In most science-fiction books and movies there is a sentient computer.
The Matrix The Six Million Dollar Man Neuromancer Westworld 2001 A Space Odyssey Logan's Run Knight Rider The Terminator Battlestar Galactica (both the kid-friendly original with Lorne Greene, and the re-do)...
Yet here we are, 2019, and no sentient, or even near-sentient computers (yet?).
Back in 2005 got word from contacts in the accounting department that there would be massive layoffs at the dot-com division of the entertainment company I worked, "25% or higher staff cuts" was the warning, and decided the risk to my family was too high. Left dot-com for healthcare that year.
Sure enough, one year later most of the LI contacts I knew that used to work there, didn't work there anymore.
The severity of the FDIV bug is debated. Intel, producer of the affected chip, claims that the common user would experience it once every 27,000 years while IBM, manufacturer of a chip competing with Intel's Pentium, claims that the common user would experience it once every 24 days.[citation needed] Though rarely encountered by most users (Byte magazine estimated that 1 in 9 billion floating point divides with random parameters would produce inaccurate results),[3] both the flaw and Intel's initial handling of the matter were heavily criticized by the tech community.
In December 1994, Intel recalled the defective processors. In January 1995, Intel announced "a pre-tax charge of $475 million against earnings, ostensibly the total cost associated with replacement of the flawed processors."[1]
Well, underpaid _H1B_ Indian contract-worker dudes, it seems. They are the majority staff I see in the IT campus, and data centers, of the confidential national medical services company that I have worked at.
Turner classic movies had two sci-fi classics yesterday: 2001 A Space Odyssey, and Westworld (with Yul Brenner). Re-watched both.
Odyssey was 1968 and Kubrick. Westworld was 1973 and Michael Crichton.
It bothers me now, to see that Odyssey had _zero_ diversity. I was critically looking for anyone, even background cast that just walks past the camera, or is in a shot.
Westworld had diversity. Both as scientific types in the underground control center, as well as being visitors to the leisure worlds.
...just like you do on your home PC. It's your life. Control your own privacy as best you can, if you still choose to use a smart phone.
When you want to do selfies, fine, it's your choice, and then uncover the camera, otherwise, keep the camera covered.
For the really hard-core, do not even own a smart phone. Use the free-with-your-plan models that just voice and text and camera, and have a removable battery. Keep the phone in a case that covers the camera lens, blacking it out, and making any attempts to covertly take pictures when you do not want it to, not possible. Remove the battery when not in use.
The Intercept team inadvertently exposed its source because the copy showed fold marks that indicated it had been printed -- and it included encoded watermarking that revealed exactly when it had been printed and on what printer. T
Failed to protect a source?!
Could have run it through GIMP, or a POS copier, converting to black-and-white, and messing with contrast settings, cropping out anywhere not needed, and vetting the images with a team of in-house experts before publication.
Could have faxed it low-rez, black-and-white, within the news office, to another in-house fax, and used the poor-quality fax image in publication, to also help wipe any tracers.
It is difficult to estimate the number of victims of McCarthy. The number imprisoned is in the hundreds, and some ten or twelve thousand lost their jobs.[53] In many cases simply being subpoenaed by HUAC or one of the other committees was sufficient cause to be fired.[54]
Back in the 1990s and 2000s, sure, a dot-com programmer wore cool T-shirts, flip-flops, and enjoyed unlimited sodas. It was at the two dot-coms I worked at, back in the day.
Then, once H1B took over, it is now usually a bunch of very polite, mostly quiet, dress shirt + slacks and a belt, types. At least, it seems to be this way now, at the Confidential National Service Provider that I have worked at, for the past 10yrs or so.
Slashdot Mirror
In most science-fiction books and movies there is a sentient computer.
The Matrix ...
The Six Million Dollar Man
Neuromancer
Westworld
2001 A Space Odyssey
Logan's Run
Knight Rider
The Terminator
Battlestar Galactica (both the kid-friendly original with Lorne Greene, and the re-do)
Yet here we are, 2019, and no sentient, or even near-sentient computers (yet?).
So, less cool.
This year I read
Don Quixote - by Miguel de Cervantes
Back in 2005 got word from contacts in the accounting department that there would be massive layoffs at the dot-com division of the entertainment company I worked, "25% or higher staff cuts" was the warning, and decided the risk to my family was too high. Left dot-com for healthcare that year.
Sure enough, one year later most of the LI contacts I knew that used to work there, didn't work there anymore.
Hopefully what happened to Praxis will not happen at CERN
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
Twenty years - huzzah!
Neuromancer is my favorite.
Well, underpaid _H1B_ Indian contract-worker dudes, it seems. They are the majority staff I see in the IT campus, and data centers, of the confidential national medical services company that I have worked at.
Turner classic movies had two sci-fi classics yesterday: 2001 A Space Odyssey, and Westworld (with Yul Brenner). Re-watched both.
Odyssey was 1968 and Kubrick. Westworld was 1973 and Michael Crichton.
It bothers me now, to see that Odyssey had _zero_ diversity. I was critically looking for anyone, even background cast that just walks past the camera, or is in a shot.
Westworld had diversity. Both as scientific types in the underground control center, as well as being visitors to the leisure worlds.
Have been 100% telecommute for the past two years.
I think it has been a win/win for myself and my Employer.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse...
...just like you do on your home PC. It's your life. Control your own privacy as best you can, if you still choose to use a smart phone.
When you want to do selfies, fine, it's your choice, and then uncover the camera, otherwise, keep the camera covered.
For the really hard-core, do not even own a smart phone. Use the free-with-your-plan models that just voice and text and camera, and have a removable battery. Keep the phone in a case that covers the camera lens, blacking it out, and making any attempts to covertly take pictures when you do not want it to, not possible. Remove the battery when not in use.
...will be People.
Failed to protect a source?!
Could have run it through GIMP, or a POS copier, converting to black-and-white, and messing with contrast settings, cropping out anywhere not needed, and vetting the images with a team of in-house experts before publication.
Could have faxed it low-rez, black-and-white, within the news office, to another in-house fax, and used the poor-quality fax image in publication, to also help wipe any tracers.
Ugh!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
GATTACA would be my favorite, recently.
Trouble is, I have many many favorites, almost impossible to pick just one, as "the favorite!"
My 1st computer was a mail-order one. It was from company Zeos. It was a 386DX, 33Mhz, 4Mb of RAM, and a 130Mb hard drive.
It came with a 13inch color monitor, mouse, keyboard, and DOS.
Back in the day, it cost me US$3000
Currently reading "Don Quixote" by Miguel de Cervantes.
Back in the 1990s and 2000s, sure, a dot-com programmer wore cool T-shirts, flip-flops, and enjoyed unlimited sodas. It was at the two dot-coms I worked at, back in the day.
Then, once H1B took over, it is now usually a bunch of very polite, mostly quiet, dress shirt + slacks and a belt, types. At least, it seems to be this way now, at the Confidential National Service Provider that I have worked at, for the past 10yrs or so.
Still so poignant, even after all these years.
Employees tested. IN-VALID vs VALID. Self-esteem, standing in the community, opportunities or denial of them, all based on someone's genetics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
It's aliens.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
Replaceable battery capability, yes please.
Now, they just need to start making docking stations, and business travelers and telecommueters can have a do-it-all phone+camera+computer.
Honestly, I thought the phase-out of laptops for powerful "smart phones" that could do their work, would have been here sooner.
SolyentGreen will be People.
Huzzah, I say.