In the article, Mr. Wright says, "To not travel beyond our planet would be like living a few hundred years ago and not wanting to explore new continents." Sorry, Mr. Columbus went West cuz that was how he thought he could get rich. He only got financed because he convinced his backers that they would become rich, too.
After 50 years of worshipping the heroes of Science in spirit and, more importantly, in taxes, I am calling "bullshit". I will no longer support the use of public money on projects that do not directly improve the living conditions of, at least, one person ( just one, that's all I ask) who is not directly nor indirectly involved in the financing, planning or execution of the project. So, unless the reason for going to the Moon (or anywhere else) is based on expediency or economy, I am no longer buying arguments of the Scientific Bureaucratic Family. (That being the Fellowship of American University and Federal Scientists who, without projects like going to the Moon, etc., would actually have to do work that solves a real problem. Seriously,
cragen
ps. NSF Budget + NASA budget = ~$20billion+. That does not count any other Department's or Agency's Research Budget.
I went to the local Gateway store to buy and take home a computer. I had done my research and Gateway had the model I wanted. Walked in and ended up walking out 'cuz they don't have computers at their stores. You have to *order* them from the store and wait a week or two. WTF? So, I got in my car and went to a different store where I waw able to select, buy, and take home the PC I wanted. That is one reason that those Gateway stores are closing. There, apparently, never were any Gateways stores. They were a facade for the web site, I guess. (Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?)
(Disclaimer: This is not a rant.)You might also consider that your legitimate customers have decided that your content is not worth viewing anymore and are using this method to not have to view what they now view as worthless content, without actually having to get out their "deal" with your company. Could be...
I believe SAIC now owns the "Bell Labs". Odd, sort of, that they are still called AT&T or Bell Labs. We should start calling them SAIC Labs to show our displeasure. (The term "SAIC" does not exactly bring the good feelings the term "Bell" does. Ah, well.)
that these people are going to be *disappointed* if it (the volcano eruption, end of the world, whatever) doesn't happen!! Are their lives so awful and dreary that they wish for such a thing just to get relief from living? I can actually appreciate such feelings, (been there, etc.) but, if they/you actually hope for or joyfully anticipate such an event, talk to someboday about your life. You need to find someone that can help you get over your past and look forward to your future. It is, after all, your life. *Cragen
And the second amazing thing is that, so far, in the first hour after this story was posted, there were over 225 posts. (Posting this observation was the ONLY way I could think of as having anything to say. Relatively, anyway.) Was that research led by a guy named Shroedinger?
Whatever happened to the idea that something going away from us would eventually "re-appear" on the opposite side of the Universe and start heading towards us? (I have no clue what hypothesis was/is called.) Perhaps everything expanded to the edge, ALREADY, and is now "expanding" towards the center, again, and is therefore being more attracted to everything else cause it's getting CLOSER! (I have to stop now. My brain is going to take a little break.) Whew. Next?
I remember that. IIRC, I think AT&T required that you lease a 56K line (or two) (which was pretty expensive in the late 80's) and you had to call an intermediate switch in Atlanta. I worked for FEMA at the time. In 1991, I saw a demo of both AT&T & the Northern Telecom (now Nortel) 56K Videophones on the same day. The Nortel group demo'ed a phone that was plugged into a PC. It was 56K also, with screen sharing, kinda like NetMeeting. FEMA actually bought the Nortel version for all its execs, but they eventually junked it. The execs wouldn't use it so that was that.
pfft. This has been going on for years, nay, decades, if the food I had to try to eat while in the military is any indication. (Perhaps they were weaning us off solid food in prep for this!)
I believe it was Arthur C. Clarke who stated that there has been no evidence found to support the idea that intelligence has any role in evolution. I suppose that probably applies to "beauty" and athleticism, also. Evolution, as I understand it, is the factor of genetic luck favoring those who succeed in spite of environmental conditions. At the moment, we humans don't seem too stressed, so silly things like beauty, athleticsm, intelligence, etc., seem to rule the roost, so to speak. I imagine that the environment will change someday (or continue its current rate of change) , whether we cause it or not, and the real evolutionary factors, whatever they are in whoever has the genes that allow them to thrive under that stress, will once again (or continure to) rule. I doubt that we really see the human evolutionary "picture" in proper perspective. Not that I care, of course. My genes tell me pretty, smart, and athletic is GOOD! Fortunately, my wife is smart and realized two out of three of the same in men ain't bad.
It's OK, but...
on
King Rat
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
it's not as good as China's more recent stuff. Not-so-good-China-Meiville is still better than 90% of the rest of SFF. Speaking of the other 10%, I just finished the Hyperion series (4 books) by Dan Simmons. I am now doing something I have never, ever, done before. I am returning straight to book one and starting over. Take all your favorite adjectives and add "and moving." to the end. Stunning. (The Matrix is rumored to have stolen its plot from the Hyperion books. Now that Hyperion is, supposedly, going to become a movie, some joke about the irony that people will say Hyperion is a rip-off of Matrix.) Read the books. Moving.
cragen
ps. Lest ye think this is new, I think the first Hyperion book, conveniently named "Hyperion", came out around '89.
Well, your new theory is not logical. The first question can still hold, i think. Now it's just a little harder. They use that method of teaching in elementary school, which pretty much is how the current universe acts.
We/.'ers ain't got time to think! We gotta post fast to get them mod points or the chance is just gone. BTW, I am not the one who modded you down, but your post just wasn't funny. Well, to me, for what that's worth. If you gotta explain your joke, it ain't funny. Actually, I read your explanation (parent) first, changed my settings, and then read your initial post.
It still didn't help. Unfunny. Probably too, too subtle, as in "i had no clue you were referring to JF, vice MF". Further consulting parsing of humor on/. can be contracted at run_your_joke_by_me@joke_analyzers.com^H^H^Hnet.
[rant] Well, here in VA, there ain't much difference between a clean election and a "fixed" election. I have long suspected that the same guy/group is selecting all the candidates for all the parties for all the elections. Might as well be. They all look the same, act the same, and smell the same before and after they have been elected. The traffic doesn't get any better, etc., etc. (Here in VA, they don't even bother anymore with putting the party of the candidate on the roadside "Vote for X for Y" adverts during the election season.) [/rant] How exactly would the outcome be different if the voting machines were hacked? Having "Kermit the Frog" get 98% of the vote might just be an improvement!
Hey, you NASA guys put it up there. You can darn well bring it back DOWN!! (Can you?) That would be cool. Put it in the Air & Space Museum at Dulles Airport. If the shuttle and scope can stand liftoff, surely they can figure out how to glide it in (unless it's a weight issue - if so, then just stop by every trip and bring down a piece. That's how I usually move...)
Is that the number of bytes that can be processed (bitten off, so to speak) while one eats a PBJ? (Which, by the way, in my 12-year-old son's case, is darn near one second!)
Even in the American Midwest (where I grew up), there is a class system where each segment of each class has a slightly different attitude towards similar subjects. As a "lower middle-class" or
"upper lower-class", one would be ridiculed if one showed any initiative whatsoever in any way. That was "trying to rise above one's self". When I moved to the American East Coast (and, coincidentally, into the upper middle-class), the culture shock was immediate. Initiative was expected and, when not shown, was considered a sign of laziness. I was "taught" growing up to wait to be told what to do. It took years to unlearn that habit. Don't let anyone tell you that America is a class-less society. You can, however, change classes here and in both directions.
Ah, R.I.P. Captain Kangaroo. He would have enjoyed the parent post. Funny, as the show was always in black and white, I never associated Mr. Green Jeans's name with his overalls. Whooo...
That is probably the best post I have ever, ever read. I can hardly type through the tears!!! If there were no max on mods, that would deserve to be the all-timer.
Well, it's COLD there. If that dirt is anything like me (one of the people in the currently frigid Northeast US), when it gets that cold, I ain't moving unless I'm PUSHED!
companies were able to take any half-wit drunken dumbshit off the street and have him trained (sort of like a monkey) as an admin inside of a few weeks I resemble that remark!! I think... I remember buying Win3.1 and using Windows Server version 3. (pre-NT)
The issue was never about quality of service. It was always about quantity of service. The IT/CS community could not keep up with the demand. Microsoft shifted the load from the geeks to the (us) "dumbshits" and we made do and made everything happen much faster. No more trudging to the Computer Center to get the printout from the 1000000 lines/min. printer, available in one color and format. The technical world "converted" last as it wasn't (then) looking for these features. With Windows and Novell (the networking equivalent of Windows), productivity (!!) took off. Bottom line, my friend. Productivity, both real and perceived. (I speak from both sides of my mouth as I "converted" and am a Senior in CS at a minor Univ. in VA.)
Actually, what Microsoft did was let the USER do what he wanted when he wanted in the way that he wanted. (Understanding that the User did not realize that there was more than one way to do anything.) The User just wanted to get the job done. The Unix community never understood service. Indeed, they were "bred" not to. The prevailing business and technical atmosphere more closely resembled the military in that most were more interested in establishing and protecting their position than in providing customer service. The IT world (we) need a brain shift. Microsoft, Novell, and, probably, more importantly, the Web, provided that kick in the tail. I think I could go on and on (and probably have), but I stop to let the kbd cool off. Cragen
Actually, as a "mature"/.'er (over 50), married with two kids and a wife, I might volunteer for the peace and quiet! (Though 'whack' might be an adjective that could stick to me...) I don't think I could, however, stand having to look at that Martian horizon for the rest of my life. Here's to the first Martian SysAdmin!!
What we need is NEON panels! Harness all that wasted lightbulb light back into batteries or something! (I was joking, but now that I actually read this back to myself, this seems like an excellent idea. Is there any possibility that this could ever work? If not, why not? Just curious.) *cragen
Slashdot Mirror
After 50 years of worshipping the heroes of Science in spirit and, more importantly, in taxes, I am calling "bullshit". I will no longer support the use of public money on projects that do not directly improve the living conditions of, at least, one person ( just one, that's all I ask) who is not directly nor indirectly involved in the financing, planning or execution of the project. So, unless the reason for going to the Moon (or anywhere else) is based on expediency or economy, I am no longer buying arguments of the Scientific Bureaucratic Family. (That being the Fellowship of American University and Federal Scientists who, without projects like going to the Moon, etc., would actually have to do work that solves a real problem. Seriously,
cragen
ps. NSF Budget + NASA budget = ~$20billion+. That does not count any other Department's or Agency's Research Budget.
cragen
cragen
cragen.
Long may they wave. Cragen
that these people are going to be *disappointed* if it (the volcano eruption, end of the world, whatever) doesn't happen!! Are their lives so awful and dreary that they wish for such a thing just to get relief from living? I can actually appreciate such feelings, (been there, etc.) but, if they/you actually hope for or joyfully anticipate such an event, talk to someboday about your life. You need to find someone that can help you get over your past and look forward to your future. It is, after all, your life. *Cragen
Guess what? It happened again. :)
And the second amazing thing is that, so far, in the first hour after this story was posted, there were over 225 posts. (Posting this observation was the ONLY way I could think of as having anything to say. Relatively, anyway.) Was that research led by a guy named Shroedinger?
Whatever happened to the idea that something going away from us would eventually "re-appear" on the opposite side of the Universe and start heading towards us? (I have no clue what hypothesis was/is called.) Perhaps everything expanded to the edge, ALREADY, and is now "expanding" towards the center, again, and is therefore being more attracted to everything else cause it's getting CLOSER! (I have to stop now. My brain is going to take a little break.) Whew. Next?
I remember that. IIRC, I think AT&T required that you lease a 56K line (or two) (which was pretty expensive in the late 80's) and you had to call an intermediate switch in Atlanta. I worked for FEMA at the time. In 1991, I saw a demo of both AT&T & the Northern Telecom (now Nortel) 56K Videophones on the same day. The Nortel group demo'ed a phone that was plugged into a PC. It was 56K also, with screen sharing, kinda like NetMeeting. FEMA actually bought the Nortel version for all its execs, but they eventually junked it. The execs wouldn't use it so that was that.
pfft. This has been going on for years, nay, decades, if the food I had to try to eat while in the military is any indication. (Perhaps they were weaning us off solid food in prep for this!)
I believe it was Arthur C. Clarke who stated that there has been no evidence found to support the idea that intelligence has any role in evolution. I suppose that probably applies to "beauty" and athleticism, also. Evolution, as I understand it, is the factor of genetic luck favoring those who succeed in spite of environmental conditions. At the moment, we humans don't seem too stressed, so silly things like beauty, athleticsm, intelligence, etc., seem to rule the roost, so to speak. I imagine that the environment will change someday (or continue its current rate of change) , whether we cause it or not, and the real evolutionary factors, whatever they are in whoever has the genes that allow them to thrive under that stress, will once again (or continure to) rule. I doubt that we really see the human evolutionary "picture" in proper perspective. Not that I care, of course. My genes tell me pretty, smart, and athletic is GOOD! Fortunately, my wife is smart and realized two out of three of the same in men ain't bad.
cragen
ps. Lest ye think this is new, I think the first Hyperion book, conveniently named "Hyperion", came out around '89.
Well, your new theory is not logical. The first question can still hold, i think. Now it's just a little harder. They use that method of teaching in elementary school, which pretty much is how the current universe acts.
cragen
cragen
cragen
cragen
cragen
cragen
cragen
Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrr, cragen
The issue was never about quality of service. It was always about quantity of service. The IT/CS community could not keep up with the demand. Microsoft shifted the load from the geeks to the (us) "dumbshits" and we made do and made everything happen much faster. No more trudging to the Computer Center to get the printout from the 1000000 lines/min. printer, available in one color and format. The technical world "converted" last as it wasn't (then) looking for these features. With Windows and Novell (the networking equivalent of Windows), productivity (!!) took off. Bottom line, my friend. Productivity, both real and perceived. (I speak from both sides of my mouth as I "converted" and am a Senior in CS at a minor Univ. in VA.) Actually, what Microsoft did was let the USER do what he wanted when he wanted in the way that he wanted. (Understanding that the User did not realize that there was more than one way to do anything.) The User just wanted to get the job done. The Unix community never understood service. Indeed, they were "bred" not to. The prevailing business and technical atmosphere more closely resembled the military in that most were more interested in establishing and protecting their position than in providing customer service. The IT world (we) need a brain shift. Microsoft, Novell, and, probably, more importantly, the Web, provided that kick in the tail. I think I could go on and on (and probably have), but I stop to let the kbd cool off. Cragen
cragen
What we need is NEON panels! Harness all that wasted lightbulb light back into batteries or something! (I was joking, but now that I actually read this back to myself, this seems like an excellent idea. Is there any possibility that this could ever work? If not, why not? Just curious.) *cragen