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Morality Plays

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Morality Plays

Researchers at an artificial intelligence lab at the University of Washington say they have built a new technology that makes moral judgments. But it turns out that making such judgments can be as complicated for machines as it can be for humans.

Do you think morals are universal or relative? Where do our ideas of morality come from? Can immoral acts ever be committed in the service of good? Can a moral choice ever have negative consequences?

Tell us in the comments, then read the related article to learn more about the new A.I.

Want more Picture Prompts? Find them all in this column.

Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

Word of the Day: deleterious

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Word of the Day: deleterious

: harmful to living things, often in a way that is surprising or difficult to observe

_________

The word deleterious has appeared in 31 articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on July 30 in “Why Elite Female Athletes Are Turning Away From Major Sponsors” by Sapna Maheshwari:

Bigger apparel companies like Nike and Adidas are established power players that can often drastically increase an athlete’s visibility through marketing. But critics say they do not always put the athletes first. Nike, for instance, has come under intense scrutiny in recent years for its treatment of pregnant athletes, accusations of bullying and restrictive contracts.

Runners have traditionally been paid by sponsors for achievements like completing a specified number of races per year or attaining certain rankings, medals and times. To some, it felt “very transactional,” said Colleen Quigley, a steeplechaser who left Nike this year and is now sponsored by Lululemon. That financial incentive fueled an intense pressure to compete, even if an athlete was struggling or injured, and can have a deleterious psychological impact, she said.

Can you correctly use the word deleterious in a sentence?

Based on the definition and example provided, write a sentence using today’s Word of the Day and share it as a comment on this article. It is most important that your sentence makes sense and demonstrates that you understand the word’s definition, but we also encourage you to be creative and have fun.

Then, read some of the other sentences students have submitted and use the “Recommend” button to vote for two original sentences that stand out to you.

If you want a better idea of how deleterious can be used in a sentence, read these usage examples on Vocabulary.com.

If you enjoy this daily challenge, try one of our monthly vocabulary challenges.

Students ages 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, can comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff.

8 of the fastest growing jobs of the 2020s!

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8 of the fastest growing jobs of the 2020s!

The labor market never stands still as it constantly evolves to meet changing conditions, such as altering customer preferences, automation and climate change. Over the next ten years, demand for workers in certain sectors is going to increase drastically, just as certain other sectors are going to contract.

Based on statistics taken from the US Bureau of Labor, we’ve compiled a list of 8 jobs that are going to experience rapid growth in the next ten years.

Future-proof your career by upskilling in the following areas that are going to be brimming with opportunities this decade!

 

As the green economy continues to grow, maintaining wind turbines will become a rewarding and lucrative new sector. Our course in Wind Energy covers all of the essential information you need to be able to understand the science and the mechanics behind this exciting new technology.

The pandemic has shown the need for a robust health service. As governments increase funding for hospitals, the demand for nurses will continue to grow. Nursing is an incredibly challenging and rewarding career, ideal for hard workers who enjoy variety and engaging with people. Kickstart your nursing career with our course in Nursing and Patient Care.

One of the world of work’s hottest new industries! This is a fascinating career combining both science and engineering. Working as a solar energy engineer also puts you on the front lines of protecting our environment and safeguarding the world for future generations. You can begin this rewarding work now by taking our course in Solar Energy.

Data is of ever-increasing importance to all industries and statisticians are required to make sense of all of this information and convert it into business practices and company profits. By upskilling in Data Science you’ll be adding a very lucrative string to your bow as statisticians have the opportunity to work horizontally across a wide range of sectors.

The last year has seen a series of high profile malware attacks and hacking incidents. Information Security is one of the fastest growing and most important careers of the next decade. Cybersecurity is the number one concern for any company that does business online as it’s essential that customer data and other sensitive information remains secure.

 

As the world’s population continues to age, home health aides are going to be needed by more and more individual. This job is a great opportunity if you enjoy working with people and protecting the vulnerable. Our course in Elderly Care covers the essentials of caring for others while respecting their dignity.

The coronavirus pandemic has convinced both the public and the private sector that more money needs to be invested in researching infectious diseases. A career in epidemiology could be the virus’ silver lining for those with an interest in virology. If you’ve been fascinated by the science behind the pandemic then this is the career for you.

The pandemic has shown how vital effective health service management is and has raised the profile of this crucial role in the health industry. Management in Healthcare often goes overlooked but it’s an essential part of all health care systems and just as important as the front line services provided by the health sector.

7 DevOps Interview Questions and Answers

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7 DevOps Interview Questions and Answers

DevOps is a super-hot topic right now. DevOps professionals bridge the gaps between development and operations teams, producing products that work better and saving time. It’s no surprise then that more and more DevOps job opportunities are popping up. And, with salaries averaging more than $119,000, the positions are both enticing and lucrative.

If you’re preparing for a DevOps interview, first of all, congrats! Now let’s get you ready to shine in front of your potential employer. Keep reading to learn what to expect during an interview, what DevOps interview questions you may be asked, and how you can answer them.

What should you expect during a DevOps job interview?

DevOps, unlike specific coding languages, is more about principles than programming. It’s a concept — an approach that involves deep collaboration, quick code production, and eliminating problems by connecting with a range of teams.

As a result, you should expect a lot of interview questions about communication, collaboration, and how DevOps can be applied in different circumstances. For example, your interviewer may be interested in:

  • Situations in which you’ve had to incorporate input from someone outside the programming team
  • How you use feedback from security experts, weaving their suggestions into the overall fabric of an app you’re coding
  • How well you accept feedback from others
  • How you voice your ideas to team members
  • Why you like DevOps as a development concept

Depending on the position, you may get some questions designed to test your leadership abilities. As a programmer, you’re a likely candidate to be a Team Lead — if not right away, then soon — so as you answer questions, you should try to sprinkle in short anecdotes that show you can:

  • Use other people’s ideas to make a decision that’s good for the team
  • Genuinely listen to opinions that may be very different from your own
  • Make difficult decisions when under time constraints
  • Communicate complex concepts to people who may not have the same technical knowledge

What are some common DevOps interview questions?

Again, DevOps requires a slightly different mentality than waterfall, Agile, or other development methodologies. So, you should expect at least a few DevOps interview questions meant to get a glimpse into how you think and create within a DevOps context, as well as how familiar you are with the DevOps process. Here are some questions you should prepare for and their answers.

1. What’s the difference between DevOps and Agile?

While this could be a tricky one, the answer may be easier than you think. Simply put, the objective of DevOps is to create a product that reflects the expertise of many professionals. Agile’s objective is to make something that customers think is awesome. Here’s a little more detail:

  • Agile. Agile essentially brings together two groups of people: developers and customers. Customers are those who will be using the app, which may be folks inside the company or people they serve.
  • DevOps. DevOps involves the unification of several groups of people from different departments, such as Front-End Developers, Back-End Developers, cybersecurity professionals, automation architects, testers, user experience/interface professionals, and more.

So with Agile, you’re coding stuff, sending it over to people who are going to use it, gathering their feedback, and then incorporating it in the next iteration. This could happen, literally, several times a week. With DevOps, everyone gathers around a round table and works through problems together.

2. What are the advantages of DevOps?

This question is a bit easier to answer. Here’s what you should mention:

  • DevOps makes it easier to support the needs of the operations team.
  • It gives the business greater agility.
  • You learn from the problem-solving methodologies of others due to a highly collaborative atmosphere.
  • You can fix bugs faster.
  • You can acquire new skills easier because you get to watch other, more-experienced professionals at work.

3. What is version control in DevOps?

Version control is a central element of DevOps. It involves teams working independently of each other and then coming together, merging their individual components. The package they create also includes all the previous versions, so it’s easy to revert to an earlier version.

4. Talk about continuous integration in DevOps

Continuous integration is another elemental feature of the DevOps process. It’s executed using automated processes that combine code produced by different developers to form the single product they’re creating. With continuous integration, you can focus on one element of a project at a time, if you want, and keep testing it within the context of the project as a whole.

5. What’s needed to make continuous integration effective?

Continuous integration can’t happen without some key elements, so this is your chance to show you know what they are. You should mention:

  • An organized, well-maintained code library
  • Self-testing automation
  • Build automation
  • Using cloned production environments
  • Quickly making changes and producing different iterations

6. Why is automation an important part of testing within DevOps?

This is also a relatively easy question, but you should remember to mention at least a few of the following benefits of automation in the context of testing:

  • It makes it easier to repeat similar yet slightly different test situations.
  • It simplifies testing bigger test matrices.
  • It reduces the possibility of human error.
  • It saves time.
  • It reduces your expenses because it’s handled by processes instead of humans.
  • It supports parallel programming, which solves problems in less time because work gets divided and performed in parallel.

7. How have you used DevOps or its principles to solve a problem?

This is an open-ended question and a great chance to showcase your experience. If you’re new to DevOps, you may be able to answer this question by talking about how you’ve collaborated with people from different teams to solve a problem.

This can work well if you’re switching careers as well. It’s best to brainstorm some specific examples of collaboration and practice talking about them before your interview.

Getting starting in DevOps

Getting ready for a DevOps career often starts with getting familiar with some of the more common coding languages. A good place to start is with some of our courses, such as:

Connect with Codecademy today to gain the knowledge base you need to thrive within a DevOps setting.

Interview Prep Courses & Tutorials | Codecademy

Interviewing is an important step in your journey towards landing a job in tech. Technical interviews let you showcase your skills and knowledge, but practice is key. You’ll need to understand technical concepts and be prepared to talk through solutions with your interviewers.

Word of the Day: regalia

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Word of the Day: regalia

1. symbols or paraphernalia indicative of royalty (or other high office)

2. especially fine or decorative clothing

_________

The word regalia has appeared in 37 articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on May 7 in “For Chakaia Booker, Whose Medium Is Tires, the Art Is in the Journey” by Siddhartha Mitter:

Her appearance is both memorable and integral to the work. She wore a turban-like headpiece, made of dozens of fabric strips and squares in many patterns, wrapped, knotted and stitched. It encircled her face and cascaded past her shoulders. Her shirt was enhanced — the precise architecture was hard to ascertain — in a similar vein. Just the bottom of Dickies work pants appeared, over sneakers.

… The regalia can add practical difficulty to Booker’s work, which involves plenty of heavy lifting. Its effect is protective, as she is somewhat shy, and reluctant to speak about herself. But its more important, intended result is to direct the focus to her craft.

Can you correctly use the word regalia in a sentence?

Based on the definition and example provided, write a sentence using today’s Word of the Day and share it as a comment on this article. It is most important that your sentence makes sense and demonstrates that you understand the word’s definition, but we also encourage you to be creative and have fun.

Then, read some of the other sentences students have submitted and use the “Recommend” button to vote for two original sentences that stand out to you.

If you want a better idea of how regalia can be used in a sentence, read these usage examples on Vocabulary.com.

If you enjoy this daily challenge, try one of our monthly vocabulary challenges.

Students ages 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, can comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff.

Film Club: ‘A Ship From Guantánamo.’

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Film Club: ‘A Ship From Guantánamo.’

2. After watching, think about these questions:

  • What questions do you still have?

  • What connections can you make between this film and your own life or experience? Why? Does this film remind you of anything else you’ve read or seen? If so, how and why?

3. An additional challenge | Respond to the essential question at the top of this post: How can art give us purpose and meaning?

4. Next, join the conversation by clicking on the comment button and posting in the box that opens on the right. (Students 13 and older are invited to comment, although teachers of younger students are welcome to post what their students have to say.)

5. After you have posted, try reading back to see what others have said, then respond to someone else by posting another comment. Use the “Reply” button or the @ symbol to address that student directly.

6. To learn more, read “He Is Imprisoned at Guantánamo. Making Art Is His Escape.” Dara Kell and Veena Rao, the filmmakers, write:

We first came across Moath al-Alwi’s artwork when we heard about an exhibition at John Jay College of Criminal Justice titled “Ode to the Sea,” which featured works made by current and former detainees at Guantánamo Bay. When we saw Mr. al-Alwi’s model ships, we were struck by how stunningly detailed they were, especially given the limited materials available within the prison.

We learned that Mr. al-Alwi works largely with found materials, often asking other inmates and even guards for various objects he can transform into elements of his art. He told us that he sometimes works for two days straight without sleep, determined to follow through on his vision. Raised in Saudi Arabia, Mr. al-Alwi has been in prison for nearly half his life; he says that when he is making art, he forgets that he’s still there.

After the opening of the show at John Jay, the Pentagon halted artwork made by prisoners from leaving Guantánamo Bay. The fact that Mr. al-Alwi is no longer able to share his work is one of the reasons we wanted to make this film; as independent documentary filmmakers, we know that the power of our work is fully realized only when we can share it with an audience.

Next year will be the 20th anniversary of the opening of the prison, and Mr. al-Alwi will have been there for 20 years. Through the process of making this film, we have grown to feel that we know him as an artistic collaborator, even though we have never been allowed to meet or speak with him directly. In the short documentary above, Mr. al-Alwi discusses his creative process and the importance of being able to share his work with the world.

Want more student-friendly videos? Visit our Film Club column.

Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

Have You Ever Helped an Adult?

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Have You Ever Helped an Adult?

How do you help out the adults in your life? Maybe you’ve helped in big ways: supporting someone during an illness or after the birth of a baby. Or perhaps in smaller ways, such as taking out the trash or preparing dinner.

In “Helping My Mom Start Over,” Sarah Williamson writes about taking care of her mother who has multiple sclerosis, or M.S., a disease that can affect many parts of the body and gradually cause serious disability:

Students, read the entire illustrated story, then tell us:

  • What is your reaction to the story? Which parts did you find most surprising, interesting or moving? Why?

  • Do you ever help your parents or other adults in your life, in big or small ways? What do you do for them?

  • How do you feel when you help someone who is normally in the position of helping or supporting you?

  • Tell a story about a moment when you stepped up to support a parent, caregiver or other adult. Whom did you help? What did you do? How did you feel?

    If you’d like, you can illustrate your story as Ms. Williamson did.

Want more writing prompts? You can find all of our questions in our Student Opinion column. Teachers, check out this guide to learn how you can incorporate them into your classroom.

Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

Lesson of the Day: ‘What’s Emerging From the Melting Ice?’

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Lesson of the Day: ‘What’s Emerging From the Melting Ice?’

This lesson is part of our new Accessible Activities feature, which aims to welcome a wider variety of learners to our site and to The Times. Learn more and tell us what you think here.

Featured Text: “What’s Emerging From the Melting Ice?” by Franz Lidz

As climate change causes global temperatures to rise, ancient animal remains and human artifacts are emerging from melting glaciers and permafrost.

In this lesson, you will learn about some of the objects that the melting ice has revealed. Then, you will learn more about climate change by participating in a citizen science project.

Before learning about some of the artifacts that have been found in melting glaciers, watch this four-minute video from National Geographic about how climate change is affecting glaciers.

Then, answer the following questions:

  • What is a glacier?

  • What are the different types?

  • How do glaciers form?

  • What resources do glaciers provide?

  • What is the connection between melting glaciers and climate change?

Here are nine words you’ll find in this text that you may not know:

1. permafrost
2. glaciers
3. thaw
4. erode
5. remains
6. artifacts
7. preserved
8. Paleolithic
9. domestication

Which words are you familiar with? Which are new to you?

Go to Vocabulary.com to learn what each word means and to practice using them.

Read the text below, or print out the PDF. Then answer the following questions:

1. What effect is climate change having on permafrost and glaciers?

2. What animal remains were found in the permafrost?

3. What is significant about the tree fossil that was discovered?

4. What conclusions did researchers draw from the rope and arrow they found near the Langfonne ice patch?

5. Which artifact were you most surprised to see? Which would you like to know more about?

Learn more about climate change by choosing one of the two citizen science projects from Zooniverse below to complete on your own or with a partner.

Fossil Atmospheres: Help researchers create a record of how the atmosphere has changed over time. You will closely observe modern and fossil leaves to track climate change over millions of years.

Mapping Change: In this project you will help scientists measure climate change by identifying a baseline of how animals, plants and fungi existed before conditions changed. You will closely analyze specimens to help scientists come to conclusions about climate change.

After participating in the citizen science project, answer these questions:

  • What is one thing you learned by participating in the project?

  • What is one question you would like to ask the researchers leading the project?

  • In what ways did the project connect to what you learned in the featured text?

Want more Lessons of the Day? You can find them all here.

New Skills, New Career: See How Asmita Built the Confidence to Pursue a New Role

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New Skills, New Career: See How Asmita Built the Confidence to Pursue a New Role

We want to introduce you to Asmita Meshram. Today, she’s working as a Graduate Trainee at Tata Consultancy Services and is excited about her new role. Her story is an excellent example of how learning new skills can open new doors. She launched her career after earning her bachelor’s. However, she soon realized she was in a field that wasn’t right for her. She had to find a new way forward, and discovering the Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate on Coursera proved to be the right solution for her. We recently had a chance to talk with Asmita about her career pivot and her experience in the Professional Certificate program, and to get her advice for anyone else who might be contemplating a career change.

Asmita, thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us, and congratulations on your new role! Let’s get started with some background. Can you tell us a little bit about what you were doing prior to joining Tata Consultancy Services?

Thank you! And yes, I’d be happy to. I recently completed my undergraduate studies and earned my Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from the University of Mumbai. I was actually in my last semester when the pandemic hit and everything went online—even the college lectures. During that time, I started working for a small start-up as a web developer. After working with them for seven months, I realized that the web development field was not for me.

That must have been a difficult realization. But it sounds like you started exploring other options right away. What happened next?

It was around March that I came across Alex the Analyst’s YouTube video about the Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate program on Coursera. 

That’s a great discovery! As someone who was able to make a career change to becoming a data analyst, it seems like his site could be a good resource for someone in your position. Did you start looking into the Professional Certificate program then?

Well, I did check some other videos, and I also looked up the program’s reviews, which were perfect. So I immediately enrolled!

What were your first impressions of the program?

The structure is very well-defined and sparks curiosity about what is going to come next. Though the overview was shared in the first part itself, I was very excited to get to know about each stage in detail. 

How did you approach your studies, and was it a challenge to keep pace and stay motivated?

I actually partnered up with a friend to complete this program. We kept each other accountable and made sure that both of us finished time. We studied for about four hours per day.

That’s impressive! Can you tell us about the skills you learned in the program?

I gained many skills and was able to acquire knowledge about the entire lifecycle of a data analytics project. Plus, the program not only teaches you about data analytics, but also about the responsibilities of being an employee—how to keep up with stakeholder requirements, how to positively deal in a work environment, and more. It was a great experience diving inside how everything works in a corporate world. I also learned how to draft a great CV and how to successfully face interviews.

Do you feel that the program in general, and the career preparation component in particular, were helpful to you as you started to look for new roles?

Yes! The capstone project at the end helped me develop my portfolio, and I feel I was able to level up my overall profile for interviews.

So, tell us about your new role. What kind of projects are you getting to work on?

I am currently in the training period, which means I can be assigned to any project within domains like IT, development, system administration, database administration, cloud, machine learning, analytics, and more. 

That sounds really exciting, and it’s wonderful to hear about how you’ve been able to discover these new opportunities. Many learners around the world come to Coursera to achieve the kind of progress you’re making in your career; what advice would you give to someone who’s contemplating enrolling in a similar Professional Certificate program?

If I were to give any advice on how to stay motivated and focused while completing this program, I’d suggest partnering up with a friend and holding each other accountable.

That’s great! And, it’s really clear that the same advice worked for you because you completed the program successfully, and now, you’re in a new role you’re excited about. Congratulations!

~

We want to thank Asmita for sharing her story, and congratulate her on the progress she’s making on her career journey!

If you’re interested in learning new skills and embarking on a new career path, we hope you’ll explore Google Professional Certificate programs on Coursera. It’s a great way to gain in-demand skills, enhance your resume, and expand your career opportunities. Learn more today, and happy learning!

What’s Going On in This Picture? | Nov. 22, 2021

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What’s Going On in This Picture? | Nov. 22, 2021

1. After looking closely at the image above (or at the full-size image), think about these three questions:

2. Next, join the conversation by clicking on the comment button and posting in the box that opens on the right. (Students 13 and older are invited to comment, although teachers of younger students are welcome to post what their students have to say.)

3. After you have posted, try reading back to see what others have said, then respond to someone else by posting another comment. Use the “Reply” button or the @ symbol to address that student directly.

Each Monday, our collaborator, Visual Thinking Strategies, will facilitate a discussion from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eastern time by paraphrasing comments and linking to responses to help students’ understanding go deeper. You might use their responses as models for your own.

4. On Thursday afternoons, we will reveal at the bottom of this post more information about the photo. How does reading the caption and learning its back story help you see the image differently?

We’ll post more information here on Thursday afternoon. Stay tuned!

More?

• See all images in this series or slide shows of 40 of our favorite images — or 40 more.

• Learn more about this feature in this video, and discover how and why other teachers are using it in their classrooms in our on-demand webinar.

• Find out how teachers can be trained in the Visual Thinking Strategies facilitation method.

Students 13 and older in the United States and the Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

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