That's a rather single-sided interpretation of that article (though I'm not saying it's wrong).
“The goal of the program was the demonstration of cargo transport to and from the station. The goal was not three flights,” Musk told Space News in a June 10 interview. “That is a means to an end. But if there is a better means to that end, it makes more sense to go with the better means to that end.”
[...]
Musk says if the modified second flight is unsuccessful, the third demo flight could serve as a backup. But if his plan works, the combined demo would clear the way for SpaceX to begin delivering cargo to the orbiting outpost under a $1.6 billion Commercial Resupply Services contract it signed with NASA in December 2008.
They're keeping the third one as a backup (so they're not cancelling the plans yet), and if they can do what they have to do with two flights instead of three, why not? Among other things, it means they'll be ready for "real" launches a lot sooner.
You do know they're talking about PHONES, don't you? 66 GB on a wired broadband internet connection isn't that high indeed. I can't imagine anyone downloading 65 GB of data on a phone, though. Unless they're connecting their PC to the internet through their phone.
the inaccurate use of the word radar [wikipedia.org], meaning electromagnetic waves, not the two video cameras this system is using.
What makes you say cameras don't work on electromagnetic waves? After all, visible light consists of electromagnetic waves. Yes, most commercial radar systems use microwaves instead of visible light, but that's not a requirement for something to be called radar.
And also,
not sight
I disagree. The system measures light. The fact that it uses the ear to inform the person of what it sees is irrelevant. It can see stars, rainbows and things coming at you faster than the speed of sound. You can't hear rainbows, or can you?
I'm fairly certain there's a hidden agenda here. They say it is a voluntary system, but what they mean is that privacy conscious students won't have access to the library. Libraries hold books. Books hold information. Information leads to knowledge. Knowledge is power.
They're taking the power away from the privacy conscious people. It's a conspiracy, I tells ya!
And no, I'm not paranoid. It's not paranoia if they really ARE out to get you.
There's something everyone can do to fix it for themselves, though: log off when you're done using Facebook. Of course, that makes it harder to tell your little friends about how you "heart" (sorry, Like) various things.
The rig, and many other deepwater ones, are in international waters - if we nationalize/kick out all the American oil companies, there will still be Chinese, Venezuelan, etc who will drill without ANY oversight from the U.S.
The rig was last located 50 miles (80 km) off the southeast coast of Louisiana.
That means it was well within the limits of the USA's Exclusive Economic Zone, which goes up to 200 miles from a country's coast. No other countries have the right to exploit marine resources within this area. As you can see in these pictures, the EEZs of USA and Mexico cover most of the Mexican Gulf, which means there's no way China, Venezuela, Russia or even Switzerland will ever drill there.
So in your opinion, there's no such thing as private communication (because communication is shared with at least one other person by definition), and it's no problem if governments or corporations listen in on phone calls, e-mails or other kinds of communication?
It has to do with the complexity of calculations, and the time a computer needs to find the solution for a problem with n variables/elements. For a certain way of solving a problem, increasing the amount of variables (n) increases the complexity, and thus the calculating time.
An example: simulating a traffic situation with n cars. Doing the simulation with 11 cars is more complex than with 10 cars, because there's one extra car that's interacting with all the other cars.
If a problem is of the order of complexity of 2^n, increasing n by 1 doubles the calculating time - for example: if n increases from 10 to 11, the complexity increases from 2^10 or 1024 to 2^11 or 2048, an increase of 100% (in this case, it will always be 100% no matter the value of n)
If a problem is of the order of complexity of n^3, the increase in calculating time is much less: from 10^3 or 1000 to 11^3 or 1331, an increase of 33% (different values of n will give different percentages here: if n=1000, it's only about 3%).
As Vellmont said:
Quantum computers can turn some problems that require exponential time to solve into a polynomial time. So instead of taking 2^n time, it might take n^3 time.
The quantum computers have a different way of approaching the problem, which affects the order of complexity. This means they're better at solving "larger" problems: problems with more variables and higher values of n.
So instead of taking 2^n time, it might take n^3 time. That's cannot in any realistic way be described as being "X times faster".
You can compare specific cases of n. For example, with 2^n for a conventional computer and n^3 for the quantum computer, if n = 24, the quantum computer is roughly 1000 times faster (2^24 / 24^3 = 1213).
I agree that it's overly simplistic, but it's not always wrong. Just a bit too specific, maybe. And also: try explaining the difference between 2^n and n^3 to the general population.
That's the same system Sky Sails use (video). The kite makes, among other manoeuvres, figure 8 loops, and reaches speeds of up to 180 knots (180 nautical miles an hour, 207 mph, 333 kmph) in winds of 3 to 8 Beaufort (10 to 40 knots). It's actually a very similar design, that's also doing its part in reducing fossil fuel consumption.
I hope they manage to balance construction and maintenance costs with profits. It sounds promising, but then so do a lot of things.
Slashdot Mirror
I'm guessing cargo spaceships don't have life support systems.
That's a rather single-sided interpretation of that article (though I'm not saying it's wrong).
“The goal of the program was the demonstration of cargo transport to and from the station. The goal was not three flights,” Musk told Space News in a June 10 interview. “That is a means to an end. But if there is a better means to that end, it makes more sense to go with the better means to that end.”
[...]
Musk says if the modified second flight is unsuccessful, the third demo flight could serve as a backup. But if his plan works, the combined demo would clear the way for SpaceX to begin delivering cargo to the orbiting outpost under a $1.6 billion Commercial Resupply Services contract it signed with NASA in December 2008.
They're keeping the third one as a backup (so they're not cancelling the plans yet), and if they can do what they have to do with two flights instead of three, why not? Among other things, it means they'll be ready for "real" launches a lot sooner.
The cycles have been known for like freaking ever.
Like, say, since Chinese astronomers discovered them thousands of years ago? It's like your acceleration is perpendicular to your velocity.
The Chinese did this thousands of years ago with their astronomers. If they failed to predict a solar or lunar eclipse, they'd be executed.
Citation
your math is wrong... there are ~2.6M seconds in a month... 200Kb * 2.6M = 5,200,000,000Kb... nearly 1TB... way WAY over 65GB
Actually, YOUR math is wrong.
65 GB per month = 25.9179009 kB per second
65 GB per month = 207.343207 kbit per second
You miscalculated 200Kb (should be kb)*2.6M, which equals 520,000,000 kb or 65 GB.
You do know they're talking about PHONES, don't you? 66 GB on a wired broadband internet connection isn't that high indeed. I can't imagine anyone downloading 65 GB of data on a phone, though. Unless they're connecting their PC to the internet through their phone.
In a few weeks we'll be hearing reports of people being charged $4000 after an "open bar" event at Nintendo.
Are you one of those people that corrects the blind when they say they're "watching" television?
the inaccurate use of the word radar [wikipedia.org], meaning electromagnetic waves, not the two video cameras this system is using.
What makes you say cameras don't work on electromagnetic waves? After all, visible light consists of electromagnetic waves. Yes, most commercial radar systems use microwaves instead of visible light, but that's not a requirement for something to be called radar.
And also,
not sight
I disagree. The system measures light. The fact that it uses the ear to inform the person of what it sees is irrelevant. It can see stars, rainbows and things coming at you faster than the speed of sound. You can't hear rainbows, or can you?
That man should either be forced to attend classes or BE FIRED.
Out of a cannon, into the sun.
Apparently, there IS a +1 for "I don't get it." Well played, sir.
I'm fairly certain there's a hidden agenda here. They say it is a voluntary system, but what they mean is that privacy conscious students won't have access to the library. Libraries hold books. Books hold information. Information leads to knowledge. Knowledge is power.
They're taking the power away from the privacy conscious people. It's a conspiracy, I tells ya!
And no, I'm not paranoid. It's not paranoia if they really ARE out to get you.
*looks over his shoulder*
There's something everyone can do to fix it for themselves, though: log off when you're done using Facebook. Of course, that makes it harder to tell your little friends about how you "heart" (sorry, Like) various things.
You fly a desk and complain about the goodies? Your company must have some Awesome goodies.
Just out of curiosity, what's the air-speed velocity of your unladen desk?
Also, describe some of those goodies to me.
Should this same standard be applied re: teacher/strippers?
That depends on what they're teaching.
The rig, and many other deepwater ones, are in international waters - if we nationalize/kick out all the American oil companies, there will still be Chinese, Venezuelan, etc who will drill without ANY oversight from the U.S.
Not true. The Deepwater Horizon:
The rig was last located 50 miles (80 km) off the southeast coast of Louisiana.
That means it was well within the limits of the USA's Exclusive Economic Zone, which goes up to 200 miles from a country's coast. No other countries have the right to exploit marine resources within this area. As you can see in these pictures, the EEZs of USA and Mexico cover most of the Mexican Gulf, which means there's no way China, Venezuela, Russia or even Switzerland will ever drill there.
So in your opinion, there's no such thing as private communication (because communication is shared with at least one other person by definition), and it's no problem if governments or corporations listen in on phone calls, e-mails or other kinds of communication?
I literally got an email back from Google saying "We love you too."
Is it wrong to be a little jealous?
I [...] have wondered how [...] young children recognize a dachshund, a bulldog and a great dane as dogs
It probably largely relies also on observation of behavioral patterns, most dogs have pretty similar ones.
Or, in layman's terms, dogs go "woof".
It has to do with the complexity of calculations, and the time a computer needs to find the solution for a problem with n variables/elements. For a certain way of solving a problem, increasing the amount of variables (n) increases the complexity, and thus the calculating time.
An example: simulating a traffic situation with n cars. Doing the simulation with 11 cars is more complex than with 10 cars, because there's one extra car that's interacting with all the other cars.
If a problem is of the order of complexity of 2^n, increasing n by 1 doubles the calculating time - for example: if n increases from 10 to 11, the complexity increases from 2^10 or 1024 to 2^11 or 2048, an increase of 100% (in this case, it will always be 100% no matter the value of n)
If a problem is of the order of complexity of n^3, the increase in calculating time is much less: from 10^3 or 1000 to 11^3 or 1331, an increase of 33% (different values of n will give different percentages here: if n=1000, it's only about 3%).
As Vellmont said:
Quantum computers can turn some problems that require exponential time to solve into a polynomial time. So instead of taking 2^n time, it might take n^3 time.
The quantum computers have a different way of approaching the problem, which affects the order of complexity. This means they're better at solving "larger" problems: problems with more variables and higher values of n.
So instead of taking 2^n time, it might take n^3 time. That's cannot in any realistic way be described as being "X times faster".
You can compare specific cases of n. For example, with 2^n for a conventional computer and n^3 for the quantum computer, if n = 24, the quantum computer is roughly 1000 times faster (2^24 / 24^3 = 1213).
I agree that it's overly simplistic, but it's not always wrong. Just a bit too specific, maybe. And also: try explaining the difference between 2^n and n^3 to the general population.
That's the same system Sky Sails use (video). The kite makes, among other manoeuvres, figure 8 loops, and reaches speeds of up to 180 knots (180 nautical miles an hour, 207 mph, 333 kmph) in winds of 3 to 8 Beaufort (10 to 40 knots). It's actually a very similar design, that's also doing its part in reducing fossil fuel consumption.
I hope they manage to balance construction and maintenance costs with profits. It sounds promising, but then so do a lot of things.
Exactly. Having a 60 ns ping to anything more than 9 meters (29.5 feet) away would be Nobel prize-worthy.
3) It does not work well with sharks.
The possibility of the "Apple search engine" being an option never even entered my head.
Maybe I'm just being cynical.
We'll see.