Leap Seconds Confuse Computers

 Unknown to me ....

Leap seconds cause chaos for computers — so Meta wants to get rid of them

Facebook’s parent company wants new ways to calculate time

By James Vincent  Jul 26, 2022  in TheVerge

Since 1972 there have been 27 leap seconds: additional seconds added to the world’s common clock — Coordinated Universal Time or UTC — to account for changes in the Earth’s rate of rotation. Historically, our concept of time is defined as a fraction of the length of the solar day, but as the Earth’s rate of spin is somewhat irregular (slowing and speeding based on various factors) it means solar time and universal time tend to drift apart. So, in order to compensate, we add leap seconds. And this really confuses computers. .... '  

On Timing and Decision Making

Its not only the decision, its about its timing.  Brought to mind how decisions and their timing are linked with data.  Data that is available, that which is forecast,and  that which we can acquire on demand or at cost.   The value of perfect information is a famous way of creating a bound for decision value.  Also relates back to the idea of data as an asset.  Consider how the synchronicity of a decision can change a business process model.   And much more.

More on HoloLens Research

Another view.   The first practical, general purpose augmented reality systems?  Interested in the design and virtual prototyping applications being suggested.  What is the timing and cost of the technology?  Also, to what degree is the 3-D space modeling technology data available to other applications?  Useful to robotics  and navigation application as well.  Also thinking how this could be used in evaluating objects in space interaction and evaluation. Clearly a good example of Microsoft innovation.  Looking forward to seeing more and reporting on it here

Pipelines and Forecast Timing

In E-Commercetimes: The timing of forecast value is an important aspect.  It's part of the decision process that is often forgotten.

" ... Analytics should be able to tell you the likelihood of each deal's completion in time for you to take action if the prediction is unfavorable. If each deal is somewhat different, then comparing each with the historic deals most like them will provide a truer indicator of close probability than simply comparing deals through something as general-purpose as deal stage. The difference is important. ... " 

The Future of Humans

In the Atlantic:  The Future of humans in the approaching era of artificial intelligence.  Its is coming, but I am still skeptical of the timing predicted, but it will happen.  How many humans will be replaced, now many more knowledge workers than in assembly line robotics, and what will the implications be?

Compost Analytics for the City

This is a classic example of vehicle routing using analytics.  I have worked on problems as disparate as ambulance routing in semi rural counties and routing log trucks to pulp mills, to minimizing the travel of fork lifts in product warehouses.  We called these methods 'operations research'.  They are about doing things smarter, by being faster and cheaper.

Examples where the profit margin of an operation is small to begin are particularly interesting. This video outlines the example of gathering trimmings and cast offs from San Francisco restaurants and efficiently getting the resulting compost to vineyards to use for fertilizer.  How should I route trucks though complex city streets, do pickups and then get the result to far away vineyards while minimizing costs? It is all about becoming smarter using analytical methods.

The company doing the work to take trimmings from recycle bins to composting center to vineyard is done by Recology Inc  with data and analytics help from IBM Partner Key Info Systems. More on that collaboration.

Problems like routing are combinations of data, timing, resource and goal management.  With the data often changing based on the dynamics of streets, labor and schedule.  All needed to ultimately feed the smarter city.  Mining data for doing something effectively is not unlike mining minerals. Or mining compost for its value in agriculture.

More about the analytics dimensions of these problems.  Also this blog often covers the topic of analytics for any size company.  Posts about that here.   #Midsize

This post was written as part of the IBM for Midsize Business program, which provides midsize businesses with the tools, expertise and solutions they need to become engines of a smarter planet. I’ve been compensated to contribute to this program, but the opinions expressed in this post are my own and don't necessarily represent IBM's positions, strategies or opinions.

Softlines Markdown Webinar

Though most of my career in inventory analytics has dealt with package goods categories, I also studied and applied softlines inventory science.  Softlines are goods categories, like clothing, where the introduction of new styles are highly cyclical, and old inventories are often marked down to make way for new style goods.  The timing and depth of markdowns are often key decision variables.   Its a classic place to use quantitative methods to improve profit and reduce waste.

This webinar, sponsored by IBM and Deloitte is on

Nov. 7, 2012

8 am Pacific/11 am Eastern

More detailed information and registration.

Metadata and the Stroop Effect

The Stroop effect is a clinical test that measures differences in reaction time when you are shown information that confirms or contradicts your own views, conscious or nonconscious.  It has been used in neuromarketing studies in retail.  I am skeptical about its direct usefullness.  Here the suggestion is made that the conflict between  data itself and associated metadata can have similar effects.  The thought is interesting, but I have doubts that a mere timing difference is significant.

Capturing the Timing of Public Statements

I am doing a deeper study of time domain search engine Recorded Future for its potential use by a client.  A recent blog entry opened additional thoughts about how it could be used.  Now link that with quant data related to the same events and times ... See the article for specific screen examples:

" ... One of the exciting things that you can do with Recorded Future is rewind time in order to quickly discover and analyze the timing of public statements made by an individual before, after, or during a particular period. Major political appointments earlier this week, following exceptional elections in Greece and Egypt, provide a pair on whom we can conduct such research: Greek finance minister Yannis Stournaras and Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi.... " 

The newest, easier to use version of Recorded Future is now available for test in by invited Beta for free.  See the link above.