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PT KONTAK PERKASA - One of the more esoteric announcements to come out of SuperComputing 17, an annual conference on high-performance computing, is that one of the largest US scientific institutions is investing in Raspberry Pi-based clusters to aid in development work. The Los Alamos National Laboratory’s High Performance Computing Division now has access to 750-node Raspberry Pi clusters as part of the first step towards a development program to assist in programming much larger machines. PT KONTAK PERKASA - The platform at LANL leverages a modular cluster design from BitScope Designs, with five rack-mount Bitscope Cluster Modules, each with 150 Raspberry Pi boards with integrated network switches. With each of the 750 chips packing four cores, it offers a 3000-core highly parallelizable platform that emulates an ARM-based supercomputer, allowing researchers to test development code without requiring a power-hungry machine at significant cost to the taxpayer. The full 750-node cluster, running 2-3 W per processor, runs at 1000W idle, 3000W at typical and 4000W at peak (with the switches) and is substantially cheaper, if also computationally a lot slower. After development using the Pi clusters, frameworks can then be ported to the larger scale supercomputers available at LANL, such as Trinity and Crossroads. “It’s not like you can keep a petascale machine around for R&D work in scalable systems software. The Raspberry Pi modules let developers figure out how to write this software and get it to work reliably without having a dedicated testbed of the same size, which would cost a quarter billion dollars and use 25 megawatts of electricity.” Said Gary Grider, leader of the High Performance Computing Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The collaboration between LANL and BitScope was formed after the inability to find a suitable dense server that offered a platform for several-thousand-node networking and optimization – most solutions on the market were too expensive, and anyone offering something like the Pi in a dense form factor was ‘just people building clusters with Tinker Toys and Lego’. After the collaboration, the company behind the modular Raspberry Pi rack and blade designs, BitScope, plans to sell the 150-node Cluster Modules at retail in the next few months. No prices were given yet, although BitScope says that each node will be about $120 fully provisioned using the element14 version of the latest Raspberry Pi (normally $35 at retail). That means that a 150-note Cluster Module will fall in around $18k-$20k each. The Bitscope Cluster Module is currently being displayed this week at Supercomputing 17 in Denver over at the University of New Mexico stand. Source : anandtech.com
KONTAK PERKASA FUTURES - With the release of their first cast photo for the sequel to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Warner Bros. have set in motion the rest of the extended universe for this Harry Potter spin-off. The first film was something of a risk for the studio – Harry Potter is popular but there was no guarantee fans would turn out in their record breaking numbers to make a series with no familiar characters successful – but with a $814m worldwide gross to its name (the 8th highest grossing film of the year), it was inevitable that the planned 5-film saga would be given an opportunity to reach its bombastic conclusion. KONTAK PERKASA FUTURES - The second film, subtitled The Crimes of Grindelwald, will centre the action on the series’ major villain, a dark wizard whose evil is surpassed only by Lord Voldemort himself, and the man who Albus Dumbledore fell in love with. For many Potter fans, Grindelwald was one of the book series’ greatest reservoirs of untapped potential, so to see him get a full narrative in the Fantastic Beasts films, one where even the most ardent readers wouldn’t be sure what will unfold, was an exciting prospect. When Grindelwald was revealed to be played by Johnny Depp, the enthusiasm of many fans dissipated quickly, and seeing him in the new cast photo proved immensely disheartening. On top of him looking sad and ridiculous, it was a painful reminder in our post-Weinstein age that Hollywood still has much to do when it comes to dealing with major stars who are proven to be abusive. After a very public break-up with his wife, Aquaman actress Amber Heard, in which she provided evidence of physical abuse he inflicted upon her, Depp’s team went into overdrive to ensure his reputation remained reasonably intact: He kept out of the public eye, except to promote the latest Pirates of the Caribbean film (which included surprise appearances on the Disneyland ride, to much positive press attention) and the media avoided asking the tough questions. Even as a lawsuit between himself and his former business managers revealed the bizarre extent of his spending habits (and further confirmation that the actor “got physical” with Heard), there didn’t seem to be much in the way consequences for the abuse, or any dent in his career. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales made a lot of money, Depp remained attached to the questionable Universal attempt to create the Dark Universe in the role of the Invisible Man, and prestige projects rolled his way, including a role as antivirus creator (and accused rapist) John McAfee. If you didn’t read the news, you’d think nothing had changed for Depp. But here’s the thing: things have changed. We have photographs of bruises on Heard’s face, we have video of him being verbally abusive and intimidating towards her, and we have his former managers admitting that he had “gotten physical” with her as well as being informed he “had violently kicked Heard during an incident that took place in or around 2014.” People may like Captain Jack Sparrow, but that does nothing to excuse or justify rewarding of Depp in one of the biggest and most anticipated franchises of the past decade. It feels like an age since the first allegations against producer Harvey Weinstein were made public in the New York Times, and it’s easy to lose count of how many women, many of whom are incredibly famous and beloved, have since come forward with their own stories against him. For the first time in an age, we have reached a cultural tipping point where misogyny, rape culture and systemic abuse have become utterly impossible to ignore in all walks of life, and people have run out of patience for dealing with it. People now feel able to tell their stories free of judgement that had previously plagued them, and action is being taken. For many, it seems that said action is only happening because industries or individuals had to be publicly embarrassed into doing so – rumours of Weinstein’s behaviour were well known for decades before action took place – and that the rules have been unfairly applied across the board: Some notable figures face consequences while others are overlooked and allowed to continue as normal. It’s staggering that Depp has been allowed to stay on board the Fantastic Beasts franchise. It’s possible his contract is iron-clad or that he has people at Warner Bros. on his side, but it can’t be seen as anything other than a PR nightmare beyond this point, particularly since the Harry Potter fandom have spent many years proudly defining themselves as a socially progressive group. Keeping Depp in the series does nothing good for it: He’s a glaring elephant in the room, he’s not the actor he once was, and he replaces Colin Farrell, who many felt was a much better fit for the role of Grindelwald. Given that this universe features both transfiguration and Polyjuice potion, it seems unusual that Warner Bros. and J.K. Rowling wouldn’t at least consider these options to replace him quietly and keep it in canon. It’s magic! It’s also just how film-making works, and the old excuses no longer fit our world. Any justifications that Depp has to stay in the films because of budgeting, scheduling or continuity no longer work, particularly since, in the aftermath of the allegations against Kevin Spacey, Ridley Scott showed the world how that problem could be dealt with in less than two months, as Christopher Plummer was brought in to take over the role of J. Paul Getty in All The Money In The World. Indeed, that decision may prove more financially beneficial for the film, as audiences are less likely to avoid it now that the offending problem has been removed. The Fantastic Beasts franchise is more review-proof than that, but it cannot avoid being seen as a complicit part of a system that allowed the repeated rewarding of abusive men in the face of overwhelming evidence. It’s bad enough we all have to pretend Mel Gibson is cool now.
Johnny Depp has offered no penance or understanding of his abuse to the public, and yet he continues to be rewarded in obscenely expensive and creative ways. If the film world is ever to learn from the mistakes of its past, it must look inward and understand the shadow of mistrust and perpetuated misogyny it creates when it looks at what Johnny Depp did to Amber Heard and decides it wasn’t bad enough to warrant changes to a movie. It is crucial that we always remember that people can, should and must always come before art. Source : screenrant.com Manchester United are facing an uphill struggle to keep Marouane Fellaini at the club.
PT KONTAK PERKASA FUTURES - United have been locked in contract talks with the Belgian since last season with Jose Mourinho determined to keep Fellaini in his squad. PT KONTAK PERKASA FUTURES - Fellaini, who turns 30 next week, was offered a new contract in September but rejected the deal. United remain hopeful that they can still reach an agreement with him. Fellaini's current contract expires at the end of the season and potentially he could sign a pre-contract agreement with another side in January. It is understood Manchester United will not look to sell Fellaini in the next transfer window, regardless of his contract situation, and are willing to risk him leaving in the summer for nothing. Source : skysports.com PT KONTAK PERKASA - Disney is constantly adding new menu items to its holiday lineup, and the latest one is really good. Exclusively at Disney California Adventure's Award Wieners, visitors can indulge in what might be the result of a dessert-themed round of Mad Libs: gingerbread funnel cake fries.
PT KONTAK PERKASA - Disney announced the decadent holiday dessert in a recent post on the Disney Parks Blog. It basically consists of funnel cake that's been shaped into stringy fries and topped with gingerbread crumbs, a dollop of whipped cream, and a caramel drizzle. Though it hasn't been available for long, parkgoers already seem to be catching on. A Disney event planner shared a picture of her gingerbread funnel cake fries, shown below, and they look damn delicious. Sure, they don't look exactly like the funnel cake fries shown in Disney's extremely glossy picture, but we'd enjoy them any day — holiday or not. Source : popsugar.com KONTAK PERKASA FUTURES - The Ibaraki Shimbun newspaper reported on Sunday that the town of Ōarai, Ibaraki is again preparing for crowds of 100,000 or more visitors leading up to the annual Ōarai Anglerfish Festival, which will be held on Sunday. Considering that the town has a population of 17,000, that will be no small feat. The town, which calls itself "The Oceanfront Town," has Girls und Panzer to thank for the boom in tourism. KONTAK PERKASA FUTURES - The festival began in 1998 to promote the town and its seafood specialty. For several years, the event drew in crowds of about 50,000 people. However, the event began collaborating with Girls und Panzer in 2012, the same year the television anime debuted. The initial collaboration drew a modest increase in attendance, and 65,000 people came to the town for the event. However, the event shattered its previous attendance record the next year by drawing in 100,000 visitors in 2013. The event's staff reported that 130,000 people attended the event last year. Despite the town's precautions, the influx of people caused traffic congestion up to five kilometers (about three miles) away. Staff reported cases of people abandoning their cars and walking to the event. Accommodations in Ōarai for this year's event were reportedly booked by the end of August, so the festival will likely push the town's transportation capabilities to its limits again. Therefore, the festival's staff is offering more parking and supplemental trains to combat the anticipated crowds. Buses with Girls und Panzer wrapping will operate between Ibaraki Airport and Ōarai on Saturday. The five main cast members and theme song performer Sayaka Sasaki from the upcoming Girls und Panzer das Finale anime film series will hold a talk show on Sunday. Girls und Panzer itasha cars will again go on display at the festival. Other events will include the annual display of a real anglerfish on stage at a related event on Saturday and a Kirakira Precure a la Mode show on Sunday. In addition, official Girls und Panzer ambassador and pro wrestler Masahiro Chōno will appear for photograph sessions.
Ōarai has become an anime pilgrimage site because of its status as the Girls und Panzer setting. The anime has participated in many collaborations with Ōarai, and the series received the Grand Prize for improving Ibaraki Prefecture's image in 2013. The anime participates in the Ōarai Anglerfish Festival every year. Chōno has previously appeared at other events in the town, and he regularly participates in promotional campaigns for the anime itself. The first of six episodes in the Girls und Panzer das Finale anime project will open in 59 Japanese theaters on December 9. Source : animenewsnetwork.com |
AuthorKontak Perkasa Bandung Archives
February 2022
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