This is another case of people espousing somewhat academic ideals because they're either idealistic or posturing. Much like the methods academics would suggest for general programming, a lot of the examples in this book assume a populace that has the ability to understand them. This isn't to say that we shouldn't know the principles behind information display, but those can be had in much simpler books, with more real world examples. Sure, it's cool that the Okinawa train schedule packs a ton of info into an efficient area, but it's also a daunting read for the uninitiated. People deal best with once piece of information at a time. It reminds me of web sites that use menus based on a 3d sphere of text, or interrelated sliders. It may make perfect sense to some people, but not to all. Truly, KISS.
This thing came out last year. They're really nice, though. I use mine to catalog the Simpsons and The Rockford Files on VCD. It does seem to have a problem with the pitch on the audio when recording to certain formats (like the ones I want to use). The fact that I bought one explains their anonymity. I'm always one of like 18 people who buy my particular brand(s) of hardware, making support sketchy.
I don't know how scientific issues manage to become political issues, but in this particular case, both sides here are arguing outcomes that they cannot possibly predict. If the data shows a warming trend in the last century, I'll buy that. But what does it mean? Do we expect that the earth's temperature is invariant? Can we prove causation? I just don't see a strong case either way. If there continues to be a warming trend, what will be the result of that? How do we know if it will be good or bad? I can't see how we could. The weather is like the ultimate 3 body problem, involving the interactions of countless variables. I defy anyone to make a simulation that can predict the weather in a statistically significant way for even short term trends. My personal view is that we should alter our energy usage policies for more obvious reasons, such as dwindling petroleum supplies, smog, and self-reliance from foreign energy sources. Am I nuts?
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This is another case of people espousing somewhat academic ideals because they're either idealistic or posturing. Much like the methods academics would suggest for general programming, a lot of the examples in this book assume a populace that has the ability to understand them. This isn't to say that we shouldn't know the principles behind information display, but those can be had in much simpler books, with more real world examples. Sure, it's cool that the Okinawa train schedule packs a ton of info into an efficient area, but it's also a daunting read for the uninitiated. People deal best with once piece of information at a time. It reminds me of web sites that use menus based on a 3d sphere of text, or interrelated sliders. It may make perfect sense to some people, but not to all. Truly, KISS.
This thing came out last year.
They're really nice, though. I use mine to catalog the Simpsons and The Rockford Files on VCD. It does seem to have a problem with the pitch on the audio when recording to certain formats (like the ones I want to use).
The fact that I bought one explains their anonymity. I'm always one of like 18 people who buy my particular brand(s) of hardware, making support sketchy.
I don't know how scientific issues manage to become political issues, but in this particular case, both sides here are arguing outcomes that they cannot possibly predict.
If the data shows a warming trend in the last century, I'll buy that. But what does it mean? Do we expect that the earth's temperature is invariant? Can we prove causation? I just don't see a strong case either way. If there continues to be a warming trend, what will be the result of that? How do we know if it will be good or bad? I can't see how we could. The weather is like the ultimate 3 body problem, involving the interactions of countless variables. I defy anyone to make a simulation that can predict the weather in a statistically significant way for even short term trends.
My personal view is that we should alter our energy usage policies for more obvious reasons, such as dwindling petroleum supplies, smog, and self-reliance from foreign energy sources.
Am I nuts?
Anyone know how cell phone transmissions compare to the natural radiations we get from the sun on a typical day?