This is about advertising. There are no ethics in advertising. It's a business. They probably feel like disclosing who paid for the ad is the same as devaluing the ad.
That's a load of crap. Just because something is a business doesn't mean that ethics are thrown out the window. This is sadly too often the case, but there's a reason you have to take a class called "Business Ethics" to get an MBA. As for disclosing who paid for the ad, that's not what we're talking about here at all. This is about telling people that the link they're clicking on is an ad! In order for the internet to maintain it's usability, Search Engines must be trusted sources of information. That's not the same as saying they aren't allowed to make money. They can make all the money they want, just so long as they aren't screwing with the results to favor someone who dropped some cash in their laps.
Damn you're right. *smacks self with clue stick* It's been years since I read it, and the plots been convoluted in my head since then. I need to pick that one up again.
Hmm, was there a star trek episode like that? I was actually referring to the Greg Bear classic "Blood Music". Recommended reading, as is any Bear novel.
But today we can no longer easily predict what the future holds. Science changes things too quickly--so quickly that we can only say with confidence that we cannot say what the future will be like.
Science fiction writers have devised a variety of means to cope with this threat to their livelihood.
Science fiction has _never_ been about "this is what the future will be like!". Well, some of the crappy stuff is. The best science fiction is all about what-if. Good science fiction places characters in strange circumstances that may or may not bear any relation to a plausible future for humanity. The fun is in seeing how humans (or aliens for that matter) would deal with these circumstances. What-if there was an alien loose on your ship with acid for blood and lightning quick reflexes? What-if a colony of nanobots became self-aware? What-if we found the sun was inhabited with creatures who were slowing down the fusion processes at the center? The plausibility of these scenarios _actually happening_ is slim to none. But that has nothing to do with whether or not this is good science fiction. For me personally, if the story is based on hard science, then thats when I stop caring about the plausibility of the story.
Any science fiction writer who sees himself as a prophet for the future needs to find a new line of work, like say, I don't know, start a cult for instance.
This story is, of course, very reminiscent of the famous Darwin Award winner Larry Walters
Larry Walters didn't win a Darwin Award. You can only win a Darwin if you remove yourself from the gene pool (i.e. kill yourself or destroy your ability to reproduce). He did, however, recieve an honorable mention.
I'm going to be worrying a lot more about travelling on the highway than I am about asteroid collisions.
Yeah, but if you crash on the highway, you and your kids might die. If an asteroid hits the earth, millions or billions could die. So on a personal level, driving is more dangerous, but we're talking about the survival of the species here. It's not something to ignore.
My lunar base design calls for gratuitous amounts of scantily-clad nordic women and lasers. Lots of lasers.
Seriously though, this is a great idea. I always remember the poster my teach put up in his Cosmology classroom. It was a 50's era "Moon Base of the Future!" type poster. Occasionally he would look over at it, and sigh softly to himself. Screw Watergate, the worst thing Nixon ever did was cut back the space program.
Anyone know what sort of viewing angle you get on this thing? Doesn't seem like you could have a very good viewing angle without losing the depth aspect of the image. This could really hurt acceptance, because most peoples homes have seating arrangements with quite significant angles to the TV.
"The approach we've taken is to put control into the hands of the user and explain to them what it means. The students at this university are very bright, and we expect them to all be able to understand the things we say to them."
Such starry-eyed naivete and optimism baffles me. Surely no one actually expects college-aged persons to think for themselves?
I also find it mildly offensive that the Slashdot edditors automaticaly assosiate South Africa with Gun Toating Totalitarianism.
They didn't do that. They just stated that the South African government, like all governments, has the power to back up their requests with force. There is not a single government on Earth that doesn't have "men with guns".
Things like floating remote controls and underwater lightning are also included.
Now, is it just me, or does the phrase "underwater lightning" send images into your brain of tons of rich people floating dead on the surface of their new hottub?
. It revolves around the idea that in nature, waste equals food. Other than incoming energy from the sun, our environment is basically a closed system. Whenever (non-human) life on our planet uses a resource, it is left in a form readily useable to other life. Humans must do the same.
Personally, I think it would be easier (and much cooler!) to gengineer bugs that do eat our waste. Of course there is that whole risk of mutation and the bugs eating all the plastic around us, sending our civilization into chaos and disorder, eventually collapsing, but that always seems pretty cool in the books too. Then I can become a warlord and get my harem. Warlords get a harem, right?
Recently the DoN signed a contract with a company called EDS
That company called EDS is what made Ross Perot his billions. He no longer runs it, but he made sure before he left that they had plenty of tight connections with the military. Ross was in the Navy himself, Academy class of '53 or something like that. EDS is a huge corporation (remember the cat-herding commercial in the super-bowl 2 years ago? That was them.) I had an interview with their web-development team in Texas, and let me tell you, that place is run like a military operation. Gate Guards, ID checks all over the place, all forms in triplicate. Not really relevant information, I know, just interesting stuff.;)
..."rolling my own" world-wide shipping conglomerate sounds like a little too much work to save a few bucks on shipping. I'll just stick with Pullman Brown, thank you very much.
On the other hand, would I get to wear the little shorts? Chicks seem to dig those.
Actually, about 60% of the stuff I print is in color, i.e. my digital photos. Altered, of course, to show my fabulous vacation with Heidi Klum. You can see my need for full vibrant colors.
I think that in the article they're probably quoting the price for the 533mhz FSB 2.4Ghz (known as the 2.4B) The pricewatch list you're looking at is for the 2.4Ghz with the 400mhz FSB. Still...that original $562 price they quoted seems way too high.
Slashdot Mirror
That's a load of crap. Just because something is a business doesn't mean that ethics are thrown out the window. This is sadly too often the case, but there's a reason you have to take a class called "Business Ethics" to get an MBA. As for disclosing who paid for the ad, that's not what we're talking about here at all. This is about telling people that the link they're clicking on is an ad! In order for the internet to maintain it's usability, Search Engines must be trusted sources of information. That's not the same as saying they aren't allowed to make money. They can make all the money they want, just so long as they aren't screwing with the results to favor someone who dropped some cash in their laps.
Science fiction writers have devised a variety of means to cope with this threat to their livelihood.
Science fiction has _never_ been about "this is what the future will be like!". Well, some of the crappy stuff is. The best science fiction is all about what-if. Good science fiction places characters in strange circumstances that may or may not bear any relation to a plausible future for humanity. The fun is in seeing how humans (or aliens for that matter) would deal with these circumstances. What-if there was an alien loose on your ship with acid for blood and lightning quick reflexes? What-if a colony of nanobots became self-aware? What-if we found the sun was inhabited with creatures who were slowing down the fusion processes at the center? The plausibility of these scenarios _actually happening_ is slim to none. But that has nothing to do with whether or not this is good science fiction. For me personally, if the story is based on hard science, then thats when I stop caring about the plausibility of the story.
Any science fiction writer who sees himself as a prophet for the future needs to find a new line of work, like say, I don't know, start a cult for instance.
And what if I buy my xbox used?
3d porn?
Esto es verdad. Uso los pantalones muy grandes, pero necesito más sitio en la entrepierna.
Usted es un pequeño hombre divertido. Pero no demando que mi pene es el diablo, sólo ése el diablo está en mis pantalones.
Larry Walters didn't win a Darwin Award. You can only win a Darwin if you remove yourself from the gene pool (i.e. kill yourself or destroy your ability to reproduce). He did, however, recieve an honorable mention.
Yeah, but if you crash on the highway, you and your kids might die. If an asteroid hits the earth, millions or billions could die. So on a personal level, driving is more dangerous, but we're talking about the survival of the species here. It's not something to ignore.
Seriously though, this is a great idea. I always remember the poster my teach put up in his Cosmology classroom. It was a 50's era "Moon Base of the Future!" type poster. Occasionally he would look over at it, and sigh softly to himself. Screw Watergate, the worst thing Nixon ever did was cut back the space program.
Such starry-eyed naivete and optimism baffles me. Surely no one actually expects college-aged persons to think for themselves?
They didn't do that. They just stated that the South African government, like all governments, has the power to back up their requests with force. There is not a single government on Earth that doesn't have "men with guns".
Now, is it just me, or does the phrase "underwater lightning" send images into your brain of tons of rich people floating dead on the surface of their new hottub?
Personally, I think it would be easier (and much cooler!) to gengineer bugs that do eat our waste. Of course there is that whole risk of mutation and the bugs eating all the plastic around us, sending our civilization into chaos and disorder, eventually collapsing, but that always seems pretty cool in the books too. Then I can become a warlord and get my harem. Warlords get a harem, right?
That company called EDS is what made Ross Perot his billions. He no longer runs it, but he made sure before he left that they had plenty of tight connections with the military. Ross was in the Navy himself, Academy class of '53 or something like that. EDS is a huge corporation (remember the cat-herding commercial in the super-bowl 2 years ago? That was them.) I had an interview with their web-development team in Texas, and let me tell you, that place is run like a military operation. Gate Guards, ID checks all over the place, all forms in triplicate. Not really relevant information, I know, just interesting stuff.
On the other hand, would I get to wear the little shorts? Chicks seem to dig those.
Hmm...either Mozilla or Slashdot mangled my post after I submitted. The preview sure didn't have those funky characters.