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User: PiMuNu

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  1. Same in High Energy Physics, IMHO on U.S. Biomedical Research 'Unsustainable' Prominent Researchers Warn · · Score: 4, Informative

    Interestingly, the same things can be said about High Energy Physics - in the last half century, physicists have figured out the standard model of particle physics. Meanwhile, the cost of pushing back the energy frontier (cf LHC) is at the level where it funding is required from a large portion of the Western world to make a major discovery. Research is driven by grad students and post docs, most of whom can never get a permanent position, while funding is diminishing in real terms.

    For me, the current academic system needs updating from the 19th century. It is bad for science not to make the change, because we see the good staff leaving to find a proper job.

  2. Solution = PR? on NSA Infiltrated RSA Deeper Than Imagined · · Score: 1

    You should decide on the solution then agitate for it. For example, one might say Proportional Representation is a solution, as it permits for a broader spectrum of parties/mandates/issues to be represented. (This is my opinion having voted in UK for ~ 4 elections).

  3. Nothing new here? on Quarks Know Their Left From Their Right · · Score: 4, Informative

    Back to the article... Parity violation has been known in quarks for many many years - see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K... (hint: CP violation means charge-parity violation, which is a special case of Parity violation)

  4. Re:the name on Android KitKat Released · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Interestingly, the word KitKat originally derives from pies made in London. The KitKat club, deriving its name from originally meeting in a certain London pie shop, was a social centrepiece of the whig oligarchy that managed the UK government in the early part of the 18th century, and also one of the first institutions to introduce the concept of copyright, thanks to support from Tonson, a publisher and lobbyist for the publishing industry. It is not clear whether there is any relation between KitKat confectionery and KitKat pies, however.

  5. Re:If you need it you are doing it wrong. on LibreOffice Calc Set To Get GPU Powered Boost From AMD · · Score: 1

    The problem with excel is that it is hard to document against and test. In the software world we have lovely tools like doxygen and all sorts of testing suites. We have nice things like functions, classes. One can do analogous things in spreadsheets, but they just aren't as well set up for that sort of stuff. It makes it hard to define what is going on into logical blocks, hard to break that down into blocks that can be tested against. I'm not someone who cares about this language or that language, but I do care that a developer goes through some development process that includes testing and documentation, and I don't see how that can be done in excel.

  6. Re:Just a thought along the side-line on CERN Testing Cloud For Crunching the Universe's Secrets · · Score: 1

    CERN has invested in about 5 million lines of C++ code (google GEANT4 and ROOT) - there is no backing out of C++ now. Python is nice because it can sit on top of the C++ backend and provide less buggy UI. It is also becoming the de facto standard for scientific computing (not just in HEP).

  7. Re:Relevant comment here... on International Linear Collider Design Ready To Go · · Score: 3, Informative

    The JPARC (H- ion) linac actually has a 50 cm kink following the recent earthquake. It still works! That's why we install trim magnets...

  8. Re:In Japan?! on International Linear Collider Design Ready To Go · · Score: 1

    Who said Japan is paying for half the fees? Physicists hope that Japan will stump up, but this has not been stated by anyone in authority to make such a decision. $5 bn is not small change. Nb: asking for money may be awkward at the moment following an uncontrolled release of a tiny amount of radioactive material at JPARC a couple of weeks ago in somewhat uncomfortable circumstances...

  9. Shodan... on The Search Engine More Dangerous Than Google · · Score: 1

    If anyone didn't spot the reference: http://www.giantbomb.com/shodan/3005-423/ Shodan was the baddy AI from System Shock, classic 90s FPS.

  10. Re:It's never too late... on Ask Slashdot: Advice For Summer Before Ph.D. Program? · · Score: 1

    Nice, but citation needed.

  11. Re:lol on A School in the Cloud · · Score: 1

    Universal education was an invention of the enlightenment, so started coming in mid-18th century e.g. universal primary education was introduced in, say, Austro Hungarian empire by Empress Maria Theresa during 1740/50s.

  12. Re:New thing starts with one passionnate person. on Inside the Tech of SpaceX's Homegrown Rocket Engine · · Score: 1
    A couple more
    • The LASER
    • Superconductor (concept)
    • Superconducting wires
    • Particle accelerators

    The list is endless

  13. Re:Would have loved this... on LEGO Announces GNU/LInux-Powered Mindstorms EV3 Platform · · Score: 4, Informative

    Agreed. There is a lego clone called megabloks - that uses the same interface as lego but much cheaper. If you mix lego with megabloks, it is clear that the megabloks build quality is far inferior, leading to crap buildings that fall over. lego is actually decent stuff.

  14. Nice but why fly? on DRONENET: An Internet of Drones · · Score: 1

    The ability to have autonomous vehicles is immensely powerful. Flying drones is stupid and can be dismissed out of hand - but the technology to do this with the road network is already here.

  15. Re:Real bread goes stale after 1 day on Scientists Develop Sixty Day Bread · · Score: 1

    The bread I make at home lasts about a week. Store it in a bread bin or a bag on your bread and yours will to.

  16. Re:"Gender biased" may be oversimplification on Ask Slashdot: Math and Science iOS Apps For Young Kids? · · Score: 1

    There is an interesting study where they gave a bunch of monkeys some dolls and diggers. The female monkeys went to play with the dolls, the male monkeys went to play with the diggers [citation needed, maybe someone into developmental psychology has it]... just one of those things...

  17. Re:Richard Muller on Climate Contrarians Seek Leadership of House Science Committee · · Score: 1

    Oh, I didn't realise they had been here already http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Founder. Oh what, you don't mean some ancient race of star travelling shape shifters, you mean a bunch of guys right. Okay, just checking.

  18. Re:It was his people's skills, not products. on The Empire In Decline? · · Score: 3, Funny

    I used to have an application that would let me use the keyboard to find and launch applications. I had to remember quite long key combinations, which was a pain, but I could do a manual search for them if I needed to. But then windows 3.1 came along and ever since then it never seemed to work quite so well...

  19. Re:This is weird on The Release Candidate For Linux Mint 14 "Nadia" Is Out · · Score: 1

    Posted from my Linux Mint laptop... it just works tx. It's an OS, its job is to "just work". If you notice it, that's a problem.

  20. Re:Information Mapping on WTFM: Write the Freaking Manual · · Score: 1

    Googling around - looks like proprietary bs to me

  21. Re:Docs are first thing I look at. on WTFM: Write the Freaking Manual · · Score: 1

    Should also look at test framework/test coverage. Gives a good idea of how many bugs you will hit...

  22. Re:Just use encryption. on Plans For Widespread Monitoring of Communication In Europe Revealed · · Score: 1

    Been reading Le Carre?

  23. Re:Amount in urine on Is the Can Worse Than the Soda? · · Score: 1

    Slashdot: A mix between a peer review journal and "bum fights"

    Peer review journal: a mix between science and "bum fights"

  24. Re:Radiation in Denver is unavoidable on The Panic Over Fukushima · · Score: 1

    And relative to Fukushima - how many conventional chemical/oil plants got destroyed by the tsunami? How much junk did that spew into the environment, and how many people will die of poisoning from that stuff? Heck, why are they discussing investing many billions in improving nuclear plant safety, which might save few people rather than improving flood defences and emergency response which might save thousands? This whole discussion is just crazy.

  25. Being serious for a minute... on Scientists Set Bold Plan For Future Exploration of the Sun · · Score: 1

    Reads like the sort of bland non-specific but ambitious-sounding balls that research councils push all the time. Great sound bites for the politicians, but what does it really mean?