D_Alex

63 ms·

631.
by D_Alex 15y ago
I might have to disappoint you all... An Australian company, BHP (my employer at the time), was working on this method of steel production in the early 1990's. They had big hopes and put a lot of R&D investment in it, but were unable to
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by D_Alex 15y ago
I knew that bicycle helmets were just the thin end of the wedge!
633.
by D_Alex 15y ago
I agree it is possible. It is probably possible in California also. But the title of your post says "...Move to New York"!
634.
by D_Alex 15y ago
dblock - moving to the largest metropolis in the country cannot be a great way to improve the commute!!! You found what seems like a pretty small niche that makes your commute okay, but if enough people imitate you, will that niche become o
635.
by D_Alex 15y ago
Yeah, internet, sliced bread and all that are great. But flying cars and a cure for AIDS would have been nice too. My point is that in the '80s there was a lot of optimism about humankind's capabilities, people were saying "it's not a quest
636.
by D_Alex 15y ago
Yes, I meant the financial crisis. I did not mean that our society is rotten to the core, but it seems to me that an inexcusable proportion of our best brains are drawn in to play zero-sum games (much of finance, also law).
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by D_Alex 15y ago
In 1982(-ish)i have first heard of the AIDS virus. My father (a biologist) said "I feel sorry for the young people of your generation, this will make life so much less fun" or something like that (I was 16). And I said something like "You o
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by D_Alex 15y ago
Great! Let's go and check it out!
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by D_Alex 15y ago
Yep, or "Wall Street: Guilty" would also do the trick. But, this is Bloomberg. Just enjoy the irony.
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by D_Alex 15y ago
"Why not within our lifetimes" As things stand right now: 1. Funding for science is appallingly low 2. Many of the best minds go into banking, management consulting and law Making this happen within our lifetimes needs prompt ACTION.
641.
by D_Alex 16y ago
Can I ask: What is the motivation of trying to limit the cost of your food to such a low (for first-world) amount? I am really weirded out by the number of me-too responses, the philosophy of such extreme saving on food is alien to me. For
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by D_Alex 16y ago
Dude, magnets do not stick to "metal things". They stick to magnetic materials, chiefly iron. When you find a magnet that sticks to copper or aluminium, it will be a story, you might get a Nobel even.
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by D_Alex 16y ago
Furthermore, the ideal cycle efficiency is 1-T_low/T_high, where T_low would be the exhaust temperature and T_high the combustion temperature for this engine, in deg K. T_high is limited by chemistry and materials to abt 1400 K, T_low depen
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by D_Alex 16y ago
"Data is accepted as a singular mass noun in everyday educated usage" - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data , references given.
645.
by D_Alex 16y ago
Maybe the whole concept of "teens" became necessary when the society changed from agricultural to technological - there is just so much more to learn before you can be a "proper" adult... you could be a productive member of 1800's society w
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by D_Alex 16y ago
You could compare them in many ways, and $$$ is possibly the best single measure. But the OP article is uncritically self-congratulatory, which is not altogether appropriate given that same products of equal quality do cost a lot less if
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by D_Alex 16y ago
Measuring manufacturing in $$$ might be a bit misleading. If China makes 4 $10 business shirts for every one $50 business shirt the US makes ... ?
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by D_Alex 16y ago
Coming soon: The Angry Birds Movie...
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by D_Alex 16y ago
"Metamagical Themas" by Hofstadter is a great follow up. Also, for intellectially expanding + can be read in huge chunks: try "Permutation City" and other Greg Egan sci-fi.
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by D_Alex 16y ago
It got me thinking along the lines of "what is thought/intelligence/free will/nature of consciousness" etc.
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by D_Alex 16y ago
Wow... I remember this! Particularly for a) discovering that BASIC in the book was not the same as BASIC on my C64 - figuring out the needed changes was a major learning stimulus; and b) the amazing ELIZA program which wasa huge influence o
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by D_Alex 16y ago
I suspect this is what the intended solution to the puzzle is... Now for a follow up: Instead of assuming no friction, assume no slippage. What happens now?