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Posts Tagged 'Social media'
Facebook is just another disinformation source
That Facebook is biased and reflects the views of its owners/managers is neither a surprise or anything wrong. What I find reprehensible is the lie promoted by Facebook that ist is objective and unbiased. After the Gizmodo story this week, Facebook denied that it was spinning the news. But the latest revelations show that the allegations were fundamentally true. The simple truth is that Facebook promotes certain news stories and suppresses others. They don't manufacture news. But what they do is to spread a skewed version of what is news. And that is disinformation. Again, nothing wrong with that. It is what every newspaper or TV channel does. But the prejudices and biases of, say, the Washington Post are not hidden under a false cloak of objectivity.
facebook disinformation
The shattering of the cloak of objectivity around Facebook and its subjective choice of news stories to promote or to suppress can no longer be ignored by Zuckerberg and he has initiated an "investigation". A biased platform with a hidden, skewed agenda is fundamentally incompatible with selling advertising where the advertisers need to know, objectively, how well their messages are targeted.
BBC:
Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has said the company is investigating claims it censored news reports with conservative viewpoints. It follows a week of allegations in the media and discussion in the US Senate.
The tech news website Gizmodo had said Facebook staff suppressed articles on conservative topics from the site's "trending" news section and "injected" others, even if they were not trending. ….
….. Mr Zuckerberg said he was inviting leading conservatives to meet him to discuss their views.
…… Gizmodo's original report alleged that staff tampered with trending topic stories and were told to include stories published by the BBC, CNN and other mainstream news organisations ahead of smaller news sites.
It said the trending topics section was run like a newsroom, with curators able to "blacklist" or "inject" topics.
The report was followed by a release of documents to The Guardian, which appeared to show editorial decision-making by Facebook staff, alongside the company's algorithm, to determine what is trending.
The Guardian:
Leaked documents show how Facebook, now the biggest news distributor on the planet, relies on old-fashioned news values on top of its algorithms to determine what the hottest stories will be for the 1 billion people who visit the social network every day.
The documents, given to the Guardian, come amid growing concerns over how Facebook decides what is news for its users. This week the company was accused of an editorial bias against conservative news organizations, prompting calls for a congressional inquiry from the US Senate commerce committee chair, John Thune. ….
….. But the documents show that the company relies heavily on the intervention of a small editorial team to determine what makes its "trending module" headlines – the list of news topics that shows up on the side of the browser window on Facebook's desktop version. The company backed away from a pure-algorithm approach in 2014 after criticism that it had not included enough coverage of unrest in Ferguson, Missouri, in users' feeds.
The guidelines show human intervention – and therefore editorial decisions – at almost every stage of Facebook's trending news operation, a team that at one time was as few as 12 people ……
Facebook is in the business of skewed information dissemination and that skewing is effectively disinformation. Every entity involved in providing information must, by its selection of information to be distributed, also be involved in disinformation. But the additional problem for Facebook is that this disinformation and skewing of stories is not in the interests of the advertisers. Facebook is not just misleading its users, it is misleading its advertisers.
Tags:disinformation, Facebook, Social media
Posted in Behaviour, Media | Comments Off on Facebook is just another disinformation source
Shy people get depressed (courtesy Facebook)
Two articles today about research on Facebook usage.
Shy People Use Facebook More [Research]
Shy and introvert people spend more time on Facebook but disclose little information with friends and acquaintances, said Pavica Sheldon, assistant professor at The University of Alabama in Huntsville's communications arts department.
Facebook addicts at a risk of developing depression
Facebook users spending a lot of time on the social networking site, might be feeling down, lonely and even depressed, claims a new report.
A recent study has revealed a link between a Facebook and the dampened mood of active users who feel they have "wasted time on doing" what they call "meaningless activity."
Which in turn suggests that shy people use Facebook longer, are more likely to be addicted and therefore more likely to be depressed.
But I would have thought that shy people are more likely to be lonely and more likely to be depressed – anyway.
Tags:Facebook, Facebook research, Social media
Posted in Behaviour, Media | Comments Off on Shy people get depressed (courtesy Facebook)
Intrusive ads are counter-productive – at least with me
I must be representative of some consumers since I do buy stuff.
I even buy quite a lot of stuff on-line. Tickets of any kind (theatre, airline, museum, train, football, hockey bus ……), books, music, electrical and electronic gadgets and a host of small articles capable of being delivered by post. We book hotels on-line and sometimes pay on-line as well. We generally don't buy food or clothes on-line but we do sometimes (at least my wife does) respond to the flyers dropped into our letter box by local retailers. Nearly all automotive products or materials for house repairs are bought physically and not on-line though we may have searched on-line.
But what I observe is that when I buy-on line it is from sites that I know or for which I have searched on-line. Never by clicking on an ad at another site. Even when I search I always hop over the paid ads which show up at the top of the search results. For a store to show up in a search result is much more important in getting my custom than in their advertising having been seen on another site. I cannot recall a single instance in the last year of buying something in response to an on-line ad. But what I also observe is that there is some threshold level of intrusiveness which leads me to remove sites from my bookmarks. If a site directs me first to full-page ads which I have to click away – and especially if they make it difficult to find the "close" button – then those sites get removed from my bookmark lists. I don't watch videos on-line if their ads don't disappear within 5 seconds. If my mouse, when hovering over text, brings up too many intrusive ads then the entire site gets onto my "black-list". I don't mind registering for some services at some sites but if that process takes longer than about 30 seconds (perhaps a minute) then that site never gets visited again. Of course it could be that some of the on-line ads are having a subliminal effect and reinforce my perceptions when I search for on-line stores – but it is not very likely.
Even on TV and especially since the break for commercials is so long (in Sweden a commercial break lasts 6 minutes and there are not many ads of high quality), the commercial break either leads me to surf other channels or to go do something else. In the last year or two I notice that there are more TV programmes that I watch only up to the first commercial break because I then go and do something else and never get back in time to watch the rest of the programme. If it is a sporting or political event, then I may well return to the programme – after the commercial break. In any event the people paying vast sums for making and airing the commercials do not capture my attention. If anything they create a resentment in me since I am either a "captive audience" or am being coerced to view their "nonsense". And it is the resentment which leads to the content being classified in my mind as "nonsense". I never watch TV shopping channels but they clearly don't have me as their target audience. The very existence of the commercials is leading me to strategies to avoid them!
My behaviour is surely influenced by the presence of ads on-line and commercials on TV. However, the behaviour engendered in me is nearly always counter-productive from the viewpoint of the advertiser. Maybe I am an untypical consumer – but I doubt it. Which makes me wonder how effective some of this advertising is?
Certainly advertising agencies and the industry in general will never admit that there can be too much advertising. They get paid for exposure (or apparent exposure) and not for sales achieved. They don't suffer any penalty for resentment caused or customers driven away. But I would suggest that there is a threshold – very low in my case – at which on-line advertising and commercials on TV become counter-productive.
I get virtually no text ads on my phone. I stopped using Facebook and Twitter some months ago so at least I am not harassed by their ads. But from what I hear, the intrusiveness of the ads on the social media are now leading to some people reducing their use and, in some cases, ending their use of social media. Social media and their business models are still evolving but the assumption that advertising revenues can keep increasing forever is fundamentally flawed.
BBC: Twitter reports $645m loss for 2013
Microblogging site Twitter has reported a net loss of $645m (£396m) for 2013, just three months after its flotation on the New York Stock Exchange. The loss was expected by analysts, who highlighted Twitter's revenues, which rose 110% last year to reach $665m.
But a reported slow growth in user numbers was a bigger concern for investors. Twitter averaged 241 million monthly users in the last quarter of the year, up just 3.8% on the previous quarter. That represents a slowdown compared with a growth rate of 10% seen at the beginning of 2013. Timeline views were down nearly 7%, suggesting users were refreshing their feeds less often.
"What this report will do is it will question how mainstream is Twitter as a platform," said Arvind Bhatia, an analyst at Sterne, Agee & Leach.
Shares fell as much as 12% in after-hours trading on Wednesday.
Tags:Advertising, business model, commercials, Facebook, on-line advertising, Social media, TV, Twitter
Posted in Behaviour, Business, Media | 1 Comment »
Will buying "likes" on Facebook and Twitter translate into votes?
Perception can be reality. And fake "likes" are being used to generate fake perceptions of popularity and goodness. Whether humans are dumb enough to be taken in by fake perceptions and whether perceptions can be converted into real voters and customers remains to be seen.
The assumption within the public relations and advertising industry is that buying "likes" on social media actually leads to some advantage for the person/thing/company being liked. Clearly some companies perceive "likes" as being an effective – if unproven -advertising form. There seems to be no shortage of people offering ways of buying and boosting "likes". Offers are readily available to arrange "2000 Facebook likes for only $17, or 5000 for $35 or 100,000 for $500". Carlo De Micheli and Andrea Stroppa have been looking at Twitter and the underground market
De Micheli and Stroppa
We estimated fake accounts make up for 4% of Twitter's user base
Facebook makes it harder to create fake accounts yet openly declares: "As of June 30, 2012, we estimate user-misclassified accounts may have represented approximately 2.4% of our worldwide MAUs and undesirable accounts may have represented approximately 1.5% of our worldwide MAUs.
Every account can follow up to 2000 people.
By statistically excluding overlapping fake accounts, just on the 12 main marketplaces (Fiverr, SeoClerks, InterTwitter, FanMeNow, LikedSocial, SocialPresence, SocializeUk, ViralMediaBoost), it turns out there are around 20M fake followers on sale right now.
Followers are sold at an average price of $18/1000 followers (barracudalabs).
Sellers can make between $2 and $36 per fake account
Multiplying it out definitely shows a multi-million-dollar market
Apart from entertainment figures wanting to boost their apparent popularity, the buying of "likes" has now become a routine matter for politicians facing elections. They are relying on the herd mentality to lead to an increase of votes in their favour. The risk they take is that humans – when acting as a mob or a herd – don't like acknowledging or being accused of acting like dumb animals. But the risk of this backlash is being taken as being small. Politicians in India are now all rushing to buy "likes" – as just another legitimate advertising ploy. They have been paying for favourable articles about themselves and negative articles about their opponents in the print media for many years. But even the most socially illiterate politicians – who wouldn't know a tweet from a twit – are spending a great deal of money to be able to show huge numbers of "likes"!
What part fake likes and dislikes are going to have in the Delhi elections next week and the national elections next year, remains to be seen. It could be quite effective in a city like Delhi where the penetration of social media among the new urban population is high but among whom political awareness is still relatively new.
FirstPost: In a new sting operation, Cobrapost has revealed how certain IT companies in India are working to manipulate social media campaigns by buying fake FB likes and followers on Twitter, and running negative campaigns against rivals of their clients and also engaging in creating panic among minority groups. The report states that the most of these companies are working on the behest of BJP and Modi, but also work for Congress sometimes, and in addition manage campaigns for multinational firms, corporations etc as well. ……. In a statement to Firstpost, Facebook said that where fake likes and profiles are concerned, "It's a violation of our policies to use a fake name or operate under a false identity, and we encourage people to report anyone they think is doing this.
Cobrapost: Operation Blue Virus also makes certain stunning revelations. If the claims of the companies exposed are to be believed, among political parties, BJP is at the forefront in social media campaign, so is its Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, with scores of companies working overtime for him. This puts a question mark on the claims of the BJP leadership that there is a wind blowing in favour of their party and Narendra Modi. The larger-than-life-image that Team Modi has assiduously carved out for Modi over the past one decade may not be that real, rather invented, and is reminiscent of the Goebbellian propaganda, to sway the opinion of gullible public. It is no surprise then that even a milder criticism of the BJP's star campaigner invites scathing attacks from his followers on social media, claimed to be in millions in count.
Paul Joseph Goebbels would have been in his element.
Tags:behaviour, Delhi, Elections, Facebook, Fake followers, Fake likes, Narendra Modi, perceptions, Social media, Twitter, voters
Posted in Behaviour, Business, India, Media, Politics | Comments Off on Will buying "likes" on Facebook and Twitter translate into votes?
"Liking" on Facebook is a cheap, easy alternative to donating
For charities and other organisations dependent upon public donations, Facebook and other social media represent a glittering silver cloud with a very dark lining! Having an enormous reach via social media may seem like success but it could be counter productive. Potential donors presented with the alternative of clicking on a "like" button to making a real donation take the cheaper route. The more public the "like" the less likely the donation. They assuage their consciences and keep their pocket-books untouched!
Not really so surprising I suppose but a useful confirmation of behavioural tendencies.
Kirk Kristofferson, Katherine White, and John Peloza, The Nature of Slacktivism: How the Social Observability of an Initial Act of Token Support Affects Subsequent Prosocial Action, Journal of Consumer Research, Published by: The University of Chicago Press, Article Stable URL:http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/674137.
EurekAlert:
Would-be donors skip giving when offered the chance to show public support for charities in social media, a new study from the University of British Columbia's Sauder School of Business finds.
"Charities incorrectly assume that connecting with people through social media always leads to more meaningful support," says Sauder PhD student Kirk Kristofferson, who co-authored the forthcoming Journal of Consumer Research article.
"Our research shows that if people are able to declare support for a charity publicly in social media it can actually make them less likely to donate to the cause later on."
The study results add fuel to recent assertions that social media platforms are turning people into "slacktivists" by making it easy for them to associate with a cause without committing resources to support it.
In a series of studies, researchers invited participants to engage in an initial act of free support for a cause – joining a Facebook group, accepting a poppy, pin or magnet or signing a petition. Participants were then asked to donate money or volunteer.
They found that the more public the token show of endorsement, the less likely participants are to provide meaningful support later. If participants were provided with the chance to express token support more privately, such as confidentially signing a petition, they were more likely to give later.
The researchers suggest this occurs because giving public endorsement satisfies the desire to look good to others, reducing the urgency to give later. Providing token support in private leads people to perceive their values are aligned with the cause without the payoff of having people witness it.
With the holiday season being the biggest fundraising period of the year, the researchers say it is vital that charities take another look at their strategies and plan appropriately.
The ease and painlessness of "liking" actually degrades the quality of the connection – be it for donations or for representing support for people or causes. When a "supporter" has little else to do than to click a "like" button, that support is not worth very much.
In relationship selling, I used to advise our salesmen that the way to judge a relationship was to consider the kind of "favour" the relationship could allow and support without jeopardising the relationship. The strength or quality of a "social connection" is still – I think – to be judged by the width and breadth and weight of the service that can be initiated and carried by the connection without breaking it. A "like" is pretty light-weight as social connections go.
Tags:Facebook, Journal of Consumer Research, Liking, Liking versus giving, Sauder School of Business, Social media
Posted in Behaviour, Social media | 1 Comment »
Has Facebook reinstated beheading videos for the NSA or just for revenue – or for both?
That Facebook allows NSA access to all its material has become clear from the Snowden leaks.
In addition to phone records and email logs, the National Security Agency uses Facebook and other social media profiles to create maps of social connections — including those of American citizens.
That beheading and other videos with gratuitous violence are often uploaded on Facebook is apparent (and whichever way Facebook twists and turns it is equally apparent that they must stand as the publishers – if not the authors – of such material). That much of the uploaded material is faked is also apparent (especially from areas of conflict). It is the gratuitous violence which attracts the voyeuristic surfers like a crowd gathering at the scene of a bloody incident. The sight of vultures gathering at the carcass of a kill attract even more scavengers of all kinds. It is the gatherings of the crowds which increases the revenue generating traffic for Facebook.
The more bloodstains on the road the larger the crowd of ghouls who gather. But among the ghouls are also perpetrators returning to the scene of their crimes where the "incident" was not just an accident. And that interests the NSA.
Why then has Facebook removed its ban on such material? There are very few voices supporting the move.
Who gains? Why the NSA and Facebook. The NSA needs material to mine in its search for the "bad" guys. And people who behead others or fake such pictures or are inspired by such material are of special interest. And Facebook wants the revenues.
ArsTechnica: Facebook said that overall, it received between 9,000 and 10,000 requests from authorities in the second half of 2012, pertaining to between 18,000 and 19,000 individual Facebook accounts. …. By the end of July 2013, we learned directly from an FISC judge that no corporation ever served with a "business record" court order under the Patriot Act has ever challenged one. This is despite the fact that the law provides them a means to do so.
Judging by what Facebook does – and not by what it says – also suggests that they are a lot closer to the NSA than they would like their users to know.
Beforeitsnews: About a year after Facebook reportedly joined PRISM, Max Kelly, the social network's chief security officer left for a job at the National Security Agency, either a curious career move or one that makes complete sense. The Chief Security Officer at a tech company is primarily concerned with keeping its information inside the company. Now working for an agency that tries to gather as much information as it can, Kelly's new job is sort of a complete reversal.
And it does not matter where in the world you are. If you are on Facebook your information is in a security agency's database somewhere. It may not have been flagged as being of special interest but it's there. If not at the NSA then surely at GCHQ or with the Germans or with the Russian agencies. Even if meta-data is only kept for some limited period of time – once your existence has been registered it can never be deregistered. And if the initial data was "flagged" for any reason then that individual will forever be under surveillance.
Tags:advertising revenue, Decapitation, Facebook, GCHQ, Graphic violence, National Security Agency, Patriot Act, Social media, Social Networking
Posted in Behaviour, Media | Comments Off on Has Facebook reinstated beheading videos for the NSA or just for revenue – or for both?
Social media anonymity encourages and nurtures the herd mentality
It seems to me that the anonymity afforded by social media encourages and nurtures the "herd" mentality in human behaviour. A herd mentality is the essence of "mob behaviour" and it would seem that social media – like mobs – remove or suppress the controls and judgement calls that individual behaviour is usually subject to. I suspect that it is the anonymity available together with the potential for a "flash, online crowd" which together contribute to reaching the "critical mass" needed for the establishment of an "unthinking mob".
Mob behaviour is characterised by being reactive and where individuals try to "outdo" the behaviour of their fellows under the cover of being anonymous. But it needs a sufficient number of individuals to reach some critical mass to qualify as a mob. It is visible in the positive sense during rapturous calls for an encore after a concert and in the reaction to high oratory. Or it shows up in a negative way in the behaviour of a lynch mob or in the reaction to the speech of a demagogue. It has shown up in the on-line, "mob-bullying" by social media of some vulnerable teenagers which has even led to their suicides. It shows up with the internet trollls hovering on the fringes looking for a "mob" to join on-line.
A member of a mob gains anonymity in the crowd and his individual actions – while contributing to the behaviour of the mob as a whole – are no longer identifiable as the actions of a specific individual. More importantly the individual behaviour is not subject to identification or to being sanctioned. Just as with a stampeding herd of impala being chased by a predator, it is anonymity and running faster than your neighbour but still staying within the mob which provides this perception of protection. It is this feeling of being protected – I think – which switches off the normal human need for risk assessment and rational judgement to be applied before actions and which shifts behaviour away from the conscious plane. Aping and "outdoing" your "neighbour" from within the mob is then prioritised over the exercise of mind and judgement.
A new study shows that what we "like" on social media clearly exhibits a "herd mentality" and depends mainly on what others before us and around us have "liked". It seems that random "dislikes" however are compensated for.
Lev Muchnik, Sinan Aral and Sean J. Taylor, Social influence bias: a randomized experiment. Science. Vol. 341, 9 August 2013, p. 647. doi: 10.1126/science.1240466
(The paper is paywalled but there is a related discussion here with the authors about "The effect of free access on the diffusion of scholarly ideas")
Abstract: Our society is increasingly relying on the digitized, aggregated opinions of others to make decisions. We therefore designed and analyzed a large-scale randomized experiment on a social news aggregation Web site to investigate whether knowledge of such aggregates distorts decision-making. Prior ratings created significant bias in individual rating behavior, and positive and negative social influences created asymmetric herding effects. Whereas negative social influence inspired users to correct manipulated ratings, positive social influence increased the likelihood of positive ratings by 32% and created accumulating positive herding that increased final ratings by 25% on average. This positive herding was topic-dependent and affected by whether individuals were viewing the opinions of friends or enemies. A mixture of changing opinion and greater turnout under both manipulations together with a natural tendency to up-vote on the site combined to create the herding effects. Such findings will help interpret collective judgment accurately and avoid social influence bias in collective intelligence in the future.
ScienceNews writes:
When rating things online, people tend to follow the herd. A single random "like" can influence a comment's score at a social news site, researchers report in the Aug. 9 Science.
Users of the site discuss news articles and rate each other's comments with "up votes" (positive ratings) and "down votes" (negative ratings). Votes affect each comment's overall score. To test whether previous ratings sway users, Sinan Aral of MIT and colleagues randomly assigned all comments submitted to the site over a five-month period an up vote, a down vote or no vote.
An unearned up vote packed a surprising punch. The first person to view a randomly liked comment was 32 percent more likely to rate it positively than to do the same with a comment that had received no vote. In the long run, boosted comments' final scores were 25 percent higher than scores of untouched comments. Random negative votes did not affect a comment's final rating because users compensated with extra up votes.
The findings may help researchers analyze herding behavior or manipulation in other kinds of rating systems, including electoral polls and stock market predictions, the authors suggest.
Tags:Anonymity, Collective intelligence, Herd mentality, mob behaviour, protection by anaonymity, Social influence, Social media
Posted in Behaviour, Media, psychology | Comments Off on Social media anonymity encourages and nurtures the herd mentality
Twitter effectively accepts that it is a publisher and responsible for content
I have no doubt in my mind that social media such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are – in fact – publishers. They benefit from the advertising revenues raised on the back of their "reach" and must be responsible – and accountable – for the content they publish.
The abuse of a number of women on Twitter in the UK has now led the head of Twitter UK to personally apologise and for Twitter to now take a number of steps to prevent this kind of abuse. It is a tacit admission of responsibility for their content and completely undermines their previous stand that they are not a publisher. Even though Twitter is "requesting" its users to exercise restraint, their "commitment" makes it clear that Twitter is taking responsibility – even if only implicitly – for ensuring that their users exercise the proper restraint.
A well deserved pat on the back for Twitter (assuming they don't back away from this commitment and later try to pin the blame on irresponsible users).
Tony Wang apology (Twitter UK)
BBC: The boss of Twitter UK has said sorry to women who have experienced abuse on the social networking site. Tony Wang said the threats were "simply not acceptable" and pledged to do more to tackle abusive behaviour.
The apology came as Twitter updated its rules and confirmed it would introduce an in-tweet "report abuse" button on all platforms, including desktops. Police are investigating eight allegations of abuse including bomb and rape threats made against women.
Two people have been arrested in relation to Twitter rape threats against Labour MP Stella Creasy and feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez, who received the threats after a campaign to have Jane Austen on the new £10 note.
Three female journalists said they were subjected to bomb threats on the site.
The revelations sparked a backlash online, with a petition calling for Twitter to add a "report abuse" button to tweets attracting more than 124,000 signatures. In a series of tweets, Twitter UK general manager Mr Wang said:
"I personally apologize to the women who have experienced abuse on Twitter and for what they have gone through. The abuse they've received is simply not acceptable".
"It's not acceptable in the real world, and it's not acceptable on Twitter".
"There is more we can and will be doing to protect our users against abuse. That is our commitment."
In an earlier message posted on its blog, Twitter's senior director for trust and safety Del Harvey and Mr Wang said the company had clarified its anti-harassment policy in light of feedback from customers.
They said: "It comes down to this: people deserve to feel safe on Twitter."
The company has clarified its guidance on abuse and spam – reiterating that users "may not engage in targeted abuse or harassment".
The "report abuse" button already available on the iOS Twitter app and mobile site will also be rolled out to the main website and Android app from September, Twitter said.
Ms Harvey and Mr Wang wrote in their blog: "We want people to feel safe on Twitter, and we want the Twitter rules to send a clear message to anyone who thought that such behaviour was, or could ever be, acceptable."
Tags:Facebook, LinkedIn, publishing, Social media, Tony wang, Twitter, Twitter apology, Twitter as a publisher
Posted in Behaviour, Media, UK | 2 Comments »
Facebook and Twitter are "publishers", not merely "couriers"
Social media like to claim that they merely provide a "platform" or are just "communication enablers" or only provide "communication media" and therefore that they are not responsible – and should not be held responsible – for the content they disseminate.
But they protest too much.
It is quite wrong to compare Facebook or Twitter or LinkedIn to a telecommunications enterprise or a postal service or a courier service or an e-mail service provider. In all of these a specific identifiable "sender" directs a communique to a specific, identified "receiver". The carrying of the communique to the specific receiver is the service provided by the communications enterprise and is not in any sense "publishing". The service provided by the social media is more than just the provision of a soap box in Hyde Park (a platform) or the provision of a Board or a Wall in a town square onto which a newspaper could be appended. Any website could be a platform for comments but the website owner must take ultimate responsibility for the content published on the web-site.
Facebook and Twitter disseminate their users communiques to a general audience without discriminating as to who may receive the communique. Their business models rely on this audience being as large as possible. Their advertising revenues depend upon the dissemination being as wide and as "indiscriminate" as possible. They are not so different to a radio or a TV broadcast where the broadcaster tries to reach as large an audience as possible. The broadcaster is clearly responsible and accountable for the content of the broadcast. A free newspaper being distributed at all Metro stations but where revenues are dependent upon advertising also has a responsible publisher. Any advertising revenue accrues to the publisher.
The clincher for me is that the placement of advertisements based on circulation is decisive proof of the existence of a publisher. All published material does not contain advertising. Not all advertising is proof of the existence of a publisher. A billboard or sandwich-board owner for example, is not a publisher. But the mere existence of advertising based on circulation numbers or "reach" or any similar parameter is conclusive proof – I think – of the existence of a publisher. And it is the person or organisation responsible for the circulation who takes the advertising revenues and in consequence must be the responsible and accountable publisher.
Freedom of speech does not really enter the argument. The publisher may choose to publish whatever he pleases. He may refrain from "censoring" his users if he so wishes. Or he may – at some cost – ensure that the content he publishes meets criteria that he sets himself. But he remains responsible and accountable for what he publishes. Facebook and Twitter cannot abdicate their responsibility because they choose not to exercise the quality control they could.
It seems to me to be self-evident that Facebook and Twitter are not "billboards" or "sandwich-boards" but are full fledged "broadcasters". And a broadcaster is a publisher. They could take responsibility for the content they disseminate if they wanted to. It just costs. They can be held accountable for what they indubitably do publish – and they should.
Tags:Advertising, Facebook, LinkedIn, publishing, Social media, social media as publishers, Twitter
Posted in Behaviour, Ethics, Media | 1 Comment »


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E-Cigarettes Don't Discourage Smoking Among Teens
Consumers smoke electronic cigarettes at a mall on June 30, 2013 in Manila, Philippines.
Dondi Tawatao—Getty Images
By Alexandra Sifferlin
March 6, 2014 11:00 AM EST
Are e-cigarettes the lesser of two evils, or just another method of nicotine exposure?
It's a question public health experts are debating. Some question the benefits of steering smokers towards less harmful products on the nicotine product spectrum. And a new study published in JAMA Pediatrics suggests what medical experts dread: that people who use e-cigarettes are also likely to be regular cigarette users.
Adolescents who use e-cigarettes are more likely to smoke other tobacco products and regular cigarettes. The researchers surveyed 17,353 middle and high school students in 2011, and 22,529 young people in 2012 as part of the National Youth Tobacco Survey.
Youth who reported ever using e-cigarettes or currently using them had a greater likelihood of experimenting with regular cigarettes, smoking on a regular basis, or being a current cigarette smoker. Among young people who had used tobacco cigarettes, trying an e-cigarette was linked to being an established smoker. The researchers also found that teens who used e-cigarettes were more likely to want to quit smoking the next year, but they were also less likely to abstain from cigarettes all together.
The study didn't look at whether young people are initiating smoking with regular cigarettes and then switching to e-cigarettes, or the other way around. However, e-cigarettes aren't "discouraging use of conventional cigarettes," the researchers say.
In September, numbers from the CDC showed that the percentage of middle school and high school students who have tried e-cigarettes doubled from 3.3% in 2011 to 6.8% in 2012.
"While much remains to be learned about the public health benefits and /or consequences of [electronic nicotine delivery systems] use, their exponential growth in recent years, including their rapid uptake among youths, makes it clear that policy makers need to act quickly," Frank J. Chaloupka of the University of Illinois at Chicago wrote in a corresponding editorial.
Most recently, Los Angeles extended its city-wide smoking ban to include e-cigarettes.
Los Angeles Extends Smoking Ban to E-Cigs
The 25 Defining Works of the Black Renaissance

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Pop & Hiss
The L.A. Times music blog
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NBC's 'The Playboy Club' to release weekly music on iTunes
September 19, 2011 | 11:02 am
NBC's freshmen series "The Playboy Club" won't just feature sexy bunnies and soap opera drama -- the show will also be big on music.
Each episode of the 1960s-era drama about Hugh Hefner's iconic Playboy Club in Chicago will feature multiple performances, by both the show's cast -- mainly the club's 'bunny' hostesses -- and guest stars paying tribute to '60s music legends who once performed at the club.
In the vein of Fox's hit musical "Glee," the series will release the music on a weekly basis for purchase via iTunes. The show's production company, 20th Century Fox Television, teamed with Verve Music Group, a division of Universal Music Group, to release the tunes, the label announced on Monday.
"The Playboy Club" premieres Monday and will feature performances of Frank Sinatra's "Chicago (That Toddlin' Town)," by cast member Laura Benanti, and Ike & Tina Turner's "Shake a Tail Feather," courtesy of guest star Karen LeBlanc.
Colbie Caillat, "The Voice" winner Javier Colon, and Raphael Saadiq are all set to appear on the series performing the music of Lesley Gore, Ray Charles and Sam Cooke, respectively. Tributes to Roy Orbison, Frank Sinatra, James Brown and others are expected throughout the season.
The Los Angeles-based production collective the Transcenders is producing the tracks for the show, and cast vocals are being helmed by singer Richard Marx in Chicago, where the series is filmed.
Television review: 'The Playboy Club'
Footage from Kanye West's unaired "hip-hop Muppet show" leaks
Rare Nirvana concert debuts ahead of "Nevermind" anniversary release
-- Gerrick D. Kennedy
twitter.com/gerrickkennedy
Photo: Amber Heard, Naturi Naughton and Leah Renee star in the new drama, ''The Playboy Club." Credit: Matt Dineerstein / NBC


This member of the Asphodelaceae was given this name by Alwin Berger in 1908. It is found in South Africa, southern Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Zimbabwe, growing in grit with some water and lots of sun. The caudex can grow up to ten centimetres or more. The plant up to 40 centimetres height. It has yellowish white flowers.


There's a new rule for would-be burglars: don't dial 911 while you're casing the joint.
With today's smartphones able to dial 911 with a touch of the screen, emergency dispatchers spend a lot of time picking up calls from toddlers and "pocket dialers." They generally try to call the number back to check on the caller's safety.
Maplewood Police Chief Paul Schnell announced at 6:30 p.m. Saturday that a woman's body had been found in a wooded area near Kohlman Creek earlier in the day.
At approximately 3:20 p.m. that day, Maplewood police officers were called to a wooded area near Hazelwood and Beam by a man who found a dead body in the creek. Schnell said.
There's a new rule for would-be burglars: don't dial 911 while you're casing the joint.
With today's smartphones able to dial 911 with a touch of the screen, emergency dispatchers spend a lot of time picking up calls from toddlers and "pocket dialers." They generally try to call the number back to check on the caller's safety.
For nearly a minute March 24, members of the state Senate stood in silence.
Moments after they unanimously voted to pass a bill from Sen. Chuck Wiger, DFL-Maplewood, to rename Highway 36 to the "Officer Richard Crittenden Memorial Highway," they paused to honor the North St. Paul cop who was killed while responding to a domestic dispute call on Labor Day, Sept. 7, 2009.
Despite having its bid passed up in October for being too low, Ramsey County recently signed a letter of intent to purchase the Vadnais Heights Sports Center and made a $250,000 deposit on the building.
This month, Maplewood is switching from recycling bins to larger carts with lids.
Through March, Tennis Sanitation, the city's recycling contractor, will deliver standard carts, which are brown with an orange lid.
Maplewood police are looking for a woman and a man involved in a theft at a gas station on White Bear Avenue.
The woman, reportedly in her 30s who was pictured in surveillance footage, and a man, described as white and in his late 30s or early 40s, apparently stole some items from the SuperAmerica in Maplewood. According to employees and witnesses, the two people frequent the gas station.
A father-and-son team recently sold 9 Dragons Liquor in North St. Paul to a newcomer from Robbinsdale.
Tommy Thao has purchased the business at the Polar Plaza shopping center, 2231 11th Ave. E., from the sellers, Ryan and Suterra Yann, according to city documents.
The Maplewood Police Department recently began digging into two inactive cases, which previously didn't lead to charges, involving members of the clergy who were accused of sexual abuse.
With a similar lookback by the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and Twin Cities law enforcement recently, Maplewood Police Chief Paul Schnell said the department wanted to ensure such cases have had a chance at a thorough investigation, if possible.
When they weren't robbing Twin Cities banks more than 80 years ago, gangsters would kick back at Keller Golf Course in Maplewood.
They could be spotted not only by the expensive clothing they wore but the fact each man had two golf bags: one stuffed with golf clubs and the other filled with firearms.
As one would expect, they tipped their caddies well.


Kroger has expanded a recall of ground beef potentially contaminated with the E.coli bacteria to include Kentucky, southern Indiana, and northern Tennessee. The store asks customers to bring any ground beef sold in Styrofoam trays marked with sell-by dates between May 21st and July 3rd back to their store for a full refund.
Seattle attorney Bill Marler has sued both the supplier of the contaminated meat—Nebraska Beef in Omaha—and Kroger on behalf of an Ohio woman who fell ill with E.coli. Marler says big grocery store chains should share the responsibility for the outbreak with their suppliers, in part because they don't move quickly enough to recall bad meat.
"The other reason why big grocery stores continue to have this problem of getting contaminated meat is the fact that they're not putting enough pressure on their up-stream suppliers to get E. coli –which is ultimately cattle feces—out of their hamburger," says Marler.
Marler says slaughter houses can take measures to ensure the bacteria stays out of the finished product. A Kroger spokesman says the company acted to expand the recall as soon as stores received word from their corporate office. And company materials say the chain is recalling more ground beef than is probably necessary. Also included in the recall is Kroger's Private Selection Natural ground beef with sell-by dates between July 11 through July 21.
Read more about the recall from Kroger here.


The "slimming" wrap treatment is only the tip of the body-wrap iceberg. They're suggested to improve arthritis, skin ailments and cellulite. "Detox" wraps claim to draw toxins out of your body, and during a "power wrap," you work out on an elliptical machine while wrapped in bandages soaked in an electrolyte solution (yes, that is for real).
So, those are the facts -- but the unwrapping point is where fantasy (and advertisements) start to separate from reality. The spas want you to believe that you'll be emerging from your wrap as if from a cocoon -- a completely relaxed, moisturized, detoxified, cellulite-free and noticeably slimmer butterfly. But if you're familiar with the phrase "too good to be true" -- I we think you are -- you probably won't be surprised to learn that the results probably won't be so dramatic. Experts warn especially not to expect medical results for conditions like arthritis.
Instead of overdoing it, why not try your hand at our simple mint chocolate chip body scrub? Packed full of natural ingredients, this quick and easy recipe is a feast for the senses that's kind to your skin and your waistline – now that's some tasty science.
Simply mix together all the ingredients and scrub your way to healthy looking (and sweet-smelling) skin. The Science Every good scrub needs an exfoliating component, and what better ingredients to include than nature's finest? If you've got more sensitive skin, we recommend sticking to the original recipe, but those of you looking to really scrub up can substitute half of the sugar quantity for larger and more abrasive sea salt granules, which will really slough off any stubborn dead skin cells. If you've never used almond oil for cosmetic purposes before, we recommend that you stock up now. Its composition is approximately the same as the natural oil found in the stratum corneum (outer layer of the epidermis) of babies' skin, making it readily absorbed and suitable for use on all skin types. As well as its moisturising properties, almond oil also helps to remove impurities and dead skin cells lifted from the surface of the epidermis by the exfoliating action of the sugar in this recipe.
Crammed with essentials like vitamin E, almond oil also offers protective properties for the skin. Vitamin E acts as an antioxidant to target free radicals generated by UV radiation, counteracting their ageing effects on the skin and helping to prevent even more harmful free radical-induced damage to cells that can increase skin cancer risk. Apart from giving us the all-important chocolate hit in this product, cocoa powder also has a high caffeine content (around 12mg/tablespoon), making its properties very different to the more commonly-used cosmetic ingredient of cocoa butter, which acts as a moisturising agent in many products. When applied topically, caffeine is known to have skin-firming properties, helping to tighten skin, prevent puffiness and even help with the battle against cellulite. Not only this, but scientific studies have also suggested that caffeine itself can act as an antioxidant, again helping to protect skin from harmful free radicals. We knew chocolate wasn't all bad! Putting the 'mint' in mint chocolate chip, peppermint oil isn't just for sensual indulgence. Peppermint oil (known as Mentha x piperita in the scientific world) has been scientifically shown to act as an antibacterial agent in in vitro studies, inhibiting the growth of a range of bacteria. Further research then confirmed antifungal properties for this ingredient, suggesting that it can also play a role in protection of skin from such microbes.
In the fitness industry, posture has become a priority in recent years. Good posture can hugely improve your appearance and often makes you look slimmer. However, the ramifications of poor alignment and the importance and methods of correcting posture are often misunderstood. Let's start with some of the basics. There are many definitions of posture. Two of the best are these: 'Posture Is the position from which all movement begins and ends' (Paul Chek); and 'The position from which the musculoskeletal system functions most efficiently (Moshe Feldenkrais). So that's what we mean by posture.
Further to that, when assessing someone's posture there are two main categories: static and dynamic. Fitness guru Paul Chek defines static posture as 'the position of the body at rest, sitting, standing or lying'. In general, if you have poor posture before you move, you are more likely to have poor posture whilst moving. Chek defines dynamic posture as 'the ability to maintain an optimal instantaneous axis of rotation in any combination of movement planes at any time in space'. As a simple analogy, you can think of your spine as an axis of rotation (like a crankshaft) and your arms or legs as a means by which motion at the axis is expressed (like the crank itself). If your spinal axis is faulty and expresses the exaggerated curvatures that go hand in hand with poor posture, your capacity to rotate efficiently will be significantly reduced. Think how this could affect your swing in golf for example – if your spinal axis is well aligned, you are far more efficient and are likely to move and perform to your full potential.
Optimal posture is maintained when muscles surrounding a joint are in balance. Good muscle balance simply means that the muscles are at their optimal or normal length and tension. A muscle imbalance occurs when a muscle on one side of a joint becomes tight whilst its opposing muscle (antagonist) is long and potentially weak. This can happen for any number of reasons, but usually muscles get tight and shorten as a result of over-activation due to overuse. For example, sitting at a desk with poor posture for a number of years can cause a shortening of certain muscles and a lengthening of others. This can cause a joint to lose its optimal axis of rotation, leading to excessive wear and tear on the joint and its surrounding tissues and consequently increased likelihood of injury during sport. The body is like a bicycle wheel. The spokes are like the core muscles and the rim is the spine. Imbalances in the muscles around the spine lead to abnormal stress on the spine. If the wheel is out of alignment, you need to tighten the loose spokes and loosen the tight ones. The same is true with the body. You need to tighten (strengthen) the loose muscles and loosen (stretch) the tight muscles.
The gravitational pull that is exerted on the body acts through the body in a straight line towards the Earth's centre. In a standing position neutral alignment occurs when landmarks such as the ankles, knees, hips, shoulders and ears are in line with the pull of gravity. The body also requires balance from front to back and side to side, allowing it to maintain its position against gravity with minimal effort. The more the body is out of alignment, the more energy it uses to resist the gravitational pull. For most athletes, poor posture could not only cause injury, but also waste vital energy and could make the difference between winning and losing. In neutral alignment, the pelvis is in a neutral position. In this position, if the pelvis were a bowl of water, no water would spill out. With an anterior pelvic tilt the water would pour out the front, while a posterior pelvic tilt would cause the water to pour out the back. Both positions cause muscle imbalance and misalignment of the spine. Poor postural control and alignment affects both your quality of movement and the safety and effectiveness of any exercise. Prior to beginning a 'Base Conditioning' phase of any exercise programme, posture must be evaluated and corrective measures taken as required to restore optimal alignment (particularly of the spine). In conclusion, muscle imbalances cause poor static and/or dynamic posture which in turn causes further muscle imbalance, non-optimal alignment of joints and abnormal forces exerted on the spine and the skeletal system. This faulty loading of joints leads to increased wear and tear and consequently a less efficient movement pattern and potentially pain. Eventually this results in destruction of joints and a shortening of athletic, occupational or recreational careers. At Bodyguards we offer detailed postural assessments using apparatus that quantifies your static and dynamic alignment. We also assess your muscles' length and tension and then prescribe personalised exercise programmes to address and correct any imbalance or misalignment you may have.
Sort Cellulite Cellulite affects 90 percent of all women to some degree. The result of bulging fat cells and weak skin elasticity and to some extent, your genes. Too much caffeine, poor circulation and a lack of exercise can also contribute to the unsightly lumps and bumps which are not easy to get rid of once they are formed. Most research points to the effectiveness of a three pronged attack; body brushing, massage and a topical serum or cream to stimulate blood flow.
Dry body brushing on a daily basis using firm strokes towards the heart will help boost circulation, eliminate nasty toxins and improve the appearance of the skin. Choose a good brush with firm bristles for maximum effect and a head-to-toe glow. Follow with a specially formulated anti-cellulite cream such as Biotherm's Celluli Laser Precision Gel, £33 or Clarins' Body Lift Cellulite Control, £36 which contain dimple-smoothing ingredients. Endermologie is a safe and effective way of helping improve the appearance of cellulite where a special massage roller is worked over affected areas to aid lymphatic drainage. A course of 10 treatments will see a marked improvement in the appearance of cellulite and a maintenance course helps to keep you looking good.
Feet spend most of the winter wrapped in socks and heavy boots, snug and warm and in a great bacteria-breeding environment. Check feet and toe nails for any sign of fungal infection and if in doubt get it checked out. Thickened and discoloured toe nails are not to go on show and should be treated by a podiatrist. The Dow Clinic, Heaton remains a hot favourite of ours where their unique laser treatment will kill any infection stone dead in one simple treatment. If your only problem is dry skin or untidy toe nails then a pedicure should do the trick. Opt for a spa pedicure and treat your feet to a scrub and restorative mask to help them recover from the woes of winter.
Focus on your fitness and you will not only look better in your bikini but feel better about yourself too. Any form of exercise is beneficial. For those looking to drop a few pounds pre poolside posing, cut out sugar and alcohol and increase your intake of fish oils. By adding more Omega-3 oil you will see an improvement in your skin and it will also aid weight loss. Research shows that taking just 3g of fish oil a day over three months can lead to a two to four kg loss of body fat. Those with a fear of fish can substitute the real thing for a supplement such as Perricone MD Omega 3, £32 for 90 days.
Many of us have raised red bumps on the back of our arms; the result of a build up of keratin in the hair follicle. Regular exfoliation can help – use a pair of exfoliating mitts when you shower – or even a topical peel such as Kiehl's Overnight Biological Peel, £39.50 to improve the appearance of the skin.
Don't delay: If you want a nice, even tan then you need to ensure skin is suitably hydrated well in advance of your holiday. Deal with any dry skin patches with your exfoliating mitts and a good body oil before bed. Attack elbows and knees with mitts and a nourishing body cream. Don't be afraid to apply more than one type of moisturiser if your skin is in need of some tlc; a serum followed by a nourishing body cream is a great treat for dehydrated skin. We love The Body Shop Polynesia Monoi Miracle Oil, £10 and Liz Earle's Superskin Body Cream, £29.50 packed with plant oils, Vitamin E and shea butter.
Book your waxing appointment in advance and try to leave at least 24 hours before you expose newly waxed or de-fuzzed skin to the sun to prevent any reaction. A spray tan can do wonders for your body confidence, especially if you seek out a salon where it is applied by hand for added flattering contouring. If the fuss of a fake tan doesn't appeal try a gradual tan such as James Read's Gradual Tan, £24.50 with hyaluronic acid and Q10 where you stay in control of the colour. A fake tan will also help improve the appearance of cellulite, giving the illusion of more toned skin. Make sure hands and feet look fabulous with a last minute treat. Bio Sculpture gel nails, available at salons regionwide, mean your nail colour will last for weeks without wearing or chipping and should see you all set for holiday heaven.


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package com.antonwierenga.sqltemplatecli.util

import org.springframework.shell.core.ExecutionProcessor
import org.springframework.shell.event.ParseResult

trait PrintStackTraceExecutionProcessor extends ExecutionProcessor {

  def beforeInvocation(parseResult: ParseResult): ParseResult = { parseResult }

  def afterReturningInvocation(parseResult: ParseResult, any: Any): Unit = {}

  def afterThrowingInvocation(parseResult: ParseResult, throwable: Throwable): Unit = {
    Option(throwable.getCause()) match {
      case Some(matched) ⇒
        throwable.getCause.printStackTrace
      case _ ⇒
        throwable.printStackTrace
    }
  }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


What's pretty in pink this Valentine's Day? A versatile bouquet of mixed pink flowers is perfectly appealing and will give wonderful memories to a loved one, always and forever. A thoughtful gift for a favorite friend, mother, grandmother or anyone special.


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Let's build a better world Solar Energy
Why perovskites could be the key to cheap, efficient solar energy
January 3, 2022 Admin Daily Green World	36 Views 0 Comments
The little perovskite solar cell was sweating it out in the "torture chamber." Well, it wasn't actually sweating, since a solar cell doesn't have sweat glands, but if it had, at 185 degrees Fahrenheit and 85% humidity, it'd be sweating.
The 6-inch-by-6-inch cell would be in the chamber – a Xenon Exposure System locker – for 1,000 hours.
"We are trying to find the key stresses," said dungeon master Michael Owen-Bellini, whose more official title is head of the materials and module group at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden.
"My job is to break things," Owen-Bellini explained.
Perovskite solar panels could be the next big thing, if they can hold up. Easier and cheaper to make than the market-dominant photovoltaic silicon cells, just a thin film spread on glass or plastic, they are about 50% more efficient in turning sunlight into electricity.
"The problem is they degrade fairly rapidly, which is different from silicon," Owen-Bellini said. Still,185 degrees? "It is pretty hot, but not outside the realm of what solar panels might face in the desert."
For more than seven years NREL researchers have been chasing the perovskite grail and the cells have cleared many hurdles. Their efficiency has gone to 29% from 3%, (silicon cells have an average efficiency of 20%) and the durability of the cells has gone from seconds to months.
"Efficiency, performance, durability, these are the dots we are trying to connect," said Joe Berry, head of NREL's perovskite research.
And it isn't just theoretical. In 2020, NREL created the U.S. Manufacturing of Advanced Perovskites consortium to bring the technology to market, working with three universities and six thin-film solar companies, mostly start-ups.
Companies in Europe and China say they are already on the way to marketing perovskite products. Oxford PV, the United Kingdom company that set a cell efficiency record at 29.5%, said it aims to start production of a tandem perovskite-silicon cell in 2022.
"We are right at the cusp of commercialization," said Laura Schelhas, the consortium's executive director and an NREL group research manager.
But to paraphrase Huckleberry Finn, "We've been there before."
National Renewable Energy Laboratory reliability researcher Michael Owen-Bellini points out the features of a prototype perovskite solar cell module. (Andy Colwell, Special to The Colorado Sun)
Some 15 years ago there was a wave of venture capital investment in hot, new thin-film solar companies, only to see the bottom drop out of the market as the price of silicon cells plummeted.
The General Electric Co. scrapped plans for a $300 million thin-film factory in Aurora and Abound Solar, which used technology developed by Colorado State University at its Loveland factory, declared bankruptcy in 2012.
The most notorious thin-film casualty was Fremont, California-based Solyndra, which filed for bankruptcy in 2011 wiping out $1 billion in private investment and leaving taxpayers on the hook for $535 million in federal loan guarantees.
Walk, then run to simple manufacturing
There are lessons to be learned from the Abounds and Solyndras, researchers and federal energy officials say, and perovskites also do not have one key weakness of the earlier thin film technologies.
"We need to make sure we are not trying to run and walk at the same time," said Garrett Nilsen, acting director of the Solar Energy Technology Office in the U.S. Department of Energy. "Early on they tried to invest in large-scale thin film technologies that still had R&D issues."
DOE has provided $60 million in grants and financial backing for the development of perovskites.
So even as the consortium is promoting commercial development, Schelhas said NREL is continuing to do the "science behind the down-the-road application, trying to understand the fundamental chemistry and physics."
Perovskites start with the advantage of being easy to manufacture. The solar cells can be made using existing inkjet printing or roll-to-roll technologies. One company working with NREL in the consortium, Energy Materials Corp. is trying to retool an old plant in Rochester, N.Y., to manufacture perovskite solar films where Kodak photo film once was made.
By comparison silicon cell manufacturing requires refining under high heat, infusing it with other materials, industrial milling machines to precisely slice it into wafers, and a clean room to assemble the cells into a solar panel.
Perovskites' greatest edge, however, is efficiency. The earlier thin films – such as cadmium telluride or copper indium gallium selenide – had efficiency levels of 7% to 18%.
The idea was that even though they delivered less electricity, the thin films would be far cheaper than silicon panels. But when the price of the more efficient silicon cells dropped to 20 cents a watt in 2020 from $3.40 a watt in 2008, those thin films lost any advantage they might have had.
Perovskites have reached 29% efficiency in lab tests with a theoretical ceiling of 31%. A perovskite-silicon tandem might be able to get to 45%, more than double today's solar panels.
Perovskite's power is in the nature of its structure, for perovskites aren't a thing but rather a shape, a geometry.
The first perovskite – calcium titanium oxide – was discovered in 1839 by German scientist Gustav Rose with additional work being done on the crystal structure by its namesake, Russian mineralogist Lev Perovski.
Any combination of elements – represented by the chemical formula ABX₃ – that create a structure the same as calcium titanium oxide is a perovskite.
It is the same as having a triangle of cheese, a triangle of wood and a triangle of pizza (crust trimmed). They are all triangles.
The particular perovskites of interest are the so-called metal halide compounds, usually with lead or tin and iodine or bromine. What researchers have found is that these perovskite compositions can generate electrons when they are hit by the sun.
To demonstrate the ease, Schelhas cooked up a methyl ammonium lead-iodide perovskite in an NREL lab and gave a small vial of it and an artist's paint brush to a visitor and had him apply the solution to a square of glass sitting under a bright light and an attached to a voltage meter.
As the clear solution was brushed onto the glass it dried into a black coating and the voltage meter started to jump. "It's like magic," Schelhas said.
Colorado Sun reporter Mark Jaffe learns to create a perovskite solar cell by applying perovskite solution with a brush under a sunlamp. As soon as the solution dried, the attached voltage meter began to register power. (Andy Colwell, Special to The Colorado Sun)
And since the solution can be fiddled with, perovskites can be "tuned" to capture different wavelengths of light.
There are seven wavelengths from high-energy violet to low-energy red. Silicon absorbs light from the red end of the spectrum, but perovskites can harvest a broader array including high-energy blue photons. (Those are the photons that give the sky its color.)
It is, however, the very nature of the geometry that creates the resilience challenges. "People have made progress on stability, but there are three major issues," said Letian Dou, a chemical engineering professor at Purdue University whose research of perovskite stability is funded by DOE grants.
Chemically the compounds can be broken down by heat, moisture and even the air. They may become electronically unstable because the ions in the crystal move and the materials degrade quickly under some particular flows of current.
They are also mechanically vulnerable as repeated heating (think of a hot day) and cooling (think of a cold night) may cause cracking and delamination.
The two major approaches to dealing with the stability issues are improving the packaging and encapsulation of the cell to protect the perovskites, or to develop a more durable compound, which Dou said is not an easy task.
"It is very hard to find new materials," he said. "Halide perovskites were a lucky discovery."
From the point of view of an industrial product, however, the wide variety of perovskite compounds in itself poses a problem.
Sure, a triangle of pizza is pizza and a triangle, but it could be topped with pepperoni and cheese, or maybe sausage, but pies have also been garnished with coconut, peanuts, and squid.
"The compositional variability is so wide and the manufacturing process and conditions all influence the reliability for the cells and modules," said Joshua Stein, director of a new perovskite test center at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque. "It's like complicated cooking or baking. It's an art form."
The way companies are testing the performance and durability of their perovskite cells also varies widely, as there are as of yet no standardized test. "Right now, it's like the Wild West," Stein said.
A group of perovskite solar cells just after being removed from a stability parameter analyzer, which applies sun-simulating LED light to study cell degradation, stability and compatibility . ( Andy Colwell, Special to The Colorado Sun)
Silicon is silicon and the way to test whether a silicon cell is durable is well established.
But with the wide variety of perovskite compounds being employed and no established testing protocol, it will be hard to evaluate the cells and assure that they can compete with silicon and that in turn will make it hard to finance the technology on an industrial scale.
To solve the problem and answer the questions, DOE turned to NREL and Sandia with a $15 million testing project.
"DOE realized they need the horsepower of a couple of national labs to figure this out. It is a complicated problem," Stein said.
Starting early next year perovskite cells will be put out in Sandia's high desert solar testing facility. The 7-acre site is home to about 1,000 different kinds of solar modules covering a host of technologies from a host of manufacturers.
"Perovskites are being tested in laboratories, but there has been very little outdoor testing side by side with other technologies," Stein said.
In the lab most of the testing has been on square-inch cells. The 6-inch-by-6-inch perovskite Sandia test cells, 360 in all, are being made by the universities of North Carolina, Washington and Toledo, all members of the consortium.
Stein said Sandia is also in talks with eight companies to place their perovskite devices at the test site.
"A key for solar technology is how much electricity it can produce outdoors," Stein said. But just as important as the cells' success will be their failure.
"What we don't know about perovskites are what are the important failure modes that we need to develop tests for," Stein said.
When the researchers find the perovskite's pressure points outdoors, they will have a guide to developing accelerated indoor testing to measure a cell's sturdiness.
Those tests and testing protocols will be developed by Owen-Bellini, Schelhas and the research group at NREL.
"We have to know what the key stressors are; we can't just test blindly," Schelhas said. "You can't test the way you test for silicon."
For example, some perovskite cells have shown better performance in the morning, with decline in output as the day goes on and there is some evidence that the cells recover in the dark.
If so, one of the silicon durability tests – endless hours of light – is probably not appropriate for perovskites.
The 1,000-hour test a perovskite cell was going through in Owen-Bellini's lab is a silicon protocol.
"Once we've identified the most important stresses, we can speed it up because you can't wait 20 years to see if the cell is still working," Schelhas said.
And getting beyond 20 years is vital. "DOE requires technology to last for 30 years or more for cost reasons," DOE's Nilsen said. "It needs to be durable for at least 20 years."
And perhaps in a nod to the checkered past of thin film solar, part of the Sandia testing process is an offer to companies of a performance verification and bankability assessment done by the engineering firm Black & Veatch.
"Successful companies will have a bankability report with which they can go to investors," Stein said.
Perovskites could help get U.S. into the solar game
A major reason for the collapse of the U.S. thin film solar industry a decade ago was the rise of China as the major producer of inexpensive silicon cells. With $41 billion in government subsidies, China went from making almost none of the world's solar equipment in 2000 to 60% by 2012.
In 2019, China produced about 80% of the world's solar panels and in 2018 the administration of former President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Chinese solar imports, charging dumping and unfair trade practices.
Those tariffs are set to expire in February 2022 and the Biden administration is reviewing a request by domestic solar cell manufacturers to extend them.
"Our hope perovskites provide an avenue, specifically for U.S. manufacturers to get in the PV game," Schelhas said. "Perovskite would be manufactured in the U.S. and there would be supply chain opportunities. Where do we get the glass? Where do we get the polymers?"
One of the U.S. companies working with NREL in the consortium is Boston-based CubicPV. "Labs like NREL are national treasures," said Frank van Mierlo, CubicPV's CEO. "They are absolutely essential to winning the battle."
CubicPV says it is set to produce a tandem perovskite-silicon cell by 2025. "We believe a tandem cell can deliver 30% efficiency," Mierlo said. "Eventually all cells will be tandem cells."
There is still a way to go and problems to solve and cash to raise before then.
"It might become one of the dominant technologies," DOE's Nilsen said. "If the stars were to align it would be a very lost cost, domestically manufactured solar project."
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Virgin Wool. Notched Lapel. Satin Lining. Pants Left Unhemmed. Lanificio Tag.
The latest arrival from the upscale Lanificio line, this suit is the pinnacle of luxury. Crafted from the finest Italian wool, the piece features a meticulously woven glen check pattern in neutral grey. A guaranteed way to make an entrance to your next formal event, the official Lanificio tag is stitched onto the satin-lined interior as a mark of authenticity.


All pages intact, but coverless. See attached pictures.
I am interested in knowing the sale value of this comic in today's market.
Editor's reply: it's very hard to price a coverless comic. The 1939 World's Fair comic, while rare, especially in fine shape, is not an easy one to sell.
You can see ones that sold on eBay here .


text:
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body		{ color: #595959; } /* default font color */
#Wrapper	{ background: #2D1709 url("../../images/skins/skin-5/bodyBg.jpg") repeat-x 50% 0; }	/* background color/graphic */

/* logo */

#Logo		{ margin-top: -75px; }
#Logo a		{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/logo.png"); }
.logoMark	{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/logoSymbol-small.png"); }

/* links and menus */

a, a:link, a:visited							{ color: #1C8DC4; }	/* default links */
a:hover, a:active								{ color: #DA1045; }	/* default hover */

.ribbon span a:link, .ribbon span a:visited 	{ color: #fff; }	/* ribbon links (wrap around graphic)  */
.ribbon span a:hover, .ribbon span a:active 	{ color: #65C1E9; }	/* ribbon hover */

#Footer a:link, #Footer a:visited,
#ContentPanel a:link, #ContentPanel a:visited	{ color: #2EB4E0; }	/* dark backgrounds */
#Footer a:hover, #Footer a:active,
#ContentPanel a:hover, #ContentPanel a:active	{ color: #F3D178; }	/* dark backgrounds, hover */
#Copyright a, #Copyright a:visited				{ color: #F3861B; }	/* copyright container links */
#Copyright a:hover, #Copyright a:active			{ color: #fff; }	/* copyright container links */

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#MenuWrapper	{ height: 77px; }
#MainMenu		{ background: transparent url("../../images/skins/skin-5/menuBg.jpg") repeat-x 100% 0; 	/* background through menu ( must adjustment to menu size) */
				  right: 2px;
				  top: -35px;
				  padding-top: 15px;}
#MmLeft			{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/mainMenu-left.png"); }		/* menu background graphics */
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#MmBody			{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/mainMenu-repeat.png"); }
.mmDivider		{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/mainMenu-divider.gif"); }

#MainMenu a:link, #MainMenu a:visited								{ color: #DFC6AA; }			/* links - top level */
#MainMenu a:hover, #MainMenu a:active								{ color: #fff; }			/* hover - top level */
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#MainMenu .sf-menu li li											{ background: #917D64; }	/* background color - sub-menus */
#MainMenu .sf-menu li li li											{ background: #84725B; }	/* background color - sub-sub-menus */
#MainMenu .sf-menu li li:hover, #MainMenu .sf-menu li li.sfHover,
#MainMenu .sf-menu li li a:focus, #MainMenu .sf-menu li li a:hover,
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.ribbon span, #fancy_title div							{ color: #000; }	/* default headings color */
.headline												{ color: #696969; }	/* headlines (page titles, etc) */
h1 strong, h2 strong, h3 strong, h4 strong, h5 strong,
h6 strong, .headline strong, .title strong 				{ color: #DA1045; }	/* headline accent (added using inside heading) */
h1 span, h2 span, h3 span, h4 span, h5 span, h6 span,
.headline span, .title span								{ color: #696969;}	/* sub-heading text (added using inside heading */
#Footer h1, #Footer h2, #Footer h3, #Footer h4,
#Footer h5, #Footer h6, #ContentPanel h1,
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#ContentPanel h4, #ContentPanel h5, #ContentPanel h6	{ color: #eee;} 	/* headings on dark/color background areas */
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#ContentPanel h5 span, #ContentPanel h3 span,
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#cluetip h3												{ color: #eee; }	/* tool tip titles */

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#Footer, #ContentPanel, #cluetip	{ color: #F5F2EB; }	/* text on dark/color background areas */
#Copyright							{ color: #B49C67; }	/* text in copyright container */

/* forms and inputs */

input 					{ color: #000; }	/* input text color */
textarea, .textInput 	{ background-color: #E2DFD9; background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/inputBg.gif");	/* input background */
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label.overlabel			{ color: #988F81; }	/* text input labels */

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a.img, div.img			{ border: 1px solid #CBC5B6; background: #fff;}			/* default container with class="img" */
a.img img, div.img img 	{ border: 1px solid #f3f3f3; }							/* inner image border for default container */
a.imgHover				{ background-color: #CBC5B6; border-color: #B7AE99; }	/* hover effect - container */
a.img:hover img			{ border-color: #fff; }									/* hover effect - image */

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#Header, .pageMain	{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/pageBg-repeat.png"); }	/* repeating page graphic */
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#ContentPanel 		{ background: #3C251A; border-bottom-color: #A6674F; } /* top reveal - hidden top content area */

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#Search { background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/search-bg.gif"); margin-top: -1px; }

/* slide show - default, jQuery cycle plugin */

#SlideTop		{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/pageBg-slideTop.png"); }		/* top graphic for rounded corners */
#SlideRepeat	{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/pageBg-slideRepeat.png"); }	/* edges to create slide frame */
#SlideBottom	{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/pageBg-slideBottom.png"); }	/* bottom for curved border */
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.quote .quoteBox-1				{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/quote-small-top.gif"); }		/* quote - top */
.quote .quoteBox-1 .quoteBox-2	{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/quote-small-bottom.gif"); }	/* quote - bottom */
.quote p						{ color: #000; }	/* quote - text */
.quoteAuthor p.name				{ color: #000; }	/* quote - author name */

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button.btn span	{ background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/button-sprite.gif"); 	/* button background - sliding doors side 2 */
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button.btn:hover span, button.btnHover span { color: #fff; text-shadow: 1px 1px 1px #333; }	/* hover text */
.darkBg button.btn, .darkBg button.btn span, #Footer button.btn, #Footer button.btn span,
#ContentPanel button.btn, #ContentPanel button.btn span {
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.hr { background-image: url("../../images/skins/skin-5/hr-bg.gif"); }