Reversed Mediterranean Sea: A Unique Perspective

Reversed Mediterranean Sea: A Unique Perspective

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A photo of beach seen through a glass ball

Calvi – Noël 2017 – CC-BY-NC-NA by Valerie Hukalo

Day 5 of 30DayMapChallenge: « Earth » (previously).

What if the bathymetry of the Mediterranean Sea is reversed? We would get a Western Island and an Eastern Island, a Sardinia-Corsica Bay, the Balearic Lagoon… Let’s see!

library(terra)
library(sf)

terraOptions(progress=0)

A global bathymetry dataset (7.5 Go zipped NetCDF) is available at GEBCO. We crop it around the Mediterranean Sea.

med <- c(xmin = -7, ymin = 30, xmax = 39,  ymax = 45) |>
  st_bbox() |>
  st_as_sfc()

gebco <- rast("~/data/gebco/GEBCO_2025_sub_ice.nc") |>
  crop(med) 

We set all positive values to 0 and all negative values are inversed. The relief is more pronounced with a light lower resolution, then we compute the hillshading.

mountain_med <- aggregate((gebco <= 0) * -1 * gebco, 10, mean)
slope <- terrain(mountain_med, "slope", unit = "radians")
aspect <- terrain(mountain_med, "aspect", unit = "radians")
hill <- shade(slope, aspect, angle = 45, direction = 315, normalize = TRUE)

Map

plot(hill, col = grey(0:255/255),
     main = "Mediterranean Sea upside down",
     legend = FALSE, mar = c(2,2,2,4))
plot(mountain_med, col = topo.colors(30, alpha = 0.3),
     plg = list(title = "Elevation (m)"), add = TRUE)
mtext(paste("data: GEBCOnhttps://r.iresmi.net", Sys.Date()),
            side = 1, line = 3, cex = 0.5, adj = 1) 
Map of inverted Mediterranean elevation
Figure 1: Mediterranean Sea upside down

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Continue reading: Reversed

Implications and Future Developments of Reversing Bathymetry of the Mediterranean Sea

In the inciting text, an intriguing question is asked: what if the bathymetry of the Mediterranean Sea could be reversed? The author then proceeds to manipulate a global bathymetry dataset, inverting all the negative values to imagine what it would look like if the sea’s depths were raised to the surface.

Long-Term Implications

The result of inverting the Mediterranean Sea’s bathymetry creates some highly interesting, albeit theoretical, geographical changes such as the formation of a Western Island and an Eastern Island, a Sardinia-Corsica Bay, and the Balearic Lagoon. These changes could theoretically have far-reaching implications if somehow made real. Sea routes would be dramatically altered, impacting global trade and local economies, while rolling out new challenges in terms of geopolitical boundaries. Not to mention the massive biological and ecological changes that would occur, transforming marine-based ecosystems to terrestrial regions and vice versa.

Potential Future Developments

While it might seem purely hypothetical, such technology could carry potential real-world application in digital geographical modeling. It could be used in education to present lessons and research on geographical formations, or in hypothetical disaster management scenarios if the sea level were to dramatically decrease. It could also be interesting to see its application in video game environment design, providing ultra-realistic geographical terrains.

Actionable Advice

For those fascinated by this concept, here are a few actionable steps:

  1. Keep exploring technology’s possibilities and continue developing various geological models. This will help in predicting possible outcomes under different scenarios.
  2. Share your findings with the respective communities and seek peer validation for model accuracy and utility.
  3. Consider collaborations with educational institutions and disaster management agencies, as that could reinforce the practical application of these models.
  4. Reach into the entertainment sector, such as video game developers looking for new, real-world inspired terrains.

In conclusion, though reversing a sea’s bathymetry appears like an exercise in imagination, when empowered by technology, it can bring forward real-world applications and implications that are worth considering.

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“LangExtract: A Fast and Beginner-Friendly Text Data Extraction Tool”

If you need to pull specific data from text, LangExtract offers a fast, flexible, and beginner‑friendly way to do it.

Long-Term Implications and Future Developments of Text Data Extraction with LangExtract

Text data extraction is a critical component in the field of informatics. The ease and accuracy of data extraction determine the quality of the results used for research, decision-making, client servicing, and more. That’s where LangExtract comes into play. This technology offers a fast, flexible, and beginner-friendly way to extract specific data from text, and its impact cannot be underestimated. Let’s analyse its long-term implications and anticipate the potential future developments.

Long-Term Implications of LangExtract

LangExtract’s user-friendly approach to text data extraction equips even beginners with the power to derive specific data from large volumes of text. This could widen the scope of who can perform data extraction, and by extension, data analysis. Companies might not need a dedicated team of data scientists for initial data extraction stages, as many team members could use LangExtract to perform these tasks.

In the long term, the technology could help democratize data science, making it a skill that’s accessible to more people in different sectors and job roles. This broader access could lead to more diverse insights and more innovative solutions to problems.

Potential Future Developments of LangExtract

Given the demand for efficient data extraction tools, LangExtract could continue to evolve and provide even more user-friendly features. Machine learning could be integrated to allow this tool to learn from past extraction tasks and enhance accuracy. Additionally, LangExtract might include features for more languages and dialects, catering to an increasingly globalized user base.

Actionable Advice

For businesses and organizations, the advent of LangExtract is an opportunity that shouldn’t be missed. Its implementation could drastically decrease the time spent on extracting data, leaving more time for analysis and decision-making. Additionally, the ease of use can bring about a culture of independence where individuals can conduct basic extraction tasks on their own.

  • Invest in Training: It would be beneficial to conduct training sessions for team members to familiarize them with the basics of LangExtract. This would reduce dependency on a dedicated team of data scientists for initial data extraction.
  • Stay Updated: Keeping abreast of future updates and developments in LangExtract would allow for harnessing its potential to the fullest.
  • Optimize Usage: Based on the company’s needs, consider optimizing usage of LangExtract by potentially integrating it with other tools and software that the company uses.

Consider LangExtract as an investment into the future. The importance of fast, accurate, and easy data extraction will only grow with time, and LangExtract promises to be a game-changer in this regard.

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If AI can pass a CFA Level III exam in minutes, and people still say AI is not intelligent, then what else would intelligence mean? It takes intelligence to pass such an exam, so why would AI pass and still be categorized by many as unintelligent? What are the types of intelligence that may indicate… Read More »Human intelligence research lab to rank LLMs?

A Look at the Future: AI, Intelligence Tests, and LLM Rankings

Whether or not artificial intelligence (AI) could pass traditional human-intelligence tests and exams has been a long-standing debate. The discussion might become even more intense now that AI has reportedly been able to pass a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Level III exam in mere minutes. Despite this, there are still voices out there questioning the true intelligence of AI. This raises important questions about the definition and measures of intelligence, potential long-term implications, and what future developments we might expect.

Reassessing the Measures of Intelligence

The key point to consider in this discussion is the adaptation of AI to pass tests that are designed to measure human intelligence. It is self-evident that it requires a degree of intelligence to pass an exam such as the CFA Level III. Given this, the fact that many still categorize AI as unintelligent despite its success points to a possible need to reassess how we measure and define intelligence.

If AI can pass a CFA Level III exam in minutes, and people still say AI is not intelligent, then what else would intelligence mean?

Another interesting point brought up is the possibility of using human intelligence research to rank LLMs. This merges the fields of AI and law in a potentially innovative way and could pave the path for future interdisciplinary collaborations.

Long-Term Implications and Future Developments

One major long-term implication is regarding the pivotal role AI could play in our societies, given its ability to perform tasks that traditionally require human intelligence. This could change the dynamics in various fields including law, finance, healthcare, education, and more. With AI’s ability to process and analyze complex information quickly and accurately, we could see a greater influence of AI in areas where decision-making relies heavily on vast amounts of data.

As for future developments, the increasing effectiveness and efficiency of AI in tasks traditionally considered the domain of intelligent humans could further drive the integration of AI technologies in our daily lives. This includes everything from home automation to autonomous transportation to personalized medicine.

Actionable Advice

  1. Embrace AI: Given its growing cognitive abilities and potential, it is highly recommended for businesses and individuals to progressively embrace the AI technologies.
  2. Reevaluate Intelligence Measures: There is a need to reevaluate the current metrics of intelligence to accommodate AI’s capabilities.
  3. Interdisciplinary Collaboration: The integration of AI and human intelligence research to rank LLMs suggests the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration for the growth and discovery of new possibilities.
  4. Continuous Learning: As the influence of AI expands, the need to understand and interact with AI systems is becoming increasingly important. Therefore, lifelong learning about AI should be encouraged.

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Mapping Data Centers in France with OSM Data

Mapping Data Centers in France with OSM Data

[This article was first published on r.iresmi.net, and kindly contributed to R-bloggers]. (You can report issue about the content on this page here)


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A photo of network equipment in a data center

6509Es – CC-BY-NC by Bob Mical

Day 4 of 30DayMapChallenge: « My data » (previously).

Where are my data Partly in a data center; probably with your data too… So, where are they?

library(dplyr)
library(purrr)
library(sf)
library(osmdata)
library(glue)
library(leaflet)

We send an Overpass API query with {osmdata}:

# Get and cache OSM data for France
if (!file.exists("dc.rds")) {
  dc <- getbb("France métropolitaine") |>
    opq(osm_types = "nw", timeout = 6000) |>
    add_osm_features(features = list(
      "telecom" = "data_center",
      "building" = "data_center")) |>
    osmdata_sf()

  saveRDS(dc, "dc.rds")
} else {
  dc <- readRDS("dc.rds")
}

There is certainly more than just data centers (telecom equipment for example, I guess), but I’m OK with that…

Map

dc |>
  pluck("osm_points") |>
  bind_rows(dc |>
              pluck("osm_polygons") |>
              st_centroid()) |>
  leaflet() |>
  addTiles() |>
  addCircleMarkers(
    clusterOptions = markerClusterOptions(),
    popup = ~glue("{name}<br>{operator}")) 

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Continue reading: Data centers

Analysis of Data Location Using R

In the presented text, a user utilizes R programming to locate and visualize the location of data centers in the region of France métropolitaine. Several libraries are employed for this, including dplyr, purrr, sf, osmdata, glue, and leaflet. The source code utilizes the Overpass API with osmdata to query and cache OpenStreetMap (OSM) information for the specified region, with a particular focus on data center locations.

Future Implications and Developments

Based on this text, it’s clear that the ability to visualize data center locations through programming languages like R affords users a deeper understanding of data locale and spread. The software distinguishes telecom equipment locations from data centers, though the example accepts both in scope. This functionality has wide-ranging implications for improving data infrastructure management, connectivity mapping, and optimizing service delivery. As a result, the procedure could be expanded to other regions, broadening its usability and potential for impact.

Advice and Suggestions

Future usage could include the enhancement of the current procedure to incorporate additional parameters, such as cloud service providers’ server locations, local weather data, or energy sources. By doing so, organizations could comprehend their data infrastructures more holistically and make better strategic decisions. For instance, knowing server locations in relation to weather phenomena like hurricanes could allow for better disaster planning and mitigation.

For users looking to replicate or expand on this procedure, we suggest becoming familiar with the libraries utilized here. Knowledge of querying APIs, especially OSM, would also be advantageous. Additionally, understanding how to work with different data types in R can aid in refining the results to better suit the objectives of the particular project.

Key takeaways:

  • Mapping server locations can provide valuable insights for managing data infrastructure.
  • Additional parameters could be added to the procedure for a more comprehensive view of your data environment.
  • Familiarity with R and APIs such as OSM will be beneficial in executing this project.

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“Efficiently Access Top Resources and Tools for Time-Saving”

Save time by keeping top resources and tools at your fingertips.

Key Points and Long-Term Implications

The fundamental premise of the text provided underlines the importance of efficient resource management. Simplifying processes by keeping key tools and resources at your fingertips is stressed upon. This involves organizing resources in such a manner that they are readily available when required, ultimately saving time and enhancing productivity. There are several long-term implications and possible future developments associated with this concept.

Long-Term Implications

  1. Improved Efficiency: Ensuring easy access to resources and tools can greatly improve efficiency in both individual and team projects.
  2. Enhanced Productivity: Time saved from searching for resources can then be redirected to accomplishing tasks, leading to increased productivity.
  3. Reduced Stress: This approach detangles work life, reduces stress, and improves overall work satisfaction.

Future Developments

As the digital age continues to evolve, the way we manage our resources and tools may substantially transform. It is likely that we will see more innovative digital solutions designed to provide efficient tool and resource management.

  1. Smart Resource Management Software: Tools that can automatically organize your resources based on priority and usage frequency may become ubiquitous.
  2. Artificial Intelligence: AI can play an instrumental role in predicting the resources you might need based on your activities and schedule, making the process even more seamless.

Actionable Advice

To adapt to this emerging trend and enhance efficiency, consider the following pieces of advice:

  • Keep Your Workspace Organized: An organized workspace can save you a significant amount of time and stress. Regularly arranging your resources and tools can contribute to a smoother workflow.
  • Leverage Technology: Use resource management software to keep everything at your fingertips. Look out for AI-driven tools that can make this process even more efficient.
  • Adopt a proactive approach: Instead of waiting for clutter to build up, regularly evaluate your resource and tools setup. This proactive approach will ensure you’re always prepared and organized.

In conclusion, learning to efficiently manage your resources and tools can significantly impact your productivity levels and overall work satisfaction.

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Physicists of many nations: Mapping countries with ISO codes in their names

Physicists of many nations: Mapping countries with ISO codes in their names

[This article was first published on r.iresmi.net, and kindly contributed to R-bloggers]. (You can report issue about the content on this page here)


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A photo of many flags

Physicists of many nations – CC BY-NC-ND by Ann Fisher

Day 3 of 30DayMapChallenge: « Polygons » (previously).

An interesting challenge a few weeks ago on https://en.osm.town/@opencage/115271196316302891:

Name countries whose ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code is contained as a substring in the common English version of the country’s name.

For example: Italy has its ISO code “IT” in its name; “SE” is the ISO code for Sweden, but is not found in its name.

Let’s map that…

Setup

library(dplyr)
library(stringr)
library(purrr)
library(emoji)
library(rvest)
library(glue)
library(gt)
library(ggplot2)
library(giscoR)
library(janitor)
library(sf)
library(jsonlite)

Data

# ISO_3166-1_alpha-2 codes
iso_3166_a2 <- read_html("https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_3166-1_alpha-2") |>
  html_table(na.strings = "") |> # take care not to interpret Namibia as NA!
  pluck(4) |>
  rename(code = Code,
         name = `Country name (using title case)`)

# Using data from {giscoR}, more adapted than {rnaturalearth} for alpha-2 codes
# but we still need some manual cleaning
countries <- gisco_countries |>
  clean_names() |>
  mutate(cntr_id = case_match(cntr_id,
                              "EL" ~ "GR",
                              "GB" ~ "UK",
                              .default = cntr_id))

# I want an Equal Earth projection centered on the Pacific (EPSG:8859)
# we must correct the geometry at the anti meridian, so we must get the
# projection origin
epsg <- "8859"
origin <- fromJSON(glue("https://epsg.io/{epsg}.json")) |>
  pluck("conversion", "parameters") |>
  filter(name == "Longitude of natural origin") |>
  pull(value) # should be 150

# For the map background
ocean <- st_bbox(countries) |>
  st_as_sfc() |>
  st_break_antimeridian(lon_0 = origin) |>
  st_segmentize(units::set_units(100, km))

Solving the problem

Actually this is the easiest part, once the data is clean!

results <- iso_3166_a2 |>
  filter(str_detect(name, regex(code, ignore_case = TRUE)))

Results

From the 249 countries having an ISO code, 59 match our query (Table 1). For all of them the code appears in the two first characters.

There is at least one missing! New Caledonia code is NC; this code is not in its name but this territory is part of FraNCe. According to lenient rules it counts…

# using emoji flags for display, we need some more data wrangling
results |>
  mutate(name_flag = name |>
           str_split_i(",", 1)|>
           str_replace_all(
             c("Lao People's Democratic Republic" = "Laos",
               "Russian Federation" = "Russia",
               "Syrian Arab Republic" = "Syria",
               "Virgin Islands (U.S.)" = "U.S. Virgin Islands"))) |>
  mutate(flag = map(name_flag, possibly((x) flag(x), otherwise = "")),
         display = glue("{flag} {name} ({code})")) |>
  arrange(display) |>
  select(display) |>
  gt() |>
  cols_label(display = "Country") |>
  cols_align(align = "left")
Country
🇦🇫 Afghanistan (AF)
🇦🇱 Albania (AL)
🇦🇷 Argentina (AR)
🇦🇺 Australia (AU)
🇦🇿 Azerbaijan (AZ)
🇧🇪 Belgium (BE)
🇧🇴 Bolivia, Plurinational State of (BO)
🇧🇷 Brazil (BR)
🇨🇦 Canada (CA)
🇨🇴 Colombia (CO)
🇨🇺 Cuba (CU)
🇨🇾 Cyprus (CY)
🇨🇿 Czechia (CZ)
🇩🇯 Djibouti (DJ)
🇩🇴 Dominican Republic (DO)
🇪🇨 Ecuador (EC)
🇪🇬 Egypt (EG)
🇪🇷 Eritrea (ER)
🇪🇹 Ethiopia (ET)
🇫🇮 Finland (FI)
🇫🇷 France (FR)
🇬🇦 Gabon (GA)
🇬🇪 Georgia (GE)
🇬🇭 Ghana (GH)
🇬🇮 Gibraltar (GI)
🇬🇷 Greece (GR)
🇬🇺 Guam (GU)
🇭🇺 Hungary (HU)
🇮🇳 India (IN)
🇮🇷 Iran, Islamic Republic of (IR)
🇮🇹 Italy (IT)
🇯🇪 Jersey (JE)
🇯🇴 Jordan (JO)
🇰🇪 Kenya (KE)
🇰🇮 Kiribati (KI)
🇱🇦 Lao People’s Democratic Republic (LA)
🇱🇮 Liechtenstein (LI)
🇱🇺 Luxembourg (LU)
🇳🇦 Namibia (NA)
🇳🇮 Nicaragua (NI)
🇳🇴 Norway (NO)
🇴🇲 Oman (OM)
🇵🇦 Panama (PA)
🇵🇪 Peru (PE)
🇵🇭 Philippines (PH)
🇶🇦 Qatar (QA)
🇷🇴 Romania (RO)
🇷🇺 Russian Federation (RU)
🇷🇼 Rwanda (RW)
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia (SA)
🇸🇴 Somalia (SO)
🇸🇾 Syrian Arab Republic (SY)
🇹🇭 Thailand (TH)
🇹🇴 Tonga (TO)
🇺🇬 Uganda (UG)
🇺🇿 Uzbekistan (UZ)
🇻🇪 Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of (VE)
🇻🇮 Virgin Islands (U.S.) (VI)
🇾🇪 Yemen (YE)
Table 1: Countries whose ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code is contained as a substring in their name

Map

Now, to fulfill the 30DayMapChallenge, a classic choropleth map.

countries |>
  st_break_antimeridian(lon_0 = origin) |>
  left_join(results,
            join_by(cntr_id == code)) |>
  ggplot() +
  geom_sf(data = ocean, fill = "paleturquoise", color = NA, alpha = .4) +
  geom_sf(aes(fill = !is.na(name), color = !is.na(name))) +
  scale_fill_manual(values =  c("TRUE" = "darkolivegreen3",
                                "FALSE" = "snow2"),
                    labels = c("TRUE" = "yes",
                               "FALSE" = "no")) +
  scale_color_manual(values =  c("TRUE" = "darkolivegreen4",
                                 "FALSE" = "snow3"),
                     labels = c("TRUE" = "yes",
                                "FALSE" = "no")) +
  coord_sf(crs = glue("EPSG:{epsg}")) +
  guides(fill = guide_legend(reverse = TRUE),
         color = guide_legend(reverse = TRUE)) +
  labs(title = glue("Countries whose ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code is contained as a 
                    substring in their name"),
       fill = "name has ISO alpha-2 ?",
       color = "name has ISO alpha-2 ?",
       caption = glue("data : Gisco, Wikipedia
                      https://r.iresmi.net/ {Sys.Date()}")) +
  theme_minimal() +
  theme(plot.caption = element_text(size = 6),
        legend.position = "bottom",
        plot.background = element_rect(fill = "white", color = NA))
A map of showing countries whose ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code is contained as a substring in their name
Figure 1: Countries whose ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code is contained as a substring in their name

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Continue reading: Country codes

Implications and Future Development of ISO Country Codes in Country Names

The text presents an exploration of countries whose ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code is contained as a substring in the common English version of the country’s name. It brings forward an intriguing perspective for future data sorting possibilities and emphasises the correlation between ISO country codes and country names.

Key Points and Long-Term Implications

The key findings from the exploration include:

  • 59 of the 249 countries that have an ISO code have their ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code contained within the common English version of their names.
  • The names of these countries contain the ISO code within the first two character strings.
  • For some territories, such as New Caledonia (NC), the code isn’t in its name, but considering it’s a territory of France (Fr-NC-e), it counts according to lenient rules.

ISO Code Relevance in Future Data Sorting and Analysis

This observation illustrates a connection between country names and their ISO codes which could be potentially exploited in computing, especially in data sorting and analysis. It could lead to novel algorithms and sorting mechanisms. Having an ISO code contained within a country name could allow for development of new, efficient ways of storing and retrieving data related to worldwide information.

Actionable Advice

Further Analysis and Discovery

Gather more data around this concept and start examining other potential correlations. Detecting patterns such as these could reveal previously unnoticed trends or aspects of data structure.

Database Management Improvements

Explore the possibility of new database designs that make use of these findings. Using ISO codes as integral parts of the country name might streamline database operations and possibly improve performance.

Global Standards and Regulations

Consider advocating for greater standardisation in global naming conventions. While the current results are interesting, they’re not applicable to every country. Encouraging a global approach to naming conventions based on ISO codes could lead to more universally compatible systems.

Potential Applications in Machine Learning

Analyze whether this correlation can be applied in fields like machine learning to improve model performance. As machine learning often deals with large, complex datasets, any efficiency improvements in data processing could be beneficial.

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