson Alcott    12. Louisa May Alcott
13. Margaret Fuller and Rights for Women    14. Transcendental Women
15. Moncure Conway—Southern Transcendentalist    16. Transcendental Eccentrics
17. Transcendental Utopias—Living Experiments    18. Transcendentalism and Education
19. Thoreau, Abolition, and John Brown    20. Frederic Douglas
21. Emily Dickinson    22. Walt Whitman
23. Transcendentalism's 19th-Century Legacy    24. The Legacy in the 20th Century and Beyond

2016/07/14 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Deanna Bogart Band, performing at Santa Barbara's Chase Palm Park (1) Concert in the park: Deanna Bogart Band performed this evening at Santa Barbara's Chase Palm Park, with its unique brand of blues fusion. Deanna herself is a master of both keyboard and saxophone. [Video 1] [Video 2] [Video 3]
(2) Pottery with holes, masterfully placed.
(3) Quote of the day: "A man who buys a dishwasher for his wife pushes her from the kitchen into watching satellite TV channels and practically forces her to prostitution." ~ Friday prayers Imam in Daaraab, Iran
(4) Terror attack in France leaves 70+ dead: The attack was carried out by a truck which crashed into the crowd celebrating Bastille Day in Nice.
(5) A sociological/feminist view of the attacks against Hillary Clinton: Dr. Nayereh Tohidi is interviewed (in Persian) about a number of issues, including the treatment of political prisoners in Iran. Beginning at minute 34:00 of this 56-minute program, the subject turns to the current US presidential election. At one point, Dr. Tohidi struggles with the Persian equivalent of the term "double bind." I believe "choob-e do-sar talaa" is the best equivalent in this context.
(6) Final thought for the day: "It is very unnerving to be proven wrong, particularly when you are really right and the person who is really wrong is proving you wrong and proving himself, wrongly, right." ~ Lemony Snicket, The Blank Book

2016/07/13 (Wednesday): My report on the 23rd IEEE Symposium on Computer Arithmetic.
One of the tables at the July 11 lunch during ARITH-23 I spent the past three days in Santa Clara, CA, attending what experts in the field call ARITH-23. Computer arithmetic is a fairly old subfield within computer architecture and hardware design that deals with designing and optimizing circuits for performing addition/subtraction, multiplication, division, square-rooting, and evaluation of a number of functions of interest, under cost (VLSI chip area), speed, throughput, energy/power consumption, and a host of other constraints.
I was a member of the technical program committee for this year's event, presented a paper on Monday, and chaired a session today.
The photo above shows my lunch companions on Monday 7/11, which included old-timers Jean-Michel Muller, Milos Ercegovac, John Gustafson, and Israel Koren. Both Ercegovac and Koren have computer arithmetic textbooks that compete with mine in the market.
Monday morning's keynote session by Kathy Yelick, entitled "Antisocial Parallelism: Avoiding, Hiding and Managing Communication," was only tangentially relevant to the conference topic. She pointed to the difficulty of searching for science data on the Web, because many scientists either don't share or don't do a good job of data archiving and indexing. Compare this with the extreme ease of finding something to buy. She also discussed DoE's Exascale Computing Project.
Tuesday morning's keynote talk by Bryan Catanzaro of BYU was entitled "Computer Arithmetic in Deep Learning." Since 2011, deep learning has been applied with much success to problems in content guidance, keeping organized, automatic image captioning, speech recognition, and improved user interfaces. Deep learning views the solutions to these problems as input-to-output mappings, or functions, to be discovered, with little or no attention to semantics, by a multi-level (deep) neural network, trained with gigantic data sets. The neural network consists of alternating layers of linear and simple non-linear transformations, whose computations entail the multiplication of large matrices. On the order of 100 exaflops of arithmetic operations are needed in total (several megaflops per byte of data). Thus, efficiency and speed of arithmetic operations determine whether the method is practical. When the speaker's research team began using 16-bit floating-point numbers in lieu of 32-bit numbers, they observed significant improvement in learning performance for speech understanding, despite the greater arithmetic errors.
Tuesday afternoon's keynote talk by Stuart Oberman was entitled "30 Years of High-Performance Arithmetic." The gist of the talk was that when you take a combination of speed and energy economy into account, complex, seemingly smart designs may not be the best. One can often replace a high-speed design with a high-throughput one, which may have longer latency, to get a winning design. Processor energy is usually a small part of the total. The cache and DRAM each use comparable energy, so even saving 50% in processor energy will make only a small dent. Energy-efficient memory design is where we should place our effort.
In a special session just before the conference banquet on Tuesday night, entitled "The Great Debate" and moderated by James W. Demmel of UC Berkeley, John L. Gustafson (Nat'l U. Singapore) and William M. Kahan (UC Berkeley) defended the two sides of the question of whether one can perform complicated computations, without understanding the underlying machine representation and carrying out sophisticated error analysis. Gustafson went first, claiming that his Unum (universal numbers), presented in his book The End of Error, offer the tools needed to users to stop worrying about implementation details and to focus instead on the computation at hand. Unum makes no distinction between integer and real numbers and offers the benefits of interval arithmetic. Unum avoids exceptions and uses a variable format for storage efficiency. Gustafson claims that use of Unum does not even require familiarity with calculus. [Here are Gustafson's PowerPoint slides about Unum.] Kahan is of the opinion that a fundamental understanding of errors and methods to control them is needed for writing efficient and numerically robust programs. In today's debate, Kahan offered a detailed critique of Gustafson's claims by quoting passages from the aforementioned book, followed by examples that in his opinion, contradicted the claims. Details of these arguments are available in this on-line document. [I am looking for a link to Kahan's critique of Unum, but have been unable to find it thus far.] The panelists' 30-minute position statements were followed by questions and comments by the moderator and members of the audience.
Next year's edition of the conference, ARITH-24, will be held during July 24-26, at London's Imperial College.
Other than keynotes and the debate session noted above, there were two special sessions on IEEE 754 standard and the state of the art in its hardware and software support, along with the following nine regular sessions.
7/11, 10:10-11:00, Session 1: Arithmtic Units (my talk was the second one in this session)
7/11, 11:30-12:20, Session 2: Security and Cryptography (I)
7/11, 14:00-15:15, Session 3: Big Numbers
7/11, 15:45-17:00, Session 4: Accuracy and Reproducibility
7/12, 10:10-11:00, Session 5: Floating-Point Implementations
7/12, 11:30-12:20, Session 6: Less-Conventional Number Systems (I)
7/12, 15:15-16:30, Session 7: Security and Cryptography (II)
7/13, 09:45-11:00, Session 8: Less-Conventional Number Systems (II)
7/13, 11:30-12:45, Session 9: Logarithm Implementations (I chaired this session)

2016/07/10 (Sunday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cartoon: Hanging the one who doesn't conform (1) Cartoon of the day.
(2) My interview about parallel processing: This is a mock interview in which I describe the challenges and benefits of parallel processing to a reporter, who is preparing a science-program segment for TV. This interview was an exercise at the Alda-Kavli Science Communication Workshop, which I attended from June 29 to July 1, 2016. The idea is to help make advanced science and technology topics accessible to the general public by using simple language and avoiding jargon.
[And this 7-minute pitch to secure research funding for studying system-level fault diagnosis is from the same workshop.]
(3) Musical waterfall: Precision digital control of water droplets in fountains has led to the use of jet streams with intricate patterns. This waterfall is one of the many recent examples.
(4) US car culture may be dying: Automobile purchases by young American adults, both in recent years and long-term, have been in decline. The Federal Highway Administration stats show that the number of young licensed drivers dropped significantly from 2009 to 2014 to the lowest number since the 1960s. High car prices may be part of the reason, but others attribute the fall-off to Millennials' lifestyle choices, including their disapproval of carbon-emissions that contribute to global warming. A fascinating theory is that the Internet is displacing the car, which is, in part, a social instrument. I don't know whether Internet-based ride-sharing services have already had a chance to affect the stats, but that too may be a big piece of the puzzle.
(5) Kiarostami's funeral in Iran: For the past few days, every other post on Facebook seems to be about the recently deceased film director Abbas Kiarostami. While much of the hoopla is no doubt out of respect for him and his work, politics seems to be a major consideration in blowing the story out of proportion. Like many artists, Kiarostami was unpopular with Iran's Islamic regime. Thus, his death and funeral give the opposition an opportunity to vent.

2016/07/08 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
(1) Edward J. McCluskey [1929-2016]: The pioneer of digital design and testing, and a world-renowned educator with many innovations to his credit, died in February 2016 at age 86. I met McCluskey quite often, at conferences and other technical gatherings, during my early career as a researcher and learned a great deal from him and his many writings. Besides being a man whose name was at the top of the list of experts for many decades, whenever digital design was discussed, McCluskey had a great sense of humor, often appearing at meetings with funny/silly clothing or hats.
(2) Half-dozen brief science/tech headlines of the day:
- 3D-printed car on display at American Museum of Science and Energy
- Facebook is testing end-to-end encryption for Messenger
- Google tests new encryption for Chrome to fend off quantum attacks
- U. Washington teams up with Microsoft on DNA-based data storage
- Tech investor Pishevar brainstorms app to stop police killings
- Dallas police uses bomb-equipped robot to kill one police shooter
(3) Dallas was another gift handed to Trump: The deadly outcome of protests against police brutality (5 cops killed, 6 others injured by rooftop snipers in a premeditated ambush) will feed into public unease about movements such as "Black Lives Matter." A former congressman tweeted (later removed), "This is now war. Watch out Obama."
[To avoid misunderstanding, I am not making light of the Dallas tragedy. I meant the "gift" characterization in the same way that rounding up 100,000 Jews would have been considered a gift to Hitler.]
(4) [I wrote the following retort on a Facebook post of mine that led to a lengthy "discussion" entailing some uncivil comments. I am offering it as a post here, for broader dissemination.]
I have a policy of not responding to name-callings and unsubstantiated opinions. However, I see that some of my conservative "friends" are bent on commenting on every sociopolitical post I make, using a lecturing style and condescending language, without adding any substance to the discussion. I may unfriend all such people (not that it will be a loss to them, but it will certainly protect my sanity and that of my friends).
(5) Texas professors sue to block guns in classrooms: The three women from College of Liberal Arts at UT Austin are requesting a federal injunction to block the SB11 law, before it goes into effect on August 1.
(6) Maybe "pea brained" should be a compliment: Plants take risks and plan for the future, in ways comparable to us humans. Most of us would stay with a boring job, if it pays the bills, in preference to joining a start-up with big payoff potential but also a risk of ruin. Like us, plants are tame and predictable when they have surplus resources. Put them on the edge of survival, however, and they start taking all sorts of risk. They can also plan for the future by detecting the level of nutrients available to them and the rate of change, using the info to develop more roots in areas where it's improving.

2016/07/07 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Map showing where Eduroam service is in effect (1) Eduroam WiFi access: After starting in Europe, the reciprocal WiFi access agreement between educational and research institutions has spread to all the countries in dark shade on this map. University of California and Cal State campuses are part of this program that allows each member of the participating institutions to go on-line for free at any other institution, after setting up an account.
(2) Fascinating magic tricks with Rubik's Cube.
(3) Checking whether your on-line data has been compromised: I got the following advice from UCSB's Chief Information Security Officer. I am passing it on, because it is extremely useful. I found out that my data was compromised on one Web site. I am going to change my password for that site. The info is not complete, but it gives you some idea of where you stand in the info security jungle by providing only your e-mail address.
"Over the past few years, criminals have stolen more than a billion usernames and passwords from many sites across the Internet, including LinkedIn, Adobe, and Tumblr. Criminals use these stolen usernames and passwords to login to other sites including TeamViewer, GoToMyPC, and Carbonite. Many of these logins succeed because people reuse their passwords."
"Please remember to use separate passwords for each of your accounts."
"If you reuse any of your passwords, please change them immediately. You can check to see if your password was stolen in one of the larger breaches at https://haveibeenpwned.com/. You do not need to supply your password to check. This database does not include all breaches, so even if your password is not listed as stolen, you may still be at risk."
(4) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Angela Merkel: Iran still seeking illegal nukes
- MN Governor: Race had a role in police shooting
- FBI chief testifies on Clinton e-mail probe
- Texas bridge collapse kills child, injures woman
- George W. Bush defends Iraq invasion
- Clinton adopts Sanders' free-college idea
- Newly discovered planet orbits a trio of stars
- Eleven officers shot in Dallas; four are dead
(5) Comey explains the difference between Clinton and Petraeus to Congress: "The Petraeus case to my mind illustrates perfectly the kinds of cases the Department of Justice is willing to prosecute. Even there they prosecuted him for a misdemeanor. [Petraeus] not only shared [classified information] with someone who was not allowed to have it, but we found [notebooks containing identities of covert officers, war strategy, and discussions with the president] in a search warrant under the insulation in his attic, and then he lied to us about it in the investigation. Petraeus obstructed justice and committed intentional misconduct and later admitted it was the wrong thing to do. You have a perfect illustration of the kind of cases that get prosecuted."
(6) Santa Barbara's "Concerts in the Park" series kicks off: Today's first of four concerts during the month of July brought "Captain Cardiac and the Coronaries" to Chase Palm Park to perform 50s and 60s rock-n-roll music. Here are representative samples of their music from the first and second sets. [Video 1] [Video 2]

2016/07/06 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
(1) Santa Barbara's Concerts in the Park series returns for 2016, during the month of July (Thursdays, 6:00 PM). Here is the program.
7/07, Captain Cardiac and the Coronaries; 50s and 60s rock & roll
7/14, Deanna Bogart Band; blues fusion, soulful sax, smoky vocals
7/21, Queen Nation; tribute to the music of Queen
7/28, The Tearaways; the British invasion meets California surf
(2) Santa Barbara's Movies under the Stars: The series returns for 2016, during the months of July and August, with the theme "Bogie & Bacall" (Wednesdays at Campbell Hall, 7:30 PM, and Fridays at the Courthouse Sunken Garden, 8:30 PM). Here is the program.
7/06-08, "The Maltese Falcon" (mystery/romance/thriller, starring Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor)
7/13-15, "Casablanca" (World War II drama/romance, starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman)
7/20-22, "To Have and Have Not" (based on a Hemingway novel, starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall)
7/27-29, "The Big Sleep" (detective mystery, starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall)
8/03: "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" (western, starring Humphrey Bogart)
8/10-12, "Dark Passage" (mystery, starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall)
8/17-19, "Key Largo" (noir crime drama, starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall)
8/24-26, "How to Marry a Millionaire" (comedy, starring Lauren Bacall, Betty Grable, and Marilyn Monroe)
(3) Unimaginable bravery: University student, whose father died in the war against Iraq when he was 3, criticizes Iran's Supreme Leader to his face in this 9-minute speech (in Persian).
(4) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Second Tesla Model S crashes in autopilot mode (Detroit Free Press)
- College affordability included in Democratic platform (Market Watch)
- IARPA calls for reliable 3D maps from satellite imagery (Federal Times)
- Crashed EgyptAir Flight 804 had fire on board (The Guardian)
- Spanish soccer star Messi sentenced to prison for tax fraud (Aljazeera.com)
- US Justice Department won't pursue charges against Clinton (CNN.com)
(5) Roots of Trumpism: In 1994, when California economy was in shambles, Pete Wilson won re-election in a landslide by making illegal immigrants the centerpiece of his campaign, blaming them for all problems. As a result, the Republican Party, which, until then, competed evenly in elections and won many statewide offices, has done miserably since. Whereas Trump points to token Latino supporters, 87% of registered Latino voters have an unfavorable view of him (Mitt Romney did better, winning 27% of the Latino vote). So, while Trump may win in 2016, lessons from the California backlash should not be forgotten. This year, Millennials overtook baby-boomers as the country's largest generation, so the era of old, angry voters may be over. [From Newsweek on-line]
(6) Racism in the early 1990s: Trump's 1993 testimony in front of the Native American Affairs Committee.

2016/07/04 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Fourth of July banner (1) Happy 4th of July to all Americans! Our country was born 240 years ago and I, for one, am grateful for that. America educated me in the early 1970s and later accepted me with open arms in the late 1980s, when my country of birth made life miserable for me and my family as members of a religious minority.
Even though it is becoming increasingly difficult to recognize, from news headlines and campaign speeches, the generous and tolerant nation that took me in, I am still in awe of my fellow Americans for their warmth and compassion in my day-to-day interactions. Here is to the hope that the public face of America returns to matching the private sentiments of the vast majority of Americans!
(2) Fourth-of-July in Santa Barbara: The State Street underpass was closed to traffic, as people headed to the Santa Barbara waterfront for fireworks and other festivities. Stearns Wharf was bustling with a large crowd, on a breezy but beautiful afternoon. Everyone was in good spirits and music was playing on multiple stages on the beach and on the Wharf. ["You Make Me Feel"] ["We Are an American Band"] The West Beach looked gorgeous, as the sun went down and the crowd started to prepare for the fireworks show. Following the fireworks show, the huge waterfront crowd returned to town via the State Street underpass.
(3) Summer reading for grown-ups: The Santa Barbara public library system has chosen for its 2016 community reading program an unusual book, Ready Player One, by Ernest Cline, which is described as "a mystery set in the future using clues from the past." The book discussion and virtual reality experience will be held at the Central Library, on Wednesday, July 27, 5:00 PM. Call 805-564-5659 with questions.
(4) Seven brief news headlines of the day:
- Famed Iranian film director Abbas Kiarostami dead at 76
- Juno spacecraft poised for one-shot try to orbit Jupiter
- UN warns of starvation in Syrian towns, demands access
- ISIL claims deadly Baghdad shopping-street bombing
- Kerry has new exchnages with Russia's FM about Syria
- Father accidentally kills son at gun range
- FBI offers help to Bangladesh police in terror attack probe
(5) The upside of all your smartphone pics: It has been said that interrupting an experience to take photos may reduce enjoyment. USC marketing professor Kristin Diehl has found otherwise in her research. People who take photos of their lunch were found to be more immersed in their meals. Similarly, those who take photos of special moments or cultural experiences (e.g., sightseeing) enhance their enjoyment, because they look for things to hang on to and direct their attention, which heightens the viewing experience. [Info from: Time magazine, issue of June 27, 2016]
(6) People in this New York community are prepared for the election of Donald Trump as US President.
(7) A new country music star is born: Emi Sunshine sings "Me and Bobby McGee" like a pro. And here is the talented 11-year-old's rendition of "Folsom Prison Blues."

2016/07/03 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Chart showing deaths from massacres in the US over 40 years (1) Forty years of massacres in the US: Informative chart from Time magazine, issue of June 27, 2016.
(2) Fantastic painting of a wave.
(3) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor and Nobel Laureate, dead at 87
- Baghdad terror attacks leave 126 dead, including 25 children
- California enacts sweeping gun-control legislation
- UAE warns citizens not to wear traditional Arab clothing abroad
- Flash floods kill 43 in northern Pakistan
- Author of Eat, Pray, Love splits from husband
- Gun-toting man shot by Secret Service near White House
- Bomb attack outside US consulate in Jeddah injures 2
(4) Fabric-covered floating walkway on Italy's Lake Iseo: The 2-mile-long recent installation, assembled from 220,000 cubes, was first conceived by the artist Christo with his late wife Jeanne-Claude in 1970.
(5) Quote of the day: "No human race is superior; no religious faith is inferior. All collective judgments are wrong. Only racists make them." ~ Elie Wiesel [1928-2016]
(6) Guns have changed, so our gun laws need updating. [30-second video]
(7) This is one of the best a cappella performances I have seen: "Carol of the Bells" by Pentatonix.
(8) Kinga Glyk's wonderful instrumental rendition of Eric Clapton's "Tears in Heaven" on bass guitar.
(9) The hypocrisy of the conservative protest movement in the US: One of the rallying cries of conservatives, particularly in the current election cycle, is that they want less government and thus lesser taxes to pay for it. However, their rhetoric indicates that their desire for a smaller government pertains only to areas that would benefit them financially. They want smaller payments to the IRS and fewer regulations on businesses in terms of energy efficiency, environmental protection, minimum wage, healthcare availability, and retirement benefits. At the same time, they want bigger government when it comes to regulating commerce, imposing tarrifs on foreign products, ensuring the safety of shipping lanes to protect their imports and exports (notably for oil and related products), and expanding the military. It seems, therefore, that they do not want to pursue lesser spending by the government but to redirect the spending to other areas. They want fewer regulations to protect consumers against financial shenanigans and profiteering by big banks and more regulations against off-shoring, imports, and immigration. And all this in addition to some of the most vocal proponents of bringing off-shored jobs back to the US personally benefiting from off-shoring and unencumbered foreign trade!

2016/07/01 (Friday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Alan Alda speaking on the first day of the workshop during a general session (1) Alda-Kavli Science Communication Workshop: I attended this 3-day workshop at Santa Barbara's Fess Parker Resort. Sponsored by Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science, Stony Brook University's School of Journalism, and UCSB's Office of Research Development, the workshop aims to sharpen the skills of scientists in reaching their audiences through distilling the message in a goal-oriented way and making personal/emotional connections by means of story-telling. Alan Alda, most famous for his role in the TV series "Mash," is a passionate advocate for science and science communication.
One person described the workshop as "improv for scientists." We had, in fact, a number of improv exercises that helped improve our reading of audience reaction through visual cues. I missed the 6/28 opening reception of the workshop in which Alan Alda spoke about "Getting Beyond a Blind Date with Science," because I was on my way back from Taiwan.
In Wednesday's first session, a scientist's abstract was presented to us and we had the task of making it understandable to non-science/tech types through rewording and making connections to everyday concepts, including providing a big picture and thinking about why they should care about what is presented; viz, why the notions are important to their lives and priorities.
Then, we broke out into two smaller sessions, with my Group B instructed by Alan Alda himself. The activities included mirroring, imagining an object such as a ball and interacting with it, going around a circle and asking each person to add a word to what would eventually become an interesting aphorism, and showing the audience a blank piece of paper and describing an imaginary photo on it that holds a special significance in your life. The idea was to break down inhibitions and allow participants to communicate openly and honestly.
Later during the day, we were given an opportunity to present a pitch about one of our ideas to a smaller group and convince them of the idea's importance (call to action such as legislation, ask for funding, etc.).
The workshop's second-day program consisted of tips on honing your message (characterizing your audience in terms of their level of understanding and defining/practicing the key ideas you want to convey), as well as skills needed for participating in media interviews of the kinds one sees following major scientific developments or natural disasters. Examples include explaining the significance of a new particle discovery, reasons for and scope of an earthquake, or promoting your research (e.g., to obtain support).
Each participant was interviewed by a professional reporter on a scientific subject s/he knew well and was passionate about, with the interview recorded and played back for analysis and critique. There were also improv activities, such as presenting a sales pitch for an imaginary product whose name you put together from randomly chosen words and listening to a partner's scientific presentation and then pretending to be that person in explaining the subject matter to a non-specialist group.
The program for day 3 consisted of continuation of interview/pitch skills, where each participant chose a topic and presented it to a philanthropist, a funding agency officer, or a skeptic, with the goal of winning that person over within a few minutes. The time limit wasn't as stringent as in the day-2 version, because there were fewer participants in this more advanced session. The instructor and our peers provided feedback in the form of suggestions for sharpening the pitch for stronger effect. For my pitch, I chose a research program on fault diagnosis in interconnected computers, pretending that I was trying to secure funding for this line of research. As before, the sessions were recorded and the video clips will be made available to workshop participants for their personal use.
A number of workshop participants suggested that the group keep in touch via regular meetings, in order to hone their skills further and to transfer what they have learned to others. Besides learning about the science of science communication, I learned a great deal from UCSB colleagues who attended the workshop and made some good friends.
(2) Tips for public speaking: TED speaker coach Gina Barnett shares some tips on becoming a better public speaker, including setting goals for your presentation, being aware of your body language, avoiding filler words, and using uncluttered slides that complement your words. View your talk as a gift that you are giving, which the audience may or may not accept, rather than as an instrument for getting attention and love.
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the past few days:
- First fatality for Tesla Model S while on autopilot
- US probes Chinese ownership of CIA-linked insurance company
- Panama finally opens the long-delayed expanded canal
- Alvin Toffler, author of Future Shock, dead at 87
- Palestinian stabs and kills American girl at home in Israel
- Texas mom shoots her two daughters, blames husband
(4) College grade inflation appears to be getting worse: A recent study by Inside Higher Ed shows that 42% of 4-year college grades are A's and 77% are A's or B's. One theory about the cause of the worsening grade inflation is that students paying high tuition expect to be treated like consumers and not like apprentices or scholars.

2016/06/30 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
(1) This is how misogynists view women: It is all but impossible to use obviously misogynistic terms to address one woman and not view all women in the same way. I usually do not post or repost anything that contains foul language, but decided to make an exception here. My apologies! [Blog post, with reply]
(2) San Francisco State University's Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies: CIDS will be established from a $5M gift by the school's alumna Neda Nobari. Under the leadership of a named distinguished chair, CIDS will engage in studies "about Iranian diaspora, communities, their development, contributions to host societies and impact on Iranian identity."
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the past week:
- Brexit/Britex wins. PM David Cameron to resign.
- Brexit's telling stats: The old outgun young voters
- Chile wins Copa America; Spain's Messi calls quits
- Amazon to create on-line marketplace for education
- ISIL Istanbul airport suicide attack kills 42, injures 140
- US airstrike kills at least 250 ISIL militants in Iraq
(4) An analysis of Brexit's impact on UK's engineering/tech sector: There will be challenges in attracting and retaining talent, but also opportunities that can be exploited.
(5) Broadway sings for Orlando: "What the world needs now is love, sweet love ... "
(6) Enchanting piano music, with the backdrop of collapsing ice caps.
(7) Plight of Iran's female political prisoners: Their treatment is even against Iran's own laws. [1-minute video]

2016/06/28 (Tuesday): More on my week-long trip to Taiwan. [Not all the links work at this time.]
Map of Taiwan (1) This is a continuation of my blog post of June 25, covering a 2-day trip to the countryside and further technical discussions at NCKU on 6/28, my final day. Taiwan is virtually cut into two parts by high north-south mountains. The highest peak has an elevation of 3952 m. The Wusanto reservoir and dam, which we visited on 6/26-27, is located at the starting point of the mountains going northeast from Tainan.
(2) Sunday 6/26: Today was nature day. We drove to a wilderness area that is managed by NCKU's Agriculture Department. We hiked for ~ 5 km (3 mi) in scorching heat and had a light lunch, in order to leave room for dinner. We then visited an old town, with street buildings and a public gym facility from a century ago (Japanese occupation period). Several of the buildings had a section of glass-covered floor to show the Japanese method of placing buildings on coil springs, without a standard rigid foundation. Later in the afternoon, we arrived at the Wusanto Huching Resort Hotel and proceeded to walk on an 80-year-old dam, again built by the Japanese out of rocks and dirt moved by a special railroad constructed for the project. A downpour made us return early for dinner, leaving the rest of the exploration for tomorrow.
(3) Monday 6/27: This morning, we explored the Wusanto Reservoir, the 80-year-old dam that created it (built by the Japanese from rocks and dirt), and some surrounding structures. The enormous dam is an engineering marvel, which took about a decade to complete. The Japanese built a complex of single-family houses and other structures for the engineers who worked on the dam and, later, for those who operated the facility. The temple you see in some of the photos (partially damaged by a recent earthquake, so it was closed to visitors, until repairs are completed) was built by Chiang Kai Shek, the leader of nationalist Chinese who fled from mainland China and resettled in Taiwan. Shek was nominally a president, but he had aspirations of becoming an emperor, as evidenced by the construction of this temple, which is a 3/4 replica of a royal temple in China, reserved for the emperor's exclusive use. Shek ruled with an iron fist and installed his son to rule after him. The son, I am told, was a good man and he decided against appointing his own son to follow him, thus discontinuing the dynasty.
In the afternoon, we visited the Fort Zeelandia Museum, built at and around a fort from the Dutch rule period. The country's history, primarily up to 400 years ago, when the Taiwanese defeated the Dutch and became independent, is on display at this wonderful museum, which houses scale models of structures, paintings and other art, and artifacts recovered from the site. There is an observation tower that allows visitors to look down at the complex and at Tainan City in the distance.
Dinner at Tucheng Seafood Restaurant was a true feast and consisted of 8 different dishes (including crab, oyster, two kinds of shrimp, fish, and oyster noodles), shared family style.
(4) Tuesday 6/28: Today's morning and afternoon technical sessions, during which post-docs and graduate students working at Professor Hsieh's lab presented their research, were separated by lunch at a restaurant near the NCKU campus. I was then taken to the Kaohsiung Airport for the start of a 27-hour trip that would take me home on Wednesday 6/29, via Taipei and Los Angeles. Interestingly, my local landing time of 8:50 PM at LAX is exactly the same as my departure time from KHH, creating the impression of travel at the speed of light!
(5) Returning home from Taiwan: The trip back home, from 4:30 PM on 6/28 when I headed from Tainan to Kaohsiung Airport to 1:30 AM on 6/29 when I arrived at my home, took exactly 24 hours, considering the 15-hour time difference between the two cities, making my 6/28 working/traveling day 33 hours long.
The 55-minute Kaohsiung-to-Taipei flight was comfortable and uneventful. The crowded Taipei Airport was a different story. The assigned gate was changed twice, the second time without a PA announcement, causing me to almost miss my flight. Once I boarded the 12-hour flight (the flight back was 2 hours shorter), its take-off was delayed by more than an hour, which, combined with long passport-control lines at LAX caused me to miss my scheduled Airbus trip (the last one of the day) to Santa Barbara, becoming stranded at the crowded airport.
While I was considering my options, including staying at a local hotel and heading home in the morning (undesirable, because I had been looking forward to attending a very interesting 3-day workshop that begis tomorrow), I spotted a gentleman of Mexican heritage who was asking passersby whether they needed a ride. I told him about my destination and we agreed on a price.
Here it gets interesting. He called his wife, who together with their sleeping 2-year-old were waiting in their car nearby, and asked her to drive to LAX's Bradley Terminal. Then, the four of us began our drive toward Santa Barbara. The man's wife spoke much better English than him, so we carried on a conversation for the entire duration of the trip. The family needed to generate additional income from a side business in order to get by. Despite this added challenge to make a living, I learned that the couple's other 5 children are all attending school or are college graduates, with one doing graduate-level work. They spoke eloquently about social problems and issues in the current presidential race and had the usual parental complaints regarding their children having their own ideas about careers, marriage age, religious traditions, and so on. Even though I had bargained down the fare during our negotiations, I decided to pay the driver what he had asked for, given how kind and deserving they were. I left their car, having been re-energized after a very long day.

2016/06/25 (Saturday): Partial account of my trip to Taiwan. [Not all the links work at this time.]
Map of Tainan City (1) From Goleta to Tainan in 25 hours: I left home on Monday 6/20 and arrived in Tainan, via Taipei and Kaohsiung, on Wednesday 6/22. A daily summary of activities appears below. I will go on a 2-day exploration of the countryside around Tainan tomorrow, returning for more meetings on Tuesday 6/28 and returning home later the same day. Tainan and areas around it are the oldest parts of Taiwan and have much history. Many of the buildings date back to periods of occupation by the Dutch and the Japanese. NCKU's Computer Science Department, for example, is housed in two buildings: a historical building remaining from the country's oldest university built by the Japanese more than a century ago and a 12-story modern office tower.
Tainan has been extremely hot over the past few days and is expected to remain hot through the rest of my stay. The 14-hour nonstop flight between LAX and Taipei was grueling but the stay here has been very pleasant, thanks to Professor Hsieh's generous support and the extreme hospitality of his group of graduate students, post-docs, and administrative staff.
(2) Wednesday 6/22: The day's highlights were having delicious local food (several courses, including a sweet "dessert soup") for lunch and visiting a traditional tea house, where we were taught how to prepare and enjoy a variety of teas. Briefly, you warm up the teapot by half-filling it with boiling water. You then empty the pot, put tea leaves in, and fill it to the brim. Then cover the tea pot and pour boiling water on the outside. After several minutes, pour the tea in three stages: first into a special mug, then serve into small, tall cups and enjoy the aroma, finally pour from the tall cup into flat, shallow cups to drink (along with carrot crackers and a sweet-potato dessert). After the tea house, we visited a calligraphy exhibit within the halls of a 200-year-old mansion, now partially replaced by high-rises.
(3) Thursday 6/23: I presented my technical talk about interconnection networks for data centers and parallel processing. Before the talk, Prof. Hsieh showed me some interesting sights around the NCKU campus, including a 400-year-old structure surviving from the Dutch-rule period and a 113-year-old banyan tree from the Japanese occupation period. A second similar banyan tree nearby was seriously damaged by a typhoon and is now under the care of a tree doctor. The talk itself went well (for the curious, it was based on an invited paper, forthcoming in a special issue of Scientia Iranica for the 50th anniversary of Sharif University of Technology, which will be made available in a few days via my Publications Web page). For lunch, we hopped from one quaint specialty cafe to another, eating a small dish at each place, until we were stuffed. In the afternoon, we explored the Anping Tree House historical site and adjacent history and art museums, with Professor Hsieh and Dr. Ding-Ming Kwai, a former PhD student of mine. The Tree House is a historical mansion that was abandoned when roots of a banyan tree took over and protruded through the walls and roof. It is a testament to the power of nature and the respect the Taiwanese have for it. An adjacent museum takes you through a short history of Taiwan, including the Dutch rule of some 400 years ago and the Japanese occupation, beginning in the early 20th century. Another adjacent museum is a converted artist's house.
(4) Friday 6/24: NCKU computer science graduate students presented their research to me in two groups during morning and afternoon sessions. In between, we had lunch at a traditional Taiwanese restaurant, with a variety of dishes shared by those present, family style. For "dinner," a number of NCKU graduate students and I went to a tiny, but quite famous, cafe that serves small dishes. As we didn't have much of an appetite after a huge lunch, nearly everyone ordered rice cake (a dessert, really). Like many traditional businesses, the joint had a fountain with running water (good for business, according to local lore) on the sidewalk in front of it. Tainan is a city of scooters (more of them are on the road than cars) and of maddening traffic jams on its old, narrow streets. Scooters are convenient due to Tainan's warm weather and the availability of ample parking spots on city sidewalks. A scooter owner can typically park right in front of the business s/he wants to visit, whereas a car driver will have a hard time finding a parking spot within a few blocks. Driving in this city of 800,000, while avoiding pedestrians and scooters, is a big challenge. A curious feature of this very old city is that there is no such thing as ADA (or should I say TDA) compliance. Each section of the sidewalk (typically covered) is built by the shop owner in front of it at an arbitrary height and incline, so that you have to step up and down many times, even during a short walk.
(5) Saturday 6/25: Today was designated as "Temples Tour" on my visit schedule, but between two impressive temples, I was taken to the National Museum of Taiwan History, which opened in 2011 with 60,000 artifacts, after 12 years of construction. The museum exhibits, spanning the Aboriginal, Dutch, Spanish, Chinese, British, and Japanese influences on Taiwan are indeed impressive. They include scale models of villages/towns and recreation of shops, people at work, and rituals. A highlight of the visit was a time-travel exhibit, a train ride that took you back through Taiwanese history via projected images on both sides of a train car (a la parts of the Universal Studios Hollywood tram ride). The train car was stationary, but vibrated and slightly tilted to create a feeling of motion through towns, harbors, war zones, and natural vistas.
Before the history museum, we visited Orthodox Lu-Erh-Men Sheng Mu Temple. With some 5000 temples in and around the city, Tainan is the world's temple capital. Generously doubling the city's 800,000 residents to account for the surrounding areas, there is one temple for about 300 residents. Dr. Hung, one of the two post-docs who kindly showed me around today, tells me that there are 3 temples in the community of about 400 people where her mother lives. A temple typically houses multiple Buddhas and other deities or "guards." A guard is in charge of some aspect of life, such as marriage (where mothers go to ask for his/her favors in finding suitable spouses for their children), pregnancy, and even examination (this particular guard receives many visitors just before university entrance exams). Temples are maintained from donations, with no interference or contribution by the government. There are no priests or religious texts; rituals are passed on from one generation to the next. Young people dress up as temple guards during weekends and pay ceremonial visits to other temples. The following videos show visiting guards from other temples and their rituals. [Video 1] [Video 2]
Later during the day, we visited Nan Kun Shen Dai Tian Temple, the largest in the Tainan area. It is an expansive complex, with many ornate structures and an on-site hotel. One striking feature of the Taiwanese, which I observed during my temple visits, is their accommodating attitude. There were no entry gates, no security personnel, no bag searches, and no frowning upon strangers snapping photos. Those who prayed and those who were just visiting mingled, with no conflict or problem; each group was mindful and respectful of the other. The following videos show visiting guards rituals similar to those at the first temple. [Video 3] [Video 4]
(6) A bit about Tainan City, from Wikipedia: Tainan (literally "Taiwan South"), officially Tainan City, faces the Taiwan Strait in the west and south. Tainan is the oldest city in Taiwan and also commonly known as the "Capital City," for its 200+ years of history as the capital of Taiwan under Koxinga and later Qing dynasty rule. Tainan's complex history of comebacks, redefinitions and renewals inspired its popular nickname "the Phoenix City." Tainan was initially established by the Dutch East India Company as a ruling and trading base called Fort Zeelandia during the period of Dutch rule on Taiwan. After Dutch colonists were defeated by Koxinga in 1661, Tainan remained as the capital of the Tungning Kingdom until 1683 and afterwards the capital of Taiwan Prefecture under the rule of Qing Dynasty until 1887, when the new provincial capital was moved to Taipei. Tainan is one of the oldest cities in Taiwan, and its former name, Tayouan, is said to be the origin of the name "Taiwan." It is also one of Taiwan's cultural capitals, for its rich folk cultures including famous local foods, extensively preserved Taoist rites, and other living local traditions covering everything from child birth to funerals. The city houses the first Confucian school-temple, built in 1665, and countless other historical monuments. Tainan claims more Buddhist and Taoist temples than any other city in Taiwan.

2016/06/19 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
One of two Fathers' Day cards I received from my three children (1) Today is Fathers' Day: Warm greetings and congratulations to all fathers among my readers, as well as those mothers who have had to also act as fathers at times. This image shows one of two Fathers' Day cards I got from my three children. A second card contained individual personal notes, so I will keep it close to my heart and not share it here.
(2) Mont-Blanc speed flying: Six para-gliders with skis descend from the 4304-meter-high mountain. Beautiful videography (best short film at the 2009 Banff Mountain Film Festival) and piano music ("I Give Up," written/performed by Elijah Bosserbroek)! [10-minute video]
(3) The US national soccer team advances to Copa America's semifinals: After beating Ecuador 2-1 in a hard-fought game and with three of its key players suspended, USA will play Argentina (top-ranked team in the world, which beat Venezuela 4-1) on Tuesday 6/21.
(4) Harvesting and packaging radishes. [2-minute video]
(5) Sam Harris on Donald Trump: The first 40 minutes of this 160-minute podcast are devoted to a searing assessment of Donald Trump as a presidential candidate.
(6) Filmmaker Ken Burns' 2016 commencement address at Stanford University: A look back at the role of history and the principles upon which this country was founded.
(7) College World Series: UCSB's men's baseball team advanced to its first-ever super-regional competition, surprising everyone by subsequently winning two games to advance to NCAA's double-elimination national championship round in Omaha, where it lost a heart-breaker to Oklahoma State 0-1. The Gauchos will next play on Monday 6/20 against third-seeded Miami (1-5 loser to Arizona) for a possible second chance at the championship game.
(8) NBA championship, game 7 (Cleveland at Golden State): After several lead changes, GS led 49-42 going into the second half and 76-75 at the end of the third quarter. After an exciting fourth quarter, in which James shone on both ends of the court, Cleveland prevailed 93-89 to take the championship.
(9) Be careful with the new Facebook emoticons/reactions: It's just too easy to indicate "anger" or "sadness" when you meant "like" or "love." Today, an error of this nature caused much puzzlement on the receiving side and embarrassment on my part.

Cover image for the audiobook 'Notorious RBG' 2016/06/17 (Friday): Book review: Caromon, Irin and Shana Knizhnik, Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, unabridged audiobook on 5 CDs, read by Andi Arndt, Harper Audio, 2015.
This is an intimate and irreverent look at the life and work of the second ever female justice on the US Supreme Court. Sandra Day O'Connor preceded RBG and served as an important role model for her. Since then, O'Connor has retired and the Court has acquired two new female justices, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, necessitating the addition of a women's bathroom to the common area of the Court.
The book's second author is a young lawyer who started the Internet sensation "Notorious R. B. G." on Tumblr, playing on the name of rap-music artist "Notorious B. I. G." The site featured memes of Ginsburg as well as some of her words that inspire women.
Knizhnik teamed up with Caromon, a journalist, to write this playful, yet serious, biographical book based on interviews with Ginsburg, family members, friends, and colleagues, using passages from RBG's legal writings, where appropriate.
Ginsburg shuns the limelight and prefers to work quietly behind the scenes. She believes in reform via small incremental steps that opponents can stomach, instead of major reversals that are much more difficult to sell; a rare exception is her siding with the marriage-equality ruling that overturned many state laws. Her determination and forceful arguments defy her meek demeanor and grandmotherly appearance. In the course of her long career, RBG has done more for the cause of women's rights than many vocal activists, some of whom criticize RBG for her timid approach.
One example of her methodical and deliberate approach is her advocacy on behalf of men who were denied time off by their employers, when life events made them care-takers of young children. Ginsburg thought that the male majority on the Court is more likely to empathize with such men; yet once these men are given their due rights, the cases would readily become precedents for similar claims by women. In other words, she approached women's rights from the angle of human rights, that is, she advocated gender-neutrality in laws.
As a woman, RBG did not have many opportunities during her law school days and later was passed over for job opportunites because she was a mother. These injustices shaped her character and informed her activism on behalf of women's rights. She carried the torch of women's rights long before the topic had become familiar and activism on its behalf accepted.
RBG is quite easy-going and comfortable in her skin. When a newly discovered species of praying mantis was named after her, she reacted thus: "[In Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis,] Gregor Samsa woke up one morning to find himself changed into a big black bug ... Praying mantis, female too, is ever so much more attractive."
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg remains an enigmatic individual; this book demystifies her only partially. She had a close and cordial relationship with Justice Antonin Scalia, the late stalwart conservative who was nearly always on RBG's opposite side in Court-issued opinions. Yet, when it came to formal disagreements with Scalia, RBG did not mince her words.
I enjoyed listening to this audiobook and learned a great deal from it. It is easy to dismiss RBG's efforts in comparison with today's forceful pursuit of women's rights by both women and men. Yet, we must allow for the fact that she spent much of her legal career in different times, when a direct confrontational approach might have been counterproductive.

2016/06/16 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Iranian and European diplomats sitting across from each other (1) A practical lesson in gender equality: Whether the fact that six male diplomats from Iran were met by six female diplomats representing the European Union is a mere coincidence or a deliberate plan, it will make the Islamic Republic diplomats and their bosses sweat in explaining the photo in Iranian media. Surely they can't claim that Iranian women are less capable than their Western counterparts.
(2) Joan Baez and Paul Simon, two singing legends, performed "The Boxer" on a PBS special last night. [Repeats on Sunday.]
(3) Enormous 2000-year-old monument uncovered in Petra: Using high-resolution satellite scans, drone photography, and ground surveys, archaeologists in Jordan have uncovered a ceremonial platform (56 m by 49 m), which was literally hidden in plain sight near the UNESCO World Heritage site.
(4) Some US veterans join efforts to curb gun violence: Just two days before the Orlando shooting, a prestigious group of US military veterans had launched a coalition to urge elected leaders "to do more to prevent gun tragedies," especially mass shootings.
(5) Digging deeper into same-sex desires in Islamic societies: Saying that Islam abhors homosexuality and deems it punishable by death is simplistic. Homosexuality exists and is pretty much overlooked in the Middle East, because it is not viewed as an identity, according to Mehammed Amadeus Mack, writing for Newsweek. The talk of punishment comes exclusively from Hadith, not Quran itself. Thus, LGBT individuals in Islamic socieities tend to belong to the Quranist School, which deems Quran to be complete and not in need of augmentation by Hadith. So, acceptance or rejection of same-sex desire is far from settled in Islamic societies.
(6) Self-healing circuits for wearable tech: The flexible circuits developed by researchers at Penn State University can withstand extreme physical deformation, including being cut in half.
(7) The Sherpa fire continues to burn north of Santa Barbara: Highway 101 is backed up and intermittently closed in both directions between Goleta and Buelton to allow firefighters a chance to tackle the huge, out-of-control fire, which is said to be 0% contained at this time. Smoke is in the air in our area and ash covers everything, from our car to patio floor and furniture.

2016/06/15 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Scenes of filth and trash in Isla Vista (1) End of the academic year: Walking back from Isla Vista, where my children and I went for lunch today, signs of students moving out of this residential community that abuts UCSB were evident everywhere. These eyesores will persist for a few more days, until treasure hunters and, ultimately, the trash company clear the debris.
(2) Bendable smartphones that wrap around your wrist: Lenovo has already demonstrated the concept and Samsung has a number of bendable products on the way.
(3) Former IBM software engineer charged with economic espionage: Xu Jiaqiang, arrested in December 2015, faces a six-count indictment, disclosed yesterday. He is accused of stealing and selling (to undercover agents) proprietary source code from his employer and for planning to transfer the code to Chinese entities.
(4) Would you trust a robot surgeon to operate on you? This question is asked in the June 9, 2016, issue of an electronic newsletter affiliated with IEEE Spectrum magazine, pondering the rise of robotic aids to surgery. Given horror stories I have heard about surgeries gone wrong, I would pose a different question: Now that robotic surgeons are becoming available, would you trust a human surgeon to operate on you?
(5) Here is how a child's imagination works. [1-minute video]
(6) Father of the Internet worries about our digital history: Vint Cerf, Google's "Chief Internet Evangelist" and one of the recipients of the inaugural Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering in 2013, worries that while bits may persist into the 22nd century and beyond, their meanings may get lost to hardware/software upgrades and technological changes. Data on the Internet changes at a dizzying pace and links become obsolete equally quickly. While this speed of change and constant freshness is viewed as an advantage now, it isn't so good for historical preservation. Cerf was one of the pioneers of ARPAnet at UCLA in the early 1970s, which later led to the Internet as we know it today; I was at UCLA at the time and witnessed the developments up close.

2016/06/13 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
With my daughter, at her UCLA graduation (1) Graduation weekend: Over the past couple of days, I was occupied with my daughter's graduation from UCLA and gatherings and outings with family members who participated from near and far. After attending the commencement ceremonies at UCLA on Saturday, we feasted on Persian food at Santa Monica's Javan Restaurant, and we visited Universal Studios Hollywood on Sunday. We had seafood for lunch and took an afternoon stroll in Santa Barbara's waterfront area today. Tomorrow, it will be back to normal schedule, until I depart for Taiwan on June 21.
(2) Cited as evidence of foreign policy qualifications:
Sarah Palin: "I can see Russia from my house [in Alaska]."
Donald Trump: "I ran the Miss Universe pageant in Russia."
(3) The Orlando mass shooting: This latest massacre, which left 50 dead and about the same number injured, has three elements (terrorism, gun violence, and hate crime) that demand suitable responses. First and foremost is radicalization of Muslims in the US, which is even more dangerous than in European countries, given the much easier access to guns and explosives in this country. Second is the easy/legal acquisition of guns by someone who had had multiple run-ins with law enforcement and a record of mental illness. The final aspect has to do with tracking methods and police training. Reports indicate that it took the police 3 hours to become fully engaged after they first encountered and exchanged shots with the suspect. It is time to act on all these fronts. Another round of empty political statements and expressions of sorrow/shock just won't do.
(4) Eerie silence from terrorist groups: Even though pieces from EgyptAir flight 804 have been found, the cause of the crash is still unknown. And the unusual silence from terrorist groups adds to the mystery.
(5) "Ben Hur" remake: The new film is scheduled for release in August 2016. It is unclear why anyone would want to remake one of the most successful movies in history (11 Oscars). Better special effects and sets augmented with CGI are hardly good excuses, as evidenced by a number of expensive remakes that fizzled, both financially and critically.
(6) Copa America soccer quarterfinals: USA outlasted Paraguay 1-0 to advance to Copa America's quarterfinals, where it will play Ecuador on Thursday 6/16. Peru will play Colombia on Friday 6/17. The line-ups for the other two quarterfinals matches on Saturday 6/18 are yet to be determined. Mexico and Venezuela are already in, but either one can advance as the Group C leader. From Group D, Argentina will most likely advance, along with Chile or Panama. [4-minute highlights of USA vs. Paraguay]
(7) Iran captures fifth straight freestyle Wrestling World Cup title.
(8) Final thought for the day: You can't make America great again by electing a President who is ridiculed by the entire free world and praised by America's enemies.

2016/06/10 (Friday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
The four previous 'Time' magazine covers devoted to Muhammad Ali (1) Time's fifth cover on Muhammad Ali: The magazine's June 20, 2016, long cover story and cover image are devoted to Ali. The cover feature includes several historical photos.
(2) Retired aerospace engineer, 82, sings on "America's Got Talent": I hope other engineers learn from this experience and stick to their day jobs! [Note to self: Update retirement plans.]
(3) Concordia University professor Homa Hoodfar arrested and jailed in Iran: The distinguished anthropologist, 65, has published about sexuality and gender in Islam and is an advocate of women's health and their reproductive and economic empowerment. She has been accused of "cooperating with a foreign state against the Islamic Republic of Iran," a standard charge for those who hold unsanctioned social or political views.
(4) Leonardo DiCaprio to be cast as Rumi: I thought about who I would have chosen. It's a tough call. Several high-power stars are out because they won't be believable in the role. Others lack the requisite looks or gravitas.
(5) Honoring life vs. celebrating death: While Jewish and Arab medical workers in Israel were at work trying to save the life of one of the two terrorists who killed four Israeli civilians and injured several others in Tel Aviv, some residents of the West Bank and Gaza were celebrating, passing out sweets, and hailing the terrorists as heroes.
(6) Elizabeth Warren shames Donald Trump: What an effective campaigner for Clinton she can be! Using the presidential campaign pulpit to launch personal attacks and settle scores is so out of bounds that even the Republicans can't bring themselves to defend it.
(7) President Obama endorses Hillary Clinton. Meanwhile, key supporters of Bernie Sanders say he should concede to Clinton. Sanders had previously said that he planned to gain the support of superdelegates. Suppose he succeeds in getting more support than Clinton, despite losing in pledged delegates. Then after speaking for months about how superdelegates skew the primaries by overriding the will of the voters, how will he justify being nominated on the strength of their support?

2016/06/08 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
(1) Opening thought for the day: Stop worrying about men potentially pretending to be women in order to rape girls and devote your energies to preventing and appropriately punishing actual rape by those who do it with no pretenses. [Adapted from multiple FB posts on the Stanford University rapist, whose six-month sentence amounted to a slap on the wrist.]
(2) Half dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- ISIS burns 19 Yazidi women to death in Mosul for refusing to have sex with fighters (The Independent, UK)
- Palestinian gunmen kill 4, injure several others, in Tel Aviv attack; both terrorists nabbed (USA Today)
- Car bomb in Istanbul kills 11; another bomb in the Kurdish southeast region of Turkey kills 5 (ABC News)
- Hit-and-run driver kills 5 cyclists and injures 4 others in Michigan (NBC News)
- Actress Helen Mirren testifies at congressional hearing on recovering Nazi-looted art (World Jewish Congress)
- Iranian-American man goes missing en route from Santa Catalina to Van Nuys on a Cessna 172 (ABC News)
(3) Fighting hate with punctuation: Anti-Semitic groups have started putting three sets of parentheses around the names of Jews on social media posts, to identify and track them. Many are now co-opting the movement and changing their user names to something like (((Brian Teeman))) to stand up against hate.
(4) Shedding light on memory: According to new research from MIT, Alzheimer's patients continue to process and store memories; it is their retrieval process that is damaged. This is very good news, because various types of nerve-cell stimulation may be able to assist with recall. [From: ASEE Prism magazine, issue of June 2016]
(5) Electronic bank heist: In one of the biggest bank robberies in history, $81M was wired by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to various bank accounts in Asia, as a result of hackers infiltrating Bangladesh's Central Bank and firing off some three dozen forged inter-bank SWIFT messages to other banks. By sheer luck, a misspelling raised red flags, leading to most of the transfers being stopped. Otherwise, the loss would have amounted to about $1B. [Source: Time magazine, issue of June 13, 2016]
(6) President Obama has only six months to save Fox News from one of its biggest lies: Fox News has been telling its viewers for years that Barack Obama will take their guns away. The result has been a significant upsurge in US gun sales and millions more guns on the streets. With six months left in his presidency, Obama better act quickly, or someone's pants will catch fire.
(7) USA team in Copa America: After losing its opening match 0-2 to Colombia, the US men's national soccer team rolled over Costa Rica 4-0. Clint Dempsey scored on a penalty kick in the 9th minute and assisted on two goals in minutes 37 and 42. The 4th goal came in minute 87. The final group-stage match for the US will be against Paraguay on June 11. [7-minute highlights of USA vs, Costa Rica]

2016/06/07 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Four new varieties of dinosaurs just discovered (1) Cartoon of the day: Newly discovered dinosaurs.
(2) A highly improbable lightning strike: On May 28, 2016, during a child's birthday party in a Paris park, 8 children and 3 adults were injured, some critically, by a lightning strike. [From Time magazine, issue of June 13]
(3) How to stay married: This is the title of a cover feature in Time magazine, issue of June 13, 2016, which begins thus: "Staying married is more challenging than ever. But new data says it's worth it." The article goes on to quote Mark Twain, who said: "To get the full value of joy, you must have somebody to divide it with."
(4) Kevlar bulletproof backpacks: A company is marketing high-tech bulletproof backpacks to students and faculty in Texas, where "campus carry" goes into effect in August. [Source: Newsweek on-line]
(5) A nightmare opponent for Trump: The presumptive Republican nominee, who tried hard to get Bernie Sanders to run against, is now stuck with Hillary Clinton, who will bring his misogynistic past statements and tendencies into full view. With President Obama seemingly ready to throw his support behind the Democratic nominee, Bernie Sanders dropping subtle hints that he will back Clinton, and Republican heavyweights either distancing themselves from or providing lukewarm support for Trump, election of the first female US President seems to be a done deal.
(6) Reinventing the wheel: Goodyear has been working on spherical concept tires to be manufactured via 3D printing. The new tires provide better maneuverability, lateral movement capability, and adaptability to road conditions. I still can't wrap my head around how the tires will be attached to vehicles, though.
(7) Virginia-to-Spain undersea cable: The 4100-mile cable will be built jointly by Microsoft and Facebook. [Source: Time magazine, issue of June 13, 2016]
(8) Omnifocal glasses: DeepOptics, an Israeli start-up company, has developed the technology for transparent liquid-crystal coating that can be applied to prescription glasses to provide smooth transition between various focal lengths, depending on what the user is viewing at each instant. "Sensors in the glasses track the pupils of the wearer. Changes in pupillary distance, or the distance between the centers of the two pupils, indicate the depth of an object that a person is trying to focus on. A processing unit built into the glasses can use the pupillary distance to calculate exactly how far the user is from the object, and the correct electrical current alters the liquid-crystal layer to provide the perfect prescription in real time."

2016/06/06 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
(1) Vacuum tubes may be coming back: The invention of transistor is thought to have been a turning point in allowing denser, more energy-efficient digital circuit. Now, in an ironic twist, vacuum tubes may save us from the dead end caused by our inability to shrink the transistor size further. Caltech researchers are working on electronic circuits made of vacuum-tube-like elements, each one-thousandth the size of a red blood cell.
(2) Still more detail about the UCLA shooting: The shooter believed that Professor William Klug, the victim, had stolen his research ideas and not given him credit for them. In reality, Klug helped him graduate with a PhD degree when some other faculty colleagues deemed his dissertation not good enough. Professor Christopher Lynch, whose office was near the shooting site, has been given credit for possibly saving lives by holding an office door shut while the shooter was inside, thus effectively isolating him until he killed himself.
(3) Feature article in the June 2016 issue of AARP Bulletin: How one doctor led a ring that scammed Medicare out of $375M (the total annual Medicare fraud toll is said to be around $60B).
(4) Trump steps in it one more time: His shoes now look and smell awful and his fellow Republicans have condemned his calling the judge presiding over the Trump University lawsuit "a Mexican." The judge is indeed of Mexican heritage, but was born in the US. Furthermore, as a prosecutor, he courageously pursued Mexican drug cartels and was under Federal protection for a year due to threats against his life. As usual, Trump is doubling down and can't bring himself to say he made a mistake. As one observer noted, this is a new low in the American political scene. Any previous presidential nominee would have been disqualified for statements of the kind Trump is making on a daily basis.
(5) Doh, Mark! Zuckerberg, that is. Several of his social media accounts were compromised, because he used the password "dadada" for all of them. What was it you were saying about password strength?
(6) On words to describe family relationships: It the course of the Parhami Family Reunion, held last Sunday, the need arose to describe the relationships of various family members. Besides the familiar terms such as "cousin," "uncle," and "grandson," terms such as "second cousin," "first cousin once removed," and "second cousin once removed" came into play. I had previously written about how Persian terms to describe family relationships are more specific than their English counterparts. For example, there are two words for "uncle," depending on whether the said person is the brother of one's father or brother of one's mother. There are eight words for cousin, depending on the sex of the person and which of the uncles or aunts gave birth to him/her ("dokhtar-amoo," "pessar-khaaleh," etc.). And there are single words for great-grandchild ("natijeh"), great-great-grandchild ("nabireh"), and great-great-great-grandchild ("nadideh"). Now, for the more distant relationships, Persian also offers more descriptive terms. For example, "naveh-khaleh" (grandchild of aunt on the mother's side) is one of the four terms used in lieu of "first cousin once removed."

2016/06/05 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
The sun, as seen behind the clouds in King City, California, June 4, 2016 (1) I returned from the San Francisco Bay Area yesterday, after a 2-day trip. This photo shows an unusual view of the sun in King City, where I had stopped for a brief break on the way back. During this trip, I finished listening to an audio course (see my review, posted late last night) and got started on another audiobook entilted Notorious RBG (a biography of Ruth Bader Ginsburg).
(2) Quote of the day: "I wake up each day in a house built by slaves. ... The American dream endures in our time." ~ Michelle Obama, in yesterday's commencement address at NY City College
(3) Iranian FM's tweet honors Muhammad Ali and praises his "fight for justice, dignity and peace": Of course, Mr. Zarif conveniently ignores the fact that the same kind of peaceful activism in his own country (even writing critical poems or drawing cartoons) is punished by long prison terms.
(4) Dancing in the Islamic Republic: Decades of restrictions and threats of punishment have been ineffective in dampening Iranian women's love for music and dancing.
(5) World's oldest soccer tournament is now in progress: The US is hosting the 100th edition of Copa America, but US soccer fans were disappointed to see their team lose at home 0-2 to Colombia in the opening match, played in Santa Clara's Levi Stadium.
(6) Hillary Clinton's most effective campaign speech to date: She uses Donald Trump's words, verbatim and without embellishing them for comic effect, to make the case that he is unfit to become President. An admirable woman, warts and all!
(7) Paul Simon's concert at Santa Barbara Bowl: Tonight, some family members and I attended a highly enjoyable concert by the still-great-sounding music icon, who performed four tunes from his just-released album and many of his standard songs, but unfortunately not "The Sound of Silence" or "Bridge over Troubled Water." For about two hours, including two encore sets, Simon had the audience sing along and dance to his exquisite rhythms (albeit in the subdued form typical of admirers of a 74-year-old singer). Everybody hummed along when he performed "The Boxer" (the video is from a different concert).

2016/06/04 (Saturday): Course review: Nichols, Shaun (Univ. of Arizona Professor of Philosophy and Cognitive Science), Great Philosophical Debates: Free Will and Determinism, 24 lectures in "The Great Courses Series" on 12 CDs (with a 133-page guidebook developed by Professor Nichols), The Teaching Company, 2008.
Cover image for the audio course on free will and determinism Do we have a precharted destiny or do we make our own life choices? Our answer to this question, whose roots go back to more than 2500 years ago, affects every detail of our daily lives individually and how we view social structures and criminal justice laws/punishments at the collective level. This age-old riddle, viz. free will vs. determinism, has occupied not just philosophers, but also scientists and other great minds for centuries.
Determinism means that because nothing happens without a cause, everything is predetermined. For example, if we could roll back the universe to its exact state at the beginning of January 1, 1900, everything that has happened since then will happen again, and in exactly the same manner. The notions of fate and karma are in line with this way of thinking. Proponents of free will, or libertarians (not to be confused with a political philosophy that goes by the same name), contend that humans, and to some extent lower life forms, are capable of making decisions which can lead to choosing one path over another, thus potentially resulting in vastly different outcomes in the long run.
Most versions of the argument for free will postulate that it is incompatible with determinism. In other words, they take the conditional statement "If determinism is true then there is no free will" to be true. However, determinism being false does not automatically imply the existence of free will. One can point to probabilistic events (a la quantum mechanics) which lead to nondeterministic or unpredictable outcomes, even in the absence of free will. Of course, there is also the argument that some things appear to be random only because our knowledge is not yet deep enough to understand them.
One of the main arguments for the existence of free will is that humans seem to be wired for the concept. Children as young as 2 or 3 understand what it means to decide between alternatives. We humans are also wired for moral responsibility, which is nonsensical in the absence of free will. Determinism is supported by predictability in nature based on scientific laws. Given precisely known initial condition, natural laws predict what happens next, and there is no reason to think that our mind and the deliberation processes therein are exempt from such laws. Compatibilism is the view that determinism and free will are not mutually exclusive. This is sometimes viewed as the chicken's way out of a serious debate.
Harry G. Frankfurt, an effective proponent of the free-will theory, is, unfortunately, better-known for his semiserious book, On Bullshit, which got him a gig on Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show," an indication that philosophical topics aren't all that interesting to the general public! Frankfurt argued that the principle of alternate possibilities (someone can be said to have acted on free will only if he could have done otherwise) is not necessary for free will. He then advanced the concept of second-order desire (the desire to have a certain desire), which is unique to humans, as a hallmark of free will, in the process removing some of the prior objections to compatibilism. But problems remain nevertheless. [PDF summary]
In the 24 lectures of this highly enjoyable and informative course (listed at the end of my review), Professor Nichols tackles the problem from every possible angle, as he tries to shed light on why the problem is indeed very profound and how both psychology and neuroscience are playing key roles in advancing our understanding of the main issues. Hearing about these ideas from an award-winning professor is much more effective that reading a book. I recommend the course highly.
01. Free Will and Determinism    02. Fate and Karma    03. Devine Predestination and Foreknowledge
04. Causal Determinism    05. Ancient and Medieval Indeterminism    06. Agent Causation
07. Ancient and Classical Compatibilism    08. Contemporary Campatibilism    09. Hard Determinism
10. Free Will Impossibilism    11. The Belief in Free Will    12. Physics and Free Will
13. Neuroscience and Determinism    14. Neuroscience of Conscious Choice    15. Psychology and Free Will
16. Deontological Ethics and Free Will    17. Utilitarianism and Free Will    18. Responsibility and the Emotions
19. Pessimism and Illusionism    20. Optimism and Skepticism    21. The Ethics of Punishment
22. The Power of Punishment    23. Moral Responsibility and Psychopathy    24. The Future of Responsibility

2016/06/03 (Friday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Portrait of Muhammad Ali as a young man; he died today at age 74 (1) Boxing legend Muhammad Ali dead at 74: I am posting this item despite the fact that I have no respect for boxing as a sport. Ali himself was the poster child for the harmful effects of the sport on a boxer's physical health, and this is in addition to promotion of violence and the psychological damage it can do. However, later in his life, Ali emerged as an eloquent spokesperson for social justice and racial equality. Rest in peace, champ!
(2) More details about the UCLA shooting emerges: The shooter, who killed professor William Klug and himself, left behind a list of three people he wanted to kill. Another UCLA professor named on the list is unharmed but the shooter's (ex?) wife was found dead at her Minnesota residence.
(3) Paul Ryan endorses Donald Trump: Not that he had any choice! The Never-Trump movement has lost traction and going against the will of Republican voters would have spelled disaster for the party. Meanwhile, in what appears to be a turning point in her campaign, Hillary Clinton has delivered her most scathing attack on Trump, pointing to his anti-NATO stance and asserting that "they'll be celebrating in the Kremlin" should he be elected President.
(4) Black women are America's most-educated group: According to National Center for Education Statistics, a higher percentage of black women—9.7% to be exact—are enrolled in college than any other racial or gender group, including white men, white women, and Asian women.
(5) Traditional Iranian music: Young girl on santoor and young boy on tombak play a beautiful piece in "Chahar Mezrab-e Esfahan."
(6) Here is an interesting word game, with my answers filled in. See if you can do it, beginning with your own name, so that each answer starts with the last letter of your previous answer.
Name - Behrooz | Animal - Zebra | Girl's name - Abby | Color - Yellow | Movie - "Wall Street" | Something you wear - Tunic | Drink - Coffee | Food - Eggs | Item in the bathroom - Soap | Place - Panama | Reason to be late - Alarm clock failure
(7) Useful tip from a stranger: As I was sitting at a Starbucks on my way to the SF Bay Area (where I am headed to visit a dear old friend), a gentleman approached and told me that pressing control-plus will enlarge a browser's screen image, so that one can read the text without having to stoop forward. And control-zero will take it back to the original size.

2016/06/01 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Doglike robot being kicked as part of a balance test (1) The ethics of kicking a robot: As robots begin to look and act more like living beings, subjecting them to violence makes some people feel uncomfortable. In this photo, an employee of Boston Dynamics is shown kicking the company's doglike robot to test whether it can keep its balance.
(2) Murder-suicide at UCLA: The school, where my daughter studies, went on lock-down today due to a shooting incident in its Engineering IV Building. It became evident later that the incident was a murder-suicide, with the shooter (a student) killing a professor and himself.
(3) Finland has decided that fewer school hours for kids produces better, happier students.
(4) Three women save another woman from being raped: I saw a TV news report on these women, whose alertness and willingness to act saved another woman from being raped. A while ago, ABC news conducted an experiment as part of their "What Would You Do?" series of programs in which a man put some powder in his female companion's drink when she went to the bathroom (both were actors working for the program). Many people who saw the incident chose not to intervene, but a few went and talked to the woman to warn her about what happened.
(5) Erdogan joins Khamenei in denouncing birth control: The Turkish Prime Minister and the Supreme Leader of Iran both believe that Muslims should be fruitful and multiply and not pay attention to the Western notion of family planning.
(6) Taraneh Alidoosti's feminist tattoo may derail her film career in Iran: The popular actress is unapologetic about her "woman power" wrist tattoo and feminist views and believes everyone should be a feminist. She asserts that the misguided view equating feminism with anti-male arises from misogynistic tendencies.
(7) Governor Jerry Brown endorses Clinton: I had been wondering whether Brown would take a stance. I am glad he has done so. Given Brown's track record and popularity, this will mean a lot in CA's primary outcome.
(8) Stephen Hawking is puzzled by the Trump phenomenon: Through sheer determination and respect for scientific facts, Hawking has done more to advance our understanding of the world than all blabber-mouthed demagogues combined. Yet, this bright scientific mind is at a loss to explain Trump's appeal.
(9) Trump agrees with ISIL that Islam should not mix with other religions: Former head of the CIA and the NSA asserts that Trump is helping ISIL.

Cover image for the audiobook 'Last Lion' 2016/05/31 (Tuesday): Book review: Canellos, Peter S. (ed.; based on the work of a group of Boston Globe reporters), Last Lion: The Fall and Rise of Ted Kennedy, abridged audiobook on 6 CDs, read by Skipp Sudduth, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2009.
Ted Kennedy [1932-2009] grew up in the shadow of his older brothers Jack and Bobby, who went on to realize their father's ambition about the family's public-service legacy. Ted was the least academically successful of the three brothers (the fourth and oldest brother, Joseph, had died in battle during World War II).
When both older brothers were assassinated before they had implemented their full political agendas, the torch was passed on to Ted, who was unprepared for the enormous political burden, alongside assuming the role of the family patriarch. The 1969 Chappaquiddick fatal-car-crash scandal, heavy drinking, philandering, and divorce from his wife Joan forced him to forgo running for US President in the 1972 and 1976 elections.
His failed 1980 presidential candidacy seemed like the end of his political ambitions, but there was a second act to his life; hence, the "fall and rise" of the book's title. His failed bid to become US President may have actually freed Kennedy from family and public expectations, allowing him to transform himself from a poster boy for nonchalance and youthful folly into a symbol of wisdom and bipartisan policy-making.
Whereas civil rights legislation under President Johnson would have likely passed without Kennedy's help, he deserves full credit for efforts to prevent Reagan and others from rolling them back. For these and many other efforts over several decades of service, he became known as the Senate's liberal lion.
Kennedy married Victoria Reggie in 1992 and their loving relationship lasted until his death at age 77. His personal life mellowed, as he focused on his duties toward younger members of the Kennedy clan (uncle Teddy).
As his health continued to deteriorate in the years leading to the 2008 presidential election, he made a valiant effort to remain active and to pass on the torch of liberalism to a new generation of Democrats, He and his niece Caroline emphatically endorsed Senator Barack Obama, who went on to become the 44th US President.
Kennedy worked on many pieces of legislation, but his passion as a Senator was in the areas of education and healthcare. He forged partnerships with other lawmakers and was able to earn respect on both sides of the aisle. The book reveals many intimate details of these friendships on Capitol Hill and of Kennedy's family relationships.

2016/05/30 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
(1) Happy Memorial Day: The day we honor the memory of those who fell to protect our freedom.
(2) The sixth annual Parhami Family Reunion was held yesterday in the Los Angeles area with 114 attendees. This gathering, on the Sunday of the Memorial Day Weekend, is becoming a much-cherished family tradition. Next year's 7th annual gathering has already been scheduled.
Group photo taken at the sixth annual Parhami Family Reunion (3) California drought is a hoax: This is the latest musing from Donald Trump, who had previously declared climate change a handiwork of the Chinese, who are trying to make American businesses less competitive.
(4) To Bernie Sanders and his Bernie-or-bust followers: Please remember Ralph Nader's legacy from 2000. Because of Nader, Al Gore lost by razor-thin margins in Florida and New Hampshire, either one of which could have given him the presidency. The consequences: two of history's longest wars, hundreds of thousands dead, a world that is less safe, and an economic collapse.
(5) India's ancient stepwells: These architectural marvels are ponds deep below the ground, whose water can be reached by descending a set of steps.
(6) New York City's sky gardens, complete with lawns and trees, are hidden from street-level views. [Pictorial]

Cover image for the audiobook of 'Modern Romance' 2016/05/28 (Saturday): Book review: Ansari, Aziz and Eric Klineberg, Modern Romance, unabridged audiobook on 5 CDs read by the first author.
Even though the book Modern Romance has two authors, the audiobook edition lists only Ansari on the front cover, but the blurb on the back cover credits the NYU sociologist and includes bios of both. On the challenges faced by him, a comedian, in working with a sociologist, Ansari has said: "They're both professions where you're just trying to make observations about the world that have some resonance."
I approached this audiobook nonchalantly, expecting to get some laughs in the context of dating oddities and mishaps, but was pleasantly surprised to find a very well-researched and insightful treatise of the challenges of finding love in the information age.
While it is true that ubiquitous connectivity has increased our reach and broadened our options, it has also created challenges, which include the expectation of nearly instantaneous response and the taking away of our time for soul-searching and introspection. The authors do a great job of cataloging the pitfalls of 24/7 connectivity and ways to avoid them.
Ansari and Klineberg consulted some of the world's leading social scientists and they created their own massive experimental set-up, which included interviews, focus groups, and an on-line research forum on Reddit, which attracted thousands of messages. The result is a unique mix of humor and solid science, unlike any other book you might have read.
Chart showing how heterosexual couples meet Electronic communication has affected every aspect of our lives, including how we connect with potential mates. As recently as the mid 1900s, most people married mates they met in the same town, neighborhood, or, surprisingly often, same apartment building. Later, college campuses and workplaces became meeting places for many. In an article (Time magazine, issue of June 15, 2015), Ansari included a chart, shown on the right, that reflects the percentage of heterosexual couples who met in various ways in the period 1940-2010 (handwritten labels, replacing a box legend, are mine). The article also included a separate chart for same-sex couples over the period 1985-2005.
While social media and on-line dating have expanded our horizons and options, making it easier for us to find potential mates, they have also introduced complications. Not long ago, phone calls used to be the primary means of asking someone out; now texting is the preferred method. The indirect communication via texting, which deprives us of many clues that exist in face-to-face or voice communication, can lead to misunderstandings and the need for follow-up clarifications.
The tone and depth of our communications have also been affected in a negative way. Ansari cites a large number of examples of content-free text messages, in one case consisting of repeated transmission of "What's up?" without ever going deeper. Any error in spelling or tone of a message will persist forever and may be reexamined by the recipient, with negative impact, whereas verbal communication leaves no permanent record. We also tend to be more considerate when we talk to someone, making it less likely to hurt their feelings.
It has been observed that on-line dating is a boon for women, because it levels the playing field to some extent. Another interesting fact is that what you write about yourself in your on-line dating profile barely makes a difference in how many responses you get; your picture is immensely more important (roughly 9 times more) than your words.
Ansari's own parents had an arranged marriage. His father's parents essentially showed him three girls, and in a Goldilocks kind of way, he deemed the first one too tall, the second one too short, and the third one just the right height. They spoke for half an hour 35 years ago and decided that they could make it work.
Here is one of the more interesting bits of wisdom in the book: What we say we want in a mate and what we actually want are quite different. This observation is from a study done by Match.com, which observed that when they matched couples according to their stated preferences, the pairing was seldom successful. This led to a fine-tuning of their match algorithm to produce better results. So, once again, the application of data science has led to improved efficiency in automated systems. One apt recommendation by the authors is to avoid prolonged text or on-line communication and schedule a first date rather quickly.
Young and old can benefit from this insightful book. Even if you are not a participant in the dating scene, the insights gained can help you understand your children and other young family members better.

2016/05/27 (Friday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Current and potential US presidential couples (1) The current and 3 potential US presidential couples: One of these couples does not look like the others!
(2) Kurdish music played by the very talented Kamkaran Ensemble: Wonderful!
(3) A machine for moving trees effortlessly.
(4) President Obama's visit to Hiroshima a decent move: It does not matter that the Japanese declared war on us and that without the A-bombs, the war could have been protracted, leading to greater loss of life. Accepting the fact that innocent victims were killed and recognizing the importance of good will between the people of Japan and United States in the face of regional challenges from China and North Korea are signs of strength, not weakness.
(5) The e-mail non-scandal: Interesting opinion piece by Kurt Eichenwald, who puts Clinton's e-mail "scandal" into perspective. Briefly, he notes that the rules to be followed by State Department officials constitute a 16-volume encyclopedic tome that no one reads. Career staffers, whose job is to be informed about the rules and to help top officials with compliance, never told Clinton that anything was amiss. While it is fair to criticize Clinton over her role in the Libyan intervention, the e-mail story is a non-issue that won't change any voter's mind.
(6) Data from a car's computer can identify the driver: Your driving profile may be as unique as your fingerprint. One study found that data collected from the car's brake pedal alone was sufficient to correctly identify the driver in 90% of the test cases.
(7) Swift "justice": In the Iranian city of Qazvin, more than two dozen young men and women, who were partying following their graduation, were arrested, tried, convicted, sentenced to 99 lashes, and punished, all within the span of a single day. The prosecutor's office of Qazvin has said that the justice system wanted to send a message to young people who attend mixed parties where the women are "half-naked" (the term used to describe women with no veil).

2016/05/25 (Wednesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Photos of Taraneh Alidoosti and Golshifteh Farahani (1) Taraneh Alidoosti (left) and Golshifteh Farahani: Two talented young Iranian actresses who followed different career paths, both leading to this year's Cannes Film Festival. Along the way, both were criticized for their choices and had to endure hardships resulting from a backward patriarchal culture and closed-minded officials.
(2) Santa Barbara's I Madonnari street-painting festival: This year's 30th-anniversary event will be held at the usual SB Mission location during the Memorial-Day weekend, May 28-30, 2016.
(3) Eastern-style rendition of Ray Charles' classic "Hit the Road Jack!"
Image with the Persian text 'mamnoo'ol-jik-zadan' (4) Innovative judicial terms: Attorneys and law experts worldwide are impressed by the rate at which the Islamic Republic of Iran introduces novel judicial concepts. Here is a sampling.
"Mamnoo'ol-khorooj/vorood": Banned from leaving/entering the country.
"Mamnoo'ol-tasveer": Banned from being depicted in TV news, newspapers, and other communication media.
"Mamnoo'ol-fa'aaliat": Banned from practicing one's trade, be it writing, reporting, legal representation, etc.
"Hasr": The same as the Western "house arrest," except that it is carried out before a trial or even indictment.
The list will likely expand in future. Expect more novel judicial terms beginning with the prefix "mamnoo'ol."
(5) A tale of two seas: Receiving without giving isn't conducive to life. [1-minute video]
(6) The importance of breakfast is vastly overrated: Nearly all studies that conclude eating breakfast improves health or leads to weight loss are misleading or, worse, are sponsored by companies that want to sell you breakfast food. Eat breakfast if you are hungry in the morning; otherwise, don't worry about skipping it.
(7) Andre Rieu and guest performer Gheorghe Zamfir play a beautiful piece as a tribute to the late prolific composer Jame Last. I don't know the name of the piece, but it has some similarities to "Mon Amour."

2016/05/23 (Monday): Here are three items of potential interest.
(1) Cannes Film Festival 2016: Iranian artists shone this year, with director Asghar Farhadi honored for the best screenplay for his film "Foroushandeh" ("The Salesman") and Shahab Hosseini awarded the Golden Palm as best actor. The Iranian entourage received a warm welcome and a long ovation. Asghar Farhadi gave a sincere and effective acceptance speech. Upon accepting his award, Shahab Hosseini said: "This prize belongs to my people and I give it to them with all my heart."
(2) Old-time actor Donald Sutherland shows solidarity with Iranian film director Katayoon Shahabi by putting a scarf on his head during a Cannes Film Festival news conference.
(3) Novel Markets on the Internet: This was the title of a talk by Vijay Vazirani (of Georgia Tech) this afternoon at UCSB. Two example Internet markets were used by the speaker to illustrate the effects of the new dynamics brought about by fast, scalable communication on how markets behave and how they must be deployed and exploited. The first example, Google's Adwords market, has been used successfully to make Google's search business profitable. When you enter a search term, such as "vitamin C," your search term is auctioned off to businesses and these businesses offer bids for showing their ads alongside your search results. The bidding and selection occur automatically within a few milliseconds. The speaker explained the problems encountered in implementing such a high-volume, high-speed bidding system and some of the theoretical underpinnings of the associated market. The second example, cloud computing, is more recent and thus less well-understood. In the cloud computing market, service providers such as Amazon sell computing resources in different forms. Some customers who need predictability, make reservations for access to Amazon's servers and pay a premium price for the associated service guarantee. There is also a spot market, where one may get a better price if computing resources are not already booked to full capacity. This is akin to buying an airplane seat at the last minute at deep discount. The speaker outlined the challenges of such a market and some results on an equilibrium-based model that incorporates the important features of such a market and supports efficient polynomial-time algorithms. [This Web page contains links to Professor Vazirani's research on Internet markets.]

2016/05/22 (Sunday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing GOP and RNC cleaning up after the Trump-2016 elephant (1) Cartoon of the day: Why Republicans are hesitant to get behind Trump.
(2) Last night, my family and I attended a culture show staged by UCLA's Iranian Student Group at Freud Playhouse, beginning at 7:00 PM.
The 3-hour program included comedy skits, poetry recitation, several dance routines ("Engar Na Engar," Modern, Sonnati, and Bandari), a traditional music ensemble (performing three songs, a zarbi piece in dastgaah-e shoor, "Ahesteh, Ahesteh," and "Moo-ye Sepid"), "Gol-e Yakh" song with piano and guitar accompanyment, and several trivia quizzes between program segments.
Comedian Tehran was the special guest, who performed his bilingual stand-up routine, making fun of racism by telling racist jokes. As a half-black Iranian-American, Tehran has first-hand experience about the subject, or, as he put it, the "nigger-terrorist" stereotype.
(3) Sweden's Minister of the Future: This is the nickname given to Kristina Presson, whose job is to promote strategic thinking in the Swedish government and to develop a long-term vision that goes beyond mundane problems and crises-of-the-week. [From "Fareed Zakaria GPS" program, today on CNN]
(4) Around the world on zero gallons of gas: This is the title of a Newsweek on-line story about the hopes raised for alternative energy by the airplane that is circling the earth using solar energy alone.
(5) A tale of musical rivalries: Conflicts (of both in-the-open and behind-the-scenes kinds) between pop musicians is portrayed in Steven Hayden's new book, Your Favorite Band Is Killing Me, which is reviewed briefly in this Newsweek on-line piece.
(6) California Strawberry Festival: After attending a picnic at Goleta Beach, where we had catered Persian food, courtesy of a number of faculty and students of Iranian origins at UCSB. my daughter and I ventured to a very crowded Strawberry Festival in Oxnard, where we tasted strawberry beer and smoothies and listened to Space Oddity, an excellent David Bowie tribute band.

Cover image for the audiobook 'Think Like a Freak 2016/05/21 (Saturday): Book review: Levitt, Steven D. and Stephen J. Dubner, Think Like a Freak, unabridged audiobook on 5 CDs, read by the second author, Harper Audio, 2014.
The authors of the best-selling book Freakonomics have struck again with their captivating storytelling and highly counterintuitive observations. Did you know that adults are easier to fool than kids? Makes you rethink the purported ease of "taking a candy from a baby"! Also, following your curiosity makes the world a better place, instead of getting you in trouble!
One of the more interesting examples pertains to taking a soccer penalty kick. During penalty kicks, soccer goalies dive to the left 57% of the time and to the right 41% of the time. The fact that they stay put at the center only 2% of the time makes it 7% more likely for the kicker to score by taking aim at the center of the goal.
No doubt, professional soccer players and coaches are familiar with these stats, yet it would be so embarrassing to kick the ball right into the hands of a stationary goalie that 83% of kickers take their chances with the more risky right or left shots.
Our behavior is affected not just by our own trade-off analysis and moral compass but by other people's opinions and judgments. Thinking like a freak means looking at the world in terms of incentives. Because of conflicting words and actions, and hidden incentives of which we may be unaware, the right decision is often highly counterintuitive and difficult to identify.
An example of a highly counterintuitive course of action is seen in the way the company Zappos hires its employees. It sends out with every offer a $2000 reward for not accepting the job offer. It figures that spending $2000 up front is much cheaper than hiring an unenthusiastic employee who would be less productive or who would leave at the first opportunity.
In many cases, poorly thought-out reward and punishment schemes incentivize bad behavior. For example, in China, killing someone in a traffic accident entails a smaller monetary penalty than the average liability (medical costs) for an injury. It isn't difficult to figure out what many drivers do when they run over someone!
Forget about feel-good measures and try to consider all options before applying your moral compass. In setting up incentives, be mindful of unintended consequences and the fact that many incentives backfire. The authors provide plenty of examples when unforeseen consequences or backfirings may occur.
There is something for everyone in this book. The examples may not be directly relevant to your daily life or field of activity, but having studied these examples, you will be much more likely to make correct decisions.

2016/05/20 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad depicted as Che Guevara (1) Ahmadinejad as Che Guevara: This piece by an unknown artist, featured on the iTanz FB page, is entitled "Cheh Nagovara," playing on the Persian "Cheh Govara" (meaning "how refreshing"). The "na" prefix means "not" or "un" in Persian.
(2) Visiting "LightWorks: Isla Vista": Downtown Isla Vista was abuzz last night with people experiencing light-based art installations, which are projects in a UCSB art class entitled "Physical Computing." The art displays will remain in place for 3 nights. The installation in this photo, "HaggaTree," has tubing with built-in lights that resemble tree roots. If someone hugs the tree, sensors detect the hug and turn the normally pulsating greenish roots into colorful moving patterns.
In this first video, a park bridge is outfitted with vibration sensors underneath, so that if you jump on it or run across it, the lighting pattern, colors, and intensity change. The artists creating this work actually designed algorithms and did some coding to specify how vibrations are to affect lighting. Each tiny light is individually addressable and can assume different colors under program control.
In the early part of this second video, you see volunteer spectators standing in front of a screen. An artist with a digital sketch pad applies "paint" to their image, with the digital paint projected on the subjects. The latter part of the video shows a light display that you can interact with, passing through its various openings and changing the lighting pattern as a result.
Mona Lisa wearing a chador (3) Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, on loan at a museum in Iran. [Image on the right]
(4) Trump apparently prefers Sanders as an opponent: His California supporters are out in full force with negative campaigning against Clinton, in some cases pretending to be Sanders supporters.
(5) UCSB ranked 8th worldwide in research impact: The 2016 Leiden Ranking puts UC Santa Barbara among the world's top universities based on data from the Web of Science bibliographic database produced by Thomson Reuters.
(6) US multiyear agenda for computing research: Entitled "Future Directions for NSF Advanced Computing Infrastructure to Support U.S. Science and Engineering in 2017-2020," this National Academies report provides recommendations to (a) position the United States for continued world leadership in science and engineering; (b) ensure that computing resources meet community needs; (c) aid the scientific community in keeping up with the revolution in computing; (d) sustain the infrastructure for advanced computing. [Read on-line]

2016/05/19 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon about Native Americans pondering building a casino over going to war (1) Cartoon of the day.
(2) Light-based art exhibit in downtown Isla Vista: Several parks in the residential community adjacent to UCSB will be filled with light for three consecutive nights, May 19-21, just before the May 23 second anniversary of the 2014 Isla Vista mass shooting. Contemporary artworks with light-emitting technologies will be showcased in the first-ever "LightWorks: Isla Vista."
(3) Helen Fischer, performing live in Berlin (2010): "You Raise Me Up"
(4) Persian poetry: Recitation of a nice poem about a mouse that is entrapped upon pursuing a feast placed in the middle of a sticky trap. The poem's content and style remind me of Fereydoon Moshiri's "Gorg."
(5) Narges Mohammadi sentencted to 16 years in prison: The leading human rights activist is currently serving a 6-year term for prior convictions. Ten years of the new sentence is said to be for her membership in a group that is working to abolish the death penalty in Iran. President Rouhani's government brushes aside such laughable treatment of human rights activists by pointing to the independence of the judiciary from the executive branch. However, gross injustices of this kind are often carried out in the name of national security, which is under Rouhani's direction. And, of course, the Supreme Leader encourages such harsh treatment of dissidents, without being accountable to anyone under Iran's Islamic Constitution.
(6) It is unclear why Baha'is are deprived of the rights to study and work in Iran: This is what Sadegh Zibakalam, a professor of political science, ponders in his Persian Facebook post. However, one should go further and note that many other things are unclear too: why publishing a book or making a film needs a government permit; why candidates for political offices need screening and are disqualified en masse; why the Revolutionary Guards Corps, a branch of the military, controls so much of the country's commerce and industry. While it is a positive development that some people now dare to defend the Baha'is, one can't help but ask where all these defenders were when Baha'is were executed and imprisoned in large numbers since the early days of the Islamic Republic.
(7) Assessing two weed killers: This YouTube video compares a popular homemade weed killer known as "Weed-B-Gone" (1 gallon white vinegar; 2 cups Epson salt; 1 cup Dawn dish soap, of the blue original variety) with "HDX (high-density) Weed Killer" available at Home Depot. The demo shows that the two weed killers are nearly equal in effectiveness, with HDX costing a bit less per gallon.
[P.S.: You can tell from this post that I have been doing some gargening chores lately.]
(8) Eleven-year-old violinist Masha Marshon: In this 5-minute video, she performs Massenet's Meditation with the Israel Philharmonic.

2016/05/18 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Group photo taken at Sharif University of Technology's 50th anniversary celebration (1) Sharif University of Technology's 50th Anniversary celebration: Today SUT, my former workplace for 12 years (1974-1986), celebrated its 50th anniversary of founding in 1966 as Arya-Mehr University of Technology. My affiliation with SUT was during turbulent years, both the years leading to the 1979 Islamic Revolution and those after the Revolution, during which a 3-year closure of all Iranian universities under the guise of Cultural Revolution and interference in academic affairs by unqualified officials and students made serious academic activity quite difficult. Beginning with the year leading to the 1979 Revolution, the university was called by the informal name "Tehran University of Technology," before being officially renamed in 1980. Fifty staff/faculty members who have served SUT with distinction (yours truly included) and 50 of its distinguished graduates were honored in today's ceremony. In rough numbers, today's SUT has 400 staff members, 6000 undergraduate students, and 5000 graduate students.
Here is an interesting interview, in Persian, with Mehdi Zarghamee, the fifth Chancellor of SUT (1975-1977).
[Note added on May 19: The very sparse presence of women is noteworthy, but not surprising. The rank of chancellors has included no woman thus far. SUT's student body does include many capable women. Let's hope that more than a few token women were chosen but for whatever reason, chose not to attend. In fact, I am told that Fields Medal winner Maryam Mirzakhani of Stanford University was among the honorees.]
[Photo courtesy of Dr. Ghassem Jaberipur, one of the honorees and a former student of mine, who is seated near the middle of the second row (7th from the right). Those in the front row are the current and five of the former chancellors of SUT.]
(2) Average bed times in different countries (Country; men; women) (Belgium; 10:58; 10:32) (USA; 10:56; 10:51) (Canada; 11:00; 10:58) (UAE; 11:34; 11:49) (Singapore; 11:35; 12:00) (Spain; 11:37; 12:00) [Source: Time magazine, issue of May 23, 2016]
P.S.: Don't ask me what one gender does when the other one is already in bed; I don't know!
(3) The ultimate rally in table tennis: Very impressive indeed!
(4) Like all former Iranian presidents, Rouhani is powerless: He has expressed dissatisfaction with the expanded role of Iran's decency (aka morality) police, but the Supreme Leader routinely goes over his head and the hardliner-controlled judiciary, under the guise of independence from the executive and legislative branches, seems to be bent on making his life miserable.
(5) A new trend in Iran: Women cutting or shaving their hair and donning men's clothing to be able to walk freely on streets or attend sporting events.
(6) Beyond the Veil: In this 14-minute documentary film, made by Ajwa Aljoudi (a journalism student at Cal State Northridge), the political activism of a Saudi-born US military mom and the challenges of other women from closed Islamic societies are portrayed. Professor Nayereh Tohidi of CSUN appears in some interview segments.

2016/05/17 (Tuesday): Book review: Harris, Sam, Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality without Religion, unabridged audiobook on 6 CDs, read by the author, Simon & Schuster Audio, 2014.
Cover of the book 'Waking Up' by Sam Harris Many scientists are suspicious of spiritual experiences, and spiritual teachers are often scientifically illiterate. So, when they attempt to bridge the gap from their side, the results are less than satisfactory. "In the end, we are left to choose between pseudospirituality and pseudoscience. ... But there is a connection between scientific fact and spiritual wisdom, and it is more direct than most people suppose."
Sam Harris is a clear thinker, but his views are highly controversial due to his beliefs, or lack thereof (he is an atheist; he also happens to be a neuroscientist). Harris claims that some 20% of Americans consider themselves spiritual but not religious. His thesis is that spirituality without religions isn't an oxymoron, and that looking forward to Heaven and fear of Hell aren't necessary for living a fulfilling life.
Harris deems meditation the single most important method of achieving a heightened sense of spirituality, well-being, and fulfillment. He offers a set of simple instructions for getting into the meditative state and for staying there when your mind begins to wander. He notes that the conventional sense of self is an illusion. "[S]pirituality largely consists in realizing this, moment to moment ... Most of us feel that our experience of the world refers back to a self—not to our bodies precisely but to a center of consciousness that exists somehow interior to the body behind the eyes, inside the head."
To grasp the sense of "self," Harris suggests a thought experiment. Imagine getting into a teleportation machine which you are promised is completely safe. A machine on Mars duplicates you by placing the exact same atoms in the same positions they occupy in your body. Is the person reconstructed on Mars really you? He asks this question in the two cases where the real you is destroyed before the replica is made and the case where you coexist with the replica. He goes on to elaborate why most people think that the mere maintenance of life, memories, beliefs, and habits is insufficient for the person on Mars to be you.
Harris makes us question the notion of self (the "I" in our head) as something purely psychological. We are part of the world and the boundaries between individuals are quite artificial. This notion ties nicely into the ideas I am reading about in the book Neurosphere: The Convergence of Evolution, Group Mind, and the Internet, by Donald P. Dulchinos, whose central thesis is that humans have reached the end of their evolution in the biosphere and have begun evolving in the neurosphere.

2016/05/16 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) The American spy who vanished in Iran: A new book, Missing Man, tells the still unfinished story of Bob Levinson, an aging and cash-strapped former G-man who took the extraordinary risk of accepting a spying assignment in Iran. He is either dead or imprisoned by the Iranians, who have so far denied they have him in custody. [From a brief book review in Time magazine, issue of May 23, 2016]
(2) This marble race is actually quite absorbing, thanks to the colorful commentary.
(3) Three major Santa Barbara institutions reach key milestones this year: Museum of Natural History turns 100; Botanic Gardens turns 90; Museum of Modern Art turns 75.
(4) Precision group dancing at its best. [5-minute video]
(5) A heartwarming interview with Jan Smithers (text and video): The 1966 teenager who was featured on the cover of a "teen issue" of Newsweek magazine 50 years ago, went on to star on "WKRP in Cincinnati" as a result. The new Newsweek teen issue focuses on the very negative reaction of modern teenagers to racism. There is hope for America!
(6) In a projection lighting stunt, the Saudi embassy in Berlin was branded as "Daesh Bank."
(7) Eat your fork as dessert: An Indian start-up is marketing edible cutlery in an effort to reduce plastic waste. The pieces are sturdy enough to survive most foods, including hot soup, and they come in different flavors.
(8) Iranian-born actress Golshifteh Farahani has posted a batch of photos from the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.
(9) Cancer treatment with polio virus gets breakthrough status: Last night's CBS newsmagazine "60 Minutes" reported on amazing results from preliminary trials of curing a form of brain cancer by using a genetically modified version of the polio virus to help kill cancerous cells and to awaken the body's immune system to provide additional response. Breakthrough status from the FDA means that the treatment will be fast-tracked, allowing much broader trials while the method is still under study. This is yet one more piece of evidence that cancer will be conquered within a decade.

2016/05/15 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Time magazine's cover about the crisis of capitalism (1) Saving Capitalism: This is the title of a cover feature by Rana Foroohar in Time magazine's May 23 issue. The piece is based on Foroohar's new book, Makers and Takers. A new poll reveals that "only 19% of Americans ages 18 to 29 identified themselves as 'capitalists.' In the richest and most market-oriented country in the world, only 42% of that group said they 'supported capitalism." The numbers were higher among older people; still, only 26% considered themselves capitalists. A little over half supported the system as a whole."
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines from the past couple of days:
- Donald Trump taps climate-change skeptic as energy adviser
- Mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani elected to US National Academy of Science
- Tehran surpasses Beijing and Delhi as the world's most-polluted city
- President Obama endorses the idea of making election day a national holiday
- Fatma Samoura from Senegal chosen as first woman to lead FIFA
- Concern grows over possible Venezuela economic meltdown
(3) Robotic TAs are here: Georgia Tech professor Ashok Goel experimented with a robotic TA named Jill Watson (she was based on IBM's Watson AI platform) to answer students' e-mail questions along with normal human TAs for his course on artificial intelligence. In what seems like a successfully completed Turing Test, the students were unaware that they were being served by a robotic TA, until the professor broke the news to them after the completion of the course's final exam. Expect additional experiments of this kind, but with different last names for the robotic TAs.
(4) Ukraine wins the Eurovision song contest: In the contest's finale, Jamala performed "1944," an anti-Kremlin song. Russia, which came in third, blames politics. The song begins at the 2:30 mark of this 6-minute video.
(5) 'Tis the season for commencement speeches: Here is Sheryl Sandberg's at UC Berkeley.
(6) Baha'is continue to be humiliated in Iran: Despite direct denials by Iran's FM and other senior members of President Rouhani's government, many individuals are indeed imprisoned in Iran for their beliefs. Not only that, but they are serving harsh sentences worthy of murderers. Fariba Kamalabadi, sentenced to a 20-year prison term was recently allowed a vacation to meet with family and friends after serving 8 years. Even though daughter of former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani met with the prisoner, all indications are that Rafsanjani himself is in line with the Islamic regime that deems Baha'is filthy and not entitled to practice or promote their religion.
(7) Muyueh Lee's talk entitled "Green Honey": In a now-famous approach to illustrate the power of visualization, Lee uses the method to derive useful information from how different languages describe colors. Here is a related article about the relationships between language constructs for color and the color discrimination ability of the population. Quoting from it, "I used to think that languages and cultures shape the ways we think. I suspected they shaped the ways we reason and interpret information. But I didn't think languages could shape the nuts and bolts of perception, the way we actually see the world. That part of cognition seemed too low-level, too hard-wired, too constrained by the constants of physics and physiology to be affected by language."

2016/05/14 (Saturday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing the marriage of Trump and the GOP mascot (1) Cartoon of the day: "Relax, this is my fourth marriage!" [From this week's Santa Barbara Independent]
(2) Guilaki ballet: Ballet dancing to music from the western Caspian Sea province of Guilan in north-central Iran.
(3) Talented violinist playing on a street in Iran.
(4) Iranian "Johnny B. Goode": The classic Chuck Berry song is performed by Velshodegan, using some Persian words and video clips from many unsuspecting artists.
(5) Andre Rieu plays "Chiquitita": This 1979 classic ABBA tune sounds great nearly three decades later.
(6) Mohammad Khatami's brief speech (in Persian): There is a strict ban in Iran on disseminating Khatami's words or showing his image. Even though I hold Khatami partly responsible for the current sorry state of free speech and human rights in Iran, I believe that he is entitled to express his thoughts; hence, this post.
(7) FTA requests immediate attention to repairs and safety improvements in the Washingon, DC, Metro.
(8) The first of many possible convictions for operators of for-profit colleges: Alejandro Amor gets an 8-year prison term for fraud in connection with his FastTrain for-profit college firm.
(9) Time to reinvest in higher education: College costs are rising sharply and state support is dwindling, which means much greater student-debt burden for most graduates. Here is why.

2016/05/13 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
(1) UCLA Bilingual Lectrues on Iran: Today, Hamid Naficy will talk about "Media Diplomacy Between Iran and the West: War by Other Means" (UCLA campus, 10383 Bunche Hall, 4:00-6:00 PM). Unfortunately, I cannot attend what sounds like a very interesting lecture. http://www.international.ucla.edu/cnes/event/11978
Speaker's abstract: Over the past thirty-plus years, normal diplomatic relations between Iran and the West, particularly the United States, have been curtailed, encouraging much of the diplomacy between the two countries to be conducted either in deep secrecy (the Iran Contra Scandal during the Reagan-Rafsanjani presidencies), or allowed to surface in the media. This lecture focuses on the mediatic and diplomatic dance, in which five unlikely partners, that is, the Iranian government, the American government, American media, Iranians at home, and Iranians in the diaspora, have engaged, while addressing one another through film and electronic media. The lecture will be accompanied by video clips.
(2) An extraordinary pedestrian bridge in Tehran: The Tabi'at (Nature) Bridge has become much more than a means of crossing from one park-like area to another. It is used to stroll, meet people, dine, and contemplate, as explained by its young, award-winning female architect, Leila Araghian.
(3) Engineering at its worst: According to this 5-minute documentary, a dam built on Iran's Karoun river in the vicinity of major salt deposits has made the river's water salty, causing extensive damage to agriculture in the Khuzestan province. Interestingly, experts had warned against such an outcome before this and other similar projects in the region were green-lighted.
(4) Hyperloop near-sonic-speed ground transport system demonstrated: The demonstration was to show, in very crude form, the propulsion process of gathering speed at start-up. Brakes have not been developed yet, so the maglev train car had to crash into a pile of sand to stop. The ultimate goal is a train that travels at 750 mph, reaching San Francisco from Los Angeles in 30 minutes. Cargo transport is anticipated by 2019 and passengers by 2021. One of my personal worries about such a high-speed transport inside a tube is the possibility of the tubes becoming misaligned due to ground movement, which is quite common in California. However, there should be automatic ways of detecting any misalignment.
(5) This progressive case for Hillary Clinton resonated with me (even though I do not agree with all the details): Yes, many criticisms of Hillary Clinton are valid and might have led me to make a different choice, if there were a better one available. But I much rather choose a person who has been under the spotlight for decades and has a few exposed flaws than someone who has not been scrutinized with the same intensity and thus likely has many hidden flaws. Quoting from the piece, "When you hear that Hillary Clinton is unlikable, be aware of the study that shows competent women are generally seen as unlikable; when you hear that Hillary Clinton is dishonest, know that this same study shows women in power are generally seen as dishonest. And know that when the same imaginary job candidate is presented to two groups, with the only difference being a male or female name at the top of the resume, the female candidate is seen as less trustworthy than the man. In each study, these biased reactions were found in both women and men."
(6) News headline: Nvidia car learns how to drive by watching videos of human drivers.
My take: And the first time it backs out of a garage, it runs over a bicyclist!
[P.S.: I thought the idea of self-driving cars was to avoid human errors, not to replicate them!]

Cover image for Hector Tobar's 'Deep Down Dark' 2016/05/12 (Thursday): Book review: Tobar, Hector, Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle that Set Them Free, unabridged audiobook on 11 CDs, read by Henry Leyva, Macmillan Audio, 2014.
After I finished listening to this audiobook, I also watched the 2015 movie "The 33" (starring Antonio Banderas, Lou Diamond Phillips, James Brolin, Gabriel Byrne, and, in a role whose casting met with criticism, Juliette Binoche), with its screenplay adapted from Tobar's book. I remember following the drama on live TV in 2010, as the rescue efforts and their dramatic ending at the San Jose copper/gold mine were broadcast over several weeks. The drilling of holes, first to get food and other supplies to the 33 miners, and then to enlarge the holes to extract the trapped men by means of a specially designed capsule, in an international effort, were already quite familiar to me.
What Tobar's book added for me was the underground story of how the miners coped during the days when they weren't sure if anyone knew they were alive and, later, when they had communicated their location/condition and were waiting, while literally starving, for one of the holes being drilled to reach the refuge chamber that was holding them safe; how they lived on a meager ration of 100 or so calories per day (biscuits and tuna, mainly), and on contaminated water from a tank, for 17 days.
Once one of the 6-inch holes reached the refuge 700 m below the surface, the miners got relief in terms of food and safe drinking water, a micro-projection-TV (with a white sheet used as its screen), and a video communication channel to the surface that they used to talk with family members. They were still living in fear of dying, but they at least had some hope of eventually being rescued. Their faiths and nerves were severely tested when the rescue effort took longer than initially anticipated (69 days in all).
Meanwhile, a camp was established on the surface with some amenities that allowed the families to wait for their loved ones in relative comfort and to send/receive messages to/from them. At least one of the miners had both a wife and a girlfriend, and the tension between the two was part of the drama unfolding at the surface camp. Another big piece of the drama appeared when the miners learned that they will become rich if and when they get out. They started discussing how they should keep their mouths shut following the rescue and to strike a collective deal for their story, instead of acting individually.
Inevitably, the miners turned on each other over financial and other matters. For example, when they read in a newspaper article that foreman Mario Sepulveda was hailed as a leader (Super Mario was the nickname given to him), who single-handedly saved the group, and that he had been offered an undisclosed sum for a book deal, the other miners were understandably furious.
Subsequently, the money they got from the Chilean government and from a few companies and philanthropists became a curse, as relatives and acquaintances started showing up to seek financial help, in the form of loans that were mostly not repaid. After the rescue, the miners were also invited to locales around the world, including to Disneyland, a globetrotting lifestyle that was quite foreign to them. Many of them suffered psychological maladies and recurring nightmares.
Tobar's book is very well-researched and engagingly written. He leaves no stone unturned, from the interpersonal relationships between the miners through the ordeal and after their rescue to their family dynamics and the challenges of mine work in general. I recommend the book highly. The movie, though quite good, does not match Tobar's account in quality.

2016/05/10 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
checkerboards of side lengths 8 and 6 (1) A challenging geometrical puzzle: You are given two checkerboards, a standard 8-by-8 board and a 6-by-6 board (both have alternating black and white squares, as in a normal checkerboard). Can you cut each of the two checkerboards into two pieces and rearrange the resulting four pieces to form a 10-by-10 checkerboard?
(2) Physics in action: Wonderful chain-reaction set-up involving balls in motion.
(3) On a new definition of "gheirat": A man writing on the "My Stealthy Freedom" Facebook page, atones for his sins of not supporting the women in his life and suggests that the Persian word "gheirat" be redefined to mean support for women's freedom. I commented on the post, suggesting that rather than redefining the word, and another one of the same ilk ("namoos"), we retire these misogynistic terms, which have had little use beyond demeaning and enslaving women. Reactions of other users (mostly supportive of my comment) are quite telling. There are insulting/condescending comments by several individuals, perhaps belonging to Iran's cyber-army.
(4) This one's a couple of days late for Mothers' Day: Bruce Springsteen honors his mother on stage.
(5) The new Muslim mayor of London won't be banned from the US: Trump offered this clarification after Sadiq Khan indicated (jokingly, I presume) that he would have to visit his US counterparts before January, in case Trump is elected President.
(6) Kurdish music: Accompanied by a big orchestra and a choir, Shahram Nazeri performs "Shirin Shirinam" ("My Sweet Shirin").
(7) Wearables for cows: The dairy industry is putting wearable electronics to good use in improving productivity and the breeding process.
(8) Classic comedy skit, with Johnny Carson as Ronald Reagan: Talking with James Baker about Watt (what?), Y (why?), Yasser (yes sir!), and Hu (who?).
(9) Ransomware: Americans paid about $325M in cyber-ransome in 2015, a figure that will surely go up in the years to come. [Source: Newsweek on-line]

2016/05/09 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Fereydoon Moshiri's 'Mother' poem (1) A day late for Mothers' Day, but still worth sharing: Fereydoon Moshiri's "Mother" poem, dedicated to my mom and all other wonderful mothers. And here is an English translation of the poem by Faranak Moshiri.
(2) [Again with delay] Best gift to moms, on this Mothers' Day: Pledge to work toward curbing gun violence, with celebrities such as Julianne Moore and Melissa Joan Hart.
(3) Hawking on Iran: A Persian feast with Stephen Hawking, and his telling of the story of a visit to Iran in 1962.
(4) History of MATLAB: Today, Cleve Moler, Chief Mathematician at MathWorks, gave a lecture at UCSB entitled "The Evolution of MATLAB" (11:00 AM, ESB 1001). MATLAB has evolved over more than 30 years from a simple matrix calculator to a powerful technical computing environment. MathWorks, the company that offers MATLAB and a number of other software products for scientific computation, has grown from a handful of employees at the outset to some 3500 employees around the world today. Moler fashioned MATLAB (short for matrix laboratory) after Niklaus Wirth's PL0, a simple programming language that had only one (integer) data type. MATLAB's single data type was matrix. Today, MATLAB and related software products are used on Wall Street, in pharmaceutical research, for microchip design, in image analysis, and for designing control systems for drones. Cleve Moler maintains a blog that contains a variety of interesting observations.
(5) One of the most devastating wildfires in recent history is still raging in Canada: Thousands have been displaced, with no clear indication of when they can return. The Alberta fire is 0% contained at this time and may take months to extinguish.
(6) Carl Barney, the businessman behind many for-profit colleges: Arriving in the US as a jobless British immigrant in the 1960s, Barney went on to amass a fortune by following the unalloyed selfishness and remorseless capitalism creed of Ayn Rand. Now that the US is cracking down on degree mills that mislead students and abuse the federal student-aid system, leaving students in huge debts and with little in way of marketable skills, Barney's businesses are under close scrutiny.
(7) The last Nazi trials: Ever since 1945, Germany has indicted 16,767 individuals, convicting 6686 of them for their Nazi past. Reinhold Hanning, a 94-year-old SS guard, is now being tried for his role in wiping out entire families. [Info from: Time magazine, issue of May 16, 2016]

Panel participants, today at UCLA 2016/05/08 (Sunday): Today's Persian panel discussion: Held as part of the UCLA Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran, the panel entitled "The Concept of Iran: Transition and Revival (Sixth to Ninth Centuries)" focused on the period in Iranian history when the country slowly transitioned from its ancient traditions and Zoroastrianism to its current form as an Islamic-majority country. The panelists and the summary of their remarks are presented below in order of their presentations (seated left to right in the photo).
The three panel participants were Dr. Ali Mousavi (UCLA; specializing in the archaeology of the ancient Near East), Dr. Parvaneh Pourshariati (CUNY & NYU; a specialist in the Late Antique and medieval history of Iran and the Middle East), and Dr. Hossein Kamaly (Columbia Univ.; who began a second career with a history PhD from Columbia, after working for years as an engineer/mathematician). A fourth panelist, Dr. Touraj Daryaee (UC Irvine; author/editor of multiple history books on Iran, who was to cover recent findings on the history of the said transition period) was unable to attend due to illness. Dr. Nayereh Tohidi (Cal State Univ. Northridge) moderated the discussion.
I was delighted to find out that Dr. Kamaly had been a student of mine at Sharif Univerisity of Technology in Tehran and that he published his first technical article and received an award under the auspices of the Informatics Society of Iran, which I helped found and led in the early 1980s; we were meeting for the first time after more than 3 decades. I also met a lady from Iran's Late Antique or medieval period, who told me she remembered attending a lecture of mine, delivered at a meeting of a student organization!
Aerial view of Firuzabad circular city Dr. Ali Mousavi's presentation included aerial and satellite photos of cities established during or shortly before the Sassanid period. The cities included Istakhr, Darabgerd (the first circular city of the era, with a diameter of 1020m), Firuzabad (photo; another circular city with a diameter of 1850 m), Bishapur (which has a distinct layout, because it was built for Shapur by the Romans), Shushtar (known for its elaborate irrigation and water transport infrastructure), and Gondeshapur (whose remains suffered extensive damage during the Iran-Iraq war). Other points made by Dr. Mousavi included the novelty of circular domes built on top of rectangular structures and the dearth of excavations in sites from the Sassanid period.
Dr. Parvaneh Pourshariati's main thesis was that the Islamization of Iran was a gradual process, and despite accounts that there were forced mass coversions in the aftermath of the Arab invasion, the Arabs were indeed less than successful in imposing their religion (to the extent that it had even been defined and taken shape at the time) on Iranians. She challenged two main theories currently prevalent. The first is that the weakening of the Sassanid Empire due to constant conflicts, and in particular the 30-Year War, with the Byzantine Empire was a key to the quick collapse of Iran under the Arab invasion. Her theory is that the squabblings between the Sassanids and the widespread and still-influential remanents of the Parthians (Ashkanian), who still ruled in many regions of Iran, was a key to the downfall. It wasn't until a couple of centuries after the Arabs invaded Iran that they managed to solidify their rule as a result of the Abbasid revolution. The second idea that the speaker challenged was that of quick coversion of Iranians to Islam being informed by the contrast between Islam's promise of equality and justice vis-a-vis the strict religious basis of the Sassanids' rule.
Dr. Hossein Kamaly focused on the history of the city of Isfahan as a way to explore Iran's transition period, which forms part of the Late Antiquity (3rd to 8th century CE; passabastan, in Persian). Isfahan arose from two older cities of Jey and Yahudieh (a community of Jews). Because Isfahan isn't earthquake-prone, its historical artifacts are better preserved than in many other regions of Iran. An investigation of naming records indicates that Isfahanis did not adopt Islam until the 8th century CE. By the 9th century, the destructive period ended and influential families, that had continued to rule for many decades after the Arab invasion, returned to power. Several key sources about the history of Isfahan did not make it to modern times, but other books written later took advantage of those sources and, so, we know about their contents indirectly.
The questions/comments period contained interesting observations and heated exchanges. A couple of questioners were puzzled by the fact that the strong, organized Sassanid Empire was so readily defeated by an invading army with no definite plans. Dr. Pourshariati responded that the invading Arabs may have seemed disorganized at a superficial level, but they were well-versed in means of controlling trade routes and benefitted from a number of strategists and planners. Another interesting point that arose during the discussion is the fact that Tisfun, one of the major centers of power for the Sassanids (located in today's Iraq), has not been explored adequately and may hold the key to discovering some of the important aspects of Iran's transition period.
On the margins: Due to bringing my daughter back from Santa Barbara to UCLA, I arrived on campus a couple of hours before the 4:00 PM scheduled start of the panel discussion. I took the opportunity to take a long stroll on the beautiful UCLA campus, snapping half-dozen photos around the magnificent Royce Hall and Powell Library and another half-dozen in and around the Sculpture Garden.

2016/05/06 (Friday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Trump shown eating matzo ball soup in a Photoshopped image (1) Photoshop magic: Before he tweeted his photo with a taco bowl and declaring his love for Hispanics, Trump tried to win the Jewish votes by eating a bowl of matzoh ball soup. Next will be Chinese food!
(2) Seven brief news headlines of the day:
- Los Angeles joins the push to end juvenile solitary confinement
- Editor of Al Joumhouria survives assassination attempt in Turkey
- Major quake can hit at any time along San Andreas in California
- Heavy turbulence on Pittsburgh flight causes bloody injuries
- Russia and Syria deny their bombers hit refugee camps
- Republicans divided over supporting Trump's candidacy
- Trump U class-action lawsuit will go to trial after the election
(3) Friday reflection (on flip-flopping): I miss the good old days when expressing contradictory opinions on a single issue would get you branded as a flip-flopper, an impossible-to-shake-off label.
(4) Book review: Gladwell, Malcolm, David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants, unabridged audiobook on 6 CDs, read by the author, Hachette Audio, 2013.
Cover image of Malcolm Gladwell's 'David and Goliath' Ever since his first book, The Tipping Point, Gladwell has been writing about how the workings of our world differ from our expectations. Many of the surprises and counterintuitive happenings that we experience are, nevertheless, explainable with due diligence. Gladwell's subsequent books, Outliers and Blink, successfully pursued the same "shock and awe" approach.
In this book, Gladwell explores how David, or any apparent underdog, can defeat Goliath, a person or problem that seems unbeatable. He observes that certain apparent strengths are actually vulnerabilities. A giant, for example, is less agile and has a longer reaction time, providing a small, quick-thinking underdog with opportunities to inflict damage. The same observation applies to asymmetric warfare between a superpower and rag-tag insurgent forces.
Furthermore, an underdog who has obvious weaknesses tends to compensate for them by acquiring alternative resources and skills. This is why, for instance, dyslexics sometimes lead lives of extraordinary accomplishments; ditto for the blind and those with other disabilities. In a similar vein, losing a parent early in life can be crippling or it can lead to additional motivation to achieve. However, confirmation bias leads us to focus more on success stories than on dull or ordinary lives.
Putting it another way, I am not convinced that super-size challenges necessarily lead to greatness. Humans tend to develop skills and tools for dealing with their challenges and these skills and tools may come in handy in tackling all sorts of problems. However, not everyone succeeds in applying them to different domains in order to escape the rut. Such people may lead tolerable or even normal lives, without ever moving completely beyond their limitations.
Now, Gladwell's message in this book, important as it is, could have been conveyed much more succinctly, without leaving the reader/listener ticked off by the constant repetition. Unfortuanately, publishers and readers have come to expect a certain number of pages in a book, before the book is deemed respectable and marketable at a profitable price.

2016/05/05 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Quotation from Leo Cherne, written with chalk on a sidewalk (1) Someone really liked this quote from Leo Cherne, often misattributed to Albert Einstein (who died in 1955, before computers were really fast).
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Pakistani girl, 16, burned alive for helping a couple to elope
- Massive wildfire in Alberta, Canada, continues to expand
- Warehouse complex in Houston burns with toxic fumes
- Speaker Paul Ryan just not ready to support Donald Trump
- Kerry to travel to Paris for talks on Syria and Ukraine
- Iranian commander threatens to close Strait of Hormuz to US
(3) Creator of "Humans of New York" on Donald Trump: He is either a racist or, worse, exploits racist sentiments to gain power. No one will believe him if he suddenly begins to appear more compassionate and presidential.
(4) Young Iranians react to Supreme Leader Khamenei's pronouncement that promoting English instruction in schools is unhealthy: And the comments are offered in English! Khamenei apparently does not speak English, neither does President Rouhani, who received his doctorate in the UK (he uses a translator when giving interviews or meeting with foreign guests).
(5) Three-dimensional artwork that changes depending on your viewing angle.
(6) Impressive performance of Prince's "Kiss" on a subway car, with help from a random passenger.
(7) IBM offers free on-line access to its quantum processor: The 5-qubit machine is located at IBM's T. J. Watson Research Center in New York, within a cryogenic refrigerator. IBM expects to increase the number of qubits by a factor of 10-20 within a decade.
(8) Times Higher Education ranking of world universities: Cal Tech appears at the top, followed by Oxford, Stanford, Cambridge, and MIT. The following UC campuses are in the top 200: Berkeley 13, UCLA 16, UCSD and UCSB tied at 39, Davis 44, Irvine 106, UCSC 144, and Riverside 167. Among Iranian universities, Iran University of Science and Technology has moved up and is now viewed as being in the 401-500 category, on par with Sharif University of Technology, which lost ground. [BBC Persian report] [Full rankings in English]

2016/05/04 (Wednesday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cover image of Pema Chodron's 'Don't Bite the Hook' (1) Brief book review: Chodron, Pema, Don't Bite the Hook: Finding Freedom from Anger, Resentment, and Other Destructive Emotions, audiobook on 3 CDs, Shambhala Audio, 2007.
There are many things in our daily lives that make us upset. Noise and traffic, crying children, work-life challenges, and less-than-perfect relationships all conspire to make us feel terrible, leading to actions that only make things worse. According to Chodron, it doesn't have to be that way. We can encounter frustrations, losses, and other challenges constructively, provided we don't "bite the hook" of our habitual responses. In this recorded weekend retreat, Chodron draws on Buddhist teachings to offer advice on how to stay centered, improve stressful relationships, not fall prey to self-hatred, and awaken our compassionate side.
(2) Why Sanders should pull out and throw his weight behind Clinton: The earlier the Democrats start chipping away at Trump, the less likely it is for him to win the general election. Not that his chances are high right now, but even a 5% chance of him becoming President is scary.
(3) Donald Trump considers himself a unifier: Here is how he has unified his fellow Republicans, according to a Hillary Clinton campaign ad.
(4) Here is what Elizabeth Warren, undisputed champion of economic and social justice, thinks about Trump.
(5) Two interesting issues of technical journals that I received today: The May 2016 issue of Communications of the ACM (published by Association for Computing Machinery) contains a cover feature on Robotic Musicianship. Advances already made in this area and prospects for future developments are quite exciting.
The late-arriving April 2016 issue of IEEE Computing Edge contains a cover feature on advancing the Internet of Things, a new level of digital connectivity between people and things (appliances, security systems, baby monitors, and nearly everything else) that will allow remote monitoring and distributed optimization.

2016/05/03 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Meaning of the Facebook logo (1) Cartoon of the day: Explaining the Facebook logo.
(2) California Strawberry Festival is coming up: It will be held during the May 21-22 weekend in Oxnard, 3250 N. Rose Ave. (near Oxnard's Auto Center).
(3) Fusion music: Wonderful oriental (actually, Middle Eastern) rendition of Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall" (the singing children display at the end of the video what appears to be the flag of Azerbaijan).
(4) Atena Farghadani freed from prison: The Iranian cartoonist, who was sentenced to 12+ years in prison for depicting policymakers as animals in her cartoons, has been freed from Evin Prison after serving more than a year.
(5) A surprising rant from Masih Alinejad (in Persian, with English subtitles), who turns the tables on hate-mongers and holier-than-thou types. Well done, Ms. Alinejad!
(6) Nuclear waste is leaking in southwestern Washington State: Let me preface my story by saying that I am for nuclear power, assuming that the waste is stored safely and competently. What is happening in Washington is beyond incompetent. Radioactive waste from early nuclear reactors, one of them used to produce plutonium for the atomic bombs dropped on Japan during WW II, have been stored in what was supposed to be temporary storage, while permanent measures were implemented. But the $110B plant now being built to solidify the slushy, hard-to-contain waste into a hardened, glasslike substance, which can be stored more safely, is still decades away from completion.
(7) UCSB physics professor creates atomic-scale sensor: The sensor is composed of a few nanofabricated diamond crystals with a special defect built in, which at low thermal energy (room temperature and below) can detect electron interactions, thus allowing the creation of an atomic-scale image with unprecedented spatial resolution. And the professor, Ania Jayich, happens to be my wall-to-wall neighbor at UCSB's West Campus faculty housing complex.

2016/05/02 (Monday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Four celebrites turning 70 and 80 in May 2016 (1) Look who's turning 70 (and 80) this month! [Source: AARP Magazine, April/May 2016]
(2) ATM-like devices dispense short stories in Grenoble: Story machines, a collaboration between the city and French publisher Short Edition, which specializes in content optimized for mobile screens, are printed on 8-by-60 cm scrolls. The free stories can be folded like receipts and carried along.
(3) MozART Group: Fun with classical and other kinds of music [5-minute video]. Here is another clip [6-minute video], a fun clip [Rock n Roll], playing with broken arms [3-minute video], and a final one [Wild Wild West].
(4) Intolerance at its worst: On a Persian-language post about Saturday night's White House Correspondents Dinner and President Obama's joking remarks at that event, crude and racist comments outnumbered sensible and respectful ones by a wide margin. I cringe and feel shame when I see my fellow Iranian-Americans behave in a rude or hateful manner. Even valid criticisms will be ineffective when offered with curse words and vitriol.
(5) The R. Stephen Humphreys Distinguished Lecture at UCSB: This afternoon, I attended a talk by Michael Cook, Professor of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton, entitled "Was the Rise of Islam a Black Swan Event?" (5:00 PM, UCSB's McCune Conference Room, HSSB 6020). According to the talk's summary, "A Black Swan Event is by definition a highly improbable happening with a massive impact. No one questions the impact of the rise of Islam, but just how improbable was it? Two of its central features look very unlikely against the background of earlier history: the appearance among the Arabs of a new monotheistic religion, and the formation of a powerful state in Arabia [which had no prior history or tradition of government to draw upon]. Does that add up to two Black Swans, or do they cancel out?"
Cook maintains that given that Arabs are descendants of the monotheist Abraham (whose sons Isaac and Ishmael were ancestors of the Israelites or the Jews and Ishmaelites or the Arabs), the appearance of Islam, as an attempt to customize monotheism to their needs and way of life, is hardly surprising. The economic and social conditions of the tribal 7th-century Arabia was ill-suited to the teachings of Judaism or Christianity. Hijaz in the west-central part of Arabia, where Mecca and Medina are located, was somewhat removed from the spheres of influence of both the Persian Empire along the southeastern coast and the Byzantine Empire to the north, thus allowing the faith to spread unimpeded. The weakening of both of the said empires, as a result of their constant conflicts with each other, was the main factor that allowed the spread of the subsequent Islamic state, which at its peak stretched from Spain in the west to parts of India in the east.

Cover image for the book 'Going Clear' about Scientology 2016/05/01 (Sunday): Book review: Wright, Lawrence, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, & the Prison of Belief, unabridged audiobook on 14 CDs, read by Morton Sellers, RandomHouse Audio, 2013.
I finished listening to this audiobook several weeks ago. Friday night's special edition of ABC's newsmagazine "20/20" about the forthcoming expose, Ruthless, by Ron Miscavige, father of Scientology's current leader David Miscavige, prompted me to finish writing my book review.
The Church of Scientology dismisses Miscavige Sr.'s book as a shameless effort to make money, but this new book (based on what I learned from "20/20") is fully consistent with the book I am reviewing here and with the account in Troublemaker, by Scientology defector Leah Remini.
Among the juicy details in the latter book are how church officials milk the recruits, who end up paying in excess of $0.5M over time for books, lectures, courses, and misdeed penalties, regardless of their income, often racking up huge credit-card debts in the process. There are also allegations of misconduct against multiple high-ranking members, including Tom Cruise.
The "going clear" of the book's title is the Church's term for "defection." What makes the accounts presented by some defectors suspect in my view is the fact that these supposed "whistle-blowers" stayed in the Church for a long time before defecting. Could it be that they had no problem with the Church's rules and procedures as long as they reaped personal benefits from them? For instance, Wright's account indicates that several actors used Scientology and its connections with influential show-biz types, such as Tom Cruise and John Travolta, as a stepping stone for advancing their careers through the Church's "Celebrity Center."
Every religion has superstition and ludicrous claims that its followers accept by a leap of faith. Scientology's are more preposterous than those of other religions. Human beings are thetans (spirits) living for eons, and in their between-lives periods, they are transported to Mars to have their memories erased. Disconnection is frowned upon, with the church doing everything in its power to bring the defector back into fold, using threats, harassment, cutting family ties, and many other extreme methods to punish the defector. According to Wright, Scientology runs a totalitarian regime right here within our democratic society. Those who do not follow instructions are shunned and physically punished.
Scientology is an outgrowth of L. Ron Hubbard's ideas in his book, Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health. Hubbard was a best-selling sci-fi writer before he decided to become a prophet, allegedly because he saw the establishment of a religion as a quick road to money, fame, and women. Anyone who creates trouble for the Church or its officials is labeled as a "Suppressive Person" and receives a variety of direct and indirect punishments. Even though Wright follows every allegation of impropriety on the part of a Church with a footnote containing the Church's response, it is evident that he does this to protect himself against retaliation and having to look over his shoulder for the rest of his life.
High-level Scientology members are kept loyal by providing them with favors. For example, Tom Cruise is said to have been provided with an array of young women. These women were told that they had been chosen for a "special program" that would require them to dump their boyfriends. Other actors, and some directors, would be provided with access to high-power agents and lucrative movie deals. Lower-level members were kept in check through psychological pressure and via making life impossible for them outside the Church (e.g., by taking away their credit cards and forcing them to disavow their relatives).
Much of Wright's account is believable, but one is left with the inconvenient fact that law enforcement was seldom asked to intervene and, though a number of legal actions were brought against the Church, none succeeded in undermining the Church or taking away its tax-exempt status as a religious institution.
You should peruse this book or Ron Miscavige's forthcoming book and judge for yourself. I am personally convinced that Scientology is a cult/business and a crooked one at that.

2016/04/30 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
The Science Green was the setting for a culinary event today at UCSB (1) Taste of UCSB: This culinary event, during which campus chefs and alumni who run restaurants and catering services exhibit their fares, was held today on the UCSB Science Green. This 3-minute video shows part of the food booths and music at today's event.
(2) Quote of the day: "We are deeply sorry for the unintended offensive and hurtful tweets from Tay, which do not represent who we are or what we stand for, nor how we designed Tay." ~ Peter Lee, Microsoft VP of Research, apologizing for the bad habits the company's AI chatbot picked up from Internet users
(3) Toyota's wooden concept car: Exhibited at Milan's Design Week in April, the vehicle is built using okuriari, a traditional Japanese joinery technique, which does not need any nails or screws.
(4) The innovative design of Rio's Olympic torch: The torch expands when it is lit to reveal colored resin sections, which, along with the yellow flame, represent the sea, mountains, sky, and sun. The same colors exist on the Brazilian flag as well.
(5) Fully automated farms of the future: According to an NPR program I happened to listen to in my car a couple of days ago, drones will play a major role in such farms. They will be used in many ways, including for targeted fertilizer delivery and performing the functions of scarecrows in scaring birds and other destructive animals away.
(6) A challenging logical puzzle: A deck of 78 tarot cards has 23 of its cards facing upward and the rest (78 – 23 = 55) facing downward. You are blindfolded and asked to divide the deck into two piles, each with the same number of upward-facing cards. You cannot tell which side of a card is up by touching it.

2016/04/29 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
(1) Sign-language-to-voice translator: Two University of Washington undergraduates make a pair of gloves that sense hand movements and produce the associated sounds that allow voice communication with people who do not know sign language.
(2) UC Davis Chancellor placed on administrative leave: Linda Katehi, a renowned scholar of electrical and computer engineering, had previously been criticized for spending large sums of money on Internet consultants to help improve the school's on-line image in the wake of the 2011 pepper-spraying of peaceful protesters on campus. She is additionally accused of misappropriating funds and giving university jobs to her close relatives, without following due process, according to LA Times.
(3) Ten brief news headlines of the day:
- California voters happy about becoming relevant this election cycle
- World on catastrophic path to run out of fresh water
- Trump bringing out the worst in everyone: even the deliberative Boehner
- Italy uncovers plot to attack Vatican and the Israeli embassy
- Radioactive hot spot near St. Louis homes concerns researchers
- China conducts its 7th successful test flight of hypersonic warhead
- Series of small earthquakes causes shutdown of Hilcorp fracking in PA
- A treasure trove of Roman coins was unearthed in Spain
- US troops mistakenly bomb a hospital in Syria, killing at least 20
- UN says it is open to helping Iran-US in their dispute over assets
(4) Wonderful solo daf performance.
(5) An old favorite song, performed by The Gypsy Queens: "L'Italiano (Toto Cutugno)"
(6) Rumi poem, set to beautiful Persian music, played with traditional and a couple of unconventional instruments. [It seems Rumi worried about not having a designated driver!]
(7) An old favorite song of mine: Paul Anka's "Papa" (with lyrics and Persian subtitles).
(8) Final thought for the day [after posting several music videos today]: "Music is art that goes through the ears straight to the heart." ~ Anonymous

2016/04/28 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
The 9/11 Living Memorial Plaza near Jerusalem (1) Israel's 9/11 memorial: This and other images of "The 9/11 Living Memorial Plaza," located 20 miles from the center of Jerusalem, were sent to me by a friend via e-mail. The monument is shaped like a flame and its melted steel base is made of metal fragments recovered from the Twin Towers site. It is the only memorial outside the US that includes the names of all those who perished in the September 11 terror attacks (etched on panels embedded in a circular perimeter wall). [More pics]
(2) Quote of the day: "Religion is at its best when it makes us ask hard questions of ourselves. It is at its worst when it deludes us into thinking we have all the answers for everybody else." ~ American poet, writer, and Librarian of Congress Archibald Macleish [1892-1982]
(3) Beautiful dance with mathematical precision and impeccable timing.
(4) Throwback Thursday: Iranian actresses of yesteryear, then and now.
(5) Throwback, way-back, Thursday: These artwork pieces of mine from 5 decades ago, drawn with pencil and ink, are probably what convinced me to pursue a technical field! (Or stick to my day job, as they say!)
(6) Santa Barbara's historic Riviera Theater: A 30-year lease just signed grants the control of this architectural gem to the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, giving SBIFF a year-round venue for screening its fare.
(7) Huma Abedin has her hands full: Between helping Clinton in every detail of her campaign and handling her own philandering husband (Anthony Weiner), she probably does not get any rest.
(8) The moral imperative of AI: "In the U.S., close to 10% of all jobs involve operating a vehicle and we can expect to see the majority of these jobs disappear [when the self-driving-car technology matures]. The human cost of such a profound change cannot be underestimated." ~ Moshe Vardi, acknowledging in an editorial (Communications of the ACM, issue of May 2016) that the safety benefits of self-driving technology, which make it inevitable, come with a human cost

2016/04/27 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
George Clooney and Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi served on the selection committee for the new Aurora Prize (1) The Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity: The new Prize, created in memory of the victims and survivors of the Armenian genocide a century ago, went to Marguerite Barankitse, the founder of an orphanage in Burundi. George Clooney (co-chair with Elie Wiesel) and Shirin Ebadi were members of the selection committee.
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Clinton and Trump win big in today's primary elections
- Trump's America-first foreign policy address lacks details
- Ted Cruz announces Carly Fiorina as his running mate
- Apple revenue falls for the first time since 2003
- Coroner: 32 bullets used to kill 8 family members in Ohio
- Female suicide bomber wounds 13 in Turkey's Bursa
(3) Sanders and Trump voters very similar, except for skin color: A friend mentioned to me this afternoon that a recent NYT article presents the view that Sanders and Trump are both doing well in regions of the US where the economic/jobs outlook is bleak. In such areas, Trump does well when the population is mostly white and Sanders does well when non-whites are in the majority. I tried to find the article, but have not succeeded so far; will post a link when I locate it.
(4) Restrictions and misogynistic laws do not deter Iranian women, as aptly demonstrated by these Guilani women dancing and having fun.
(5) Dennis Hastert: A serial child molester who identified himself as an "Evangelical Christian Conservative" and heard nothing but praise during his long reign as House Speaker. It is simply not credible that no one knew.
(6) These cutlery pieces spell "baa ham" (Persian for "together"). [Artwork by Amir Hossein Rahimi Yeganeh]
(7) Carlos Santana, Yo Yo Ma, and India Arie collaborate in this rendition of George Harrison's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" (video description includes the lyrics). [4-minute video]
(8) Final thought for the day: "The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those that speak it." ~ George Orwell

2016/04/26 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Part of the 'People' index page for my Google Photos archive (1) The scary AI capabilities of Google Images: The app stores your photos in the "Cloud" and allows you access from anywhere. I recently noticed that it also automatically indexes my photos by the people who appear in them. The image shown is part of the index page titled "People." If I click on one of the thumbnails, which are automatically extracted from the photos, I will see all the photos I have with that person in them. At this point, Google Photos does not allow me to name the individuals, so that I can perform text-based searches, but I am sure the feature will be coming shortly.
(2) New image enhancement method offers exciting possibilities: The method of sharpening images from multiple low-resolution views has been used to establish that the European Beagle probe, which never contacted earth upon landing on Mars in December 2003 and was presumed lost in a high-velocity impact, is indeed sitting intact on the surface of Mars. It is inoperative because it failed to fully deploy its solar panels, which now obstruct its radio antenna. Image enhancement of this kind offers the possibility of space exploration from a distance, thus not requiring landing on planets.
(3) Sweet lemons: One of my favorite indulgences, along with pomegranates, they are not easy to eat if you want to avoid the bitter inner skin, but with some patience, you are rewarded with a refreshing taste and tons of health benefits.
(4) Kurdish music: Shahram Nazeri performs a Kurdish folk song, accompanied by an Armenian orchestra that visited Iran several years ago. A few verses of the Kurdish lyrics are included in the description, along with their Persian translation.
(5) President Obama was criticized for saying that we are fortunate to be living in the most peaceful era in history: This chart shows what he might be talking about. He uses stats and hard facts, rather than speak from fears and emotions.
(6) Persian panel discussion on "The Concept of Iran: Transition and Revival (Sixth to Ninth Centuries)" [Sunday, May 8, 2016, 4:00 PM, UCLA campus, 121 Dodd Hall]. Panelists are Touraj Dayaee (UC Irvine), Hossein Kamaly (Columbia Univ.), Ali Mousavi (UCLA), Parvaneh Pourshariati (CUNY & NYU), Nayereh Tohidi (CSUN; moderator).

2016/04/25 (Monday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Photo of the futuristic Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble (1) The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility: This joint research lab, situated in Grenoble, France, and supported by 21 countries, is the world's most intense X-ray source and a center of excellence for fundamental research in science.
(2) OSIRIS-REx NASA mission set to launch in September: Conceived and run by University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Lab, the spacecraft will bring back, in 2023, a couple of ounces of sand and gravel from a near-Earth asteroid.
(3) An interview, in Persian, with the mechanic of the "shift it, shift it" fame.
(4) Political musing of the day: Those who think that Hillary Clinton is dishonest and self-serving but that Donald Trump is an honest businessman who cares about the working people crack me up!
(5) Time magazine's 100 most-influential people: Ranging in age from 22 to 87, this year's "Time 100" honorees are presented in 5 categories (21 pioneers, 13 titans, 18 artists, 31 leaders, 13 icons; these add up to 96, because 4 of the selections are 2-person teams). The list, along with brief bios of the honorees and 4 different cover images, appears in the magazine's May 2-9, 2016, double-issue.
(6) Time magazine's humor columnist Joel Stein picks the 100 most-influential animals of 2016: In his words, "Four legs good, two legs irrelevant." Number-one on the list is Cecil the lion, killed in Africa by the infamous Minnesota dentist.
(7) Morality police continues to harass women on the streets of Tehran: Human dignity is meaningless to these men and women who think they are doing God's work in roughing up and forcefully dragging women into their vans. And the Islamic Republic authorities keep repeating the line that hijab isn't an important issue, because we have more serious problems to deal with. If so, then why so much emphasis on arresting women by a large morality police force, now augmented with 7000 undercover enforcers?
(8) Flamenco music with Persian lyrics: Hamed Nikpay, who specializes in fusion music, performs in London.

Cover image for Amy Poehler's 'Yes Please' 2016/04/24 (Sunday): Brief book review: Poehler, Amy, Yes Please, unabridged audiobook on 7 CDs, read by the author (also featuring the voices of Carol Burnett, Seth Meyers, Mike Schur, Patrick Stewart, Kathleen Turner, and Amy's parents), Harper Audio, 2014.
Ever since I first saw Poehler on the late-night comedy skit show "Saturday Night Live," I took a liking to her brand of comedy. I have not seen her successful TV series "Parks and Recreation," but understand that it is viewed favorably by critics and her peers. So, it was with great anticipation that I began listening to this audiobook. I must admit that I was somewhat disappointed.
Like many memoirs written by celebrities while their careers are still developing, the so-called mid-career memoirs, this is less about Poehler's life (particulary, since she declares her divorce and new love life out of bounds) and more about her musings on various topics. Parts of the book are laugh-out-loud funny, but as a whole, the writing is uneven and the semi-serious advice on relationships and parenthood rather simplistic.
The book contains a chapter written by Poehler's mother and one by Seth Meyers (of SNL fame), neither of which is particularly impressive or memorable. In one of the stronger chapters, entitled "Sorry, Sorry, Sorry," Poehler laments over a painful error in judgment which she could not bring herself to admit for a long time.
If you like Amy Poehler and her humor, this isn't a bad book to pursue, provided you cap your expectations and do not mind a book that lacks a clear plan or structure.
[Addendum (4/26): Poehler explains the title of her book thus: "I love saying 'yes' and I love saying 'please.' Saying 'yes' doesn't mean I don't know how to say no, and saying 'please' doesn't mean I am waiting for permission. 'Yes please' sounds powerful and concise. It's a response and a request. It is not about being a good girl; it is about being a real woman."]

2016/04/23 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Graph showing that between 2000 and 2015, the number of administrators at UC Berkeley grew from 519 to 1281 (1) Ballooning number of administrators at UC Berkeley. [Source: Los Angeles Times]
(2) UC Davis Chancellor apologizes over hiring of image consultant: The school paid $175,000 to a consultant to clean up its on-line reputation in the wake of the 2011 pepper-spraying of peaceful campus protesters.
(3) M. Yazdchi's watercolor painting of flowers: Anyone who has used watercolor knows how difficult it is to mix colors in such paitings.
(4) Tonight's "Saturday Night Live" paid tribute to Prince: His music was played and several sketches of "The Prince Show," featuring Fred Armisen as Prince, were replayed. Here is one example of the latter.
(5) A social experiment: Muslim and Jew, wearing traditional garbs, walk side by side on the street (including in Jewish and Arab/Muslim neighborhoods) to see how people react. Some of the glances are telling, and there are confrontations, but most people they encounter love the idea of friendship and peaceful coexistence.
(6) Final thought for the day: "I think that people want peace so much that one of these days government had better get out of their way and let them have it." ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower

2016/04/22 (Friday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Photo of Passover Seder plate (1) Happy Passover to all those who observe the Jewish holiday! May the year ahead be one of progress toward peace, friendship, and understanding for all humankind.
Note: The haft-seen-like "Seder Plate" shown holds, clockwise from the top, a bitter herb (representing the bitterness of slavery), charoset (a sweet amalgam of apples, nuts, wine, and cinnamon, which stands for the mortar used by Hebrew slaves to make bricks), a green vegetable (spring greenery), a second bitter herb or vegetable, roasted egg (renewal), and a shankbone (the outstretched hand of God). Just like the Iranian haft-seen, other items are sometimes added beyond the basic six.
While businesses take advantage of the Passover traditions to sell ornate, expensive plates for this purpose, it is often recommended to use whatever you happen to have at home, or tell kids to hand-decorate paper plates.
(2) Women who do and don't believe in the primacy of human rights: Harriet Tubman, a slave who stood up against unjust laws she deemed unrespectable, vs. Federica Moghrini, a modern women who respects medieval laws of Iran because doing so will bring her country material riches. [Image]
(3) The woman whose face is on the new $5 bill: Marian Anderson [1897-1993] is the opera singer whose magnetic performance at the Lincoln Memorial in 1939 is said to have helped launch the civil-rights movement.
(4) Eight brief news headlines of the past couple of days:
- The artist known as "Prince" (Prince Rogers Nelson) dead at 57
- Queen Elizabeth turns 90; formal celebrations in 3 weeks
- UK advisories warn LGBT traverlers about US anti-gay laws
- Blast at Mexico petrochemical plant kills more than a dozen
- One-time slave Harriet Tubman to be new face of US $20 bill
- Huge drug haul seized from longest-ever cross-border tunnel
- Elevated bike path collapses in Rio de Janeiro, killing at least 2
- Obama reaffirms resolve to deter aggression against Arab allies
(5) Unisex bathrooms: The idea of having a single type of bathroom for everyone has been thrown around from time to time. Can we implement this idea in order to avoid all the discussion about who can use which bathroom or spending money on bathroom attendants to check the birth certificates of those who enter? Many smaller restaurants and other establishments already have a single unisex bathroom (because they lack space for more), as do airplanes, train cars, and buses, and they do not report any problems as a result of shared facilities.

2016/04/20 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Portrait of Professor Walter Kohn [1923-2016] (1) UCSB has lost one of its six Nobel Laureates: Professor Walter Kohn [b. 1923], a winner of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his development of the density functional theory, passed away last night. Kohn, whose name is attached to the building housing the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics on the UCSB campus ("Kohn Hall"), has made many contributions to physics and chemistry over his long, distinguished career. He was a holocaust survivor and a Harvard PhD graduate, who became a US citizen in 1957.
(2) An Afghan woman who fights addiction: Her Mother Camp that houses, and affiliated businesses that employ, recovering addicts were difficult undertakings for her in a society that suffers from extreme misogyny.
(3) Wedding dance music from around the world. [I don't know why Iran is labeled as Persia!]
(4) Collection of articles about Pluto and its satellites: The March 18, 2016, issue of the journal Science contains four short and one long article about Pluto, based on information collected by New Horizons during its fly-by.
- "The Atmosphere of Pluto as Observed by New Horizons"
- "The Small Satellites of Pluto as Observed by New Horizons"
- "Pluto's Interaction with Its Space Environment: Solar Winds, Energetic Particles, and Dust"
- "Surface Compositions across Pluto and Charon"
- "The Geology of Pluto and Charon through the Eyes of New Horizons"
(5) Cartoon-like photo of the day: Workplace safety is a high priority in Iran.
(6) Wall-Street investment banker supports Bernie Sanders: This "unicorn" being interviewed and answering viewer questions sounds very reasonable and well-informed. What's happening? [13-minute video]
(7) Five brief news headlines of the day:
- Volkswagen cheat device originally developed in 1999 by Audi
- Three officials charged over Flint, Michigan, water contamination crisis
- Botox now recognized as a top treatment for migraines
- Utah declares pornography a public health hazard
- US Senate is expected to pass a bipartisan energy bill this week
(8) Flute and piano recital: Today, I attended a faculty recital on campus as part of the "Music in the Museum" series, where faculty colleagues perform in an intimate setting at the UCSB Museum of Art, Design & Architecture. Today's performers were flutist Jill Felber, professor and chair of the Music Department, and piano accompanist Robert Koenig, Head of the Collaborative Piano Program. Despite a museum setting that is not optimized for music performances, the acoustics were fantastic and the diverse program highly enjoyable. Both artists perform worldwide, with Koenig being a highly sought-after accompanist and Felber regularly commended for her refined artistry and flair. The program began with "Tango Fantasia," and continued with "Orange Dawn" (Ian Clarke), "Allegretto from Suite, Op. 116" (Banjamin Goddard), "Suite, Opus 34" (Charles-Marie Widor), "Morceau de Concours" (Gabriel Faure), and "Waltz, from Suite Antique" (John Rutter), before condluding with "Fantaisie Patorale Hongroise, Op. 26" (Albert Franz Doppler). The encore consisted of an aria. Getting to hear world-class performers in free recitals is one of the perks of working at a major university, for which I am grateful.

2016/04/19 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Photo of a tray holding a variety of Persian snack foods (1) Mouthwatering tray of Persian snacks.
(2) Iran expands its morality police by deploying 7000 undercover enforcers: Interestingly, they use the weird/uncommon term "namahsoos" ("unfelt") instead of the familiar "makhfi" ("undercover"), perhaps to reduce the public-relations sting. [Pictorial]
(3) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- North Korea cracks down on Western clothing, piercings
- Politics has kept Nepal in ruins a year after the disastrous quakes
- Apple Car is being developed within "secret lab" in Berlin
- Actress Doris Roberts ("Everybody Loves Raymond") dead at 90
- Extensive damage, deaths, and injuries in Houston flooding
- Clinton and Trump win decisively in New York primary elections
(4) It Ain't So Awful, Falafel: This is the title of Firoozeh Dumas' new book, reviewed by Sarah Begley in Time magazine, issue of April 25, 2016. Begley writes: "Dumas depicts each hurdle with compassion and laugh-out-loud humor. She has created an endearingly plucky character—any kid who's felt like an outsider could relate to Cindy." About Cindy's real name, "Zomorod," Dumas writes in her book: "Zomorod is not a good name here ... whose name starts with a Z? Nobody on this planet who counts."
(5) Digital tattoos: University of Tokyo has developed a digital device that can be implanted into human skin to display tattoo-like images. Now, when you change your BF/GF, you just reprogram your digital tattoo!
(6) Do unto others: The Iranian government expects female foreign dignitaries, such as EU's Foreign Minister Federica Moghrini in these photos, to wear the hijab, refrain from shaking hands with men, and generally follow Islamic laws while visiting Iran. Iranian officials on visits to Western countries do not reciprocate by honoring the host country's traditions; rather, they expect foreign officials to follow Islamic laws, even in their own countries.
(7) Bidding adieu to a long-time colleague and friend: Professor Tim Cheng, my colleague of 23 years at UCSB, was honored today as he said farewell (we hope a temporary one) to assume the position of Dean of Engineering at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
(8) A stroll in Goleta Beach Park: During this afternoon's walk, I shot this photo of the UCSB campus and this one of Goleta Beach Park from the end of Goleta Pier. Then, I descended onto a catwalk underneath, to take these photos of the pier and its underbelly. [Photo 1] [Photo 2] [Photo 3] [Photo 4] [Photo 5]. At the end, I shot this 2-minute, 360-degree video, which begins with an eastward view, toward Hope Ranch and downtown Santa Barbara, then turns toward the ocean and Channel Islands, and on to the UCSB campus and Goleta Beach, before ending where it began.

Cover image of Bryan Stevenson's 'Just Mercy' 2016/04/18 (Monday): Book/lecture review: Stevenson, Bryan, Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, Spiegel & Grau, 336 pp., 2014.
Bryan Stevenson, whose great grandparents were slaves in Virginia, grew up poor in Delaware. As a teenager, he lived in a Philadelphia housing project, where his grandfather was murdered. He attended what is now Eastern University and subsequently went to Harvard Law School. Stevenson took on the utter unfairness of the US justice system by representing poor clients in the South and, as a result, went on to co-found the Equal Justice Initiative. He is currently a professor at NYU's Law School.
Tonight, Stevenson gave a talk at UCSB's Campbell Hall, to an overflow audience (many watched his talk on large screens in the nearby Buchanan lecture halls), as part of the "UCSB Reads" program, which has Just Mercy as the community reading selection for its 10th year. In his lecture, which was more autobiographical than the book, Stevenson followed the theme of changing the world one step at a time, with determination, vigor, and hope.
Many key elements of today's talk are present in Stevenson's 24-minute TED talk from March 2012, entitled "We Need to Talk about an Injustice." This NPR report also offers a summary of Stevenson's work and an extensive interview with him.
Stevenson's autobiographical book focuses mainly on his work in representing poor clients, many of them on death row. The account is rather impersonal, not revealing much about the author's personal likes or beliefs, other than his passion for social justice. A poignant example of the miscarriage of justice, and the one to which Stevenson devotes many pages, is the case of Walter McMillian, a black death-row inmate wrongfully accused of killing a white woman. McMillian was sentenced to death by a judge who apparently thought an all-white jury's life-imprisonment sentence wasn't harsh enough. Ironically, all this happened in Alabama's Monroe County, home to Harper Lee, the author of To Kill a Mockingbird.
Stevenson has worked to free many wrongfully-convicted inmates, such as McMillian, and to reduce excessively harsh sentences, arguing five times before the US Supreme Court in the process. One would expect such instances of injustice to fade over time, but, unfortunately, things appear to be getting even worse. According to a US Justice Department report, 1 in 3 black male babies born in the 21st century will be imprisoned, a ratio that is worse than those of both the 19th and the 20th centuries.
Stevenson closes by running through a list of changes in US criminal laws, which have resulted from efforts such as his. For example, the US Supreme Court ruled in 2010 that life imprisonment without parole, imposed on children convicted on non-homicidal crimes, constitutes cruel and unusual punishment, and thus impermissible. In 2012, this ban was extended to mandatory life-without-parole sentences on children convicted of homicides.
Change is never easy. So, it is good to know that tireless individuals such as Stevenson are leading the fight and instigating progress, one small victory at a time.

2016/04/17 (Sunday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Time magazine cover image, depicting the US per-capita national debt (1) Cheerful news on the cover of this week's Time magazine (April 25, 2016, issue), arriving yesterday, nearly concurrent with the tax deadline, shows that the US national debt amounts to about $43K for every American.
(2) I know it's spring, but this fall photo is too beautiful to pass up!
(3) Canadian PM Justin Trudeau was asked in jest to explain quantum computing: And he did a decent job! Let's try this with US presidential candidates. "We will build a huge quantum computer and Canada will pay for it."
(4) UC Berkeley on crosshairs regarding sexual assault: Two female students are filing a complaint with the state, alleging that the school failed to act against an assistant professor who sexually harassed them. Unfortunately, this state of affairs has become the norm: schools are shamed into action, forming committees and study groups, and then forgetting about the issue in a matter of weeks.
(5) Palms can grow from 2000-year-old seeds: A male date palm tree that sprouted from a 2,000-year-old seed nearly a decade ago is thriving today, according to the Israeli researcher at Kibbutz Ketura, who is cultivating the historic plant. He was able to pollinate a female with the male palm's pollen to produce dates. The seed was one of many recovered decades ago from an archaeological site and had been kept in a researcher's drawer.

2016/04/15 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Venn-diagram representation of the various entities within the British Isles (1) The differences between England, Great Britian, and United Kingdom: Great Britain, like Ireland, refers to a geographical region, not a country. This Venn diagram depicts the relationships between the various entities within the British Isles. The heavy dots represent sovereign nations.
(2) Hygiene in public restrooms: These new air dryers in public restrooms do not represent an improvement in terms of hygiene over paper towels or old-style air dryers. Part of the problem is that it's nearly impossible to put your hands in, without touching some surface.
(3) Dance of Venus and Earth around the Sun. [1-minute video]
(4) On California Governor Jerry Brown: "Brown is the rare progressive who can balance the books, who can sell fiscal restraint to Bay Area liberals and gay marriage to Orange County evangelicals." ~ Newsweek magazine
(5) Chariot for Women aims to replace Uber with safer rides: The new ride-sharing app has the slogan: "Driven by Women. Exclusively for Women." The app's creator, a former Uber driver, put himself in the shoes of Uber's female drivers and female passengers and decided that Uber is unsafe for both groups. The app will launch nationwide on 4/19. Not everyone agrees that the app is a good idea, but, ultimately, women will decide whether it will become successful.
(6) Saudi official met 9/11 hijackers in LA: This according to a CBS "60 Minutes" report, quoting lawmakers who have asked for the declassification of more than two dozen pages in the 9/11 Commission Report. The White House is reviewing whether to declassify the requested pages.
(7) You can't have it both ways: If pregnancy is God's will, as some conservatives assert, then ED must be viewed as His will to prevent pregnancy and using pills to treat it outlawed.
(8) Vote Trump, get dumped: Women start a campaign to defeat Trump by withholding dates and love from men who support Trump. The group's Web page reads in part: "To cast a vote for Trump is to agree with his sexist, perverted, demeaning, backwards, offensive treatment of women."
(9) Final thought for the day: "The bitterest tears shed over graves come from sweet words left unsaid and sweet deeds left undone earlier." ~ Anonymous

2016/04/14 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
How the terms 'wharf,' 'quay,' 'pier,' and 'jetty' are different (1) I was never sure about the use of these four words. [Image from the Facebook page "Writing about Writing."]
(2) Having shown Detroit how to make smart cars, Silicon Valley targets smart guns: Instead of embracing technologies for making accidental firings a thing of the past, gun advocates have threatened action and even violence to stop the movement toward smart guns. According to one Silicon Valley entrepreneur, "The biggest barrier to smart guns is politics, not technology."
(3) How the Iranian revolution was hijacked: Pictorial (by Hengameh Golestan) and commentary regarding women's-rights protests shortly after Iran's Islamic Revolution.
(4) The case for whole milk: "[T]here's fresh evidence that full-fat milk, cheese and yogurt can be better for you than low-fat." They lower diabetes, reduce weight, and cut heart risk. So, until the next study that concludes the exact opposite, I'm switching to whole milk and other dairy products! [Info from Time magazine, April 18, 2016]
(5) Colleges get more sophisticated in their admissions process: "Our admissions officers are looking for something that is authentic and imperfect." ~ Amy Gutmann, University of Pennsylvania President
(6) Panama was tax shelter to relatively small fish: According to James Henry, managing director at Sag Harbor Group, a consultancy that specializes in economic, legal and tax strategies in Sag Harbor, New York, "There is something very simple that people are missing about the Panama Papers leak, and that is that Mossack Fonseca was a gritty little law firm in Panama doing grunt work, with dingy little storefronts all over the world. The wealthiest clients are going to the world's top investment banks, all the names you've heard of—all the banks that got bailed out in 2008."
(7) Interstellar satellites smaller than iPhones: In a $100M research program backed by physicist Stephen Hawking and bankrolled by Russian billionaire Yuri Milner, thousands of satellites powered by laser beams that zap them from earth, will begin exploring star systems nearest to earth (about 5 light years away). These tiny satellites will move much faster than ordinary space vehicles, allowing them to reach the vicinity of the nearest stars in 25 years, traveling at 1/5 the speed of light. The main goal is to search for intelligent life in space, but many other benefits will ensue from these satellites going further than any prior space mission.

Cover image of Terrence Ward's book 'Searching for Hassan' 2016/04/13 (Wednesday): Book review: Ward, Terrence, Searching for Hassan: An American Family's Journey Home to Iran (another version of the book bears the subtitle, A Journey to the Heart of Iran), Anchor, 2003.
I learned of this book from Firoozeh Dumas, as we exchanged comments on Facebook about my review of the book Off the Radar, by Cyrus Copeland.
Searching for Hassan unfolds in two interwoven tracks. One track, true to the book's title, is the story of an American family's return to Iran in search of Hassan Ghasemi and his family, who served them as live-in chef and housekeepers in Tehran, from 1960 to 1969. The Wards had become very close with the Ghasemis, effectively coming to view them as family. After leaving Iran, and particularly after the Islamic Revolution, the Wards had often wondered about the fate of the Ghasemis, with whom they lost contact after a short period of correspondence.
The other track, which comprises the bulk of the narrative, is a history of Iran, its social conventions, its political upheavals through the ages, and its Islamic government up to and including the presidency of Mohammad Khatami (a reformist, who was ultimately unsuccessful against hardline Islamists, led by the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei). As someone quite familiar with the path of Ward family's journey and the history of Iran, I found the historical narrative disjointed and somewhat romanticized. The author is well-read and quite informed about Iran's history, languages, traditions, and religion, but he exhibits a tendency to go on tangents, which I did not like. For example, a mention of the children's pool game "Marco Polo" leads to several paragraphs on the Venetian's travels and ordeals. In a similar vein, upon mentioning the fact that the "1001 Nights" was derived from the Persian "A Thousand Tales," he goes into a 2-page description of the stories and their setting.
The Ward family's love for Iran, even in its Islamic form, with its stark contrasts to their homeland's sociopolitical norms, is quite evident. The author at times exhibits the clouded judgment and blurred vision of an awestruck lover, as he writes glowingly about Iran's people, food, climate, and nature. He returned to Iran a second time, accompanied by his wife, who, to the dismay of many educated and urban Iranian women fighting relentlessly against the compulsory hijab laws, joyfully confides to her husband after wearing a headscarf, "What bliss, not to have to worry about fashion." Description of this second trip takes up only a few pages near the end of the book.
Ghasemi and Ward families in Isfahan In the first/main trip of 1998, the Ward family had a vague notion of the village (Tudeshk; though at first they were unsure about the name or its spelling) where Hassan had grown up. They set out to locate the village, hoping to find Hassan or relatives who would know of his whereabouts. They began their trip in Shiraz, after flying in from Bahrain, and visited all the important tourist attractions in and around Shiraz, as well as the central cities of Yazd and Nain, on the way to the village, which is located just to the east of Isfahan in central Iran. Later, the Wards visited Isfahan, where they were finally reunited with the Ghasemis (photo), Qom, and Tehran, including a visit to the nearby Dizin ski slopes.
I had visited nearly all these places while I resided in Iran, so the detailed descriptions of landmarks and historic sites weren't very interesting to me, nor were the historical narratives, such as those the author constructs alongside his family's visit to Persepolis, Pasargadae, or the Imam (formerly Shah or Naghsh-e Jahan) Square in Isfahan. It has become commonplace in books about Iran to throw in quite a few Persian terms and expressions, preceded or followed by the English equivalents (e.g., "No, khanoum, madam"). I guess this is a way for non-Iranian authors to impress the readers with their knowledge of the country and its people, but Persian-speaking authors writing in English also follow this practice.
To be fair, the narrative isn't exclusively rosy. The author does acknowledge and criticize the brain drain and escape of capital after a Revolution that was executed with help from intellectuals and the merchant class, but was later hijacked by the clerics, despite their initial promise to play only an oversight role. By and large, however, Ward is impressed by the black-market material abandon and behind-closed-doors freedoms (alcoholic beverages, the latest fashions and Hollywood movies, romantic liaisons, even WWF wrestling matches), apparently unaware, or unwilling to acknowledge, that these privileges were enjoyed by a fairly small minority of Iranians, before or after the Islamic Revolution. In one passage, the author mentions the irony of a people, who after kicking out their own royal family, laments over the death of Princess Diana.
I am unsure about who might find this book a good read. Those unfamiliar with Iran won't learn about its history and people from Ward's account. The historical tidbits are too disjointed and the people described not quite believable. For example, while most Iranians enjoy poetry, very few can converse about the historical or philosophical inflections of Hafiz or Rumi poems. Similarly, sophisticated sociopolitical and economic commentary, as opposed to blaming this or that official, or weaving elaborate conspiracy theories, is quite rare. At the other end of the spectrum, people already familiar with the country will not find much new in this travelogue. The purported search for Hassan is also devoid of intrigue, as the reader suspects right from the outset that the search will be successful.
Let me close on a positive note. The book's account ends with the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the US. Ward relates in his final paragraphs a phone conversation, in which members of the Ghasemi family express despair and sorrow over the lives lost. It is true that the people of Iran felt greater sadness and outrage over those brutal attacks than any Muslim-majority country in the world. The Iran of the people, as opposed to the country shaped by its rulers' backwardness and self-interests, is a peace-loving and tolerant nation, and this attribute comes across quite well in Ward's book.

2016/04/12 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Hilton Garden Inn Hotel, under construction in Goleta, CA (1) Tourism in Goleta, CA: Until a few years ago, the west end of Goleta, where I live, had no hotels. At the east end, we have had a Motel 6, a Super 8 Motel, a Holiday Inn, and a Best Western, with the latter two fluctuating in quality as they underwent multiple ownership transfers. That changed recently with the opening of a gorgeous Marriott Courtyard near Girsh Park. And now this Hilton Garden Inn Hotel is going up at the intersection of Hollister Ave. and Storke Rd. The new hotels, which are fairly close to UCSB, also provide additional accommodations options for the many campus visitors and guest scholars.
(2) Quote of the day: "There is no nation which so readily adopts foreign customs as the Persians." ~ Herodotus, The Histories
(3) Denamark is chosen as the happiest place on earth: "Ninety percent of Danish students enroll in free post-secondary educational programs." ~ PBS Newshour, citing one reason; another oneis free health care for all
(4) War and rape: "First they killed her husband, then the soldiers killed her two sons, ages 5 and 7. When the uniformed men yanked her daughter from her hands next, Mary didn't think it could get any worse." ~ Aryn Baker, writing in Time magazine, issue of April 18, 2016, about atrocities in South Sudan [This on-line version of the article is both older and a bit different]
(5) Movie about Supreme Court Justice Thomas' confirmation hearing: The HBO film "Confirmation" has been praised for bringing the still-ongoing saga of race and gender relations to the forefront, reminding us that even prominent women aren't taken seriously when they allege sexual misconduct. I understand that both Kerry Washington, as Anita Hill, and Wendell Pierce, as Clarence Thomas, are excellent. I look forward to a chance to watch this important film.
(6) Eight brief news headlines of the day:
- Number of Boko Haram child suicide-bombers shows tenfold increase
- Stephen Hawking and Russian billionaire Yuri Milner announce new search-for-aliens program
- San Francisco approves 6 weeks of full-pay leave for new biological parents and adopters
- Damaged ruins of Palmyra underscore the cultural costs of Syria's war
- China implements ambitious youth program, hoping to dominate soccer internationally
- Italy's PM visits Iran in bid to win back his country's economic clout there
- Israel gives blessing to Egypt's return of Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia
- South Korea reveals defection last year of two North Korea officials
(7) Beth Hart, accompanied by guitarist Joe Bonamassa, sings the blues classic "I'll Take Care of You." Wonderful guitar solo! [6-minute video]
(8) Final thought for the day: "All the talk about exercise extending your lifespan is nonsense; a rabbit, with all its hopping and sprinting lives for 2 years, while the barely-moving turtle lives up to 400 years." ~ Anonymous

2016/04/11 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Anoushka Shankar's 'Land of Gold' album cover image (1) Anoushka Shankar, with percussionist Manu Delago: I attended Shankar's "Land of Gold" concert at UCSB's Campbell Hall tonight. The concert is based on Sahnkar's new album by the same name, which contains songs inspired by the plight of refugees worldwide (co-written last year by Shankar and Delago). She opened her concert with "Last Chance," continuing with "Crossing the Rubicon" and the title song "Land of Gold." She then performed "Dissolving Boundaries," "Secret Heart" (my favorite), and "Reunion." The rather long pieces started gently and built up to a mesmerizing crescendo. Some had elements of Persian music in them. The encore consisted of the lullaby "Say Your Prayers." After hours of driving on Sunday and a full day at work today, the concert provided some enjoyable and relaxing time for me.
(2) Quote of the day: "An Englishman does everything on principles: he fights you on patriotic principles; he robs you on business principles; he enslaves you on imperial principles." ~ George Bernard Shaw
(3) Surreal black-and-white analog photo montages. [Pictorial]
(4) Some examples of 200-calorie food items.
(5) A new breed of college Republicans supports Trump: I posted earlier about some hate slogans that defaced sidewalks and buildings at UCSB over the past weekend. Apparently, this is a national trend that began at Atlanta's Emory University. This Newsweek article asserts that the Trump movement on US campuses is a reaction to a more liberal and tolerant group of students (many of them Sanders supporters), who came of age during Obama's presidency. Both left and right share the sentiment that the system is broken.
(6) Three brief news headlines of the day:
- The Daily Mail may make a bid for Yahoo!
- California computer energy efficiency standard expected by 2018
- ISIS kills 21 Christians in a Syrian town
(7) A 9-decade-old warning to LA: When the St. Francis Dam burst 88 years ago, Los Angeles area residents witnessed a wall of water up to 140 feet high, as billions of gallons moved on a 54-mile path toward the ocean. The collapse of the dam, killing some 500, is considered the worst engineering disaster in US history.
(8) Beyond spelling/grammar checkers: I have seen multiple casual Facebook ties dissolve and close friendships deteriorate over political discussions, where condescending or insulting words were used. Wouldn't it be nice if writing aids, that now catch misspellings and grammatical errors, issue reminders, and suggest corrections, went a step further in their artificial intelligence and reminded us of potentially offensive words in the particular context at hand? Just like Google search's eerie ability to suggest, and perform, alternate searches when I mistype a query word, the extended writing tool would ask if I want to use "highly optimistic" when I type "naive."
(9) Final thought for the day: If someone grows up confined to a room and watches only Facebook videos, s/he will think that everyone owns several cats and dogs, plus a dancing bird and a few other exotic pets, and that no wild beast ever kills another beast or a human being.

2016/04/10 (Sunday): Here are three items of potential interest.
Photo of Farzaneh Milani, Tahmineh Milani, and Nayereh Tohidi (1) Today's events on Iran at UCLA: As part of UCLA's Bilingual Lectures on Iran program, a doubleheader event was held today in 147 Dodd Hall, beginning at 4:00 PM and ending shortly after 6:30.
First, there was a lecture by Dr. Farzaneh Milani (a professor and department chair at University of Virginia; left in the photo) on the life and poetry of Forough Farrokhzad.
Then, Iranian film director Tahmineh Milani (center in the photo) screened her 22-minute documentary on the interplay between architecture and film.
Finally, Dr. Nayereh Tohidi (CSUN professor and organizer of the UCLA lecture series; right in the photo) moderated a panel discussion for getting the audience's reactions and answering questions by both presenters.
The lecture by Farzaneh Milani, entitled "The Iconoclastic Icon (Bot-e Bot-Shekan): The Life, Poetry, and the Letters of Forough Farrokhzad," was based on her forthcoming book, two decades in the making. The English version of this lecture will be presented tomorrow, 4/11, at UCLA (2:00 PM, 1038 Bunche Hall).
The poetess, who passed away at age 32, was born "Forough-ol-Zaman Farrokhzad Araki" on January 5, 1935, in Tehran. Her 3-year marriage to Parviz Shapour, 11 years her senior, ended in 1954. She was restless from a young age, preferring to climb trees and get into fights with boys to staying indoors. According to the speaker, Farrokhzad was damaged more than previously acknowledged by her dysfunctional family, leading her to two suicide attempts and bouts of mental illness.
Farrokhzad's literary publications began at age 20 with the book "Aseer" ("The Captive"). Over her very short life, she proceeded to create some of the most memorable and daring love poems in the Persian language, published other works of poetry, and made the critically acclaimed documentary film "Khaneh Siah Ast" ("The House is Black") about the plight of Iranians afflicted with leprosy.
Farrokhzad is a beloved poet around the world and her sensual and defiant poetry is even more relevant today, in the wake of the Islamic suppression of women in Iran and women's struggles to (re)claim their rights. Not surprisingly, she is despised by the Islamic authorities in Iran and her name is banished from anthologies and other works covering Iran's contemporary poets.
Dr. Milani's biographical book will contain several previously unpublished letters of Farrokhzad in their entirety and without the types of censorship applied to previously published sets of letters. Among the new letters, there are 15 that she wrote to her married lover, Ebrahim Golestan, with whom she spent the last 8 years of her life. These letters, with their many direct expressions of love, leave no doubt that she was madly in love with Golestan. During the questions period, Mehrnoosh Mazarei inquired whether there is any record of letters from Golestan to Farrokhzad that would indicate the deep affection was mutual. Dr. Milani indicated that no such letters have been made public, but she saw other evidence that Golestan did indeed reciprocate Farrokhzad's affection. In fact, there do exist other letters in the possession of certain individuals, who for various reasons having to do with the traditions of a patriarchal society (family honor being the most notable) may never be made public. The speaker indicated that she had to work extra hard to extract the information that she did get for her book through many contacts and dozens of interviews.
Farrokhzad's poems have been translated into many world languages, perhaps more than the works of any other contemporaty Iranian poet.
I look forward to the publication of Dr. Milani's biographical book on Forough Farrokhzad.
[A poem and parts of a letter by Farrokhzad, read by Dr. Milani]
The documentary film by Tahmineh Milani (no relations with the previous speaker)was entitled "Cinematic Representation of Architecture." Ms. Milani explained in way of introduction, and also elaborated in the discussion period that ensued, that she studied architecture in college and is thus both adamant and curious about the impact of architecture in conveying social messages in films.
As a feminist filmmaker, Ms. Milani tackles women's issues in the form of stories that can be screened in Iran, given the obstacles that the Islamic regime places in the path of artists. Milani's films have been screened at, and honored by, many film festivals and she has been a jury member at several such events.
In this short documentary, Milani presents a brief humorous autobiography (for example, she pokes fun at how her parents were disappointed to have a girl as their first child). Then using clips from her films, particularly "Do Zan" ("Two Women"), whose filming locations in Isfahan provided glaring examples of architectural backgrounds that paralleled the drama and the contrasting traditions in the Iranian society with regard to women's rights and issues, she describes how architectural elements can be used to augment and amplify a film's message.
During the ensuing discussion, moderated by Dr. Nayereh Tohidi, several audience members presented commentaries and asked direct questions of the two presenters.
Ms. Tahmineh Milani observed that one reason for the extreme difficulty of getting factual and honest biographies published in Iran is the obsessive focus on the notion of "aabroo" (family reputation/honor). This is why notions of child abuse, sexual relations, and other taboo topics are more or less absent in Persian biographies and autobiographies. This observation is right on the spot. In fact, I would like to add two other words that are equally damaging to the advance of human rights and various art forms in Iran. One is "naamoos" and the other, from a different domain, is "mojavvez."
The dictionary defines "namoos" as "chastity" and "female members of the family," but it implies a sort of ownership of women by men that necessitates hiding and covering them from the eyes of other men. The word "mojavvez" means "license" or "permit." Iranian movies and books must obtain a government permit in order to be made/published. Even though filmmakers and authors have found creative ways to get their messages across, despite this abominable censorship, nothing is more damaging to creativity than such pre-inspections of planned works and post-inspections that may doom even works that have already obtained governmental permits.
(2) Half-dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Belgium terror attacks were originally planned for France
- Facebook to offer loans/credit based on friends' creditworthiness
- Sparked by Panama Papers, protests, resignations continue
- Kerry visits Hiroshima memorial 7 decades after A-bomb
- Northern California head-on crash kills 5 near Sacramento
- Hillary Clinton downplays chance of contested convention
(3) Final thought for the day: "Life consists of two halves. We spend the first half anticipating the second half and the second half reminiscing about the first." ~ Anonymous

2016/04/08 (Friday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Trinity Episcopal Church in downtown Santa Barbara (1) Strolling in downtown Santa Barbara: After having lunch on Stearns Wharf with some friends who were passing through our town, I walked along State Street under a gentle rain, passing by landmarks such as the Trinity Episcopal search (the accompanying photo and this photo, which also shows its labyrinth, where one is invited to contemplate), the majestic Arlington Theater (our area's largest indoors venue for lectures, film screenings, and live performing arts), and Granada Theater (a focal point for smaller-size theater and music performances).
(2) Quote of the day: "The past is a country from which we all have emigrated." ~ Salman Rushdie, Imaginary Homelands
(3) Iran Open robotics event: Seven photos supplied by a friend and a news video highlighting the role of women engineering students in the competition, which is a precursor to the upcoming international Robocup soccer event in Germany.
(4) A spring in Paveh, part of Iran's Kermanshah province. [1-minute video]
(5) On Computational Thinking, Inferential Thinking, and Data Science: This is the title of today's lecture by Michael I. Jordan, UC Berkeley's Professor of ECE and Statistics (no basketball connection!). The fresh perspective presented by Professor Jordan was eye-opening for me. He noted that references to "big data" and "data science" are everywhere, without a clear formulation of the goals and the science behind the ad-hoc methods employed to take advantage of the massive amounts of data becoming available through "the cloud" (draw useful inferences from them).
In a way, the problems with big data are not new; they resemble challenges we have faced in the past. For example, science in confirmatory mode must deal with massive numbers of "nuisance variables" that prevent us from zooming in on the most important ones. Science in exploratory mode suffers from massive numbers of potential hypotheses that impair our ability to find the relevant ones. Measurement of human activity, in the wake of social media and other new modes of information dissemination, is a difficult undertaking for personalization and market-creation efforts.
Jordan presented a convincing case that computational thinking (dealing with abstraction, modularity, scalability, and robustness attributes) and inferential thinking (dealing not with the data itself, but with the questions we are trying to answer, that is, getting to what's behind the data) must become better integrated. Current computational theory doesn't have a place for statistical risk. Likewise, current statistical theory doesn't have a place for running-time or other computational resource limitations.
As examples of what can be done with better integration of the two domains, Jordan tackled inference under privacy constraints and inference under communication-bandwidth constraints. I will just discuss one of the fresh perspectives in the talk having to do with privacy concerns, while allowing useful inferences to be drawn from large databases.
An example provided by the speaker assigned a privacy parameter that is controllable by data owners, depending on the purpose to which the data will be put. In the case of genetic information, e.g., one may be more generous with disclosures if the purpose is to screen one's family for genetic diseases, a bit less generous if the purpose is to do research for public benefit, and reluctant to disclose if a commercial reason is involved. Just as the sample size in statistics provides control over the expected error, the privacy parameter will affect the amount of information one must process and the attendant running-time.
One theoretical study, e.g., led to the conclusion that setting a privacy parameter to a = 2 (moderate privacy), leads to the requirement for a sample size of (a^2)n to allow the same statistical guarantees as the sample size of n with no privacy concerns.

2016/04/07 (Thursday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Photo of Bradbury Dam and Lake Cachuma (1) On Santa Barbara County's Lake Cachuma: In the late 1940s, Thomas M. Storke, then owner and publisher of Santa Barbara News Press, used his local press clout and Washington connections to push through a $43M project to build the Bradbury Dam on the Santa Ynez River, amid a severe drought and in the face of stern opposition from local landowners, who warned against the US government's socialistic tendencies to gain control over local water via an outrageously expensive project.
Without the dam and its Lake Cachuma, Santa Barbara and Goleta would not have become the enviable places of living that they are today, and UCSB would not have been established to provide the area with a steady stream of entrepreneurs and high-tech businesses.
(2) Transforming World Atlas (2nd ed., 2016): This document is a 79-page collection of maps, in PDF format, that is rather unusual. Created by Bank of America and Merrill Lynch, and subtitled "Investment Themes Illustrated by Maps," the world atlas illustrates population, aging, urbanization, poverty, mobility, tourism, energy, social media use, and many other distributions and trends. It provided me with a couple of hours of fun. Hope you enjoy it too!
(3) This T-shirt ad was a suggested Facebook post for me today: I would have bought one, had the inscription, "I became a Professor for the money and the fame," included the word "Not!" at the end.
(4) New super-ultra-venti Starbucks cup for those who have pledged to limit their intake to one cup per day.
(5) Santa Barbara Earth Day Festival 2016: It will be held over the weekend of April 16-17, 11:00-6:00, at Alameda Park. On this map of the venue, north is to the right!

2016/04/06 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Cartoon about abridged versions of classic books (1) Cartoon of the day: More abridged classics.
(2) Half dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- Country-music legend Merle Haggard dead at 79
- Diabetes cases quadrupled since 1980 worldwide
- Studies on ED vs. women's sexual disorders: 341 vs. 46
- Southern California could see several summer blackouts
- US prescription drug costs doubled in just 7 years
- Dead woman found in suitcase on sidewalk in San Diego
(3) Poor William Shakespeare: According to Time magazine, issue of April 11, 2016, a recent radar imaging study of the bard's grave indicates that his skull was likely stolen some 200 years ago. He joins other famous people who became victims of graveyard robbery, including St. Nicholas, Galileo Galilei, Joseph Haydn, and Albert Einstein.
(4) Justice ill-served: Donald Blankenship, the mine operator whose greed and disregard of safety regulations caused the death of 29, was sentenced to only one year in prison, a verdict he will appeal.
(5) On sexism in STEM: "My challenge is to show these problems [sexism in STEM fields], while ferociously defending all that is beautiful and noble about doing science with your hands. My story is not tragic. I have been generously rewarded for everything I've ever tried to do. I'm actually a happy ending." ~ Triple-Fulbright-winning geobiologist Hope Jahren, whose NYT op-ed about rampant sexual harassment in science (link below) caused quite a stir [Jahren is the author of Lab Girl]
(6) The victims of tax avoidance/evasion: It's not hard to guess that the victims are middle-class taxpayers with net worth under $1M, who end up paying higher tax rates to make up for the major loss in tax revenues.
(7) Fraction of the population with access to safe water sources (according to Time magazine, issue of April 11, 2016): Qatar, 100%; USA, 99.2%; Dominican Republic, 84.7%; Angola, 49%.
(8) The invisible train: These Japanese train cars, designed by architect Kazuyo Sejima, use a reflective aluminium skin that allows them to blend into their surroundings.
(9) Final thought for the day: "Women have cast more votes than men in every general election since 1964 and voted at higher rates than men in every race since 1980. It's very difficult for a candidate to win the general election if he's underwater with the nation's largest and most reliable voting bloc." ~ From an article in Time magazine, issue of April 11, 2016

2016/04/05 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
gif image showing how the path of Ucayali River in Peru changed over three decades (1) This GIF image shows how Ucayali River's path in Peru changed over three decades.
(2) Who won the Apple-versus-FBI battle over privacy? It's really a draw. But terrorists are definitely on the losing side. They are now wondering if they can really have secure, private communications.
(3) Shakespeare, after 400 years: Shakespeare's work has had a remarkable influence on our theater productions, movies, books, song lyrics, children's names, and life in general. A chart, printed as a 2-page spread in Time magazine's April 11, 2016, issue, lists about 100 of these influences. There is no high-res, on-line version of the chart at this time, but I'll provide a link if I find one.
(4) On the largest financial leak in history: More details and names associated with the Panama Papers have been published. Much more info will emerge in the days and weeks ahead.
(5) The Golden State Warriors are on track to beat Chicago's all-time best 72-10 NBA season record: At 69-8, they must win 4 of their remaining 5 games. They can tie the record by winning 3 out of 5, which should be easy.
(6) "Reading the Brain: Neuro/Science/Fiction": This was the title of a talk this afternoon by University-of-Paris philosophy professor Pierre Cassou-Nogues. Machines for reading thoughts have been featured in various works of fiction (not necessarily sci-fi), because they lead to intriguing situations and complex dilemmas. To this body of imaginary mind-reading scenarios, one must add real neuroscientific research in recent years and possible secret work by national security agencies worldwide.
Before going further, let me point out in passing that the speaker's less-than-perfect English made it difficult to follow his thought process. Normally, foreign accents are not a problem for me, as I regularly attend talks given by non-native English speakers in my own specialty areas. However, philosophical discussions are difficult even in one's own native language, so the speaker was clearly disadvantaged by his English language skills.
Cassou-Nogues used frequent examples and quotes from a work by Marcel Proust, but the name of the work escapes me at this writing. In doing research for this post, I came across Jonah Lehrer's 2007 book, with the intriguing title Proust Was a Neuroscientist. So, it isn't surprising that he formulated some deep and controversial questions about mind-reading. A 1938 comic fantasy, The Thought-Reading Machine, by Andre Maurois, who envisaged not reading of the mind, but reading of a human's soul, was also mentioned. The real, though not very successful, mind-reading machine of Gregory Chatonsky, which used EEG headsets to allow direct mind control over an editing process, was also discussed briefly.
Here is an interesting example. As we read a novel, we construct mental images of the settings and people/objects described by the author. Some of these images are formed subconsciously and we may be unaware of their existence or significance to our thought process. A natural question, therefore, is whether our memory recall function would improve if a machine captured these images from our brain signals and showed them to us. Some of these images are on occasion referred to as raw/unprocessed thoughts and may disappear, once we put the raw thoughts together to form our processed thoughts.
During the questions period, a discussion ensued about whether a blind person experiences reading in the same way. It seems that the answer is yes only if the person in question was not born blind.

2016/04/04 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Map of ISUS-held areas in Syria and Iraq (1) Islamic State losses and gains: Gray areas indicate land controlled by IS, with black showing gains over the last year and red denoting losses. The losses are significant, particularly if they lead to isolated patches of IS-controlled areas that make movement of fighters and arms much more difficult. [Map from Time magazine, issue of April 11, 2016]
(2) Every generation thinks that technology is destroying our way of life and traditions. Not so, says this cartoon.
(3) UCLA Celebration of Iranian Cinema: This annual film series, which is sponsored by Farhang Foundation, begins on Saturday, April 3, 2016, with Soheila Golestani's "Do" ("Two") and continues until Sunday, May 22, at Hammer Museum's Billy Wilder Theater in Westwood.
(4) Panama Papers: These recently revealed papers seem to implicate many individuals (including several closely linked to Vladimir Putin) in money-laundering activities. Tonight's PBS Newshour also named a Saudi King, Bashar Assad, and several other politicians as beneficiaries of the scheme. The released papers are too voluminous for perusal by ordinary citizens. However, over time, summaries and analyses will be published that will allow us to become informed and make sense of the data. [Wikipedia entry]
(5) Half dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- At least 53 dead in pre-monsoon-season floods in Pakistan and Kashmir
- Tesla has pre-sold 276K Model 3 electric cars ($10B) in just two days
- China is aggressively promoting autononmous (self-driving) cars
- UN tribunal convicts former Serb leader Radovan Karadzic for genocide
- Annual per-capita consumption of soda in the US fell to 30-year low
- Patty Duke, Oscar-winning star of "The Miracle Worker" dead at 69
(6) The politics of hate is spreading: It has reared its ugly head on the UCSB campus, prompting our VC for Student Affairs to send a message to the campus community that reads, in part: "During the past few days many university sidewalks and several buildings have been defaced with slogans and statements written in chalk and other more permanent media. Some of the messages constitute political endorsements, while others contain offensive, ignorant and hateful statements that target, provoke and divide our community. ... The sexism, racism, homophobia, transphobia and intolerance contained in these messages are inconsistent with our core values and our commitment to maintain an inclusive and safe learning environment for every member of the UCSB community. ... These messages degrade and distract our community and isolate those groups who are targeted."

2016/04/03 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cover image of Brooke Shield's 'There Was a Little Girl' (1) Book review: Shields, Brooke, There Was a Little Girl: The Real Story of My Mother and Me, unabridged audiobook on 10 CDs, read by the author, Penguin Audio, 2014.
Brooke Shields has been in the media spotlight ever since she entered the world of modeling before she turned one. Her childhood and youth were thus anything but normal, leading to pressures that drove her to drinking. Her formidable mother, Teri, who also acted as her manager, was a difficult and complicated woman and Brooke's relationship with her went through many ups and downs. In this open and honest memoir, Brooke Shields examines her relationship with her mother.
Shields was apparently motivated to write this book when she read a scathing New York Times obituary of her mom in 2012, which, among other things, criticized her for pushing Brooke into modeling and film, including acting as a child prostitute in Louis Malle's highly controversial "Pretty Baby" (1978). With this book, Shields wants to set the record straight that, even though her mom was pushy, permanently drunk, and at times ruthless, she was also witty, resourceful, and protective as a single mom, who tasted hardship while growing up in the Depression-era Newark.
In the process of painting her mom and their mother-daughter relationship, Shields also provides a window into her own roller-coaster career and personal life, including her years at Princeton, an affair with Irish actor Liam Neeson, her doomed marriage to tennis pro Andre Agassi, and her TV series "Suddenly Susan."
(2) Cartoon of the day: The mouse says, "Thank you very much, sir; I have brought back the empty dishes."
(3) Fidel Castro's scathing letter to President Obama: His rhetoric reminds me of Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei; tough talk for internal consumption and to silence the critics of the new opening. His brother Raul would not have made such an important decision about detente with the US, sans his blessing. He wants to maintain appearances, just as Khamenei does, even though Rouhani would not dare drink water, as we say in Persian, without his permission.
(4) Classical music at the mall, in Thousand Oaks.
(5) An oldie but goodie: Persian song about spring and flowers and, of course, love and devotion.
(6) Imagining the ancient Greek in today's clothing. [Pictorial]
(7) Only an Iranian can:
- Praise the history, climate, and people of Iran for hours, making everyone wonder why he doesn't live there.
- Use his car horn to greet someone, bid good-bye, celebrate, exhibit ire, swear, and say thanks.
- Fasten his belt and zip up his pants after leaving the bathroom.
- Look over his shoulder when a car is backing up, even though he is a passenger and not the driver.

2016/04/01 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Painting that depicts women's extra burdens and challenges (1) Women face extra burdens and challenges: This painting is on exhibit at the Women's Rights Museum in Spain.
(2) Eight brief news headlines of the day (real ones, not April Fools'):
- GMail drops its April Fools' Day prank, after it causes users a lot of trouble
- US and China agree to cooperate in dealing with N. Korea's nuclear threat
- North Korea accused of trying to jam GPS singals beyond its borders
- Amnesty International: Turkey's returning refugees to war zones is illegal
- Bernie Sanders breaks fundraising record for election campaigns
- CIA reviews K-9 training after leaving explosives behind on a school bus
- Collapse of 100-meter overpass on crowded street leaves 25 dead in India
- New York follows California in its plans to raise the minimum wage to $15
(3) Electric cars are coming: Of course, they have been around for some time, but at $35K and 215 miles per charge, the new Tesla Model 3 (orders exceeding 100K units already) makes them practical and affordable.
(4) Maps that describe America: These 25 maps depict attributes of the 50 US states in areas such as religion, languages spoken, popular commercial brands, restaurant chains, and the word used to describe sweetened carbonated beverages.
(5) Playful photography with paper cut-outs, by Rich McCor. [Pictorial]
(6) Kurdish music and dancing. [8-minute video]
(7) Architect extraordinaire Zaha Hadid [1950-2016]: The 65-year-old architect was responsible for some of the most remarkable buildings across the globe.
(8) Six April Fools' fake news headlines of the day:
- The Mexican government reveals $10.5B border wall project
- US Justice Department to indict both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump
- Google to change its English logo to the newly designed Persian version
- Trump suspends campaign to 'give this compassion thing a try'
- Scotland and Wales 'could form own country' if Britain leaves EU
- BMW's revolutionary baby shoes will stop toddlers from falling over
(9) Final thought for the day: "It takes two years to learn to speak and sixty to learn to keep quiet." ~ Ernest Hemingway

2016/03/31 (Thursday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Photo of a majestic tree in Goleta, CA (1) This majestic tree stands at the main entrance to my housing complex. I photographed it this afternoon, as I was leaving for my daily walk in Goleta.
(2) California poppies create a natural wonder on these hills.
(3) Why is the GOP determined to hand the presidency to Hillary Clinton on a silver plate? All the mud-slinging by the Republican candidates will only hurt their eventual nominee. Could it be that they have gotten to like their do-nothing, nay-saying role over the past few years and consider its continuation more comfortable than trying to accomplish something?
(4) Trump vs. Trudeau: A side-by-side comparison of the views of a potential US President and the Canadian Prime Minister.
(5) On reading minds, and its implications: University-of-Paris philosophy professor Pierre Cassou-Nogues will be at UCSB next week to give the talk "Reading the Brain: Neuro/Science/Fiction" (Tuesday 4/5, 4:00 PM, McCune Conference Room, 6020 HSSB). Here is a snippet from the talk's description, which along with the intriguing title, persuaded me to attend: "Referring to various machines for reading thoughts, real or fictitious, Cassou-Nogues will argue that brain reading leads us to a change in our form of life, where thinking receives a new meaning, and various paradoxical situations may arise."
(6) Free public lecture by Bryan Stevenson: The author of Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, which is this year's selection for the "UCSB Reads" program, will speak at UCSB's Campbell Hall on Monday, April 18, 2016, beginning at 8:00 PM.
(7) David Sedaris, on Santa Barbara: The humorist, who is a regular visitor to my hometown (his next visit/lecture here will be on May 1, 2016), once characterized Santa Barbara as too perfect to be likable. "Most everyone I passed was engaged in some sort of exercise. ... There are other such towns in California—La Jolla, Carmel—but none seems as satisfied with themselves."
(8) Gaza's sole professional female runner won't give up: Inas Nofal, 15, gets up every morning and goes for her daily run, up and down the streets of the refugee camp where she lives.
(9) Final thought for the day: "Tomorrow is April Fool's Day. Believe nothing and trust no one; just like any other day!" ~ Anonymous [It is also Sizdeh-Beh-Dar, or the 13th day of the Persian New Year, with its "dorough-e sizdah" tradition. So people of Iranian origins should be doubly careful!]

2016/03/30 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cover image for the audiobook 'Meet Me at the Emotional Baggage Claim' (1) Brief book review: Scottoline, Lisa and Francesca Serritella, Meet Me at the Emotional Baggage Claim, unabridged audiobook on 5 CDs, read by the authors, Macmillan Audio, 2012.
This book contains a collection of humorous columns, each written and read by empty-nester mother, Lisa, or her twenty-something daughter, Francesca. The columns originally appeared in Philadelphia Inquirer. The eccentric (grand)mother Mary is mentioned frequently in the stories. The mother-daughter team pokes fun at everyday events and activities to which everyone can relate. One key theme is trying to stay emotionally close, now that Francesca has moved out of the family home and has taken residence in the Big Apple. The short-essays format makes the book an easy read/listen, regardless of how much time you have.
(2) A one-of-a-kind writing course: A writing course at UCSB examines the rhetoric of climate change. Students write about the climate-change debate, pondering about whether the case is closed, by analyzing popular narratives on all sides of the argument.
(3) Sign of the times: Is this warning at a UCSB parking structure really necessary?
(4) Faithful followers: Here are how four religious leaders fare in terms of the number of followers they have on Instagram: Pope Francis, 1.9M; Ayatollah Khamenei, 661K; Dalai Lama, 341K; Archbishop of Canterbury, 2.4K. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 4, 2016]
(5) Five brief news headlines of the day:
- An Israeli firm helped FBI crack San Bernardino terrorist's iPhone
- US FTC sues Volkswagen over deceptive advertising
- NASA names asteroid after Iranian-American scientist Firouz Naderi
- Audit accuses U. California of admitting too many out-of-staters
- Plan to raise CA's minimum wage to $15 by 2022 clears first hurdle
(6) Final thought for the day: Have you ever wondered why scarecrows are made like men, not like wolves, tigers, or bears? Isn't there any animal scarier than man?

2016/03/29 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Playful calligraphic rendering of a Persian verse (1) Playful rendering of a Persian verse: It's a single line of text that is stretched at points and bent to form four lines. It is playful, because the text says that if you push something away (first line, the text going away from the starting point on the right), it won't go away (second line, the text coming back), and even if it does go away (third line), it will return (fourth line). [Artist unknown]
(2) A poem of Houshang Ebtehaj (aka Heh. Alef. Sayeh), rendered beautifully by calligrapher Ali Farahani.
(3) New $200M donation to UCSB: Berkshire Hathaway VC Charles Munger has pledged $200M to UCSB for use in building affordable, state-of-the-art undergraduate housing units. This donation will be on top of his previous donation of $66M to build residential units for scholars visiting the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics.
(4) Andy Grove dead at 79: The visionary technologist, Time magazine's Man of the Year in 1997, who led the development of Intel into one of the world's premier technology companies, died on March 21, 2016, of unknown causes. He had been suffering from Parkinson's disease and prostate cancer for a number of years.
(5) The hijacker of Egypt Air flight surrenders in Cyprus: Authorities in Cyprus have indicated that the hijacking had nothing to do with terrorism. In my book, however, when you threaten a group of innocent people with exploding a bomb to get what you want, it is terrorism, even if your demands or goals are not political.
(6) Traditional Persian music: Performed by a large orchestra of Iranian instruments. Wonderful!
(7) Arianna Huffington's guide to better sleep: Time magazine, issue of April 4, 2016, offers these snippets from Huffingon's new book, The Sleep Revolution: Transforming Your Life, One Night at a Time (Harmony Books).
- Skip the nightcap: A late-night drink may act as a sedative, but it disturbs your sleep later on.
- Smell the lavender: Or drink lavender tea, approved by Germany as a treatment for insomnia.
- Stay awake: If you wake up during the night, try to stay awake, with no TV or computer.
- Get naked: The better sleep is a side effect of skin-to-skin contact, known to release oxytocin.
(8) Andrea Mitchell on Donald Trump's cluelessness about foreign affairs: Of course, Trump supporters will continue to dismiss these criticisms as part of a conspiracy by liberals and/or establishment Republicans against a potential "best President ever"!
(9) Former Trump supporter warns his voters: She makes some great points, and everyone is entitled to a change of heart. But, she has credibility issues. She describes herself as a policy wonk who believes in going to the table prepared. How did she miss all the publicly available info about Trump's misogyny and self-promotion, when she signed up to support him (and no doubt earn a fat paycheck in the process) a year ago?

2016/03/28 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Deaths from drug overdose in the US: 2004 vs. 2014 (1) Drug-overdose deaths in the US: The dire situation in 2014 vs. 2004. Dark green color is best and dark red is worst. [Source: Time magazine, issue of April 4, 2016]
(2) Quote of the day: "People are just as wonderful as sunsets if you let them be. When I look at a sunset, I don't find myself saying, 'Soften the orange a bit on the right hand corner.' I don't try to control a sunset. I watch with awe as it unfolds." ~ Carl R. Rogers
(3) The Moroccan shepherd girl who became a cabinet minister in France after immigrating to that country.
(4) Captain Hajar Asgari realizes her dream of becoming a pilot, despite misogynistic barriers in Iran.
(5) Suicide bomber kills 65, injures 100s, in Lahore, Pakistan: The bomb was detonated on Sunday, a few feet from the site of children's swings in a public park. The victims are mostly women and children belonging to the small Christian minority in the country.
(6) Trump vs. Khomeini: In this essay, Roya Hakakian sees some parallels between Trump and Khomeini in their grand promises, repetitive speech patterns, butchering of their respective languages (making Rumi turn in his grave in the case of the Imam), and pandering to the uneducated.
(7) On Hillary Clinton as a presidential candidate: The reasons some people hate Secretary Clinton have evolved over time, but underneath many of the criticisms lies the single reason that our patriarchal society is still uncomfortable with ambitious and opinionated women. [4-minute video]
(8) The UCSB campus returned to its normal bustle on this first day of spring quarter: My graduate-level course on computer arithmetic started today and my 1-unit freshman seminar will hold its first class on Wednesday.
(9) Putting your money where your mouth is: A petition to allow guns to be carried openly during the 2016 Republican National Convention in Ohio (an open-carry state) has caused quite a stir, with politicians supporting the NRA not sure how to respond. It is great that such politicians are getting a taste of their own medicine. If similar demands are made in other domains (politicians' children being required to enlist whenever they authorize a war, and their own healthcare plans being discontinued whenever they vote to repeal Obamacare), much of the gridlock in Washington will be removed.

2016/03/27 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cartoon about Jesus being both alive and dead, a la Schrodinger's cat (1) Cartoon of the day: For the nerds among my readers.
(2) Galloway on the Oil-for-Food Program scandal: In this 4-minute clip of his testimony at the US Senate, British Parliamentarian George Galloway lashes out against the "pack of lies" that led to the Iraq war. If you listen to the introductory comments in the 49-minute full testimony, you will find out that Galloway has been accused of wrongdoing himself. So, take his comments with a grain of salt. With this caveat, he makes a lot of sense and puts out a convincing case that the accusations against him, like the Iraq war itself, are based on forged documents.
(3) A lively debate: Author/essayist/orator Christopher Hitchens faces the British Parliamentarian George Galloway in a debate about the Iraq war.
[Note added on 3/28: Neither side in this debate is a saint, and each one has quite a few critics. But they raise many valid points, and their debating prowess is fascinating. The 109-minute video consists of 59 minutes of the two sides' main statements, plus 50 minutes of back-and-forth replies.]
(4) Yesterday, two of my children and I hiked on the very easy (flat) Carpinteria Bluffs trail that leads from a parking lot next to Highway 101 to Carpinteria's Seal Sanctuary. Here is a close-up photo of the seals on the beach. And here is me standing on the bluffs.
(5) The plan to dismantle public universities in the US: To conservatives, public universities are "beasts" that threaten the free-market ideology and must thus be starved to death through cuts in funding. This agenda really means that higher education should be limited to the rich, who can afford private schools. The result will be depriving a large section of our society from educational opportunities and worsening the income gap, which is already alarmingly wide. Education is a basic human right and must thus be managed in a stable fashion, decoupled from ideological squabblings. Universities that have been shaped over many decades, and in some cases centuries, cannot be made to shift gears with every new administration.
(6) Why so many terrorists are engineers: In one data set of about 500 Islamist extremists, e.g., 45% of those with advanced degrees had studied engineering. Do engineering schools attract the kinds of students who are predisposed to acts of terror? Does something in these programs inflame extremist tendencies? Or is this a chance correlation with no deeper meaning? Social scientists Diego Gambetta and Steffen Hertog aim to answer these questions in this article and in a new book, Engineers of Jihad: The Curious Connection Between Violent Extremism and Education (Princeton University Press, 2016). The authors offer multiple possible explanations, not mutually exclusive, for engineers having a disproportionate representation among the jihadists. An intriguing one is engineers' taste for order and black-and-white explanations, a trait shared with many religious (not just Islamic) extremists.
(7) Microsoft has apologized: The computer company's Teen Girl AI program became a Nazi sympathizer and made a variety of racist comments within 24 hours of being introduced. She has now been "put to sleep."

2016/03/25 (Friday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cover image for Kelly Corrigan's 'The Middle Place' (1) Brief book review: Corrigan, Kelly, The Middle Place, unabridged audiobook on 6 CDs, read by Tavia Gilbert, Blackstone Audio, 2008.
In this memoir, Corrigan writes about her life and those of her family members, but reserves a special spot for her father, George Corrigan, whose can-do attitude becomes a shining light in her life. The author's admiration for her father puts her through a tough test, when both she and her father are diagnosed with cancer. The "middle place" of the book's title is "that sliver of time when parenthood and childhood overlap," that is, the early years of adulthood when one has child-rearing responsibilities, but being someone's son/daughter is still a big part of one's identity.
(2) Seven brief news headlines of the day:
- US airstrikes kill ISIS's second-in-command
- Suicide bomb attack kills 25 in Baghdad
- Six terror-related arrests made in Belgium
- Paris terror plot foiled
- Suspect arrested in yesterday's Goleta triple-murder
- Comedian Gary Shandling dead at 66
- Obama criticized for dancing ... [and for breathing!]
(3) Sanders leads the Time-100 poll: After two days of voting to determine the 100 most influential people in the world for 2016, Bernie Sanders leads other nominees, including both President Obama and Lady Gaga.
(4) Eric Clapton sings "Somewhere over the Rainbow" in his trademark blues style.
(5) Jimmy Kimmel tries to help Hillary Clinton with her campaign speech.
(6) My contribution to the social sciences: Unlike math, which advances by scientists proving new theorems, social sciences do not have theorems. Well, that's true no more! I have contributed the following theorem to the field: Every social media post, regardless of its source or subject, will garner at least one comment blaming President Obama or insulting Secretary Clinton.
(7) The Brussels tragedy and social media: "In the wake of tragedies such as the Brussels attacks, social media is now an important forum for public debate—who was to blame, what needs to change and how we stop it happening again—that anyone, anywhere can jump into. This is mostly a positive—bringing in a wider array of voices and views than ever before. But there are also downsides—the small minorities of committed, active digital voices that use social media to exploit our collective sense of grief by hurling out divisive, Islamophobic bilge. It is this that we need to guard against. An anti-Muslim backlash online, let alone one that spills onto the streets, really will play into the hands of ISIS and others who want to prise society apart." ~ Carl Miller, Research Director of the Centre for the Analysis of Social Media at Demos, writing in Newsweek on-line, about why we mourn more for Brussels than Ankara (posted on March 24, 2016)

2016/03/24 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon poking fun at the FBI unlocking every iPhone to find only cat photos (1) Cartoon of the day: FBI unlocks every iPhone.
(2) One-liners seen on billboards:
- My reality check bounced.
- Ban pre-shredded cheese; make America grate again.
- Went to air & space museum, but there was nothing there.
- What if there were no hypothetical questions?
(3) A triple-murder shocks a quiet neighborhood of Goleta, California, near the intersection of Calle Real and Turnpike Road. Not much info is available at this time and there are no suspects. The victims are believed to be a respected doctor, his wife, and their 5-year-old daughter.
(4) This soccer video gives a new meaning to the phrase "throwing like a girl"!
(5) Some women enable misogyny: Men should of course be persuaded to unlearn their patriarchal tendencies, but educating women to stop accepting the status quo is a bigger part of the equation. It is incredible that Donald Trump has a sizable group of women supporters. One wonders if the have heard Trump's soundbites, which are all over the place on the Internet. I will be looking into explanations provided by these women about why they support Trump, as well as the views of female partners of male Trump supporters.
(6) California is leading the fight against global warming, and prospering: Between 2003 and 2013, California decreased its greenhouse gas emissions by 5.5 percent while increasing its GDP by 17 percent.
(7) Iranians celebrate Norooz on the streets, with regional costumes, music, and dances.
(8) The discount version of Trader Joe's comes to SoCal: Aldi has opened the first of 45 planned Southern California stores in Moreno Valley.

2016/03/23 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Caligraphic rendering of a quote from Forough Farrokhzad (1) Persian calligraphy: Master Ahad Panahi's rendering of a quote from Forough Farrokhzad.
(2) Joke of the day: Male unicorn: "The paper says a huge storm's coming our way." Female unicorn: "I'm sure glad we didn't go on that cruise thing with your nut-job friend Noah."
(3) Quote of the day: "There's an epidemic in our country of girls and women feeling bad about themselves based on what 0.5% of the human race looks like." ~ Melissa McCarthy
(4) Food-poisoning alerts are good news: The increase in contamination reports isn't due to a more dangerous food supply but results from improved technology for detection and tracking. [From: Time magazine, issue of March 28, 2016]
(5) Give Hillary Clinton a break: This unpopular sentiment is expressed by Sady Doyle, writing in Slate. Secretary Clinton has been beaten up for years with criticism of her every statement or move. No other human being could carry on and act as she has done under a constant barrage of negativity and undeserved criticism.
(6) Jihadi cool and ISIS: Kurt Eichenwald points out that under other circumstances, many young suicide bombers would be characterized as losers. Far from being devout Muslims, they are more attracted to American rap music than Quranic verses; they just want the glow of jihadi cool. "All it takes is some guns, some homemade bombs and some desire for fame to transform a loser into a hero among his friends and allies. And then the world eagerly attributes the attack to ISIS, which takes a bow for an attack its leaders probably knew nothing about and earns more cred that it uses to attract even more devotees."
(7) Mohammad Reza Shajarian's second wife: Sticking one's nose into the private lives of other people, particularly celebrities, is a pastime practiced by both Americans and Iranians. Other nationalities seem to be less prone to this vice. Anyway, the latest story making the rounds in the Iranian-American community is faulting the Iranian music maestro (who is fighting for his life against cancer) for taking a second wife 40 years his junior, while remaining married to his first wife. To me, the double-marriage is more troubling than the age difference in the second one. But who am I to judge another person, with an entirely different set of experiences and life story? He is an icon of traditional Persian music. I personally like some, but not all, of his work. We should learn to build a wall (a tall one, a la Trump) between a person's societal contributions, be they in art, science, political leadership, etc., and his/her private life.
(8) President Obama talks with Misty Copeland: The POTUS and prima ballerina, both of whom were born into multiracial families and raised by single mothers, chatted with Maya Rhodan for a Time magazine feature (issue of March 28, 2016) about their status as role models that have risen to the top of their respective fields.
(9) Final thought for the day: "May you never forget what is worth remembering, nor ever remember what is best forgotten." ~ Irish blessing

2016/03/22 (Tuesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon captioned 'Elefonts' (1) Cartoon of the day: Elefonts.
(2) World's priciest cities: Here are the costs of a basket of grocery essentials in the world's priciest markets. $99.44, Seoul; $78.84, Singapore; $71.20, New York City; $59.82, Paris; $51.75, London.
(3) A brief timeline of game-playing programs: Machines continue their quest to become champions in games of thought and strategy.
1979, Backgammon: BKG 9.8 beat world champion Luigi Villa
1994, Checkers: Chinook forced Marion Tinsley to withdraw
1997, Chess: IBM's Deep Blue defeated world champ Gary Kasparov
2016, Go: Google's AlphaGo program defeated Lee Sedol
(4) Why poverty is sexist: An essay by Melinda Gates, published in Time magazine, issue of March 28, 2016.
(5) Terror attacks in Brussels, Belgium: There have been multiple terror attacks, including suicide bombings at the airport and at a downtown metro station. At least 30 are dead in the attacks, with hundreds injured. The Paris terrorist captured alive a couple of days ago will be interrogated for information on terror cells in Belgium. One theory is that the terrorists carried out these attacks in haste, given the risk of being discovered based on info provided by the arrested ISIS member. Belgium has a large population of radicalized Muslims and is thus vulnerable to additional terror attacks.
(6) What we can learn from this Brussels surveillance photo: The two men in dark jackets pushing large suitcases are suicide bombers, with their detonators hidden under a single glove worn on the left hand. The third man wearing a white jacket is thought to be a "guide" who goes with the suicide bombers to choose the attack location and to make sure the suicide bombers don't get cold feet. The man is currently at large and being sought by the police. ISIS is increasingly going for soft targets. They can kill just as many people as in a large plane via soft targets, such as metro/train stations and pre-security areas at large airports. Please be alert in crowded public places; be mindful of suspicious people carrying large suitcases and pay attention to their hands.
(7) MIT's self-driving cars won't need traffic lights: Self-driving cars can negotiate multiway intersections without stopping and with no need for traffic lights or stop signs.
(8) Another Putin foe ends up dead: Mikhail Lesin, a one-time Putin propaganda chief and founder of Russia Today news service, died from blunt force trauma to his head in a Washington DC hotel. Russian sources had previously attributed his death to a heart attack.

2016/03/21 (Monday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Super PAC spending and electoral success in 2016 (1) Big money has had no effect in the current US elections: Money spent by super PACs for and against various candidates (shown in $millions on the right) does not exhibit a positive correlation with the outcomes (leftmost column of numbers), according to Time magazine, issue of March 28, 2016.
(2) Exposing the Republicans' hypocrisy: Senator Al Franken speaks openly about the absurdity of the Republicans' refusal to hold hearings on President Obama's Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland by stating that "the people should decide" (meaning that the next President should fill the Court's vacancy) and then shamelessly indicating that if the Democrats win the presidential election, they would be willing to confirm the centrist candidate in preference to a more liberal one likely to be nominated by Clinton. Another aspect of the absurdity of the Republicans' position is the implication that Obama was not chosen by the people.
(3) Russia is rewriting its history ... again: It took only an allusion from Vladimir Putin to send the country's elite into tailspin in attempts to write a new version of their history, just in time for the centennial anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution in 2017. Rewriting history isn't a new thing for Russians. Iran seems to be following the Russian model in its leaders cursing and blaming the previous ones (with the exception of Khomeini, at least in public discourse) for the country's dire social and economic conditions and unfavorable international standing. Khamenei is already attacking President Rouhani in public speeches, calling some of his ideas planted by the US and other Western powers. With former Presidents, such attacks did not start until their second terms.
(4) An unlikely hero in the citizens' privacy debate: Apple Computer CEO Tim Cook has emerged as an unlikely hero in the privacy debate in the face of FBI's demand that his company cooperate in breaking the security code for a terrorist's iPhone. Many other tech CEOs have sided with him, but others, notably Bill Gates, have taken the FBI's side or have been tentative in their support.
(5) "Steve Jobs" is an intense, well-made film: Just finished watching Danny Boyle's 2015 biopic, with brutal and highly revealing dialogs that take place mostly in the minutes preceding new-product announcements. Kate Winslet, as Joanna Hoffman (Job's business adviser and confidant) is magnificent, as is Michael Fassbender as Jobs himself. Jeff Daniels as John Sculley and Seth Rogen as Steve Wozniak are also quite good. A verbal confrontation between Jobs and Wozniac is particularly memorable.

2016/03/19 (Saturday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Persian poem about Norooz and the arrival of spring (1) A Norooz message to everyone around the world:
Oleaster, vinegar, sumac, and seeds sprouting into green
Love, caress, pleasantness, joy, have all entered the scene
From flowery twigs, the nightingale sings bright and bold
Odes and songs are on people's lips, be they young or old
The spring wind spreads jasmine's fragrance everywhere
Leaves and buds are aplenty, they emerge here and there
Image of nature in spring, is like an angel's warm glory
Rainbow-toned in colors, splendored like a fabulous story
In this spring and New Year, may your holidays be bright
Clear spite away, embrace an affection that's out of sight
— Behrooz Parhami, Norooz/Spring 2016
[The New Iranian Year 1395 arrived tonight at 9:30:12 PM PDT (Sunday, March 20, at 8:00:12 AM Iran time). For many years now, I have composed a cheerful traditional Persian poem celebrating the arrival of spring and renewal of nature, as well as the Iranian New Year festival. The 2016 (1395) edition appears above, along with a rough English translation. Initial letters of the poem's first and second half-verses spell its Persian title, which translates to "Happy New Year."]
(2) Modern Persian music: A cheerful dance tune, with lyrics celebrating Norooz and the arrival of spring.
(3) President Obama's Norooz message for 2016 (1395 in Iranian calendar). And here is a particularly thoughtful Norooz message from 2010.
(4) Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Norooz message for 2016. [1-minute video]
(5) Reality outdoes the weirdest fictional mysteries: Diane Sawyer of ABC News interviews Kate del Castillo (Latina soap actress), who, together with actor Sean Penn, went to see the notorious drug lord El Chapo in the hopes of getting the film rights to his life story. This is a tale of greed and recklessness that may land the actor and actress in serious legal trouble.
(6) Traditional Persian music: Eight-year-old santoor player amazes.
(7) A group of Iranians from all walks of life express their hopes, or lack thereof, regarding the nuclear deal with the West.
(8) Khamenei's Norooz message: Iran's Supreme Leader barely mentions Norooz and new year celebrations, devoting all of his 9-minute message to the country's economic conditions and the need to stand up to Iran's "enemies" in economics and other matters.

2016/03/18 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Portrait of Grace Hopper in her military uniform (1) A pioneer of computing: In 1952, Grace Hopper and her team created the first compiler to translate code from one computer language to another. Later, she related: "Nobody believed that. They told me computers could only do arithmetic."
(2) Early 2030s is the earliest time frame for Mars landing by humans: "The moon program spanned 11 years, six Congresses and three Presidents. While there were fights over funding, there was bipartisan accord on the goals. That kind of comity will have to be repeated—and exceeded—if we're going to reach Mars." ~ From Time magazine, issue of March 21, 2016
(3) Rio de Janeiro's Cathedral: One of Rio's most visible attractions is the cone-shaped Metropolitan Cathedral, located at the heart of the city. Measuring 106 m in diameter and 96 m tall, the edifice resembles an ancient Mayan pyramid. [Pictorial]
(4) The other side of the story on STEM education: Andrew Hacker's new book, The Math Myth, argues that math isn't as important as it is made out to be. Geometry, calculus, and trigonometry are not only unnecessary for most careers, but so difficult that they can turn people off education entirely, Hacker argues. The number-one academic reason students don't finish high school or college, even in nontechnical fields, is struggling with math requirements. [From: Time magazine, issue of March 21, 2016]
(5) Paris terror-attack suspect captured alive: Most-wanted man Salah Abdesalam was captured in shoot-out close to his family home in Belgium.
(6) Skype now offers a free group-calling feature: The feature, previously available from Google+, has been added as a free Skype service. I got a notification from Skype this morning, but have not tried it out yet.
(7) All the Single Ladies: This is the title of a new book by Rebecca Traister, introduced in Time magazine, issue of March 21, 2016. Susan B. Anthony famously predicted that one day women would be liberated enough not to marry, ushering "an epoch of single women." Traister maintains that, with more unmarried American women than married ones, that era is now.
(8) Love in your 60s and 70s: "When you have that feeling, when you have a mad, passionate crush on someone, it's the same when you're 70 as when you're 13. You're awkward, and you're afraid you're doing the wrong thing, and you put yourself out there in ways you don't even think about. We stay who we are no matter how old we get," ~ Actress Sally Field, in a Time magazine interview, issue of March 21, 2016
(9) Final thought for the day: "I hope I remember enough of this world in the next one to appreciate the change," ~ Ashleigh Brilliant, PotShots

2016/03/17 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Jasmines in full bloom on my carport's trellis (1) The Jasmines on my carport's trellis are in full bloom, just in time for Norooz and the Persian New Year.
(2) Another pleasant late-winter day: I enjoyed a beautiful, sunny, and mild afternoon sitting outdoors, with coffee on hand and a farmers market nearby, listening to music by a one-man band. I love this musician and come to Camino Real Marketplace in Goleta on most Thursdays during our weekly farmers market just to listen to him. His name is David Tovar and his business card reads: "Music for All Occasions: Saxophone - Flute - Vocals"
Here are two of the songs he performed today: "Save the Last Dance for Me" and "Theme from Peter Gunn"
(3) Iranian satirist/poet Mohammad Reza Ali-Payam (aka Mr. Haloo) has been released from prison. [Video from his Facebook page]
(4) Pedaling improves motor functions in patients with Parkinson's and other neurological diseases.
(5) Cyberwar vs. physical war: In war, hospitals are usually viewed as off-limits. But apparently not in cyberwar. Panelists at a recent tech gathering described some of the worst online assaults on medical centers. "We're attacked about every 7 seconds, 24 hours a day," says John Halamka, chief information officer at a Boston-area hospital. And the strikes come from everywhere: "It's hacktivists, organized crime, cyberterrorists, MIT students."
(6) Our dysfunctional Congress: Not satisfied with unleashing Trump, the Republicans in the US Congress continue merrily on their self-destructive ways by refusing to hold hearings on President Obama's Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland. The notion of "consent" in the US Constitution means the right of Congress to turn down a president's nominee based on qualifications. The Republicans are acting as if there is a Constitutional provision for a conservative majority on the Supreme Court. The fact that there was such a majority for many years is purely an accident due to the Presidents who made the appointments. Had Gore won over Bush-2, the balance may have turned the other way. It is proper for the Supreme Court to shift in its composition according to who the people elect as President. Another element of chance is the lifespan of the Court's members. In the recent past, 8-year Presidents have nominated 2 and 4-year President Bush-1 nominated one member, which averages to one member per Presidential term. Obama has nominated 2 members already, which may be part of the unease for the Republicans. There are statistical variations in the number of appointments, and it could easily be the case that an 8-year President does not get to appoint anyone to the Court.

2016/03/16 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Image of pink blossoms representing the arrival of spring (1) I am officially in spring-break mode: After finishing the grading of final exam papers yesterday, I took a much-needed long walk on a beautiful winter day, the first of a string of 10 sunny or mostly-sunny days, predicted to take us well past the Norooz festivities. After returning home, I processed the grades, reported them to registrar's office, and updated the course's Web page to notify my students.
(2) AI program sweeps human Go champion in 3 matches: In the best-of-5 series pitting the world champion against Google's DeepMind AlphaGo program, the machine scored a 3-0 decisive victory.
(3) English translation of text seen on a billboard in Paris: "If it has been more than 24 hours since you last read a book or brushed your teeth, please keep your mouth shut."
(4) Quote of the day: "Most of the things that people like to hear, they know they're never going to happen. They just like to hear them." ~ Republican presidential hopeful John Kasich
(5) The false despair in the US economy: Both Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders paint a gloomy picture of the US economy. Fareed Zakaria fact-checks them and finds most of their claims misleading or totally false.
(6) A sky slide, made of glass and sitting ~1000 feet above city streets, is coming to Los Angeles in June.
(7) My day in Santa Barbara: After attending a seminar at UCSB and conducting a job interview with a faculty applicant, I headed to downtown Santa Barbara and walked on State Street for 2 miles each way, taking the shady side of the street (I normally follow the advice from the famous song and walk on the sunny side, but it was too hot today). I fully enjoyed the bustle, street musicians, and a perfect winter day (20 degrees above average) at the start of my spring break. One curiosity I encountered was a sign in front of "The James Joyce" pub in SB downtown's bar row that announced special events for "Geeks Who Drink." This is not for me, though, as I satisfy only the first part of the requirements.
(8) Today's final thought: "The greatest deception men suffer is from their own opinions." ~ Leonardo da Vinci

2016/03/15 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Haft-sin spread, set up at the entry foyer in my house (1) My haft-sin spread for Norooz: Inspired by the gorgeous spread at Farhang Foundation's Norooz event at LACMA on Sunday, last night I began my preparation for Norooz with this haft-sin spread.
(2) Iranian billionaire sentenced to death: Babak Zanjani, who made a fortune by helping the Iranian regime under President Ahmadinejad circumvent economic sanctions, was tried for embezzlement and is facing execution.
(3) America's first hijab-wearing Olympian: Fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad will be part of Team USA in Rio this summer.
(4) The top five healthiest states in the US are: VT, NH, MN, HI, UT. The bottom five are: LA, MS, KY, AR, OK. [From: AARP Bulletin, issue of March 2016]
(5) Quote of the day: "Fame is like tinted glass on a passing limo: it shields more than it reveals. Fame reflects our own images back at us—what we desire, what we fear, what we thrill to. You can study celebrities every day, watch every YouTube video, read every tweet and Facebook post, and still wonder: What are they really like? And your answer will always say as much about you as it does about them." ~ David Von Drehle, writing about Donald Trump's candidacy in Time magazine, issue of March 14, 2016
(6) The Trump enigma: I have been reading a lot of articles about Trump and his increasing popularity among Republican voters. The rest of this blog entry will be controversial, so let me preface it with the statement that I do not support Trump, will definitely not vote for him over either of the Democratic hopefuls, and am in fact repulsed by much of what he stands for and the rhetoric he uses to express his beliefs.
- Trump has the right to free speech: Yes, even hate speech, as long as he does not break any laws. If and when he violates an existing hate-speech law, he should be charged and prosecuted by the judiciary (not by a mob).
- A Trump voter is as entitled to his/her vote as I am to mine. The one-person-one-vote democratic principle is not contingent upon a person's IQ, education, understanding of one's own interests, or any other criterion not spelled out by the law.
- A Trump opponent, though s/he is free to use all forms of protest allowed by the law, is not entitled to attendance at, or disrupting, a gathering of Trump's supporters, no matter how much s/he dislikes the candidate or his supporters.
- Trump's opponents are entitled to support the person of their choosing or to do "opposition research," but they should not gang up with the express purpose of derailing him. It is elitist for either Democrats or Republicans to assume that they know better what is good for the voters.
- The damage done to the country by a "wrong" choice (we have had several of these in the past) will be less than that caused by tarnishing the democratic process. A bad President can do limited damage, given all the checks and balances.
- A person being vile and using foul language does not give us a license to reciprocate. One can expose a demagogue, while still maintaining civility. We should stop calling anyone who disagrees with us "stupid" or invoke stereotypes in revenge.

2016/03/14 (Monday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cover image of the program guide for Farhang Foundation's Norooz event at LACMA (1) Yesterday's Norooz celebration: I attended Farhang Foundation's Norooz event at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). The program included haft-sin displays, a children's music workshop led by Ziba Shirazi, a Persian calligraphy demo, a costume parade, cheerful music and dances from various regions of Iran [sample 1] [sample 2], and a couple of concerts, a ticketed one by Mamak Khadem and a free open-air one by Niyaz.
As I was walking in LACMA's central courtyard, I was approached by the crew of the Persian-language radio station KIRN for a brief interview. The question was whether social media have improved or hurt traditions such as celebrating Norooz and New Year. I answered that social media are mere tools that can be used for good (say, when they allow remote communication between family members in different countries or states, as they celebrate Norooz and the Persian New Year) or be abused (resorting to electronic communication where face-to-face contact is possible).
The program guide offered a number of tidbits about Norooz and its traditions, including this haft-sin description.
(2) Pi Day 2016: Today's date, 3/14/16 matches the digits of pi = 3.1416 to four fractional positions. The fourth fractional digit of pi is actually 5, but because it is followed by 9, we should round up.
(3) Traditional Persian music: Sepideh Raissadat performs "Ze Farvardin," a song about the arrival of spring and the Persian New Year, which will begin in a little over a week (at 9:30:18 PM, PDT, on Saturday 3/19).
(4) Bomb scare on Santa Barbara Amtrak train: The man making the bomb threat on Saturday was quickly identified and no bombs were found on the train itself or in the backpack he threw out of the train.
(5) Children's science museum to open in Santa Barbara by year's end: Located in the heart of downtown, at 125 State Street, the 17,000-square-foot MOXI (Museum of Exploration and Innovation) will facilitate learning by interaction and creativity. A sneak peek event, featuring parts of the facility, was held on Saturdy.
(6) Cloud seeding in Santa Barbara: Rainfall totals around Santa Barbara's water reservoirs were enhanced by using flares thrown from airplanes. Saturday's cloud conditions were described as ideal for such an activity.
(7) How the tech revolution is starting another Civil War: "A technological revolution [railroad] killed the Whig Party in 1850. A new one is blasting the GOP into splinters in 2016. Amazingly, none of the presidential candidates talk much about technology, yet our software-eats-the-world whirlwind drives everything that's cleaving the country and throwing its politics into chaos. The parallels to the dynamics of the 1850s are a little scary. After all, the Whigs' self-destruction was a prelude to the Civil War."

2016/03/11 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing how to generate movie plots (1) Cartoon of the day: Movie-plot generator; 2401 different plots!
(2) California pistachio products recalled over Salmonella risk: For a complete list of products, see this FDA page. The list includes many varieties of the "Wonderful" brand as well as a Trader Joe's variety.
(3) Presidents who shaped the US Supreme Court: The 9-member high court's composition, before Justice Scalia's recent death, was as follows. [From Time magazine, issue of March 7, 2016.]
- Reagan appointed Scalia (79) in 1986 & Kennedy (79) in 1988.
- Bush Sr. appointed Thomas (67) in 1991.
- Clinton appointed Ginsburg (82) in 1993 & Breyer (77) in 1994.
- Bush Jr. appointed Roberts (61) in 2005 & Alito (65) in 2006.
- Obama appointed Sotamayor (61) in 2009 & Kagan (55) in 2010.
(4) Science is about to solve the mystery of why humans cry: Does crying have any benefits beyond the physiological function of lubricating the eyes? Scientists have found that emotional tears are chemically different from the ones we shed while chopping onions. Tears show that we are vulnerable, and vulnerability is critical to human connection. Then, is it the case that people who never cry are less socially connected? These and other questions are discussed in a Time magazine article, issue of March 7, 2016. [Subscribers-only content]
(5) Driverless cars will become not just legal but mandatory: This is the conclusion of a Time magazine article, issue of March 7, 2016, that predicts the near-total elimination of fatal car accidents, currently killing 32,675 Americans annually and constituting the leading cause of death in the 15-24 age group.
(6) The Obama girls at their first state dinner (honoring the Prime Minister of Canada). [Image]
(7) Potential game changer in breast-cancer treatment: A drug combination, found by accident, can shrink cancerous tumors in a matter of weeks. The astonishing results of combining Herceptin with another drug were reported at the 10th European Breast Cancer Conference in Amsterdam.
(8) Final thought for the day: 'A smile is happiness you'll find right under your nose." ~ Tom Wilson

2016/03/10 (Thursday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Title slide for my keynote talk at CSICC-2016 (1) Keynote talk for a conference in Tehran: Just after midnight early yesterday, March 9, 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM Iran time, I delivered a keynote talk (via Skype) entitled "Seven Key Ideas in Computer Architecture, from Seven Decades of Innovation" at the Computer Society of Iran Computer Conference. I have made my slides for the talk (50 slides for the talk itself and 20 more containing supplementary material that were not used during the talk), publicly available because of their educational value. Here is a direct link to the PDF file of the slides.
(2) This is a pet peeve of mine too: "I hate it when I just miss a call by the last ring, but when I immediately call back, it rings 9 times and goes to voicemail. What did you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?"
(3) Google's computer Go player faces the human champ: In a best-of-5 sreies being played in South Korea from March 8 to March 15, 2016, Google's AI program DeepMind AlphaGo is leading 18-time world champion Lee Se-Dol 2-0. Go had been known to be significantly more difficult to master than chess, as its game tree has a higher branching factor. If Google's AI program prevails in this match (which appears likely), the result will represent a surprising development that has come much earlier than thought possible. On this 6-hour video, you can watch the post-match press conference after game 2 beginning at the 5:38:45 mark.
(4) Quote of the day: "We shouldn't be afraid of the word 'feminist.' Men and women should use it to describe themselves anytime they want." ~ Canadian PM Justin Trudeau
(5) Research on military drones: According to Washington Post, the Pentagon has been developing 3D-printed micro-drones, which, after being launched from fighter jets or from the ground, come together to form swarms. In a separate development, Las Vegas Review Journal reports that Area 6 near Las Vegas is being used by the US government for drone development and testing.
(6) Woodpecker's systematic storage system for acorns. [Image]
(7) Final thought for the day: "The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another." ~ William James

2016/03/08 (Tuesday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Celebrating March 8, International Women's Day (1) March 8 is International Women's Day: Celebrating its 105th year, women of the world are excited that members of this important half of humanity have achieved so much, despite narrow-minded, and at times brutal, opposition to their full engagement. The struggle must continue, even if it takes another century to remove all the remnants of abuse, prejudice, and sexism. The heart-shaped quote in the accompanying image is from Helen Keller [1880-1968].
(2) Six brief news headlines of the day:
- Hamas has resumed its tunneling into Israel
- Palestinian stabs 10, killing an American in Tel Aviv
- ISIS likely has Qaddafi's shoulder-held missiles
- Iran test-fires multiple ballistic missiles
- Nine passengers injured in train derailment near SF
- Maria Sharapova admits to using banned drugs
(3) Vertical village stretches into the sky: The futuristic compound, envisaged by Indian agroecologist Amlankusum and Paris-based Vincent Callebaut Architectures for a location near New Delhi, consists of six 36-story towers connected by common green spaces, walkways, and shared eco-conscious utilities. [Pictorial]
(4) Modern Persian music: Kimia Ghorbani (Tarifa Band) sings "Maraa Roodi Bedaan" ("Consider Me a River").
(5) Rhythmic Persian dance music: Davood Behboodi performs "Assal" ("Honey")

2016/03/07 (Monday): Here are five items of potential interest.
The mysterious Por-Bazhyn Fortress (1) The Por-Bazhyn Fortress: "In a small island in the center of a remote Lake Tere-Khol, high in the mountains of southern Siberia, close to the Mongolian border, lies the ruins of Por-Bazhyn (also spelled Por Bajin), a structure that at first glance appears like a fortress. Por-Bazhyn, which means "clay house" in the Tuvan language, has been known since the 18th century, but it wasn't explored until the late 19th century. Since then the complex has been fascinating and frustrating experts in equal measure, because they are unable to tell who built it and why."
(2) Modern Persian music: Ahmadreza Nabizadeh performs "Saa'at-e Panj" ("Five O'Clock").
(3) Nancy Reagan dead at 94: Major networks stopped their regular programs on Sunday 3/6 to run special reports on the former First Lady, who was described as a close confidant of, and major influence on, her husband during his governorship and presidency.
(4) New York Times opinion piece by Shirin Ebadi: In this March 1, 2016, article, Ebadi describes how she was betrayed by both her husband and country of birth in August 2009. Her husband had been sentenced to death by stoning, after he was caught cheating and videotaped by security agents during the act. Ebadi describes her husband's extramarital fling as a trick set-up, but I am not sure I buy this explanation. Ebadi's husband was told that his only way out was to read on state TV a prepared "confessional" text that said his wife did not deserve to win the Nobel Peace Prize and that the honor was bestowed upon her as part of a conspiracy to topple the regime in Iran. He also had to marry the other women, with the temporary marriage certificate back-dated by 5 years. He obliged, but apparently asked for Ebadi's forgiveness, so that they could continue as a married couple. They eventually divorced. This appears to be the first time that Ebadi has revealed this part of her life story publicly.
(5) A documentary film that is doing some good: Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif says he is moved by the Oscar-winning short documentary "A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness," portraying the ordeals of a Pakistani girl who after being shot in the head, was placed in a sack and thrown into a river by her father and uncle. This case is unusual because the girl survived. Most honor killings go unreported and the killers are either not punished or receive a slap on the wrist. The PM says he will work to change the laws regarding honor killings.

2016/03/05 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Chart rating areas in California according to their entrepreneurialquality (1) Entrepreneurial index in various areas of California:
Not surprisingly, most areas of California that score high on the entrepreneurial quality are in Silicon Valley. One surprise is Goleta, my home town (shown near the bottom of the chart), which leads almost all areas outside of Silicon Valley. The chart comes from an article in Science, Vol. 347, No. 6222, pp. 606-609, Feb. 2015.
(2) Hubble space telescope captures furthest galaxy ever: At a distance of 13.4B light years, what is seen is a very young galaxy, as it existed a mere 400M years after the Big Bang. [Photo and video]
(3) Fashion inspired by ancient Iranian designs: I came across the Web site of Roushani Design that offers women's and men's clothing items based on Persepolis images and Isfahan tile designs. A Web search revealed that there are other fashion designers [sample 1; sample 2] who have experimented with such designs.
(4) Abbas Vaez-Tabasi dead at 80: The cleric, who was in charge of Imam Reza's shrine in Mashhad and controlled a multibillion-dollar empire of affiliated businesses, died on March 4, 2016. He was an appointed representative of Iran's Supreme Leader and his holdings were not subject to taxes or the normal governmental oversight. He had famously said in a sermon that the sick should seek healing from Imam Reza, instead of going to hospitals. He spent the last week of his life in a coma, connected to various hospital assistive and monitoring devices, instead of at Imam Reza's shrine, per his own suggestion.
(5) Rostam in the 22nd Century: This is the title of a Persian novel by Abdolhosain Sanatizadeh, first published in 1934, last reprinted some five decades ago, and about to be reissued in 2016 with newly created illustrations. The book is thought to be the first ever Persian sci-fi work. I look forward to reading this interesting book.
(6) Primaries on Saturday 3/5: According to the New York Times, Donald Trump won primary elections in Kentucky and Louisiana, while Ted Cruz emerged on top in Kansas and Maine, allowing him to close the gap in total number of delegates against Trump. Marco Rubio and John Kasich remain at distant third and fourth positions among Republican candidates (Ben Carson left the race). On the Democratic side, Bernie Sanders won Kansas and Nebraska, while Hillary Clinton prevailed in Louisiana, which afforded her a slight widening of the gap in total number of delegates against Sanders.

Photo of Shafi Goldwasser delivering the keynote lecture at UCSB's Computer Science Summit 2016/03/04 (Friday): UCSB's Computer Science Summit: This all-day technical event began with project and research presentations. I attended the senior capstone project sessions and an associated poster session during lunch break in order to assess a couple of the projects and teams with respect to ABET (accreditation) requirements in connection with our Computer Engineering Program. The afternoon program included more project and research presentations, a couple of student-focused career panels, and a keynote lecture [photo], described in the rest of this post.
In the keynote talk, 2012 Turing Award winner Shafi Goldwasser (CSEE Professor at MIT; also affiliated with Israel's Weizmann Institute) spoke about "The Cryptographic Lens: Past, Present, and Future."
Cryptographic methods trace their roots to the pioneering work of Claude Shannon, whose early contribution "A Communication Theory of Secrecy Systems" was published in 1949, and Alan Turing, who worked on breaking the Enigma cypher used by Germany during World War II.
Over the past three decades, cryptography has supplied fundamental means for private and authenticated communication. Generalizing slightly, we can view cryptography as the general study of correctness and privacy of computation in the face of a powerful adversary, which nevertheless has bounded computational resources. As more and more of our data and computations move into the "Cloud," we have reasons to be concerned with the safeguarding of our personal information and with the accuracy of the results we receive from unseen and anonymous computing resources in the new data-globalization regime.
Aided by what the speaker called "looking through a cryptographic lens," beautiful mathematical results have recently emerged in the theory of computing. The most exciting of these results have to do with the ability of computing agents to operate on encrypted data, so that we can obtain our desired computational results without revealing our data to the cloud. Current encryption schemes present an all-or-nothing paradigm, which means that the data is either completely hidden or it is fully revealed (e.g., by supplying the encryption key to the agent which needs to operate on your data). Imagine, if you will, a multi-layer encryption scheme where a master key is needed to reveal the raw data but that multiple specialized keys exist that reveal the data partially for the purpose of specific computations.
Consider, for example, that you need a certain genetic testing to be performed. At present, you have to supply your full genetic information to the company that runs the test. Wouldn't it be nice if you could provide your genetic info in encrypted form, along with a specialized key that does allow the company to run the needed tests but that would not be enough to reveal the underlying data? It is difficult to imagine how such a scheme would be possible, but the theoretical foundations for implementing this exact scheme are already in place and it's only a matter of time before the practical details are worked out.
One last piece of the puzzle is how you would trust the results you receive (e.g., for genetic testing in the example above). Here you need a kind of "proof" of correctness for the results you receive. Such proofs are often very tedious and checking them may be beyond the computational power of most devices (smartphones and tablets) that we use for the bulk of our communication needs. Again, the theoretical framework is in place to be able to communicate verification information in simple, abbreviated form so that a very complicated proof can be verified by computationally simple algorithms.
These are exciting developments and I look forward to following up on them over the next few years.
[By the way, Shafi Goldwasser is the third woman to win the Turing Award, often referred to as the Nobel Prize of Computing. Here is the ACM Turing Award page on Goldwasser.]

2016/03/03 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Photo of Rubik's cube (1) Seven fun facts about Rubik's cube.
- It is the best-selling toy of all time: 350 million units sold
- Cost of the most expensive cube built (using precious stones): $2.1M
- Erno Rubik's time to solve his cube the first time: 1 month
- World speed record for solving it: 5.25 seconds
- Speed record for solving it blindfolded: Just over 20 seconds
- British politician Ed Miliband can solve it in 90 seconds
- Canadian pop singer Justin Bieber can solve it in 83 seconds
(2) A long-running study of human cognition: Retired Scotish miner John Scott, 79, enjoys holding a model of his own brain, built based on 3D scans. He is one of more than 1000 former students who in 1947 (at age 11) began participating in one of the longest-running studies of human cognition, the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936. Participants' thinking skills and health were regularly tested during the past decade to collect information about the effects of aging on mind and body. [Adapted from ASEE Prism magazine, issue of February 2016]
(3) Mitt Romney trashes Donald Trump in a speech: I am no fan of either person, but this is a very important development in the US election process. While endorsements are common during elections, this is the first time I have seen a scathing anti-endorsement. [20-minute video]
(4) Math puzzle: Three runners of widely varying abilities set out around a 400-meter track. Their lap times are 78, 104, and 156 seconds, which remain the same throughout the race. When the first runner wins upon reaching the finish line, he notices that for the first time, both of the other two runners are exactly abreast of him. How many laps was the race, and what was the winning time? [From: E&T magazine, issue of March 2016]
(5) Scooter for those on wheelchair: A creative design that improves mobility.
(6) Fox news anchor is shocked when the answer to her question about the evils of socialism doesn't go the way she expected!
(7) Cybercriminals are learning English: A common suggestion on spotting phishing and other malicious e-mail solicitations is to pay attention to spelling and grammatical errors that have been the hallmarks of such attempts. Newsweek on-line reports that cybercriminals now come with improved English-language skills, making it more difficult to spot them.
(8) For my SoCal friends: On Saturday 3/5 at 8:00 PM, PBS SoCal will broadcast a program by the Russian-born comedian Yakov Smirnov, which is entitled "Happily Everlaughter: The Neuroscience of Romantic Relationships." Based on teasers that I have seen, it should be an enjoyable stand-up comedy program.

2016/03/02 (Wednesday): Here are four items of potential interest.
A rendering of the SR 520 bridge over Lake Washington in Seattle (1) The world's longest floating bridge: The bridge, which forms a section of Highway 520 crossing Lake Washington in Seattle, is set to open in April 2016. The $4.56B span stretches 7710 feet (2.35 km) and is 116 feet (35 m) wide.
(2) Campus concert at noon: UCSB's Gospel Choir performed at the Music Bowl today. I heard a quotation recently (I don't remember by who) that gospel and blues are really the same thing, except that one is about a guy and the other one usually about a girl! Here is the Choir's rendition of the contemporary song "Do Not Pass Me By" during today's concert.
(3) Engineering under the next Democratic POTUS: The March 2016 issue of E&T magazine contains a short piece about how Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders differ in their support for engineering. When the shouting match between the Republican candidates and their quarrels about anatomical features of their rivals ends and they begin discussing policy, I will make a similar post about how engineering would fare under a Republican US President. Here are three important areas for comparison.
- Education: Both candidates support expanding STEM programs and promise debt-free college education, the difference being that Clinton envisages a 10-hours-per-week work program to partially offset the tuition cost, with parents' contribution capped at "affordable" levels based on income, while Sanders would abolish public-college tuition outright.
- Energy: Clinton offers a $60B "Clean Energy Challenge" to support local and state governments in their renewable-energy initiatives. Sanders casts a wider net, arguing that while R&D is certainly important, cutting domestic energy use is the "low-hanging fruit" that must be harvested first.
- Cybersecurity: Both candidates have serious proposals, but neither one emphasizes this area yet, because it is not seen as a differentiating issue within the party.
(4) On the just-completed parliamentary elections in Iran: While many "reformists" have been elected despite the disqualification of many others by the Guardian Council, those elected have mixed records and it remains to be seen whether they are fundamentally different from their hardliner cohorts. The number of women elected also shows an increase over the existing mix. However, shortly after his reelection, hardliner Nader Ghazipour broke all taboos and insulted the newly elected women representatives by saying: "The parliament isn't a place for dumb asses or for women; it's a place for men. When you send your women to the parliament, they may be violated, making you lose your honor." He then continued with words that are too abhorrent for me to translate. Unfortunately, this way of thinking about women is all too common, even among those officials who bite their tongues and do not overtly express their misogynistic beliefs.

2016/03/01 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Photos of Whitfield Diffie and Martin Hellman (1) Cryptography pioneers receive the 2015 Turing Award: The ACM A. M. Turing Award is known informally as the Nobel Prize of computing. It is given once a year to an individual researcher or a collaborating team for fundamental contributions to computer science.
The 2015 Turing Award has gone to Whitfield Diffie and Martin Hellman, whose 1976 paper "New Directions in Cryptography" introduced the ideas of public-key cryptography and digital signatures, which are the foundations for most regularly-used security protocols on the Internet today.
The Diffie-Hellman Protocol protects daily Internet communications and trillions of dollars in financial transactions. The award selection was not influenced by the recent high-profile dispute between the FBI and Apple Computer, but the focus on encryption as a tool for privacy is certainly very timely.
(2) Astronaut Scott Kelly returns home after a year in space.
(3) Beautiful accordion playing: Super impressive performance by Aleksander Hrustevich playing Vivaldi!
(4) Here are a couple of quotes about technology and keeping up with changes.
"Trying to retreat from technology to preserve old jobs didn't work back in the Luddite era, and it's not going to work today." ~ John Hennessy, President of Stanford University, in an interview published in Communications of the ACM, issue of March 2016
"The only way to keep up with the change in the world is to run faster. You can't run slower and try to retard the progress." ~ Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist and New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman
(5) How to kill a supercomputer: Multipetaflops-level supercomputers (soon to advance to the exaflops, or 2^18 floating-point operations per second, level) are extremely powerful in computational terms, but they are vulnerable to failuers in their many millions of parts and links that connect them. A notable example was seen in IBM's ASCI Q at Los Alamos National Laboratory, which upon its installation in 2002 couldn't run more than an hour or so without crashing. The problem was traced to an unprotected address bus on the DEC Alpha microprocessor it used. When these processor chips were struck by cosmic radiation, the constant shower of particles that bombard Earth's atmosphere from outer space, data became corrupted on the unprotected bus. To prove to the manufacturer that cosmic rays were the problem, the Los Alamos staff placed one of the servers in a beam of neutrons, causing errors to spike. By putting metal side panels on the ASCI Q servers, the scientists reduced radiation levels enough to keep the supercomputer running for 6 hours before crashing. That was an improvement, but still far short of what was desired for running computationally intensive simulations. Ways of dealing with the effects of cosmic radiation on the operation of electronic circuits has become an active area of research since then. [Adapted from: IEEE Spectrum magazine on-line]
(6) Final thought for the day: "There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness." ~ Friedrich Nietzsche

2016/02/28 (Sunday): Here are three items of potential interest.
Image of Oscar statues (1) My 2016 Oscars notes: Other than winners in the main categories listed below, I was pleased to learn that "A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness" won as the best documentary short. The film is about attempted "honor" killing of Saba Qaiser, a Pakistani girl who was shot in the head by her father, after a severe beating by him and the girl's uncle.
Saba survived and ended up forgiving her father. The film's title refers to the fact that after Saba was shot, her body was placed in a sack and thrown into a river. Comedian Louis CK, who presented the award, said half-jokingly: "This is the one Academy Award that has an opportunity to change a life—These people will never be as rich as long as they live. This Oscar is going home in a Honda Civic."
- Motion picture: "Spotlight"
- Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, "The Revenant"
- Original screenplay: Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy, "Spotlight"
- Adapted screenplay: Charles Randolph and Adam McKay, "The Big Short"
- Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Revenant"
- Actress: Brie Larson, "Room"
- Supporting actor: Mark Rylance, "Bridge of Spies"
- Supporting actress: Alicia Vikander, "The Danish Girl"
(2) Quote of the day: "A few years ago, I voted for Khatami to throw out Rafsanjani. Today, I voted for Rafsanjani to get rid of Jannati. I don't know who I will support four years from now to get rid of whom. I am just voting to get rid of this or that person." ~ A middle-aged Azeri man, on the 2/26 elections in Iran
(3) Persian lecture on Iran at UCLA this afternoon: Dr. Nader Saiedi (Dept. Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, UCLA) spoke on "The Development of Iranian Images of Babism: Babi Religion in Nasekh al-Tavarikh," as part of UCLA's Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran. According to the speaker, the portrayal of Babism (a precursor of Bahai'ism) in Nasekh al-Tavarikh, a book of history, was skewed by a number of factors, including the fact that history texts in those days were written mostly to praise and please the ruling monarch.
For example, Bab was portrayed as an uneducated simpleton who knew little about Arabic, the prevailing language of the day for discourses about faith and philosophy. It also accused Bab as promoting communal living, including sharing of property and women. The misogynistic tone of the attacks on Babism, including a smear campaign against Tahereh Ghoratolein, a master classical poetess of the period, is a reflection of the patriarchal society and the teachings of the clergy who refused to adapt to the requirements of a modern world.
Bab, who considered himself God's prophet, criticized Islamic clergy for their backward ways and refusal to adapt. The clergy in turn accused Bab of deception and demanded that he demonstrate miracles to prove his claim. Later, Bahaullah sang the praises of democracy and of separation of religion and state, opinions that went against those of the clergy.
As a modernist reinterpretation of Islam, Babism was looked upon with suspicion and disdain by both the clergy and Qajar kings. Its creation was variously viewed as an attempt by Western Imperialist powers or Russia to discredit Islam or to promote laxer social morals in Islamic socieities. For a while, the clergy also accused Babists of trying to overthrow the Qajar dynasty, a point that was later downplayed when the clerics themselves got involved in the Costitutional Revolution.
In short, the speaker's message was that Babism and Bahai'ism are victims of lies that were weaved in Nasekh al-Tavarikh and which were later reiterated by others, without much thought or new research. After the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran, intellectuals developed a negative view of the clergy, causing them to revise their views of Bahai'ism as well.
Despite the interesting topic, the presentation was rather disorganized and the speaker seemed rushed in trying to squeeze in more material than could conveniently fit in a one-hour lecture. Answers to questions (really commentaries, as no one asked an actual question) were also long-winded.

2016/02/26 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
A verse of Hafez in calligraphic rendering by Ali Farahani (1) Calligraphic rendering of a Persian verse by Hafez with a ball-point pen, instead of calligraphy pen. Impressive artwork by Ali Farahani! [Full poem]
(2) Printable 2016 Oscars ballot: If you want to test your knowledge of the movie industry and how the Oscars work, print out this Vanity Fair chart and mark it up before tomorrow's ceremonies (ABC TV, Sunday 2/28, 6:00 PM PST).
(3) Insightful comments about why various groups of Iranians voted in the country's 2/26 elections.
(4) Creative entertainment at a restaurant table, while waiting for desserts.
(5) The engineer who tried to stop Space Shuttle Challenger's launch 30 years ago: NASA management didn't listen to Bob Ebeling's warnings about the O-rings failing to do their sealing job under unusually cold temperatures. Seven astronauts perished as a result. This NPR story has generated a sea of support for the 89-year-old engineer, who has been living with guilt for 3 decades.
(6) How to pick a President: This article from Psychology Today points out that what we want in a leader (influenced by our gut instinct coming from the limbic lobe, our old brain that hasn't changed in millions of years) is quite different from what we need (based on analysis and rational judgment produced by the big new cortex that favors deliberation and thoughtfulness over raw energy and chest-thumping).
(7) Dr. Suzanne Barakat, who lost three family members to violence, speaks up against hate-mongering by presidential candidates and others.
(8) Why we say "eleven" and "twelve," instead of "oneteen" and "twoteen": The words for 11 and 12 come from Old English forms "endleofan" and "twelf," which can be traced back to a time when they were formed as "ain+lif" and "twa+lif." So, what is "lif"? The current best guess is that the "lif" suffix is from a root for "to leave." So, the meanings are "one left (after 10)" and "two left (after 10)." Why doesn't this pattern continue past 12? The theory here is that early humans did not have much use for numbers larger than 12, so these forms developed when modern number systems appeared. Similarly, old irregular forms "twenty" and "thirty" have persisted because they were used more extensively than "two hundred" and "three hundred," say.

2016/02/25 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
PowerPoint slide used by the Faculty Senate at University of Houston (1) Guns and academic freedom: A suggestion by the Academic Senate at University of Houston that professors drop controversial topics from their curricula in order to "pacify armed students," given that the campus-carry law in Texas will soon allow students to be armed, has created alarm in the academic community.
(2) Our brain is wired for music: Bobby McFerrin's demo.
(3) Pink's wonderful rendition of "Me and Bobby McGee" (a trademark song of Janis Joplin, written by Kris Kristofferson).
(4) The silver lining: Regardless of its outcome, the FBI-Apple dispute over data privacy will likely have a positive effect on the development of more secure consumer electronic devices.
(5) Hired hackers easily accessed networks at Baltimore-area hospitals in a cybersecurity test.
(6) Executions reach crisis level in Iran: President Rouhani's deputy for women's affairs has divulged that in the province of Sistan & Baluchestan, the entire adult male population of a particular village has been wiped out by executions. Most of these executions are associated with drug smuggling offenses, but there is no way of knowing for sure. The Sistan & Baluchestan province has a sizable population of Sunni Muslims, and conflict between Shi'i and Sunni extremists in the region is quite intense. Given that Islamic Revolutionary Courts are run exclusively by Shi'i clerics, it is conceivable that at least some of the executions are religiously motivated.
(7) Iran to reimburse Palestinian "martyrs" and those whose homes are demolished by Israel in retaliation for acts of terror: Iran's ambassador to Lebanon unveiled a plan for paying $7000 to families of those killed during Intifada in Jerusalem and $30,000 to those who lose their homes.
(8) Recording disciplinary actions on college transcripts: A debate is raging in the higher-education community about whether a student's transcripts should reflect major disciplinary actions. There are valid arguments on both sides. I am on the side of a "yes" answer to the question, because I don't see why information about sexual assault, physical violence, theft, or drug abuse should enjoy more privacy protection than information about lack of academic aptitude or dedication which is reflected in poor and failing grades. Why should a student who does not devote time to his/her studies be viewed less favorably by a prospective employer than a classmate who was disciplined for criminal activities or even for certain academic offenses such as cheating or plagiarism?

2016/02/24 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Beautiful calligraphic rendering of a Persian verse by Hatef Esfahani (1) A verse by Hatef Esfahani, rendered in Persian calligraphy by Master Ahad Panahi.
(2) Facebook has added new icons, besides "like," for reacting to posts. The new icons are "love," "haha," "yay," "wow," "sad," and "angry." [The "yay" icon does not appear for me yet.]
(3) Spectacular curve-shot soccer goals.
(4) My English translation of a friend's Facebook status in Persian: "One day, women will let their hair caress the borders in lieu of barbed wires. The world has no choice but to become (more) feminine; no choice but to become (more) motherly." ~ Nasrin Mottahedeh
(5) UCSB Gamelan Ensemble: Today's noon concert at the Music Bowl featured Indonesian Gamelan music, played with what appear to be kitchen pots and pans. Here is a short sample of Gamelan music from today's program. The 1980s founder of this ensemble, which was described as the only one of its kind on a US college campus, was a guest performer.
(6) Iran to reimburse Palestinian "martyrs" and those whose homes are demolished by Israel in retaliation for acts of terror: Iran's ambassador to Lebanon unveiled the plan for paying $7000 to families of those killed during Intifada in Jerusalem and $30,000 to those who lose their homes.
(7) From the lab notebook of an anonymous RCA engineer (June 1, 1951): "In retrospect, testing ultrahigh-frequency antenna designs by hand with thunderclouds overhead may not have been the best idea ... The antennas we're working on will be able to receive a staggering 70 television channels—people will no longer be limited to just 12 VHF channels. We're confident that 82 channels is more than any rational human could ever possibly need." [Reproduced from: IEEE Spectrum magazine, issue of February 2016, p. 60.]
(8) Final thought for the day: "Prejudice, a dirty word, and faith, a clean one, have something in common: they both begin where reason ends." ~ Harper Lee

2016/02/23 (Tuesday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Cover image of the book 'Social: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Connect,' by Matthew D. Lieberman (1) Book review: Lieberman, Matthew D., Social: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Connect, Crown, 2013.
In this book, psychologist Matthew Lieberman explores the thesis that the need of human beings to connect with other people is even more fundamental than our need for food or shelter. This is why a good chunk of our brain's time, both during idle periods and when fully engaged, is spent on understanding the people who surround us and how we relate to them. Lieberman maintains that by the time we are 10, we have spent some 10,000 hours learning to make sense of people, human interactions, and social norms.
Research studies by Lieberman at his UCLA lab, as well as work by other scientists, suggest that the effects of social pain and pleasure on our behavior are comparable with those of physical pain and pleasure. Neuro-imaging has been used to confirm that emotional discomfort, resulting from a feeling of rejection, say, triggers the same brain circuits that are activated when we experience physical pain.
Because of the importance of social interactions, humans have developed a canny ability to read other people's minds and to assess their motivations, hopes, and fears. The brain's wiring to accommodate social norms and to dampen our selfish urges leads, at times, to behavior that might seem irrational. But such behavior is part of who we are as beings deeply affected by those around us. This explains why attempts at formulating human behavior in terms of game theoretic assessment of economic gains and losses fail to explain the entire range of observations and outcomes.
One corollary of the results presented in this book is that our attempts at improving productivity of students and workers by minimizing social distractions may be misguided. In fact, we learn more and achieve greater productivity when we allow our social brain loose to interact with those around us. This is why schools that facilitate and encourage collaborative work achieve better educational outcomes.
(2) Winners Aren't Losers: This is the title of a Dr.-Seuss-style children's book written by Jimmy Kimmel under Donald Trump's name. Kimmel reads the book to Trump during his late-night show. [The book segment begins at the 3:00 mark of this 5-minute video.]
(3) An enigmatic candidate: Donald Trump, dismissed by establishment Republicans earlier, is beginning to scare them, because his support seems to be growing as other candidates drop out!
(4) Six brief news headlines of the day:
- State of emergency in the US South for Tornadoes
- Obama tries again to close the Guantanamo Bay prison
- Italian designer Roberto Cavali opens Tehran boutique
- Iranians protest, demanding laws against animal abuse
- Donald Trump wins big in Nevada caucuses
- Arizona man, who killed parents and sisters, shot dead
(5) Signing off with this mix of Irish and Arabic dancing.

2016/02/22 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Excutions by Saudi Arabia, Islamic State, and Islamic Republic of Iran (1) Dictatorial regimes and treason charges: Saudi Arabia has just put 32 Shi'i men on trial on charges of spying for Iran. Some or all of these men may indeed be spies, but, more likely, charges of treason are being used to get rid of regime opponents and other "undesirable" citizens.
Iran often executes Baha'is on charges of spying for Israel. The Iranian regime also labels its political opponents as spies for various Western countries or Israel, when their actual "crimes" fall short of what is needed for severe penalties, such as lengthy prison terms or execution.
From the regime's viewpoint (Islamic Republic or Saudi Kingdom), treason charges provide the added benefit of conducting secret trials, on the premise that sensitive national security details would be disclosed otherwise.
(2) A highly informative video about gun deaths: Via homicides, suicides, and mass shootings.
(3) We humans are wired for conformity: An interesting experiment showing that we conform to social conventions, often without knowing why.
(4) History being repeated in Turkey: Is Turkey killing and disrobing the corpses of Kurdish women as it did to Armenian women decades ago? On the flip side, it is unfortunate that some Kurdish groups are damaging the positive image the world has of the Kurds by engaging in acts of terrorism.
(5) Persian love poetry: A wonderful ghazal from Eraghi, beginning with the verse
"Khoshaa dardi keh darmaanash to baashi   |   Khoshaa raahi keh paayaanash to baashi"
(6) Final thought for the day: "We all eat lies when our hearts are hungry." ~ Anonymous

2016/02/21 (Sunday): Here are three items of potential interest.
Aeril view of the Romero Canyon Trail and surrounding fire access roads (1) Romero Canyon Trail hike: Yesterday, I hiked this beautiful trail for 4 hours (2 miles going up; 4 miles coming down) with a few family members. The trailhead is in Montecito, at the end of the Romero Canyon Road. Starting at the red dot, we took the very steep green trail up, until it met the light blue road (just to the left of the yellow dot). Then we returned via the much longer, but gentler-slope, light blue road. The return path took us down by winding around a hill on the left and provided beautiful vistas of Montecito, Summerland, Carpenteria, and the ocean.
(2) Half dozen brief news headlines of the day:
- US government declares hoverboards unsafe
- Uber driver kills six, wounds two in Michigan
- Missing radioactive material found dumped in southern Iraq
- Islamic State blasts kill 140 near a Shi'ite shrine in Syria
- South Carolina primaries: Clinton and Trump win; Jeb! exits!
- Nevada: Clinton edges Sanders; GOP caucuses on 2/23
(3) Course review: Higgins, Kathleen Marie, World Philosophy, a 24-lecture course (on 12 CDs in two packages, each with a guidebook) in "The Great Courses" series, The Teaching Company, 2001.
I enjoyed listening to the 24 lectures in this course and learned a great deal from them. Even where the ideas were familiar to me, having them explained in historical, social, and religious contexts, and side-by-side with similar or related notions, was very helpful. The 24 lecture titles provide an apt summary of the course contents.
01. Beginnings.   02. Western Metaphysics.   03. Soul and Body.   04. The Good Life and the Role of Reason.
05. Western and African Thought Compared.   06. Traditional Beliefs and Philosophy.
07. American Indian Thinking.   08. Mesoamerican Thought.   09. Ethics and Social Thought in Latin America.
10. Indian Thought on Supreme Reality.   11. The Dualism of the Samkhya School.
12. Vedic Thought and Monism.   13. The Bhagavad Gita.   14. Buddha's Teachings.
15. Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism.   16. Nagarjuna's Interpretation of Buddhism.
17. The Chinese Conception of Reality.   18. Confucius.   19. Confucian Virtue.
20. Confucian Schools—Mencius and Xunzi.   21. The Daoist Response to Confucianism.
22. Daoism and Early Buddhism in China.   23. Buddhism in China and Japan.   24. Synthesis.

2016/02/19 (Friday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cartoon about the Pope and US presidential candidates (1) Cartoon of the day: The Pope sides with the Jewish guy.
(2) Seven brief news headlines of the day:
- Harper Lee (author of To Kill a Mockingbird) dead at 89
- Two refugee children drown daily near the Greek island of Lesbos
- Trump attacks Apple over its refusal to unlock a terrorist's iPhone
- Deal reached with Britain to keep it in the European Union
- Private space company Virgin Galactic unveils new spaceship
- US air raid targets Islamic State in Libya, killing 43
- Following the huge Airbus deal, Boeing cleared to talk with Iran
(3) Reasons to vote for Donald Trump. [Read]
(4) Honey badgers: Escape artists. [4-minute Video]
(5) A treasure trove of puzzles and exotic mathematical facts: I have just discovered Clifford A. Pickover's book, A Passion for Mathematics: Numbers, Puzzles, Madness, Religion, and the Quest for Reality (Wiley, 2005). I will give you one interesting tidbit from the book today and will share with you other material from it over time.
First female doctorate in math: Who was the first woman to receive a doctorate in mathematics, and in what century did she receive it?
(6) Newcomb's paradox: You are playing a game where there are two boxes A and B and you are given a choice of taking both boxes or only box B. Box A is guaranteed to contain $1000. Box B contains either $0 or $5000. Before the game begins, box B is filled by an extremely intelligent alien lifeform who always correctly predicts future events. If the alien predicts that you will take only box B, then he puts $5000 in it. If he predicts that you will take both boxes, he will leave box B empty. What would you choose and why?

2016/02/18 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
(1) Today is World Anthropology Day: Celebrating the contributions of anthropology to our understanding of the world and our history. [UCSB event]
(2) Five brief news headlines of the day:
- Apple heads into constitutional battle on encryption
- President Obama plans historic visit to Cuba
- Ankara car bomb targeting military buses kills 28
- The Pope says Christians build bridges, not walls
- Sanders leads Clinton nationally for the first time
(3) Cloud waves roll over peaks and valleys: This impressive 1-minute time-lapse video was shot in Masal County, part of the northern Iranian province of Guilan.
(4) The Nutcracker flashwaltz: "Waltz of the Flowers" is performed by students from the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance at the Sarah Wetsman Davidson Tower of Israel's Hadassah Hospital.
(5) Stacking of ice shards: Ice on the surface of Lake Superior breaks into shards and piles up on the shores of Duluth, Minnesota. Impressive work of nature!
(6) Sign of the times: If you need "tudoring," call this number. If you want to learn to spell as well, then find someone else.
(7) The 2014 Turing Award Lecture: If you have one hour of free time and would like to learn about the history and properties of Postgres relational database system, listening to Michael Stonebraker's Turing Lecture, delivered on June 13, 2015, is a very good use of your time (requires some basic DB background). Stonbreaker has contributed both to the theory of database systems as well as to their commercialization through several start-up companies. The talk itself begins at the 9:30 mark of this 76-minute video, but some of the intro may be of interest to you as well. The title of the talk is: "The Landsharks Are on the Squakbox: Why Riding a Bicycle across America and Building Postgres Have a Lot in Common"
(8) Undeveloped 7-decades-old films discovered: The 31 rolls of film shot by an American World War II soldier are enhanced and developed to reveal amazing scenes from the 1940s.

2016/02/17 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Logo for the proposed Los Angeles summer Olympic games (1) LA 2024 Olympics logo my lead to problems in Iran: Los Angeles is bidding to host the 2024 summer Olympics. Should LA succeed in its bid, I wonder what Iranian officials would do with this logo when announcing the games and preparing their sports teams?
(2) LACMA Norooz celebration, Sunday, March 13, 2016: The Los Angeles County Museum of Art's celebration inlcudes a parade and many other free events, including a performance by the band NIYAZ and visits to most parts of the museum, plus ticketed concert at Bing Theater by Mamak Khadem and her ensemble.
(3) Wikipedia takes on Google: The aim is to develop an ad-free search engine by funding Wikimedia Discovery. I, for one, would very much appreciate such a product and hope that the project succeeds.
(4) China's new toy: The Chinese have quietly developed a missile that can destroy an aircraft carrier from 900 miles away. This will likely necessitate a reassessment of the US military strategy in the Far East, given that the range of planes aboard US aircraft carriers is much less than 900 miles.
(5) An important privacy test case: The FBI has obtained a court order, asking Apple Computer to help them hack into an Apple 5c iPhone used by the San Bernardino mass-murder gunman, in the hopes of obtaining information about accomplices and other potential terrorists. Apple has resisted the request thus far, saying that such an act would set a dangerous precedent in revealing its users' personal information. The FBI thinks that the phone has been set up with a security feature that would destroy all of its stored data if the 4-digit passcode is incorrectly guessed 10 times. The case may be headed to the 8-member US Supreme Court.
(6) An iconic photograph from 1919: Execution of a German communist in Munich.
(7) The Kids are All Left: This is the title of a Time magazine article (double issue of February 22/29, 2016) that ponders the power of the Millennials, who are increasingly dissatisfied. The economic condition of our kids has worsened more than ours has. "This is a downwardly mobile generation with less wealth, more debt, higher unemployment and fewer homes." They have the power to influence US politics. But only if they show up to vote!
(8) World Music Series: Today's noon concert of UCSB Jazz Ensemble was moved indoors from the Music Bowl due to rain. The program included mostly blues tunes. [Sample 1] [Sample 2]
I am disappointed by the relatively low attendance at these free Wednesday concerts, which are both enjoyable and good for boosting the spirits of our campus' and guest musicians.

2016/02/16 (Tuesday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
Cartoon depicting fossils from the Midtechnolithic Period (1) Cartoon of the day: Fossils from the Midtechnolithic Period.
(5) A promising cancer treatment based on genetic modification of killer t-cells: Is this approach the one? Every now and then, claims about breakthroughs in cancer treatment are announced with fanfare. This one sounds more promising than most. Immune system t-cells act like bombs, destroying infected tissue. Researchers in this study genetically modified extracted t-cells to derive a new mechanism that targets lymphoblastic leukemia. At this point, the treatment is suited only to terminal patients, who have mere months to live. All 7 patients in the study developed acute reactions, and 2 died. Yet, there are reasons to be optimistic about the new approach.
(2) Quote of the day: "In our overdocumented lives, letting go has gotten a lot harder ... Most of us type more than we talk these days. And the more we live in this parallel digital world, the blurrier the line gets between present and past. Because when nothing is lost, nothing is past. Even if you want it to be." ~ Susanna Schrobsdorff, in her Time magazine column, issue of February 15, 2016
(3) A notable cave in Kermanshah, Iran: Located in the Poraw Mountain (Zagross Range), Poraw Cave, formed in the third geological period, is the largest calcareous cave in the world. Inside the cave there are 26 wells at depths of 5 to 42 m. The cave opening is a small hole which leads to areas of varying sizes, with branches and large stones connected by crevices and precipices.
(4) Cosmic biology: Fresh on the heels of watching "The Martian," in which the main character (played by Oscar nominee Matt Damon) grows potatos on Mars for survival, I read the article "The Perfectly Sane Case for Life in Space" in Time magazine's double issue of February 22/29, 2016. In the article, Jeffrey Kluger argues that "cosmic biology is not just possible; it's inevitable. ... The universe is hardwired to be an organic chemist. It's not a very clean of tidy one, but it has really big beakers and plenty of time."
(6) If you love Barbie like I love her, you have to let her change: This is the title of a humorous piece in Time magazine (issue of February 15, 2016), purportedly written by Ken (Barbie's boyfriend doll), about the recent changes in the body shape and skin tone of Barbie dolls to make them more representative of real girls and women. In parts of Ken's article, we read: "Mattel obviously wants to keep Barbie around. Partly because it loves her and partly because it loves money. ... But in a world where little girls idealize Lena Dunham and Beyonce and Nicki Minaj, it wasn't enough to just put Barbie in a nurse costume ... That iconic shape had to change."
(7) Censorship at its worst: Two pages of an English language textbook in Iran show a family with two daughters and a son going to the park on Saturdays, but when the kids swim in the pool, one of the daughters magically disappears in the water, though she still talks!

2016/02/15 (Monday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Moses parts the snow over his walkway in Connecticut (1) Cartoon of the day: Moses in Connecticut.
(2) Happy Presidents' Day to everyone! [Poster depicting all 44 US Presidents]
(3) On Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio: Isn't it ironic that for the first time in US history, not one, but two Hispanic candidates are running for the presidency of the United States, yet Latinos, far from being excited and proud, are yawning? Jorge Ramos, writing in Time magazine, double-issue of February 22/29, 2016, attributes this indifference to both candidates turning their backs on millions of immigrants and on the traditions of prominent Latino politicians.
(4) A Democratic conspiracy (humor): Did the Democrats kill justice Antonin Scalia so that they can replace him with a liberal justice before the next US President, no doubt a Republican, takes office? If this theory hasn't surfaced yet, it will soon!
(5) A foreign policy faux pas: Hillary Clinton may have set herself up for attacks by flaunting her relationship with Henry Kissinger, who has made embarrassing statements such as this one on depopulation: "Whatever may be done to guard against interruptions of supply and to develop domestic alternatives, the U.S. economy will require large and increasing amounts of minerals from abroad, especially from less developed countries. That fact gives the U.S. enhanced interest in the political, economic, and social stability of the supplying countries. Wherever a lessening of population pressures through reduced birth rates can increase the prospects for such stability, population policy becomes relevant to resource supplies and to the economic interests of the United States."
(6) Iran and Iraq: What's with Bernie Sanders' pronunciation of these two country names, "I-ran" and "I-raq"? Who are his foreign policy advisers, and do they know the correct pronunciations?
(7) When insults had class: "I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play; bring a friend ... if you have one." ~ George Bernard Shaw to Winston Churchill
"Cannot possibly attend first night; will attend second, if there is one." ~ Winston Churchill's response
(8) Rumi poetry recitation in Paris: Golshifteh Farahani and Darya Davar recite Rumi's poetry, with musical improvisations in the background. Mesmerizing!
(9) The US healthcare mess: Exorbitant healthcare exec salaries are some of the reasons why single-payer healthcare makes sense. Free-market economics is ill-suited to health organizations and educational institutions.

2016/02/14 (Sunday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Heart shape, formed by hands, with the setting sun in the middle (1) Day of love, in the US (2/14) and in Iran (2/18):
Valentine's Day, February 14, is named in honor of Valentine or Valentinus, an early Christian saint. Several legends have been made up (fairly recently) to justify the association of Saint Valentine with romantic love. One such legend is that he performed clandestine Christian weddings for soldiers who were forbidden to marry, because Emperor Claudius II believed that married men would not fight as well. Valentinus was supposedly martyred for this and other acts of disobedience [Wikipedia].
Sepandarmazgan is the ancient Iranian day of love during which both romantic love and love of nature are celebrated; a sort of combination Valentine's and Earth Day! This annual celebration is dedicated to Spanta Armaiti, the feminine angelic spirit of the Earth. It was originally held on the 5th day of Esfand in celebration of mothers/wives, including Mother Earth. The festival's currently popular date of Bahman 29 (coinciding with February 18) emerged after multiple reorganizations of the Persian calendar, beginning with the work of the Persian philosopher/poet Omar Khayyam [Wikipedia].
Happy Valentine's and Sepandarmazgan to you all!
(2) [I don't mean to rain on everyone's Valentine's Day parade, but the following is an important warning.]
FBI warning to on-line daters: The US Federal Bureau of Investigation is using Valentine's Day to warn all lonely hearts (especially divorced, widowed, and/or disabled women over 40, constituting the most frequent targets) that criminals are lurking on most dating Web sites.
(3) Robots that brainstorm alternatives when damaged: "When researchers at the Pierre and Marie Curie University (UPMC) in Paris, France, deliberately damaged two of the legs of their hexapod robot, the machine discovered for itself a novel hopping gait that not only overcame its injury, but proved to be faster than its original walking program. Injured another way, the robot found it could move around more easily on its back. The work was part of efforts to make robots that can work around damage and repair themselves when there is no human to help them." ~ Chris Edwards, in the opening paragraph of his news article in Communications of the ACM, issue of February 2016
(4) Sign of the times: This clever restaurant owner knows that in the third case, the parties will lose their appetites completely!
(5) Valentine's Day in Iran: Despite stern warnings from the Islamic government against "promoting the decadent Western culture" by shop-owners and other merchants through selling figurines, flowers, and chocolate (including severe penalties for those who do so), news reports indicate that the defiant Iranian people celebrated the day of love more forcefully than in prior years.

2016/02/13 (Saturday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing Buddha talking to Jesus on the clouds (1) Cartoon of the day: Buddha talking to Jesus.
(2) Testing a human-genome editor: Since 2012, scientists have been experimenting with CPISPR-Cas9 DNA to manipulate the human genome, in a manner similar to using an editor on textual data. Now, a British scientist, Kathy Niakan, has received the go-ahead from UK's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority to use the tool on viable human embryos at London's Francis Crick Institute. This medical miracle or sci-fi nightmare, depending on whom you ask, allows scientists and health workers to easily detect and fix mutations that lead to deadly diseases. [Info from: Time magazine, issue of February 15, 2016.]
(3) The Iranian girl who climbs rocks and ice: Incredible positivism and determination in the face of not just lack of support from sports authorities but also clothing restrictions that make it much harder for her compared with her international peers. [8-minute video]
(4) Quote of the day: "Even with San Bernardino, more people (48) have been killed by right-wing extremists in the U.S. since 9/11 than by Islamic terrorists (45)." ~ Karl Vick, in his review of Peter Bergen's book, United States of Jihad: Investigating United State's Homegrown Terrorism, appearing in Time magazine, issue of February 15, 2016
(5) US Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia dead at 79: Appointed by President Reagan, Scalia was the longest-serving justice on the current Court.
(6) A new IEEE journal to start publication in 2016: Albert Zomaya has been appointed as the first Editor-in-Chief of IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Computing for 2016-2018 (I am an editorial board member). The approval of this new journal represents an acknowledgment of the fact that frugality and efficiency in the use of energy and other resources is becoming an increasingly important design factor that necessitates the use of architectural, algorithmic, and software methods to allow practical system deployment, from mobile devices to supercomputers, in the coming decades.

2016/02/12 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Choose civility (1) On being civil in the face of disagreements: Democracy means "one person, one vote." If we are truly liberals and democrats (with lowercase "d"), then we should respect every single vote, no matter the voters' world views, beliefs, and education levels. Calling voters or candidates who disagree with us "stupid," "uninformed," and the like is a sure sign of a lack of respect for democracy.
Each person votes from his/her own perspective, and unless we are in their shoes, we have no right to judge. A true democrat does not care how a person arrives at his/her decision. If we are dissatisfied with the current state of affairs or the outcome of an election, it is our burden to work toward educating, informing, etc. No one has an obligation to follow our preferences, no matter how logically arrived at.
(2) Beyonce's tribute to Tina Turner: Fabulous combination of talent and energy.
(3) An apt story for Valentine's (2/14) and Sepandamazgan (2/18), Western and Iranian days of celebrating romantic love: In Iran, a poet's 700-year-old verses still set hearts aflame. [NPR report on Hafez]
(4) Paradoxes of the Islamic Republic: He "heart"s New York, but hates America; the sign he holds reads "Death to America"! [Photo]
(5) Follow-up to my blog post of yesterday about a most exciting breakthrough in physics: A nice audio-visual explanation of gravitational waves by Professor Brian Greene, with Persian subtitles.
(6) SUTA's new Facebook page: Sharif University of Technology Association has started a Facebook page in order to better reach out and keep in touch with the university's alumni and other affiliates.
(7) Outsmarting Alzheimer's: This is the title of a new book by UCSB neuroscientist Kenneth S. Kosik which spells out the ways of avoiding the disease that afflicts about 50% of those who get to age 85. Topping the list is exercise, followed by an appropriate diet (MIND, Mediterranean, Asian, or Vegan) and avoiding or controlling blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes.
(8) BMI flawed as a health measure: UCSB psychologist Jeffrey Hunger and colleagues have analyzed data from the most recent National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to find that BMI mislabels some 54 million heavier Americans as unhealthy, whereas they are quite healthy when using other markers. Conversely, about 21 million Americans considered healthy according to their BMIs are actually unhealthy when we look at underlying clinical indicators.

2016/02/11 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Portraits of Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton (1) Feminists' dilemma in 2016: In recent days, I have read posts from multiple women friends with Democratic leanings who seem to have been caught between a rock and a hard place. As a self-identified feminist, I face a similar dilemma in choosing between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in the upcoming US presidential election. One feminist view is that we have what might be a once-in-a-lifetime chance to elect a woman as President.
The question often asked is, "If not Clinton, then who?" What divides the hearts of many such women is that Sanders seems to enjoy unprecedented support among young people (i.e., their children) and, yes, even women, who are perhaps more worried about their economic challenges than the glass ceiling.
Clinton is a woman, but she comes with heavy baggage and a less-than-stellar record in addressing global peace and the plight of the middle class in the face of Wall Street greed. Many are essentially thinking, "Let's take care of the immediate economic and inequality problems and wait for another chance to vote for a woman.
Sanders, with a net worth of less than $1M, is virtually untarnished by corruption and favoritism, but then he has not been in a position to try to negotiate a deal with adversaries who would not budge. And there is the question of general-election appeal. A moderate candidate will attract more independent voters and is less likely to mobilize the far right.
Clinton has been in the public domain for decades and subject of countless smear attacks, conspiracy theories, and tabloid stories, and if decades of dogged investigation has revealed only so much "dirt," then perhaps she isn't so bad after all.
One comforting thought is that whichever of the two, Clinton or Sanders, becomes the Democratic candidate, I will have no problem supporting him/her against any of the Republican choices. The Republicans are in a much more difficult bind: there is a chasm between supporters of the so-called establishment and fringe candidates, and whichever side prevails, the other side may be less than enthusiastic in supporting the party's candidate (which would mean low voter turnout).
In this sense, the dilemma isn't as crippling as it could have been in the face of a united Republican opposition. Perhaps tonight's Democratic debate will help those still on the fence. Stay tuned for updates on this subject.
[Post-debate note: I watched tonight's spirited Clinton-Sanders debate. They both came prepared with points about the opponent's record and presented some forceful arguments. Clinton's closing statement was more polished, which will help her. I suspect that very few of those still on the fence will take sides after this debate.]
(2) The existence of gravitational waves, per Einstein's century-old prediction, confirmed: Physicists have reported observing unambiguous signs of gravitational waves emanating from the collision of massive black holes in deep space (1.3B light years away).
(3) Will we see $1.00/gallon gasoline? The Wall Street Journal believes so, at least for some parts of the US. The current US average is $1.73/gallon. The average price in the Santa Barbara area is just over $2.50/gallon, so, for us on California's central coast, prices might fall to a tad under $2.00.
(4) World literacy rankings: At ranks 23 and 21, US and UK youth are about average in the world. OECD's latest literacy rankings for youth 16-19 place South Korea at the top. Germany at 14 and Itlay at 20 did a tad better than UK and US. [Info from: Time magazine, issue of February 15, 2016.]
(5) Some very interesting optical illusions. [2-minute video]
(6) I challenge those who call the current US President "Barack Hussein Obama" to also call candidate Ted Cruz by his full name: "Eduardo Rafael Cruz" [Adapted from multiple Facebook posts]

2016/02/10 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Calligraphic rendering of a couple of famous verses by Hafez (1) Hafez poem in Persian calligraphy. [Artist unknown]
(2) Interesting geometrical approach to sculpting with clay.
(3) German head-on train crash leaves at least 10 dead: Scores were injured, 17 critically. The two trains were traveling at about 62 miles per hour near the Bavarian town of Bad Aibling.
(4) Jewish Dark Ages: The 1062 years between the start of the Jewish calendar 5776 years ago and the dawn of the Chinese calendar 4714 years ago, when Jews had to exist without Chinese food.
(5) Violinist Kianoosh Shahnazi pays tribute to the late musician Parviz Yahaghi at his grave site. [1-minute video]
(6) Good music during my Sunday stroll on Santa Monica's 3rd Street Promenade: Young woman performs on a bright sunny day.
(7) Facebook's 3.57 degrees of separation: Thanks to Facebook, the famed 6 degrees of separation has shrunk to an average of 3.57 degrees among its 1.6 billion active users. When you visit the study's Web page to examine the details, including an interesting chart and a set of references, you will also get your own average degree of separation. Mine is 3.42, fairly close to the overall average. Mark Zuckerberg's and Sheryl Sandberg's are 3.17 and 2.92, respectively.
(8) Film director Tahmineh Milani on gender-based segregation at Iranian public venues: She calls the policy a band-aid solution that avoids addressing the underlying social ills. Note how the Iranian-state-TV interviewer changes the subject whenever Milani begins discussing inconvenient facts. [Interview in Persian]
(9) Newcomers to the billion-users club: Gmail and WhatsApp have surpassed the 1-billion users mark. And Apple has sold 1 billion iOS devices. A WhatsApp statement reads: "We're excited ... [but] we still have another 6 billion people ... to go." [Info from: Time magazine, issue of February 15, 2016]

2016/02/08 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Video cameras and dashboard screens will soon replace side-view mirrors (1) Say goodbye to side-view mirrors in cars: Side-view mirrors increase the cost of a car, make it less aerodynamic, and have blind spots that often cause accidents. An alliance of car manufacturers has petitioned the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for permission to replace the side-view mirrors with miniature video cameras connected to dashboard screens. This photo from a NYT article shows an auto outfitted with 3 screens that display the rear and side views.
(2) Super Bowl 50: Lady Gaga's performance of the US National Anthem was quite impressive. The Denver Broncos prevailed 24-10 over the Carolina Panthers yesterday, giving the Broncos their third national title and quarterback Peyton Manning his second trophy. I missed the game and its glitzy halftime show, which featured Beyonce, Coldplay, and Bruno Mars.
(3) A Night of Jazz: This was the title of an enjoyable concert by Ziba Shirazi last night, at Santa Monica's Moss Theater on Olympic Blvd. The program consisted in part of several jazzy songs that are her trademarks, plus a medley of popular Iranian songs, including one by Rahim Moeini Kermanshahi, whose daughter Noushin's presence in the audience was acknowledged. At one point, Shirazi thanked the audience for choosing her concert over the Super Bowl! Because taking photos and recording videos was forbidden, I post here from YouTube one of Shirazi's better-known songs, "Mard-e Man" ("My Man"), which she performed after the intermission last night.
Note added on 2/09: One of the songs performed by Ziba Shirazi in her concert. ["Sharghi-ye Ghamguin"]
(4) Distinguished lecture this afternoon: Magnus Egerstedt (from Georgia Tech), hosted jointly by UCSB's Mechanical Engineering and ECE Departments, spoke on "Engineering Classes on a Massive Scale: The Good, the Bad, the Ugly." The speaker's focus was on how to provide hands-on engineering experience to tens of thousands of participants in a massive open on-line course (MOOC). Software-simulated lab activities do not quite provide the joy of tinkering or the satisfaction of seeing something of our own design and construction actually work. In the field of robotics, the speaker's area of expertise, Georgia Tech has been experimenting with a multitude of robots (located in an educational lab) that can be programmed remotely in batches, in order to test the students' understanding of control theories and mechanisms. The scheme cannot yet be scaled up beyond a couple of thousands of learners.
(5) Happy Chinese New Year: The monkey begins its year-long reign today.
(6) First death ever from a meteorite: An Indian bus driver was killed when he was struck by a meteorite, as he walked on the campus of an engineering college. Two gardeners and a student suffered injuries.
[Note added on 2/9: According to new reports, NASA scientists have cast doubt on the meteorite story, believing that some sort of ground-based explosion caused the death and injuries.]

Cover image for the book 'Who Invented the Computer?' 2016/02/06 (Saturday): Book review: Burks, Alice Rowe (with foreword by Douglas Hofstadter), Who Invented the Computer? The Legal Battle that Changed Computing History, Prometheus Books, 2003.
There is no simple answer to the question posed in this book's title. Different pieces of the modern computer were invented by various individuals and teams of researchers. Even the time frame is uncertain. Depending on how you define "computer," it was first envisaged in the 1800s, the 1940s, or the 1950s. This is true of virtually all other inventions that have had high impact in the modern world. Ask a typical person "Who invented the lightbulb?" and the answer will likely be Thomas Edison. Yet, Edison, though he patented the invention and was highly influential in bringing the invention to market, was influenced by ideas that were floating in the air at the time. Some even accuse Edison of taking other people's ideas without giving them credit.
The protracted legal battle that forms the main subject of this book did settle the matter legally (as discussed later in this review), but the technical discussion of who contributed what to what we know as the modern computer is still ongoing. Given the decades-long arguments about assigning credit for inventing the computer, it is not surprising that the book's conclusions have stirred controversy. For example, Nathan Ensmenger's review of the book in the September-October 2003 issue of American Scientist elicited this rebuttal (in the form of a letter to the editor from the lead author of the book).
As a second case in point, Michael R. Williams, head curator at the Computer History Museum in MountainView, California, also takes issue with the broad conclusions of Alice Burks, critizing her discounting the contributions of others in a brief article published in Technology and Culture, Vol. 45, No. 2, pp. 449-450, April 2004.
To make matters worse, Alice Rowe Burks is the wife of Arthur Burkes, one of the people who, alongside John von Neumann and the team of J. Presper Eckert and John Mauchly, is sometimes given partial credit for inventing the stored-program computer, so there is a conflict of interest here. Other names that have been tossed around over the years as inventor of the computer include Charles Babbage, Konrad Zuse, and Alan Turing.
The court's decision was to credit John Vincent Atanasoff, once a professor at Iowa State University, with the invention of the computer, thus invalidating a patent issued to Mauchly and Eckert, whose ENIAC, though influenced by Atanasoff, was much more extensive, practical, and engineering-oriented. In fact, advancements in technology often require both brilliant minds to conceive of new ideas and hands-on engineering talent to bring those ideas to fruition and to incorporate them into useful devices and processes. Even though at times the two individuals or groups are one and the same, the norm is to have distinct innovators and implementers. This is exactly why it is so difficult to assign credit for the invention of the computer and many other implements of advanced technology.
By the mid-20th-century, when the first electronic computing machines began to appear, the ability and connections to attract R&D funding and the PR machinery to push an innovation into the public domain had become so important that they took precedence over mere technical wizardry in claiming credit for an invention. And this is at the heart of the legal battle described in this book. Atanasoff, it seems, worked in near-isolation in his lab, while the Eckert-Mauchly team and others who visited his lab recognized the importance of his ideas and took some away with them to use in their own projects.
This is a very interesting book, but its subject matter and detailed presentation (including quotes from the court preoceedings) is of interest only to diehard computer history fans. In the end, who is credited with inventing the computer is perhaps less important than practical implementations of hardware and ingenious programming of applications that have contributed to the computer becoming the indispensable tool that it is today.
[Wikipedia's article on John Vincent Atanasoff (1903-1995)]

2016/02/05 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Instructions written on a package of wet wipes (1) On precision in writing: Whenever you write instructions/directions for others, or in any other form of writing for that matter, put yourself in the readers' shoes and try to figure out if your intended meaning is the only possible interpretation of your words.
Let me give you an example from a recent personal experience. I had written "Do Not Flush" on a package of wet wipes in my guest bathroom, because the wipes are large and sturdy and thus can cause a clog if flushed down the toilet. A while ago, I had a man doing tile repairs in my house and he asked for my permission to use the bathroom.
After the man finished his work and left, I went to use the bathroom myself, when I saw that the toilet had not been flushed after use. You can probably guess that the qualifier "These Wipes" was added at that time!
(2) Spring equinox (Eid-e Norooz; saal tahvil): In California, the Persian New Year 1395 will begin on Saturday, March 19, 2016, at 9:30:12 PM (UTC – 8). In Iran, it will begin on Sunday, March 20, at 8:00:12 AM.
(3) Stand-up comedy: Ricky Gervais offers a brilliant routine on the Old Testament. [12-minute video]
(4) Superbowl's high-tech venue: The data center of Levi Stadium, site of Superbowl 50 at the heart of Silicon Valley, is gearing up for the big game. Attendees can download an app that allows them to shop, order food for delivery to their seats, and even locate the nearest bathroom, or the one with the shortest line, so as to miss as little of the game and the Coldplay/Beyonce halftime show as possible.
(5) Seeing Iran in 19 minutes: A brief tour though the country's nature, historic sites, and attractions.
(6) Quote of the day: "Owning a car that is not self-driving in the long term will be like owning a horse—you would own it and use it for sentimental reasons but not for daily use." ~ Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk
(7) Bank ATM stats: In 2014, there were 3M+ ATMs in the world and they were used for 92B cash-withdrawal transactions (roughly 13 withdrawals per year per living individual, adult or child). [Info from: E&T magazine, issue of February 2016]
(8) Image of a historic lotto ticket from Iran: The tickets were issued in the early 1930s to raise funds for building a monument worthy of the great Persian poet Ferdowsi. The new monument was completed in time for Ferdowsi's Millennial observances in 1934.

2016/02/04 (Thursday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Cover image of Adam Grant's book 'Originals' (1) Adam Grant's lecture tonight: UCSB's Campbell Hall was the site of a 7:30 PM free lecture by Adam Grant, a successful business professor at University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School and an acclaimed author whose latest book, Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World, has just been released (Facebook's Sheryl Sandberg wrote the foreword). The idea for the book came to Grant in 2002 and it took him a decade of research to put it together.
The book's main focus is on how to bring your good ideas to your superiors' table at work or to potential investors in the market, in order to get support for them. Another angle is how to speak up when you see something in your organization that isn't right or that can be improved. I found the lecture and its Q&A period enlightening, entertaining, and educational.
Grant made three key observations about originals: they tend to be moderate, not extreme, procrastinators, they are mid-level, not top, experts in their fields, bringing instead a breadth of knowledge that helps them see things differently, and they are good at making unfamiliar familiar (the movie "Lion King" kept being rejected by Disney execs, until someone described it as "Hamlet in Africa, with lions.")
By far the most enlightening observation was one that Grant communicated via the following metaphor. He asked each person to think of a song and tap it on his/her seat's armrest to an adjacent person. Before doing this, however, the tapper had to estimate the probability of the other person guessing the song correctly. Then, as members of the audience revealed the results of the experiment, it turned out that very few people had gotten the song right and that the tapper had way overestimated the probability of a correct guess.
Here is the explanation offered by Grant. When we tap a song, we hear the melody in our brain. The other person hears only a series of disjointed taps, which likely sound nothing like the intended song. This is the fate of many new ideas. As we explain our idea to someone else, the full melody (our thinking process and the many hours we have spent with the idea) plays in our mind, whereas the other person is hearing the concept for the first time and needs more time to absorb it. Repetition helps. Be prepared to pitch your ideas forcefully and often!
(2) Quote of the day: "They just have a view of America that is largely disconnected from how America functions. It's a strain of paranoia that has been living in an echo chamber for 30 years." ~ Matthew Trevithick, the American aid worker recently released from prison in Iran, on the mindset of his Revolutionay Guards captors
(3) The largest known prime: Once in a while, advances in computational power lead to the discovery of a larger prime number than those known before. The record, as of January 26, 2016, is held by 2^(74,207,281) – 1, a Mersenne prime which has 22,338,618 digits when written as a decimal number.
(4) World Music Series: Yesterday's noon program at UCSB's Music Bowl featured Sphardic music from Jewish communities in Turkey, Greece, Spain, and other countries of southern Europe, northern Africa, and the Middle East. The band Flor de Kanela (Flower of Cinnamon) performed. Featured instruments included ousted, daf, violin, cello, and clarinet. This Greek/Sphardic mix tells the story of a man's troubles because he had simultaneous relationships with two women (two wives, wife and mistress, two girlfriends; the person introducing the song wasn't sure). Like many Sphardic songs dealing with romantic relationships, the lyrics have a humorous tone; or so we were told!

2016/02/03 (Wednesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Neighborhood, with street and place names taken from rock-n-roll hit songs (1) Cartoon of the day: Rock-n-roll neighborhood.
(2) Phyllium: A leaf-like insect with a perfect built-in camouflage.
(3) How bread is made in an industrial-scale bakery.
(4) Bubble rooms: Spending the night immersed in nature, while staying warm and cozy.
(5) Students and teachers of a pre-Islamic-Revolution school in Iran reunite after five decades. Notice how formerly hijabless girls and teachers have chosen to wear chadors, which is way more than required by the current oppressive law.
(6) The for-profit DeVry University sued for deceptive practices: The feds have accused DeVry of defrauding students with misleading claims about their employment prospects and earning potential.
(7) On Iran's Fajr Film Festival: Decency police patrols were the first to arrive at the red-carpet entrance to ensure that actresses were properly dressed. Famed actress Gohar Kheirandish was stopped because she had covered her hair with a hat, instead of a headscarf.
(8) Obama proposes $4B for CS education: Citing skills needed to compete in an evolving economy, President Obama indicated that he will ask the Congress for funding to teach certain computer science skills that are no longer optional in the new economy, if the US is to remain competitive in the global marketplace.
(9) Putting a baby to sleep in less than a minute. [3-minute video]

Cover image of the book 'Resilience' by Elizabeth Edwards 2016/02/02 (Tuesday): Book review: Edwards, Elizabeth, Resilience: Reflections on the Burdens and Gifts of Facing Life's Adversities, Broadway Books, 2009.
Having read Elizabeth Edwards' previous memoir, Saving Graces, I had been looking forward to reading her second memoir. The author, whose husband, John Edwards, was a US vice-presidential and presidential candidate, experienced three life-altering events that severely tested both her faith and physical strength. These events, and how Edwards dealt with them, are the focal points of this volume, which also contains narratives about her childhood and her parents.
Born in 1949, Edwards grew up in Japan and moved a lot with her Navy-pilot father. Her father was deemed brain-dead in 1990, but he recovered and lived another 18 years, though in poor health. "My father was an imperfect man in many ways, but maybe it was better that he was imperfect and that I knew he was, for I learned that perfection was not a requirement of resilience" [p. 9].
The first event that rocked Edwards' world was the April 1996 death of her first-born, Wade, 16, in a no-fault, single-vehicle accident caused by high winds. She and her husband were both devastated by this loss, and she came very close to full emotional paralysis. "What I had to face was not something present, it was something absent. And although we can escape something's presence, there is no way to escape its absence. There was no place to go where he would not also be absent" [p. 67]. Eventually, Edwards recovered from the devastation with help from friends and support groups.
The second blow came in November 2004, when Edwards was diagnosed with breast cancer. Treatments seemed to work at first, but then the disease came back in 2007 with a vengeance, when the cancer metastasized and got into her bones. At this stage, it was clear that the cancer was incurable and that she did not have long to live.
The third and final strike was Edwards' discovery that her husband had carried out an affair with a woman who became part of his campaign as a videographer. Apparently, in 2006, John Edwards had fallen for the quaint line "You are so hot," uttered by the woman who doggedly pursued him and caught him off-guard on the street as he was returning to his hotel one night. What made the situation worse from the author's viewpoint was her husband's piecemeal revelation of the type and extent of the affair, first claiming that it was a one-night stand and then admitting that it was actually a relationship. Later, it became clear that he had also fathered a daughter with his mistress, something that he denied at first. Having seen the effect of her father's likely extramarital affair on her mother's self-confidence and well-being (as a girl, she secretly read her mother's journals), she begged John when they were newlyweds to never put her in that position. "Leave me, if you must, but do not be unfaithful" [p. 183]. For a while, she shunned campaigning and when she resumed, there were only certain statements she could make without feeling hypocritical. Eventually, she came to the conclusion that trust is unlikely to return to her marital life. "[W]hen I closed the door to the John of today, I also had to say good-bye to that sweet man whom I had loved for so long" [p. 220].
Edwards remembers fondly a game she used to play with her husband and children in the car. They would try to notice as many details as they could about a house as they drove past it, and they would then construct an elaborate story that would match those details. "A house with a newly constructed ramp was a soldier returning from battle; the now-untended vegetable garden the result of his wife's caring for him instead of it." She later did the same story-weaving about people who would send her encouragement or sympathy cards.
Near the end of the book, Edwards offers this observation: "I am the pieces of sixty years of life that once made a picture but no longer fit together, and I am trying to see what puzzle picture I can create from those pieces that remain" [p. 220]. She did not have much time to put the puzzle pieces together, as she died at age 61, in December 2010.
The book, which I highly recommend, does not offer a recipe for dealing with devastation or grieving a loss. In fact, Edwards insists that each person must shape his or her own method of dealing with adversity. Seeking support is very important, but beyond that there is no magic ingredient. For example, some would need, and take comfort in, visiting a loved one's grave frequently (perhaps daily), while others would do best by avoiding such visits. There is no one-size-fits-all solution.

2016/02/01 (Monday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Birthday greetings from ASEE (1) A first during my 43-year professional life: American Society of Engineering Education, of which I am a member, has sent me a birthday e-card. This is the first time a professional body has sent me birthday wishes! Perhaps this is the start of a personalization trend, in lieu of cold mass communication via technical publications. Each morning, ASEE sends me "First Bell," an e-mail bulletin on new developments in science, technology, and engineering education, which forms a useful reference for my daily reading as well as blog and Facebook posts. Thank you, ASEE!
(2) Marvin Minsky [1927-2016]: Recognized as one of the pioneers of artificial intelligence research, Minsky was also a first-rate mathematician, roboticist, engineer, inventor, writer, poet, philosopher, musician, educator, and a tireless student of human nature and thinking. Minsky founded MIT's Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, which was at the center of AI advances (e.g., in neural networks) for many years. He passed away on January 24, 2016, in Boston, MA, at the age of 88.
(3) Some ingenious uses for metal binder clips: I have been using the toothpaste-tube trick for some time.
(4) On-line course on advanced game theory: Last night, I watched week-3 and week-4 lectures and submitted homework assignments 3 and 4 in the Stanford/Coursera MOOC I am taking, thus finishing the course material. Week 3 covered Vickrey-Clarke-Groves (VCG) mechanisms, whose importance stems from the properties that they have truth-telling as a dominant strategy and make efficient choices. The week-3 material ended with the Myerson-Satterthwaite theorem, an impossibility result for the simultaneous achievement of efficiency, weak budget-balance, and interim individual rationality in VCG mechanisms. Week-4 lectures dealt with auctions and contained a number of interesting and practically important results on how to conduct auctions and bid at them. Most of us immediately visualize the selling of expensive artwork and other artifacts when we think of auctions. However, awarding contracts based on written bids, selling spectrum to wireless companies, and choosing ads to include on a Google search-results page are all interesting examples of auctions in our daily lives. Well-known auction types include English, Japanese, Dutch, 1st-price sealed-bid, 2nd-price sealed-bid, and all-pay. These auctions share some basic properties but are different in other respects. It was surprising to me that some deep mathematical results have been derived for such seemingly simple mechanisms. To friends who like math and have never studied game theory, I highly recommend taking a course or reading a book on the topic. There is a wealth of interesting and deep math whose discovery will delight you.

2016/01/31 (Sunday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
(1) Quote of the day: "Speaking is hard for me. But come January, I want to say these two words: 'Madam President.'" ~ Gabby Giffords, former US Congresswoman, who is still recovering from a gunshot to the head
(2) The Oscars shine a spotlight on honor killings: A short documentary film about Saba Qaiser, a Pakistani girl who was shot in the head by her father, after a severe beating by him and her uncle, is one of this year's nominees. Saba survived and ended up forgiving her father. The film, "A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness" (after Saba was shot, her body was placed in a sack and thrown into a river), is already making a difference, but it will become more effective if it wins. I am cheering for it.
(3) Sophisticated geometry was used 14 centuries earlier than previously thought: According to a new study, published in Science, Babylonians used sophisticated geometrical calculations to track Jupiter across the night sky, a method that was previously attributed to medieval scholars in Oxford and Paris.
(4) An all-Trump debate: Stephen Colbert's hilarious spoof, in which two versions of Donald Trump debate each other. The debate begins at the 2:30 mark of this 8-minute video.
(5) Modern Persian music: Parnaz Partovi and two unnamed musicians perform in an intimate outdoor setting.
(6) Persian music: A group of young musicians performs "Mi-Gozaram Tanha" ("I Journey Alone"), a song made famous by Marzieh, with lyrics by Rahim Moeini Kermanshahi. There are a couple of other musical pieces at the end of the same 10-minute video.
(7) Introducing the next singing sensation: Dog Groban
(8) Climbing one of the Giza pyramids: I wonder if this is legal. [1-minute video]
(9) Fake charities: Consider the names "Children's Cancer Fund of America," "Breast Cancer Society," "Cancer Support Services," "American Veterans Relief Foundation," and "Disabled Firefighters Fund." Before rushing to donate money to these seemingly worthy causes, be aware that every single one of these, and many more, have been investigated by the US government and found to be fraudulent, with their operators fined (unfortunately, none of them have served time so far). Even the fines are a sham. Some have been fined $3M, say, but ended up paying only $60K or so, arguing that they had no money, perhaps because they successfully hid their assets from the feds. All these "charities" either pocketed all the money they raised or spent a ridiculously small amount, say 2%, on the purported causes. In some cases, a single individual or family operated multiple "charities" that had family members and friends on their payrolls. Make sure you look up charitable organizations before donating. A nice-sounding name isn't enough.

2016/01/29 (Friday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
President Rouhani being entertained at a Paris cabaret Door signs for a Pedants Society meeting (1) Cartoon of the day: My reaction to this cartoon was that the sign could be misleading to members, because once they open the door, "behind this door" would not be inside the intended room!
(2) Second cartoon of the day: Iran's President Rouhani is entertained in Paris.
(3) An oldie but goodie: "Historia de un Amor"
(4) Barbie wants you to stop talking about her body: New body types and skin tones for the iconic doll are the focus of a Time magazine cover story in its issue of February 8, 2016.
(5) Modern Persian music: Sara Hamidi is the featured vocalist with Paris-based Bahar Choir and East Paris Philharmonic Orchestra (led by Arash Fouladvand) in this piece, named "Fetneh-Gar" ("Seditionist"), composed by Parviz Yahaghi, with lyrics by Bijan Taraghi.
(6) Two dozen Baha'is get prison terms in Iran: The city of Gorgan has sentenced 24 Baha'is, mostly women, to a total of 193 years in prison (average sentence of 8 years) on charges of membership in illegal organizations and advocating against the regime.
(7) Caro Emerald performs "Liquid Lunch" at the Montreux Jazz Festival.
(8) My solo hike today: I hiked Santa Barbara's San Antonio Creek Trail, that begins at the eastern end of Tuckers Grove Park (located at the intersection of Turnpike Road and Cathedral Oaks Road) and proceeds with a very gentle slope for 2 miles to meet Highway 154. The trail is shady, making it ideal for a hot day like today. I hiked for a total of 6 miles, counting some detours and backtrackings. Near the end of the trail, there is a cement dam that creates a pond under normal conditions; needless to say that the pond is dry at this time, owing to the sustained drought. Signs posted in the area indicate that the pond may have something to do with the operation of Goleta Water District. Despite the gentle slope of the trail, I got a glimpse of the ocean on one of the detours.
(9) Final thought for the Day: "Happiness is a butterfly, which, when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you sit down quietly, may alight upon you." ~ Nathaniel Hawthorne

2016/01/28 (Thursday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Photo of Chateau d'Usse in France (1) The 15th-century castle that inspired "Sleeping Beauty": Chateau d'Usse in France.
(2) Santa Barbara City College leads the way: Rather than wait for national programs to be approved and implemented, SBCC has come up with a proposal, to be funded with donations from individuals and foundations, for offering free community college education to all residents of California's South Coast, from Carpinteria to Gaviota. While California's community college course fees are relatively low compared with those of the state's 4-year institutions, fees and textbook costs still add up.
(3) Armenian woman, 106, guards her home in 1990.
(4) Cartoon of the day: The Italian solution versus the logical solution. This cartoon pertains to the covering up of nude sculptures at a museum in Rome during a visit by Iran's President Rouhani.
(5) The man who spent 25 years digging man-made caves: Working in New Mexico's wilderness, Ra Paulette, works long hours, using only hand tools, to make art from the underground sandstone. [6-minute video]
Cover image of 'Arguably,' a collection of essays by Christopher Hitchens (6) Book review: Hitchens, Christopher, Arguably: Essays, unabridged audiobook on 24 CDs, read by Simon Prebble, Hachette Audio, 2011.
This book is Christopher Hitchens' swan song, in the sense of quite a few of its essays having been written after he learned from his doctor that he had less than a year to live (he died in December 2011). He states that because of this looming death, he felt he could be more honest and open in his writings.
Hitchens, an antitheist (which is different from an atheist), viewed the concept of God or Supreme Being as a totalitarian belief that destroys individual freedom. Becoming an American citizen in 2007, he had little patience for critics of the US for this or that minor problem. He believed that the country is built on the right principles and that any deviation from those principles is corrected in short order.
A wide array of essays, from literary reviews of Charles Dickens and George Orwell to ruminations on agonizing effects of anti-Semitism and Islamic jihad, are included in this book. Many of the 107 chosen essays have appeared over several years in publications such as The Atlantic, The Guardian, Newsweek, Slate, and Vanity Fair.
It took me several weeks to listen to this lengthy audiobook, but devoting many long car rides to a book by one of the best English-language essayists of our time was well worth it. I highly recommend the book to anyone who is interested in taking a close look at culture, religion, politics, and their linkages.

2016/01/27 (Wednesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cartoon about the wierdness of reading a hard-copy book (1) Cartoon of the day.
(2) Abridged classics, according to cartoonist John Atkinson.
- War and Peace: Everyone is sad. It snows.
- The Grapes of Wrath: Farming sucks. Road trip! Road trip sucks.
- Don Quixote: Guy attacks windmills. Also, he's mad.
- The Sun Also Rises: Lost generation gets drunk. They're still lost.
- Moby Dick: Man vs. whale. Whale wins.
- Ulysses: Dublin, something, something, something, run-on sentence.
(3) Two powerful execs express support for Iranian women: Sheryl Sandberg (right) and Marne Levine (left) in this photo, chief executives of Facebook and Instagram, met with Masih Alinejad (center) to convey their support for the "My Stealthy Freedom" Facebook page, which advocates the abolition of mandatory hijab laws in Iran.
(4) Noon concert at UCSB's Music Bowl: Today, a subset of UCSB's Percussion and Mallet Ensembles performed Mexican (including "La Bamba"), Russian, and other musical selections, under the direction of Jon Nathan, as part of the World Music Series. Mallet instruments include marimba, xylophone, and the like.
(5) Getting close to discovering the cause of schizophrenia: New research, published in Nature, confirms that misguided pruning of the brain's neural connections, leading to sparse connectivity in the prefrontal cortex, is what causes schizophrenia. "People with schizophrenia have a gene variant that apparently facilitates aggressive 'tagging' of connections for pruning, in effect accelerating the process." Practical use in prevention and/or treatment isn't in the cards yet.
(6) Campaign to change the masculine face of the Iranian parliament: Of Iran's parliament (Majlis) members, only 3% are women, placing the country very near the bottom of rankings in this regard (world average = 22%). Some 1400 Iranian women decided to do something about this by registering to run in the upcoming February elections, but almost all of them were declared unqualified to run by Iran's Guardian Council.

2016/01/26 (Tuesday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Time magazine's cover featuring the story of contaminated water in Flint, Michigan (1) The poisoning of an American city: This is the title of Time magazine's cover story for its issue of February 1, 2016. It is a tale of incompetent, self-serving officials who betrayed the public trust by hiding information about contaminated water in Flint, Michigan, that could lead to allergic reactions, serious illnesses or even death.
(2) Living near a Trader Joe's grocery store increases the value of your home: Within 2 years of a TJ's store opening in a neighborhood, home prices show a 10% increase. Nationally, homes near TJ's stores have 50% higher prices that those in comparable neighborhoods. Of course there is a down side to this gain: you'd be paying higher property taxes for the same home if a TJ's store is nearby. [Source: ABC Evening News, January 25, 2016]
[Note: One should take the second stat with a grain of salt, as the 50% difference may be due to TJ's opening stores in more prosperous neighborhoods (that is, correlation, not causation). However, the 10% rise within 2 years is more likely to be statistically significant.]
(3) Quote of the day: "Parenting and running a country have a lot in common. There are days when you wake up and wonder how you got into this mess." ~ Kristin van Ogtrop, writing in Time magazine, issue of February 1, 2016, on the similarities between a lame-duck President in his last year in office and a lame-duck mom awaiting her 17-year-old's going away to college, quipping "My approval ratings are about as bad as yours, Mr. President."
(4) Iran's forgotten political prisoners: The release of five Iranian-Americans from Iranian prisons generated much buzz, raising hopes in some circles that perhaps Iran will start playing by international rules. However, hundreds are still in the Islamic Republic's prisons, most of whom are unknown even to their fellow countrymen. This slide show introduces some of the better-known political prisoners.
(5) Saudi Arabia is the biggest loser of the oil price drop: The Kingdom relies on oil for 80% of its budget and 45% of its GDP, so it will suffer more than Iran or Russia as oil prices continue to fall. Its $620 billion in reserves will provide some cushion, but only for so long. Both Iran and Saudi Arabia face succession proclems when their current leaders pass, so the oil price drop may prove highly destabilizing for both. [Adapted from: Time magazine, issue of February 1, 2016.]
(6) Italy covered up nude statues of Roman goddesses at a museum when Iran's President visited Rome. Will the US take similar steps for Rouhani's upcoming visit to New York?

2016/01/24 (Sunday): Here are three items of potential interest.
Salman Khan shown at his office desk (1) Talk by Salman Khan: This afternoon, I attended a talk by the creator of Khan Academy, a nonprofit on-line company that provides instructional videos on a wide variety of subjects. The talk, held in Santa Barbara's Granada Theater under the auspices of UCSB's Arts & Lectures program, was entitled "Education Re-imagined." Khan Academy has its roots in Salman Khan's long-distance telephone tutoring of his 12-year-old cousin in 2004, which led him to the idea of posting explanatory videos on STEM subjects on YouTube.
Around 2009, Khan's video lessons began to attract a lot of viewers, which led him to quit his day job with a hedge fund company to focus on creating free educational content. Later, Khan learned that Bill Gates had been using Khan Academy videos to teach his children. Gates ended up supporting the Academy financially, turning it into a real organization.
Today's presentation took the form of a moderated discussion during which Amir Abo-Shaeer, a highly successful local high-school teacher, McArthur Fellow, and founder of the Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy, asked questions for about an hour and opened the floor to audience questions for an additional 30 minutes. Topics discussed included the Academy's history, mission, relationship with MOOCs and other forms of on-line instruction, impact on traditional lecture-based courses, and future directions.
Beginning from a one-man operation, the Academy now has a full-time staff of 100, with several times as many working for it part-time or as volunteers. The program provided an enjoyable and informative afternoon. To learn more about Khan Academy and its goals, watch this promotional video or go to its YouTube channel.
(2) How old engineers have fun in a garage! [1-minute video]
(3) UCSB's World Music Series: The free noon concerts on Wednesdays at the Music Bowl continue this quarter with the following program.
1/27: UCSB Mallet and Percussion Ensemble (led by Jon Nathan)
2/03: Sphardic music, with Flor de Kanela (Mediterranean, Middle East, North Africa, Balkans)
3/10: UCSB Brass Ensemble (led by Steve Gross)
3/17: UCSB Jazz Ensemble (led by Jon Nathan)
3/24: Gamelan (gong orchestra of Indonesia, led by Richard North)
3/02: UCSB Gospel Choir (directed by Victor Bell)

2016/01/22 (Friday): Here are four items of potential interest.
Cover image on Ashlee Vance's book on Elon Musk (1) Book review: Vance, Ashlee, Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future, Harper Collins, 2015.
Elon Musk, a successful serial entrepreneur whose credits include an on-line payment system (PayPal), a private launch company (SpaceX), America's largest installer of photovoltaic systems (SolarCity), and an electric-car and battery manufacturer (Tesla), remains a controversial figure.
Like Steve Jobs, Musk is often criticized for leaving behind scorched trails of former business partners and employees. Yet, there is little doubt that his multidisciplinary talents and focus on larger issues (beyond immediate goals and devices/technology) make him a unique talent. His focus isn't on cars per se but on methods for correcting Earth's problems and on developing escape plans, should they become necessary.
Everything Musk does accompanies dramatic risks, which he uses to his benefit with brilliant marketing. Whereas detractors judge his Tesla automobile as "an utterly derivative overhyped toy for show-offs," many more praise his brilliance and ability to overcome technological barriers.
Musk grew up in South Africa, moving to Canada at age 17, where he attended Queen's University and made money on the side by selling custom-designed computers. He later transferred to the University of Pennsylvania to study physics and economics. Musk never ceases to amaze. In 2014, he stunned the industry by opening Tesla's patents and allowing everyone to use freely the company's electric-vehicle technology.
(2) On making America great again: When someone claims that he will take America back to its Golden Age, ask politely: "Which Golden Age did you have in mind (slavery, Civil War, Jim Crow, un-American activities, the Great Depression, Prohibition, WW II internment camps, Vietnam)?" Of course, there have always been, and will continue to be, many good things about America, as well as many bad things such as those I listed. There was never a "Golden Age" when everything was good. We have to learn to live with the good and the bad and work on improving the situation to the best of our ability. The notion of "American Exceptionalism" must also be retired along with "Golden Age."
(3) Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History is celebrating its 100th birthday, with free admission on Sunday, January 24, 2016. The hours are 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
(4) TEDx CSUN: Cal State University Northridge will hold a local, independently organized TED event, with videos of key TED talks as well as talks by local experts, on Friday, April 29, 2016. Here is the event's Facebook page. There will also be a TEDx UCLA event on Saturday, May 21, 2016.

2016/01/21 (Thursday): Here are five items of potential interest.
The planets Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Mars, and Jupiter will line up over the next month (1) See five planets in the early morning: For about a full month from today, if you get up 45 minutes before sunrise, you should be able to see with your naked eyes the planets Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Mars, and Jupiter (from left to right, looking south). The accompanying image shows the planets' locations on February 1, when Mercury should be easiest to spot, along with the moon's location on various days. Venus will be the brightest thing visible looking toward southeast.
(2) Sheryl Sandberg to women of Iran: Facebook's COO addresses "all the amazing women on the My Stealthy Freedom page," assuring them of the worldwide sisterhood's support and encouragement in their quest for civil liberties and equal opportunities.
(3) Comical musings of an Iranian "expert" on nutrition: This guy claims that fast food constitutes a conspiracy by the West to rob Iranians of their identity and traditions; pepperoni, in particular, has been designed to prevent Iranian teams from advancing in international sports tournaments. This may be a comedy routine rather than an actual lecture. Note that the audience is never shown. If so, the performer/comedian has done an excellent job. [5-minute video]
Note added on 1/22: A couple of friends pointed out to me that this clip is by comedian Javad Razavian. Here's an example of junk "science" fed to uneducated Iranians by Islamic/alternative medicine "expert" Hossein Ravazadeh, who is apparently the target of Razavian's humor. YouTube is full of video clips of this expert's musings. YouTube is full of video clips of this expert's musings about how the British (more generally, the West) and Zionists are targeting Iranians' health and well-being through the manipulation of foods and drugs.
(4) Islamic clerics of Iran in the digital age: On his Web site, Grand Ayatollah Gerami answers archaic questions, pertaining to social conditions of 14 decades ago, using the latest Web technology. Here are four examples. [Example 1] [Example 2] [Example 3] [Example 4] The said Grand Ayatollah's "Towzih-ol-Massa'el" ("Guide to Problems," a sort of encyclopedia or solutions manual) provides hours of reading fun.
(5) The World in 2050: This is the title of a 46-page PDF report by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC, dated February 2015). It is an interesting read, if you don't take its predictions too seriously.

2016/01/20 (Wednesday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
(1) Please allow me not to say anything about yesterday's viral news story: Sarah Palin's endorsement of Donald Trump. On second thought, look what I found! [Cartoon]
(2) Simon & Garfunkel—"Songs of America" [52-minute film]
(3) Growing and harvesting saffron in Iran. [2-minute video]
(4) On sexual harassment cases that are often dismissed: Many men still think that by paying "unwanted attention" to a woman they are flattering her and are then upset when the woman does not play along. This Facebook post is a typical story. It can happen with the gender roles reversed, but that is much less common.
(5) A very disturbing case of fictitious rape: This Newsweek on-line report exposes 27-year-old former altar boy Daniel Gallagher as a congenital liar (more accurately, a person with a severe case of multiple-personality disorder) whose allegations and lurid testimony helped put two priests and a Catholic school teacher in jail. Some of those close to the case now think he had made the whole thing up. Like the recent hoax gang-rape case at University of Virginia, this unfortunate incident, aside from ruining the lives of three possibly innocent men (one of whom died in jail), makes other valid rape cases harder to report and prosecute. The doubt such hoaxes produce are extremely harmful to many real rape victims and their ability to seek justice against the perpetrators.
(6) Music and dance of Kurdish Jews in Iran.
(7) The Solar System's possible ninth planet: After Pluto, the former ninth planet in our Solar System, was demoted from planetary status, we were left with only eight. Not any more! Scientists believe they have discovered a true ninth icy planet, four times the size of our Earth, way out beyond Neptune; so far indeed that it revolves around the sun once every 10,000 to 20,000 years.
(8) Final thought for the day: "The number of foreign-born students enrolled in [American] graduate engineering programs almost doubled between 2005 and 2014, reaching 63 percent." ~ ASEE Prism magazine, based on survey data from the American Society for Engineering Education
[It is worth noting that a majority of these foreign-born engineering students end up staying in the US and contributing to our economy through their technical expertise and entrepreneurial spirit.]

2016/01/18 (Monday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Dr. Martin Luther King and his supporters at the Lincoln Memorial (1) Honoring today's MLK holiday: The legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King is celebrated by Jewish and black a-cappella groups performing "Shed a Little Light" (a James Taylor song) together in front of Washington DC's Lincoln Memorial. The groups are the Maccabeats and Naturally 7.
(2) Dr. Martin Luther King's 1964 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech. [12-minute video]
(3) Israeli mother of six stabbed to death by Palestinian terrorist: Thirty-something Dafna Meir was killed at her home in front of her teenage daughter. The family has 4 children and fosters 2 more.
(4) Spirited Kurdish line dancing: One sees some similarities with Michael Jackson's "Thriller." Too bad women are not included!
(5) Last night's Democratic debate for the 2016 US presidential election: This 4th debate showed that the three candidates (Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Martin O'Malley) are much closer to each other in principle than they would let on. Yet, they employed some of the attacks and smearing methods of their Republican counterparts, which was disappointing. Sanders stuck to his guns regarding breaking up the big banks, killing super-PACs, and enacting universal healthcare. Clinton continued to play the realist, advocating incremental change, with limited success. I think O'Malley should drop out and let the two leading candidates enter into a more substantive dialog.
(6) Advanced game theory (week 2): Today, I listened to the second week of lectures in the Coursera/Stanford course on advanced game theory and submitted the first two homework assignments. The first-week lectures were about voting schemes and this week the course focused on mechanism design, essentially strategies for devising voting schemes that have desirable properties with regard to outcome quality.
Voting is complicated enough to require a rigorous mathematical theory, that has been developed with contributions from mathematicians, computer scientists, political scientists, and sociologists. Arrow's Theorem and other impossibility results suggest that if we start with a list of common-sense desirable properties for voting, no voting scheme satisfies all of them and we have to compromise by focusing only on the most important properties. One of the desirable properties that we often give up to make things feasible is avoiding strategic voting. Strategic voting takes place when a voter dishonestly casts his/her vote for someone other than his/her truly preferred candidate in an attempt to influence the voting outcome.
Let me give you an example from the current Democratic field of US presidential candidates. If you consider O'Malley the most qualified choice but take his low chance of becoming the Democratic candidate into account and vote instead for one of the front-runners, you are engaging in strategic voting. This may appear harmless at first sight, but it is easy to show that once people consider voting strategically, many abuses can take place.

2016/01/17 (Sunday): Here are six items of potential interest.
Cartoon showing the word 'psychotherapist' written as 'psycho the rapist' on an entry door (1) Cartoon of the day: Psychotherapist setting up his office.
(2) Iranian Baha'i prisoner's song: Saeed Rezaie wrote "Khiaal-e Baaraan" ("Visions of Rain") as a wedding anniversary gift to his wife. Rezaie is one of seven Baha'i leaders arrested for their faith in 2008 and subsequently sentenced to 20-year prison terms.
(3) Quote of the day: "When will you make peace with the Iranian people?" ~ Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi, in a letter to President Rouhani, in the wake of rapprochement with the US that led to the lifting of sanctions and release of four Iranian-American political prisoners held by Iran
(4) Classical music mashup: Ingeniously constructed medley from works by Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Handl, Mozart, Schubert, and many more.
(5) Kazakh military marching band having fun with "Gangnam Style."
(6) Final thought for the day: "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts." ~ Mark Twain

2016/01/16 (Saturday): Here are four items of potential interest.
A public mass execution in Iran by hanging from cranes (1) Mansour Farhang's response to Javad Zarif's NYT op-ed: "When Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, criticizes Saudi Arabia's sectarianism and human rights record ('Riyadh's Reckless Extremism,' Op-Ed, Jan. 11), it's a case of the pot calling the kettle black. Iran is a notorious violator of human rights and promoter of sectarianism. In 2015, nearly 700 at least were executed in Iran. Mr. Zarif calls Saudi Arabia's execution method barbaric, but he serves a regime that orders lashing of teenage rape victims before executing them." [The image shows a public mass execution in Iran by hanging from cranes.]
(2) Iran releases four Americans in a prisoner swap: The four are Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian, Marine veteran Amir Hekmati, Pastor Saeed Abedini, and Nosratollah Khosravi (background unknown). A fifth American, Matthew Trevithchick, was freed separately. Seven unnamed Iranian prisoners held in the US on sanctions-related charges were freed in this swap. The US had excluded releasing anyone held on violence or terrorism charges. [On a Facebook post of this news story, someone asked: "Great, but when are the 70 million Iranians going to be freed?"]
(3) The 2015 movie "1971" is a must-watch: More than four decades after 8 anti-war activists broke into a Pennsylvania FBI office and stole documents that exposed the Bureau's illegal surveillance and wiretapping activities, the group is finally opening up about its activities, how dangerously close we came to becoming a police state in the 1970s, and how the disaster was averted by brave activists, journalists using the Freedom of Information Act to fight the FBI, and a full-blown Congressional investigation. The FBI program "cointelpro," short for counter-intelligence program, kept tabs on domestic activists (including the Women's Liberation Movement), produced anonymous letters and other documents to smear various groups, planted informants everywhere, and generally disregarded the US Constitution's First Amendment.
(4) Memorial for the late Sensei Kenji Ota: This afternoon, I attended a part of memorial ceremonies held in honor of the founder of the Dojo School in Goleta, California, who passed away in December 2015 at 92. The event was to continue with a barbeque and a dance later this evening. Numerous former students and others who knew Ota, as their Aikido or dance instructor and as a mentor, spoke about their memories of him and the school he founded and led for many years. Some of the speakers, now graying men, had started their association with the martial arts school as young boys. Others were second-generation members of families, whose parents also spoke. Unfortunately, the school's building has fallen into disrepair, necessitating a fundraising effort for structural improvements, including fixing a leaking roof. My son Sepehr has written a letter about Dojo School's fundraising to the editor of Santa Barbara Independent ("Living in the Moment," Issue of January 14-21, 2016). If interested in helping out, please use this gofundme link.

2016/01/14 (Thursday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
(1) Citizen involvement: One of the problems with the current political scene in the US is that each citizen thinks that s/he must have a say in every major domestic and international issue, from economic regulations and energy production to nuclear negotiations and refugees, regardless of his/her background and expertise. We have forgotten that our efforts can be much more effective if applied primarily to local politics and, even more so, to our own private endeavors. I, for one, pledge to become more involved in the sociopolitical scene at the campus, community, city, and state levels and to devote greater effort to making my own life and work more beneficial to those around me. New-Year resolution, a couple of weeks late!
(2) Fusion Turkish and Flamenco music. [4-minute video]
(3) Kurdish fashion show, from February 2014: Modest, but elegant and very colorful styles; no size-zero female models here! [12-minute video]
(4) Colors of Kurdistan: Another Kurdish fashion show, this one from Dubai (2011). [2-minute video]
(5) A Christian/Armenian woman's grim tale: Humiliation of Iranian women continues by the Islamic regime, with treatment so harsh that even family members, teachers, and other role models, whom young women must look up to, have become enforcers of the archaic and extremely unfair laws against women, for fear that their loved ones may be harmed by the regime otherwise.
(6) Was the US humiliated by Iran in the Persian Gulf? Not really. Being arrested is the minimum one can expect if one trespasses into a country's territorial waters, intentionally or by mistake. If you want to see humiliation of American military men, look at news footage of the Iraq war (mutilated bodies and the like). Here, Iran did a "show" arrest to flex its muscle, knowing full well that it did not want to mess with Uncle Sam at this stage of the sanctions-lifting process. No one would have believed them that a handful of young navy men had evil plans for Iran, so they exploited a day's worth of the news cycle, mostly for internal consumption, and let the Americans go, with "salaam o salavaat," as we say in Persian. This minor incident is being elevated to the status of an international crisis by those with political motives.
(7) Oscar nominees revealed for 2015 (ceremonies on Sunday, February 28, 2016):
- Picture: "The Big Short," "The Martian," "The Revenant," and "Room" nominated, along with 4 others
- Director: Adam McKay; George Miller; Alejandro G. Inarritu; Lenny Abrahamson; Tom McCarthy
- Actress: Cate Blanchet; Brie Larson; Jennifer Lawrence; Charlotte Rampling; Saoirse Ronan
- Actor: Bryan Cranston; Matt Damon; Leonardo DiCaprio; Michael Fassbender; Eddie Redmayne
- Supporting actress: Jennifer Jason Leigh; Rooney Mara; Rachel McAdams; Alicia Vikander; Kate Winslet
- Supporting actor: Christian Bale; Tom Hardy; Mark Ruffalo; Mark Rylance; Sylvester Stallone
(8) Iranian Studies Initiative at UCSB: Launched by Janet Afary last year, the program puts undergraduates to work online (roughly 1300 hours in 2015) with Iranian-American community organizations in the Los Angeles area, providing a wide range of social services.

2016/01/13 (Wednesday): Here are five items of potential interest.
A scene from UCSB Library's grand reopening today (1) UCSB Library's grand reopening today: Chancellor Henry Yang welcomes the standing-room-only crowd in a ceremony to celebrate our library's reopening following state-of-the-art renovations and expansion. Behind the Chancellor are USCB Librarian Denise Stephens and other campus officials. A few photos and videos follow.
Art installation made of 2000 altered books. [Photo 1]
West entrance seen from the 2nd-floor loft. [Photo 2]
Where old building connects to new addition. [Photo 3]
A campus open space seen from 2nd floor. [Photo 4]
The renovated library is green in many ways. [Photo 5]
Modern dance performance with drum music. [Video 1]
Music for 4 flutes and dance of the 4 birds. [Video 2]
Break dancing by a group of UCSB students. [Video 3]
(2) We have come a long way from 2008 (the last Bush year) to 2015: Some conservatives keep asserting that Obama is "the worst US President ever," as if repeating this statement makes it a fact. I invite these people to offer sourced corrections to the following stats, or add new lines at the bottom, to substantiate the claim above.
7.2 → 5.1: Unemployment percentage
3.24 → 2.31: Dollars per gallon of gas
15.0 → 9.2: Uninsured percentage
11.0 → 4.5: Millions of barrels of oil imported
40.2 → 26.5: Teen pregnancies per thousand
19 → 6: Thousands of centrifuges in Iran
–0.3 → +3.7: GDP growth percentage
(3) English translation of a Rumi poem: When I am with you, we stay up all night. | When you're not here, I can't go to sleep. | Praise God for those two insomnias! | And the difference between them.
(4) Women in leadership positions: As we begin the year 2016, three key Persian news services in the West are led by women. BBC: Rozita Lotfi; EuroNews: Maria Sarsalari; Voice of America: Setareh Derakhshesh
(5) A vicious campaign against Girl Scouts: Partnership with Planned Parenthood (a very natural alliance for an organization aspiring to train independent, self-confident young women) is cited by some right-wing activists who are leading a fight against Girl Scouts. I, for one, will buy more Girl Scout cookies this year.

2016/01/12 (Tuesday): Here are nine items of potential interest.
Map of the Persian Gulf region, with oil and gas fields (1) On the Saudi-Iranian conflict: This map, drawn by cartographer Michael R. Izadi, shows one of the reasons Saudi Arabia is so fearful of the rising influence of the Shi'i Iran. For historical and natural reasons, almost all of the oil in the Persian Gulf region is under Shi'i Muslims, even in the Sunni-majority Saudi Kingdom. The recently executed Shi'i cleric Nimr al-Nimr had threatened in 2009 that if the treatment of Shi'is did not improve, he would call for secession, thus depriving the Kingdom of its oil revenues. [Black: oil fields; Red: gas fields]
(2) Quote of the day: "Food Stamp recipients did not cause the financial crisis; recklessness on Wall Street did." ~ President Obama, in his 2016 State-of-the-Union speech
(3) At least 10 dead near Istanbul's Blue Mosque: All those killed by the ISIS suicide blast were foreigners.
(4) Surprise announcement (business deal?) of the day: Media mogul Rupert Murdoch, 84, and actress/model Jerry Hall, 59, engaged to be married. [BBC News video]
(5) The many faces of David Bowie (1947-2016): An entertainer with whom I could never identify, despite being almost exactly my age.
(6) Confirmed by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry: The discovery of four new elements that complete the bottom row of the periodic table: Uut (113); Uup (115); Uus (117); Uuo (118).
(7) This dance performance in Rasht led to the arrest of the Iranian city's culture & arts official.
(8) The birth of a word: MIT researcher Deb Roy outfitted his home with video cameras and collected 200 TB of data in an effort to understand how his infant son learned to speak. [20-minute TED talk]
(9) Final thought for the day: "Once we accept our limits, we go beyond them." ~ Albert Einstein

Cover image of Timothy D. Wilson's 'Redirect' 2016/01/11 (Monday): Book review: Wilson, Timothy D., Redirect: The Surprising New Science of Psychological Change, unabridged audiobook on 6 CDs, read by Grover Gardner, HighBridge Audio, 2011.
The main theme of this book is that psychological interventions (to prevent teen pregnancies, curb drug abuse, improve educational outcomes, and the like, often do not work, because they are improperly designed. They are often based on common-sense ideas rather than scientifically verified hypotheses, with random assignment of subjects to various intervention methods and to control groups. Without the proper use of controls, it is impossible to deduce causation from correlations. Some spectacular failures cited in the book include decades-long programs, costing millions of dollars, which were never vetted using scientific methods, and were subsequently discovered to be ineffective or even exacerbating the condition they were meant to reverse.
The title of the book is meant to represent the "story editing" approach to change the narratives we tell about ourselves and the world around us. Stories we tell ourselves can become distorted and destructive, leading to correspondingly harmful behavior. Breaking of this vicious cycle is precisely what psychotherapy does. But, it turns out, that similar results can be obtained without the time-intensive one-on-one sessions. Simple writing exercises and occasional feedback can achieve much of the benefits.
Wilson presents numerous examples of how story-editing and story-prompting techniques have been used successfully to make people lead happier lives, become better parents, or bridge racial achievement gaps. An interesting point about the latter intervention is that When students of different races took the same test, composed of exactly the same questions, but with different narrative introductions, black students who read introductions that made multiple references to testing and IQ did poorly, whereas those who had the test questions described to tham as puzzles with no mention of the words test and IQ did as well as the white students. This is because references to test and IQ raise fear in the test-taker that s/he might reinforce the stereotypical view of blacks as inferior in achievement or intelligence, whereas characterizing the questions as puzzles carried no such connotation.
Here is a very interesting example of intervention programs. College students often have an exaggerated idea of how much their peers drink, leading to higher alcohol consumption as they try to keep up with the "cool" kids. When information about the acutual drinking habits of the average student was disseminated to all students, those who had the exaggerated view began to drink less. However, a minority of students who underestimated the drinking level of the average student, started to consume more alcohol.
Wilson ends the book with a recap of effective ways to redirect our own narrative and those of our children. Here are 8 practical suggestions from the final chapter:
- Be skeptical of advice from self-help books about easy roads to riches, fame, and happiness.
- As parents, be mindful not only of what your children do but of the narrative they are developing about themselves, their relationships, and the world at large.
- Use "the minimal sufficiency principle," whereby you use the smallest level of rewards and threats to shake your children's behaviors; going overboard can backfire.
- Appreciate the power of the "do good, be good" principle. Engage in volunteer work and encourage your kids to do the same.
- Initiate interactions with people outside your comfort zone, such as co-workers of a different race, ethnicity, or social class.
- Putting people in situations where they fear they will confirm negative stereotypes about their group can be debilitating.
- Be a good consumer of information from sources such as What Works Clearinghouse or Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence.
- When offered a new method of intervention, always ask politely, "But does it work?" We don't take new drugs unless they are fully tested and approved. The same standard should apply to psychological methods.

2016/01/10 (Sunday): Here are seven items of potential interest.
(1) Quote of the day: "Give a man a program and you frustrate him for a day. Teach him to program and you frustrate him for life." ~ Anonymous
(2) I wish there were no Heaven: Humorous Persian poem, written and recited by Khalil Javadi.
(3) The kids menu: Trailer and info for an upcoming film about encouraging and enabling kids to eat healthy.
(4) Amazing chase scene: Buster Keaton runs away from and dodges boulders in this hilarious chase scene from "Seven Chances" (1925).
(5) On-line course on advanced game theory: Yesterday, I began taking the Coursera/Stanford MOOC. Here are some details, in case you are interested. The weekly schedule is as follows: 1 Social choice; 2 Mechanism design; 3 Efficient mechanisms; 4 Auctions; 5 Final exam and final problem set. The reference material include the free PDF textbook, Multiagent Systems: Algorithmic, Game-Theoretic, and Logical Foundations, by two of the instructors (Y. Shoham and K. Leyton-Brown) and three sets of free PDF notes by the third instructor (M. O. Jackson). The first week of lectures, already posted, covers social welfare and social choice functions (essentially voting procedures, and the difficulties and subtleties therein).
(6) Charles Babbage pulls Alfred Lord Tennyson's leg in this 1842 letter: "In your otherwise beautiful poem ['The Vision of Sin'], there is a verse that reads — Every moment dies a man, Every moment one is born. ... If this were true, the population of the world would be at a standstill. In truth, the rate of birth is slightly in excess of that of death. I would suggest that in the next edition of your poem you have it read — Every moment dies a man, Every moment 1 1/16 is born. Strictly speaking, this is not correct, the actual figure is so long that I cannot get it into a line, but I believe the figure 1 1/16 will be sufficiently accurate for poetry."
(7) Final thought for the day: "Our greatest pretenses are built up not to hide the evil and the ugly in us, but our emptiness." ~ Eric Hoffer

2016/01/08 (Friday): Here are eight items of potential interest.
Giant statue of Chairman Mao in China (1) Giant Mao statue: The gold-colored statue of Chairman Mao, just completed in the Chinese countryside, is 37 meters high.
(2) Brief news headlines of the day:
- ISIS member kills his mother for insisting that he leave group
- Rain in California! Is the drought finally over?
- Many companies show off new tech gadgets at CES in Las Vegas
- Female engineers publish in more prestigious journals, cited less
- Saudis won't allow war with Iran, says their defense minister
(3) Iranian poetess Hila Sedighi arrested again: The 30-year-old civil activist was detained at Tehran's Airport upon returning from abroad. The Islamic regime, which has been arresting artists and writers at an alarming rate, seems to have stepped up its crackdown on the opposition.
(4) Sunni vs. Shia (Shi'i): Another explanation of the two main sects of Islam, in view of the recent incidents between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
(5) Look who performed in NYC's Times Square: I had never seen Andrea Bocelli play the guitar.
(6) Some wonderful piano music: Bach's Partita No. 2 in C minor, performed by Martha Argerich. A different post of this video indicated that the performance won the gold medal of the Royal Philharmonic Society.
(7) A wonderful cover of "Just Like a Woman": Charlotte Gainsbourg's sensual performance of Bob Dylan's classic from the 1970s.
(8) Timekeeping in computer systems: The simple question "What time is it?" is often answered by looking at a clock/watch that may be at best accurate to within a minute or so. In everyday usage, this accuracy suffices, as getting to class or a meeting a minute or so late is not disastrous. The situation is different in computer systems, where submillisecond or even submicrosecond accuracy is required for some application domains. Computer programmers deal with time by using available system calls that return the system's view of time (the so-called "wall clock"), maintained internally by means of a crystal oscillator. Again, this level of accuracy in time is adequate for most applications. Computers in a networked system may each have a slightly different view of time, thus creating a need for clock synchronization to prevent excessive clock drift. The network time protocol (NTP), first documented in the 1980s and last updated in 2010, was developed for this purpose. It provides a hierarchy of clocks of varying accuracies, all the way up to a reference clock that is highly precise. The lower-accuracy clocks imply lower overheads for access, so one should not use the more accurate versions unless absolutely needed by the application at hand. In 2002, IEEE defined the precision time protocol (PTP) that went through a period of obscurity but is now finding important uses in maintaining time across many thousands of servers in data centers, such as those of Google and Amazon. In financial applications, such as high-frequency trading, the ability to measure time accurately is indispensable. The same holds for systems that control robotic arms moving at 44 feet per second and electrical power network control systems, where imprecision in handing off energy from one block to the next can lead to catastrophic, fiery failures. [Adapted from "Time Is an Illusion," Communications of the ACM, pp. 50-55, January 2016; Wikipedia has good articles on both NTP and PTP.]

2016/01/05 (Tuesday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Kid with light saber offering to carve the turkey (1) Cartoon of the day. [From: E&T magazine, January 2016]
(2) Compensation for state-sponsored terrorism victims: After three decades of investigative work, including a trip by an undercover investigator to interview some of the principals involved in the Beirut Marine Barracks bombing of 1983, families of victims of state-sponsored terrorism may be a step closer to getting compensated for their losses. Iran has been clearly implicated in the Beirut and several other large-scale terrorist attacks. Exactly how, and from what sources, the victims will be compensated remain to be worked out, but the latest US budget includes a $1B fund for this purpose and another $1.9B in seized Iranian assets could become available after a US Supreme Court case has been resolved this month.
(3) Being pro life means shedding tears for senseless loss of life: Those who dismiss numerous mass killings as a necessary cost of respect for the Second Amendment cannot also claim to be pro life. [Obama's speech]
(4) On the latest international crisis in Iran: One of the positive effects of the lifting of sanctions was to be a diminished role for middlemen, the main sources of the corruptions we have witnessed over the past decade. Now, with the irresponsible act of attacking and torching the embassy of Saudi Arabia, those middlemen are celebrating, because they will get more business in trade with countries that have cut diplomatic ties with Iran. While the takeover of the US embassy in 1979 was chalked up to revolutionary zeal in the first year of the Islamic revolution, and the UK embassy takeover of 2011 was dismissed as the work of self-directed mobs (even though videos at the time showed police standing by and not interfering), this third episode of diplomatic irresponsibility was triggered, if not by direct orders from Khamenei, then by his rhetoric of "divine revenge." The problem with the Islamic regime in Iran is that it cannot survive in the face of peace and prosperity. It needs conflict to point its fingers at an external "enemy" for sociopolitical problems.
(5) Computer architect Gene Amdahl (1922-2015): Amdahl is best known for a law he formulated in the 1960s which states that the speed-up achieved through parallel processing would be limited to 1/f at best, if the program being run has a fraction f of its operations that are inherently sequential (unparallellizable). For example, if 5% of a program's operations are inherently sequential, speed-up can never exceed 20, no matter how many processors we throw at the problem. I have recently shown in my own work that what is known as Amdahl's Law for parallel processing speed-up can also be applied to system reliability improvement (IEEE Computer magazine, issue of July 2015). Lesser known, but just as important, is Amdahl's formulation of a set of rules of thumb for system balance that establish relationships between processing speed, memory requirements, and I/O performance. Amdahl worked at IBM for many years, where he was the principal architect for the famed System 360 series of mainframe computers. Later, his company, Amdahl Corporation, manufactured plug-compatible versions of IBM mainframes and introduced many software innovations to improve the performance and reliability of computer systems. Amdahl passed away recently at age 92.

2016/01/04 (Monday): Here are five items of potential interest.
Budgets and box office earnings for the previous six 'Star Wars' films (1) On the 7th "Star Wars" movie: No doubt this latest installment of what will likely become a nonalogy (a trilogy of trilogies) will be highly successful. If you don't believe this statement, just look at financial success of the previous six films. All have been very successful, but the highest box-office-to-production-cost ratio (yellow part of the bar in this chart to the red part) belongs to the original 1977 "Star Wars: A New Hope." [Chart from: E&T magazine, issue of January 2016]
(2) Printed airplane parts: Airplane manufacturers are increasingly incorporating 3D-printed parts into their designs. The latest Airbus plane, A350 XWB, has around 1000 3D-printed parts. Boeing indicates that 20,000 3D-printed parts will go into planes currently under construction. So far, 3D printing is used only for non-critical components. [Info from: ASEE Prism magazine, issue of December 2015.]
(3) An efficient killing machine that incapacitates its prey by going for the jugular.
(4) Pylones novelty gifts: One of the more interesting stores I visited during the recent France trip was Pylones, a chain carrying what can be described as novelty gifts distinguished by interesting and colorful patterns. You can get a sense of the kinds of items they carry by visiting the Pylone's Web site. The Web site for Pylones-USA is currently under construction. There is also a Pylones section at Amazon.com.
(5) Last week, during my trip to France, the cover image of Santa Barbara Independent celebrated the climate summit in Paris.

2016/01/03 (Sunday): Here are three items of potential interest.
CD box cover image for 'Word Smart & Grammar Smart' (1) Brief book review: Robinson, Adam and Julian Fleisher, Word Smart & Grammar Smart, Audio lessons on 6 CDs, read by various performers, The Princeton Review, 1997. `
The words part of this audiobook, spanning the first four CDs, covers some 200 less-commonly used words, which are arranged into 12 categories (each with 15+ words or word groups) for easier memorization through exposing their relationships. The words are also used in the context of personal narratives (some rather childish) for greater understanding.
The categories are labeled: All or nothing; I love you — I hate you; The naughty and the nice; The long and short of it; The mighty and the meek; You help me, then you hurt me; True or false; From the sublime to the ridiculous; Something old, something new; Alone or together; Now you see it, now you don't; The more things change, the more they stay the same.
The grammar part, spanning the last two CDs, includes useful rules about verbs, pronouns, modifiers, diction & usage, and parallel construction. I found this audiobook quite useful and plan on listening to it a second time. An example of words I learned from this book within the category "True or false" is "verisimilitude."
(2) Some people's facial features change as they grow up, but not in these two cases.
(3) Iran-Saudi relations enter a new phase: After Saudi Arabia's execution of 47 people, whom they characterized as terrorists, a mob took over the Saudi embassy in Tehran, which led to the Saudis kicking out all Iranian diplomats from that country and cutting political ties with Iran. Those executed included a prominent Shi'i cleric backed by Iran. This is a farcical scenario in which a country that has been executing opponents at an alarming rate for many years (Iran) accuses another dictatorial regime of human rights violations, both sides believing that God is on their side. The impact of these conflicts on the ability of Iranians to participate in the annual pilgrimage to Mecca is unknown. Take-over of the Saudi embassy is the third one of its kind. Previously, mobs supported by high-level Iranian officials had stormed and taken over the US and UK embassies, in 1979 and 2011, respectively.

2016/01/01 (Friday): Old blog entries up to the end of 2015 have been archived and a new Blog & Books page begins today with four items of potential interest.
What is special about the number 2016? (1) The special number 2016: Happy New Year to all readers of this blog! Well, the last day of 2015 has given way to the first day of 2016. At first sight, there seems to be little that's special about 2016. It's a leap hear, and that's about it. It does not begin a new millennium, a new century, or even a new decade. Yet, people everywhere are hopeful that it will bring peace and love to their lives and will restore sanity to our off-kilter sociopolitical system.
On second thought, there are special things about 2016. It is the difference of two powers of 2, that is, 2016 = 2^11 – 2^5. It is also a value of n for which n^3 + n^2 contains one of each digit. Can you add to this list? Also, can you insert math symbols in 2 0 1 6 to make an expression that evaluates to various numbers between 0 and 20? Here are the first five to get you started.
0 = 2 x 0 x 16
1 = [20/16], where square brackets represent rounding down
2 = {20/16}, where curly brackets represent rounding up
3 = –2 + 0 – 1 + 6
4 = 20 – 16
(2) Political polarization in America: This is the title of a study by Pew Research Center that looks at the way people get information about government and politics in three different settings: news media, social media, and discussions with friends/family. Somewhat oversimplifying, the study finds that conservatives tend to be tightly clustered around a single media source, have less trust in the media, and tend to associate with like-minded people. Liberals are less unified in their media loyalty, more trustful of the media, more likely to block/defriend someone, and tend to follow issue-based groups.
(3) Self-driving cars and the trolley problem: The trolley problem, a hypothetical dilemma where a person must decide whether to take action to kill one person instead of five people, has been a popular intellectual exercise for decades. Now, self-driving cars may have to be programmed with an answer to the dilemma.
(4) Natalie Cole dead at 65: The sultry, Grammy-winning R&B singer, and daughter of jazz legend Nat King Cole, has died after a long illness. Her most successful tune, a re-recording of her father's "Unforgettable" as a virtual duet with him, garnered multiple Grammy awards, including one for "Album of the Year." In this "Today" story, Cole talks about her comeback after a period of drug abuse and confides that heroin led her to hepatitis C.