What _does_ the USA have to offer? Think about it - almost all the manufacturing industries have moved out/are moving out, and the US is largely going towards being nothing more than a consumer (okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little, but you get the idea).
But that's not necessarily a bad thing, either. As long as you are the economy controlling those industries outside of the US and have a good enough purchasing power, things will be fine and dandy.
The only way to ensure that things don't go wrong is to ensure that we still have that purchasing power - by being trendsetters.
Think about it - if we are to become #1 in bioinformatics or quantum computing or the energy industry, then we'd have a card to buy stuff with.
Other than arms and the dollar, the US has very little to offer to the outside world - it is primarily a war economy, nothing more.
I'm sure that if it had not been the clergy, someone else would have done it.
Religion is the cause of all evil, back then and even today.
Reminds me of an excellent quote by Steven Weinberg - "With or without religion, you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion."
One of these days, there ought to be a showdown getting rid of all those believers in voices in the sky - the only way for science to truly triumph is if religion is taken care of once and for all.
Apart from what mrchaotica pointed out, I'll add one more point - privacy.
If I want to distribute something without being found out, it's my choice.
Wow, folks like you are the reason RIAA and MPAA think any new technology will only be used for unlawful purposes.
I might want to put up legitimate stuff without people knowing it - just because I seek that privacy doesn't mean you shouldn't respect the need for it.
Yup, something needs to be sacrificed for the advancement of the civilization! =)
And yes, I've seen some wonderful parts of Europe - Scandinavia with its exorbitant taxes and bad productivity, or England with its equally ridiculous taxes and high cost of living.
No thank you, I'll take the US anyday with its depressing friend-killing ulcers and burnouts. At the very least, it helps us stay on top of things.
Hah. That's funny. Just that I'm amused by the fact you think someone should like their work only because their boss is watching and not because they might genuinely like it.
European methods encourage lethargy, where folks can work for part of the year and take the rest of the time off. A system where the fittest survive and the rest perish is what is needed, and that is what the American system is.
We could keep going at this - but wanted to clear up a few things first.
That explains why you're so naiive about this. You're still in school, so you don't yet realize how useless most of this is in the real world.
You assume that just because I'm in school now means I was never in the industry.
I got out of school a while ago, worked in the industry for a while, went back to grad school and am now in a sabbatical doing some industry time again. And to make things interesting, I've even had a startup of my own for over a year - where I've hired people in the technology industry.
So, I think I'm fairly qualified to speak up.
As for learning from textboks - you might be an exception, not the rule. And your argument is true for just about anything, if I'm smart enough, I could do enough math to win a Fields Medal or win a Nobel in Physics.
But you're assuming that everyone will be doing the same kind of work - which need not be the same. For instance, my company hires folks in Analytics and Bioinformatics. Even at the entry level, the programmers we look for better have good and logic math skills.
While there might be kids who have not gone to school with these skills, it is more likely that kids who have indeed gone to school have these skills.
Anyway, it would appear we hold disparate views - no point in going at it. Cheers!:-)
Like I said, that basic education takes less than a year to obtain.
For some tasks, sure. Not for all tasks.
That's one or two classes, and they're classes that are offered by a lot of high schools.
They teach theoretical computer science, advanced OS design, architecture, graph theory, complexity and stuff in highschool these days? Wow!:)
If you can score a 5 on the AP test you know as much about algorithms as most CS graduates.
I'm sorry, they would hardly be able to make head or tail of the order of a loop or to assess the complexity of an algorithm.
They might be a little smart, but let's not stretch.
Sure, I admit I learned a little bit more in my 3 years of college, but most of it was fluff.
Well, see - that doesn't mean you can generalize it. You're making a classic logical fallcy in deduction.
I mean, hey, if I went to 20% of my classes, and I graduated from college after 3 years, that means I could have done it in 3/5 of a year, right?
No, you're mistaking a piece of paper for skill - you slacked off and assume that everybody does the same.
It takes a little bit of effort and a whole lot of skill. But it's largely a skill which can't be taught. You either think that way, or you don't.
Not entirely true. A lot of it comes from knowledge and experience, which can be and has been taught.
Well, to a large extent those things can't be taught in a classroom environment. To the extent they can, hey, I admit I got a good year's worth of education out of college.
Which school did you go to, mate? Most good schools I know of have a rigorous program in those things. Where you are not only taught those things, but also asked to work on real hard projects implementing what you learnt.
My professors usually make sure that they indeed do teach me all those things. Funny.
"When the Third Reich was emerging, they said that only Germans of pure Aryan descent could attend German universities. Significant numbers of German scholars departed," she says. "That was detrimental for Germany, but was glorious for the U.S.
Most students would simply go to another country without these restrictions, such as United Kingdom, Germany or other countries with good educational opportunities.
This is the US shooting itself in the foot - the international intelligentsia who come to the US contribute significantly to the American society. By restricting what they have access to, you're restricting their contributions.
Consequently, they'll simply go elsewhere, where there are similar opportunities without such draconic laws. The result? The US will lose out on a lot of very smart people who until now saw the US as a good destination for education and research.
And you must also keep in mind that a lot of these folks do stay back in the US after higher education and become permanent residents or citizens - discouraging them from studying and you've lost a lot of talent preemptively.
Well, Atlanta as a city has been particularly badly designed. The traffic is there is quite hellish.
Ofcourse, cities like NY or LA are much worse, but still.
I'm spending the summer now in Cincinnati - and even at the peak hour, there is almost no traffic jam. The city is neatly divided into grids and traffic is extremely smooth.
Slashdot Mirror
Ah, but that's the irony.
What _does_ the USA have to offer? Think about it - almost all the manufacturing industries have moved out/are moving out, and the US is largely going towards being nothing more than a consumer (okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little, but you get the idea).
But that's not necessarily a bad thing, either. As long as you are the economy controlling those industries outside of the US and have a good enough purchasing power, things will be fine and dandy.
The only way to ensure that things don't go wrong is to ensure that we still have that purchasing power - by being trendsetters.
Think about it - if we are to become #1 in bioinformatics or quantum computing or the energy industry, then we'd have a card to buy stuff with.
Other than arms and the dollar, the US has very little to offer to the outside world - it is primarily a war economy, nothing more.
Ah, but my comment was assuming that there is no religion whatsoever (facts apart that your logic is quite as flawed as my trollish post).
On the other hand, it did help me vent out some frustration. I'd do anything to see a world where religion is taken care of once and for all.
Religion and religious nuts should simply be shoved up and their genes gotten rid of once and for all. Freakin' retards.
I'm sure that if it had not been the clergy, someone else would have done it.
Religion is the cause of all evil, back then and even today.
Reminds me of an excellent quote by Steven Weinberg -
"With or without religion, you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion."
One of these days, there ought to be a showdown getting rid of all those believers in voices in the sky - the only way for science to truly triumph is if religion is taken care of once and for all.
George W Bush!!
Did anyone else see the stupid Microsoft Visual Web Developer Express Edition Ad?
God, that's by far the cockiest ad I've *ever* seen on Slashdot. How could someone even come up with stuff like that? Sheesh!
What crap.
Apart from what mrchaotica pointed out, I'll add one more point - privacy.
If I want to distribute something without being found out, it's my choice.
Wow, folks like you are the reason RIAA and MPAA think any new technology will only be used for unlawful purposes.
I might want to put up legitimate stuff without people knowing it - just because I seek that privacy doesn't mean you shouldn't respect the need for it.
Okay, a longer time ago?
Longer than the long time ago.
Ouch!
The sad part is, they probably were too brainwashed to even say something like that. If they had, the war would have ended a long time ago.
Yeah, but it's gotta start somewhere.
Only a matter of time before the margin is improved.
Okay, looks like it wasn't obvious from my comments - but I was kidding.
It was sarcasm the whole time - get it?
Yup, something needs to be sacrificed for the advancement of the civilization! =)
And yes, I've seen some wonderful parts of Europe - Scandinavia with its exorbitant taxes and bad productivity, or England with its equally ridiculous taxes and high cost of living.
No thank you, I'll take the US anyday with its depressing friend-killing ulcers and burnouts. At the very least, it helps us stay on top of things.
Ah, so they don't "pretend" to do work like we do - they actually work?!
Sheesh, are they nuts or somethin'!?!??!
Hah. That's funny. Just that I'm amused by the fact you think someone should like their work only because their boss is watching and not because they might genuinely like it.
European methods encourage lethargy, where folks can work for part of the year and take the rest of the time off. A system where the fittest survive and the rest perish is what is needed, and that is what the American system is.
We could keep going at this - but wanted to clear up a few things first.
:-)
That explains why you're so naiive about this. You're still in school, so you don't yet realize how useless most of this is in the real world.
You assume that just because I'm in school now means I was never in the industry.
I got out of school a while ago, worked in the industry for a while, went back to grad school and am now in a sabbatical doing some industry time again. And to make things interesting, I've even had a startup of my own for over a year - where I've hired people in the technology industry.
So, I think I'm fairly qualified to speak up.
As for learning from textboks - you might be an exception, not the rule. And your argument is true for just about anything, if I'm smart enough, I could do enough math to win a Fields Medal or win a Nobel in Physics.
But you're assuming that everyone will be doing the same kind of work - which need not be the same. For instance, my company hires folks in Analytics and Bioinformatics. Even at the entry level, the programmers we look for better have good and logic math skills.
While there might be kids who have not gone to school with these skills, it is more likely that kids who have indeed gone to school have these skills.
Anyway, it would appear we hold disparate views - no point in going at it. Cheers!
Like I said, that basic education takes less than a year to obtain.
:)
For some tasks, sure. Not for all tasks.
That's one or two classes, and they're classes that are offered by a lot of high schools.
They teach theoretical computer science, advanced OS design, architecture, graph theory, complexity and stuff in highschool these days? Wow!
If you can score a 5 on the AP test you know as much about algorithms as most CS graduates.
I'm sorry, they would hardly be able to make head or tail of the order of a loop or to assess the complexity of an algorithm.
They might be a little smart, but let's not stretch.
Sure, I admit I learned a little bit more in my 3 years of college, but most of it was fluff.
Well, see - that doesn't mean you can generalize it. You're making a classic logical fallcy in deduction.
I mean, hey, if I went to 20% of my classes, and I graduated from college after 3 years, that means I could have done it in 3/5 of a year, right?
No, you're mistaking a piece of paper for skill - you slacked off and assume that everybody does the same.
It takes a little bit of effort and a whole lot of skill. But it's largely a skill which can't be taught. You either think that way, or you don't.
Not entirely true. A lot of it comes from knowledge and experience, which can be and has been taught.
Well, to a large extent those things can't be taught in a classroom environment. To the extent they can, hey, I admit I got a good year's worth of education out of college.
Which school did you go to, mate? Most good schools I know of have a rigorous program in those things. Where you are not only taught those things, but also asked to work on real hard projects implementing what you learnt.
My professors usually make sure that they indeed do teach me all those things. Funny.
In other news, folks confused gravity of a sitaution with the Newtonian description of the same name.
Idiotic refers to being stupid or foolish, that doesn't mean I cannot use idiotic in place of either foolish or stupid.
In the context, it is quite obvious what I meant. If you thought I was referring to dragons, you've more of a problem than correcting my language.
> I was a client of MS/DW.
;-)
Shouldn't that be, "MS/DW were a client of mine"?
Over in Europe, meanwhile, they work 20% less year than we do.
And that is a good thing how?
Honestly - I'd think that working more is a good thing, not less.
It's not the 1 penny that matters, it's the volume. See the volume of 4,226,531 there?
Imagine 4,226,531 pennies - that's $42,265.31.
Okay, damn. It's still not much is it?
Actually, laws have nothing to do with furries or otherkin; the word you're looking for is draconian.
Both Merriam Websters and Dictionary.com disagree with you.
Draconic is the same as draconian.
Oh man, that was too funny.
Sad, too - unfortunately. Better give back everything to Uncle Sam when you leave, including the remnants of your soul.
My favourite quote from the article:
"When the Third Reich was emerging, they said that only Germans of pure Aryan descent could attend German universities. Significant numbers of German scholars departed," she says. "That was detrimental for Germany, but was glorious for the U.S.
"We got Einstein."
Ah, well.
Most students would simply go to another country without these restrictions, such as United Kingdom, Germany or other countries with good educational opportunities.
This is the US shooting itself in the foot - the international intelligentsia who come to the US contribute significantly to the American society. By restricting what they have access to, you're restricting their contributions.
Consequently, they'll simply go elsewhere, where there are similar opportunities without such draconic laws. The result? The US will lose out on a lot of very smart people who until now saw the US as a good destination for education and research.
And you must also keep in mind that a lot of these folks do stay back in the US after higher education and become permanent residents or citizens - discouraging them from studying and you've lost a lot of talent preemptively.
You just described Slashdot! =)
Well, Atlanta as a city has been particularly badly designed. The traffic is there is quite hellish.
Ofcourse, cities like NY or LA are much worse, but still.
I'm spending the summer now in Cincinnati - and even at the peak hour, there is almost no traffic jam. The city is neatly divided into grids and traffic is extremely smooth.
Atlanta on the other hand...
*shudder*