Category Archives: Mind Uploading

Imagine you brought a phone and invested a keypart of your life savings into buying a luxury that you really wanted for a long time. Now imagine the feeling of losing it to a thief, who just got away with stealing it only 10 days after you bought it. Does that sound like something you dont want to happen to you?

With the help of another biker, I chased them. I managed to nab them at a traffic signal near the Noida stadium. They began beating me up. I somehow held on to two of them, but the third one sped away with my mobile phone.

He also spoke to Hindustan Times and said that there were many people at the signal witnessing the incident. But onlookers just stood there and watched, no one tried to help him. Monojs phone was only 10 days old and he brought it for20,000.

As I have synchronised my phones photo gallery with Google Drive, photographs including selfies clicked by the thief get uploaded to my account. I was even able to track the phones last location to Khoda in Ghaziabad.

An FIR has been lodged against the culprits at the Sector 20, Noida police station.Two of them have been identified as Lucky Singh and Sachin Singh. The theft took place on June 15 and Manojs phone is still being used by the thieves.

The police assured Manoj that his phone isunder surveillance and they will track the third guy who was involved in the theft!

We hope police locates his phone soon.

As for the thieves the only thing that comes to my mind is a little edited version of this Hindi saying, Chori mein bhi akkal chahiye hoti hai.

Good thing they did not have that!

News Source: Hindustan Times, DNA

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3 Boys Steal A Man's Phone And Get Traced After Uploading Selfies On His Google Drive - Storypick

From across the coffee shop, I noticed a gentleman walking in with a computer. Not a laptop, mind you. With both hands, he carried a full-on desktop, monitor and console included. Surely hes not ... I thought to myselfbut I was wrong. He plopped the machinery down on a table, plugged in, and ordered his coffee while the rest of us looked on in horror.

I understand there are no etched-in-stone rules for using coffee shops as your remote office, but there are some unwritten guidelines we should all follow if we dont want to be jerks.

More workers than ever are getting their stuff done remotely, and many coffee shops accommodate this work-from-wherever lifestyle, with fast and free Wi-Fi and large, communal tables complete with outlets. Other coffee shops buck the trend entirely by not offering Wi-Fi at all. Instead of clacking away at a keyboard, youre encouraged to relax with a book or (groan) socialize with other people.

Weve all heard the bad news that sitting will kill you. That might be a slight exaggeration, and

Therefore, the first order of business is finding a coffee shop where its appropriate to work in the first place. Sure, you can get your stuff done wherever you want; its not like theres a law forbidding you to use your laptop at a quiet cafe that doesnt have Wi-Fi. However, if you care about politeness, youll want to find a coffee shop that doesnt mind being your part-time office (we offer up some tips here). Once you do, follow a few simple rules of etiquette.

Its not like businesses dont want you there, but if the place is packed and youre taking up space, theoretically, theyre losing money from customers who could be sitting in your spot. If you need to stay, at least order something extra to make up for this. As a general rule, most insiders say you should order a drink every 2-3 hours.

I actually like to think about it in terms of total dollars spent rather than buying frequency, said Claire Murdough, a writer and former barista. For example, say you plan to be at a coffee shop for four hours. That doesnt mean you have to order $2 coffees every hour. Just plan to spend $10 (or whatever fee seems reasonable). This can be over a couple hours or all at once.

I like this option more because sometimes you just dont want to drink coffee every two hours. This way, the coffee shop still makes a profit and you still get to sit and work.

Consider it as the price to admission. And if you think there shouldnt be a price to admission, keep in mind that coffee shops especially independently run cafs need to meet a bottom line in order to stay in business, said Murdough, whose mother owned a coffee shop for 20+ years. Help them do that.

If you work at the same caf day after day, it probably starts to feel like your office away from home. But its not; its a caf. For most of us, it goes without saying that you probably shouldnt bring your desktop computer (Ive also heard of someone bringing a printer to a caf!), but there are a few other habits many baristas, patrons, and coffee shop owners would prefer you avoid:

While I wouldnt necessarily care [about meetings] as a baristait usually means more business, after allit sometimes frustrates me when Im a patron, Murdough said. Large meetings can easily add a lot of noise and distraction.

Its hard to find a place to meet clients, give presentations, host meetups, or conduct job interviews if you work from home. Ive seen a few coffee shops with separate meeting areas reserved for activities like this, and you can book them in advance. This will take some searching, but you can look for meeting spaces in your city on Yelp, for instance.

A coworking space is another option. Some of them will allow you to rent meeting rooms for the day, even if you dont regularly rent an office from them. Similarly, most libraries have meeting rooms that patrons can book for free.

If all else fails, set a limit on how long the meeting will last and how many people will join.

Remember, the Wi-Fi is for everyone, so dont hog the bandwidth. That means you should probably skip watching movies in the background or uploading or downloading a bunch of stuff. This is a good time to remind you to keep your data safe on public Wi-Fi networks, too. Make sure your sharing settings are turned off, your firewall is enabled, and youre only using Wi-Fi when you need it (you might even consider switching to a Virtual Private Network while you work).

Its not just Wi-Fi, though. You also dont want to hog the electricity. Plan to charge your laptop, phone, and any other device you bring with you before you leave the house. Once you get there, the only thing that should require fuel is you, and thats what the caffeine is for.

For the most part I think its generally fine to stay plugged in as long as you need to when the caf is empty, or if youre the only one working, Murdough said. It changes when others might need to charge or the caf is crowded.

If you do find yourself in need of a battery boost, charge enough to get you through your time there and then unplugsomeone has to pay for that electricity, so dont be a jerk about it.

My advice would be to gauge the environment and react accordingly, Murdough added. Self-awareness goes a long way. That said, a pretty universal rule is dont bring your own power strip or stretch cords across aisles. Its dangerous!

If you have the ability to work from anywhere, you probably work from home. That means you probably

It depends on the coffee shopsome are really loud and bustlingbut as a general rule, you should respect your fellow customers and keep it quiet. That means using headphones to listen to music or watch videos. It also means taking your phone and Skype conversations outside, though some are okay with short conversations. Heres the general consensus of some baristas and owners that American Express interviewed:

If youre going to take calls indoors, though, the rest of our interviewees stress: dont shout. Dunning elaborates:

Youre looking for that sweet spot, of being in a caf thats busy enough where most people wont notice, but not too busy that everyone around you can hear your conversation. My general rule as a manager was phone calls of any type were good to go until they were disturbing the other customers. But use headphones. Those conversations are twice as disturbing to other people with another voice coming through your tiny computer/phone speakers.

Speaking of using libraries as meeting spaces, dont forget: you can use them to work, too! Most of them come with free Wi-Fi, have plenty of places to sit, and are quiet so you can concentrate (sound helps you focus on certain tasks, but silence might be better for tasks that require a lot of cognitive demand). Whats more, libraries are awesome and patronizing them is an easy way to offer your support.

Finally, as reasonable as these rules are to most of us, theres always someone who equates being polite with infringement. As one remote worker put it:

If I spend $10 or more on a sandwich and a coffee, I should be able to stay as long as I want to.

In most cases, you totally can. But youre kind of being a jerk.

See the rest here:

How to Work on Your Laptop at a Coffee Shop Without Being a Jerk - Lifehacker

Conforming to the recent Feed the Poor scheme launched by Modi government, McDonalds has announced that all its branches across India will now offer McAloo Tikki only to those who are unemployed.

The decision has been taken keeping in mind their inability to buy anything thats priced higher than an Aloo Tikki every time they visit McDonalds.

In addition to this, customers ordering a Happy Meal at the McDonalds will be charged heavily because they are the only ones who like showing off by uploading pictures of their restaurant bills post the GST rollout.

As a punitive action, people who sit for long durations after eating their meals will be asked to calculate the amount of GST in their bills. If they miscalculate the amount of GST, we will brand them anti-national and send them to Pakistan, said Amit Jatia, who runs McDonalds in India.

McDonalds has discontinued its Happy Meal toys ever since the Feed the Poor scheme has been announced. Explaining this development, Mr Jatia said, Since this scheme is launched by the Narendra Modi-led NDA government, Congress Vice President has boycotted McDonalds entirely. If he is not going to visit McDonalds ever, what the point of keeping the toys here?

In a positive move, engineering and art students will be given a free McAloo Tikki if they produce their college identity card. It is a known fact that engineering and art students never get employed. Hence, we have decided to serve them a free McAloo Tikki as soon as they display their identity cards at the counter, said a waiter at the McDonalds.

On further investigation, our team found that the entire staff that serves customers at the McDonalds were engineering and art graduates.

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Reservation in McDonald's: McAloo Tikki will be served only to those who are unemployed - Firstpost (satire)

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Headlines abound whenever Facebook or Google introduce a new feature or product. Recently, both rolled out similar services for job seekers, but dont expect these tools to take all the work out of landing your dream job.

Heres what the two Silicon Valley giants are offering. Google will aggregate listings from five major job sites to display in search results. On Facebook, companies can post jobs and contact and track applicants. The social media site will also push relevant jobs into users news feeds.

Related: To Succeed You Must Make Yourself Indispensable

Both companies want to keep people on their websites longer and serve paying customers (i.e., advertisers and businesses). For the individual job seeker, these launches tout added convenience -- but to what purpose? Being able to blast out resumes to more companies from a single site may feel better quantitatively, but its potentially worse from a qualitative standpoint.

If you want to build your career and not just find a job, developing your professional network will be far more valuable than uploading your resume to every listing site on the internet.

Just do it: Put yourself out there, dont dismiss anyone as unhelpfuland be gracious to everyone you meet. You never know who may connect you to a great opportunity. Rather than view your network as a bunch of people you may eventually be able to use, approach it as a chance to meet interesting, diverse people who will expand your world and introduce you to new experiences, whether they be jobs or not. Dont limit yourself to the short-term goal of finding a job; invest in relationships that you can carry with you for years to come.

Related: How to Be Ready When Opportunity Knocks

Certainly, networking can be daunting when youre early in your career and dont have a lot to show for yourself. And especially if youre shy, it may be even harder to initiate conversations with people you barely know who are older and more experienced. The truth, however, is that many of us genuinely enjoy using our successes to help someone else who shows promise and ambition. I encourage my peers to become mentors all the time, so they can see how rewarding it is to get a youthful perspective and use their experience to further someone elses career.

LinkedIn is a great place to connect with potential mentors as well as people who might be looking to hire. You can also visit the pages of companies that interest you and find names of people in the department where youd like to work. But just like blindly sharing your resume wont guarantee results, you need to do more than send strangers invitations to connect online. Craft a personalized message to each person explaining your goals, why you consider this person a role model, and why you deserve a half-hour of their time.

Youre also going to have to approach people in the real world. Step outside your comfort zone, attend industry functions and meetups, and request informational interviews with people in roles to which you aspire. The worst that can happen is they say no, thanks or dont respond. Im in my colleges alumni database and have indicated Im open to hearing from recent grads seeking advice. Your school very likely has a similar network for finding established professionals in your target field.

Related: Get Maximum LinkedIn Leverage to Boost Your Career and Grow Your Business

Continuing education is another avenue for meetings others involved in your industry -- both teachers and fellow students. Ask where others have worked, how they found their jobsand whether theyd be willing to make introductions for you. Connect online to see who else they know.

And, while you dont want to turn every fun activity into a professional networking session, keep your eyes and ears open when youre socializing too. There might be someone in your book club, churchor spin class who knows someone at your dream company. As long as youre respectful and not overbearing, it cant hurt to let people know youre looking for career help.

Above all, remember you are asking people to give you something: their time, their advice, their support. Youre asking for a favor, so be gracious, patientand receptive, whether theyre in a position to offer you work or not.

Related: You Are Your Best Investment

Listen more than you talk. Be curious, open-mindedand flexible, rather than having a fixed agenda and set of expectations. If youve had a good first meeting but arent sure where to go from there, ask if you can continue to check in with them occasionally and seek their guidance when youre prepping for important interviews. See if theyll keep you in mind for an internship or even a freelance project.

Walking away from a networking meeting or informational interview without a promise is not a failure. Youre building relationships and your career, not job hunting. This is the beginning of a conversation that could last for years if it holds value for both of you.

Lisa Haugh has more than 15 years of experience leading legal and HR functions for a range of startups and mature companies. At Udemy, she heads up all legal and human resource functions, including all hiring, training and diversity efforts...

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How to Build a Career, Not Just Find a Job - Entrepreneur

Can you imagine a world without tigers? Can you imagine a day when these large, majestic cats are gone from the planet forever? Well, you can stop imagining now, because that could actually become a reality.

Globally, wild tigers are endangered their numbers have dropped 96% in the last century, from an estimated 100,000 to as few as 3,890 today.

The illegal tiger trade is one of the main reasons they are disappearing. More than a hundred tigers are killed each year, their body parts sold for profit through international criminal networks. Every part of the tiger, from skin and bones, to whiskers and teeth, is exploited and used to make products such as medicine, ornamental accessories, and textiles.

Today, the illegal tiger trade and the wider problem of wildlife trafficking reaches an estimated US$20bil (RM85.8bil) per year.

With that in mind, Tiger Beer has launched 3890Tigers, a digitally-led campaign that uncages art and creativity to raise global awareness of the plight of wild tigers.

By uploading a selfie on 3890Tigers.com, users can personalise their picture before posting it on social media to show their support.

3890Tigers (the name comes from the number of wild tigers left) is part of a six-year project in support of Tx2, a global commitment made by the governments of the 13 tiger range countries, including Malaysia, to double the worlds wild tiger population to 6,000 by 2022.

Tiger Beer kicked off the campaign with a donation of US$1mil (RM4.3mil) to organisations that support tiger conservation.

To drive home the urgency of the situation, it has also temporarily removed the tiger from its logo and is introducing a limited-edition design on select packaging without the iconic tiger for the first time in 84 years all to symbolise the threat of wild tigers disappearing.

Working in partnership with six artists from around the globe Malaysias Kenji Chai, Chinas Hua Tunan, Frances Mademoiselle Maurice, Russias Nootk, Britains Nick Gentry and the United States Tran Nguyen Tiger Beer has released an online tool which allows people to instantly create one-of-a-kind selfie art generated by AI.

Tiger Beer has removed the tiger from its logo and introduced a limited-edition design on select packaging without the iconic tiger for the first time in 84 years.

By uploading a selfie on 3890Tigers.com, users can choose from a range of signature styles including enigmatic street-art-meets-calligraphy, delicate paint and ink illustrations and fluttering rainbow origami to personalise their picture, before posting it on social media to show their support.

The campaign will conclude with a showcase event at Publika Mall in Kuala Lumpur, on Global Tiger Day (July 29). Art from the six artists will be on display alongside 250 individual tiger art pieces from local artists, symbolising the estimated number of Malayan Tigers left in the wild.

To create your unique selfie and show your support for the cause, visit 3890Tigers.com. For details of where you can catch the pop-up pledge booth, and for more information on the campaign, visit fb.com/tigerbeermy.

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A world without tigers? This beer company won't let that happen - Star2.com

About four months ago, the Orlando Sentinel created a new food-centric Instagram account: orlando.foodie. Guess who has been uploading some (in my humble opinion) pretty delectable shots?

Its rare that one of my cooking creations makes it onto the account, thanks mostly to timing (you will understand why soon). Local restaurants make some really fantastic looking eats, anyway.

Im not a professional photographer by any stretch of the imagination, but I have picked up a few lessons through trial and error. The next time you grab your cellphone or camera to snap a photo of your meal, I hope you keep them in mind.

If you have any suggestions of your own, please email me at ldelgado@orlandosentinel.com. Im always trying to improve.

Lighting is so key you cant completely disguise bad lighting with edits or filters.

For those of us without access to great lighting equipment, natural light becomes our best friend. Between work and daytime activities, most of my cooking is done at night in my older, poorly lit home hence the lack of home-cooked food photos on my social media.

When Im in a restaurant, Ive been known to pick up my plate and move it into better light for a quick shot (as long as Im not disturbing my fellow diners).

Does the food have texture? Is it colorful? Is it interesting? Ive vetoed shots because the delicious food wasnt photogenic.

For Instagram, hone in on your subject especially if it includes several dishes. If youre aiming for Instagrams classic square shot, you may not fit in all of those items if they are spread too far apart.

Bringing in a human element makes the photo more engaging. Include a hand holding everything from an ice cream cone to a spoonful of pot pie. You get the picture.

Take a photo of your plate from above, on the side or at an angle. Some foods such as pizza look best when photographed from above. Burgers, however, look fantastic at a side view.

Still, its always a good idea to shoot a variety of photos from different directions. Dont take just one picture of your meal. Who knows? That shot of a pizza slice at an angle may be winner.

Continued here:

5 tips to a delicious food photo - Orlando Sentinel

SCOTT SPORTS, Inc., established in 1958 and located in Sun Valley, Idaho, is a leading international manufacturer of premium bike accessories/equipment, running shoes, motosport and wintersport products.

As we count down the 36 days until the start of the 2017 Rocky Mountain ATV/MC Loretta Lynns AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship, we are going to look back at each year in the history of the event. Today we look back at 2005.

With believe the hype officially graduated from the amateur ranksMike Alessi now off and running with a pro career with KTM, and in the hunt for the 125 National MX Championshipthe focus shifted to his old rival, Ryan Villopoto. Villopoto came into his own on 85cc bikes to become Alessi's stiffest competitor, but in 12 knock down drag out minicycle motos in 2002 and 2003, he won just two. Alessi was a machine at the ranch. Villopoto won plenty of amateur races elsewhere, but the pressure was on to prove he could perform when the stage was his.

But a new nemesis loomed. Suzukis Jason Lawrence, who dominated the B class the previous year, heard all about Villopoto and set about establishing himself through his classic J-Law ways. All week, rumors spread through the ranch of J-Law skirting with trouble, leading to the classic quote from Carrrie Coombs (Davey's sister): "I've got two names on the shit list and both of them are Jason Lawrence."

But man could J-Law ride. Villopoto kept struggling with starts while Lawrence ran up front, winning the 125 A/Pro Sport title.Villopoto finished fourth that year, behind Kyle Chisholm and Martin Davalos.

"They keep saying Villopoto is supposed to be the next big thing and I never even saw him," said Lawrence in one podium interview.

In his final chance, after enduring frustration from team Alessi and talk and mind games from Lawrence, Villopoto finally came through to win 125 A going 1-1-1 to beat out Jake Weimer and Davalos. It's his only championship at Loretta's, a fact that shows sometimes being the chaser leads to the best possible motivation.

That was true in another class, also. The 125 Modified 12-15 ranks were loaded with the likes of Zach Osborne, Austin Stroupe and more, but Minnesota's Ryan Dungey scored an upset victory. The previous year, Dungey finished fourth in the same class behind Stroupe, Osborne, and Trey Canard.

Like Villopoto, that 2005 triumph would prove his only title at the event. Five years later, they were setting up to take over at the sport's highest levels. As for Alessi and Lawrence...do we have time to write a book?

Just as significant was a new method of coverage for the event. Led by teenaged video visionary Wes Williams and the DMXS Radio team, MX Sports Center, the first daily internet review show in the sport, debuted here. Shooting, editing and uploading daily 30-minute clips in the days before even YouTube existed is also a challenge worthy of a book. Williams and crew pulled it off, barely, with sweat, all nighters and youthful exuberance.

That was just the right mix for an event like this. Check out this clip from the first ever episode.

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36 Years of Loretta's - Racer X Online

Pssst I think we need to talk.Your dental practice does it have a HIPAA/HITECHcompliance plan? No? Youre not the only practice without one, trust us. If your business doesnt have a plan, however, its nearly impossible to ensure youre not violating HIPAA/HITECH andviolations can cost thousands, if not millions, of dollars. Here are five violations your dental practice is probably guilty of along with proper fixescourtesy of the IT experts at Frontier IT in Colorado Springs.

Problem:Open wifiSolution:Secure itAs blogger and HIPAA risk assessor Amy Woodnotes on DentistryIQ, I know more about 90% of the offices I walk into by accessing their wifi before I even speak with the doctor. Using a free app, Wood can see all devices, cell phones of patients and staff, office computers, printers, tablets, laptops, and the server of practices with open wifi, she writes. If I can do that with a free app, a thief or even a bored 14-year-old with a laptop can siphon patient information and an office would never know about it, Wood adds. A simpleTwitter search for hacked dentist wifiserves as a great example of the importance of this.

Problem:Unencrypted electronic personal health information (ePHI)Solution:Encrypt itAs Dr. Lorne Lavine explains in anarticle on the Modern Dental Network, many businesses dont encrypt their ePHI because they dont understand the need for encryption. HIPAA has defined encryption as an addressable concern, meaning, if its reasonable and appropriate, you must do it, Lavine writes. The problem is encrypting your data is both reasonable and appropriate. As Lavine points out, there went your get-out-of-jail-free card! The good news: Encrypting your data can be as simple as storing it on a self-encrypting drive or downloading a free program (though its undoubtedly better to consult with an MSP, or managed service provider, to ensure that your data encryption plan is foolproof and hackerproof).

Problem:Discussing patients in earshot of other patientsSolution:Just dontWere going to go out on a limb and assume that this is the most pervasive HIPAA violation because, lets face it, who doesnt love a good bit of juicy gossip? But just how sure are you that a patient isnt in earshot? Bottom line: It simply isnt worth the risk.

Problem:Storing patient records on a non-HIPAA-compliant file-sharing serviceSolution:Get Autotask WorkplaceFree online file-sharing services make accessing documents from anywhere, at any time, a breeze such a breeze, in fact, that it might be tempting to upload patient files for easy team access. Danger, Will Robinson! This is a flagrant HIPAA violation. A couple years back, St. Elizabeths Medical Center, a Massachusetts-based hospital, was fined more than $200,000 for uploading the ePHI of nearly 500 patients to such a service without first assessing the risks associated with the use of the service,according to DataPrivacyMonitor.com. Happily, there exist convenient, affordable HIPAA and HITECH-compliant file-sharing services likeAutotask Workplacethat allow employees to easily create, manage, organize and collaborate on files without risking hefty fines.

Problem:No back-up of medical filesSolution:Datto Backupify HIPAA/HITECH requires that your patients files are backed up and recoverable in case of disaster, whether thats a fire at your medical facility, a disgruntled employees revenge or a ransomware attack. With HIPAA-compliant solutions like Datto Backupify, theres no need to worry that your files are gone forever. Whats more, Backupify encrypts your data and even backs up your Office 365 calendar and contacts three times a day.

Just how HIPAA/HITECH compliant is your practice?Perhaps youre now beginning to question many procedures and practices at your clinic.

Whats a busy dentist or dental office manager to do?

Contact an MSP, or managed service provider.

MSPs specialize in working with small- to mid-sized businesses that dont have their own IT departments. An MSP cantailor an affordable service planto your dental practice, offering you only what you need likeserver and network monitoringordisaster recovery planning, according to the experts at Frontier IT.

Perhaps even better, partnering with an MSP can provide you with peace of mind that your patients valuable data is secure and your business is safe from potentially devastating fines.

Interested? Have questions? Lets chat.Give the experts at Frontier IT a ring today.

Read the original article at Frontier IT's website.

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5 HIPAA/HITECH violations your dental practice is making - Colorado Springs Gazette

We long to transcend the human condition

baona/Getty

By Joanna Kavenna

Death, be not proud, though some have called thee

Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;

For those whom thou thinkst thou dost overthrow

Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.

Here we are discussing transhumanism, defined by evolutionary biologist Julian Huxley in 1957 as the belief that the human species can and should transcend itself by realizing new possibilities of and for human nature. What relevance could the poet John Donne have to such a discussion?

A more recent explanation of transhumanism, by Oxford University philosopher Nick Bostrom, calls it a loosely defined movement that has developed gradually over the past two decades Attention is given to both present technologies, like genetic engineering and information technology, and anticipated future ones, such as molecular nanotechnology and artificial intelligence. This formulation resembles the poetry of English clerics even less than Huxleys did.

But though Bostrom does not express himself in quite the same fashion as Donne, the overarching sentiment is not dissimilar: Death, thou shalt die, or at least thou shalt be postponed as far as possible. Bostrom continues: Transhumanists view human nature as a work-in-progress, a half-baked beginning that we can learn to remold in desirable ways.

In other words, before death postponed or otherwise, life might be made considerably nicer: less fraught with disease and suffering, and altogether less half-baked. This is a metaphor from cooking, and transhumanist rhetoric is awash with such, at times treacherous, metaphors.

Transhumanists hope that by responsible use of science, technology, and other rational means we shall eventually manage to become posthuman, beings with vastly greater capacities than present human beings have. Bostroms lovely sentiment that the half-baked human must be improved by the responsible use of science has driven humanity for millennia, ever since we began using technologies of flint and fire and so on, and through innumerable and utterly vital developments in medicine and science. So one key question that we must pose and seek to discuss is how, specifically, the transhumanist movement will depart from or further enhance this consistent strain in human history?

Transhumanisms signature ambition, that we may become posthuman, leads us to a baroque and venerable question: what does it mean to be human, anyway? If we want to go beyond something, to transcend it, it is clear we must understand our starting point, the point beyond which we desire to go. The quest to fathom the self, to understand what it means to be human, is fundamental to almost every civilisation known to us. It defines one of the earliest works of literature, the Epic of Gilgamesh from ancient Mesopotamia, in which our protagonist embarks on a quest to understand who on earth he is and what hes meant to do with his mortal span of years. In ancient religious texts such as the Upanishads, all creation begins with the moment of becoming: I am! That is, the world comes from mind itself.

In many global religions, the human self is divided into body and soul, a material and an immaterial part. During the Enlightenment, Descartes famously tried to reconcile this ancient distinction and also placate the church by proposing that the material and immaterial somehow communicated or mingled via the pineal gland.

Skipping boldly through a few centuries of thought, we might arrive (blinking in surprise) at the philosophical novels of Philip K. Dick and his brilliant Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? This poses the ancient question again: what does it mean to be human? When is someone/something convincingly human and when are they not? Is your version of being human the same as mine? Or the same as the next humans?

As the Australian philosopher David Chalmers has said, consciousness this mysterious thing that every human possesses or feels they possess remains the hard problem of philosophy. We lack a unified theory of consciousness. We dont understand how consciousness is generated by the brain, or even whether this is the right metaphor to use. We speak of such mysteries in a funny system of squeaks and murmurs that we call language and that swiftly drops into the blackness of prehistory when we seek to trace its origins. We dont know who the first humans were: that fascinating quest likewise drives us straight into a great void of unknowing.

There is nothing wrong with unknowing: it is the ordinary condition of all humanity, so far. Yet, undeterred, we devise bold, elegant theories and advance them in many disciplines of thought. We develop beautiful and exciting almost-human machines and speculate about uploading consciousness. And in so doing, we are consistently rebaking, reheating or refrying the ancient philosophical dilemma: what does it mean to be human?

Pace Bostrom, transhumanism has not developed over the past few decades. Its predilections and concerns have developed over several millennia, and possibly further back, within civilisations we no longer recall. To go back in time to Ecclesiastes, there is nothing new under the sun. We are still here, and human, with our paradoxical longing to transcend the human condition.

More on these topics:

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Who do we think we are? - New Scientist

So we start day one without Gordon Hayward, how will we ever recover from his loss? I think the Utah Jazz are going to be fine in the long run. They may not look fine from the jump, but its going to work out with the gaggle of younger guards and wings who will be the primary beneficiaries of all of these extra meaningful minutes.

Im not disappointed that Gordon excised his choice to pick where in the world he lives. I am disappointed that if he had a 2k word blog post in the chamber, why didnt he make this news come out sooner instead of waiting for all these small forward free agents to be sent to other teams while Utah was left holding onto a massive cap hold and couldnt make any moves. Im also not a huge fan of the timeline of how things went down yesterday either - with the leak actually being what precipitated any news from coming out. The denials werent great either as in the pit of our collective stomachs we felt that Gordon was gone, in mind and spirit, if not yet body.

However, its not the end of the world. If anything Im more disappointed that the Utah Jazz had to accommodate him so much after all the special treatment he received. He didnt get to start right off the bat and play big minutes as a rookie, but he was a bigger part of the rotation than Derrick Favors (the #3 pick of that same 2010 Draft class). He was the only one out of the Favors, Enes Kanter (#3, 2011), Alec Burks (#12, 2011) group that had a regular role in the roster for much of their rookie contract.

The marketing department featured him, the sales department sold him, and the in-house PR / broadcasting / propaganda division adored him. They fawned over him like he was an over the hill veteran who signed on to play ahead of a guy on a rookie deal. All of this reached a crescendo in the days leading up to July 1st. The #Hayday thing, their radio guys suggesting that he could be the best wing player ever in franchise history. Or that he would one day have a statue in front of the Delta Center EnergySolutions Arena Vivint Smart Home Arena Aunt Viv that was the last straw for me.

How dare the Jazz own propaganda wing forget their own history? Gordon Hayward? Up there with John and Karl? Really? Moreover, this became a personal project for me over the next few days and I researched every wing player in New Orleans / Utah Jazz history. And the statement is entirely baseless and ludicrous.

Gordon Hayward, who has four total playoff wins to his credit, all in the first round, is the best wing in franchise history? Gordon Hayward, who was the first option for four straight years and got over 20 ppg just once, is the best wing in franchise history? He didnt have to defend Michael Jordan in the NBA Finals. He didnt have to carry a team of some of the worst talented Jazzmen ever. He didnt have to face triple teams on the regular, as a wing player.

Even thinking about it again makes me upset at all the sucking up that went his way for the last two seasons - two seasons of development hijacked by trying to convince a guy that he should give us a chance when hes a free agent? This isnt the way Jerry Sloan and Frank Layden would have handled it. This is not Larry H. Millers team anymore if that trade-off is made.

Utah earned every single one of those draft picks. They are assets to be used, but back in the day some of the best players to play for the team were draft picks that turned into Jazzmen. Now were throwing away lottery picks in order to keep Hayward happy? Can you list all of the lotto picks John and Karl played with? You go to the NBA Finals with Adam Keefe being the only other lotto pick, Gordon. Show us that youre really the best wing in franchise history?

Pathetic.

Lets actually look at the numbers and judge for ourselves what his legacy in a Jazz jersey is. This data comes from the database over at basketball-reference.com - and I trust them implicitly.

In regards to the time put in, and the simple metrics of what shows up in the box score - a few wings right off the bat have been much more productive on the court. A few of them have put in more time as well, and been a much more visible part of Jazz history, especially in the NBA Playoffs. Just in minutes alone we see Hayward is between Jeff Hornacek and Matt Harpring. Thats probably where his actual legacy lies as well.

Career Utah Jazz per game averages (regular season and playoffs combined):

Yeah, I dont see how a 15 / 4 / 3 / 1 guy is the best this great franchise has to offer. He was the best player on some of the worst teams weve seen though. So theres that. His peak is more similar to Kendall Gill (with the New Jersey Nets) than it was with the actual Hall of Famers. Adrian Dantley (rounding up) averaged 30 ppg in four straight seasons. And he still added 3 apg to his 30 ppg and 6 rpg over his entire Jazz career. Pete Maravich was the do it all star for this early franchise. His 25 / 4 / 6 / 1 is also better.

Ah! But both of these guys didnt start their career with the team, nor did theirs end with the Jazz either. So to be the best you have to spend all of your career with the team? What about Darrell Griffith, his 16 / 3 / 2 / 1 is pretty similar to Hayward - but Griff was Rookie of the Year, was in the Slam Dunk contest, and actually won games in the NBA Playoffs. One rpg and one apg dont make Hayward better than Dr. Dunkenstein.

If were expanding it to guys who were Jazzmen for parts of their careers you have to give it up to Bryon Russell, Jeff Hornacek, and Andrei Kirilenko as well. B-Russ had the hardest job of any Jazz wing. Horny turned a 2nd round team into an NBA Finals team. AK-47 was just better than Hayward, period. But got none of the love from the team that Gordon did. (2nd quarter time out ceremony? Not even a half-time ceremony?)

Note: I have the data for per 36 minutes and analytics as well, but I have been getting errors on uploading the table for the past 10 minutes. I think this post has too much data in it, and its not allowing it to happen. So Im not going to go into the deep stuff. But I will say that Hayward doesnt look like the best wing ever in either dataset. He wasnt the most efficient player per 36, with guys like John Drew, Nate Williams, Donyell Marshall, and even Allan Bristow coming ahead of him.

Part of that is pace related, and just flat out ability. Hayward worked hard on his game to be a very good player. But hes not the best that ever was. Hes just the one from the vine / instagram generation.

He has a three point shot, and many of these guys from the 70s and 80s did not. But skill development is cumulative. Today we have power forwards learning more difficult dribbling drills than guards from back in the day. Everyone is shooting from three, and back then there wasnt even a three point line for some of the players in this data set. Skills are cumulative. Gordon Hayward has a lot of them. Thats a product of his era. Its not all on him.

And the mantle of best Wing player ever isnt either. He didnt lead a team of nobodies to near immortality like Andrei did. He didnt destroy the league like Pistol Pete or AD did. He didnt bring the team to the cusp of a championship like Horny did. Even as a second or third banana, what he apparently wants, he didnt do it quite like Jeff Malone or Darrell Griffith.

Is Hayward right now one of the best players in the NBA? Absolutely. Was he one of the best players on last years 51 win team? Yes. Did he score big in three playoff games? Yes he did.

Is his departure going to wreck the team? No more than his inclusion in it changed the history books of the franchise.

Goodbye Hayward. Thank you for being so precious for so long. Hopefully now everyone and stop acting like you were better than you actually were. The numbers, especially the analytics, suggest that you were a generalist - not a specialist. You were vanilla in a whole store full of more colorful and memorable flavors.

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Gordon Hayward the best Jazz wing player of all time? Not what the numbers say. - SLC Dunk