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protomython Indigenous groups are using 3D technology to preserve ancient practices

I question your information as that is so definitely not my life experience.

protomython Indigenous groups are using 3D technology to preserve ancient practices

They don’t actually really like being called Native American though. That’s kind of a white thing.

Well, that's a big lie. I grew up on a reservation, an Indian Service Area, and still work on a reservation. Native American, Indian, American Indian are all used.

indigenous is the not a term originating with any tribe.

protomython In Praise of Plan 9

They do so little with the concept and tooling its easy to forget how Powershell works.

protomython The world has reached 8B people but soon we'll hit a decline we'll never reverse

Are you intentionally ignoring the large Native American population in some of those states?

[edit: at this point I just assume that folks on HN don't have any concept of the demographics of reservations and how many children are being born. If you mention lack of Hispanic population but don't mention the Native American population then you are skewing the point.]

protomython In Praise of Plan 9

It does make one wonder what happens if everything is a type instead of a file. Do you get a command line that looks like Mathematica? I too think every program containing a parser is a waste.

protomython An unconfirmed tweet about Freeport LNG is upending gas markets

We in ND just got our first winter storm and it was bad enough to cancel work. We are not exactly apt to cancel because of snow. I get the feeling this is not going to an easy year on the heating budget.

protomython Sublime Text 4 Build 4142

Last I checked, Nova doesn't do keyboard macros and I do a lot of text munging and need them because I refuse to type the same sequence multiple times.

protomython Sublime Text 4 Build 4142

Built in keyboard macros that don't suck. Speed too.

protomython Why are clinical trials so expensive? Tales from the beast’s belly

It was my understanding that every study has a control group getting the standard care. I didn't see a study without such a control group.

protomython Why are clinical trials so expensive? Tales from the beast’s belly

I don't feel guilt, I still feel rage. I didn't determine any of the parameters or rules of the trial so I have no guilt on me. I just observed that the control group is dead because of some belief that they provided value when we already knew exactly what was going to happen to them.

If you can prevent harm to others, then not doing so is just being an a$$. The trolley problem is just counting souls and really doesn't happen much in real life. The true problem is thinking the only choices are us/them versus everyone. I'm not a doctor so I have no idea how their ethics applies to their professional decisions.

protomython Why are clinical trials so expensive? Tales from the beast’s belly

Everyone knew the results of "standard treatment", that's why they were researching the drug. There were years and years of statistics.

We killed 70% of the control group. Doomed by a random number generator.

protomython Why are clinical trials so expensive? Tales from the beast’s belly

I worked on one in the 90's that was $50,000 a day for three years. The drug company, assuming the trial was successful, had about 4 years to make all its money back before the patent expired. Testing blood, urine, and stool for multiple things is expensive.

Intellectually, I can understand the need for control groups, but I still think it's immoral. When you stare at a spreadsheet and see 70% of the control group is dead because some random number generator sorted them there like hell's own sorting hat, and the 98% of the people getting the drug are alive, you have no business talking about statistics. That graph will haunt me til my dying day.

protomython Home truths about macOS

Well, don't skip the DragonFly folks. I've had the four main one up and running at different times.

protomython The Preppers Were Right All Along

I think Bill seriously underestimates the value of defensive fire. Or, most people actually prepping will also think of defense.

protomython The Preppers Were Right All Along

I think there are different varieties of preppers, and some have communities.

Frankly, by some definitions, I'm a prepper which is rather surprising. I think if you live rural you tend to have a lot more supplies on hand. I used to keep 3 full days, but I now have a 7 day supply, and friends feel fairly justified in have a year's worth of goods. Heck, some of the base prepper playbook are rural hobbies (micro-farming) or just basic winter prep (generator).

Now, solar and wind have gotten a lot more convenient with people doing battery walls. I get the feeling that those folks just got tired of listening to the power company say wait.

protomython Home truths about macOS

The funny thing is I tried to setup and Arch Linux box. I can setup OpenBSD with thinking with all the partitions and such, but that Arch Linux install was just a bad time. I'll try Debian when I get back to work. We are replacing our Samba server and the BSDs aren't real current given some changes the Samba team made.

protomython Home truths about macOS

I'm much more familiar with OpenBSD and FreeBSD on the server-side, and I don't feel real comfortable with Linux. The two biggest vendors, Red Hat and Ubuntu, don't really give the warm fuzzies. Maybe something like System 76 backs.

protomython Home truths about macOS

I tell people that I haven't looked forward to new features in the 'California' era like I did in the 'Cat' era. Now, I worry about what Apple will break or take away.

If Microsoft wasn't so intent on spying and advertising to me, I might consider them. I get the feeling I will switch to a BSD eventually.

protomython Zebras of all stripes repel biting flies at close range

Our findings confirm that zebra stripes repel biting flies under naturalistic conditions and do so at close range

Which has lead to suggestions to breed this into livestock. Which will certainly change the landscape in US.

As I said before: Somehow driving through South Dakota looking out over a vast field of seaweed eating, zebra striped cows was not the future I anticipated as a youth.

protomython Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

For a bit of information https://m.startribune.com/minnesotas-cargill-is-largest-u-s-...

protomython Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

Cargill would have an amazingly high valuation just due to all the assets owned.

protomython Twitter to employees today: 'If in office or on your way, please return home'

If I remember the law correctly, you can also announce without notice and pay a severance that covers 60 days.

protomython Mozilla launches venture fund to fuel responsible tech companies

the experimental Servo browser engine

How is building a new browser engine not supporting Firefox?

protomython We've filed a lawsuit against GitHub Copilot

I really feel that Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. v. Goldsmith[0] is going to have a big effect on this type of thing. They are basically relying on their AI magic to make it transformative. I'm starting to think the era of learning from material other people own without a license / permission is going to end quickly.

0) https://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/andy-warhol-foun...

protomython Employee gift ideas that make people feel bad

Yeah. I would be weirded out if my company gave me socks. Cups and coats are more the norm. Well, cash has been the go to recently. Cash doesn't offend anyone.

protomython Employee gift ideas that make people feel bad

I also wouldn't expect them to give a gift that has derogatory meaning in the area.

protomython Want to live in a van down by the river? Ford has a new vehicle for that

In general, the van-based motor homes seem to get to six figures really quickly and are more expensive than their bigger cousins.

Do it yourselfers can do it cheaper.

protomython Employee gift ideas that make people feel bad

This must be regional/cultural because for my family and friends socks is the kiss-off gift of a person who doesn't give a damn about you but needs to buy you a gift.

protomython Having a campus that looks like a Benetton ad isn't a compelling state interest

MIT is a technical school. Legacy admissions are the domain of the Ivy League.

protomython Having a campus that looks like a Benetton ad isn't a compelling state interest

Ending legacy admissions is a very quick way to reduce alumni donations.

I get the feeling that legacy admissions are actually a benefit for other students because it means that powerful families can become part of your social network. That is a big difference from a state school.