News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

Baxxter

Giant space-bound fermentation barges.
'The Bay Bridge' refers to something else in this part of the country.

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

Re:Bob Dylan's Christmas Lights: A Scholarly Treatise on Tuesday December 26, 2023 @12:08PM (#38773556)
This is funny. It's a slight dig at those folks (of which I'm sure the author is one, or the self-effacing sort) who want every one of Bob's incoherent ramblings to be 'deep'.

"Because I grew up in a world where nothing that Mr. Dylan ever did was too insignificant not to be worthy of serious intellectual scrutiny, I immediately understood that this was no ordinary, haphazardly arranged, string of colored lights. It had to contain a deeper meaning."

A lot of Bob's work is the intellectual equivalent of a paltry string of Christmas lights. Your outlook with figure if that's an insult or a compliment.

Seems to be suggesting that FAS is some kind of adaptation. I'm no expert but I'm pretty sure that FAS is an adverse effect, rather than a response.
Re:First Solar Bike Path in Germany Is Now Live on Friday May 19, 2023 @07:54AM (#36000683)
Whew - that is ugly.

I am a bike commuter and one of the great things about riding a bike is having the sky above my head. This is kind of a vibe killer.

I can see the benefits but I think a little more thought in the design could help us understand if this is something we really want.

How long is this stretch anyway?

How old are you all and how long have you known these people?

Just curious

Re:Easter egg in flight path of last 747 delivery flight on Wednesday February 01, 2023 @03:19PM (#34616978)
Back of envelope ... 1 gallon of fuel per second [0], 2.5 hrs, $2.5 per gallon = $22,500

That's uh...pretty rough and I'm not a flight buff, but wanted to do the bare minimum for the exercise.

[0] https://science.howstuffworks.com/transport/flight/modern/qu...

* edited the ppg

Re:Easter egg in flight path of last 747 delivery flight on Wednesday February 01, 2023 @03:12PM (#34616879)
Is the dashed blue line their intended route, or what they would submit to ATC? Differs quite a bit from the actual flight.
Re:I don't read web articles anymore, but I read books on Monday January 09, 2023 @08:33AM (#34310097)
As others have said, books and articles have a different purpose and audience. I enjoy reading books. But there are many, many good blogs and online periodicals that offer quality that you would not want to find in a book. For instance...

What I don't enjoy - and have quickly learned to avoid - is this certain type of non-fiction book that ought to be an article or blog post. They're easy to find now, they're usually just shy of or right at 300 pages, they have a catchy core idea and they tend to expound on that idea about as much as a blog post would. The rest is just there to service the notion of having a book. Ugh. They were I think a bigger problem 3-4 years ago, but maybe that's because I've gotten better at avoiding them.

Re:Are we on information overload? (2012) on Wednesday January 04, 2023 @11:07AM (#34247262)
I agree that it is exhausting. But it seems that it's a challenge of information parsing and application - not necessarily the volume of information itself.

I think there can be no doubt that the volume and accessibility of information exploding is a good thing. It will take time for us to find our rhythm with the new reality - we need tools on an individual and social level to cope.

Re:Ask HN: Books you read in 2022 and recommend for 2023 on Wednesday December 28, 2022 @10:26AM (#34161889)
Your 'Read this year' list looks a lot like my 'Want to read next year' list.

Any standouts from the lot?

Re:Thomas Pynchon, famously private, sells his archive on Friday December 16, 2022 @05:46PM (#34021668)
I'm reading Bleeding Edge right now. I seem to remember it not being too well received when it came out and it certainly didn't get the kind of attention that was given to Inherent Vice. Wondering if folks here paid any attention to it.

But my god, Pynchon has an astounding mind. The breadth of his cultural interests is vast. His wit is seemingly unending, almost to a fault. Bleeding Edge is good - I don't think tech folks are his primary audience, but it's great to read it with some software background because you can parse a little bit more of the BS, of which there is a lot. Pynchon is really interested in the line between reality and conspiracy and if you have a tech background and are interested in his work more broadly I think that reading Bleeding Edge could help make his more challenging works more approachable. At least that's what I'm hoping for myself.