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User: Antisyzygy

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  1. Re:The authors on SF Authors Predict Computing's Future · · Score: 1

    Yes, I am aware of the fact that From the Earth to the Moon was a humorous novel. I remember somewhere learning about someone from 150+ years ago that predicted we would eventually go to the moon, however couldn't find a reference so I picked the one that I could use. I somehow remember them being a scientist or monk or something. Obviously Verne didn't think about the forces a human body would undergo when being shot out of a cannon to the moon, or the fact that we can't breath up there (however perhaps as part of the humor he made it possible) but he at least realized one could go there. My main argument was that people can and do predict future events, though their understanding of the technology to do so may seem silly to us.

  2. Re:If everyone was happy on The Genetics of Happiness · · Score: 1
  3. Re:If everyone was happy on The Genetics of Happiness · · Score: 1

    Class warfare is already happening against the middle and poor class. The top 10% are mostly sheltered from this shitty economy the top 1% created out of greed, to make themselves richer. The top 10% are awash with hard workers, the top 1% are not. We are talking about people that have connections through Harvard or other institutions and already come from money, then make ridiculous salaries 500 times that of their hardest working employees. There are plenty of people in the lower 90% that could achieve a Harvard or other Ivy League degree, its just inaccessible for them unless they happen to suck the right cock for a scholarship.

  4. Re:Tesla?!? on Comet May Have Missed Earth By a Few hundred Kilometers · · Score: 1

    Wouldn't Fox news want to point this out about Obama? Presumably if I was a Faux news watcher and dipping into their kool-aid I would think this would be something I would have mentioned. The SS budget is 701 billion, the Medicare budget is 793 billion. That totals almost 1500 billion dollars, that is over twice the defense budget. 43 percent of the Federal budget is spent on SS/Medicare, 20 percent on defense. At any rate, the defense budget being cut is inevitable as part of the spending cuts. The Senior voting block will never let their SS benefits go away.

  5. Re:Story doesn't add up on Comet Nearly Hit Earth? Not So Fast · · Score: 1

    Then, what did this guy see? Is he a liar? I presume he saw something. It must be the Reptilian's or the Gray's space fleet.

  6. Re:Aren't we missing something? on Comet Nearly Hit Earth? Not So Fast · · Score: 1

    I presume the bad astronomer has some idea of how many observatories were around back then. However, I also find it unlikely that more than 1 or 2 people would have seen this comet.

  7. Re:sexting on Making Sensitive Data Location Aware · · Score: 1

    More like now they will find a "particular room" and just do it the old fashioned way.

  8. Re:Prevent "sexting"? on Making Sensitive Data Location Aware · · Score: 1

    Technically it takes until after you are 21 for your brain to fully develop. However, what constitutes an adult mind when human beings used to only live to their 30's tops, most dying before the age of 18.

  9. Re:Prevent "sexting"? on Making Sensitive Data Location Aware · · Score: 2

    1) Its a scientific fact that people were popping babies out as early as 12, 2000 years ago.

    2) Its a scientific fact that people are not totally monogamous

    3) Its a scientific fact that people have been "doing it" before marriage for over 50,000 years

    4) Its a scientific fact that people crave sex for reproduction of the human race

    5) Its a scientific fact that STD's can be minimized significantly with protection

    6) Its a scientific fact that during puberty, your hormones are encouraging sex more than as an adult

    7) Its a scientific fact that you cannot prove there is some guy in the sky telling us not to have sex

    Im not sure why "parents" get to have so many rights over what their children do at 16. Sure, they are there to protect them and provide for them, but why can they force them to make personal choices however the parent sees fit? When I was 14 I didn't need my parents around all the time, I made good decisions (i.e. didn't try drugs except a little pot but didn't use it again until college), made good grades, and I chose for myself to enter into advanced courses in school for the challenge. I was not encouraged to do so. I was routinely left at home to take care of my brother, and I was allowed to travel around town on my bike and do basically whatever I wanted. I could see rated R movies, my mom found my dirty magazines and left them on my bed (i.e. HAHA! Caught you, but you can keep them), and I played whatever video games I wanted. Pretty much the only rule was I had to be home by 10, and if I started missing school then I would perhaps be grounded if it wasn't for a good reason. When I lost my virginity I told my parents about it individually and they were OK with it, in spite of being Christians. They knew I was sort of in love with the girl, as much as a kid can be when they aren't used to feelings like that, and it was just what kids do when they start having feelings like that. Essentially, in spite of my childhood I am still a good person, I don't lie, cheat on my wife, or hurt people intentionally. 16 is more than old enough to either know better or to be able to learn from consequences. If you haven't taught your child this by now you are a fucking shitty parent, and locking your kids up with chastity belts and dog collars won't make them be well adjusted adults.

  10. Re:The authors on SF Authors Predict Computing's Future · · Score: 1

    There were examples of people being pretty accurate 150 years ago, i.e. From the Earth to the Moon. I suppose you are right for longer time periods. Hell, the 1950's "The Future is NOW!" was pretty ludicrous.

  11. Re:Real scifi isn't about predicting the future on SF Authors Predict Computing's Future · · Score: 2

    The shortsightedness of people like you is astounding. You assume basically no technological innovations will occur making at least near-Earth space economically feasible. Its already theoretically possible to make a space elevator with materials on Earth, thus drastically decreasing the cost of getting into orbit. Futhermore, there will be advances in propulsion, advances in robotics, nanotechnology etc. all making it possible to construct things remotely from a small package. All of this technology already has uses on Earth, and are being actively sought after for medicine, military, and manufacturing. Humans colonizing space is an inevitability assuming we don't go extinct first. It will start with orbital manufacturing facilities used to help mine asteroids or to maintain ships and construct them for getting He3 from the Moon as well as the occasional probe sent out for space missions that will build its own infrastructure on the planet/moon it lands on so as to prolong missions. We will probably have space elevators for transporting goods to/from orbit, so even though the materials mined from asteroids may be heavy and hard to get here, the elevators make it feasible. Im not saying this won't be mostly a robotic presence in space, but humans will still need to travel out there to set shit up or fix failures a machine can't, or they will just want to go. Its possible at that point humans will be part or mostly machine. Maybe in 1000 years what I say will come true, but it will happen. Within 2000 years I have no doubt there will be scientific expeditions to various outer planets/moons with people living there in shifts. Its not hard to imagine that after a few millenia the first interstellar trip takes place, after all there are already theories for how one could travel FTL, or we could just prolong our lives so it doesn't matter anymore. Once again, my statements are predicated on the fact that human beings don't go extinct first. More likely than not, we will eventually, but lets hope we have 2000 years left. It would drastically increase our odds of not going extinct in the first place.

  12. Re:Extinction level? on Comet May Have Missed Earth By a Few hundred Kilometers · · Score: 1

    Not only that, but comets are travelling very, very fast. Water won't slow it down to the point it wont make massive craters in the ocean, causing tidal waves, flooding, disrupting sea life and shooting debris, water vapor and probably O2 H2 from splitting some of the water molecules into the air. It would probably wipe of a lot of coastal cities, and kill off a bunch of ocean species we use for food. The debris and water vapor would block out the sun partially and cause crop failures. There would be massive starvation for anyone left alive. Some people might make it, but the problem is we would be killing animals left and right to eat, possibly dooming us permanently. People wouldn't even think twice about killing an animal to feed themselves, even though everyone doing so may doom the human race. I wouldn't be surprised if only a few thousand to a few tens of thousands of people were left afterwards if any at all. Those that are left would be mostly iron age technology with perhaps some people using rapidly decaying technology at that point.

  13. Re:Extinction level? on Comet May Have Missed Earth By a Few hundred Kilometers · · Score: 1

    There would be massive starvation and since there are so many humans we would probably kill everything else off to the point we would exaggerate our own starvation problem. Think about it, who is going to NOT go around killing animals to eat. There aren't enough of them to feed us all long term. If this happens, your best bet for survival of the human species is to start selling Soylent Green, then shift to animals after the population is at ice age levels.

  14. Re:Typical Slashdot comments pattern to follow... on Comet May Have Missed Earth By a Few hundred Kilometers · · Score: 1

    I got one for you. There are magical leprechauns living on the other side of the moon in invisible pumpkin houses. You think that's an extraordinary claim? Quit being overly subjective.

  15. Re:Tesla?!? on Comet May Have Missed Earth By a Few hundred Kilometers · · Score: 1

    Just think of how many killer robots and smart bombs we could build if we just cut the SS / Medicare budget in half and re-appropriated it to the Defense budget. It would double the defense budget!

  16. Re:Tesla?!? on Comet May Have Missed Earth By a Few hundred Kilometers · · Score: 1

    They are already cutting the defense budget by half and the social security / medicare budget is already twice that of the defense budget. I'm all for some sort of safety net and taking care of old folks but holy shit thats a lot of money.

  17. Re:What's the alternative? on Occupy Wall Street Protests Go Global · · Score: 1

    I grow really tired of this argument. Just because communism hasn't worked long term doesn't mean they can't. Furthermore, all communist revolutions were used as a way for some other asshole to get even more power. Switzerland has a good system that would work for democratic elections and government if adapted to communism.

  18. Re:Excellent article on what's wrong on Occupy Wall Street Protests Go Global · · Score: 1

    Doesn't really work when politicians are inaccessible, say one thing do another, can reform voting districts to their benefit, and many have been trying to rig electronic voting systems. Pretty much the only thing left to do is to protest. If it yields nothing, I think violence isn't far off regardless of if its right or not.

  19. Re:Quick Hitsory Lesson on Occupy Wall Street Protests Go Global · · Score: 1

    Dont forget personal hygiene habits. Dousing oneself with perfume is hardly "taking a bath".

  20. Re:And it will come to nothing. on Occupy Wall Street Protests Go Global · · Score: 1

    They didn't pay into it what it will cost to support them for their lives, and they didn't even bother to ensure that social security wasn't dipped into by the politicians they elected into office. Frankly, they don't deserve shit. If they thought it was so important that social security be there when they were retired, they should have thought about that before they let it get flushed down the toilet courtesy of their short-sighted minds.

  21. Re:Assange condemns greed? on Occupy Wall Street Protests Go Global · · Score: 1

    Which is why the seniors and baby boomers need to stop being such selfish, self-entitled assholes and perhaps recognize their faults in what is occurring today rather than make up false dogma about how "lazy" or "disrespectful" the younger generation is. We are the same as them, just at a different time. We will work hard if given the opportunities that they had, but every time you talk about how hard it is to get a job they just simply smirk and tell you how lazy you are, or "if you're so smart, make up a job for yourself", meanwhile completely missing whats actually happening in the world. Their grandparents felt the same way about them as they do us, think about it. There were Greasers, Beatniks, Hippies, ad infinitum. Every one of them were looked down on by the elder generations, yet they inherited positions of power and are now sitting in their ivory towers having the fucking nerve to say we are lazy, or disrespectful, or self-entitled, or stupid. I can't say this about everyone since many are having hard times like everyone else, however the bullshit seems to flow from those baby-boomers and seniors that acquired some wealth in their lives and are pretty much set until they enter the grave. I'm sure they worked hard, but they didn't have to work as hard as we do to get where they are and they didn't even have to try as hard to get a basic job. There is a famous quote attributed to Socrates that pretty much illustrates the Seniors/Baby-boomers repeating an age old cycle of self-centered and close minded beliefs based on basically forgetting they used to be exactly like the ones they bitch about.

    "The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize their teachers."

    Attributed to Socrates by Plato.

  22. Re:The Boomers have always been fucking up. on Occupy Wall Street Protests Go Global · · Score: 0

    I agree with this totally. I really hate it when I hear a Baby-boomer say "I paid into social security! I want my benefits otherwise give me my money back!". Why the hell didn't they make sure the system was capable of supporting them if they thought it to be so damned important? They simply didn't do anything about it, and acted like selfish assholes just pawning off all the problems on us. To top it off, you have the Randian asshole baby-boomers looking through rose-colored glasses at us younger folks and actually having the fucking nerve to tell us that we are "just lazy if we can't get a job" or "if we are so smart, just make a job up for yourself". These people got into their cushy jobs when the economy was prosperous, they had it easier than we do, yet they look down on us. My father could have got the equivalent of a 70k in today's dollars right out of high school. Now, you are lucky to get a 36k job with a BS in a hard science. Fuck them and their self-entitled undeserved status.

  23. Re:Assange condemns greed? on Occupy Wall Street Protests Go Global · · Score: 1

    Well, people being responsible for their own actions led to my parents house losing 1/3 of its value, even though they can afford the loans and have decent income from 3 jobs each including their small business, and they are responsible people. It also led me to being unable to find a job that will pay a decent wage after student loans in spite of a MS in Applied Math, computer science focus, and a 3.75 GPA. Ive had professors tell me how much they want me to join their PhD program and work with them in their computational math labs, but they only will pay 1500 a month MAX. Whoever these people are deserve a foot in their asses.

  24. Re:Assange condemns greed? on Occupy Wall Street Protests Go Global · · Score: 1

    Same problem in the US actually. Many graduates such as myself can't pay off our student loans since the jobs simply pay too little or you can't find one. I finally found a job, but its basically subsistence living after debt bills in a 1 bedroom apartment, no real night life nor entertainment budget, no ability for savings beyond a hundred a month or so. I make much, much less than the mean for my discipline and I even had really good grades. Ive had university computational mathematics labs tell me how much they want me to join their PhD program and work for them as a researcher, but they want to pay me half of what I am making now. I suppose I could defer loan payments at that rate, but who is to say I wont have the same problem after getting a PhD?

  25. Re:Take from the rich and give to the... rich on Why Mars Is Not the Best Place To Look For Life · · Score: 1

    Because the net inflow/outflow of money to middle class, rich, and poor should remain more or less the same proportionally +/- some differences over time if everyone is indeed benefiting from the wealth creation in an economy. Its well known large differences between rich/poor cause problems, and in times where the middle class has the major share of wealth, the economy is booming, businesses are thriving, etc. Correlations perhaps, but worthy of caution.