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User: SuperGus

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Comments · 36

  1. A little old school, but... on Russia Blames a Bad Sensor For Its Failed Soyuz Rocket Launch (wired.com) · · Score: 2

    In Soviet Russia, sensors damage YOU!

  2. It's a little old school, but... on Intel Launches 8th Gen Core Series CPUs With Integrated AMD Radeon Graphics (hothardware.com) · · Score: 1

    With a Beowulf cluster of these....

  3. Re:Try predicting violent behavior. on An Algorithm That Can Predict Human Behavior Better Than Humans (mit.edu) · · Score: 2

    The Marshmallow Test has been used to try and assess innate levels of self-control in young kids, and I believe it strongly correlates to things like academic success. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

  4. Re:from a psychologist that has helped children gr on Ask Slashdot: Terminally Ill - What Wisdom Should I Pass On To My Geek Daughter? · · Score: 1

    Well done AC, thank you

  5. Just built new house with Control4 + extras on Smart Homes Often Dumb, Never Simple · · Score: 1

    FWIW my experience has been good. Just moved into new home that I specifically designed as a smart home.

    For me the scope of "smart" is:

    • * HVAC incl. ceiling fans and motorized shades on high windows
    • * Security, with intrusion/exterior cameras but also incl. fire / heat / CO / water leak sensors
    • * Audiovisual
    • * Panelized lighting (low voltage keypads instead of wall switches throughout the house. LV wires all run to control panel where they meet HV relays. All HV wires from light fixtures are home run down to the panel). Thus I have control over every bulb in the house using cheap "standard" bulbs.
    • * Control 4 as the main controller, with a few extra bits tacked on for audioviz, security cams, etc.
    • * Networking: Roaming WiFi, NAS for media, and a 4G hotspot to backup Comcast using automatic failover when the cable goes down (allows external communication for security system and C4 controller if the cable is cut).

    After living there for 4 months, I feel the most useful parts of this are:

    1. (1) Panelized lighting, for three reasons. First, convenience. Freaking awesome to have a single kill switch next to my bed that turns off every light, TV screen, and speaker. No more "Honey did you remember to kill the lights and TV in the basement?" Second, aesthetics. I greatly reduced the number of traditional wall switches and replaced with a few small keypads. No more 4-gang switchplates in rooms with lots of lights. Third, getting my geek on. I get to waste time tweaking the programming for various scenes. As a bonus, my wall keypads can control any device the C4 controller can grab, including security, AV, and HVAC - not just lighting.
    2. (2) Ability to control all devices (HVAC, security, audiovisual, lighting) from any TV screen in the house via the C4 interface when the functions on my wall keypads is not enough. Pure convenience.
    3. (3) External communication. I travel a lot and like to check in on the house. House can email me when doorbell rings and I can check CCD footage, etc. Less paranoid and more practical, the house can email when water leak or heat/smoke/CO detectors trigger. We have had basement leakage issues so this is good insurance.

    There are other features I like, but those could mostly be attained with a combination of various retrofit solutions and don't require an integrated home controller like C4.

    Dislikes:

    1. (A) Cost. Panelized lighting requires non-standard wiring of high voltage. Had to pay electrician extra for all the home runs. Also paid an integrator to help with the heavy lifting (design phase) and low voltage installation that the electrician wouldn't touch. Those costs were more than the automation hardware.
    2. (B) C4 interface is a bit klunky
    3. (C) No other big ones yet, although it did take 6 weeks of life in the house to get things tuned how we wanted. Self-inflicted pain due to desire for some rather complex scenes / automation.

  6. Re:Pope Francis - fuck your mother on Pope Francis: There Are Limits To Freedom of Expression · · Score: 1

    Anday Uckfay Ouyay Ootay. There you go, parent translated.

  7. Re:No... on DuinoKit Helps Teach Students About Electronics (Video) · · Score: 1

    Bah, that's nothing - 13.8 billion years ago we were able to stand tall and call it Electroweaktricity!

  8. Re:Still uncertain on About Half of Kids' Learning Ability Is In Their DNA · · Score: 1

    Good point. Tidbit: I do believe there was an important study of monozygotic twins reared apart in Scandanavia, where presumably the gross differences in appearance were minimal versus a diverse place like the USA (hair color, skin color, etc.). This study also came to the same conclusion as Bouchard 1990 if I recall.

  9. Re:Standardized Testing Implications? on About Half of Kids' Learning Ability Is In Their DNA · · Score: 2

    The existence of generalized intelligence is well-established and largely uncontroversial. See, for example, G-factor. It's also not really controversial that it's largely driven by genetics.

  10. Re:Still uncertain on About Half of Kids' Learning Ability Is In Their DNA · · Score: 1

    Check out the numerous studies of monozygotic twins reared apart. For example, Bouchard 1990

  11. Re:False. on About Half of Kids' Learning Ability Is In Their DNA · · Score: 1

    Thank goodness for all the studies of monozygotic twins reared apart. For example: Bouchard 1990. "The maximum contribution to... trait correlations that could be explained by measured similarity of the adoptive rearing environments... is about 0.03. The absence of any significant effect due to... environmental measures on the IQ scores of these adult adopted twins is consistent with the findings of other investigators."

  12. Re:EPIC FAIL of summary on Kaleidescape Settles With DVD CCA But No Victory For DRM · · Score: 1

    Not sure what works better in the blanks... "the" or "effing"

  13. Re:Not quite on Pedophile Asks To Be Deleted From Google Search After European Court Ruling · · Score: 1

    I believe that should be "On the gripping hand..."

  14. 44 posts in thread so far and no mention of... on First Hard Evidence for the Process of Cat Domestication · · Score: 1

    teh Kittehs? I can has first kitteh post.

  15. Re:what happens on 26 New Black Hole Candidates Found In Andromeda · · Score: 1

    "By the time matter passes the blackholes event horizon it's been torn to elementary particles by gravity." - I thought that for sufficiently large black holes, the tidal forces at the event horizon can be small enough that a human would not even notice passing the horizon? Maybe I am mis-remembering :-)

  16. Re:Hmmm... on Dmitry Itskov Wants To Help You Live Forever Via an Android Avatar · · Score: 3, Funny

    Onsciousnesscay isway alreadyway immortalway. Eway areway ethay universeway itselfway, elievingbay otherwiseway isway elievingbay inway ethay illusionway ofway eparatenesssay.

  17. Señor Bong... on New Best Way To Nuke a Short-Notice Asteroid · · Score: 1

    ...is going to hit it. With an impactor.

  18. Re:Timex Sinclair 1000 on How Did You Learn How To Program? · · Score: 1

    Early Tweets for geeks :-)

  19. Cue the lobstrosities on Terrestrial Hermit Crabs Learning Social Tricks · · Score: 1

    From Stephen King's Dark Tower series. Dad-a-chack, dum-a-chum!

  20. Way behind the times on Tilting Bike Uses Google Maps To Simulate Routes · · Score: 1

    Equivalent functionality has been available for years. For example: Computrainer from http://www.racermateinc.com/ (popular in the USA) or Fortius from http://www.tacx.com/ (popular in Europe)

  21. Re:Not a new question on Pentagon Says Cyberattacks Can Count As Act of War · · Score: 1

    No no no, it's only W.H.O.P.P.E.R. that wants Global Thermonuclear War, not the kid in the basement who randomly dialed NORAD with his modem!

  22. Constitutional viewpoint on Louisiana, Intelligent Design, and Science Classes · · Score: 1

    Majority opinion here on /. may be that creationism/ID should at most be taught in a religion course, not a science course. However I find it interesting that nobody has commented from a constitutional or federalist viewpoint. Shouldn't the power of federal or state governments continue to be limited such that local school boards can do as they please? National or state-level standards can be established via standardized tests etc. If local school board buffoons want to teach garbage, then their students can be left to cry when they are unable to pass standardized tests and continue on to higher education outside of their localities. Sure, I'd like to teach all kids everywhere the things I believe are correct & useful, but I'd most prefer that government leave me alone to decide for myself. Nationally mandated curricula sound good in this case, but what about if that curricula also includes a strong bias toward socialism in its sections on Government & Civics? Or only highlights the evils (and not the benefits) of gun ownership? Or only presents certain sides of sensitive historical topics? Or *insert issue of your choice here* ?

  23. Not new, not nearly. on The Year of the E-Bicycle · · Score: 1

    Ho hum. Electric assist bicycles have been on the streets for years over here in Japan, most often seen on the "Mama-rin" or shopping/school commute bikes used by mothers around town. Moms load them up with groceries and one or even two kids. Typically can be had for around 800-1000 USD in price. Ugly beasts but practical and popular. Por ejemplo:

    http://www.yamaha-motor.jp/pas/

  24. Let Loose... on Lake On Titan Winks From a Billion Kilometers Away · · Score: 1

    The Kraken! The name of a lake on the moon of Titan, no less.

  25. Re:Why so 3D-ish without 'real' 3D? on Volunteers Recover Lunar Orbiter 1 Photographs · · Score: 1

    Perhaps it's simply the camera field of view / bokeh?