goodcanadian

Re:The Kevin Bacon on Friday October 23, 2026 @01:45PM (#50212744)

You have to keep tapping . . . I agree that it was not obvious.

Re:SimCity, but with Permits on Wednesday October 21, 2026 @05:49AM (#50178199)

. . . but first we'll have to figure out how to have two computers communicate directly with each other . . .

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

Re:Stolen Renoir paintings found hidden, and damaged, behind cinder bl... on Friday October 16, 2026 @12:29PM (#50120486)

I doubt they admit to anything, but having some information that helps lead to the recovery of a valuable item could be worth something. To be honest, this is the first I have heard of the practice, but it sounds plausible to me.

The 'leap second' could disappear

Posted by goodcanadian on Thursday October 15, 2026 @04:26AM
from the cbc.ca dept.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/leap-second-decision-9.7381049

( Read More... | no comments | 2 points | on HN )

Oldest shipwreck found off coast of Turkey

Posted by goodcanadian on Wednesday October 14, 2026 @02:36AM
from the bbc.co.uk dept.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c6gr80rk1yyko

( Read More... | 1 comment | on HN )

Re:The art of defusing a second world war bomb on Wednesday October 07, 2026 @04:04PM (#49998084)

As other commenters have pointed out, finding unexploded bombs is still a fairly regular occurrence. Here's a controlled detonation from 2021 in Exeter:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-devon-56257366

Re:NASA Asked Several Former SR-71A Blackbird Staffers to Help Secret ... on Wednesday September 30, 2026 @04:15AM (#49905925)

The Mojave dessert, where Edwards is located, is used as a boneyard.

Re:NASA Asked Several Former SR-71A Blackbird Staffers to Help Secret ... on Wednesday September 30, 2026 @04:00AM (#49905844)

I am a bit frustrated by the comments. NASA is not just a space agency; they do fight research. Yet, it seems like no one can imagine why NASA might be interested in having an operational Mach 3 aircraft. Does the military have something more advanced? Maybe, even probably, but NASA can't get their hands on it for civilian fight research.

And it's not a secret anymore than what I had for breakfast is a secret. Just because I haven't made a press release doesn't mean I'm hiding anything. More than likely, someone is investigating what it would take to get the airplane flying again before a final decision is made on whether it's worth doing.

Re:Alberta's image as world's only rat-free region shattered by discov... on Saturday September 26, 2026 @07:05AM (#49855356)

Having grown up in Alberta, somewhat close to the Saskatchewan border, I would say that it has been amazingly successful. I had never in my life seen a rat until I was an adult and moved out of province. Rats were, quite literally, semi-mythical things to me.

Re:Overreliance on AI contributed to missile strike on Iran school – P... on Wednesday September 23, 2026 @12:19PM (#49818406)

That has long been my fear as well. I regularly encounter people who have given up all pretense of critical thought in favour of trusting some buggy computer system. And this started long before "AI" becoming prevalent.

Re:The UN challenges five centuries of cartography on Thursday September 10, 2026 @10:19AM (#49644164)

Ha. I have, and it probably was Mercator or something close to it . . . I probably should have clarified that I meant world maps (or continent scale, at least) where I would argue it's a pretty shit projection even for navigation purposes.

Re:The UN challenges five centuries of cartography on Thursday September 10, 2026 @04:11AM (#49640139)

Decades ago, when I was a child, I viewed the Mercator projection as old fashioned and stupid. In fact, I rarely saw it. Most maps were Robinson's projection (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robinson_projection). It baffles me that anyone still uses Mercator projection for any serious purpose.

Re:Just Bury Your Trash on Wednesday September 02, 2026 @12:19PM (#49538555)

I have a reusable cotton bag that has been in use for 30 years. That's an extreme example, perhaps, but all the same

Re:Radiation link in flight attendant's breast cancer, French court finds on Wednesday August 26, 2026 @01:22PM (#49452722)

The article acknowledged that you cannot say for certain what caused her cancer. The court determined, however, that the increased radiation exposure qualified as a workplace hazard that increased her risk of cancer and was therefore a contributing factor. At least, that's the way I understood it.

Re:A 25-year-old video patent just expired, ending a legal headache fo... on Wednesday August 19, 2026 @12:34PM (#49363781)

As I understand it (and IANAL), an international patent makes it a lot easier to file in multiple countries (single application as you say), but you still have to pay the fee to each country you want protection in.

Re:A 25-year-old video patent just expired, ending a legal headache fo... on Wednesday August 19, 2026 @12:29PM (#49363715)

If it hasn't also been patented in India or Taiwan or China, that is 100% correct (but they can't ship it to the US). However, it would be typical to patent in all of those countries at the same time.

I'm going to trust a patent lawyer over someone on the internet. And so should you, if this situation applies to you, don't trust me: get a lawyer.

Re:A 25-year-old video patent just expired, ending a legal headache fo... on Wednesday August 19, 2026 @08:57AM (#49360993)

So, I recently learned about this from my company's patent lawyers. Patents only give protection in countries where they are filed. So, you can not create a product in Brazil that violates a Brazilian patent. And, you cannot import a product into Brazil that violates that patent. But, there is nothing stopping you from making that product in the US and selling it to Americans. The whole treaty business essentially means that most countries have roughly equivalent laws and you can file the same patent in multiple countries if you are willing to pay the fees. What countries you pay to file in then becomes a commercial decision.

Re:SpaceX wants to launch 100k more Starlink satellites – for 100x the... on Saturday July 11, 2026 @10:07AM (#48872214)

I lived for a few years in Hawaii, where they have banned most outdoor advertising. Having seen the difference, I strongly support such initiatives.

Re:Real-time map of Great Britain's rail network on Monday July 06, 2026 @03:25PM (#48809324)

It may simply be that the language of HN is English, so more people here are, in fact, interested in UK train networks. The moving bits on this site are guesstimated based on schedules and delays and not based on real position information.

Re:Real-time map of Great Britain's rail network on Monday July 06, 2026 @03:18PM (#48809233)

I like https://www.opentraintimes.com/maps

It appears to have the same data that you see on the staff displays at train stations. The site can be a bit hard to navigate though.

Re:Have You Restarted Your Computer This Week? on Tuesday June 30, 2026 @10:57AM (#48733629)

My machine was rebooted this week due to a power outage. I don't recall the last time prior to that. It generally goes weeks if not months without a reboot.

Re:ReactOS (FOSS "Windows") achieves 3D-accelerated Half-Life on real ... on Sunday June 14, 2026 @09:13AM (#48526906)

I have been exclusively running linux on my desktop for 25 years, so from my point of view, this "joke" is a quarter century out of date

Re:Age verification tech could put children at greater risk, says thin... on Monday June 08, 2026 @08:41AM (#48444615)

Also, it is arguably dangerous to not let your teen have a phone in a time when payphones (and to a great extent landlines) no longer exist.

Re:AI Outperforms Law Professors in Stanford Law Study on Wednesday June 03, 2026 @08:05AM (#48382889)

It is rarely the academics writing the press release. It is even rarer that the author of the press release chooses the title.

Re:United Airlines 767 Returns to Newark After Bluetooth Name Sparks A... on Monday June 01, 2026 @06:15AM (#48354856)

What an odd thing to fixate on . . . swap the pronouns around any way you prefer, and my statement remains correct. The captain is in charge of the aircraft and she is to be obeyed if you want to fly on her aircraft. She can refuse to accept any passenger for any reason. If it is a stupid reason, she may have a problem with her employer later, but nobody can overrule her in the moment.

Re:United Airlines 767 Returns to Newark After Bluetooth Name Sparks A... on Monday June 01, 2026 @04:11AM (#48353937)

They are still never going to ditch as long as the plane can fly

Re:United Airlines 767 Returns to Newark After Bluetooth Name Sparks A... on Monday June 01, 2026 @03:51AM (#48353794)

That is exactly correct; it's his plane.

I think he would face discipline from his airline after the fact, but in the moment, he is in charge.

Re:The surprising story behind the first British person in space on Friday May 22, 2026 @06:41AM (#48234108)

I did not mean for it to be taken as uncharitable. I am extremely proud of Canada's contribution. My point was more that even when foreign nationals were included, the U.S. did not hand out seats for propaganda reasons. There was a quid pro quo.

Re:The surprising story behind the first British person in space on Friday May 22, 2026 @03:31AM (#48233069)

Canada effectively bought its participation in the US space program with Canadarm.

Re:They Said It Would Cost $54M. We Said "No Thanks." on Thursday May 14, 2026 @08:20AM (#48134370)

The shortlist came down to four major consulting firms.

This is the problem in a nutshell. Those firms are structured to extract money from their customers, not to produce useful work. The fact that anyone is signing contracts with them any more blows my mind.