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kochikame

530 karma · joined July 4, 2018

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kochikame··on Sharing AI progress in mathematics
Yes it's a problem with the biolab, but the biolab wouldn't have been able to engineer a highly contagious and lethal virus (for example) without a powerful AI making that possible with a small team in a short time with fewer resources.

AI enables bad actors to do more, faster, while staying under the radar until it's too late

kochikame··on Claude discovers a novel enzyme system with CRISPR-like repeats
> So I should short atoms and go long on bits right?

That's not how I read that comment. I read it to mean that given the massive widespread destabilizers and headwinds out there in the world at large, there is going to be a depression/shock/crash no matter what Anthropic does or does not do.

You can pile all your money into AI if you want; you still won't avoid it

kochikame··on Extreme Heat conference cancelled due to extreme heat warning
Unlike all of the things referenced in the Alanis Morrisette song, this is actually ironic
kochikame··on AI should elevate your thinking, not replace it
> There are skills we're losing that are probably ok to lose (e.g. spacial memory & reasoning vs GPS, mental arithmetic vs calculators)

I'd argue these are not at all OK to lose. You live in an earthquake zone? You sure better know which way is north and where you have to walk to get back home when all the lines are down after a big one. You need to do a quick mental check if a number is roughly where it should be? YOu should be able to do that in your head.

There might be better examples that support your point more effectively e.g. cursive writing

kochikame··on Missile defense is NP-complete
No, he or she is saying that even Americans who have moved overseas could be heard to complain about the "fascist" authoritarians in power in the US now. They would sound functionally identical to an Iranian emigrant talking about Iran; only the details would differ
kochikame··on There's a ridiculous amount of tech in a disposable vape
I think you might be joking but OK, I'll respond like you're serious as this is HN.

You want to make vaping even more addictive than it already is?

kochikame··on Homeschooling hits record numbers
I get where you're coming from but I think your statement is a bit naive.

Education systems as we know them today are absolutely about indoctrination in so many ways. Capitalism, love of country, views on family units, beauty and aaesthetics, what has cultural value and what does not etc etc. Not to mention many school systems just straight up having classes on religion, allowing armed forces into schools to recruit and the like.

Whether you're worried about left wing or right wing indoctrination, it still holds true. All kids are being indoctrinated every time they go to school same as every time they watch TV.

kochikame··on Homeschooling hits record numbers
I think the point is that part of having a functioning society (civic life, engagement, tolerance of others) is having people mix together. School is one of the prime places where that happens.

If you allow a lot of people to pull away from that "forced" engagement with others then you start to stress a lot of societal bonds.

kochikame··on Acrobat is intrusive, slow and non-customizable
I guess you can't just use a photo because it would make it too easy to use someone else's signature
kochikame··on No science, no startups: The innovation engine we're switching off
There needs to be a balance
kochikame··on Cure Dolly's Japanese Grammar Lessons
I live in Japna and have a high-intermediate level of Japanese. I wish I had been able to read and think about these well-expressed observations when I was just starting out as it would have saved me from having to intuit things over time.

Like Cure Dolly writes, no one tells you what you really need to know when you're learning Japanese (all languages?)

kochikame··on 'Amateur and dangerous': Historians weigh in on viral AI history videos
A lot of people think this is dangerous and distorting because it's presented in a way that leads people to believe that it is accurate
kochikame··on Japanese workers turn to resignation agencies
I presume you are referring to sekuhara (sexual harassment), pawahara (power harassment) and the like
kochikame··on How Japanese black companies oppress workers (2014)
To balance this comment, if you are a full time employee you are super well protected and cannot be fired for any reason other than gross negligence or actively breaking the law.

Managing out a poor performer in Japan is a grinding process that can easily take two years from start to finish

kochikame··on A deep history of Halloween
Totally agree. Nothing provable at all, and almost all of the links that the author could be illusory. Maybe something in the human psyche compels us celebrate certain things at similar times of the year in response to certain stimuli, in which case it is no surprise that we find somewhat similar festivals happening across multiple cultures. A smoking gun is needed if anyone wants to prove a real connection.
kochikame··on Why is it so hard to go back to the moon?
You’re suggesting adding competing agencies in the name of efficiency? When this has been tried it always results in duplication of efforts, territorial protection of resources, harmful politics etc.

Bad idea.

kochikame··on In ‘The Book Against Death,’ Elias Canetti rants against mortality
You could also argue that old people are not hyped by AI and new tech because they have been through so many hype cycles, and seen so much in general, that they know that things come and go, and tech advances, but the really important things in life never change

So not lack of understanding, more that they see through the hype

Pretty cool if you ask me

kochikame··on Israeli Queues
One of my biggest and earliest cross-cultural learnings was going to a bank in Israel to get some cash out in about 2002. I stood in line dutifully and I waited and waited and I got literally nowhere while people walked in after me and just started conversations with the tellers and people in line and got served
kochikame··on NASA’s Webb finds carbon source on surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa
Alright Elon, calm down
kochikame··on Smoking cigarettes doubles the risk of developing depression, bipolar disorder
Smoking cigarettes is first and foremost an anxiety suppression mechanism. It’s no surprise that those given to overly worrying and fretting would smoke.

To use your words, the mentally healthy don’t need it

kochikame··on A retiring consultant’s advice on consultants
The Big Three hire people midcareer from other companies, including from the tech world
kochikame··on Life has been found beneath hydrothermal vents for the first time
Sadly no, it doesn't just logically follow that because we find life everyehere on Earth that we must find it somewhere else too.

It is still entirely possible that there is something (or some things) unique about Earth that are exceedingly rare in the Universe as a whole

kochikame··on Computer built using swarms of soldier crabs (2012)
Or the computer inside the game in the Three Body Problem novel which is composed of people waving flags
kochikame··on Mass layoffs and absentee bosses create a morale crisis at Meta
The comment you're replying to is trying to say that a house, just by existing, solves the shelter problem. Having a functioning car means you can just get in it and go somewhere. But just having electricity in and of itself does not solve any problem; you have to use it power something else (lights, TV, toaster), which is the thing that solves the problem, not the electricity.
kochikame··on Where Do “Shenanigans” Come From? (2013)
That was a Louis CK joke I think
kochikame··on Why did 250k Britons die sooner than expected?
Could you give some examples of the misunderstandings you see between rich and poor in the UK?
kochikame··on McKinsey Plans to Eliminate About 2000 Jobs in One of Its Biggest Rounds of Cuts
No consultants are being let go, only back office people
kochikame··on Ask HN: Why doesn't Apple bring continuity to the Music app?
Maybe it's generational because I seem to be around the same age as you and I also hated the way my music collection "disappeared" into Apple Music (and a whole host of other things I disliked, chief of which that it keeps giving options for things you almost never want or need while at the same time it's hard to just, y'know, find and play and tag the music you want)
kochikame··on Train Travel in the UK: A Foreigner’s Perspective
This is the way to travel, for sure.

Person above was talking about the JR Pass, which as you know is pretty useless for general "getting around Tokyo" purposes

kochikame··on Train Travel in the UK: A Foreigner’s Perspective
Not to mention that it is absolutely standard for full-time employees to have the full cost of their commute covered by their company
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