From TFA: It's still unclear why some people may be more prone to developing procrastination behaviour, but some evidence suggests it may be genetic"
If it is genetic, then procrastinator should be protected under discrimination laws, like vets, the blind, etc. "You can't charge me interest or penalties on my unpaid income tax! I'm disabled by GPD." ( Genetic Procrastination Disorder )
I might rephrase it as "anybody can refresh their memory if they want to", for you don't have to watch it repeatedly on youtube. But regardless, I think there is a good side to this. Some of what is considered shameful by the majority of our population should not be so, and continued exposure to it may cause some rethinking of the issue. We may end up with a better common definition of shame.
The most prominent examples are things in the sexual area. Nudity is often considered shameful; IMHO it should not be. Necking in public is often considered worse than fighting in public; IMHO it should be love not war.
On the other hand, shame may increase for some things. For certain activities like lying - which IMHO is undershamed - that would also be a good thing.
Actually, that was one of the points of the paper: that there seems to be almost no absolute measure of wealth that will satisfy some people. If you have only one 19-year old blond, and you know for a fact that you will never have more because the system will not permit you to legitimately aquire more, the resentment of the guy who has more is enough to motivate revolutions.
It is worth noting that many revolutions are led by the number two guy, who often has multiple cars, multiple homes, and many opportunities for head from teenagers. But he does not have a legitimate way to contest his boss's occupation of the number one job.
"... happiness and contentment is not so much our absolute wealth, but our relative wealth"
This is almost correct. I read a research paper a few years ago ( If I can find the link again, I'll post it ) that said that it was a combination of relative wealth and opportunity that lead to contentment.
Specifically, the authors were looking at revolutions, and noted that they tended to occur when the top quintile made 40 times as much as the bottom quintile, AND there was little or no movement of individuals between quintiles. But if people had the opportunity to move, revolutions did not occur even with greater inequality.
In other words, if people believe that they can someday earn a pile of money, they are much less likely to resent those who have. They will view the rich guy as an incentive.
But if they believe that they cannot get rich - due to caste sytems, monopolies, licencing, racial laws, or some other artificial means of locking them out - then they are far more likely to become violent.
It was reassuring to me that the author said that the US has far greater mobility between quintiles than most developed nations.
P and GP are correct. But the pain will not be shared equally. Those with more experienced players ( ie: patent lawyers ) will do proportionately better as the system gets worse. So none of the big players wants to see it go over a cliff.
"This could be fun to put out fake terror warnings on billboards to get people to drive faster:)"
Or to get them to slow down: "...smokey on your right, 1/4 mile ahead, hiding behind the tree..." Like having CB in which few broadcast but many listen.
"I RTFA, but it didn't discuss why 1 billion ly was such a big deal. "
Didnt seem like a big deal to me either. Ok, you can see stuff that is older, but until you quantify what you are seeing, it's not hard news. Now if they find different composition of stars, or different than expected output, then that is news.
Nope. Aiding and abetting are done before or during the alleged crime, not afterwards. As no criminal has yet claimed that Mr. Dawson helped him, he's currently in the clear.
Nice to know that we don't have crooks running the joint.
"I worry about anything our government does, just on principle."
A very good priciple, IMHO.
GP wrote:Anyone else worried about this?
Authorities and officials requiring all "questionable"
material be required to don the XXX TLD? again at brief
glance it looks like a good idea, but in the long run it
could be hazardous for free speech in a whole..
It looks like an attempt to cordon off the virtual areas in which free speech is permitted, similar to the real-world designated protest areas that one finds near political conventions. It is a trend that allows governments to say, yes you still have free speech, but you have to say it here. Then they can slowly restrict the designated areas - both virtual and real - until free speech is squished down to nothing.
The most extreme example I've seen is a box of Q-tips. So far, most of the labels menioned have been to prevent stupid use of a product. In this case, the manufacturer puts on a label to allegedly prevent the intended use.
Everybody knows what Q-tips are used for: to clean the ear canal. They were designed for that. Yet the box currently has a warning in bold block letters: DO NOT USE SWAB IN EAR CANAL. The label also lists - with pictures! - all the things that their lawers think they should be used for: removing makeup, cleaning your keyboard, etc.
This is all done just to protect themselves from lawsuits.
Although I'm strongly in favor of deleting sexual predators- either the online or offline type, DOPA just didn't do the job that it was purported to do.
The folowing is stolen from wikipedia ( and abridged slightly ): ... The Youth Internet Safety Survey from the University of New Hampshire... found two cases of rape/sexual assault through Internet solicitation in its two surveys covering 3,001 children ages 10 to 17. According to the FBI's criminal victimization tables' national rate for sexual assault, one would expect 7 rapes or sexual assults among such a group every year.
Overall, the Youth Internet Safety Survey suggested that fewer children are actually being sexually solicited online in 2005 than in 1999, hypothesizing that those who encounter solicitations knew better now to rebuff or ignore these solicitations. However, children ages 10 to 17 report more harassment and bullying online -- largely from their peers, not strangers.
There is a difference between actual damages and statutory damages. Actual damages are an attempt to compensate the victim. Statutory damages are an attempt to include punitive damage in statute law.
Whether or not this is wise law-making is debatable. I suspect that it would be better to force the victim to sue directly for punitive damages, thus leaving the matter to a judge to determine of the punishment fits the offense.
Yes, GP probably meant T8s. The number 32 he probably recalls from the fact that most T8s are 32 watts. And they usually put out as many lumens at 32 watts as the older T12s at 40 watts. It doesn't take too long to pay for them when your electrical use bill drops by 20%.
Electronic ballasts are pricey, but they use about 20% less, they are more efficient ( much less heat loss ), they don't hum as loudly, and when they go broke they just quit unobtrusively instead of emitting stinky smoke.
Slashdot Mirror
Yep, programming languages advance by evolution, not intelligent design.
They shoot horses, don't they?
From TFA: It's still unclear why some people may be more prone to developing procrastination behaviour, but some evidence suggests it may be genetic"
If it is genetic, then procrastinator should be protected under discrimination laws, like vets, the blind, etc. "You can't charge me interest or penalties on my unpaid income tax! I'm disabled by GPD." ( Genetic Procrastination Disorder )
T L Sherred also did a short story on that idea. I don't recall the name, but it is in a book of collected stories called 'First Person Peculiar".
I might rephrase it as "anybody can refresh their memory if they want to", for you don't have to watch it repeatedly on youtube. But regardless, I think there is a good side to this. Some of what is considered shameful by the majority of our population should not be so, and continued exposure to it may cause some rethinking of the issue. We may end up with a better common definition of shame.
The most prominent examples are things in the sexual area. Nudity is often considered shameful; IMHO it should not be. Necking in public is often considered worse than fighting in public; IMHO it should be love not war.
On the other hand, shame may increase for some things. For certain activities like lying - which IMHO is undershamed - that would also be a good thing.
Actually, that was one of the points of the paper: that there seems to be almost no absolute measure of wealth that will satisfy some people. If you have only one 19-year old blond, and you know for a fact that you will never have more because the system will not permit you to legitimately aquire more, the resentment of the guy who has more is enough to motivate revolutions.
It is worth noting that many revolutions are led by the number two guy, who often has multiple cars, multiple homes, and many opportunities for head from teenagers. But he does not have a legitimate way to contest his boss's occupation of the number one job.
"... happiness and contentment is not so much our absolute wealth, but our relative wealth"
This is almost correct. I read a research paper a few years ago ( If I can find the link again, I'll post it ) that said that it was a combination of relative wealth and opportunity that lead to contentment.
Specifically, the authors were looking at revolutions, and noted that they tended to occur when the top quintile made 40 times as much as the bottom quintile, AND there was little or no movement of individuals between quintiles. But if people had the opportunity to move, revolutions did not occur even with greater inequality.
In other words, if people believe that they can someday earn a pile of money, they are much less likely to resent those who have. They will view the rich guy as an incentive.
But if they believe that they cannot get rich - due to caste sytems, monopolies, licencing, racial laws, or some other artificial means of locking them out - then they are far more likely to become violent.
It was reassuring to me that the author said that the US has far greater mobility between quintiles than most developed nations.
He couldn't face being stuck in a spaceship with an 8-ft tall alien who refuses to wear pants.
P and GP are correct. But the pain will not be shared equally. Those with more experienced players ( ie: patent lawyers ) will do proportionately better as the system gets worse. So none of the big players wants to see it go over a cliff.
"This could be fun to put out fake terror warnings on billboards to get people to drive faster :)"
Or to get them to slow down: "...smokey on your right, 1/4 mile ahead, hiding behind the tree..." Like having CB in which few broadcast but many listen.
"I RTFA, but it didn't discuss why 1 billion ly was such a big deal. "
Didnt seem like a big deal to me either. Ok, you can see stuff that is older, but until you quantify what you are seeing, it's not hard news. Now if they find different composition of stars, or different than expected output, then that is news.
"With RFID chips costing a fraction of a cent apiece"
Less than a cent?? WHERE??? ( I can't find them lower than 5 cents each and that is in huge quantities )
".Aiding and abetting are we? "
Nope. Aiding and abetting are done before or during the alleged crime, not afterwards. As no criminal has yet claimed that Mr. Dawson helped him, he's currently in the clear.
Nice to know that we don't have crooks running the joint.
"I worry about anything our government does, just on principle."
A very good priciple, IMHO.
GP wrote:Anyone else worried about this?
Authorities and officials requiring all "questionable"
material be required to don the XXX TLD? again at brief
glance it looks like a good idea, but in the long run it
could be hazardous for free speech in a whole..
It looks like an attempt to cordon off the virtual areas in which free speech is permitted, similar to the real-world designated protest areas that one finds near political conventions. It is a trend that allows governments to say, yes you still have free speech, but you have to say it here. Then they can slowly restrict the designated areas - both virtual and real - until free speech is squished down to nothing.
Parent got moderated 'flamebait'??
His post seriously addresses TFA, and the only possibly flame-like statement has a smiley after it. Somebody please scroll back and mod him up.
Parent has a good point.
The most extreme example I've seen is a box of Q-tips. So far, most of the labels menioned have been to prevent stupid use of a product. In this case, the manufacturer puts on a label to allegedly prevent the intended use.
Everybody knows what Q-tips are used for: to clean the ear canal. They were designed for that. Yet the box currently has a warning in bold block letters: DO NOT USE SWAB IN EAR CANAL. The label also lists - with pictures! - all the things that their lawers think they should be used for: removing makeup, cleaning your keyboard, etc.
This is all done just to protect themselves from lawsuits.
Although I'm strongly in favor of deleting sexual predators- either the online or offline type, DOPA just didn't do the job that it was purported to do.
... The Youth Internet Safety Survey from the University of New Hampshire... found two cases of rape/sexual assault through Internet solicitation in its two surveys covering 3,001 children ages 10 to 17. According to the FBI's criminal victimization tables' national rate for sexual assault, one would expect 7 rapes or sexual assults among such a group every year.
The folowing is stolen from wikipedia ( and abridged slightly ):
Overall, the Youth Internet Safety Survey suggested that fewer children are actually being sexually solicited online in 2005 than in 1999, hypothesizing that those who encounter solicitations knew better now to rebuff or ignore these solicitations. However, children ages 10 to 17 report more harassment and bullying online -- largely from their peers, not strangers.
I could show you data that would just as easily say that global warming is due to my age."
Quick! Someone kill this guy before he gets any older!
Sorry.
There is a difference between actual damages and statutory damages. Actual damages are an attempt to compensate the victim. Statutory damages are an attempt to include punitive damage in statute law.
Whether or not this is wise law-making is debatable. I suspect that it would be better to force the victim to sue directly for punitive damages, thus leaving the matter to a judge to determine of the punishment fits the offense.
Please let me know when we have a reasonable president.
I already store my entire porn collection on one sheet. Well, 1/2 actually.
Why they printed an article by Bill Gates rather than one of the hundreds of professional robotics researchers in the country.
Because he has the people to collect info from experts and summarize it for him. And he has the cash and marketing clout to make it happen.
Yes, GP probably meant T8s. The number 32 he probably recalls from the fact that most T8s are 32 watts. And they usually put out as many lumens at 32 watts as the older T12s at 40 watts. It doesn't take too long to pay for them when your electrical use bill drops by 20%.
Electronic ballasts are pricey, but they use about 20% less, they are more efficient ( much less heat loss ), they don't hum as loudly, and when they go broke they just quit unobtrusively instead of emitting stinky smoke.
Since most cameras are digital, what is the FAA sitting on?