After 3,700 total games played (regular season and playoffs) in franchise history, the Washington Capitals will have a chance to hoist the Cup in game #3,701 having defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 6-2 at Capital One Arena on Monday night.
Washington will take a 3-1 series lead heading into Game 5 in Vegas and the Stanley Cup will be in the building if the Capitals win Thursday.
Braden Holtby amassed 28 saves on 30 shots against for a .933 save percentage in the win for Washington, while Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 17 out of 23 shots faced for a series low .739 SV% in the loss for the Golden Knights.
Early in the first period Washington defender, John Carlson, tripped up Vegas forward, Erik Haula, and was assessed a minor penalty.
On the ensuing Golden Knights power play, Vegas had the Capitals penalty killing unit scrambling, yielding an open net opportunity as Holtby was way out of position— caught up in the mass desperation.
James Neal hit the far right post on a one-timer from the low left slot.
The home crowd erupted as Washington killed off the penalty, despite the lively play of the Golden Knights, but the score remained 0-0.
Vegas blueliner, Colin Miller tripped Lars Eller almost midway through the first period, giving Washington their first power play opportunity of the night at 9:22.
It only took 32 seconds for the Washington to capitalize on the player advantage as T.J. Oshie (8) buried a rebound to open the scoring in Game 4.
Evgeny Kuznetsov (16) and Nicklas Backstrom (15) had the assists on the goal that only happened thanks to Kuznetsov's initial shot rebounding off of Fleury and landing on the stick of Oshie as the Capitals winger was crashing the net. The goal was Oshie's 6th power play goal of the postseason.
About five minutes later, Tom Wilson (5) made it a two-goal game for the Caps.
Washington fought to come away with the puck on an attacking zone faceoff to the right of the Vegas netminder, then worked a quick pass to Wilson in the low slot for a one-timer. Kuznetsov (17) notched his second assist of the night on Wilson's goal at 16:26 of the first period.
Late in the closing minute of the opening frame, Devante Smith-Pelly (6) cashed in top shelf on a crazy carom and sent Capital One Arena on an ecstatic euphoria never seen before in D.C. hockey history.
Alex Ovechkin (12) and Matt Niskanen (8) collected the assists on Smith-Pelly's goal at 19:39.
After one period, Washington led, 3-0, on the scoreboard, while the Golden Knights actually outshot the Capitals (11-10). The Caps also led in blocked shots (7-3), takeaways (5-4), giveaways (4-3) and faceoff win percentage (64-36), while both teams had 14 hits aside. Vegas was 0/1 on the power play and Washington was 1/1 on the skater advantage after 20 minutes.
John Carlson tripped William Karlsson (no relation) early in the second period and the Golden Knights had another chance on the power play. They did not convert.
Moments later, Wilson delivered a cross check up high to Nate Schmidt. Once again, Vegas failed to score a power play goal.
Late in the second period Neal slashed Holtby and the Capitals went on the power play at 14:45.
Carlson (5) sent a cannon of a slap shot past Fleury and gave Washington four unanswered goals to lead, 4-0. Kuznetsov (18) and Oshie (12) had the assists on Carlson's power play goal at 15:23 of the second period.
Through 40 minutes of play, the Capitals led, 4-0, on the scoreboard and trailed the Golden Knights, 22-15, in shots on goal. Washington held the advantage in blocked shots (16-6), takeaways (10-7), giveaways (13-4) and faceoff win percentage (54-46), while Vegas led in hits (26-22). The road team Golden Knights were 0/3 on the power play and the home team Capitals were a perfect 2/2 on the man advantage after two periods.
Haula slashed Ovechkin 93 seconds into the third period and handed Washington a power play out of the gate in the final frame, but the Caps misfired for the first time on their special teams play and could not convert on the power play.
Kuznetsov then tripped Haula shortly after the Golden Knights forward made his way out of the box, giving Vegas a power play at 3:42.
One second after the power play ended, Neal (6) brought the puck from the hashmarks to the goal and tucked a shot under the short side arm of Washington's netminder, ending the shutout opportunity, and cutting the lead to three.
Haula (6) and Miller (3) were credited with the assists on Neal's goal at 5:43 of the third period and the Golden Knights trailed, 4-1.
With a surge in momentum that came much too late, Reilly Smith (4) made it a two-goal game at 12:26 with his 4th goal of the postseason, assisted by linemate Jon Marchessault (12) and teammate Luca Sbisa (4). Vegas's improbable comeback had brought them to a 4-2 deficit.
Less than a minute later, Ryan Reaves and Wilson went at each other, subsequently receiving roughing minors and yielding 4-on-4 play at 13:03 of the third period. 36 seconds later, Washington put an end to Vegas's comeback attempt.
Michal Kempny (2) was left all alone for a one-timer past Fleury as Miller was back-checked by Oshie while the Capitals forward was entering the attacking zone and working the puck over to Backstrom.
Backstrom (16) and Oshie (13) notched the assists on Kempny's goal at 13:39 and the Caps led, 5-2.
Brooks Orpik was on the receiving end of a reverse check from Vegas early in the series and now Oshie had done it to one of Vegas's own.
After Nate Schmidt was called for tripping Kuznetsov at 16:57, Oshie was back on the ice for his shift on the power play. Brayden McNabb took liberties on the Washington veteran by delivering a cross check after a stoppage in play at 17:44 of the third.
Oshie and Golden Knights defender, Deryk Engelland, exchanged heated words and shoves, leaving the officials on the ice with no other choice but to start handing out 10-minute misconducts (and that's just what they did).
Both players involved were sent to the showers a few minutes early.
Brett Connolly (6) made sure to cash in on the resulting 5-on-3 power play opportunity.
Kuznetsov sauced a pass across the low slot— deflecting off of Backstrom— to reach Connolly, where the Capitals clutch depth scoring forward held the puck for a second then fired a shot past Fleury on the short side.
Backstrom (17) and Kuznetsov (19) had the primary and secondary assists on the goal that made it 6-2 at 18:51 of the third period. Kuznetsov became the first player to record four assists in a Stanley Cup Final game since legendary Colorado Avalanche center (and current GM), Joe Sakic, recorded four assists against the Florida Panthers in Game 2 of the 1996 Stanley Cup Final.
Washington's four-goal lead was enough to seal the deal on a Game 4 victory, but not without one more 10-minute misconduct handed to Reaves at 19:17 of the third.
At the end of 60 minutes, the Capitals had not only taken a 3-1 series lead with a chance to win the Cup in Game 5, but had finished their Game 4 effort leading in blocked shots (24-8) and giveaways (18-7). Vegas finished the night leading in shots on goal (30-23), hits (39-29) and faceoff win percentage (52-48) despite trailing in the faceoff dot for the first two periods.
The Golden Knights went 0/4 on the power play, while the Capitals went 3/5 on the power play in Game 4.
At the start of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final, hockey fans were guaranteed a first-time Stanley Cup winner and we're on the verge of seeing Ovechkin and Co. hoist the Cup for the first time in Washington's franchise history. Unless Fleury and the Golden Knights can rebound and hold off elimination long enough for a Game 7 on home ice.
Fleury's series save percentage has dipped below an .855, leading some to wonder why current Vegas backup Maxime Lagace wasn't utilized just to shake things up in Game 4. But for now both Golden Knights and Caps fans will have to wait until Thursday night for all of their last minute Game 5 storylines and history in the making.
Puck drop in Game 5 is set for a little after 8:00 p.m. ET Thursday night at T-Mobile Arena and viewers can tune in on NBC, CBC, SN or TVAS (depending on your location/viewing preferences).
William Karlsson had a goal, Jonathan Marchessault had an assist and Reilly Smith had a goal and an assist en route to the Vegas Golden Knights 3-2 victory over the Winnipeg Jets in Game 4 of the 2018 Western Conference Final. The Golden Knights first liners— along with another strong performance from their goaltender— helped cement a 3-1 series lead.
Vegas is one win away from advancing to the Stanley Cup Final almost a year since their roster was formed via the 2017 Expansion Draft.
Marc-Andre Fleury made 35 saves on 37 shots against for a .946 save percentage in the win for the home team at T-Mobile Arena Friday night, while Winnipeg netminder, Connor Hellebuyck, stopped 26 out of 29 shots faced for an .897 SV% in 58:29 time on ice in the loss.
Penalties are all the more costly in the postseason and the Jets got an early reminder of why that is in the first period when Tyler Myers was called for interference less than two minutes into the action.
William Karlsson (6) buried a shot from one knee off the post and in on the power play and the Golden Knights led, 1-0, 2:25 into the first period. Jonathan Marchessault (10) and Reilly Smith (14) notched the assists on the goal.
Marchessault tied the NHL record for most points by a player in his team's first playoff appearance (18 points) with his assist on Karlsson's goal. Igor Larionov was the last player to record 18 points in his team's first postseason with the San Jose Sharks in 1994, while Jude Drouin was the first to establish the record of 18 points by a player in his team's first postseason as a member of the New York Islanders in 1975.
A little past the halfway mark of the first period, Mark Scheifele slashed Brayden McNabb and was subsequently sent to the penalty box to serve for a minor infraction. Vegas did not convert on the ensuing player advantage.
After one period, the Golden Knights led, 1-0, on the scoreboard and trailed, 10-9, in shots on goal. Both teams had nine blocked shots and four giveaways aside, while the Jets led in hits (17-15). Vegas led in takeaways (3-2), faceoff win percentage (65-35) and was 1/2 on the power play after 20 minutes of play, while Winnipeg had yet to see any time on the special teams advantage.
Karlsson slashed Jets captain, Blake Wheeler, and was sent to the sin bin early into the second period— less than three minutes into the second frame— but Winnipeg couldn't will the puck past Fleury on the power play.
Then Tomas Nosek tripped Jacob Trouba at 8:28 of the second period and the Jets went back on the power play.
This time, things were different, as Wheeler had set up Patrik Laine with one of the best chances of the night, only to be denied by Fleury after Laine couldn't receive the pass cleanly, settle the puck and release one of his patented quick shots in time. No matter, Winnipeg would get another chance.
On the ensuing faceoff in the attacking zone, the Jets won the puck and worked it around the offensive zone before Dustin Byfuglien fed Laine in his comfort zone— the faceoff dot just to the right of Vegas's netminder.
Laine (5) ripped a shot past Fleury and Winnipeg had a power play goal of their own, tying the game, 1-1, at 9:29 of the second period. Byfuglien (11) and Wheeler (18) had the assists on the goal.
Just like in Game 3, however, the Golden Knights responded on the scoreboard less than a minute later as Nosek found redemption for serving time in the sin bin.
Nosek (1) poked the puck through Hellebuyck after Pierre-Edouard Bellemare nearly scored on a wraparound 10:12 into the second period, giving Vegas a 2-1 lead.
Bellemare (1) and Luca Sbisa (1) were credited with the assists on the Golden Knights goal 43 seconds after Winnipeg tied the game.
Late in the period, Sbisa tripped Nikolaj Ehlers and Vegas went on to kill off the minor penalty without any trouble from the visiting team's power play.
Through 40 minutes of play, the Golden Knights led, 2-1, on the scoreboard and trailed, 25-22, in shots on goal. Vegas also led in blocked shots (16-15) and takeaways (13-6), while Winnipeg led in hits (32-28) and giveaways (8-6). Faceoff win percentage was even (50-50) after two periods and the Jets were 1/3 on the power play, while Vegas was 1/2 on the skater advantage heading into the second intermission.
A mere 28 seconds into the third period, McNabb was guilty of cross checking Scheifele and was sent to the box. Winnipeg came out of the gates surging and being shorthanded did not help Vegas's cause, though the Golden Knights were able to kill off the penalty, thanks to Fleury's stellar goaltending.
But it was Tyler Myers (4) finding the back of the twine in the vulnerable minutes after Winnipeg's power play, having shot the puck through Fleury's five-hole and wedging it underneath the net camera.
Jack Roslovic (3) had the only assist on the game-tying goal at 5:34 of the third period. This time the Golden Knights did not immediately strike back and the game remained tied, 2-2, for a little over seven minutes.
A Jets turnover led to a loose puck winding up on Smith's stick. The Vegas forward charged into the attacking zone and sniped a snap shot past Hellebuyck's short side going bar down to give the Golden Knights their third lead of the night, 3-2.
Smith's (2) goal was just his second of the postseason and was unassisted at 13:02.
Time ticked down. Tension grew. Tempers didn't flare as much as they had in previous games in the series, which didn't lead to any retaliation penalties that could've jeopardized everything for either club.
With 90 seconds remaining in regulation, Hellebuyck vacated the goal for an extra attacker.
Paul Maurice called a timeout at a stoppage in play with 1:13 remaining in regulation to rally his Jets roster, but Gerard Gallant's Golden Knights matched the intensity— clearing the puck, battling along the boards and keeping the vulcanized rubber biscuit away from their opponent.
Vegas won the final faceoff of the game with 6.8 seconds remaining in their own zone. Winnipeg would not get a last second shot away as Marchessault guided the puck through the neutral zone as the final horn sounded.
The Golden Knights won Game 4, 3-2, and are now one win away from advancing to the 2018 Stanley Cup Final— in their inaugural season.
After 60 minutes of play, Winnipeg led in shots on goal (37-29) and giveaways (16-9), but Vegas led in blocked shots (25-18), hits (45-43) and more importantly in the final results column. The Jets went 1/4 and the Golden Knights were 1/2 on the power play Friday night.
Game 5 is Sunday afternoon at Bell MTS Place in downtown Winnipeg, Manitoba. Puck drop is scheduled for a little after 3:00 p.m. ET and viewers in the United States have the chance to witness history on NBC. Fans in Canada, meanwhile (assuming the entire country's rooting for the last Canadian team in the postseason) can cheer for the Jets on CBC, Sportsnet or TVAS.
Three unanswered goals almost eight minutes into the first period held up over the rest of the game, Saturday night at Bell MTS Place as the Winnipeg Jets beat the Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 in Game 1 of the 2018 Western Conference Final.
Connor Hellebuyck made 19 saves on 21 shots faced for a .905 save percentage in the win for the Jets, while Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 22 shots out of 26 shots against for an .846 SV% in 57:21 time on ice in the loss for Vegas.
It didn't take long for Winnipeg's home-ice advantage to kick in as Dustin Byfuglien (5) blasted a slap shot past Fleury 65 seconds into the action Saturday night, giving the Jets a 1-0 lead.
Mark Scheifele (6) and Blake Wheeler (13) had the assists on the goal that was made possible thanks to a turnover in Vegas's attacking zone.
Not long after, Alex Tuch took the game's first penalty— a minor for hooking Winnipeg's Bryan Little— and the Golden Knights found themselves shorthanded against one of the best power play units in this postseason.
Wheeler worked a cross-ice pass through the low slot to Patrik Laine on the ensuing player advantage and Laine (4) promptly sent a one-timer past Fleury to give the Jets a two-goal lead. Wheeler (14) and Paul Stastny (9) had the assists on the goal at 6:49 of the first period and Winnipeg led, 2-0.
Less than a minute later, the Jets worked another one past the Vegas netminder on a deflection thanks to the skates of Joel Armia (2).
Though the goal was originally waved off, after review (courtesy of a coach's challenge) it was determined there was no goaltender interference and the call on the ice was overturned. In the eyes of the situation room, Armia had not entered the crease and interfered with Fleury's ability to make a save too close to receiving/deflecting the puck anyway, despite the fact that Armia had bumped into the Golden Knights goalie prior to scoring.
Nevertheless, Ben Chiarot (3) had the only assist on the goal and the Jets led, 3-0, at 7:35 of the first period.
Fleury and the Golden Knights had allowed three goals on eight shots against in less than eight minutes into the action.
Despite this, Vegas was determined to get one of their own past Hellebuyck and begin the slow climb back on the scoreboard.
Jonathan Marchessault worked the puck from behind the goal line back to Brayden McNabb (2) as the Vegas blueliner snuck in the attacking zone on a delayed call against the Jets. McNabb quickly fired a shot that deflected off of Winnipeg rookie Kyle Connor's stick and behind Hellebuyck, high-glove side.
The Golden Knights cut the lead to two and Marchessault (8) and Reilly Smith (11) notched the assists on McNabb's goal at 8:10 of the first period. Winnipeg led, 3-1, and the home crowd was unfazed.
In fact, Jets fans continued taunting Fleury with Bronx cheers for every save and the introduction of the phrase "we want Subban" (as in, Golden Knights backup goaltender, Malcolm Subban) to their lexicon.
Winnipeg's captain, Blake Wheeler, however, took a trip into the away bench on a hit delivered from Golden Knights tough guy, Ryan Reaves. Vegas, to their credit, did help Wheeler get back on his feet after flipping head first over the boards.
Past the halfway mark in the first period, Erik Haula slashed Laine and the Jets went on their second power play of the night. It was not as successful as their first man advantage of the game and the Golden Knights generated a couple quality shorthanded scoring chances.
Jets defender, Jacob Trouba, interfered with Tuch at 16:51 of the first period and the Golden Knights went on the power play for the first time, but did not convert on the ensuing advantage.
After one period, Winnipeg led, 3-1, on the scoreboard and 2:1 in shots on goal (12-6). Both teams had blocked five shots each, while Vegas had an advantage in hits (18-13) and Winnipeg led in takeaways (3-0), giveaways (7-5) and faceoff win percentage (72-28). The Golden Knights were 0/1 on the power play and the Jets were 1/2 on the advantage after 20 minutes of play.
Four players took matching minor penalties for roughing just over five minutes into the second period as things heated up on the ice after the whistle. Colin Miller, Oscar Lindberg, Mathieu Perreault and Brandon Tanev each went to the sin bin for their respective sides and play remained even at 5-on-5.
McNabb hooked Wheeler on a breakaway at 9:10 of the second period as Wheeler shot the puck wide through the crease while Fleury was in desperation save mode.
The Jets didn't waste much time on the player advantage before converting as it only took 44 seconds for Scheifele (12) to redirect a shot from the point by Byfuglien past Fleury to make it a three-goal game.
Scheifele's goal on the power play came at 9:54 of the second period and made it, 4-1, Winnipeg. Byfuglien (10) and Wheeler (15) had the assists, capping off a three-assist night for Wheeler.
Late in the period, Chiarot tripped James Neal and the Golden Knights went on the power play with just under five minutes to go until the second intermission.
William Karlsson (5) redirected a pass from Marchessault into the twine and cut the lead to two at 15:55 of the second period. Marchessault (9) and Shea Theodore (4) notched the assists on the power play goal for Vegas that made it, 4-2.
Through 40 minutes of play, the Jets were in control, 4-2, on the scoreboard and, 22-13, in shots on goal. Winnipeg also led in blocked shots (13-7), hits (27-25), takeaways (8-1), giveaways (10-9) and faceoff win percentage (62-38). The Golden Knights were 1/2 on the power play while Winnipeg was 2/3 on the man advantage after two periods.
Reaves tripped Adam Lowry early in the third period, but the Jets did not convert on the ensuing advantage in the only penalty called in the game's final frame.
Neither team found the back of the twine as the Golden Knights frantically searched for a way to score two goals to tie the game, having pulled their goaltender with about 2:35 remaining in regulation.
Gerard Gallant used his team's only timeout at the next stoppage in play to try to draw up a plan, but Vegas's best efforts were no match for Paul Maurice's Winnipeg Jets, despite Winnipeg's inability to land a shot in the empty net.
At the final horn the Jets had won, 4-2, and jumped out to a 1-0 series lead in sheer dominance in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final.
Winnipeg finished the night leading in shots on goal (26-21), blocked shots (22-10), hits (33-30), giveaways (14-11), and faceoff win percentage (56-44). Both teams went .500 on the power play as the Jets went 2/4 and Vegas went 1/2 on the man advantage.
Game 2 is Monday night in Winnipeg, where the Bell MTS Centre crowd looks to energize their team to a 2-0 series lead. Puck drop is set for a little after 8:00 p.m. ET and viewers in the United States can tune in on NBCSN, while fans in Canada can catch the action on CBC, SN or TVAS.


Noel Preston argues there are legitimate concerns about integrity in the public service.
Noel Preston says: "There are signs that grievances are bubbling up all over the place, while complaints procedures are too often subverted."
This is countered by appearances. The Courier Mail in Queensland has a column "SOLVED - The Red Tape Busters". This is the kind of media that gives people the idea that if you follow a procedure you will get a just outcome. The problems addressed in the column aren't actually solved advice is given on how to solve them. It gives the impression that a hand full of successes is representative. Given recent events in Queensland, it is clear that all you get in most cases at all levels from the backyard dispute to enquiries into hospital deaths is stonewalling and muck about. Police Department burueacracy is one area that an independent body needs to take a good, long hard look. Don't believe police websites, I think, it is all words and pretence. CMC and police ethics committees are earning a reputation as arse-covering exercises.
We should note that Queensland is often cited as a desireable model political system; one without an upper house (review chamber) of any sort.
While second chambers do not necessarily quarantee better politics, they do sometimes provide another entry point for the exposure (and sometimes the redress) of grievances and poor performance. Although the Senate has exposed some pretty dubious practices, its relevance has been downplayed of late to the extent that the kind of investigative work in children overboard for example is now most unlikely to occur, a state of affairs which understandably suits the Liberals, but also ironically the Labor Party.
It's an important issue Noel.
The core factor is missing in the discussion. That's not your fault, Noel; it's missing in all public discussions of the ethics of serving the public.
You end with a quote from Dag Hammarsjold: "Only they deserve power who justify its use daily."
This reveals a serious misperception - that public service is power. Sadly, public service is power; but it should be responsibility.
And the missing core factor is: accountability.
Public servants should be accountable to the people they serve.
This principle should apply to elected representatives as well as employees of public institutions.
Just think of the level of accountability of elected representatives - one day every 3 or 4 years. They are accountable less that 0.1% of the time!
No wonder corruption in public life runs so very very deep!
We need more than ethics which the charts for the ship. We need ethos which is more. It is the compass.
This ehthos has to be infused into the system and until the vacuum of leadership is replaced by visionary, ethically-grounded politicians and senior administrators this will never happen.
What system ever seeks accountablity, transparency, and morality, as well as the encouragement of what we strangely called "whistle blowers" (someone brave enough to stand outside the herd)? The very nature of politics, promotion in the "public service" (oxymoron) is based on different paradigms. We therefore get what we deserve perhaps.
I no longer believe in the Tooth Fairy and although I know there are wise leaders out there, there are few on the ground. Commercial and "political" interests usually dominate everything done in the name of the public. Firefighting like in the Morris Enquiry, and expensive Royal Commissions is too often the proxy for sound, wise and responsive government/governance. Let's move the deck chairs around again, change the letterhead and the logo and pretend it's all different.
It is interesting to note that the only instances of actions for "apprehended bias' to make it into the media in recent years have been initiated by bureaucrats and elected officials seeking to shut down legitimate inquiries into matters that are likely to produce a finding of gross negligence contributing to the death of persons.
The first action was funded by the ACT government to shut down the coronial inquiry into the ACT fires that was paying very close attention to the actions and inaction of the ACT Chief Minister et al. The second was brought by Qld Health officials who continually failed to take any action in respect of reports on the competency of "Dr Death".
This is symptomatic of the entire public service culture where "rights" are the tools available for their own kind to either pursue their objectives or protect their own interests. The public, in their eyes, have no rights. They are merely the holders of concessionary privileges that prevail until such time that the governing tribe may need to call them in.
I have been ripped off, scammed, stooged and pimped at in four languages and five continents but I have never seen a larger, more concentrated gathering of fleshcrawling spivs than one would routinely find in any gathering departmental policy officers.
They do not serve. Our need is merely their franchise.


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text:
Hugo Cisneros
Why programming is a good medium for expressing poorly understood and sloppily-formulated ideas
Artificial Intelligence, Coding
What can computers do?
The fallacy under discussion is the widespread superstition that we can't write a computer program to do something unless one has an extremely clear, precise formulation of what is to be done, and exactly how to do it.
It is generally believed that computer programs cannot be more than a set of rules and instructions for what to do in a given computer state. While this is true, it falls into the common pitfall of thinking of the whole as the sum of its parts
However, for more advanced processes, while "perfectly" true in one sense, it would be as correct to say that "houses are nothing but arrangements of construction materials" or "books are merely long strings of words."
Minsky discusses three ways to see a computer program
A program as a sequence of instruction to be obeyed
The most common and simple-minded view is that a computer program is a sequence of clear-cut operations to be performed on some data.
A program as a court of law
The author now gives an example program that can accumulate facts from user input. A disambiguation "part" of the program acts as a court, weighing different facts against previously accumulated knowledge and adding it to its database.
In large programs with many such subprograms, it is clear that the whole isn't behaving like a sequence anymore. The programmer only constructs the laws and rules that will guide those courts but usually cannot predict or understand the details of operations.
For try as we may, we rarely can fully envision, in advance, all the details of [the subprograms'] interactions. For that, after all, is why we need computers.
A program as a collection of statements of advice
The great illusion shared not only by all terrified humanists but also by most computer "experts," that programming is an inherently precise and rigid medium of expression, is based on an elementary confusion between form and content. If poets were required to write in units of fourteen lines, it wouldn't make them more precise; if composers had to use all twelve tones, it wouldn't constrain the overall forms; if designers had to use only fourth order surfaces no ‑one would notice it much! It is humorous, then, to find such unanimity about how the rather stiff grammar of (the older) programming language makes for precision in describing processes.
It is interesting to note that it seems that in Minsky's mind, programming would have more flexible syntax in the future approaching natural language more accurately.
I think the following quote, referring to a "missionaries and cannibal" solving program, is impressive. The program tries several solutions and prefers those making progress towards moving people to the other side of the river. An outsider can tell the program if its making progress or not. This sounds to me like machine learning, which was in its early days at the time.
Some other function may have been modified so that, in certain situations, "progress" won't get to evaluate the situation at all, and someone might get eaten anyway. If that happened, the outsider would try to guess why.
He would have the options (1) of thoroughly understanding the existing program and "really fixing" the trouble, or (2) of entering anew advice statement describing what he imagines to be the defective situation and telling the program not to move the missionary into the position of being eaten. When a program grows in power by an evolution of partially‑understood patches and fixes, the programmer begins to lose track of internal details and can no longer predict what will happen—and begins to hope instead of know, watching the program as though it were an individual of unpredictable behavior.
Programming is more than a bunch of instructions
In each domain of uncertainty I am at liberty to specify (instead of particular procedures) procedure‑generators, selection rules, courts of advice concerning choices, etc. So the behavior can have wide ranges‑it need never twice follow the same lines, it can be made to cover roughly the same latitude of tolerance that lies in the author's mind.
A programmer, by giving instructions, is specifying a frame in which a program will develop. I believe most very interesting programs are actually creating something new that can be of interest to the programmer itself.
Data analysis is a simple form of this phenomenon. A programmer writes some code to extract word frequency from a piece of text, and get some insights he could not have got before. I believe that open-ended evolution would be the ultimate form of a program impressing the programmer. Though only evolving within the frame imposed by the programmer, such a program would create endless and more complex novelty.
To take advantage of the unsurpassed flexibility of this medium requires tremendous skill‑technical, intellectual, and esthetic. To constrain the behavior of a program precisely to a range may be very hard, just as a writer will need some skill to express just a certain degree of ambiguity. A computer is like a violin. You can imagine a novice trying first a phonograph and then a violin. The latter, he says, sounds terrible. That is the argument we have heard from our humanists and most of our computer scientists. Computer programs are good, they say, for particular purposes, but they aren't flexible. Neither is a violin, or a typewriter, until you learn how to use it.
Last changed 02/03/2021 | authored by Hugo Cisneros
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© Hugo Cisneros 2023

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, psychology is "the science of mind and behavior." Is psychology a science? Well, yes and no, depending on one's understanding of the term "science." If one views the study of psychology as simply the pursuit of the knowledge of human behavior, some are satisfied with its definition as a science. Yet that rather vague meaning is far removed from real scientific knowledge gained through a scientific methodology that involves objective observation, evidence, hypotheses testing, induction, repetition, and verification, and ultimately resulting in a commonly accepted cumulative knowledge. Psychology differs greatly, for example, from the sciences of astronomy, physics, chemistry, geology, and biology, the knowledge of which has been amassed through objective means.
Psychology hints at being a science but has failed to produce a significant body of information to prove itself in that way. Its primary emphasis is on human behavior, which can't be quantified in any meaningful manner. The nature of human choices is extremely subjective, involving emotions, values, and consciousness—none of which can be measured; nor can the mind, being a nonphysical part of the human makeup. The issue of whether or not psychology is a science wouldn't be worth debating except that just the term "science" carries a great weight of influence. Legitimate or not, the "science" label impresses the masses.
Nearly 100 disciplines of psychology cover a wide spectrum of undertakings, from applied behavior analysis to transpersonal psychology. Psychotherapy, i.e., psychological counseling or clinical psychology, is the most prevalent. Americans spend more than $200 billion a year attempting to have their mental and emotional disorders cured, usually through psychotherapy.
Psychotherapy, "also called 'talk therapy' or just plain 'therapy,' is a process whereby psychological problems are treated through communication and relationship factors between an individual and a trained mental health professional."1 Psychotherapy is psychoheresy. Its subtle deception opens the door to other deceptions, replacing and/or adding unproven, unscientific opinions of men to the Word of God, thus taking away from absolute confidence in the biblical truth about God.
"Syncretism" is "the combination of different forms of belief or practice." It's one of Satan's most deceptive and appealing techniques, devised to destroy true faith and undermine the Christian's confidence in God's Word and dependence on Christ. Psychotherapy and its underlying psychologies are actually religious in nature and practice. They're like oil and water! The euphemism for this kind of syncretism is "integration," which occurs when two or more ideas or systems are combined. However, psychotherapeutic beliefs cannot truly be integrated with Scripture. One works with the old man of the flesh (carnal); the other works with the new man in Christ (spiritual). They're at enmity with each other, just as the flesh and the Spirit are contrary to each other (Gal:5:17For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
See All...) and just as the carnal man is at enmity with God (Rom:8:7Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
See All...). They can't mix, because they're enemies just as the idols of the nations around Israel were at enmity with God.
discovering scientific methods of observing, explaining, and transforming human behavior.
Koch describes the delusion of people regarding psychology as a science: "The hope of a psychological science became indistinguishable from the fact of psychological science. The entire subsequent history of psychology can be seen as a ritualistic endeavor to emulate the forms of science in order to sustain the delusion that it already is a science"3 (italics his).
We could add that the individual not only escapes the formulas of science, but also defies the descriptions of literature. Nevertheless, if one must choose between the two, it appears that literature has more ably revealed human beings. Language describes the complexities of individuality far better than formulas. Language and literature, rather than personality theories and psychotherapy, better portray human nature and provide a glimpse into the depths of the soul, but it is the Bible that best portrays and gives accurate truth about mankind.
There are subtleties and similarities between certain ideas from psychology and Christianity that increase the vulnerability for one to begin thinking and ministering psychologically rather than biblically. The deceitful heart finds its friendliest friend in a psychologized gospel, where the sinful nature of man is given free reign and where sinful speaking can be expressed without restriction, questioning, or proof. That is why Christians must spend time in the Word and in prayer instead of looking for answers to life's dilemmas outside Scripture and the church. Again, psychotherapy and its underlying psychologies are not science. They are human speculations about the soul, with a pseudo-scientific facade.
We are not questioning the faith of Christians who, as psychotherapists, pastors, and church leaders, support psychotherapy and clinical psychology. We are critical, however, of their practice and support for these activities that deny the sufficiency of Scripture. The Word is true; the theories and practices of psychotherapy that speak in place of God's written Word and its promises are counterfeits. This psychologizing of the faith has come to full flower so that those who know better will not for the sake of the Gospel do better. There are many pastors and church leaders who believe as we do regarding psychotherapy but will not make an issue of this false religious compromise of true faith in God's Word. We have often challenged Christians who believe as we do regarding psychotherapy to ask their pastors if they have any problem with referring those with life issues to a psychotherapist.
Psychoheresy deceives the soul. O. Hobart Mowrer, in his book titled The Crisis in Psychiatry and Religion, asks a penetrating question: "Has evangelical religion sold its birthright for a mess of psychological pottage?"10 Christians need to take an objective, hard look at their birthright and the mess of psychological pottage. Without a firm hold on the Word of God they will be led astray and more so as deception will increase exponentially in the days preceding Christ's return.
When asked about the time of His return, Jesus said: "Take heed that no man deceive you." How deeply deceived might those Christians be after seeking help from psychotherapy and its underlying psychologies? How will they be able to discover how much they are deceived, if they have already mixed deceptive psychological notions and nonsense into their understanding of the Bible? Twice in the book of Proverbs (14:12; 16:25) we're told that there's a way (the world's way) that seems right to a man, but it is separated from God's truth and leads to death.
2) Sigmund Koch, ed., Psychology: A Study of a Science (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1959-63).
3) Sigmund Koch, "The Image of Man in Encounter Groups," The American Scholar, Autumn 1973, 636.
4) Sigmund Koch, "Psychology Cannot Be a Coherent Science," Psychology Today, September 1969, 66.
7) Koch, "The Image of Man in Encounter Groups," op. cit., 636.
8) Gordon Allport, Pattern and Growth in Personality (New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, Inc., 1961), 8-9.
9) Sutherland, P. and P. Poelstra, "Aspects of Integration" (Paper presented at the meeting of the Western Association of Christians for Psychological Studies, Santa Barbara, CA, June 1976).
10) O. Hobart Mowrer, The Crisis in Psychiatry and Religion (Princeton, NJ: D. Van Nostrand Co., Inc., 1961), 60.
Question: Where do you find the concept of a penalty for sin in the Bible?
Question: Is there a prophetic significance to a "thousand years being as a day" to the Lord?
Question: What did Paul mean when he said that he and the other Apostles were "the last appointed unto death"?
Question: Did Jesus descend into hell or not?


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Le vieux japonais (ou ancien japonais) au sens large est le japonais tel qu'il était parlé entre le  et le  (fin de l'époque Heian en 1185). Il se divise en deux périodes : le  et le .

Le haut japonais

Le haut japonais, plus ancienne forme connue de cette langue, commence au  (premières transcriptions du japonais en caractères chinois). On le fait aboutir traditionnellement en 794, début de l'époque de Heian.

On a distingué 88 syllabes en haut japonais :

Le moyen japonais

Le moyen japonais (ou « ancien japonais stricto sensu ») est beaucoup plus connu que le haut japonais. Il correspond à la période Heian.

Le haut japonais était écrit en adaptant et en calquant les idéogrammes chinois. Au cours de la période Heian, deux nouveaux types de caractères sont apparus : les hiragana et katakana. Ils ont permis de simplifier l'écriture du japonais et en cela ont participé à l'essor d'un nouvel âge de la littérature nippone : , les , le , etc.

Le passage à l'écriture en kana
Le japonais fut écrit de trois manières successives. D'abord, le man'yōgana fut créé à partir du chinois, utilisation phonétique des idéogrammes. Puis les man'yōgana ont été simplifiés et ont formé les hiragana et katakana, qui, bien que caractères moraïques aujourd'hui, sont issus d'idéogrammes utilisés en moyen japonais.

Phonétique du moyen japonais

Notes et références

 Code de langue IETF : ojp

Voir aussi
 linguistique
 liste de langues
 langues par famille
 langues japoniques
 japonais

Langue japonaise
Inventaire de langues
Japonais

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Decision matrix, Pareto analysis and other effective tools for making smart business decisions
Decision making is the highest responsibility for executives and managers. About three billion important decisions are made by managers each year. That's more than eight million decisions in a single day, including weekends. Just imagine how many of these decisions are made reflexively. Managers can't keep track of all their decisions the same way they track their Starbucks receipts or measure conversion rates. That is the reason why 98% of them, no matter how qualified, eventually make a poor decision.
One incorrect decision is all it takes to destroy the reputation of a business or lead a company to financial ruin. In 2009, the management of General Motors decided to continue manufacturing larger vehicles despite trends favoring smaller cars. This led GM to declaring bankruptcy later that year. The University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth investigated the problem of decision-making and offered the following seven steps to improve it:
Identify the nature of the decision you have to make
Collect critical information
Think about alternatives
Organize the alternatives according to priority
Select among the alternatives
Start implementing the alternative you've selected
Review the results of the decision you've made
What can managers do to make better business decisions?
Among all tools and techniques that are used today to improve decision-making skills, we've selected some of the most interesting and effective.
Decision tree.This scheme illustrates all the possible outcomes of a decision you're going to make. It doesn't matter if the tree is drawn by hand or using special software.
SWOT analysis. With this technique, you assess all the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of your future decision.
Multivoting. This method is used when many people are involved in a situation that requires a decision to be made. Multivoting helps whittle down the list of possible outcomes.
Problem: Customer Dissatisfaction with a Service
Reduce the price for service
Hire more customer support professionals
Create bonus/referral system
Create more content
Conjoint analysis. This technique helps business leaders identify customer preferences while making decisions. Research determines what people really like and value in your services. Based on the info you get from the research, you make a decision regarding your product.
Which of these smartphones would you choose?
ModelRAMStorageBattery
iPhone X3GB64GB / 256GB2716 mAh
Samsung Galaxy S94GB64GB / 128GB3000mAh / 3500mAh
Google Pixel 24GB64GB / 128GB2700 mAh
Pareto analysis. If you have to make a lot of decisions, this method helps you set priorities. You see what decisions must be made first by adding a score to all of them.
Decision matrix. With this method, you can assess all options of the decision you intend to make. First, you will have to create a table. In the first column you place the options of the decision and in the first row you place all factors that may influence your decision. You provide this table to the users who score the options and determine which factors are the most important. Due to the final score, you will see which option is the best for you.
What payment service would you choose for your business?
OptionAvailabilitySecurityEasy-to-useTotal score
Payoneer1010828
Square791026
Stripe88925
PEST analysis. PEST stands for political, economical, social and technological factors. With this method, you examine external factors that help predict future business trends.
Decision making can be very impulsive. Many people make decisions first. Only after will they assess outcomes and benefits. In business, this is unacceptable. Learn to be rational and use these techniques to reframe problems and make more evidence-based decisions.
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business trends, decision making, decision matrix, leadership, Pareto analysis, PEST analysis, SWOT
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