PeterWhittaker

103 ms·

1. 571.▲
   by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

   tl;dr: It is the only way the troll can participate in the greatness/fame/notoriety (as the case may be) of the trollee. FWIW, YMMV.
2. 572.▲
   by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

   Interestingly enough, the new IAU definition of "planet" makes no reference to origin: A planet is a celestial body that (a) is in orbit around the Sun, (b) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces s
3. 573.▲
   by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

   I don't mind a downvote, I really don't, but I'd prefer a counterargument. If you disagree, say why. Engage. (It's why I dislike downvoting: Driveby disengagement with negative consequences.)
4. 574.▲
   by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

   Others have commented on the tone of the article. Sure, they're right. Doesn't matter. Sometimes the value of an article or observation is how it flips your view of the world around. Apple is a fashion brand that makes jewelry th
5. 575.▲
   by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

   Paraphrasing: To think with just the mind, like a high note played on the violin's E string, unsupported by the body, lacking resonance and depth. Wow. Great (short) read.
6. 576.▲
   by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

   +1 to hckrnews.com - I've not used the "real front page" for, well, many months (how long has hckrnews.com been around? seems like forever...!).
7. 577.▲
   by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

   I'm with you: I found it rambling and unappealing.
8. 578.▲
   by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

   Ah, thanks. I've got to slow down my scanning of articles. Intriguing that the simulation and experiment match. Now I'm curious about alternative explanations for the experimental findings.
9. 579.▲
   by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

   Not necessarily: The article states that ants are deliberately maintaining aphid herds, possibly for many seasons, by carefully selecting for a ratio of red and green insects . The wording of that statement implies intent and intention on
10. 580.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    This was found in a simulation. How would one detect this experimentally and confirm the phenomenon?
11. 581.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    You are partially correct: I scanned the article initially and wrote an inaccurate summary based on an inaccurate scan. As you point out, there is consensus on the causes, first, excess nutrients from fertilization in the USSR, and second,
12. 582.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    Summary: The oxygen-rich habitable layer of the Black Sea has declined over the last few decades from a depth of 140m to a depth of only 90m. The oxic layer does not mix with the layers below. All theories as to why the decline has occurred
13. 583.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    Intriguing, but.... Without Calendar integration, it's not even worth my trying, and 14 days is not enough of a trial to learn a new system. Contact sync as a free feature? Yeah, OK, that's what it's worth to me. Right now, I
14. 584.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    Still an odd choice, not only from the perspective of taste but also from that of practical value. Kennedy died two years before I was born . According to Wikipedia, the median age in the US is about 40 right now. Kennedy's assassinat
15. 585.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    I look at it this way: I have to assume that, absent evidence to the contrary, all adults are mentally healthy and psychologically competent. If I make any other assumption, then I am on the slippery slope to denying them the right to vote,
16. 586.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    I truly understand neither a) why this piece of puff is on HN nor b) why it is so highly voted. As others have noted, I have no real evidence for my views . To me this is a total WTF? The author is ignorant of the subject and like so many
17. 587.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    Yes, weirs. See, e.g., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fishing_weir
18. 588.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    Thanks for that comment, it made me seek more of his writing, which I've enjoyed quite a lot more than most columnists.
19. 589.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    If you're out in public, you agree to be seen More like some accept this grudgingly, as, until recently, with the near-ubiquity of delivery services, there were, for many, simply no choice: Stay at home, unseen, and starve, or ventur
20. 590.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    Fascinating mathematical analysis, well done. Super short summary? Resemblances are inevitable and meaningless.
21. 591.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    Beautifully written.
22. 592.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    I've long thought and occasionally argued that downvoting should be eliminated. But perhaps the problem isn't downvoting itself (occasionally I see abusive comments downvoted and think yeah, this is what it's for ).... The p
23. 593.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    OK, this may be serious. But wouldn't serious people use a spell checker before they posted "absoluteley" and "spilit"? If you cannot be bothered to pay attention to every little detail in your public face, why shou
24. 594.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    Wow, it's the "really cool little things" that make articles like this so interesting. I just learned of “cryptophasia”... a secret language that twins share as kids. While scientists question whether cryptophasia constitute
25. 595.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    What's the catch? Weldability...? I've just been chatting with a mech-eng materials specialist friend of mine, and according to him, you hit it, right there; he writes hot work will cause the microstructure to revert to classic
26. 596.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    See my other comment re the quality of this "refutation". You're doing fine (better than most) at 4 hours a week. Just sit less. Get up and move around more during the day. Consider both sitting and standing desks....
27. 597.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    Refutes the headline? Only if you failed to RTFA. There are two critical points. Point the first, and IMHO the most important, is the rest of the paragraph that makes the "60 to 75 minutes" statement: the people weren’t necessari
28. 598.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    FTFA: For context, they're only about 15 million years younger than the dinosaurs, and some 35 million years older than the oldest great apes. When they first arose, Australia was still connected to Antarctica, and the Himalayas didn&
29. 599.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    Thanks for that! Beautiful piece. Haunting in places.
30. 600.▲
    by PeterWhittaker 10y ago

    I want to take this course! Assessing the state of publication, significance testing, experimental inference, and more? Great subjects.... (Since I wear a lot of black, I should do fine on the exam.)