Author: Rauf Aliev

Great interview with Rodnina.

Aleksandr Golovin is handsome.

March compilation of interesting links on e-commerce and retail with a focus on development.

Hybris Deep Dive. Free e-book about microservices. Image similarity for filling attribution gaps. Deep learning in a nutshell. Product recommendation best practices. Examples of AI in retail and e-commerce. Better search. Checklist for improving e-commerce conversion.

https://hybrismart.com/2018/03/29/recommended-reading-for-e-commerce-gurus/

It turns out that the concert harp has pedals, seven of them, and each has three depths of pressure (flat/natural/sharp).

It might be a surprise for some friends from Russia, but 90 percent of Christians celebrate Easter today.

The Council of Nicaea in 325 AD decreed that all Christians should celebrate Easter, the Day of the Lord’s Resurrection, astronomically: on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the day of the spring equinox.

In 2018, the equinox (day equals night, 12 hours each) is on March 20.

The first full moon was on Saturday, March 31 (the same day that Jewish Passover begins).

Accordingly, today, on the first Sunday after March 31, Catholics, Protestants, and Orthodox Finns are celebrating Easter in 2018. According to the universal ecumenical rule.

However, the Orthodox calculate Easter based on the ancient and outdated Paschalion, which has long been mistaken in its astronomical dates. According to its tables, in 2018, the spring equinox supposedly falls on April 3 (which is March 21 in the Julian calendar), the first full moon (“Jewish Passover”) supposedly occurs the next day – April 4 (March 22 in the old style), and then Easter Sunday – the following Sunday, April 8 (March 26 in the Julian calendar).

Thus, the Orthodox will celebrate Easter next weekend, on April 8.

By the way, the week before Easter is marked by Palm Sunday – what in Russia is called “Pussy-Willow Sunday”. The palm was considered a sacred plant by the ancient Jews. But as palms don’t grow in Russia, willows are used instead 🙂 In Italy, olive trees are considered the symbol of the holiday. In France – rosemary.

Last year the dates coincided, and I didn’t find out. I just got curious; I am quite distant from all this.

I really enjoyed reading the long article about four crazy roofers who managed to walk to a spaceport, film a launch, find a Buran, climb inside, and get back out alive. Very cool, great photos, and the report itself is very interesting.

http://lentach.media/articles/v-kosmos-na-kolesakh-chetvero-rebiat-poekhali-na-mashine-na-kosmodrom-baikonur/

Oh! I now know what it’s called: Shlemiel the Painter’s algorithm! An old article from an excellent blog – one of the first on the internet that I started reading (and then abandoned) http://russian.joelonsoftware.com/Articles/BacktoBasics.html

From the courses I’ve recently listened to on Arzamas, I recommend the following:

1. History of Orthodox Culture. https://arzamas.academy/courses/43

2. What is Antiquity?https://arzamas.academy/likbez/antiquity

What is Ancient Greece?

https://arzamas.academy/courses/36

3. How to Understand Japan.

https://arzamas.academy/courses/21

4. How Railroads Changed Russian Life. Co-produced with RZD. Interesting (haven’t finished listening yet, but the beginning is intriguing)

https://arzamas.academy/courses/49

5. How to Listen to Classical Music?

https://arzamas.academy/courses/25

(somewhere halfway interesting and useful)

6. The World of Bulgakov.

https://arzamas.academy/courses/39

7. The Russian Language from “goy esi” to “lol kek” – very interesting

https://arzamas.academy/likbez/ruslang

8. The Siege of Leningrad

https://arzamas.academy/courses/51/

Also, they have the “Inferiority Complex” podcast. There was recently interesting content about the swearing used by Pushkin) https://soundcloud.com/arzamas-academy

If someone has listened to anything else – please recommend.

I’ve also discovered Arkhe (http://arhe.msk.ru/) – but they do not have a mobile app and many lectures require video as slides are needed

Brought from Burning Man to Washington

These mushrooms are alive. Exhibits from burning man, DC

This object is bulky and made of wood. Exhibits from Burning Man, Renwick Gallery, DC.