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The Evolution of Gadgets: From Convenience to Essential Tools of Modern Life

By
TI Partners
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0

Gadgets have become an integral part of our daily lives, revolutionizing the way we work, communicate, and entertain ourselves. From smartphones and tablets where you can now access Bizzo Casino, to smartwatches and virtual assistants, gadgets have evolved from mere conveniences to essential tools that enhance our productivity, connectivity, and overall experience. In this article, we will explore the evolution of gadgets, their impact on society, and how they have transformed the way we live and interact with the world.

Communication Revolutionized: The Rise of Connectivity

Gadgets have transformed the way we communicate with one another. The advent of smartphones has made it easier than ever to stay connected with friends, family, and colleagues, regardless of our location. These portable devices allow us to make phone calls, send text messages, and access social media platforms, all at our fingertips. With the rise of messaging apps and video calling services, we can now communicate in real-time with people from all around the world. Gadgets have made communication more accessible, convenient, and efficient, enabling us to connect with others in ways we never thought possible.

Workplace Transformation: Empowering Productivity and Flexibility

In addition to communication, gadgets have revolutionized the way we work. Laptops, tablets, and smartphones have made it possible to carry our work with us wherever we go. We can access emails, create documents, and collaborate with colleagues remotely. Gadgets have increased our productivity and flexibility, allowing us to work on the go and break free from the traditional office setting. The integration of productivity apps and cloud storage services has further streamlined work processes, making it easier to organize and share information. Gadgets have empowered us to work smarter, faster, and more efficiently.

Entertainment in the Digital Age: Endless Options and Personalized Experiences

Entertainment has also been transformed by gadgets. Streaming services, gaming consoles, and e-readers have revolutionized how we consume media and engage in recreational activities. We can now access a vast library of movies, TV shows, and music on-demand, eliminating the need for physical media. Gaming has become more immersive and interactive, with virtual reality and augmented reality technologies taking the experience to a whole new level. E-readers have made it possible to carry entire libraries in our pockets, enabling us to read books and articles wherever we are. Gadgets have opened up new avenues for entertainment, providing us with endless options and personalized experiences.

Transforming Daily Lives: Health, Home Automation, and More

Furthermore, gadgets have impacted various aspects of our daily lives, from health and fitness to home automation. Fitness trackers and smartwatches help us monitor our physical activity, sleep patterns, and overall well-being. They provide valuable insights and motivate us to lead healthier lifestyles. Home automation gadgets, such as smart thermostats, lighting systems, and voice-activated assistants, have made our living spaces more efficient and convenient. We can control and manage various aspects of our homes with a simple voice command or a few taps on our smartphones. Gadgets have transformed our homes into smart, interconnected spaces that adapt to our needs and preferences.

The Impact on Social Interactions: Connecting and Disconnecting

While gadgets have undoubtedly revolutionized the way we communicate, they have also had an impact on our social interactions. On one hand, gadgets have made it easier to stay connected with loved ones and maintain relationships regardless of physical distance. Social media platforms and messaging apps allow us to share moments, thoughts, and experiences instantly, bridging gaps and fostering connections. However, the constant presence of gadgets can also lead to a sense of disconnect and hinder face-to-face interactions. It is important to strike a balance and be mindful of using gadgets in a way that enhances, rather than replaces, genuine human connections.

Environmental Concerns: Balancing Convenience and Sustainability

As gadgets continue to evolve, it is essential to consider their environmental impact. The production and disposal of gadgets contribute to electronic waste, which poses significant environmental challenges. Manufacturers and consumers alike need to prioritize sustainability by opting for products with longer lifespans, recycling old gadgets responsibly, and supporting initiatives that promote eco-friendly practices. Additionally, as gadgets become more energy-efficient, they help reduce our carbon footprint. Embracing sustainable practices and being conscious of the environmental implications of our gadget usage will contribute to a more sustainable future.

The Evolution of Education: Enhancing Learning Experiences

Gadgets have also played a significant role in education, with the integration of tablets and interactive learning tools in classrooms. These devices provide students with access to a vast array of educational resources, interactive learning experiences, and collaborative platforms. Gadgets have transformed the way knowledge is imparted and acquired, enhancing engagement and fostering a more personalized learning environment. Students can explore virtual worlds, conduct scientific experiments, and interact with educational apps that cater to their individual needs and learning styles. As technology continues to evolve, gadgets will continue to shape the future of education, empowering students and educators alike.

Looking Ahead: The Future of Gadgets

In conclusion, gadgets have come a long way from being mere conveniences to becoming essential tools of modern life. They have revolutionized communication, work, entertainment, education, and various aspects of our daily routines. Gadgets have made our lives more connected, productive, and enjoyable. As technology continues to advance at a rapid pace, we can expect further innovations and advancements in the world of gadgets. From artificial intelligence and virtual reality to wearable technology and Internet of Things, gadgets will continue to shape the way we live and interact with the world around us. It is an exciting time where possibilities seem limitless, and gadgets continue to enhance our lives in ways we couldn’t have imagined before.

Navigating the JAMB Forgery Controversy

By
Mutiu Iyanda
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0

The recent JAMB (Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board) forgery controversy surrounding Mmesoma Ejikeme, a schoolgirl from Anambra, Nigeria, has sparked heated debates and raised concerns about the integrity of the examination system. As the accusations and counterclaims fly, it is essential to apply effective crisis communication strategies to address the situation. By examining the crisis through the lens of situational crisis communication, we can gain insights into handling the issue with transparency, empathy, and a commitment to finding the truth.

Assessing the  Situation

The first step in managing any crisis is to assess the situation accurately. In the case of Mmesoma Ejikeme, it is crucial to gather all the facts, conduct a thorough investigation, and listen to all parties involved. The public and JAMB must remain open to understanding the full context surrounding the alleged forgery, including the examination process, protocols, and potential system vulnerabilities.

Tailoring the Message

Effective crisis communication requires tailored messaging that addresses the concerns and emotions of the affected parties. In this case, it is essential to acknowledge Mmesoma Ejikeme’s achievements and the impact of the accusations on her academic future. By highlighting her track record of excellence and emphasizing her innocence until proven guilty, it is possible to strike a balance between accountability and compassion.

Demonstrating Transparency

Transparency plays a crucial role in crisis management. To maintain public trust and confidence, JAMB should provide clear and detailed explanations regarding their investigation process, their reasons for suspecting forgery, and any evidence supporting their claims. Transparency fosters an environment of openness, encouraging all parties to engage in constructive dialogue.

Engaging Stakeholders

Stakeholder engagement is paramount during a crisis, especially when it involves an individual’s reputation and academic future. JAMB should engage with Mmesoma Ejikeme and her family, educational institutions, legal representatives, and concerned citizens. Actively listening to their concerns, addressing them promptly, and providing regular updates can help mitigate tensions and foster understanding.

Empathy and Support

In crisis situations, demonstrating empathy and providing support is crucial. JAMB should express empathy towards Mmesoma Ejikeme and her family, acknowledging the distress caused by the accusations. Offering appropriate counseling services and facilitating access to legal support ensures that they feel supported throughout the process.

Timely Resolution

A swift resolution is essential to restore confidence and trust in the examination system. JAMB should commit to an expedited investigation and ensure that due process is followed. Once all the evidence is gathered, a fair and impartial decision must be made, considering all perspectives and taking into account the potential impact on Mmesoma Ejikeme’s academic future.

Learning from the Crisis

Every crisis presents an opportunity for growth and improvement. JAMB should use this incident as a catalyst for reviewing their examination protocols, security measures, and processes for handling allegations of forgery. By identifying weaknesses and implementing necessary reforms, they can enhance the integrity of their examinations and prevent similar controversies in the future.

By applying situational crisis communication strategies, JAMB can address the concerns of all stakeholders, maintain trust in the examination system, and ensure a fair resolution for Mmesoma Ejikeme. Ultimately, it is essential to balance accountability and compassion while striving for truth, justice, and the preservation of academic integrity.

Threads, Meta’s Rival to Twitter, Set to Debut on The Apple App Store on July 6

By
Ojukwu Emmanuel
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0

Meta is set to launch a Twitter rival App, Threads, which it disclosed will go live on Thursday, July 6, and will be available for downloads on the iOS App Store.

Threads, which looks similar to Twitter in terms of features and interface, offers a community where users can come to discuss everything from the topics they care about.

In a preview before the launch, Meta said “Threads is where communities come to discuss everything from the topics you care about today to what’ll be trending tomorrow”, the App Store description reads, “Whatever it is you are interested in, you can follow and connect directly with your favorite creators and others who love the same things or build a loyal following of your own to share your ideas, opinions, and creativity with the world”.

The official description of the app seems to take a dig at Twitter’s shortcomings, promising to “Say more with Threads”. Threads is poised to serve similar functions as Twitter and other social platforms, with users encouraged to follow and connect directly with their favorite creators. Though Threads is closely connected with Instagram, it will be a stand-alone App.

Meta’s move to launch the Twitter-like app comes days after Twitter CEO Elon Musk put a limit to the number of tweets users can read per day. This according to Musk was a temporary measure to address extreme levels of data scraping and system manipulation.

Threads launch will be the latest rivalry between Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter CEO Elon Musk. Even though their much-anticipated cage fight will likely not happen, both billionaires will go head to head to dominate the microblogging space.

The launch seems like perfect timing for Meta, as several Twitter users have continued to move to Twitter-like apps, following Musk’s “unpleasant” revamp and his latest move to limit tweet engagements. A New York Times report said Meta’s executives have discussed how they could capitalize on the chaos at Twitter since last year, including building a rival service.

Threads will be free for users, and there will be no restrictions on how many posts users can view and engage, unlike the latest Twitter policy. Tech enthusiasts believe Threads will likely be a strong competitor to Twitter.

Reports also reveal that Meta was scouting celebrities to use Threads, by pitching the social media app as a “sanely run” platform, a reference used by Musk to take a dig at Meta.

Chief product officer at Meta, Chris Cox reportedly said that the company was already working with notable personalities like Oprah Winfrey and the Dalai Lama to join the platform to attract others to try the Project.

Meta seems to have an advantage as regards the launch of Threads, since the app will be part of the Instagram platform, it will be connected to hundreds of millions of accounts. Meta will let users log in with their Facebook or Instagram ID, saving them from the hassle of creating a new ID. This means it will not have to start from zero, unlike other rival apps.

It is worth noting that Meta is known for copying features from other social media apps and incorporating them across its social media platforms. Be it TikTok-inspired Reels, Snapchat-inspired Stories, or Discord-inspired Communities, amongst several others.

While Meta side apps haven’t always been successful, Threads might prove to be different, following the timing at which several users are moving to Twitter-like platforms.

Cardano Founder Shades Vitalik for Low Staking Position on Ethereum 2.0

By
Paul Ugbede Godwin
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0

In a recent interview, Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson took a jab at Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin for his low stake in the Ethereum 2.0 network. Hoskinson claimed that Buterin only staked 3,200 ETH out of his estimated 333,000 ETH holdings, which amounts to less than 1% of his total wealth. Hoskinson argued that this shows a lack of confidence and commitment in his own protocol and contrasted it with his own involvement in Cardano’s staking system.

Hoskinson said that he staked all of his ADA tokens, which are worth over $2 billion at the current market price, in the Cardano network. He said that this demonstrates his trust and belief in the security and scalability of Cardano, which he claims is superior to Ethereum in many aspects. He also said that he is not afraid of losing his tokens, as he is confident that Cardano will succeed in the long term.

Buterin has not responded to Hoskinson’s criticism directly, but he has previously explained his reasons for staking only a small portion of his ETH holdings. In a blog post from December 2020, Buterin said that he wanted to avoid creating a single point of failure for the Ethereum network, and that he preferred to diversify his staking across multiple validators and clients. He also said that he wanted to encourage other ETH holders to stake their tokens, and that he did not want to appear as a central figure in the Ethereum community.

Hoskinson and Buterin have a long history of rivalry and disagreement, dating back to their involvement in the early days of Ethereum. Hoskinson was one of the co-founders of Ethereum, but he left the project in 2014 after a dispute with Buterin over the governance and vision of the platform. Hoskinson then founded IOHK, the company behind Cardano, which aims to create a more scalable, secure and decentralized blockchain platform than Ethereum.

The two founders have often exchanged criticisms and opinions on each other’s projects, as well as on broader topics such as blockchain technology, cryptocurrency regulation and social impact. While they have occasionally expressed respect and appreciation for each other’s work, they have also maintained a competitive and adversarial stance, as they vie for dominance and adoption in the blockchain space.

According to Etherscan, Vitalik Buterin currently holds about 333,520 ETH, which is worth about $1.2 billion at the time of writing. Out of this amount, he has staked only 2,730 ETH, which is less than 1% of his holdings, in the Ethereum 2.0 deposit contract. This means that he will earn rewards for validating the new PoS network, but also that he will not be able to access his staked funds until the network is fully launched.

Why did Buterin stake such a small portion of his ETH holdings? There are several possible reasons for this decision. One reason could be that he wants to keep most of his fund’s liquid and flexible, so that he can use them for other purposes, such as funding research and development projects, donating to charities, or diversifying his portfolio. Another reason could be that he wants to avoid putting too much influence or pressure on the network by staking a large amount of ETH. By staking only a small portion, he can signal his confidence in the protocol without dominating the validator set or creating a single point of failure.

Why is Charles Hoskinson wrong about Vitalik Buterin’s staking decision?

Charles Hoskinson, who is also the co-founder of Ethereum but left the project in 2014 due to disagreements with Buterin and other developers, has been vocal about his criticism of Ethereum and his support for Cardano, which is a competing blockchain platform that claims to offer superior technology and governance. In a recent interview with Lex Fridman, Hoskinson said that Buterin’s staking decision shows that he does not trust his own protocol and that he is afraid of losing his wealth if something goes wrong.

However, this argument is based on a false premise and a misunderstanding of Buterin’s motives. As explained above, Buterin’s staking decision does not reflect a lack of trust in his own protocol, but rather a rational and prudent choice that balances risk and reward, liquidity and security, influence and decentralization. Furthermore, Buterin has repeatedly stated that he does not care much about his personal wealth and that he is more interested in advancing the vision and mission of Ethereum as a global public good.

Therefore, Hoskinson’s criticism of Buterin’s staking decision is unfounded and unfair. It seems that Hoskinson is trying to use this issue as a way to promote Cardano and to discredit Ethereum, without acknowledging the merits and challenges of both platforms. Instead of engaging in personal attacks and tribalism, Hoskinson should focus on delivering value and innovation to the blockchain community and collaborating with other projects to achieve common goals.

Nigeria Needs Tax Innovation To Bring Citizens and Firms To Finance Education, Youth Development, Etc

By
Ndubuisi Ekekwe
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1

Great comments on my piece on VAT, explaining the Nigerian government’s new tax initiative for the informal sector. Absolutely, Nigeria needs innovation on how to use tax to drive growth. The nation over years has done well on collecting money but has faded on helping the citizens and companies grow.

One area our tax system needs modernization is education and youth development. My village of Ovim (population, about 10,000 people) supports our three primary schools and two secondary schools via generous donations from the citizens. But as the citizens donate enormous resources to the public schools, there is no single tax benefit to them.

But in America, making those donations would have been a huge opportunity for the donors. Yes, Bloomberg might have given nearly $1 billion to my alma mater, the Johns Hopkins University. Across the U.S., many U.S. business schools are named after business leaders. Those people opened their wallets and made donations. Sure, they love the institutions but many would not have done so if the tax system had not stimulated the giving through financial incentives. Making those donations help balance many elements in their personal and company finances. Nigeria does not offer that.

Then when Apple, GM, Ford, etc want entry level technicians, they send the budget to community colleges (like polytechnic OND). Those schools use the companies’ training manuals and train young people on the skills those companies want. They typically hire everyone who graduates. Apple is doing this across America, doling out $10 million to these schools; great corporate social responsibility. But you know what: that is using one stone to kill two birds – get those workers trained and still claim that money as deductible during tax filing. The celebrated US industry-academic partnership was seeded on tax strategy. With that tax system, it would not have been as strong!

In Carnegie Mellon University, many companies connected as we were setting up the African campus in Kigali. You do the donation in the US to give you tax positioning.

  • Companies can outsource the training, allowing them to focus on their businesses. The schools do the work for them. In Apple’s case noted above, it wants to popularize the Swift language. There is no better way to do so than working with schools

  • Donation money given to schools is tax deductible because the schools are tax-exempt under the U.S. Internal Revenue Service tax code. This is the key reason. If Apple or GM were to do the training in-house, the tax benefits will not materialize. They will still train the young people, but they cannot deduct that money. But by giving the money to colleges, they get the trained people and still get the deductions. This makes it easier when you need scale, beyond what you can have inside as staff for talent pipeline.

  • Apple through this training will be getting pipeline of talent. The same applies to most U.S. firms. They want welders; they fund a local school to train welders to ensure they have enough for their businesses.

  • It also provides goodwill as the local economy will see a boost through the injection of capital in the schools. The implications are huge: the school fees will drop for the students as companies have subsidized some parts, nearby businesses grow, and everyone is happy.

My conclusion is clear: “The Nigerian tax system is not designed to support philanthropy. That is why we do not have a vibrant one. It does not mean that a nation must be rich first before its tax system can be engineered to stimulate philanthropy. ASUU can lead on that, through Tax Reform, and make it possible for individuals and companies to put money in the schools and get tax benefits.”

I have asked ASUU, activists, etc on education and youth development to champion rewriting Nigerian tax code. If we do, you will see Innoson Motors use Polytechnic Nekede to train its welders instead of setting up its own school. Indomie Noodles will tap FUA Abeokuta. And just like that, money will flow into schools. Today, doing that has no balance sheet strategic value for any company! That must change.

Comment on Feed

Comment: Prof I think some donations are tax deductible in Nigeria. I recall a bank I worked for building the road that passed in front of the HQ and getting some tax rebate for that. Also the government under Buhari deployed tax rebates to get some corporations to fund the construction of some federal roads. Dangote Group and MTN participated. Couldn’t this strategy be applied to education? We basically borrowed our own tax code from others who do this.

My Response: My understanding is that you are doing tax recycling. If Dangote Cement is to pay N100m tax, the firm can decide to use that to build a road for credit that it paid N100m tax. That is different from Dangote Cement donating N100m to a school, and getting N100m as deductible.

“I recall a bank I worked for building the road that passed in front of the HQ and getting some tax rebate for that.” – that is different. The bank spent government money for the government. The tax was never the bank’s money. It just spent it and the govt used it as a form of tax payment.

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