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Showing posts from January, 2017
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My Oscar Winner: Hidden Figures..... I haven't seen all the movies nominated for Best Picture. Not even close. Actually I probably only go to a handful of movies a year. So I get frustrated when I go to a miserable one, like Girl on the Train. I also get disappointed when I miss an interesting one like Arrival . So I was thrilled the other day when I hit the jackpot with a movie called Hidden Figures . This movie is based on a true story. It probably had me right there. I love non-fiction. I feel real life is more interesting and complicated than any convoluted fictional plot a screenwriter could come up with. I like to think I know a lot about American History. But this is a story I was clueless about. The story revolves around the lives of 3 young black women in the early 1960's. They are played by Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae, and Taraji P. Henson. They work as human computers for NASA in an age just before real computers. Now who would've thought NASA employe
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The Trump Effect in Politics..... Well, it's official. Donald Trump is the President of the United States. The leader of the free world. A year ago at this time, I don't think even his most ardent supporters could have thought that would come to be. But it has. It's official. The campaign and election were so shocking that people will be studying it for generations. It's a copycat world, and Trump was successful. So look for other politician wanna-be's to follow his style. Donald Trump is the first non politician to be elected president. I guess you could say George Washington and Dwight Eisenhower were not politicians either. But they did work for the government previously. Trump was simply a businessman and entrepreneur. He also had his own  reality show. His rise has been spectacular. He had been known as a New York businessman with his share of both success and failure. But he was successful building his own brand. That brand tried to project an image
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A lexa, Can You Write My Blog?..... We've all seen sci-fi movies where characters interact with a speaking computer. "Computer, set course 245!", Captain Kirk would say. Maybe the most famous speaking computer in the movies was HAL, from the old classic 2001: A Space Odyssey. HAL even went rogue and met his demise at the end of that movie. These types of computers were thought to be items from the distant future in these movies. Well, maybe the future is now as I recently welcomed a speaking computer into my house: Alexa. HAL from 2001, had an attitude. Over the holidays we got an Amazon Echo, also known as Alexa. There has been a adjustment period involved, just like if you brought a new puppy into your house. Although fortunately you don't have to clean up behind it. Speaking computers have been sneaking up on us the last few years. There is Siri on Apple devices, Cortana on Windows, and even OK, Google will answer questions. I've never used those appl
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The 10 Best Cleveland Pro Athletes - Right Now..... When I was writing last weeks blog about 2016, I realized what a great era we are in right now with local  pro sports. The Cavaliers are NBA Champions, and did it in historic manner, the Indians were 1 game from winning the World Series. Success stems from a good organization and the culture within. However, the bulk of the work is done by the players. We have some extraordinary players in town right now. But how do you rank them?  Here is the criteria I used. Of course I included past performance, But mostly just the past season just completed or in progress. But I also included their potential of excellent performance in the future. Nobody wants to go see some washed up old-timer. Also, it didn't come into play, but if a player has too many off the field issues - that would be considered in his value. Finally, I wrestled with if I should include both team and individual sports. I added one, because a champion is a champion.