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User: peter303

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  1. Eddy used older meaning of science on A Wikipedia-Style Tree of Life Emerges · · Score: 1

    The older meaning is a "comprehensive system of practice" often related to healing. The modern meaning of the scientific method was coined around 1840, but not widely adopted for a couple more decades. In the 1850s Darwin called his profession natural philosophy, not science. The scientific method itself was described by Bacon in the early 1600s, but generally called natural philosophy then. Many 17th, 18th, 19th century scientific journals will contain the word philosophy in the title.

  2. BP paid about 40% market cap for 2010 spill on Volkswagen Could Face $18 Billion Fine Over Emission-Cheating Software · · Score: 1

    $42B in costs and fines of all types so far. Their market cap is $94B today. A number of these fines and remediation funds are installment over 5 years. BP sold significant chunks of their company to pay these costs.

  3. "Drone failure will never happen to me" on UK Man Gets Britain's First-Ever Conviction For Illegal Drone Use · · Score: 1

    People may have exaggerated confidence in their pilot ability or luck. Thats when they push the envelop. Most arent intentionally trying to hurt property or people. We wont see change until their are some significant, publicized punishments.

  4. Some data embargoed until Nov 2015 Science issue on Inside the Pluto Public Relations Machine · · Score: 1

    According to Fran Bagenal talk at Denver Astronomical Society. She could not present much new data in her talk. http://www.denverastro.org/das...

  5. Thank you Google Facebook Microsoft on Can High-Tech Academia Survive Silicon Valley's Talent Binge? · · Score: 1

    For supporting first class industrial research. Older scientists remember when Bell Labs, IBM, Xerox, Exxon etc did world class R&D. They still do, but on a much reduced scale after the financial restructurings of the 1990s. The new guys with huge piles of cash have stepped in to do some of this.

  6. Huge surplus of qualified PhDs on Can High-Tech Academia Survive Silicon Valley's Talent Binge? · · Score: 1

    Its not uncommon for over a hundred qualified PhDs to apply for a tenure track professorship at even mid level state universities, much less the Stanfords and CMUs. By staying on for PhD the person has already expressed a commitment to the academic side, forgoing up to a million dollars in salary during a 5-8 year PHD period.

  7. classic office used to be "frisky" on Chinese Tech Companies Hire 'Cheerleaders' To Motivate Programmers · · Score: 1

    In the recent hisotry of the modern office called Cubed there was a section on post-WWII where intra-office affairs were common. Men looking variety from their families. Women looking for husbands. I think the women lib types in the 70s dampened this.
    http://www.amazon.com/Cubed-A-...

  8. Re:I knew I shoulda learned to speak Mandarin... on Chinese Tech Companies Hire 'Cheerleaders' To Motivate Programmers · · Score: 1

    Probably only during mandatory breaks. They wouldnt be in the terminal rooms.

    When I lived in China we had mandatory exercise breaks in the AM and PM. They played the same goofy semi-military exercise music for decades. Some people would do their jumping jacks. And others take a smoke.

  9. new speciies = new dig or PhD thesis on Researchers Say S. African Bones Are From Previously Unknown Human Relative · · Score: 1

    The number of new species seems proportional to amount work done. We had a similar corundum in geological plate tectonics a couple decades ago. Nearly every new PhD thesis was discovering a new plate tectonic micro-plate. Finaly did what the planet astronomers did and divide them into significant ones and minor ones.

  10. build-your-own stuff liability lawsuits on Ask Slashdot: Cheapest Functional Computer For Students? · · Score: 1

    Get electrocuted or stabbed by screw driver and a late-night TV lawyer would be on the teachers or school system's ass immediately. This would be a far more expensive solution than anything pre-assembled new or used. Have you seen how politically correct and litigous public schools are?

  11. Los Angeles free iPad scandal on Ask Slashdot: Cheapest Functional Computer For Students? · · Score: 1

    Vendor mark up and kickbacks was $1857 per IPad. Furthermore there was a high damage rate because kids didnt treat free stuff well. http://www.npr.org/sections/ed...

  12. "just around the corner" like controlled fusion on Cryptographers Brace For Quantum Revolution · · Score: 1

    i'll be waiting.

  13. Universal builds near Disneyland on Huge Ritual Arena Discovered Near Stonehenge · · Score: 1

    Perhaps not so different with megalithic temples too.

  14. Fatal hippo bite hypothesis on Huge Ritual Arena Discovered Near Stonehenge · · Score: 1

    Currently hippos are the most deadly animal in tropical Africa. And they lived in the Nile until recently. I heard this at a talk at the Denver Egyptian Study Society from a medical pathologist.

  15. badgered when new Jobs movie comes out on Steve Wozniak "Steve Jobs Played No Role In My Designs For the Apple I & II" · · Score: 1

    They all ask him about the old days. This week there are TWO new Jobs movies- a documentary in general release and a biopic previewing at Telluride.

  16. I like the realistic picture - merely a point on Caltech Astronomers Discover Oldest Galaxy Yet Known · · Score: 1

    The more general press releases show a galaxy with lots of resolved stars. Imknow that cant be true.

  17. Only a few uptight Indians are concerned on Concern Over India PM's Silicon Valley Visit · · Score: 1

    Most Americans aren aware and dont care. Some who do know may think the global cooperation, the better. My company is run by an Indian and thats fine with me if he gets the job done.

  18. $16000 Truvada or $200 condoms? on In New Study, HIV Prevention Pill Truvada Is 100% Effective · · Score: 1

    This is one of those $10 billion drugs, if given to the half million very active gay men as suggested. A similar result is achieved with less convenient condoms. Someone- insurance subscribers or medicaid- pays for that. There is concern the system cant support that many ten-figure drugs.

  19. after 45 years of coding I still get into the zone on Why Do So Many Tech Workers Dislike Their Jobs? · · Score: 1

    (39 of them for pay) The zone is when you lose yourself in your project and the activity becomes effortless. I wouldnt say this happens all six hours of a work day (excluding meetings and such). But hopefully a couple hours a day at least. I get in to zone during long exercise, playing music, writing compositions too. The interesting thing about computers is there is always something new every year..

  20. man ML algorithms are black box on Machine Learning Could Solve Economists' Math Problem · · Score: 1

    That is they appear to work without giving you a deep understanding of they work. I am talking about neural networks and their most recent incarnation in deep learning. I would consider this approach to be engineering rather than science.

  21. unname Colorado Indian fighter mountains on "McKinley" Since 1917, Alaska's Highest Peak Is Redesignated "Denali" · · Score: 1

    There is a campaign to rename Mt Evans and Mt Kit Carson in Colroado because the namesakes fought in anti-Indian wars. I dont think its worth the effort.

  22. My first grade school computer program in 1970 on John Conway: All Play and No Work For a Genius · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Coincidentally my school got a Dartmouth BASIC teletype terminal to a nearby college computer within months of The LIFE article in Scientific American. So that became my first computer project. The display was an printed array of asterisks or blanks. At 110 baud or ten characters a second I recall the display was slower than the kilo-op computer. Five years later that was our term project in the MIT Digital Computer Lab. My partner built the rule engine out of TTL gates. I built the display from timed dots on an oscilloscope. Pixel graphics were still five years in the future. TTL was so fast even then that we had slow down the system to see the output. The lab only had a limited number of $100 one-kilobyte RAM, so we had to share them among projects.

  23. PBS show of cellphone cancer recently on French Woman Gets €800/month For Electromagnetic-Field 'Disability' · · Score: -1

    A third party documentary title Mobilize suggested cellphone radiation may be cause head and cheast cancers. ANd that telecom lobby was quashing research into this.

  24. chronic condition on backcountry trails on More Cities Use DNA To Catch Dog Owners Who Don't Pick Up Waste · · Score: 1

    Trailside poo bags are a chronic condition on backcountry hikes. I read peole dont want to carry the stink for hours. Once in a a while a park ranger writes litter tickets for people caught leaving bags, but not often enough.

  25. 2nd tier topic on The Case For Teaching Ignorance · · Score: 1

    Introduction to a subject you want to present the basic known facts. When you revisit the topic in a future course then you can rework the pedogogy to explain the history of the ideas, the personalites, and the unknownns. maybe only a grad student would have time to revisit a topic.