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User: Descartes

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  1. Re:Open Source Hardware on Microfluidic Chips Made With Shrinky Dinks · · Score: 1

    That's perfect. If an area was cut off in a natural disaster and there was no way to get blood type testers in, they could make one in a few hours. That's enough time to save someone's life.

  2. Re:999 euros?! on German Court Rules iPhone Locking Legal · · Score: 1

    Well, I don't know much about SOX. I've been lucky enough to work for privately held companies for the last few years.

    That said, I think you're right in your definition of "entire product". Considering that other hardware manufacturers aren't held to this standard regarding firmware updates, I doubt that the fancy bookkeeping is actually because of SOX.

    The other theory I had when they announced the revenue model was that they were counting OTA iTunes purchases as part of the iPhone revenue. I wonder if all of this is really just a way of justifying the cost to the stockholders. Clearly the iPhone was/is sold by Apple at a loss, so they need to come up with some way to offset that.

    It might be an "all of the above" situation. A little revenue from AT&T, a little from iTunes, maybe a kickback from Starbucks.

  3. Re:999 euros?! on German Court Rules iPhone Locking Legal · · Score: 2, Informative

    It doesn't really surprise me.

    If you read some of Apple's statments when they released the iPhone they mention that they're figuring the revenue differently. They said that the revenue from iPhones would be spread out over the term of the service contract. My impression was that AT&T was actually paying Apple a share of the monthly service charges.

    It does seem a little pricey anyway. Maybe T-Mobile was trying to discourage people from going for the unlocked phones.

  4. Open Source Hardware on Microfluidic Chips Made With Shrinky Dinks · · Score: 1

    This kind of process seems perfectly suited to some kind of open source hardware design.

    I wish I knew more about microfluidics. Does anyone know of some good examples of what microfluidic chips could be used for? I know they use them to save valuable reagents, or to create a more controlled environment for experiements, but how about some day to day applications?

    I recall hearing a story on the radio recently about using microfluidic chips for detecting tuberculosis in the field. Essentially the chips could detect TB in a few minutes rather than the usual multiple day lab culture.

    If something like that could be implemented using this process, I think it could be pretty revolutionary. Doctors could print out a shrinkydink TB detector mold and make detectors in response to an outbreak. That's got to be quicker and cheaper than having someone else make them.

  5. Quick question. on Was the 2004 Election Stolen? · · Score: 1

    Did you read this article? I know it was a bit long and it's so much easier to keep talking rather than listen, but seriously you haven't responded to anything that JFK jr. is talking about.

    The stuff with Diebold is a minor note in a long list of much worse and more obvious tactics. Try reading it. If you still think it's not true, check the sources and refute it based on that. Frankly, I never suspected this election until I read this article but there are just too many examples in the article for me to be as sure as I was.

    The most damning evidence, in my opinion, was the discrepency between exit polls and the results of the election, which almost always were swayed toward Bush. There's also the fact that not enough voting machines were allocated in areas with large black populations.

  6. Re:random numbers, yay on Unpredictability in Future Microprocessors · · Score: 1

    I have to disagree. I was right.

  7. Re:Send it _as_ a book on Low Tech Gutenberg? · · Score: 1

    That's a pretty clever idea, but I think it would be more usefull for hiding it while she's there. Admittedly I've never shipped anything to Mozambique, but I assume it is possible to ship valuables some of the time if not most of the time. Really, it's hiding the PDA while it's not in use that will be the big challenge, but who would think to check a random boring looking hardcover book on the shelf?

  8. Re:Digital media on Low Tech Gutenberg? · · Score: 1

    Well, first of all whoever modded this Troll is a complete moron. Metamods: fix it.

    I don't know why a cheap PDA is not a viable option. Seriously, you could get some really old Palm PDA's so cheaply that it wouldn't matter if it got stolen. Just load one up with a few books (txt's don't take very much space) and mail it to her. If it doesn't get there, or somebody swipes it, send her another one.

  9. Re:One problem... on The Evolution of Space Suit Design · · Score: 1

    Here, here. I'm sick of hearing people use the word "gay" to mean "stupid".

    On topic. If these suits are skin tight it seems like you could wear whatever you want over them. I'd like to see an astronaut wearing a three piece suit over their space suite.

  10. Re:Mortgage! on IT Salaries to Grow 0.5% in 2005 · · Score: 1

    Crap, OT. I meant to add that the only problem is that salaries aren't going up faster than inflation :(

  11. Mortgage! on IT Salaries to Grow 0.5% in 2005 · · Score: 1

    Although I respect you wanting to buy a house in 10 years, you could probably buy a house right now without changing your yearly savings rate. Find an online mortgage calculator and do the math, $130k sounds cheap to a city dweller like me.

    It depends on what you're paying in rent but I'll bet you can pull it off and if you've got some downpayment you could probably get a rate that isn't much above inflation.

    Even if you decide to move in a few years, if you are carefully about the place you choose to buy you could probably turn a profit on selling it.

  12. Re:a simple one - GO on Robot Makers Say World Cup Will Be Theirs By 2050 · · Score: 1

    Have you ever played go against a comuter? Pretty easy. I tried it a few times when I was first learning and I figured out how to be the computer on the hardest difficulty after about 3 hours.

    Here's the secret, make moves that don't make any sense in the short run but fit in with a larger strategy. The AI can't really predict beyond a few moves so it starts playing really stupidly.

    Go is hard for computers because there are so many possible moves. A human can understand the abstract nuance of the game in a way a computer never will. So I'd be way more impressed if by 2050 computers were beating go masters than if they won the world cup.

  13. Re:Sleep Apnea (OSA) on Sleep Less, Eat More? · · Score: 1

    Ok, I really don't want to sound like a jerk, because I've known people who had severe sleep apnea and it does suck.

    That said, come on man. You can't just blame all of your problems on this disorder. Ok maybe it's easier to make quick fix foods etc when your tired, but are you telling me that you literally do not have the energy to eat a salad? I don't have a sleep disorder and I still eat junk and don't exercise, how is that possible? Because I'm a fat lazy bastard, that's how.

    I'm glad that I don't have sleep apnea or that I'm not diagnosed anyway. I'd rather not have such an easy excuse.

    Sorry if that's a little harsh, but sometimes you just gotta eat a damn salad and work out for a while, no matter how you feel.

  14. Re:WTF? on Penny Arcade Holiday Strip Series #4 · · Score: 1

    cthulu always has uber-comic nerd cred.

    Yeah, I mean, I understand the joke. I just think it's stupid. It reminds me of this dude I used to work with who would just spout random nerdy inside jokes when he wanted to be funny. It's like those irritating people who post about overlords, communist russia, or women covered in grits.

    Oh well. At least they've rectified it with a stip about monkey blood and spiderman.

  15. Re:Dent-and-scratch on Time Sharing Cars · · Score: 1

    Why, exactly, do dings and scratches matter?

    Agreed, that's one of the joys of my car. 1974 VW beetle, paid $650 and I've only put $7 into maintenance (previous owner thought he didn't need an air preheat hose). I love the looks people give me at the grocery store when I just slam my cart into the side of the car to keep the cart from rolling away.

    On topic, before I found the beetle I was actually thinking about trying the flexcar. There was one parked in the lot my old apartment building shared with a grocery store, so I saw it every day. I just couldn't justify the cost when I found my car. Seriously, crappy cars are pretty cheap and ususally don't cost that much to insure.

    These services relly only make financial sense to me if I only needed a vehicle like twice a month in which case I'd probably just take a taxi.

  16. WTF? on Penny Arcade Holiday Strip Series #4 · · Score: 1

    I hate to be rude, but am I the only loyal PA reader that doesn't like this series? I mean, yeah it's weird and christmas themed, but I expect a little more humor and games related content in their strip.

  17. Re:obligatory on Larry Sanger on Wikipedia and World · · Score: 1

    Go for it.

  18. Re:In other news... on New Treatment Helps Cure Spinal Injuries · · Score: 1

    Who the hell modded this up? Not only off topic, but as my hidden anonymous friend mentioned it was on the front page of /. on Dec 1.

    Now, to save myself from offtopic: I'd be interested to see if this treatment could be used to repair long damaged spines. As I understand it PEG is basically glue in this situation, maybe you could cut out the dead part of the cord, sand the edges a little a squirt some of this stuff in.

  19. Extra wide frame on 3D Display Hardware/Software Solution? · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I agree that you should use 3 video cards in one machine, but I think you should make all three videos into one extra wide frame.

    So if it's 640x480 per frame, but squish them all together in a 640x1440 mpeg and let the output display across the three devices. That stops you from having complex software to synch three seperate players.

  20. Re:A bit more in an existing debate: on First Americans May Have Been Australian · · Score: 1

    haha.. yeah. that's what SCIENCE IS ALL ABOUT, but that is often quite far from what happens in the real world.

    So, you're a scientist?

    I was joking about Creation "Science". My point isn't that science is a sham. I was suggesting that real science follows the scientific method. The first step of that isn't "make a theory out of thin air" it starts with gathering information.

    I think I saw the same show about the Egyptians on the discovery channel and as I recall they didn't make up a theory out of thin air. I thought that the hypothesis was based on finding Cocaine in mummies. From a hypothesis like that you can do experiments to find out if the Egyptians could've made their way to America with the technology they had.

    I'm not trying to say that it did happen, but I think it's silly to assume the whole thing was based on nothing.

  21. Re:A big stick and a dead horse on Star Wars TV Show, And An Unmade Trilogy · · Score: 1

    Yeah, you caught me being pretensious. I haven't seen hidden fortress. But my point was just that you can make any story seem Sci-Fi just by adding some droids and ray guns.

  22. Re:A big stick and a dead horse on Star Wars TV Show, And An Unmade Trilogy · · Score: 1, Insightful

    I'm not sure this really helps but I've seen Star Wars classified as a "Space Opera". It really isn't Sci-i, but others have proved that point quite well.
    A New Hope was based on an old samurai movie called "The Hidden Fortress" which I think is pretty good proof that setting it in space was not integral to the story.

    Star Trek is Sci-fi. It's in the future, it features technology that might one day exist and draws a direct line to present day science. Aliens and rayguns are important parts of the story.

    Calling Fantasy a subgenre of Sci-fi is absurd. There is nothing scientific about LOTR or, I daresay, your unpublished novel. That's the whole point of the term, there is fictional science that enables the incredible things to happen in these stories.

  23. Re:A bit more in an existing debate: on First Americans May Have Been Australian · · Score: 2, Insightful

    This leads to a lot of questioning of motives of the scientists in doing the research

    ?!?!?!

    How about "they're scientists".

    No don't study that Dr it might be politically contentious.

    Seriously, scientists found evidence and are investigating, because that's their job. Science doesn't start with a conclusion and work backwards (except "creation science"). You gather evidence and try to draw conclusions, and they are often unpopular.

  24. Re:Xeon-Nocona no faster on 64-bit code? on Intel Begins Shipping 64-bit Prescotts · · Score: 1

    That doesn't seem right to me.

    There aren't any 64bit Prestonias, that's the point of the article.

    This is much more interesting than Noconas and Prescotts having EM64T technology, as it shows that the technology is being retrofitted into older currently shipping CPUs (or perhaps retro-fitted is not accurate, perhaps it has always been there?).

    Gimme a break. You're saying either the 64bit stuff has been masked out of Prestonias for 2 years or they just added it. It's not like you can just flip a switch to add new instructions to a processor, they would've had to redesign the prestonia core. Why do that when there was a new core that already had all of it?

  25. Re:The cheapest item on the BOM would be ... on Build Your Own Electric Etch-A-Sketch · · Score: 1

    technologia gratia artis
    Technology for the sake of art huh? What like a printer?

    I think you mean 'technologia gratia technologiae' technology for technology's sake.

    Off topic! Ha, I wrote this on an etch-a-sketch!