April 2009
58 posts
“Ideas, hah. The real challenge in this line of work is being able to weed the...”
– Tor.com / Science fiction and fantasy / Blog posts / “Where do you get your ideas?”
Workers' Memorial Day
At 12pm, the fire-alarm went off. “Ah, it must be today it gets tested” I cleverly thought to myself, before asking, quite loudly, for some rather greasy looking chili.
This earned me a scowl and a “Did you not get the e-mail?”.
“What e-mail?”
“The one about the minutes silence.”
Oh.
I spent my lunch being confused and annoyed. Once I was...
Pandemic 2 →
So it turns out that killing everyone in the world is REALLY HARD.
On Suspense
Norgg: I hear Abrams enjoys wanking, but not orgasms.
thom: so does sting :p
J.J. Abrams on the Magic of Mystery →
(via heilemann)
Thanks to this article I’ve finally realised what it is that annoys me so much about Lost (Fringe just simply isn’t as entertaining as it seems to think it is). Abrams thesis is that it’s not discovering what the mystery is that matters, it’s the process which takes you to that point. I think he’s quite possibly right, but the problem is that...
“University astronomers and other academics specializing in Mayan studies have...”
– 2012 Doomsday prediction - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
“Basically, if you can imagine the worst boyfriend you’ve ever had, and...”
– Tiger Beatdown: Don’t Know What You’ve Got Till It’s Gone, And Also I Write A 9,000-Word Blog Post About It For You: A Post About Battlestar Galactica
I think I’ve found myself a new blog to distract me.
“The Dollhouse is a giant metaphor, not only for rape culture, but for patriarchy...”
– Tiger Beatdown: Dollhouse, Joss Whedon, and the Strange and Difficult Path of Feminist Dudes: Some Thoughts
“People who’ve grown up in academia simply don’t realize how strong...”
– Less Wrong: Well-Kept Gardens Die By Pacifism
Note: This article is not actually about academia, just in case it sounds like it is, ok? I also gather it’s not actually interesting either. Thanks, pal!
“Those who don’t practice the martial arts may not be aware that just...”
– Shu Ha Ri
Small excerpt from Ron Fox’s contribution to an excellent discussion on applying the Japanese Martial Art concept of “ShuHaRi” to programming. I highly recommend reading his comment in full, but this passage seems to reflect some of unalones ideas. The point boils down...
“RepRap is short for Replicating Rapid-prototyper. It is the practical...”
– WebHome < Main < Reprap
HEAD BREAK
“The niche is the thing, friends. It’s the future, and it’s here. Things like...”
– Free as in “Me” | 43 Folders
Merlin Mann discusses attribution of content. It’s a bit of a polemic, but made for very interesting reading. There are several excellent quotes, but this one made me think which suggests it might be more important than the others.
“So maybe instead of getting your company on twitter, paying marketers to mention...”
– A Whole Lotta Nothing: This is how Social Media really works
“Thus the conjectured “Church-Turing Thesis” is false. It is no...”
– Recent Research Projects
Deeeeeeeeeeeeep.
Edit: Ok, on further investigation his claim that the Church-Turing Thesis is false is misleading. It’s false for any real machine we can build, as they can always define a function which requires it to process more information simultaneously than...
“Another common type of a sleepover is a lock-in, where the participants stay at...”
– Sleepover - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Informative as ever.
www.ceefax.tv Your live news search engine. ! →
CEEFAX lives on!
TR thoughts on ticket re-sellers / scalping →
Very interesting inside perspective on the whole issue of the secondary market for gig tickets.
“Remember, someone you know, respect, and interact with every day is an...”
– Caring for Your Introvert - The Atlantic (March 2003)
A very insightful look at the mind of the introvert if a little too harsh on well-meaning but chatty extroverts.
The Programmers’ Stone » Introduction →
I read this article over the weekend. It has its good points and its bad points, but it’s breadth and insight make it very interesting reading indeed. Highly recommended if you’re a developer or interested in how they’re strange minds work.
“albeit: Contraction of all be it (“‘even if it be so that’”)”
– albeit - Wiktionary
Urban Dictionary: scunnered →
This is what drawing gates in [UNPRONOUNCABLE RUSSIAN WORD] makes me feel.
Kohctpyktop →
A game based on the incredibly fun activity of creating electronic circuits in silicon.
Urban Dictionary: open the kimono →
“The World is empty. It has been abandoned, its continents unfinished. Through...”
– The dark side of Dubai - Johann Hari, Commentators - The Independent
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