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User: Chris+Mattern

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Comments · 7,102

  1. Re:If you give up the inch, they'll take the mile on NASA Sticking To Imperial Units For Shuttle Replacement · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Fahrenheit is a wonderfully human temperature scale. Over 100 is Way Too Damn Hot, and under 0 is Way Too Damn Cold. I like that.

  2. Re:If you give up the inch, they'll take the mile on NASA Sticking To Imperial Units For Shuttle Replacement · · Score: 1

    Seriously, a billion dollars and 8 years we would be done with this crap.

    Fine. Since you're so convinced it's worth it, we'll have them send the bill to you, okay?

  3. Re:I'm guessing on Steorn's "Free Energy" Jury Comes Back To Bite Them · · Score: 3, Informative

    Doesn't look like it. On the page linked to by the summary, the cranks thank the judges profusely, say they understand the judges' frustration, and note that they have always said that there are still bugs in the process. They very carefully avoid actually stating what the judges' verdict was.

  4. Re:Bollocks on On the Humble Default · · Score: 1

    Default *land* area. In other words, default size of the plot of land you built your house on. Not the size of the house.

  5. Re:How about a real open governance system on US Open Government Initiative Enters Phase Three · · Score: 1

    Capacity for delusion is only a problem because of scoundrels looking to make a dishonest dollar by exploiting said capacity.

    True. So? Government can't solve that problem. Remember, there'll be scoundrels in the government, too.

  6. Re:Legalize it? on US Open Government Initiative Enters Phase Three · · Score: 1

    If you had bothered to read the Wikipedia article you cited, you would have found out that the Act was repealed in 1970.

  7. Re:And? on SSN Required To Buy Palm Pre · · Score: 1

    I mean, most plans I see have 1000's of anytime minutes as a minimum...with nights and weekends free....and long distance is free too. How do you run up such high bills with all that time?

    1-900 numbers. Roaming charges (particularly for data). Text messaging, which in the US is overcharged for shamelessly.

  8. All I can say is... on US Plans To Bulldoze 50 Shrinking Cities · · Score: 1

    "Please leave the Bronx."

  9. Re:You've got the protcol on Comcast To Bring IPv6 To Residential US In 2010 · · Score: 1

    Oh, for heaven's sake.

    Just say, "There's no place like localhost."

    You have an /etc/hosts file for a *reason*, you know.

  10. Re:Why there is so much emphasis on design on Game Design: A Practical Approach · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Both are skilled and necessary, but construction workers without an architect aren't going to build anything of great value.

    And an architect without construction workers is nothing but a second-rate sketch artist who draws only (imaginary) buildings.

  11. Re:Face Value vs Ore Value on Anonymous Newspaper Commenters Subpoenaed In Tax Case · · Score: 1

    Actually, you read the wrong inference to my own post. My fault, I guess I wasn't too clear. The limitation on the states is the *only*, repeat *only* mention of gold or silver in the Constitution. Neither the federal government nor the states are under any obligation to recognize gold or silver as legal tender. The only limitation is that the *states* (but not the federal government) are prohibited from ordaining anything *other* than gold and silver legal tender. It is perfectly fine for the federal government to something other than gold or silver the exclusive legal tender and for the states not to add any thing else, which is the current situation.

  12. Re:Face Value vs Ore Value on Anonymous Newspaper Commenters Subpoenaed In Tax Case · · Score: 1

    It's a loophole that's protected by the US constitution. Gold and Silver are protected as legal currency and the federal government must supply and accept gold and silver tender.

    You know, you'd look less of a fool if you actually read the Constitution. The individual *states* are prohibited from making anything other than gold and silver coin legal tender. No such limitation is laid on the federal government.

  13. Re:Face Value vs Ore Value on Anonymous Newspaper Commenters Subpoenaed In Tax Case · · Score: 1

    Further suppose that one these pennies has some rare quality making it worth $100 to a collector... is that an extra $100 of Income?

    If you sold it to a collector for that $100, it most certainly would be. I'm little fuzzier on what it would be if you hung on to it, but I think the answer is probably yes.

  14. Re:In this case.. on Defining an Indie Game Developer · · Score: 1

    You do realize that MBA's are people with a Masters Degree in Business Management.

    Which is why they're called MBMs.

    Wait, what?

  15. Re:Nano tech road map. on Real Nanotechnology Getting Closer, Says Drexler · · Score: 2, Funny

    What's next after nano materials?

    Pico materials. Duh.

  16. Re:Ah.. on Real Nanotechnology Getting Closer, Says Drexler · · Score: 1

    A computer is a billion switches.

    And a brain is a hundred billion somewhat more complex (but the basic mechanism is fairly well-understood) switches. What's your point?

  17. Re:"Real" nanotechnology is already there on Real Nanotechnology Getting Closer, Says Drexler · · Score: 4, Funny

    I like my nanotechnology research like I like my women.

    Fictional?

  18. Re:open source = non-privatized science on What Open Source Shares With Science · · Score: 2, Informative

    Please note: this is not a cure for Hepatitis C that these people are sitting on. It's only a lead, that with ten years work, *might* lead to a cure, or might not. You can stop infections in a test tube if you silence this gene. Okay. What if silencing that gene turns out to be fatal when you do it in living human body? What if silencing that gene doesn't help prevent that infection at all in the human body (a lot of things that work in vitro don't work in vivo)? And how are you going to silence the gene in vivo, anyways? No gene therapy done so far has worked on silencing a gene, only introducing a new one, and even *that's* been highly experimental and has had some nasty setbacks. And so on. Honestly, I'd think that you'd have an excellent chance of challenging that patent on the basis of utility: it doesn't *do* anything useful, at least not in and of itself.

  19. Re:Which "Unix" are they talking about? on Saving Unix Heritage, One Kernel At a Time · · Score: 3, Informative

    Original flavor. All the stuff talked about in this article comes from before UNIX split into its hundreds of variants. In fact, these are so early that they come from before UNIX escaped out of Bell Labs. UNIX didn't start splitting into different flavors until about Versions 4 and 5.

  20. Re:It's called a DAM system. Do some research. on How To Manage Hundreds of Thousands of Documents? · · Score: 1

    Well, maybe he doesn't want your DAM system!

  21. Re:Phonon ey? on First Acoustic Black Hole Created · · Score: 2, Informative

    Everything is quantized if you're looking at it at a small enough scale.

  22. Re:Hot Diggity Daffodil! on Comedy Central Confirms 26 New Futurama Episodes · · Score: 1

    I love the show, but it's a TV show. It's not exactly a coherent work of fiction.

    Fixed that for you. There's no reason a cartoon can't be a coherent work of fiction. On the other hand, there's all sorts of obstacles to any TV show being coherent over the long term.

  23. Re:...video of a prototype on DIY 18-ft.-High Robotic Exoskeleton · · Score: 1

    Nobody would want a battery powered exoskeleton with a 10 minutes charge.

    Especially if it was piloted by a mentally unstable 14-year-old boy.

  24. Re:Oh man... on Kids Score 40 Percent Higher When They Get Paid For Grades · · Score: 1

    And becoming a "well-payed sportsman" takes practice. And more practice. And yet more practice. And during the slack times. you can get in some practice.

  25. Re:Oh man... on Kids Score 40 Percent Higher When They Get Paid For Grades · · Score: 1

    Like being a musician, celebrity or well-payed sportsman? Yeah, because you need a lot of study for that.

    Yes. Yes, you do, actually. Well, except for maybe "celebrity". And maybe not even that.