Sick Building Syndrome comes mainly from magnetic ballasts. Electric ballasts are far better.
Even with magnetics, I would dispute that SBS comes mainly from ballasts. Heavily-insulated walls and windows are the main culprit, and houseplants are the best solution.
And never before in U.S. history have people needed to go to the emergency room. How did our parents and grandparents manage in such a hostile and brutal world?
Because those 30 million people were never going to need healthcare, anyway. They never go to the emergency room and then declare bankruptcy when they can't pay.
The fact that they rehired her later is no surprise. Back then, it was clear to everyone that SYS-CON had no clue why O'Gara's behavior was massively unethical, and only fired her because they got a lot of complaints (plus a claimed DoS, though their web sites never seemed to be down at any time). The editorial staff of the Linux branch of SYS-CON already didn't like her, and they all left over the issue.
Not to mention the opportunity cost. The more time knowledgeable people have to spend debunking obvious garbage, the less time they have to develop better autism treatments.
This, please. Mod this to the sky. These maps no doubt have historical value and if they need to be handled carefully, then give it to people who are trained to do it.
I've worked on payment processing for web sites in Korea before. The translations of error messages we get from the system, then passed through Google translate, are exactly as good as the translations we get back from a human translator. That is, not useful at all.
There are ways to make gasoline without oil. At some point in the curves between gas prices and usage efficiency, it will become economical to use those methods in addition or in place of oil. In other words, the traditional ICE can be made into a renewable energy source, depending on how things work out.
Yes, there are problems with this approach. There are also problems with fuel cells, solar, wind, nuclear, or any other method you can think of. It is wise to invest in multiple methods and see what works out. The ultimate solution will likely be some combination of the above.
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, in In re Aimster, also discussed (hypothetically) the propriety of space shifting:
Someone might own a popular-music CD that he was particularly fond of, but he had not downloaded it into his computer and now he finds himself out of town but with this laptop and he wants to listen to the CD, so he uses Aimster’s service to download a copy. This might be a fair use rather than a copyright infringement, by analogy to the time shifting approved as fair use in the Sony case. . . . The analogy was rejected in UMG Recordings v. MP3.com, Inc. . . . on the ground that the copy on the defendant's server was an unauthorized derivative work; a solider ground, in light of Sony’s rejection of the parallel argument with respect to time shifting, would have been that the defendant’s method for requiring that its customers "prove" that they owned the CDs containing the music they wanted to download was too lax.
(Emphisis mine)
It is not legal to torrent a CD (or game, or whatever) you own. You have to make the copy yourself. Which is why things like the DeCSS case are so problematic--they took away the only legal way for you to exercise certain fair rights.
It is, in fact, illegal to download an MP3 that was ripped from a CD you otherwise own. I know it doesn't make sense, but case law says you're only licensed for fair use of that specific copy.
The BSA also doesn't really care about home users that much. They prefer to go after offices. Faceless corporations against another faceless corporation doesn't get you nearly as much bad press as suing grandma.
You guys are assuming that because a crack was made available in less than 24hrs that this somehow means that Ubisoft isn't going to make much money on the game.
No, I think we just hope they get buried for their crummy DRM. They'll probably make a heap of cash, anyway.
I'm sure the devs expected it to be cracked, maybe even quickly - but they'll still make good money from these games. Users are lazy... many aren't willing to troll warez sites to find the crack
That argument works both ways; with really intrusive DRM systems, it's often easier to use a pirated version.
Ubisoft can always blame "those damn pirates" and claim the DRM development as a failed project tax write off.
Not only that, but also so their shareholders don't sue them for failing due diligence. I suspect that's the real reason for all the failed DRM systems.
That's why you hot-swap them. You treat them just like tapes. In fact, once you start doing that, you realize that RAID mirroring isn't helping you any (striping is another matter).
The best way to backup a big hard drive these days is with another big hard drive.
I'm surprised he's so forthright about it. The modern office environment of cubefarms is deliberately designed to induce at least a little stress, because stress tends to focus your efforts in a step-by-step manner.
This method actually makes sense for most office jobs and perhaps even the "codemonkey" developers who generally only work on one part of a larger design at any given time. It's absolutely counterproductive to those who need to make software designs, and I'd imagine even more so for game designs. Those are creative tasks where focus and stress is the enemy. When being creative, you need to see how each portion fits together in a larger system. Step-by-step focus is unhelpful.
When it comes to security, not necessarily. A good design of classes for the purposes of readability and maintainability does not necessarily mean it's easy to fix a security bug. These are often completing design choices.
The two biggest errors cited by TFA were cross-site scripting and SQL injection. Generally, XSS can be fixed if you had a decent design--just filter your inputs better. SQL injection even more so. In my experience, good languages have database libraries that make it easy to use placeholders in SQL statements (if you're using some idiot RDBMS that can't handle placeholders, the library can transparently handle placeholders for you in a secure way). If your design started off with a proper database abstraction layer, and you let an SQL injection attack slip through, it should be easy enough to fix.
However, the third one mentioned is cryptographic implementations. This is much, much harder to solve, and fixes will often result in breaking backwards compatibility. For instance, the RC4 algorithm is considered reasonably secure on its own, but it's also very fragile. If you later decide to use something else, moving your data away from it can have huge backwards compatibility issues; this was exactly the situation faced by WEP. It can still happen for other algorithms, even one's that are sturdier than RC4.
Making practically unbreakable algorithms was hard, but it's largely a solved problem. Using those algorithms in practice is much, much harder, and it's a problem that has to be re-solved with each new system.
A pair of studies was done, one of which directly measured causation (the first was correlational and had a self-reporting factor--not a strong argument).
Participants were divided into two groups, playing either Wolf3D or Myst. Those playing Wolf3D later punished an opponent (gave a noise blast) for a longer period of time than the Myst players.
. . . violent video games may have even stronger effects on children's aggression because (1) the games are highly engaging and interactive, (2) the games reward violent behavior, and because (3) children repeat these behaviors over and over as they play (Gentile & Anderson, 2003). Psychologists know that each of these help learning - active involvement improves learning, rewards increase learning, and repeating something over and over increases learning.
(Emphasis mine)
In other words, the factors that teach agression are also exactly the same factors being explored to make them useful as general educational tools. By having an incentive system and making it easy to restart, video games naturally push you learn while also supporting "overlearning" (related to the concept of muscle memory in martial arts or playing musical instruments). But you can't have one without the other.
Newton knew his model wasn't perfect. This wasn't chalked to measurement error, but to evidence of God messing with the system. Leibniz took exception to that, saying that the model was simply incomplete. Even Einstein's model isn't perfect, and we're still expecting improvements. At no point did people suspect the data.
Lacking a degree in the specialty, I can only fall back on the general consensus of research psychologists, whom are represented by the APA. Browsing their site, I could find little support for the idea that video game violence cause increased aggression and contribute to societal violence. This statement is tempered by the fact that they also don't support the Jack Thompson idea that media violence is the primary contribution to societal violence.
My purpose here is not to provide a complete scientific overview of the research--I'm as unqualified to do that as everyone else in this thread who doesn't have a Psychology degree, which I suspect is pretty close to everyone. What I can do is provide a link to the information I've found that contradicts the attitude normally displayed whenever this subject comes up.
That said, I still enjoy Half Life and Day of Defeat, and I was as happy as anyone to see Jack Thompson disbarred.
Actually, I had found this particular article some time ago, and I've usedit before. The fact that it came from the same author as the study in the OP was a coincidence. I'm going to continue using it until somebody can give me a through critique of it on scientific merits, rather than ad hominems or vague attacks on strawmen.
And your evidence of repeatable independent experiments showing this, or that this is the scientific consensus?
Go searching around the APA website for video games. I've looked myself, and it's why I've changed my opinion on the subject. It's hard to find any support there for the idea that video games violence doesn't cause increased aggression, even in adults.
Slashdot Mirror
Sick Building Syndrome comes mainly from magnetic ballasts. Electric ballasts are far better.
Even with magnetics, I would dispute that SBS comes mainly from ballasts. Heavily-insulated walls and windows are the main culprit, and houseplants are the best solution.
And never before in U.S. history have people needed to go to the emergency room. How did our parents and grandparents manage in such a hostile and brutal world?
Many of them didn't live. Average life expectancy has gone up about 15 years since 1940. Source: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr57/nvsr57_14.pdf.
If you want to live in a hostile and brutal world, run off to Montana. I rather like civilization.
Because those 30 million people were never going to need healthcare, anyway. They never go to the emergency room and then declare bankruptcy when they can't pay.
The fact that they rehired her later is no surprise. Back then, it was clear to everyone that SYS-CON had no clue why O'Gara's behavior was massively unethical, and only fired her because they got a lot of complaints (plus a claimed DoS, though their web sites never seemed to be down at any time). The editorial staff of the Linux branch of SYS-CON already didn't like her, and they all left over the issue.
Not to mention the opportunity cost. The more time knowledgeable people have to spend debunking obvious garbage, the less time they have to develop better autism treatments.
The Amish also don't drive cars. Maybe your mom driving a car while pregnant with you causes autism!
If somebody sues a drug company, then it's made a matter for the courts. That's just the way it works.
I personally find the abundant anecdotal evidence . . .
You could have put that in your first sentence and saved us the trouble of reading the rest.
This, please. Mod this to the sky. These maps no doubt have historical value and if they need to be handled carefully, then give it to people who are trained to do it.
Not quite what I meant by "broke it". The phrase just changed back and forth between two different translations before the script gave up.
That is fun. Your sig breaks it.
No, I'm quite sure they aren't.
I've worked on payment processing for web sites in Korea before. The translations of error messages we get from the system, then passed through Google translate, are exactly as good as the translations we get back from a human translator. That is, not useful at all.
There are ways to make gasoline without oil. At some point in the curves between gas prices and usage efficiency, it will become economical to use those methods in addition or in place of oil. In other words, the traditional ICE can be made into a renewable energy source, depending on how things work out.
Yes, there are problems with this approach. There are also problems with fuel cells, solar, wind, nuclear, or any other method you can think of. It is wise to invest in multiple methods and see what works out. The ultimate solution will likely be some combination of the above.
The Mp3.com case did handle this specific situation:
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, in In re Aimster, also discussed (hypothetically) the propriety of space shifting:
Someone might own a popular-music CD that he was particularly fond of, but he had not downloaded it into his computer and now he finds himself out of town but with this laptop and he wants to listen to the CD, so he uses Aimster’s service to download a copy. This might be a fair use rather than a copyright infringement, by analogy to the time shifting approved as fair use in the Sony case. . . . The analogy was rejected in UMG Recordings v. MP3.com, Inc. . . . on the ground that the copy on the defendant's server was an unauthorized derivative work; a solider ground, in light of Sony’s rejection of the parallel argument with respect to time shifting, would have been that the defendant’s method for requiring that its customers "prove" that they owned the CDs containing the music they wanted to download was too lax.
(Emphisis mine)
It is not legal to torrent a CD (or game, or whatever) you own. You have to make the copy yourself. Which is why things like the DeCSS case are so problematic--they took away the only legal way for you to exercise certain fair rights.
It is, in fact, illegal to download an MP3 that was ripped from a CD you otherwise own. I know it doesn't make sense, but case law says you're only licensed for fair use of that specific copy.
The BSA also doesn't really care about home users that much. They prefer to go after offices. Faceless corporations against another faceless corporation doesn't get you nearly as much bad press as suing grandma.
You guys are assuming that because a crack was made available in less than 24hrs that this somehow means that Ubisoft isn't going to make much money on the game.
No, I think we just hope they get buried for their crummy DRM. They'll probably make a heap of cash, anyway.
I'm sure the devs expected it to be cracked, maybe even quickly - but they'll still make good money from these games. Users are lazy ... many aren't willing to troll warez sites to find the crack
That argument works both ways; with really intrusive DRM systems, it's often easier to use a pirated version.
Ubisoft can always blame "those damn pirates" and claim the DRM development as a failed project tax write off.
Not only that, but also so their shareholders don't sue them for failing due diligence. I suspect that's the real reason for all the failed DRM systems.
That's why you hot-swap them. You treat them just like tapes. In fact, once you start doing that, you realize that RAID mirroring isn't helping you any (striping is another matter).
The best way to backup a big hard drive these days is with another big hard drive.
I'm surprised he's so forthright about it. The modern office environment of cubefarms is deliberately designed to induce at least a little stress, because stress tends to focus your efforts in a step-by-step manner.
This method actually makes sense for most office jobs and perhaps even the "codemonkey" developers who generally only work on one part of a larger design at any given time. It's absolutely counterproductive to those who need to make software designs, and I'd imagine even more so for game designs. Those are creative tasks where focus and stress is the enemy. When being creative, you need to see how each portion fits together in a larger system. Step-by-step focus is unhelpful.
Interesting reading on the subject: http://www.the-programmers-stone.com/about/
When it comes to security, not necessarily. A good design of classes for the purposes of readability and maintainability does not necessarily mean it's easy to fix a security bug. These are often completing design choices.
The two biggest errors cited by TFA were cross-site scripting and SQL injection. Generally, XSS can be fixed if you had a decent design--just filter your inputs better. SQL injection even more so. In my experience, good languages have database libraries that make it easy to use placeholders in SQL statements (if you're using some idiot RDBMS that can't handle placeholders, the library can transparently handle placeholders for you in a secure way). If your design started off with a proper database abstraction layer, and you let an SQL injection attack slip through, it should be easy enough to fix.
However, the third one mentioned is cryptographic implementations. This is much, much harder to solve, and fixes will often result in breaking backwards compatibility. For instance, the RC4 algorithm is considered reasonably secure on its own, but it's also very fragile. If you later decide to use something else, moving your data away from it can have huge backwards compatibility issues; this was exactly the situation faced by WEP. It can still happen for other algorithms, even one's that are sturdier than RC4.
Making practically unbreakable algorithms was hard, but it's largely a solved problem. Using those algorithms in practice is much, much harder, and it's a problem that has to be re-solved with each new system.
A pair of studies was done, one of which directly measured causation (the first was correlational and had a self-reporting factor--not a strong argument).
Non-press release version: http://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/features/psp-784772.pdf
Participants were divided into two groups, playing either Wolf3D or Myst. Those playing Wolf3D later punished an opponent (gave a noise blast) for a longer period of time than the Myst players.
Another thing to note is the factors considered in how this happens:
. . . violent video games may have even stronger effects on children's aggression because (1) the games are highly engaging and interactive, (2) the games reward violent behavior, and because (3) children repeat these behaviors over and over as they play (Gentile & Anderson, 2003). Psychologists know that each of these help learning - active involvement improves learning, rewards increase learning, and repeating something over and over increases learning.
(Emphasis mine)
In other words, the factors that teach agression are also exactly the same factors being explored to make them useful as general educational tools. By having an incentive system and making it easy to restart, video games naturally push you learn while also supporting "overlearning" (related to the concept of muscle memory in martial arts or playing musical instruments). But you can't have one without the other.
Newton knew his model wasn't perfect. This wasn't chalked to measurement error, but to evidence of God messing with the system. Leibniz took exception to that, saying that the model was simply incomplete. Even Einstein's model isn't perfect, and we're still expecting improvements. At no point did people suspect the data.
Lacking a degree in the specialty, I can only fall back on the general consensus of research psychologists, whom are represented by the APA. Browsing their site, I could find little support for the idea that video game violence cause increased aggression and contribute to societal violence. This statement is tempered by the fact that they also don't support the Jack Thompson idea that media violence is the primary contribution to societal violence.
My purpose here is not to provide a complete scientific overview of the research--I'm as unqualified to do that as everyone else in this thread who doesn't have a Psychology degree, which I suspect is pretty close to everyone. What I can do is provide a link to the information I've found that contradicts the attitude normally displayed whenever this subject comes up.
That said, I still enjoy Half Life and Day of Defeat, and I was as happy as anyone to see Jack Thompson disbarred.
Actually, I had found this particular article some time ago, and I've used it before. The fact that it came from the same author as the study in the OP was a coincidence. I'm going to continue using it until somebody can give me a through critique of it on scientific merits, rather than ad hominems or vague attacks on strawmen.
And your evidence of repeatable independent experiments showing this, or that this is the scientific consensus?
Go searching around the APA website for video games. I've looked myself, and it's why I've changed my opinion on the subject. It's hard to find any support there for the idea that video games violence doesn't cause increased aggression, even in adults.