Chess Players may be paranoid, but no board gamers are as paranoid as those who play Diplomacy. In a game based on trusting your neighbors, paranoia runs rampant.
For those who don't know Diplomacy, its a Risk like war simulation, but no dice are involved, and its Pre WWI Europe. You have to have your allies help you gain numerical superiority with supporting orders in order to defeat your enemy's. Of course in order for them to support, they must be close enough to be able to support your enemy too. Check out http://www.diplom.org for more info on the game.
I faced this problem myself just a year ago, my 2nd year as a CS major. I realized that I loved the classes, but hated to do the actual programming. With the encouragement of a friend who was in the same boat, we both decided to change our majors and keep the CS skills as a Minor. I've been a much happier college student ever since. Yeah it pushed back my graduation by one year, but with this economy, why go looking for a job just yet?
BTW - I switched to Communications, and my friend switched to Business.
This week, Sen. Judd Gregg (R-New Hampshire) called for restrictions on privacy-protecting encryption products, and Carnivore's use appears on the rise.
This is precisely what I was worried about when talking with my friends the other day. Already an anti-encryption rider has passed through Congress with the $40 billion worth of aid. Once we start to let the government take one small thing away from us in the realm of privacy, we are more likely to allow more.
There is much talk of installing facial recognition software (which many people have pointed out has many flaws resulting in false matches) at airport concourses, customs and gates. Even furthur, there are those who are planning to install such things at sporting events like the Olympics much like they did at the Super Bowl last year.
What really concerns me is that most people seem to be accepthing this without question. Again I ask, who will be using this data? For what ends? With what warrants? How will they know what to check?
Write your congressional representatives and ask these questions. If they can't answer them well enough then this should not be allowed.
Any loss of freedom is a loss for all freedom.
Chris
Re:Face Recognition Software
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· Score: 1
As an American, I don't like the idea that there are people (I just saw a report on ESPN about safety at sporting events) who are already planning to install cameras and a system similar to what was used at the Super Bowl last year.
Who is to say what use this database will go to? Will wearing anti-George W. T-shirts put me in the database? If we start to let these camera's be put up in airports, what is to stop them from being put on street corners?
As to my worries of discrimination, within an hour of the news breaking there were already claims that this was a Palestinian or Arab group. Much in the same fashion as occured after the Oklahoma City Bombing. And we all know that it was no Arabs, just two white boys who pulled off that bombing. I would not be surprised to see a further emphasis on Arab people in such a database since stereotypically they are the ones doing most of these kinds of attacks.
I know that border security is lax in many places along the US/Canada border, but I doubt this will stay true for very much longer. Facial recognition can be fooled as well though. If anyone caught the TLC special with John Cleese they showed some ways to do this. Again though, what if it is a relatively unknown, never before criminally seen person? Cameras are useless in that case.
Re:Face Recognition Software
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· Score: 2, Insightful
Does anyone have any objection to facial recognition systems at customs? And a database of people who should either be checked out carefully, bounced, or arrested on the spot? Didn't think so I spoke of just such things to my coworkers last night. I worried that people would be jumping on the bandwagon for things like Facial Recognition Cameras at airports. This is not the answer. Who is to say that these people who committed this terrible act have ever been arrested for anything in this nation before, or whatever would have put them on the list of "people who should be checked out carefully"? And who is going to write this software? Will it unfairly discriminate against people with Arabic genetics? I worry enough about those with Arab families recieving an unwanted backlash.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not condoning yesterday's attack any more than the next guy. I was horrified when my roomate's dad called at 730am (when NO ONE ever calls my house) and told me to turn on the news and wake his son up. I went through most of yesterday in shock. And all the news continues to shock me.
But, my point is, let us not let this tragedy spur us into action that would take away the freedoms that make the United States what it is. The posts someone has posted about the Canadian giving American its due (sorry too lazy to link) sum up some of my feelings. But I'll bet most anyone here that legislation goes through pushing things like Carnivore and Facial Recognition Software in public places that will do more harm than good.
Slashdot Mirror
Chess Players may be paranoid, but no board gamers are as paranoid as those who play Diplomacy. In a game based on trusting your neighbors, paranoia runs rampant.
For those who don't know Diplomacy, its a Risk like war simulation, but no dice are involved, and its Pre WWI Europe. You have to have your allies help you gain numerical superiority with supporting orders in order to defeat your enemy's. Of course in order for them to support, they must be close enough to be able to support your enemy too. Check out http://www.diplom.org for more info on the game.
Just for reference here people, the last time the United States officially declared war was on December 8th, 1941.
Korea was a "UN Police Action", same with Vietnam. Desert Storm too. Afghanistan is similar. Check the history books.
Elxmon
I faced this problem myself just a year ago, my 2nd year as a CS major. I realized that I loved the classes, but hated to do the actual programming. With the encouragement of a friend who was in the same boat, we both decided to change our majors and keep the CS skills as a Minor. I've been a much happier college student ever since. Yeah it pushed back my graduation by one year, but with this economy, why go looking for a job just yet?
BTW - I switched to Communications, and my friend switched to Business.
Hope that helps you out man, good luck
The Conrey
This week, Sen. Judd Gregg (R-New Hampshire) called for restrictions on privacy-protecting encryption products, and Carnivore's use appears on the rise.
This is precisely what I was worried about when talking with my friends the other day. Already an anti-encryption rider has passed through Congress with the $40 billion worth of aid. Once we start to let the government take one small thing away from us in the realm of privacy, we are more likely to allow more.
There is much talk of installing facial recognition software (which many people have pointed out has many flaws resulting in false matches) at airport concourses, customs and gates. Even furthur, there are those who are planning to install such things at sporting events like the Olympics much like they did at the Super Bowl last year.
What really concerns me is that most people seem to be accepthing this without question. Again I ask, who will be using this data? For what ends? With what warrants? How will they know what to check?
Write your congressional representatives and ask these questions. If they can't answer them well enough then this should not be allowed.
Any loss of freedom is a loss for all freedom.
Chris
As an American, I don't like the idea that there are people (I just saw a report on ESPN about safety at sporting events) who are already planning to install cameras and a system similar to what was used at the Super Bowl last year.
Who is to say what use this database will go to? Will wearing anti-George W. T-shirts put me in the database? If we start to let these camera's be put up in airports, what is to stop them from being put on street corners?
As to my worries of discrimination, within an hour of the news breaking there were already claims that this was a Palestinian or Arab group. Much in the same fashion as occured after the Oklahoma City Bombing. And we all know that it was no Arabs, just two white boys who pulled off that bombing. I would not be surprised to see a further emphasis on Arab people in such a database since stereotypically they are the ones doing most of these kinds of attacks.
I know that border security is lax in many places along the US/Canada border, but I doubt this will stay true for very much longer. Facial recognition can be fooled as well though. If anyone caught the TLC special with John Cleese they showed some ways to do this. Again though, what if it is a relatively unknown, never before criminally seen person? Cameras are useless in that case.
Does anyone have any objection to facial recognition systems at customs? And a database of people who should either be checked out carefully, bounced, or arrested on the spot? Didn't think so
I spoke of just such things to my coworkers last night. I worried that people would be jumping on the bandwagon for things like Facial Recognition Cameras at airports. This is not the answer. Who is to say that these people who committed this terrible act have ever been arrested for anything in this nation before, or whatever would have put them on the list of "people who should be checked out carefully"? And who is going to write this software? Will it unfairly discriminate against people with Arabic genetics? I worry enough about those with Arab families recieving an unwanted backlash.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not condoning yesterday's attack any more than the next guy. I was horrified when my roomate's dad called at 730am (when NO ONE ever calls my house) and told me to turn on the news and wake his son up. I went through most of yesterday in shock. And all the news continues to shock me.
But, my point is, let us not let this tragedy spur us into action that would take away the freedoms that make the United States what it is. The posts someone has posted about the Canadian giving American its due (sorry too lazy to link) sum up some of my feelings. But I'll bet most anyone here that legislation goes through pushing things like Carnivore and Facial Recognition Software in public places that will do more harm than good.