There has been a lot of discussion in the industry about the pros and cons of public and private cloud offerings, but my perspective has always remained the same: it is possible to build an offering that combines the best of both worlds. As I’ve suggested previously, with such an offering the economics and scale of the public cloud are not limited to the largest Web companies and service providers, customers of any size should be able to get them.Today, we announced the EMC ECS Appliance (formerly known as Project Nile), the world’s first commercially available hyper-scale storage appliance for the data center. ECS stands for Elastic Cloud Storage. With the ECS Appliance, any enterprise or service provider can deliver the economics and simplicity of a public cloud along with the control and freedom of choice of a private cloud.The ECS Appliance allows enterprises and service providers of all sizes to deliver cloud storage at a cost and scale that is competitive with the public cloud. This means that literally anyone can now effortlessly grow their infrastructure to match their business needs regardless of whether it is measured in petabytes, exabytes or more.The ECS Appliance offers a new option to customers as they plan their 3rd Platform storage strategy. It combines EMC’s ViPR software with a low- cost, high-density, commodity hardware-based platform to provide a simple, integrated and optimized storage appliance that offers elastic block, object, and HDFS storage. Customers can choose the right size for their immediate needs and grow as their requirements change. The ViPR controller automates the management of the ECS Appliance and lowers the customer’s operational expenses. See details of the initial EMC ECS Appliance offering here.While the ECS Appliance provides customers a simple way to get everything they need to build hyper-scale cloud storage infrastructure, our early access program has shown us that there are customers with extremely complex environments and business demands that require even more flexibility and control.To address their needs, we also offer a version of the ViPR software that customers can purchase and deploy on their own commodity hardware. Customers now have the choice of a simple, integrated ECS Appliance in multiple form factors or ViPR software that they can configure and deploy on commodity platforms that they source or even build, themselves.EMC’s software-defined strategy remains the same. We are singly focused on our customers and we will develop products to help meet their needs for the 3rd Platform of IT. Meanwhile, we will also develop products that address 2nd Platform problems while providing customers with a simple, open path to the 3rd Platform.The ECS Appliance and ViPR software support for commodity platforms are just two of the many new capabilities we are introducing across our entire product portfolio today. As we look to the future, we will continue to focus on our customers and deliver what I believe is the strongest software-defined storage portfolio in the industry!Related articles:EMC ScaleIO Delivers Elastic Scalable High Performance Software-Defined Block StorageTaking Data Center Management to the Third Platform
The Quest for Solid Ground
According to the EMC Global Data Protection Index, which surveyed 3,300 IT decision makers from mid-size to enterprise-class businesses across 24 countries, common data protection practices have left global businesses exposed to data loss and downtime to the tune of $1.7 trillion annually. For the sake of comparison, that’s about the same as the world’s total military spend in a single year. A startling statistic by any account!And this is only a glimpse of what’s to come if attitudes and practices toward data protection are left unchanged.As the world marches to the cloud and business markets become increasingly connected, ensuring that data is protected, always on, and always available becomes absolutely critical. In fact, I’d go so far as to say the business trends underpinning the 3rd Platform – specifically social media, big data, mobile and cloud – don’t just spell the end of business as usual, but also the end of data protection as we know it.Organizations that don’t look to new strategies to ensure availability across their environments – wherever their data resides, whatever the application that generates it – won’t just cut into profits; they’ll put their businesses at significant risk.Data loss and downtime will continue to have a detrimental impact on business profits, but the effects of the disruption will be felt much further than they are today – and will be much farther reaching than many of us could have ever imagined.Yes, disruptions in protection will continue to limit product and service development. Yes, downtime will continue to take a bite out of revenue. And yes, incremental business opportunities, customer acquisition and repeat business will continue to be affected by the way we protect our data. But the bigger issue – the one that global enterprises of all sizes will really want to pay attention to – is how data protection will affect new business opportunities and revenue streams going forward. That’s why we’ll likely see these types of business consequences, along with a loss in market value, move to the top of the disruption list.Similarly, what’s causing these disruptions will also shift as data moves to and between clouds, and data management becomes increasingly important.Lastly, the index shows that businesses are adopting a new mindset about data protection… that they are trading in their multi-decade-held views of data protection as a back office activity for one that sees protection as part of boardroom discussions.While there is little consensus among those surveyed on the technology in place to prevent disruptions and ensure availability, nearly two-thirds of the global enterprises surveyed consider data protection critical to the success of their businesses, and the numbers are even higher in China (90%), Brazil (82%) and the United States (80%). Encouraging signs all around!However, there’s a still a significant gap between what organizations know (i.e., that data protection is critical to the future of their business) and current confidence levels. (If they’re not confident in current practices, what does this say about future plans?)In fact, 71% of those surveyed said they were not fully confident that they could recover systems/data today from all platforms.Now, I’m not sure what “fully confident” means, but I do know that in the business world to which we are headed, confidence along with the ability to adapt and execute to market shifts is paramount, and the only way to achieve this is to think and do things differently.We’re ready to disrupt markets through data protection. What about you? How solid is the ground your enterprise is standing on?* * * * *To see more EMC Global Data Protection Index results, please visit our microsite.
Enabling the Workforce of Today and Tomorrow
The often discussed work/life balance has never been something I really was able to grasp. For me, it’s always been more about work/life blend, and it seems I’m not alone these days.The generations coming behind me see even less boundary between their work and their personal lives. Technology makes that possible for us, and it has become something the workforce can’t live without.Forty-two percent of millennial workers say they would quit a job with substandard technology, and 82 percent say workplace technology influences the job they will take. A big part of that means no longer being tethered.So it was great to hear during the Workforce Transformation session at Dell EMC World this week that Dell is taking mobility one step further with the industry’s first wireless charging solution.First announced at CES in January, the Dell Latitude 7000 2-in-1 goes for sale in the US on June 1 with optional wireless charging pad and dock which wirelessly connects you to power and your display for a first-of-its kind wireless desktop experience.“The trick is in the keyboard,” notes The Verge. “The Latitude 7285 is a 2-in-1 hybrid. That means 100 percent of its components fit inside the tablet display, which can be attached to one of three accompanying keyboards to create a clamshell laptop. One of these keyboards communicates with Dell’s new wireless charging pad. So when you place the 7285 down on the mat with the keyboard attached, the power bypasses the keyboard and goes straight to the computer.”It’s just one of our many PCs on display in the Solutions Expo at Dell EMC World this week, where we’re showcasing products designed for the many ways that people work today.And Dell is also thinking about the way people will work in the future.Fifteen years from now we’ll have another 1000 times the power, speed, efficiency and capacity that we have today. Next generation PCs will marry the traditional keyboard and mouse to speech recognition, gesture, predictive tools and services to create more natural ways of working and improve collaboration.We will have richer, more immersive experiences with Augmented and Virtual Reality – once a fantasy concept for gamers – soon to transform how work gets done in manufacturing, construction, training and other business processes.The digitization of everything will be here – more than 20 billion connected devices by 2020; more than one trillion by 2050 – will increase productivity, speed up decision making while improving outcomes.Of course, with all of these fast, untethered workhorses in the hands of billions of people, security has become even more critical. Did you know that 95 percent of breaches originate with the end user? So protecting the datacenter starts with protecting the device.That means more than creating strong passwords. But, that’s ok, because listening to our customers has enabled us to build solutions that can help do this. Dell is ready to make a work/life blend possible for the workers that power the companies that understand and embrace the changing way we work.They will be the leaders in the digital transformation. They will be the ones who unlock the power of their people; free up IT to manage change not technology; and invest in strategic priorities and innovate for the future.
#ISTE17: Realizing the Path to Student-Centered Learning
Next week educators, administrators, students and technology providers will meet at the annual ISTE conference to collaborate on all things ed-tech and discuss the latest educator-tested strategies for transforming learning and teaching. This year’s event in San Antonio continues the conversation on student-lead learning, a concept that’s vastly different from the “old days” when education was often a recitation of information from one person to a classroom full of students. Technology has and is playing a prominent role in this development, enabling students to learn and create differently than before, while preparing them for the modern workforce.We will be hosting several sessions and activities as well as introducing new solutions that fall under our umbrella theme of “Realizing your path to student-centered transformation.” Innovative ideas and ubiquitous access to digital resources provide endless opportunities to create authentic student-centered learning experiences and we at Dell EMC want to make sure educators have the tools they need to inspire and empower students to take charge of their learning experience.Introducing the S518WL ProjectorOn the product front, we will be introducing a new advanced 4K laser projector, the S518WL – a more affordable version of our recently announced Dell Advanced 4K Laser Projector (S718QL) developed with K-12 classrooms in mind. With its affordable price point, the S518WL is a reliable, low-maintenance and lamp-free laser projector with 10-year laser life that delivers crystal clear presentations in the classroom. With instant on and off since the laser doesn’t need to warm up or cool down, ability to present using a USB or wirelessly via school network, laptop, tablet or phone, you can connect and start presenting immediately. It’s a great addition to the refreshed education portfolio we announced earlier this year at the BETT show in London.Putting Customers in the SpotlightThere are countless solutions available when it comes to creating an environment to support student-led learning, but knowing where and how to get started can be a challenge. We’ll host a spotlight discussion on Monday on “Transforming space: Practical strategies to empower student-led learning” where our customer panelists will provide insights into what it takes to change the physical learning space to support more immersive and collaborative learning models. The session will feature Gabi Nino, principal of Joe Lee Johnson elementary, Round Rock ISD; Rachel Sotelo, academy specialist at Cedar Ridge High School, Round Rock ISD; students from Cedar Ridge School High School; and Dr. Robert Dillon, director of Innovation Learning, University City School District.Dell Canvas Demos and MoreThe Dell EMC Learning Lounge (room 209) will feature a variety of sessions, including immersive and interactive workshops, discussions and experiences on everything from data protection to unleashing creativity in the classroom and more. We’ll discuss the timely topic of protecting your district’s data even as headlines of ransomware attacks keep making the news, transforming learning environments and unleashing creativity in the classroom, as well as teaching digital literacy and citizenship to ensure students are equipped to maintain integrity in their digital and non-digital lives inside and outside of the classroom. We will also have student artists showcasing the capabilities of our Dell Canvas solution on Monday and Tuesday during the show.Come by the Dell EMC Learning Lounge in room 209 to meet our team, join the conversation online using the #ISTE17 hashtag and follow up on Twitter for more @DellEMCedu. You can also view a full list of our activities at ISTE here.
UN experts fault Italy in drownings of over 200 migrants
GENEVA (AP) — Independent human rights experts who work with the United Nations say Italy failed to protect the “right to life” of over 200 migrants who died when the boat they were on sank in the Mediterranean Sea in October 2013. The Human Rights Committee also called on Italian authorities to “proceed with an independent and timely investigation and to prosecute those responsible” for the deaths. The boat departed carrying some 400 people, mostly Syrians. In a decision published Wednesday, the committee said Italy “failed to respond promptly” to distress calls after the vessel was shot “by a boat flying a Berber flag in international waters” some 113 kilometers south of the Italian island of Lampedusa.
Minister: Cyprus economy expected to rebound 4.5% in 2021
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — The finance minister of Cyprus says the Mediterranean island nation’s economy is expected to rebound by 4.5% of gross domestic product this year following a pandemic-induced contraction of around 5.5% in 2020. Finance Minister Constantinos Petrides told an investment conference on Thursday that the growth estimate comes attached with a “great level of uncertainty” because of how the pandemic may evolve. He says the unemployment in Cyprus rate rose to an estimated 8% last year, which was less than anticipated, and it is projected to drop by a percentage point this year as economic activity picks up.
Student underage drinking arrests slow
Since representatives from the University and student government met with local law enforcement at the beginning of the month, the number of students arrested for underage drinking has decreased. This change came as a result of increased cooperation and understanding on both sides, student body president Catherine Soler said after meeting with representatives from the South Bend Police Department (SBPD) and Indiana State Excise Police this week. “To be honest, they were both as happy about it as we were. I think this has caused a lot tension in the community,” Soler said. “Everyone is just really happy to be moving forward in a productive manner.” From Aug. 21 to Sept. 2, police sent roughly 70 students to jail for alcohol-related charges. Since then, eight students were arrested and nine were issued citations for minor consuming, according to police logs. Excise police issued five citations to Notre Dame students at an incident early Sunday morning at 1632 Turtle Creek Court, said Indiana State Excise Police Commander Lt. Tim Cleveland. Cleveland said these students were issued citations, rather than arrested, because they were cooperative. “From my understanding, there were a lot of people there, but there were few under 21 that were actually consuming alcohol,” he said. “Everyone was cooperative and polite and mutually respectful so that makes a big difference.” SBPD arrested six underage students for minor consuming at a Sept. 10 incident on the 1000 Block of N. Lawrence Street. Officers arrested two and cited four for minor consuming at a Sept. 17 incident on the 200 block of S. St. Louis Boulevard, according to police logs. Cleveland said his meeting with representatives from Notre Dame resulted in greater understanding of the University’s perspective, and he said he thought the University better understood his side as well. “Hopefully we’ve all seen a move in the positive direction,” he said. Cleveland said he encouraged his officers to issue citations, rather than arrest, when underage students are respectful and it is safe to release them. “I have encouraged my officers to use some discretion on whether or not they arrest or whether they cite and release,” he said. “Obviously, we’re not going to cite and release someone who tests .20 because that’s a liability for us to have someone who is under 21 and who is twice the legal limit walking around where they could get hit by a car or something could happen to them.” Nick Ruof, chief of staff, who also attended the meetings with the police, said officers are, in general, using more discretion. “They are using discretion when they start issuing [minors in consumption] or when they approach a si
Siegfried shivers for homeless
Siegfried Hall’s 8th annual “Day of Man” will give hall residents a chance to shiver for a cause Wednesday as they brave the cold in shorts, T-shirts and flip-flops while collecting donations for the South Bend Center for the Homeless, Day of Man co-commissioner and junior Thomas Ridella said.“It’s one of the largest community service events that I’ve participated in,” Ridella said. “It’s really cool doing it with all your friends and doing something that’s really different and unique. … We’re just doing our part by taking a day, not even a day, out of our time, which is something small, to make a big contribution.”Siegfried Hall president and sophomore Drew Vista said the event encourages hall residents “to stand in solidarity with other people and bring the cause to the attention of the other students at Notre Dame.”“The most important part of the event is that even though it’s a fun thing to do for a day and even though it’s cold, it’s for a really good cause,” Vista said. “Once we hear from the people from the homeless shelter, it makes us feel that what we did was that much more special.”Peter Lombardo, director of community involvement at the South Bend Center for the Homeless, spoke to students gathered for Mass in Siegfried on Sunday. He said funds from Day of Man support academic and enrichment programs at the Center for the Homeless and will help kickstart a nutrition program initiated this year by juniors Kathleen Anthony and Sienna Durbin.“Thank you for risking a trip to the student health center for the Center for the Homeless,” Lombardo said. “The work we do is pretty much aimed at reconnecting [residents], reconnecting them to the sources of support that we all have.“We’re lucky we have family and friends that we can depend on, and they don’t have them. Some of them don’t have them because they’ve broken them themselves, yes, that’s true, but the Center for the Homeless wants to reconnect them, and any help that you can give goes to that.”Sophomore Jack Szigety said the event also provides a way for Siegfried residents to strengthen their own community while reaching out to South Bend.“The best part of the event for me anyway is the solidarity of it,” Szigety said. “You don’t stand only with the homeless people who don’t have as fortunate a situation as we do, but you also stand with your dorm, your fellow men, to get together for a cause.”Ridella said the initial slogan used for the first Day of Man, “Be cold. Be bold. Be a man,” would be featured on the back of the neon blue T-shirt hall residents will wear to class and outside the dining halls Wednesday. Vista said plans for Day of Man would continue no matter how low the temperatures drop, as the hall typically raises more funds in frigid weather.“I don’t know if there is a temperature that’s too cold,” Vista said. “Probably anything that would be physically unsafe for more than five minutes of exposure would be too cold. Other than that, the colder the better.”Tags: Center for the Homeless, Day of Man, fundraiser, Siegfried Hall
Series to reconcile creation and Lent
The Center for Spirituality and Campus Ministry will co-sponsor the Lenten Film Series, “Reconciliation with Creation,” which focuses on ecological creation and conversion and will be shown throughout March and April.Director of the Center for Spirituality Elizabeth Groppe said Lent is a time of self-scrutiny, penitential discipline and conversion in our relationship to God and others.“This film series concerns one dimension of that conversion ⎯ conversion in our relation to creation,” Groppe said.She said the series will provide education on different dimensions of ecological degradation.The first film shown on March 3, “Dirt!,” addressed soil erosion and degradation. As we prepare to receive Lenten ashes accompanied by the Biblical words, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return,” the film was particularly relevant for Ash Wednesday, Groppe said.On March 24, the film “Mountain Mourning” will be shown. The film documents the consequences of mountain-top removal coal mining for the Appalachian mountain region and the people who live there.Other films in the series include “Living Downstream” and “A Sea Change: Imagine a World without Fish.”In “Living Downstream,” ecologist Sandra Steingraber explores the connections between the toxins humans have introduced into the environment and human health as she wages her own battle with cancer. “A Sea Change: Imagine a World without Fish” is an award-winning documentary about carbon emissions and ocean acidification.Groppe said the film series will conclude on April 24 with “The Student, the Nun, and the Amazon,” which follows British students James Newton and Sam Clemens in their journey over sea and land to meet Sr. Dorothy Stang, who gave her life to protect the Amazon rainforest and the people who live there.The films will be shown at 6:30 p.m. in Vander Vennet Theatre on Monday evenings, followed by a discussion and Lenten prayer.Although most of the films are not explicitly theological, the realities they document indicate the drama of sin and death, and how grace and freedom involve all of creation. This idea promotes Saint Paul’s message to the Romans that all of creation is “in bondage to decay,” Groppe said.When she first saw the films, Grope said she felt grief at the scope of the degradation that we inflicted upon creation, which, Saint Bonaventure wrote, is like a mirror that reflects the power, wisdom and goodness of God.“Ecological degradation fractures this mirror and hinders our potential to know God through the created order,” she said. “It is also closely correlated with human suffering, for degraded ecosystems cannot support human life and flourishing.”Senior Hannah Olsen said she was glad that she took the time in the midst of a busy week to watch the film [“Dirt!”] and participate in the discussion afterwards.Olsen said she didn’t feel overwhelmed with the issues that stem from disregard for sustainability, most likely because the end of the film was about small-scale efforts that have changed whole communities, even if they only touch one community at a time.“I think the call to action, even if a person can only cause a small-scale change, is very important to hear and discuss,” Olsen said. “It didn’t make environmental issues seem like problems that could only be addressed if you have a lot of power or influence.“There was an African story about a hummingbird trying to put out a forest fire while the other animals just stood and watched. The bigger animals, which could carry a lot more water, told the hummingbird that its actions would never make a difference, but it told them, ‘I’m doing all I can.’ This film, and having a discussion afterward, encouraged me to do all I can. It is better than doing nothing.”Olsen said the prayer at the end drew a great connection between spirituality and the state of the world, ending with the line, “our indifference changes the world.”Tags: creation and lent, Film series, Lent, SMC, smc campus ministry
Award-winning author reads excerpt from work
Kyle Muntz is the 2016 recipient of the Sparks Prize, an award given to a distinguished graduate of the Creative Writing graduate program.Students send sections of writing to an anonymous judge, chosen by the director of the program each year, who decides the winner. Nicholas Sparks, renowned author and Notre Dame graduate class of 1988, created the Sparks Prize in 2001. Muntz is the 15th recipient of the award.“Kyle is a lover of genre and writes in a swathe of them, including genres like the dystopic or the western romance. In this regard, I think he is a lovely fulfillment of the vision of Nicholas Sparks,” Joyelle McSweeney, current director of the Creative Writing Program, said of Muntz.The Sparks Prize awards $20,000 to the winner to allow them to spend a year simply writing, with one stipulation of a requirement of one public reading. Muntz performed his reading at Hammes Bookstore.Muntz read the first chapter of one of his new novels “The Effigies,” a novel which took inspiration from the anime “Evangelion,” as well as a section of his thesis novel, “The Holy Ghost.”Carmen Maria Machado, author of “Her Body and Other Parties” among other novels, was the judge of the 2016 contest. Machado described Muntz’s work as “snapping and humming with a weirdness, queerness and eeriness in every sense of the word that I find utterly intoxicating — a cross between Karen Russell and Bryan Evenson with an atmosphere entirely their own.”Most of Muntz’s novels take place in new, unique worlds, and he estimated that he has created over 10 of them.“I usually start with a genre and a way of telling stories and then I pick it apart,” Muntz said. “ … I look for places where the familiar can become unfamiliar in a way that is interesting to me. I basically think, ‘What if this familiar thing was horrifying, and how do people who have to live with that deal with that?’”Muntz said he has garnered much support and praise from his former peers and professors at the creative writing program.“Kyle approaches prose genres with the enthusiasm and wonder of a kid on Christmas morning who immediately takes apart a complicated toy to see how it works and immediately assembles it in a grotesque humorous way,” McSweeney said.Muntz, has already published five novels and his work has appeared Gone Lawn, Step Chamber, The Journal of Experimental Fiction and Fiction International. Additionally, he is developing a video game called “The Pale City,” an adventure that he finds less enjoyable than novel writing.“It develops a world in the way a world works a lot more fully than my novels ever have,” Muntz said. “ … Writing my video game was a little bit more like writing a screenplay.”