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emptybits
6,403karma·1,004submissions·November 20, 2012
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Darren Stone, Vancouver, BC, Canada
"Once men turned their thinking over to
machines in the hope that this would
set them free. But that only permitted
other men with machines to enslave
them." - Frank P. Herbert, Jr., 1965
"The programmer, like the poet, works
only slightly removed from pure
thought-stuff. He builds his castles
in the air, from air, creating by
exertion of the imagination."
- Fred P. Brooks, Jr., 1975recent activity (1,004 total)
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His trebuchet launched a 4 gram projectile at 776 miles per hour. That's obviously extremely lightweight for trebuchet payload, but for comparison, his projectile is approximately 62 grains so ap…
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Yes, and I'd include Cory Doctorow in the list of Canadians paying attention and writing about it. Back to 2024: "Holy CRAP the UN Cybercrime Treaty is a nightmare" https://d…
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I'm not being flippant but I think part of your answer is in the first two words of the title. IME while LLMs may help delivery utility in a finished work, humans often value the absorption, mast…
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Fast forward... all the computer I need is now in my bag or pocket or least within the room. So what I'd enjoy on my wrist is an entry-level Seiko (or other) quartz with nothing but: 1) analog ha…
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Buying a used book sight unseen from Amazon or from a reseller who doesn’t have a reputation for reporting used condition reliably … that’s a buyer’s choice. It’s not left to (mis)fortune. Anyways, my…
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Aside from shallow, uncritical notes, consider that annotating in a margin is evidence that a reader is actively engaging with a text. Very often when I write in margins it's to question or argue…
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Happy Birthday Z80! My first job out of university was in Z80 assembly. (Sega Game Gear.) As a kid, it was all about 6502 micros, but my early professional love was Z80 and it still warms my heart to …
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Perhaps: "If you find yourself re-arranging your life into a [car|AI|...]-dependent life, stop before it's too late?"
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It's not clear what a "US-aligned market" is anymore, and I think it's reasonable to question US hegemony on any front because of its mercurial treatment toward its "allies&qu…
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BC resident. I do look forward to not adjusting to a twice-annual time change. BUT, I would have strongly preferred sticking to Standard Time, year round, instead of DST. That option was apparently no…
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At this point, many readers will be regionally thinking, "Milk ... in ... bags???? What's HE talking about?" But I'm with you, friend. Occlupanida securing the primary containment …
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Of all the objective and subjective metrics a home coffee drinker is trying to optimize, never once have I heard anyone care in the least about the watt-hours consumed during the brew process. "I…
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Dunno. Brands definitely change their ingredients to conform to national health/drug regs so I’d inquire via their US site. kinesysactive.com
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Bemotrizinol is the ingredient being discussed. If you're looking for a specific product to try, check out Ombrelle and also La Roche-Posay's Anthelios line. I share this as a Canadian (bemo…
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Indeed. The corporation name is literally (in literature !) an example of all-seeing surveillance tools causing harm when (not if ) they fall into evil hands.
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Fair enough and thanks for the correction. I think my point may still stand: between the LLM or the Chief ... which decision maker will be most in tune with the long-term common good of the populace?
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Agreed. But I'm not sure sure which decision maker is more myopic toward the big picture and long-lasting implications of a decision: an LLM, or the top brass at the Department Of War.
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Yeah, I agree. We have a large and persuasive LNG industry influencing government policy. Not a lot of critical discussion is permitted because of the sheer money at stake. So many resource corporatio…
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Sure, but nearly half the population of Canada west of Ontario is in BC (5.0M out of 11.8M west of Ontario), and 92% of BC's electric generation comes from hydro (89%) and wind (3%). I like these…
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I disagree. Witness western democracies which have seen incompetent majorities lead populist rebellions to control powerful seats in government, including the highest. Incompetence in large numbers d…
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Tell gamers how many months, for the advertised price, they will receive a guaranteed level of service and features for. Then let gamers decide. Example: If I'm reminded, at purchase time, that t…
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Appreciate the pushback, saltyoldman. Yes, we want to respond to credible threats. And, as always, courts and law enforcement can invade privacy when there's reason to believe someone is worth su…
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Perhaps, depending on specific intent, credibility, and the nature of harm threatened. But since this is about surveillance, I hope that detection of verbal threats is not a goal of government surveil…