Yep, coffee has very little to do with actual "coffee" as a product. Coffee is a ritual, and often, a social activity. You go somewhere sooth your mind on some coffee sipping, people watching, chatting with others, or…
OK, but even now Windows folks have largely given up on pressing <windows>/<All Programs> and looking for what they want. There's simply too much stuff on a typical computer these days for a user to pick out what they…
The comment you're responding to is about the political impetus for ever-increasing road construction to combat congestion. Your "reverse" commute to exburbs/rural areas is likely not impacted much by congestion. You…
OK, but what about email read/composed on my personal gmail account using a work computer? When you say "personal email" do you mean @company.com email-- or do you mean _any_ personal email as long as it is…
OK, that is what is "legally possible" in a worst-case scenario. But IN PRACTICE, what is normal? Your statement seems to indicate that IT staff can just browse personal communications, desktop displays, keypresses. I…
I hear this as "blanket advice" all the time, but very rarely is there a discussion about what is reasonable to expect from a "normal" employer who isn't draconian or looking to find an excuse to fire someone.
Its easy to conclude that but suppose you're a white high-income professional who is looking for a home in Baltimore city. You have your pick of any neighborhood. Would you choose.... A) A rowhome in a squalid…
Yes. Although MAD doesn't necessarily require the end of the world (eg nuclear winter), or even the end of a regime. It just depends on consequences which are "unbearable" for either nation. I've always felt that the…
The MAD doctrine seems to have worked with binary superpowers up through the 80's. But, I think its an open (and rather scary) question as to whether MAD will continue to work with multiple parties some of whom are…
I think discussions about sobriety tend to ignore the vast middle-ground between "stone-cold-sober" and "shit-faced". It is totally possible to enjoy one or two alcoholic drinks on a weekly night out without ruining…
Agree, although properly positioned monitor speakers which have been equalized by the listener for a particular spot in the room can sound really, REALLY nice (if you don't leave your listening chair !).
I agree that in terms of sound, digital is superior. But as the article describes there is very much a collectable "object appeal" to old media. Now that even CD's and their annoying jewel cases are becoming obsolete,…
There certainly are more opportunities to learn than ever before, but learning requires effort. If you want to learn something that _really_ matters you have to give it full attention. That means total focus, not…
> common to hear "how come they don't sit down learn to code and become full stack developers, that would be so easy." Yep, that reminds me one of Phil Greenspun's smug blog posts from a while back:…
Absolutely, and don't forget tidyr! Its hard to overstate Mr Wickham's contribution to making R a very handy and useful tool. I am sure that a lot of folks would have tried R and then moved on to something else were it…
There is a weirdness to R. I found that taking a lot of time to focus on the basics helps. If you're committed to using R, read John Chamber's book and also look for answers on the old "R mailing list" (a place so mean,…
At the end of the day, the whole point of ggplot is to produce a graphical representation of some aspect of the data. How much information can you possibly cram into ONE graphic and have it be readable by a human? Your…
I think what you're responding to is NOT about willingness to experiment with unproven drugs, but rather a feeling of horror about dementia and Alzheimer's disease. These are awful afflictions that impact not just the…
Obviously, that only works if you don't _ALSO_ create a public relations disaster by doing so.
Well, actually, this whole discussion IS about Shkreli and your comments are within the context of the discussion so don't disclaim that. Shkreli has foolishly attracted attention to himself by comically absurd…
I can't explain why, but there has always been something dreamy and magical about the Soviet space program and its spacecrafts. I've appreciated the apollo-soyuz exhibit at the Air and Space Museum in DC since I was a…
I have some similarities with you. 8 full-time jobs in 15 years all after a 9 year stint in graduate school where I quit a PHD program. I also crave trying new things even when they're risky, much to the horror of the…
I think the actual threat from AI is far more pedestrian than "Skynet" or killer robots. The real threat comes NOT from AI itself but from people who will be able to afford to exploit AI for profit at the expense of…
I think that more STEM folks _would_ be interested in teaching, especially those who are late in their careers. The problem is that the prospect of teaching high school is horrifying to someone that isn't prepared to…
I'm always tickled when people say that something is "unacceptable" as if they're in a position to do anything about it and will somehow follow up with a response. People are late to meetings because meetings, usually,…
Yep, coffee has very little to do with actual "coffee" as a product. Coffee is a ritual, and often, a social activity. You go somewhere sooth your mind on some coffee sipping, people watching, chatting with others, or…
OK, but even now Windows folks have largely given up on pressing <windows>/<All Programs> and looking for what they want. There's simply too much stuff on a typical computer these days for a user to pick out what they…
The comment you're responding to is about the political impetus for ever-increasing road construction to combat congestion. Your "reverse" commute to exburbs/rural areas is likely not impacted much by congestion. You…
OK, but what about email read/composed on my personal gmail account using a work computer? When you say "personal email" do you mean @company.com email-- or do you mean _any_ personal email as long as it is…
OK, that is what is "legally possible" in a worst-case scenario. But IN PRACTICE, what is normal? Your statement seems to indicate that IT staff can just browse personal communications, desktop displays, keypresses. I…
I hear this as "blanket advice" all the time, but very rarely is there a discussion about what is reasonable to expect from a "normal" employer who isn't draconian or looking to find an excuse to fire someone.
Its easy to conclude that but suppose you're a white high-income professional who is looking for a home in Baltimore city. You have your pick of any neighborhood. Would you choose.... A) A rowhome in a squalid…
Yes. Although MAD doesn't necessarily require the end of the world (eg nuclear winter), or even the end of a regime. It just depends on consequences which are "unbearable" for either nation. I've always felt that the…
The MAD doctrine seems to have worked with binary superpowers up through the 80's. But, I think its an open (and rather scary) question as to whether MAD will continue to work with multiple parties some of whom are…
I think discussions about sobriety tend to ignore the vast middle-ground between "stone-cold-sober" and "shit-faced". It is totally possible to enjoy one or two alcoholic drinks on a weekly night out without ruining…
Agree, although properly positioned monitor speakers which have been equalized by the listener for a particular spot in the room can sound really, REALLY nice (if you don't leave your listening chair !).
I agree that in terms of sound, digital is superior. But as the article describes there is very much a collectable "object appeal" to old media. Now that even CD's and their annoying jewel cases are becoming obsolete,…
There certainly are more opportunities to learn than ever before, but learning requires effort. If you want to learn something that _really_ matters you have to give it full attention. That means total focus, not…
> common to hear "how come they don't sit down learn to code and become full stack developers, that would be so easy." Yep, that reminds me one of Phil Greenspun's smug blog posts from a while back:…
Absolutely, and don't forget tidyr! Its hard to overstate Mr Wickham's contribution to making R a very handy and useful tool. I am sure that a lot of folks would have tried R and then moved on to something else were it…
There is a weirdness to R. I found that taking a lot of time to focus on the basics helps. If you're committed to using R, read John Chamber's book and also look for answers on the old "R mailing list" (a place so mean,…
At the end of the day, the whole point of ggplot is to produce a graphical representation of some aspect of the data. How much information can you possibly cram into ONE graphic and have it be readable by a human? Your…
I think what you're responding to is NOT about willingness to experiment with unproven drugs, but rather a feeling of horror about dementia and Alzheimer's disease. These are awful afflictions that impact not just the…
Obviously, that only works if you don't _ALSO_ create a public relations disaster by doing so.
Well, actually, this whole discussion IS about Shkreli and your comments are within the context of the discussion so don't disclaim that. Shkreli has foolishly attracted attention to himself by comically absurd…
I can't explain why, but there has always been something dreamy and magical about the Soviet space program and its spacecrafts. I've appreciated the apollo-soyuz exhibit at the Air and Space Museum in DC since I was a…
I have some similarities with you. 8 full-time jobs in 15 years all after a 9 year stint in graduate school where I quit a PHD program. I also crave trying new things even when they're risky, much to the horror of the…
I think the actual threat from AI is far more pedestrian than "Skynet" or killer robots. The real threat comes NOT from AI itself but from people who will be able to afford to exploit AI for profit at the expense of…
I think that more STEM folks _would_ be interested in teaching, especially those who are late in their careers. The problem is that the prospect of teaching high school is horrifying to someone that isn't prepared to…
I'm always tickled when people say that something is "unacceptable" as if they're in a position to do anything about it and will somehow follow up with a response. People are late to meetings because meetings, usually,…