It's pretty harsh to even joke that kids are responsible for the horrible things we do to them and the world they will inherit. It's even worse that the think-of-the-children asshats do these horrible things in their name.:(
The problem with climate change science at this point isn't the science it's that the solutions go against conservative values.
You just nailed it so well...
I'm a "socialist liberal" and am comfortable paying a reasonable amount of tax to ensure no one starves, healthcare is universal, lakes, parks, and roads are maintained, and cities are protected from fire.
I'm also a wannabe scientist, applying logic and the scientific method to every interest in my life, be it coding, circuit designing, carpentry.. even political discourse.
But I'm an anti-environmentalist. Not because I don't believe the measurements (I do), not because I don't believe the fundamental science and its conclusions (I do). I do really believe that coal and oil combustion are amongst the biggest threats to our species - right up there with global thermonuclear war and large asteroid impacts.
But it's what I'm being asked to sacrifice that makes me ignore it all.
I am unwilling to accept regression into a pre-industrial society as some (granted, a small, but vocal minority) suggest. I'm not willing to abandon personal transportation. I'm not willing to limit my diet to fruits and vegetables. I'm not willing to turn off streetlights at night, and I'm not willing to pay $5 for a tomato.
I find it offensive that someone would even suggest that I be willing to do so. And I wish more people would take this attitude. Because if you believe you can achieve, and prosper, you can. And the opposite holds true, as well.
There are solutions to our runaway greenhouse emissions problem that can solve it without ridiculous and unacceptable sacrifices. Anyone who tells you otherwise wants something from you. And they are truly risking our species to get it.
Nuclear power. Electric transportation. Problem solved. No really... problem solved. Please save the "bbbbut nuclear waste!" crap for someone who cares. They probably work for Fox News or discuss the cold war with their church congregate... but most certainly are not educated on the topic. Or maybe they are, but have an profit agenda. Coal industry, perhaps?
Reducing our greenhouse gas emissions can be done. If we let our species extinguish itself through global-warming induced war, or simply biosphere collapse, it will be because we were simply too lazy/ignorant to follow these simple steps. People demanding doubled fuel tax are part of the problem. They are not part of the solution. People demanding funding for electric vehicle research and development are part of the solution. Constructive, not punitive and destructive. That is the way things get done.
/rant
So I really am an example of what you said - someone who is unwilling to take an action on climate change because what's being asked is often untenable, and incompatible with my belief system.
Ok, I agree with you that you can't trade fundamental rights for privacy rights. But that's not really what I meant.
It's not an either or - both are critically important.
I'd love to be able to fight the bad guys in society. I'd love to press a button and mute/disable the assholes pushing their pro-religion / anti-sex agenda. If I could silence all the assholes who support stoning women for adultery, it would be a happy day for our species.
Since I can't do that, and since our world is filled with millions of thoughtless, cruel, vindictive, shallow "useful idiots," we need a backup plan.
I protest war (physically, in the streets... Iraq 2, Afghanistan and Isarel/Lebanon).. I write (what I hope to be) thoughtful discourse. I debate in bars. I vote.
But, I also recognize that some people will not rest while their neighbors do things they find offensive. And their neighbors do not care what they find offensive.
All kidding aside, while this may be true, it leaves out an entire class of people!
What if you are a wrongdoer?
And don't roll your eyes. You are a wrongdoer, for some percentage of your lives.
We've all looooooong past the point, in our respective countries, where governments and our fellow citizens recognize their role in society. People are vindictive and jealous. Governments are power-hungry. Corporations are greedy. Around the world, there are laws that specify how low you can wear your pants, what types of sex you can have, what you may say about the leader, where you can protest, what you can read, what you can write, how low your car can be, what software you're allowed to run, what foods you can make for others, what you're allowed to smoke and drink...
We're all wrongdoers. That is why privacy is important.
Perhaps we can send some folks from the BSA and RIAA over there to educate them about actual, real piracy. Might help them to stop confusing the term with copyright infringement.
This is idiotic. Why not just run the equipment on 48VDC (telco style) with extremely high efficiency DC SMPSes and heavy gauge wiring? Power that directly with a large bank of batteries.. no inverter.. no distributed battery mess (pressure discs do burst).. no capacity limits.. no server weight issues..
Not to mention, under this scheme you can no longer fully de-energize the datacenter (or parts of it). An EPO switch could cut the mains, but I certainly wouldn't want thousands of fully-charged batteries helping to fuel a fire.
And how do you measure the health of thousands of batteries? Automated transfer discharge tests? Sounds like a recipe for frequent node failures. A centralized power system can perform offline load tests, split-bank tests, etc. so you know how your batteries will perform when you need them.
And finally, when LIPO starts to become economical, a centralized battery system is a quick, easy, online replacement. Not necessarily so in this scheme (charge/discharge controllers are different).
I suppose there must be some advantage to this, but I can't see it. It feels like some non-technical VP went to a distributed computing conference and levied an ill researched directive on the company.
Trying to save the planet by reducing energy usage is like trying to save a river by not drinking.
We are not going back.
Reasonable reduction, recycling programs, and common sense are certainly part of the picture, but the answer to the energy problem will be a technological one. We need to start rolling out more sensible power generation facilities.
If we pretend we can get by on coal and making TVs dimmer, we will pollute the atmosphere to the point it can't support us.
I'm not sure what to say other than... if you can't tell the difference between a 128kbit MP3 and uncompressed source material, you may have a hearing deficiency (or extremely poor quality equipment).
I've played audio engineer, designed and built amplifiers and speakers, and tested for phase distortion and coupling. I'm not saying this as an audiophile (though I appreciate quality sound), but as an astute observer: 128kbit CBR MP3s are appalling. 256VBR are quite good, and 320kbit are indistinguishable from source 95+% of the time. These figures vary by compressor; lame is, in my experience, the best across the board.
An easy test for low bitrate MP3s (you'll score 100% on a double blind test): Listen to the cymbals and female vocals. Listen for "Ffffff" or "Thhhhhh" instead of "shhhhh." Almost like a lisp.
Listen for compression; the difference between the loudest and quietest audible sounds is significantly diminished, causing the song to sound lifeless and distant (like listening to a live band from behind a door, or over a phone).
If you can live with it, low bitrate MP3s are great. But to deny high-ratio lossy compression diminishes signal quality is retarded.
He won't blow his amp with phone wire... over the distances he's talking they probably won't deliver more than an amp or two before melting/burning. He might lose his amp to a fire, but I highly doubt he'd cook his output stage regardless of the speaker load.:)
...and that was user error (Grand Canyon Park is NOT the same as "Grand Canyon", the geographic center. Though it was an interesting drive into nothing).
Oh dear! I certainly hope you don't mean nothing as in "OH MY GOD! WHERE DID THE GROUND GO?!"
What I wouldn't give for that. I built a carputer a couple years ago and have been using some Windows GPS software under VirtualBox. It takes a huge amount of resources to keep it running. Could this lead to the possibility of a useful native X client for GPS navigation?
Electric transportation is humanity's next (and very important) step in reducing CO2 emissions. It has to happen. It will happen. But I think this (non)story is a little optimistic.
Many great minds have been working to improve chemical energy storage devices for 50 years. It's a fantastically complex problem. We've made strides, to be sure; compare the latest commercial lithium ion polymer batteries to 80s NiCD, and the future looks bright.
But two years is a very short time period, in battery development.
If the vendor of property damages the property after the sale, causing the purchaser to lose his right to enjoyment of the property, the purchaser has been harmed. There are very specific laws in the US and Canada surrounding this. I'm surprised this has never been taken to court.
Because a nation that damn near openly states as a matter of policy an intent to destroy another country shouldn't be allowed to have weapons that can destroy countries?
From the title: UK Musicians Back Watered-Down "Three-Strikes" Rule
From the summary: The artists involved include Lily Allen, George Michael, and Sandie Shaw.
This is a classic example of the subtle lie.
This title suggests that ALL UK musicians back this absurd law, when in fact it's a very small number of musicians; the summary mentions three.
The title is correct: this story is about UK musicians that back the "watered-down" three-strikes rule. It's not factually inaccurate. But it is worded so perfectly (and precisely) to be subconsciously misleading. This is the new wave in media, and Fox News, defined.
Slashdot Mirror
Man I know that one's tongue-in-cheek but...
It's pretty harsh to even joke that kids are responsible for the horrible things we do to them and the world they will inherit. It's even worse that the think-of-the-children asshats do these horrible things in their name. :(
My thoughts exactly. Ah well.
I'm of the opinion that the "real world" with all its war, police brutality, marketing, religion, fear and suffering is worse.
Really... are sex and swear words that bad?
The problem with climate change science at this point isn't the science it's that the solutions go against conservative values.
You just nailed it so well...
I'm a "socialist liberal" and am comfortable paying a reasonable amount of tax to ensure no one starves, healthcare is universal, lakes, parks, and roads are maintained, and cities are protected from fire.
I'm also a wannabe scientist, applying logic and the scientific method to every interest in my life, be it coding, circuit designing, carpentry.. even political discourse.
But I'm an anti-environmentalist. Not because I don't believe the measurements (I do), not because I don't believe the fundamental science and its conclusions (I do). I do really believe that coal and oil combustion are amongst the biggest threats to our species - right up there with global thermonuclear war and large asteroid impacts.
But it's what I'm being asked to sacrifice that makes me ignore it all.
I am unwilling to accept regression into a pre-industrial society as some (granted, a small, but vocal minority) suggest. I'm not willing to abandon personal transportation. I'm not willing to limit my diet to fruits and vegetables. I'm not willing to turn off streetlights at night, and I'm not willing to pay $5 for a tomato.
I find it offensive that someone would even suggest that I be willing to do so. And I wish more people would take this attitude. Because if you believe you can achieve, and prosper, you can. And the opposite holds true, as well.
There are solutions to our runaway greenhouse emissions problem that can solve it without ridiculous and unacceptable sacrifices. Anyone who tells you otherwise wants something from you. And they are truly risking our species to get it.
Nuclear power. Electric transportation. Problem solved. No really... problem solved. Please save the "bbbbut nuclear waste!" crap for someone who cares. They probably work for Fox News or discuss the cold war with their church congregate... but most certainly are not educated on the topic. Or maybe they are, but have an profit agenda. Coal industry, perhaps?
Reducing our greenhouse gas emissions can be done. If we let our species extinguish itself through global-warming induced war, or simply biosphere collapse, it will be because we were simply too lazy/ignorant to follow these simple steps. People demanding doubled fuel tax are part of the problem. They are not part of the solution. People demanding funding for electric vehicle research and development are part of the solution. Constructive, not punitive and destructive. That is the way things get done.
/rant
So I really am an example of what you said - someone who is unwilling to take an action on climate change because what's being asked is often untenable, and incompatible with my belief system.
Ok, I agree with you that you can't trade fundamental rights for privacy rights. But that's not really what I meant.
It's not an either or - both are critically important.
I'd love to be able to fight the bad guys in society. I'd love to press a button and mute/disable the assholes pushing their pro-religion / anti-sex agenda. If I could silence all the assholes who support stoning women for adultery, it would be a happy day for our species.
Since I can't do that, and since our world is filled with millions of thoughtless, cruel, vindictive, shallow "useful idiots," we need a backup plan.
I protest war (physically, in the streets... Iraq 2, Afghanistan and Isarel/Lebanon).. I write (what I hope to be) thoughtful discourse. I debate in bars. I vote.
But, I also recognize that some people will not rest while their neighbors do things they find offensive. And their neighbors do not care what they find offensive.
Privacy offers a way to satisfy both groups.
Well look at me! I'm not a wrongdoer!
A little smug, are we?
All kidding aside, while this may be true, it leaves out an entire class of people!
What if you are a wrongdoer?
And don't roll your eyes. You are a wrongdoer, for some percentage of your lives.
We've all looooooong past the point, in our respective countries, where governments and our fellow citizens recognize their role in society. People are vindictive and jealous. Governments are power-hungry. Corporations are greedy. Around the world, there are laws that specify how low you can wear your pants, what types of sex you can have, what you may say about the leader, where you can protest, what you can read, what you can write, how low your car can be, what software you're allowed to run, what foods you can make for others, what you're allowed to smoke and drink...
We're all wrongdoers. That is why privacy is important.
Perhaps we can send some folks from the BSA and RIAA over there to educate them about actual, real piracy. Might help them to stop confusing the term with copyright infringement.
If one of their customers had ordered a CD with a fraudulent credit card (over their payphone), would the fine have been more, or less?
There are things out there that are more dangerous than this proposed treaty.
I'm just having trouble figuring out what those things are.
This is idiotic. Why not just run the equipment on 48VDC (telco style) with extremely high efficiency DC SMPSes and heavy gauge wiring? Power that directly with a large bank of batteries.. no inverter.. no distributed battery mess (pressure discs do burst).. no capacity limits.. no server weight issues..
Not to mention, under this scheme you can no longer fully de-energize the datacenter (or parts of it). An EPO switch could cut the mains, but I certainly wouldn't want thousands of fully-charged batteries helping to fuel a fire.
And how do you measure the health of thousands of batteries? Automated transfer discharge tests? Sounds like a recipe for frequent node failures. A centralized power system can perform offline load tests, split-bank tests, etc. so you know how your batteries will perform when you need them.
And finally, when LIPO starts to become economical, a centralized battery system is a quick, easy, online replacement. Not necessarily so in this scheme (charge/discharge controllers are different).
I suppose there must be some advantage to this, but I can't see it. It feels like some non-technical VP went to a distributed computing conference and levied an ill researched directive on the company.
Trying to save the planet by reducing energy usage is like trying to save a river by not drinking.
We are not going back.
Reasonable reduction, recycling programs, and common sense are certainly part of the picture, but the answer to the energy problem will be a technological one. We need to start rolling out more sensible power generation facilities.
If we pretend we can get by on coal and making TVs dimmer, we will pollute the atmosphere to the point it can't support us.
I'm not sure what to say other than... if you can't tell the difference between a 128kbit MP3 and uncompressed source material, you may have a hearing deficiency (or extremely poor quality equipment).
I've played audio engineer, designed and built amplifiers and speakers, and tested for phase distortion and coupling. I'm not saying this as an audiophile (though I appreciate quality sound), but as an astute observer: 128kbit CBR MP3s are appalling. 256VBR are quite good, and 320kbit are indistinguishable from source 95+% of the time. These figures vary by compressor; lame is, in my experience, the best across the board.
An easy test for low bitrate MP3s (you'll score 100% on a double blind test): Listen to the cymbals and female vocals. Listen for "Ffffff" or "Thhhhhh" instead of "shhhhh." Almost like a lisp.
Listen for compression; the difference between the loudest and quietest audible sounds is significantly diminished, causing the song to sound lifeless and distant (like listening to a live band from behind a door, or over a phone).
If you can live with it, low bitrate MP3s are great. But to deny high-ratio lossy compression diminishes signal quality is retarded.
He won't blow his amp with phone wire... over the distances he's talking they probably won't deliver more than an amp or two before melting/burning. He might lose his amp to a fire, but I highly doubt he'd cook his output stage regardless of the speaker load. :)
..we had some great engineers to rush this projects. :)
Oh dear! I certainly hope you don't mean nothing as in "OH MY GOD! WHERE DID THE GROUND GO?!"
What I wouldn't give for that. I built a carputer a couple years ago and have been using some Windows GPS software under VirtualBox. It takes a huge amount of resources to keep it running. Could this lead to the possibility of a useful native X client for GPS navigation?
They would target our military units if they could. We're either 30,000' in the air (or not there at all) or supremely well armed.
For example: want the palestinians to stop "targetting" civilians? Sell them guidance systems.
real rape, not some 18 year old having sex with a 17 year old),
You know we live in a sick and demented society when you have to explicitly differentiate the two.
.. the world would be a much better place.
Electric transportation is humanity's next (and very important) step in reducing CO2 emissions. It has to happen. It will happen. But I think this (non)story is a little optimistic.
Many great minds have been working to improve chemical energy storage devices for 50 years. It's a fantastically complex problem. We've made strides, to be sure; compare the latest commercial lithium ion polymer batteries to 80s NiCD, and the future looks bright.
But two years is a very short time period, in battery development.
Still, good luck IBM.
If the vendor of property damages the property after the sale, causing the purchaser to lose his right to enjoyment of the property, the purchaser has been harmed. There are very specific laws in the US and Canada surrounding this. I'm surprised this has never been taken to court.
Because a nation that damn near openly states as a matter of policy an intent to destroy another country shouldn't be allowed to have weapons that can destroy countries?
I find your statement shocking and awesome.
Explain how Iran is a war-mongering country.
Can you list the wars they've started in the past 50 years?
I can:
From the title: UK Musicians Back Watered-Down "Three-Strikes" Rule
From the summary: The artists involved include Lily Allen, George Michael, and Sandie Shaw.
This is a classic example of the subtle lie.
This title suggests that ALL UK musicians back this absurd law, when in fact it's a very small number of musicians; the summary mentions three.
The title is correct: this story is about UK musicians that back the "watered-down" three-strikes rule. It's not factually inaccurate. But it is worded so perfectly (and precisely) to be subconsciously misleading. This is the new wave in media, and Fox News, defined.
T'is truly a brave new world.
I always respond even more ominously:
What if you do have something to hide?
There are tens of thousands of laws on the books, and many of them are illegal. We cannot follow every law, all the time.