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ttronicm

131 karma · joined April 25, 2013

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ttronicm··on Ask HN: Is it black holes all the way up?
Try thinking of the "big bang" as more of phase change where there was something "before" that was not like the "now" at all. A black hole is also a phase change that expands, but we really can't experiment with either deep time or black holes... yet.
ttronicm··on Ask HN: How did an adult ADHD diagnosis help you?
I was diagnosed at age 44 and it made me reevaluate the course of my entire life. It took me a few years to adjust adequately and I'm still adjusting at 51. Learning about ADHD and effective strategies to deal with it has helped. Getting to know other people with ADHD has been the most helpful of all. I suggest searching YouTube for reactions to ADHD memes: it's a little painful on account of so much truth being told, but also nice to feel less alone.

My experience with meds might be interesting: I work in a customer-facing technical role where my soft skills are paramount. Taking stimulants was disorienting, but helped me manage emotions very well. They worked well for focus, but killed my ability to be fundamentally nice. I might have been able to adapt in time, but I would have had to change careers in the meantime. I now take buproprion and it works well enough on motivation without causing social problems.

ttronicm··on Ask HN: Can non degree-holder use the title Software Engineer?
Just plain YES.
ttronicm··on Tridactyl has been delisted from AMO
That's not nothing
ttronicm··on Ask HN: Is it ok to make a list of female software devs available for hire?
If the list is a source for recruiting, I don't see it as being all that different from recruiting from a predominantly female college. No one says that's a bad thing.

Here's a real-world situation from a previous job of mine: We hired heavily from a local college. Hiring there became a habit as the candidates we got were qualified and well suited for the jobs available. As it turns out, that school is VERY white. We were always hiring "the best candidate", we just weren't hiring from a big enough pool for that to be sufficient to create diversity.

A lack of diversity is a business problem with negative business impact. I'm not going to defend that; that there a people who can't imagine why diversity is a business advantage boggles my mind.

It's a hard problem to solve. Please keep working at it.

ttronicm··on Ask HN: Laid-off readers over 50, have you left the tech workforce?
I'm 47 and might have to. No one seems interested in hiring me.
ttronicm··on [dead]
This is such an elegant and repayable system that I hope it becomes SOP for customer-facing service workers everywhere.
ttronicm··on Ask HN: What programming language has you really excited lately, and why?
Elixir makes me warm and fuzzy.
ttronicm··on Can a Dress Shirt Be Racist?
One of the references cited in this article is a line of shoes released by Nike designed to fit Native Americans better. They measured 200+ native feet and determined that they were wider toward the toe than typical shoes.

While I don't culturally identify as native, there's no doubt that I am 1/16th Cherokee. As it turns out, I have what I call "duck feet". They are very wide up front. I didn't know about Nike's foray into native shoes, but I wish I had and that they still made them.

Rather than being offended, I would be excited to have some shoes that actually fit well. I usually end up with shoes that too big in other dimensions or toe-crampers.

ttronicm··on Microsoft CEO says women need not ask for raise, should trust system
What a terrible human being! That's probably being too kind.
ttronicm··on Artificial Spleen Removes Ebola, HIV Viruses and Toxins from Blood Using Magnets
That's the worst science writing I've ever seen. To help sooth your eyes: http://wyss.harvard.edu/viewpressrelease/166
ttronicm··on Ask HN: Should I list Mensa on my resume?
Why not just bring up the supporting evidence that was required for you to join Mensa? With 2 out of every 100 people qualifying for membership, you could swing a dead cat in a crowd and be pretty likely to hit someone who is qualified. OTOH, how many of them would choose to join an organization that celebrates exclusion and superiority? Being a member says something about your disposition and personality.

Among the most important adaptive techniques for exceptionally smart people in a crowd of averageness is inclusiveness. With the current emphasis on team building during the hiring process, listing Mensa risks making you look like an exclusive arrogant ass unless you know the hiring manager is also a member. If that's the case, I would specifically mention that you included your membership in Mensa on your resume for that very reason.

ttronicm··on Ruby gem that adds support for Java syntax
This is the worst thing to happen to Ruby in a long long time.

Why would one choose to develop in Ruby if they didn't want a dynamic language to start with? Why not just develop your application in Objective-C which gives you the option to be dynamic or static?