I was an early adopter of gmail, and was able to get an address that's simply (my) firstnamelastname@gmail.com. I also have a fairly common name - there are a few hundred of me in the USA alone. One of those similarly-named folks selected the same gmail address as mine, but with a middle initial (firstnameAlastname@gmail.com). Over the years, I've gotten: his travel reservations, angry letters from his Mom, his credit report (horrifying!), a photo of his Dad asleep poolside with his junk hanging out of his shorts (even more horrifying!), and countless personal and work-related messages. Any time I get a message intended for this person that appears to have been human-generated, I respond and ask that they get the correct address for the person they wish to contact, and remove MY address from their contacts. I've probably done that 75 times over the years, and gotten repeat email from probably 2/3 of those folks. I finally realized that this person must either think my address is his, or he's just an incredibly sloppy typist and consistently omits the 'A' when he keys his address into a form. For a while he even had a website for his business that directed mail from the "Request Info" form to me! This actually finally stopped about six months ago - I'm not sure if this person finally got their address right, or simply stopped using that address, but I'm relieved to know that I'm not likely to get any more photos of sleeping PornoDad.
"Departments are going to have to confront the chilling effect this surveillance might have on police behavior."
Don't they mean: "Departments are going to have to confront the chilling effect this surveillance might have on police misbehavior"?
I think this is generally a great idea, but why not make it available for Windows/MacOS/Linux? If I wanted to see how an item looked in my home, I'd probably want to see that on my 23" monitor, not my iPhone screen.
I confess to having not looked at Ikea furniture in a few years, but I can't recall seeing anything at Ikea that was solid oak or walnut. Softwoods and lower-end hardwoods, yes, but anything at Ikea that looked like oak was veneer.
Has that changed?
Really? TFA describes this as a Manhattan-based initiative, so I'm guessing that he's using the term New York City to refer to Manhattan, not Greater New York (all five boroughs). There are 1.6 million people in Manhattan. I don't believe the average person locks themselves out twice per year. Even if he does mean all five boroughs, that still means that one-third of the city locks themselves out each year. I have a very hard time believing this.
Also, virtually all Manhattan residents live in apartment buildings, so they need to get though two locked doors; the front door to the building and the door to their actual apartment. Pretty much all buildings use a lock/key that can't be (easily) copied (Mul-T-Lock or similar) for the front door, so unless you're going to break into your own lobby, you're still up the creek. And if you live in a building with a doorman or live-in superintendent, they frequently have access to a copy of your key.
You said:
"The US was founded not all that long after the Inquisition ended."
Actually, the Inquisition wasn't formally abolished until July 15, 1834, quite a while after the founding of the United States. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Inquisition#End_of_the_Inquisition)
This is true. The (allegedly) wronged employees will likely end up doing much better as individual plaintiffs. Read John Grisham's "The King of Torts" for some insight into the world of class action litigation. It's clearly a work of fiction, but lawyer acquaintances have told me that it's a fair description of how such litigation works.
Actually, watching movies in a car was a very common activity in the 1950's. Just not when the car was moving. There used to be these things called "drive-in movie theaters."
You said: If there were no speedlimit people would, for the most part, drive INCREDIBLY riskily.
Research indicates that this is not the case. In areas where speed limits are not enforced, civil engineers find that 85% of motorists drive at what most would call a prudent speed. In fact, in many municipalities, speed limits for a given road are determined by observing traffic and determining the limit based on the 85 percentile speed (assuming, of course, that generating revenue from speeding fines is not part of the equation). Google "85 percentile traffic speed" if you're interested.
Huh? I recently furnished my home with hand-made solid cherry furniture. Did I pay a lot? Yes I did, but I expect it to last for the rest of my life and quite a bit beyond. And except for the finishing and the metal fasteners and other hardware, it's entirely of made of wood, a renewable, easily disposed of resource. Compare this to buying and disposing of particleboard furniture every 5-10 years. Aside from the landfill issues, I'd bet there's a lot more exotic chemicals used in the manufacture of laminated particleboard that we don't want entering the environment. And don't get me started on the petroleum used in the manufacture of all the plastic parts used in that grade of furniture.
I think we, as a species, do not have the space, time, resources or money to allow everyone to dispose of their furniture every few years.
Actually, no airlines operate 747's out of La Guardia; the 7000-foot runways are too short for normal commercial operation of 747's. I believe there have been circumstances where 747's have landed there due to weather or other issues.
You said "it might not be relevant to him for his job duties." C'mon! Not criticizing you, but this guy says he manages a 3 billion dollar budget. And he can't do basic arithmetic, even with a calculator? I can't for the life of me imagine how addition and subtraction can't be relevant to someone that manages money on a daily basis.
One correction: While Breitling has a robust history in aviation, no Breitling watches have ever (officially) been used in space by NASA. The only watches certified by NASA for spaceflight are the Omega Speedmaster Professional and (I believe) the Omega Speedmaster X-33. Interestingly, the current Speedmaster Professional is virtually identical to the one selected by NASA in the mid-1960's mechanical, handwind movement and all. The only modification NASA made to the Speedmasters that went into space was to replace the stock metal bracelet with a Velcro strap that could be adjusted to fit over the cuff of a space suit.
It's probably not quite correct to say that Breitling doesn't "give a shit about science" or that they make "designer watches." Designer watches are what you pick up for $49.95 at Marshall's and toss in the trash when the battery dies. If you've ever held a Breitling, you'd certainly agree that the quality of design and workmanship is orders of magnitude better than a typical "designer watch." Admittedly, the price is also orders of magnitude greater, but you get what you pay for. And there's an enormous amount of both science and engineering that goes into the manufacture of a modern mechanical timepiece. Watch manufacturers are constantly working to develop longer-lasting and more effective lubricants. They develop new alloys to use in escapements to make their watches more resistant to the effects of gravity, magnetism and temperature. They use silicon and other materials in place of metal to reduce both wear and the need for lubrication in their movements.
So, I'm thinking that the folks at Breitling probably do give a shit about science.
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I hope they're planning on a C-section for Mama Mouse.
After all, how many mind-altering cats are there, really?
I was an early adopter of gmail, and was able to get an address that's simply (my) firstnamelastname@gmail.com. I also have a fairly common name - there are a few hundred of me in the USA alone. One of those similarly-named folks selected the same gmail address as mine, but with a middle initial (firstnameAlastname@gmail.com). Over the years, I've gotten: his travel reservations, angry letters from his Mom, his credit report (horrifying!), a photo of his Dad asleep poolside with his junk hanging out of his shorts (even more horrifying!), and countless personal and work-related messages. Any time I get a message intended for this person that appears to have been human-generated, I respond and ask that they get the correct address for the person they wish to contact, and remove MY address from their contacts. I've probably done that 75 times over the years, and gotten repeat email from probably 2/3 of those folks. I finally realized that this person must either think my address is his, or he's just an incredibly sloppy typist and consistently omits the 'A' when he keys his address into a form. For a while he even had a website for his business that directed mail from the "Request Info" form to me! This actually finally stopped about six months ago - I'm not sure if this person finally got their address right, or simply stopped using that address, but I'm relieved to know that I'm not likely to get any more photos of sleeping PornoDad.
How do you edit your std's? I just take antibiotics for mine.
...with Eudora?
"Departments are going to have to confront the chilling effect this surveillance might have on police behavior." Don't they mean: "Departments are going to have to confront the chilling effect this surveillance might have on police misbehavior"?
I think this is generally a great idea, but why not make it available for Windows/MacOS/Linux? If I wanted to see how an item looked in my home, I'd probably want to see that on my 23" monitor, not my iPhone screen.
I confess to having not looked at Ikea furniture in a few years, but I can't recall seeing anything at Ikea that was solid oak or walnut. Softwoods and lower-end hardwoods, yes, but anything at Ikea that looked like oak was veneer. Has that changed?
Really? TFA describes this as a Manhattan-based initiative, so I'm guessing that he's using the term New York City to refer to Manhattan, not Greater New York (all five boroughs). There are 1.6 million people in Manhattan. I don't believe the average person locks themselves out twice per year. Even if he does mean all five boroughs, that still means that one-third of the city locks themselves out each year. I have a very hard time believing this.
Also, virtually all Manhattan residents live in apartment buildings, so they need to get though two locked doors; the front door to the building and the door to their actual apartment. Pretty much all buildings use a lock/key that can't be (easily) copied (Mul-T-Lock or similar) for the front door, so unless you're going to break into your own lobby, you're still up the creek. And if you live in a building with a doorman or live-in superintendent, they frequently have access to a copy of your key.
I don't see this catching on in a big way.
Wouldn't work. Researchers usually need test subjects that resemble humans in some significant way.
You said: "The US was founded not all that long after the Inquisition ended."
Actually, the Inquisition wasn't formally abolished until July 15, 1834, quite a while after the founding of the United States. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Inquisition#End_of_the_Inquisition)
This is true. The (allegedly) wronged employees will likely end up doing much better as individual plaintiffs. Read John Grisham's "The King of Torts" for some insight into the world of class action litigation. It's clearly a work of fiction, but lawyer acquaintances have told me that it's a fair description of how such litigation works.
Actually, watching movies in a car was a very common activity in the 1950's. Just not when the car was moving. There used to be these things called "drive-in movie theaters."
You said: If there were no speedlimit people would, for the most part, drive INCREDIBLY riskily.
Research indicates that this is not the case. In areas where speed limits are not enforced, civil engineers find that 85% of motorists drive at what most would call a prudent speed. In fact, in many municipalities, speed limits for a given road are determined by observing traffic and determining the limit based on the 85 percentile speed (assuming, of course, that generating revenue from speeding fines is not part of the equation). Google "85 percentile traffic speed" if you're interested.
You said: Overwhelmingly, if you wanted to look like you knew why-the-fuck you ought to be on stage, in front of 8,000 people, you went Mac.
I guess I'm missing the point. Isn't it better to actually know why the fuck you ought to be onstage instead of merely looking that way?
Huh? I recently furnished my home with hand-made solid cherry furniture. Did I pay a lot? Yes I did, but I expect it to last for the rest of my life and quite a bit beyond. And except for the finishing and the metal fasteners and other hardware, it's entirely of made of wood, a renewable, easily disposed of resource. Compare this to buying and disposing of particleboard furniture every 5-10 years. Aside from the landfill issues, I'd bet there's a lot more exotic chemicals used in the manufacture of laminated particleboard that we don't want entering the environment. And don't get me started on the petroleum used in the manufacture of all the plastic parts used in that grade of furniture. I think we, as a species, do not have the space, time, resources or money to allow everyone to dispose of their furniture every few years.
...who really wanted to see Titanic in 3D?
Actually, no airlines operate 747's out of La Guardia; the 7000-foot runways are too short for normal commercial operation of 747's. I believe there have been circumstances where 747's have landed there due to weather or other issues.
...to use a guinea pig for this?
From TFA: "So the idea may make the most sense for long-battery-life devices like...iPhones"
In what universe is an iPhone a "long-battery-life" device?
This look would go nicely with my tinfoil hat.
You said "it might not be relevant to him for his job duties." C'mon! Not criticizing you, but this guy says he manages a 3 billion dollar budget. And he can't do basic arithmetic, even with a calculator? I can't for the life of me imagine how addition and subtraction can't be relevant to someone that manages money on a daily basis.
Now I can have unprotected sex with mice and not worry about getting AIDS
One correction: While Breitling has a robust history in aviation, no Breitling watches have ever (officially) been used in space by NASA. The only watches certified by NASA for spaceflight are the Omega Speedmaster Professional and (I believe) the Omega Speedmaster X-33. Interestingly, the current Speedmaster Professional is virtually identical to the one selected by NASA in the mid-1960's mechanical, handwind movement and all. The only modification NASA made to the Speedmasters that went into space was to replace the stock metal bracelet with a Velcro strap that could be adjusted to fit over the cuff of a space suit.
It's probably not quite correct to say that Breitling doesn't "give a shit about science" or that they make "designer watches." Designer watches are what you pick up for $49.95 at Marshall's and toss in the trash when the battery dies. If you've ever held a Breitling, you'd certainly agree that the quality of design and workmanship is orders of magnitude better than a typical "designer watch." Admittedly, the price is also orders of magnitude greater, but you get what you pay for. And there's an enormous amount of both science and engineering that goes into the manufacture of a modern mechanical timepiece. Watch manufacturers are constantly working to develop longer-lasting and more effective lubricants. They develop new alloys to use in escapements to make their watches more resistant to the effects of gravity, magnetism and temperature. They use silicon and other materials in place of metal to reduce both wear and the need for lubrication in their movements. So, I'm thinking that the folks at Breitling probably do give a shit about science.