Blake's 7 was, I must agree, a killer show. But I'd have to respectfully disagree that it was much like FarScape. Except insofar as they were both derivative of the original Star Trek (which was, in turn, deeply derivative of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, I kid you not--tape a few episodes from early morning SciFi, you may be surprised).
Where they differ is in tone. B7 was a bleak, grim universe with the main characters attempting a rebellion against the oppressive Federation. It beautifully turned ST on its ear, presenting the "unifying" force as a colonialist empire.
In FarScape, while there is a bit of that with the Peacekeepers, the predominant tone is one of a quest for home and/or family. The episodes have a much wider range of focus than in B7--sometimes almost random.
Both excellent shows, but apart from the inherent silimarities of zap-gun, rocket-ranger space opera, quite different.
Ejecting them is a pain sometimes, but I've never actually had a problem. If the OS doesn't want to eject it, I just yank the cable anyway. Maybe it's because I'm using an USB HD, rather than a flash memory device, but I've never had it lose data. I suspect the same would be true of the terapin mine. (Which, BTW, is a terrible name...and keeping the name in lower case just adds to the confusion. Talk about negative brand recognition!)
Just my 2 cents.
Sweet, but the Archos Jukebox 6000 is cheaper
on
10GB In A Linux PDA
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· Score: 2, Informative
I have an Archos Jukebox 6000, which is essentially a USB HD with the ability to play MP3s. Granted it doesn't have all the expandability that this thing does, but you can get one for a third of the price ($200).
I find it very handy to transfer up to 6GB of files from work to home, and play MP3s in my car while doing so.
What I'd really like is for my Archos to be merged with my Handspring. I don't understand why no-one has done this yet. Add in Bluetooth connectivity to my phone, and I'd be a happy man. That would solve pretty much all my portable electronic needs.
...it doesn't mean it *was* done with kites.
This is a cool project, but I seriously question the claim to historical accuracy. There are no recorded instances of kites until around 200 BCE.
It's not like the materials to build a kite are particularly rare or hard to manufacture--in ancient Egypt, they could have used reeds and papyrus. So if the technology was known, why haven't kids been flying kites in Egypt since the days of the pyramids?
Ooo! I know; the priest cast must have kept this technology forbidden. And thus it was lost to the ages. The world's greatest mystery turns into the world's oldest conspiracy theory!
So, if the theory that the Egyptians used kites is flawed (and I think it is), then why bother doing this project specifically to raise obelisks, instead of some other kind of engineering feat? I think that Clemmons is trying to evoke the mystery and majesty of the pyramids to raise money for what is otherwise merely an interesting engineering trick, increasing her salary to boot. The whole thing relies on the donations that she or people working for her can drum up, and the merchandising of overpriced goods.
It's a Pyramid Scheme!
It's not hard to simulate mindless chatter
on
A.I. and the Future
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· Score: 1
I think that reflects more on the poor quality of conversation in chat/rooms than it does on the state of ALICE's A.I.
Imagine having a conversation with ALICE on the phone (say, with a human speaking the responses, to eliminate the poor quality of voice simulation); do you still think you would be fooled? If so, you need to spend less time in chatrooms.
My friends can speak eloquently on a wide variety of subjects. To fool me, I would expect an A.I. to have access to a large database of subjects, from current movies, music, and TV, to news and world events, to technical issues, and to be able to reply appropriately to what I say (if not start topics on its own). Heck, even Google has better context-sensitivity than that little chatbot.
No offense, but don't you have Internet access? A quick Google search ("FSLIC Bush son") confirmed my memory. Plenty of hits. No sign of a cover-up.
I mean, yeah, the Bushes are dirty money, and I hate like poison the fact that the Shrub is in the Oval Office, but c'mon! There're plenty of *real* reasons to dislike him; why muddy the waters?
If you want to spread conspiracy theories, you can make them a lot more credible by using the correct facts where readily available. Just a tip.
Oh, BTW, I've got some great photos of Yeti and UFOs that I can sell you, if you're interested.
Yes, one screen might be cheaper, but until we get those bendable OLED screens, they won't fit into this form-factor. If you tried to fold an 8" glass screen small enough to fit in your pocket, you'd end up with a bunch of very sharp, jagged, unreadable screens.
The idea of using kites for heavy lifting and construction isn't new--Chinese legends talk about lifting huge blocks to the top of cliffs to build castles (a brief search turned up this site)--but I doubt the Egyptians did it. The origin of the kite is generally thought to have been in China and Malaysia circa 200 BCE, long after the bulk of Egytian construction. Still a cool idea!
Slashdot Mirror
I can read English. And I read the story about the potato-powered server, too. ;-)
Blake's 7 was, I must agree, a killer show. But I'd have to respectfully disagree that it was much like FarScape. Except insofar as they were both derivative of the original Star Trek (which was, in turn, deeply derivative of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, I kid you not--tape a few episodes from early morning SciFi, you may be surprised).
Where they differ is in tone. B7 was a bleak, grim universe with the main characters attempting a rebellion against the oppressive Federation. It beautifully turned ST on its ear, presenting the "unifying" force as a colonialist empire.
In FarScape, while there is a bit of that with the Peacekeepers, the predominant tone is one of a quest for home and/or family. The episodes have a much wider range of focus than in B7--sometimes almost random.
Both excellent shows, but apart from the inherent silimarities of zap-gun, rocket-ranger space opera, quite different.
Oh, and Voyager sucked. B5 was okay, though.
Ejecting them is a pain sometimes, but I've never actually had a problem. If the OS doesn't want to eject it, I just yank the cable anyway. Maybe it's because I'm using an USB HD, rather than a flash memory device, but I've never had it lose data. I suspect the same would be true of the terapin mine. (Which, BTW, is a terrible name...and keeping the name in lower case just adds to the confusion. Talk about negative brand recognition!)
Just my 2 cents.
I have an Archos Jukebox 6000, which is essentially a USB HD with the ability to play MP3s. Granted it doesn't have all the expandability that this thing does, but you can get one for a third of the price ($200).
I find it very handy to transfer up to 6GB of files from work to home, and play MP3s in my car while doing so.
What I'd really like is for my Archos to be merged with my Handspring. I don't understand why no-one has done this yet. Add in Bluetooth connectivity to my phone, and I'd be a happy man. That would solve pretty much all my portable electronic needs.
...it doesn't mean it *was* done with kites. This is a cool project, but I seriously question the claim to historical accuracy. There are no recorded instances of kites until around 200 BCE.
It's not like the materials to build a kite are particularly rare or hard to manufacture--in ancient Egypt, they could have used reeds and papyrus. So if the technology was known, why haven't kids been flying kites in Egypt since the days of the pyramids?
Ooo! I know; the priest cast must have kept this technology forbidden. And thus it was lost to the ages. The world's greatest mystery turns into the world's oldest conspiracy theory!
So, if the theory that the Egyptians used kites is flawed (and I think it is), then why bother doing this project specifically to raise obelisks, instead of some other kind of engineering feat? I think that Clemmons is trying to evoke the mystery and majesty of the pyramids to raise money for what is otherwise merely an interesting engineering trick, increasing her salary to boot. The whole thing relies on the donations that she or people working for her can drum up, and the merchandising of overpriced goods.
It's a Pyramid Scheme!
I think that reflects more on the poor quality of conversation in chat/rooms than it does on the state of ALICE's A.I. Imagine having a conversation with ALICE on the phone (say, with a human speaking the responses, to eliminate the poor quality of voice simulation); do you still think you would be fooled? If so, you need to spend less time in chatrooms. My friends can speak eloquently on a wide variety of subjects. To fool me, I would expect an A.I. to have access to a large database of subjects, from current movies, music, and TV, to news and world events, to technical issues, and to be able to reply appropriately to what I say (if not start topics on its own). Heck, even Google has better context-sensitivity than that little chatbot.
No offense, but don't you have Internet access? A quick Google search ("FSLIC Bush son") confirmed my memory. Plenty of hits. No sign of a cover-up. I mean, yeah, the Bushes are dirty money, and I hate like poison the fact that the Shrub is in the Oval Office, but c'mon! There're plenty of *real* reasons to dislike him; why muddy the waters? If you want to spread conspiracy theories, you can make them a lot more credible by using the correct facts where readily available. Just a tip. Oh, BTW, I've got some great photos of Yeti and UFOs that I can sell you, if you're interested.
Yes, one screen might be cheaper, but until we get those bendable OLED screens, they won't fit into this form-factor. If you tried to fold an 8" glass screen small enough to fit in your pocket, you'd end up with a bunch of very sharp, jagged, unreadable screens.
The idea of using kites for heavy lifting and construction isn't new--Chinese legends talk about lifting huge blocks to the top of cliffs to build castles (a brief search turned up this site)--but I doubt the Egyptians did it. The origin of the kite is generally thought to have been in China and Malaysia circa 200 BCE, long after the bulk of Egytian construction. Still a cool idea!