I seem to remember several months/years ago someone linked this to humanity's ancient roots as hunter-gatherers - when we were out scrounging up food, we had to think quickly and decisively and make immediate choices based only on what data were directly in front of us. Today, shopping presents enough of the right stimuli to re-activate this portion of the brain that circumnavigates costly (processing-time-wise) long-term thinking and instead makes quick, short-sighted decisions. Hence impulse buying from otherwise rational people. Does anyone remember this article? Or am I just making it up?
Are you telling me that my desire to walk into the local electronics superstore and purchase one of those flat, wide-screen TV's with the really cool mirrors is actually based on an evolutionary, instinctual if you will, response passed along through the genetic roots received from my ancestors developed during their hunter-gatherer days and not based on the commercials that have been airing with the kid out in the middle of the field with the rainbow coming out of her hand?
Yeah, but getting your movies buy snail mail is so last century. Now days, if you don't get your movies delivered along the interweb's tubes you're just not cool.
Not to mention the proprietary viewer required to view the code that can only be obtained by purchasing a complex, convoluted license that won't necessarily allow you to view the code intended to be viewed by the program. Said act of viewing the code with the program intended to view the code will, of course, violate a little known line in the DMCA that will invalidate the license.
Considering that the distance from Earth to Mars varies from less than.5 au (astronomical unit equal to 149,598,000 kM) to roughly 2.5 au (depending upon our relative position in relation to the Sun) even traveling at the speed of light a signal could take from 6 to 44 minutes to complete a round trip. And that doesn't take into account interference or processing time. Let alone those little green tards who steal our bandwidth.
Oh you with your pedantic attention to definitions. Can't we leave behind this senseless debate over what is a robot and get on with the much more important discussion of whether they should be allowed to marry.
I thought I'd tell you to apologize for the inconvenience but realized I wouldn't enjoy it so I'm just going to sit over here in a corner and biodegrade.
Why do I get the impression that if high-speed internet access was banned in YOUR homes, you guys would (probably literally) be up in arms about it and not just making remarks on a forum?
Not to mention the complete collapse of the porn and MMOG industries.
It's not illegal for any business (or individual) to ask for your SSN. You can refuse to supply your number and thusly do without their services, but they can ask.
Look to the Social Security Administration for when you are required to provide your SSN. http://tinyurl.com/ygvvct ssa.gov (the real URL is governmentally long)
There was a Stargate animated series. Does anyone remember it? I hope not. It's permanently imprinted on the wrinkles of my brain and I can't get in there with the iron to get rid of it.
Slashdot Mirror
Isn't that one of the precepts of science? To give explanations for long-known behaviors.
Are you telling me that my desire to walk into the local electronics superstore and purchase one of those flat, wide-screen TV's with the really cool mirrors is actually based on an evolutionary, instinctual if you will, response passed along through the genetic roots received from my ancestors developed during their hunter-gatherer days and not based on the commercials that have been airing with the kid out in the middle of the field with the rainbow coming out of her hand?
Because a dog can act outside of it's "programming".
Yeah, but getting your movies buy snail mail is so last century. Now days, if you don't get your movies delivered along the interweb's tubes you're just not cool.
Not to mention the proprietary viewer required to view the code that can only be obtained by purchasing a complex, convoluted license that won't necessarily allow you to view the code intended to be viewed by the program. Said act of viewing the code with the program intended to view the code will, of course, violate a little known line in the DMCA that will invalidate the license.
Considering that the distance from Earth to Mars varies from less than .5 au (astronomical unit equal to 149,598,000 kM) to roughly 2.5 au (depending upon our relative position in relation to the Sun) even traveling at the speed of light a signal could take from 6 to 44 minutes to complete a round trip. And that doesn't take into account interference or processing time. Let alone those little green tards who steal our bandwidth.
How can they call these predictions for 2007 if there's no iPod killer?
I was promised an iPod killer. I want my iPod killer. Where is my iPod killer?
Not to mention that whole landing on their feet thing. My moneys on the cat, the humans screwed.
Yeah, but imagine the spin action on that baby. YES, ride that appliance...
That depends on how high up they are when you drop them.
Oh you with your pedantic attention to definitions. Can't we leave behind this senseless debate over what is a robot and get on with the much more important discussion of whether they should be allowed to marry.
We're so screwed.
We are all of us. You are not one of us. You must be one of them. We are not them.
I thought I'd tell you to apologize for the inconvenience but realized I wouldn't enjoy it so I'm just going to sit over here in a corner and biodegrade.
Not to mention the complete collapse of the porn and MMOG industries.
Oh come on. When was the last time guys on /. met girls in bars AND actually got to go home with them?
Look to the Social Security Administration for when you are required to provide your SSN.
http://tinyurl.com/ygvvct ssa.gov (the real URL is governmentally long)
Doesn't being a space opera predicate being set in space?
There was a Stargate animated series. Does anyone remember it? I hope not. It's permanently imprinted on the wrinkles of my brain and I can't get in there with the iron to get rid of it.