To Be Understood

The purpose of writing is to convey the thoughts and feelings of the author to the reader. Careful rules and procedures in writing have been determined through years of experience to help authors avoid ambiguity. Many writers see grammar as a burden, a set of rules to be painstakingly checked over and over until a piece complies perfectly. This is not so. As a fence helps to protect a child from wandering into the road, grammar shields a writer from wandering words. Without the rules, writing becomes nothing more than words on a page. Imagine a book with no punctuation, capitalization, or formatting; it would be almost unreadable. While this is an extreme example, it demonstrates the importance of rules in helping the reader to understand the text.  While these rules do not guarantee the reader will come to comprehend the author's thoughts and feelings, it provides a common framework for the writer and reader to understand one another.

Creativity Conquers

"Creativity, as has been said, consists largely of rearranging what we know in order to find out what we do not know. Hence, to think creatively, we must be able to look afresh at what we normally take for granted."

— George Kneller

Innovation requires creativity. Creativity requires taking lessons learned from one field of study, and applying it to a new field of study. Cliff Stoll, an astronomer by trade, found himself transferred to work in the Lawrence Berkeley Lab. His research, observation, and record keeping skills brought a new perspective to the lab that eventually uncovered and resolved major security loop holes. Having individuals who study different branches of academia fosters an environment conducive to creativity. As these experts collaborate to solve a common problem, innovation will naturally occur. 

With the onset of the Information Age, data security has become one of the world's greatest concerns. For years, security experts and mathematicians have reviewed security systems in order to stay one step ahead of hackers. These experts study the same proofs, take the same classes, and come from a similar academic background. A new creative approach to the subject is needed in order to make the next major step in security. We need experts from all fields to unite in the study of security. This collaboration will bring a fresh look to the security problem, stimulating innovation and creativity.

The problem is pervasive. The world needs secure ways to store data. Hackers are continually seeking to find and exploit security weaknesses. It is going to take the creativity and teamwork of experts in every field to stay one step ahead of hackers.

Adobe Hacked

http://gigaom.com/2013/10/04/adobe-source-code-breech-its-bad-real-bad/

Adobe has been hacked! Most hacks of major computer companies have little effect on the end user. This hack has the potential to be very different. With the source code stolen for such widespread products as Adobe PDF Reader and Flash Player, hackers can now carefully look through every line of code to find an exploit. Most security exploits take thousands of tests and countless hours of trying to find a loop hole. With the source code, this process will be exponentially faster. Unfortunately, all we can do as an end user is wait and see what the hackers do with this information. Perhaps the best line of defense is to not use Adobe products until this breech has been resolved. Adobe PDF Reader is easily replaced with others such as Sumatra PDF or Foxit. Unfortunately, Adobe Flash is not so replaceable. Most sites with online streaming or videos require it. Giving up online videos while you wait for a security breach to be fixed is a lot to ask for some, especially since we don't know when the hackers will strike. It could be in weeks, months, or years. There is no way to predict. It's left up to us to weigh the pros and cons and decide if the risk of attack is worth the cost of protection. As for my house, my wife is calling me for an evening of Lie to Me on Netflix and a big bowl of ice cream. Who could pass that up?

LDSCONF

We are living in a collaborative world. Everything is reviewed and worked together on before it is complete. Twitters LDSConf just takes the same approach to note taking for General Conference. Thousands of people gather online and list 140 character quotes and notes from conference as we listen. When you miss a joke, it will be posted in about 20 seconds.. When you want to copy a quote exactly into your notes, it will be posted in about 20 seconds. If you fell asleep and missed part of a talk, just look back over the tweets for a quick summary. I think this is an ingenious way to watch conference. The only down side is it is easy to get caught up in the tweets and lose track of what the speaker is saying. There is a careful balance to be had. This great tool can also be very distracting. LDSConf on twitter is just another opportunity to collaborate and work together to get the most out of conference.

An Adventure To The Past

“This packrat has learned that what the next generation will value most is not what we owned, but the evidence of who we were and the tales of how we loved. In the end, it’s the family stories that are worth the storage.” -Ellen Goodman

In my basement lies a closet full of memories collected by my Grandmother. She was a photographer extraordinaire. Every trip to the park, every family gathering, every holiday, there she was snapping away pictures from the corner. Even at the age of 92 she was still gleefully taking pictures and developing a roll of film each week. In her old age, she would spend hours pouring over pictures, carefully labeling and documenting them. FamilySearch.org gives me the opportunity to share these cherished memories with the world. I can upload photos, stories, documents, and records for my ancestors. As I go through Grandma's memories, I hope to uncover ancestors who are prepared and ready for temple ordinances. They will be forever grateful for the countless hours Grandma spent carefully recording her personal family history. Grandma found a way to serve her family forever. Her work is the greatest gift she could leave to her posterity.