1. Database truth of the week

"ALL names are human created, either by non-algorithmic assignment, or via some algorithm. We ONLY know that two types of objects are distinct because they have different sets of defining properties and, for a given object type, we ONLY know that two objects are distinct because the values (observed or measured) of that object type's defining properties are distinct. Names (of objects of some type) allow us to distinguish two such entities ONLY when they are 1:1 with the values of the object defining properties. Two sets of names (whether human assigned or machine generated) consistently identify the same set of entities ONLY when they are 1:1." --David McGoveran

2. What's wrong with this database picture?

"I have to maintain some lists in DB (SQLServer, Oracle, DB2, Derby), I have 2 options to design underlying simple table:

"1st:

 NAME   VALUE
=================
 dept   HR
 dept   fin
 role   engineer
 role   designer
-----------------

UNIQUE CONSTRAINT (NAME, VALUE) and some other columns like auto generated ID, etc.

"2nd:

 NAME  VALUE_JSON_CLOB
==================================
dept   {["HR", "fin"]}
role   {["engineer", "designer"}]
----------------------------------

UNIQUE CONSTRAINT (NAME) and some other columns like auto generated ID, etc.

"There is no DELETE operation, only SELECT and INSERT/UPDATE. In first advantage is only INSERT is required but SELECT (fetch all values for a given NAME) will be slow. In second SELECT will be fast but UPDATE will be slow. By considering there could be 10000s of such lists with 1000s for possible values in the system with frequent SELECTs and less INSERTs, which TABLE design will be good in terms of select/insert/update performance." --SQL TABLE to store lists of strings, StackOverflow.com

3. To Laugh or Cry?

Q: "Is the WWW a relational database?"

A: "No, if you’re searching for a database metaphor for the World Wide Web, the closest would be a highly-distributed Network model database, with strong elements of Document-oriented databases. You don’t “query” the WWW - you traverse nodes as you would a network or Graph database, although search engines like Google provide some element of archival querying of the WWW. Like all network-model databases, “joins” on the world wide web are physical links (or at least indirect physical links) using URLs. The fundamental thing that distinguishes these types of data joins from relational database joins is that relational joins are always computed from the data."

A: "This is an interesting question. As others have said, the short answer is no. What is WWW then? And does it in any way relate to relation databases? WWW is the prefix you see on many URLs. (i.e. www.quora.com). It is used by your browser to figure out where to send requests for web based information. Behind the scenes, a service called DNS is used to convert the URL into an IP address which your browser then uses to communicate with the web server. Many of the web sites that have a URL that starts with WWW utilize relational databases to store and manage the information that is presented by the web site. But many other WWW web sites use non-relational databases (like mongo) or no database at all (i.e. static web sites)." --Is the WWW a relational database, quora.com

4. I Told You So

"Those who are in love with practice without theoretical knowledge are like the sailor who goes onto a ship without rudder or compass and who never can be certain where he is going. Practice must always be founded on sound theory." --Leonardo DaVinci

5. Publications

• NEW! The Key to Relational Keys: A New Perspective, forthcoming.

• THE DBDEBUNK GUIDE TO MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT DATA FUNDAMENTALS, my latest book, is available to order here (reviews: Craig Mullins, Todd Everett, Toon Koppelaars, Davide Mauri) 

• Logical Symmetric Access, Data Sub-language, Kinds of Relations, Database Redundancy and Consistency, paper #2 in the new UNDERSTANDING OF THE REAL RDM series, is available for ordering here.

• Interpretation and Representation of Database Relations, paper #1 in the new UNDERSTANDING OF THE REAL RDM series, is available for ordering here. 

6. Housekeeping:

7. Oldie but goodie

Fabian Pascal Interview: Data Management's Misconceptions

 8. Elsewhere

• RDBMS Genealogy
• What ORMs have taught me: just learn SQL

9. The Data Industry

• Why most data scientists are frauds, according to a data scientist
• Self Driving Car Hype Crashes Into Harsh Realities
• How to Transition from Academia to Data Science (er, no: sellout science for money)
• Do you need to know computer science to write code (nah, these days it's preferable you know nothing)
• Everybody and their grandmother are DBMS designers: Salesforce.com and Amazon.com are reportedly desperate to stop using Oracle Corp. database software and they keep reinventing the wheel: Programming With Facts
• Life beyond Distributed Transactions: an Apostate’s Opinion

10. Of General Interest

• Meltdown and Spectre Intel’s Seismic IT Disaster and A Look at Some Implication for Banks
• How To Fool AI Into Seeing Something That Isn't There
• The Magnificent Refuges That Hide Humanity’s Information
• If programming languages were spoken languages, which languages would they be

11. Some Serious Stuff

• Finite of Sense and Infinite of Thought A History of Computation, Logic and Algebra
• Investigations Into Logical Deduction
• Mathematics and Computation
• The Plot Thickens in the Gnarly Story of IQ and Genetics
• The Prisoner's Dilemma
• Godel and the End of Physics - Stephen Hawking

And Now for Something Completely Different: A Failing Empire

 "The  stages of the rise and fall of great nations seem to be:

• The Age of Pioneers (outburst)
• The Age of Conquests
• The Age of Commerce
• The Age of Affluence
• The Age of Intellect
• The Age of Decadence.

Decadence is marked by:

• Defensiveness
• Pessimism
• Materialism
• Frivolity
• An influx of foreigners

Decadence is due to:

• Too long a period of wealth and power
• Selfishness
• Love of money
• The loss of a sense of duty.

The life histories of great states are amazingly similar, and are due to internal factors. Their falls are diverse, because they are largely the result of external causes."  --Sir John Glubb, THE FATE OF EMPIRES AND SEARCH FOR SURVIVAL (William Blackwood and Sons, 1978)

• MUST READ: The End of the American Experiment
• America's Decadence Signals End of an Empire
• Empire at the End of Decadence
• The Life Cycle of Empires and America's Destiny
• Beware the Dogs of War: Is the American Empire on the Verge of Collapse? 
• Collapse of the American Empire: swift, silent, certain 
• Decline and fall of the American empire
• Empires (Like the U.S.) Fall When Corruption Becomes Rampant 
• Fall Of The American Empire: “They Intend To Collapse the Financial System”
• How the United States Empire Will Collapse 
• America is an empire in decline
• Surprising Signs America's Empire is About to Collapse 
• The American Empire and Economic Collapse
• The Decline and Fall of the American Empire
• The Decline and Fall of the American Empire
• Why the American Empire Was Destined to Collapse
• 10 ways America is falling behind 
• The Culture of Death — and of Disdain
• Financial Literacy: Two-Thirds of Americans Can't Pass Basic Test
• DECLINE of EMPIRES: The Signs of Decay (video)
• The 7 Signs Of An Empire In Decline (video)

Books of the week

• Chalmer Johnson, THE SORROWS OF EMPIRE: Militarism, Secrecy, and the End of the Republic
• Alfred McCoy,  IN THE SHADOWS OF THE AMERICAN CENTURY: THE RISE AND DECLINE OF US GLOBAL POWER

Video of the week

MUST WATCH: A Good American