pheldagryph

The business cycle is perfectly apparent... in retrospect. If it was apparent in... forespect... we'd all be rich!

They should make the first banner video they show "steady", using some kind of video editing software. It's not super-shaky, but it made me very very slightly queasy for a second, and I can't be the only one. What if one of the sufferers happens has $1.5mil to spend?!

Reminds me of SeaQuest DSV. The "Gazelle" (aka "Stinger"), a personal high-speed submarine craft.

Is it possible I'm railing against something other than network neutrality, itself?

Surely some of it is a waste. Even for the latest, hottest cryptocurrency. The question is: how much energy is wasted versus the alternative, and does the utility justify it?

Depending on speculatively large future-values of cryptocurrencies is probably not the right way to evaluate the externalities, here.

I understand why tech companies and VCs want net neutrality. But this protest is what is wrong with Silicon Valley "culture". It's incredibly out of touch with reality.

Are we really being asked to take this hill? Why? By whom?

History will record the hundreds of thousands of children who will die of the current-and-present famine affecting East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. It will only exacerbate the current, historic, and costly human migration to Europe.

This is a matter of life and death for millions. Though, unfortunately, the cost can only be measured in human lives: https://www.oxfam.org/en/emergencies/famine-and-hunger-crisi...

Not a great headline; fission reactors have been critical part of the Mars Design Reference Mission architecture for the last quarter-century. The news seems to be that NASA is starting to test prototypes (which is definitely still cool).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Design_Reference_Mission

MDRM 5.0 PDF (big file; power generation is 7.3.4, page PDF-pg#85): https://www.nasa.gov/pdf/373665main_NASA-SP-2009-566.pdf

I'm an American that strongly opposes HSR. My position is well thought out, and supported by relevant literature.

I don't match your insipid cultural stereotype at all.

You continue to misrepresent my past comments. I will read nothing further from you, save for an apology.

I'm not sure what you're saying 'no' to, in my comment.

> "We must love one another or die."

This is good enough for me, but going further... The Gospel of Jesus Christ, and Ahimsa are persuasive for many.

EDIT: just had a shower, and remembered this paper that supports the idea that violence is an inter-generational disease:

https://pascual.scripts.mit.edu/research/03/paper3.pdf

Pascual Restrepo, May 2014

Abstract

> I study the role of the monopoly of force in shaping cultural traits associated with violence and their persistence. I do so in the context of the settlement of the Canadian Prairies from 1890 to 1920. I find that places with a weaker monopoly of force by the Canadian state during the settlement – as measured by their distance to the early Mounties’ fort – were and are still more violent despite the later consolidation of the Canadian state. My interpretation is that counties with a weak monopoly of force during the settlement developed a persistent culture of violence. Consistent with my view, I find that hockey players born in these places behave more violently even when observed in a common environment: the same team in the National Hockey League. Besides the persistence of culture via inter-generational transmission and socialization, I find that culture favors complementary institutions and political views, creating an additional channel of persistence. Finally, I show that the monopoly of force during the settlement crowds out pre-existing cultures of violence brought by immigrants. Despite the persistence of culture and its dependence on past circumstances, the right institutional conditions can change it

> Please explain to me why you find the idea of violent opposition to Nazism 'chilling'

That is one HECK of an uncharitable assumption. My original comment speaks for itself. You are coming uncomfortably close to calling me a Nazi sympathizer. I don't appreciate that.

In case the ancestors get edited:

>>> It's way better to combat "racial purity" ideologies (or any other speech) with more speech, with reason and truth than with violence

>> Do you have any evidence to support this claim?

> One of the most chilling comments I've ever read on this site. How does one provide evidence of the content of their heart?

I'm not following your suggestion of conflation. The correct way to read my comment is as a criticism of the clear rhetorical support for violence in its parent. I am full of controversial opinions, I know...

One of the most chilling comments I've ever read on this site. How does one provide evidence of the content of their heart?

It's been eye-opening in my career how rarely catastrophic failures affect the most powerful in an organization.

If only they could experience bIj!

I've adjusted my comment, I suppose I am over-assuming.

I think it's been done. The Fitzgerald's captain is facing (EDIT: the prospect of) court martial, and had to be airlifted off the ship with serious injuries.

He will never command again.

> but of course I don't have any evidence for that.

I concur with your hypothesis; there're often comments on these links that would serve as evidence.

I'm sure some people are just being contrarian for fun and karma, and some would just prefer to see more links specific to technologies and not 'Silicon Valley "culture"'... but some of the comments REALLY make me scratch my head.

My first thought, but it's an imperfect fit -- the employees were not being held hostage.

Is there a comparable 'syndrome' for cult members, who have joined an organization voluntarily? Not saying Uber employees deserve the same sympathy as victims of cults, just that it would be a more apt analogy.

> Tipping is a repugnant practice full stop.

Not everyone agrees. It's vulgar in my ideal world (Star Trek), but that is not the world in which we live (yet).

> I'd much rather know my driver is paid a fair wage (and pay more upfront) by their fucking employer rather than have to be responsible of making up the difference.

I agree with this. But, I also believe that Uber is exploiting its drivers, and that its app is not sufficient in these situations (yet?) to dispense with tipping altogether.

So, on balance, I see Uber's return to the custom of this culture to be a benefit to Uber's employees.

> "I really hope I can pay more to get from A to B", said nobody.

Oh, that's me! Here's a few reasons I'd want to have the option to pay a driver a bit more:

- I forced them to drive a stressful route

- I forced them to drive waaay off the beaten path

- They helped me schlep large items in/out of their vehicle

- I inconvenienced them somehow to where it makes their next ride a bit less likely to tip / star (like making a mess in the car)

> The market has spoken

A driver and I recently discussed this change, and our conclusion was: "finally!". Tipping is the custom in the USA for exactly this kind of job. Making it inconvenient or impossible to tip inside the app is like garnishing drivers' wages. Some drivers really really do deserve to benefit more from their labor, and some riders really do owe their drivers a bit more.

zamboni

Taken to the extreme, simple advocacy for a particular group crowds out advocacy for other, disjoint groups... putting them at a marginal disadvantage. There's a 'line of OK', and where it lies is is a multivariate equation of justice, utility, harmony, and context.

Having read more and more YCombinator News comments on these topics recently... I'm starting to understand that there are voices out there that decry any perceived sexism at all, no matter the circumstances. I honestly find cries of 'sexism against men' that completely discount the real world context to be rather gauche.

Definitely, yes. The next time I have to handle datetimes and time zones, I am heading for 3.x and not looking back.

There's lot more Stack Overflow answers for 2.x than 3.x, which is helpful for going fast. I'm not using 3.x for personal projects, yet.

Thank you for explaining my very, very little joke.

We might consider the possibility that a suitable woman in the role is significantly less likely to make this very embarrassing class of mis-step. And with billions of dollars on the line... where's the smart money? I suppose that is a sexist sentiment, too. Nuts, I can't win!

I would rejoinder with: the optics are the merit. These are only board members, after all.

Yes, I often use irony intentionally. Could you please expand on your comment?

> FTFY: He needs to be replaced by a more qualified individual. It doesn't matter what gender they identify as.

Given the politics of the situation, reasonable people might hear in this: "A woman should not be hired for this role."

Imagine the optics of replacing a sexist old man with another sexist old man. Worth the risk to shareholder value?

There is a standard measuring instrument for the color of salmon-flesh. The SalmoFan!: https://www.dsm.com/markets/anh/en_US/products/products-solu...

> DSM has studied consumer preferences regarding the flesh color of salmon. Our research shows that dark-colored salmon flesh consistently commands a premium. Typically bought by more affluent groups, it can command an additional USD 0.50 to USD 1.00 per pound when offered side-by-side with light-colored salmon flesh.

> Light-colored salmon attracts a different consumer demographic, being more frequently purchased by minority groups than dark-colored salmon.

The current rules on statehood are suitable to Alaskans.

Disagree. Statehood is an inherent subsidy, what with how interstate commerce is protected and the international peace maintained. Many Federal expenditures are not motivated by per-capita considerations, but rather foreign-strategic considerations. Federal tax income vs Federal spending is not the right way to value a state's membership in the Union, the costs of secession are.

Is the United States as a whole greater than the sum of its parts?