Technical writing

Are privacy extensions actually protecting your data?

One minute you’re looking at a new laptop bag on Amazon. The next, an ad for the same exact bag pops up on your Facebook timeline and your next Google search. This is thanks to third-party sites tracking your data for various purposes. If that makes you uncomfortable, you’re not alone. That’s why there are several privacy extensions that have been created that claim to protect your browsing from trackers. But do they really do what they say? Which tracker is the best one? That’s why I decided to take an in-depth look at three different free privacy extensions available through Google Chrome to get a closer look. I decided to look at a few key components when evaluating these extensions: how they reported trackers, the usability of the interface itself, and its general functionality…

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Prose

Dear Uncle James.

I’m still not sure if I’ll even send this. But I’m writing you this letter because I know that you don’t really understand who I am, even though you pretend to try. We’ve always had our differences, but in the end, I want to try to help you see things through my eyes and try to bridge the gap between us that’s always been there.

In our family, I’ve always felt like I didn’t quite fit. You and my mom come from an all white Mormon family, and you didn’t really know what to do with her black husband and three half-black children. You always talked about what it would be like when I married the girl of my dreams and settled down, had some kids, only to realize that I’d be much happier to meet the quarterback at the altar than the homecoming queen. And after all these years I still can’t shake the feeling that you think of me as a rotten apple on your family tree.​​​​​​​.. (continued)

Features

BTE Bootcamp Alum bringing health-focused Gourmet Indian Cuisine to the Palouse

Max Manjit Mohan is a man of many trades, from fashion to financial consulting and more. But, at the heart of all of his endeavors is his love for cooking healthy, delicious food.

Mohan has been working as a businessman for as long as he can remember, sharing an anecdote of one of his early endeavors; “While still in school in Bombay, India, I was first in line to befriend American students from the University of the Seven Seas that paid a call to the port of Bombay. I sold them Indian handicrafts and ‘hippie’ clothing and jewelry, which were much in vogue at that time.”

After graduating from the University of Bombay he started an export company and travelled the country sourcing fashion opportunities for Western markets. He began a clothing manufacturing business exporting to the United States, Australia, and across Europe. Mohan moved to New York City from Bombay 45 plus years ago starting an Import-Export business distributing fashion goods to major retailers and also exporting US products internationally. After receiving his Executive MBA from Pepperdine University, he ran a Computerized Financial Systems Consulting business in Beverly Hills, CA...

An eco-friendly geotechnical solution

While pursuing their undergraduate careers at University of Idaho, Marshall Piatt and Nick Lodato partnered up with the inventor of BioCement for the 2013 University of Idaho VIEW Business Plan Competition, and won first prize. The pair both went on to graduate with degrees in Business Management and Human Resources. After their graduation, Marshall Piatt and Nick Lodato decided that instead of accepting other job offers, they would go all-in and pursue their start-up business full-time. They went on to form BioCement Technologies, Inc.

BioCement Technologies, Inc. is a soil engineering company using a patented microbial process to stabilize and remediate soil. Their product is a liquid chemical solution that can be mixed with soil to increase the production of calcite, which then increases the strength of the soil. BioCement’s vision is “to utilize native microorganisms to advance the way that soil is engineered, improving the quality of life and reducing human impact on life around us,” said Lodato...

Bringing Sustainability to your Shower

Chad Vorse, President of Vorse Machinations, LLC, has always had a passion for creating things. Maria Horta Vorse, Chad’s wife, would playfully tease him about all of the machinations he had been creating in their garage, and thus the name of their company was born. The revolutionary The Forever Shower is one such creation.

The Forever Shower is a luxurious shower innovation to help you use less water and conserve energy, all the while enjoying a relaxing shower experience. The invention was created to help solve some problems in the Vorse home, such as dramatic temperature and pressure changes in their shower when other water-utilizing devices were used, such as faucets, toilets, and laundry.

So, what impact could an invention like this have? “The ultimate impact is staggering.” said Vorse. “Hundreds of billions of gallons of water and gigawatts of energy could be saved in the Western United States. States that frequently face drought crisis like Nevada, Arizona and California, could have massive impacts on their water and energy usage.”...