7 ms·

Tin Foil Hats Actually Make it Easier for the Government to Track Your Thoughts

30 points by pykello 14y ago

chris_wot 14y ago
You realise, of course, that this is the ultimate in government conspiracies to keep us all from wearing tin foil hats? Somehow they go MIT to do a study into the wearing of tin foil hats and manipulated the results to show that the wearing of tin foil hats is less effective than not wearing tinfoil hats. It's obvious they got to those carrying out the study because they were not wearing tinfoil hats. Pretty obvious really.
- zerostar07 14y ago
  Nice try, agent. I won't put it back
- yrral 14y ago
  They didn't even need to manipulate the results. The MIT study is extremely flawed. They used aluminum foil instead of tin foil. These metals aren't even in the same group or period on the periodic table. Keep wearing those tin foil hats!
markyc 14y ago
i knew it!!
vectorbunny 14y ago
Indicates a migration of fiendish fluoridators to foil? I am now taking suggestions for a new disparaging appellation to apply to my fact based paranoia.
s_henry_paulson 14y ago
Everyone knows you need to run a wire to ground.
borski 14y ago
For the record, that 2005 study at MIT was actually part of what inspired the name of our company - Tinfoil Security.
- sausagefeet 14y ago
  Hmmm, the implication is that the security you offer isn't only bad but so bad it's easier to circumvent than no security at all, right?
  - borski 14y ago
    Wow - what an unnecessarily personal and derisive attack. No. It's simply a memorable name that allows us to play to the idea of Tinfoil hats protecting you - it's playful. The MIT study's results weren't relevant to why we named it that - it was the fact that it was even studied at all that's more to blame. For the record, the security we offer is top notch.
    - dcx 14y ago
      I'm really hoping this doesn't come out as an attack too, but instead as an extra datapoint for your business. I agree with OP's perception. When I hear the phrase "tinfoil security" the word associations that come to mind don't really sell security. Tinfoil is just not a substance you think of as being thick and defensive. I do like the playfulness of it, but I'm not sure that's a quality that customers can draw brand value from, in the context of keeping their stuff secure. But either way - the tech industry isn't (yet) at the point where brand names make much of a difference to the bottom line. Branding hits your bottom line at the supermarket when I'm buying detergent from you, but not so much when I'm looking for the best search engine/maps product/security offering. :)
    - sausagefeet 14y ago
      Chill out, it wasn't an attack, it was just the logical extrapolation of the study you mentioned to your company. For the record I know nothing about your company other than you based its name off a study about something that not only doesn't work but has the opposite intended effect.
brudgers 14y ago
Original study: http://berkeley.intel-research.net/arahimi/helmet/ http://berkeley.intel-research.net/arahimi/helmet/
raleec 14y ago
<conspiracyTheoryMode> Which, of course, is why they are promoted as protection! <conspiracyTheoryMode> That's what they want you to think! </conspiracyTheoryMode> </conspiracyTheoryMode>
jonnathanson 14y ago
Any government agency, extraterrestrial, wizard, or mutant professor that wants to read my thoughts can have at it. The joke's on them. Have fun sorting through all the chaff to get to the wheat, guys.
- Ntrails 14y ago
  You've heard of google right? It seems to me that a large amount of data is insufficient impediment to finding the data people are looking for. Anyway, I never trusted tin foil - that's why I stick to my replica magneto helmet. I think we can all safely say that Sir Ian Mckellen would never lie to us.
  - MaysonL 14y ago
    Mu metal is the recommended material. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mu-metal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mu-metal
- s_henry_paulson 14y ago
  I know that you're joking, but I think the concern is more about writing thoughts rather than reading them.. essentially being programmed. It's an interesting phenomenon because doctors find many people with paranoid schizophrenia who line the inside of their hats with tinfoil (not like the pictures in the article), and they all seem to develop this same method of thought-control-prevention seemingly on their own.
crpatino 14y ago
Of course there's someone "trying to read and/or control your thoughts with radio waves". The technology has been around for over 60 years and it's called TV.
mikevp 14y ago
The problem is that they did not do the test using actual tin foil. They used aluminum foil. All readily available "tin" foil is actually aluminum. Just try finding some real tin foil. There is a reason for this.

30 points by pykello 14y ago

You realise, of course, that this is the ultimate in government conspiracies to keep us all from wearing tin foil hats? Somehow they go MIT to do a study into the wearing of tin foil hats and manipulated the results to show that the wearing of tin foil hats is less effective than not wearing tinfoil hats. It's obvious they got to those carrying out the study because they were not wearing tinfoil hats. Pretty obvious really.

zerostar07 14y ago
Nice try, agent. I won't put it back
yrral 14y ago
They didn't even need to manipulate the results. The MIT study is extremely flawed. They used aluminum foil instead of tin foil. These metals aren't even in the same group or period on the periodic table. Keep wearing those tin foil hats!

markyc 14y ago

i knew it!!

vectorbunny 14y ago

Indicates a migration of fiendish fluoridators to foil? I am now taking suggestions for a new disparaging appellation to apply to my fact based paranoia.

s_henry_paulson 14y ago

Everyone knows you need to run a wire to ground.

borski 14y ago

For the record, that 2005 study at MIT was actually part of what inspired the name of our company - Tinfoil Security.

sausagefeet 14y ago
Hmmm, the implication is that the security you offer isn't only bad but so bad it's easier to circumvent than no security at all, right?
- borski 14y ago
  Wow - what an unnecessarily personal and derisive attack. No. It's simply a memorable name that allows us to play to the idea of Tinfoil hats protecting you - it's playful. The MIT study's results weren't relevant to why we named it that - it was the fact that it was even studied at all that's more to blame. For the record, the security we offer is top notch.
  - dcx 14y ago
    I'm really hoping this doesn't come out as an attack too, but instead as an extra datapoint for your business. I agree with OP's perception. When I hear the phrase "tinfoil security" the word associations that come to mind don't really sell security. Tinfoil is just not a substance you think of as being thick and defensive. I do like the playfulness of it, but I'm not sure that's a quality that customers can draw brand value from, in the context of keeping their stuff secure. But either way - the tech industry isn't (yet) at the point where brand names make much of a difference to the bottom line. Branding hits your bottom line at the supermarket when I'm buying detergent from you, but not so much when I'm looking for the best search engine/maps product/security offering. :)
  - sausagefeet 14y ago
    Chill out, it wasn't an attack, it was just the logical extrapolation of the study you mentioned to your company. For the record I know nothing about your company other than you based its name off a study about something that not only doesn't work but has the opposite intended effect.

brudgers 14y ago

Original study: http://berkeley.intel-research.net/arahimi/helmet/ http://berkeley.intel-research.net/arahimi/helmet/

raleec 14y ago

<conspiracyTheoryMode> Which, of course, is why they are promoted as protection! <conspiracyTheoryMode> That's what they want you to think! </conspiracyTheoryMode> </conspiracyTheoryMode>

jonnathanson 14y ago

Any government agency, extraterrestrial, wizard, or mutant professor that wants to read my thoughts can have at it. The joke's on them. Have fun sorting through all the chaff to get to the wheat, guys.

Ntrails 14y ago
You've heard of google right? It seems to me that a large amount of data is insufficient impediment to finding the data people are looking for. Anyway, I never trusted tin foil - that's why I stick to my replica magneto helmet. I think we can all safely say that Sir Ian Mckellen would never lie to us.
- MaysonL 14y ago
  Mu metal is the recommended material. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mu-metal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mu-metal
s_henry_paulson 14y ago
I know that you're joking, but I think the concern is more about writing thoughts rather than reading them.. essentially being programmed. It's an interesting phenomenon because doctors find many people with paranoid schizophrenia who line the inside of their hats with tinfoil (not like the pictures in the article), and they all seem to develop this same method of thought-control-prevention seemingly on their own.

crpatino 14y ago

Of course there's someone "trying to read and/or control your thoughts with radio waves". The technology has been around for over 60 years and it's called TV.

mikevp 14y ago

The problem is that they did not do the test using actual tin foil. They used aluminum foil. All readily available "tin" foil is actually aluminum. Just try finding some real tin foil. There is a reason for this.