rgmerk

10 ms·

151.
by rgmerk 2y ago
There are no politically viable ways to make the US government significantly more efficient in a way that would leave government services unaffected. The one big opportunity to do that is defence and it is the one that Republicans, particul
152.
by rgmerk 2y ago
FFS. Write Wikipedia articles. Volunteer at a charity. Go and do a PhD in whatever field takes your fancy. Take up auto racing. Learn an instrument. Have children. The writer is in the incredibly fortunate position of being able to do what
153.
by rgmerk 2y ago
DOGE is BS. Civilian bureaucrats - in fact pretty much all discretionary spending - are line noise in the federal budget. By far the largest components of spending are Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and defence. Cutting social securit
154.
by rgmerk 2y ago
The potential utility in the research is not so much the results but the benchmark itself. I haven’t read the whole thing so I can’t really judge whether this specific benchmark is useful, but if it is, every time a new model comes out they
155.
by rgmerk 2y ago
> When I work in an office, I can't choose my timezone. Neither can you. Neither can anyone else. And this is the whole point - DST gives those whose work schedules aren't flexible an hour of extra usable daylight at the time o
156.
by rgmerk 2y ago
And go to work/school when you feel like it? Maybe you have that luxury but most of us don't.
157.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Hate to sound like a broken record but the barrier isn't the technology, the barrier in the USA is permitting and soft costs.
158.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Sorry. The point of my post was to respond to the claim that you can't effectively integrate meaningful amounts of rooftop solar into an electricity grid in a cost-effective manner when the evidence from Australia is that you can and
159.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Australia manages to install rooftop solar at well under half the cost the USA does (most of that is soft costs) and integrate large amounts of it into the grid. As of lunchtime today, nearly 50% of all electrical generation on the national
160.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Because (at least in the USA) the soft costs are excessive: https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2022/11/16/tackling-soft-costs-a...
161.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Closer to the projection of Leia at the start of Star Wars, I would have said. Either way, pretty cool, but I don't see it replacing TVs any time soon.
162.
by rgmerk 2y ago
“Quantum computing will surely have amazing applications that we cannot even conceive of right now…” As best I understand, it’s not clear yet whether quantum computing will ever have any practical applications. Furthermore, there has alre
163.
by rgmerk 2y ago
While it might be technically open source, it's very, very much against the spirit of open source. It's also explicitly prohibited under the GPLv3 unless there's no way that the manufacturer can update that firmware.
164.
by rgmerk 2y ago
If (and I emphasise IF) H5N1 led to a severe pandemic in humans, the assumption that it would play out like covid is a dangerous one. Covid (pre-vaccine) posed an extremely low risk to children, little risk to young adults, a bit of a risk
165.
by rgmerk 2y ago
To be ever so slightly sympathetic to American cops, unlike just about anywhere else in the developed world, it is plausible that the person behind the door is armed with anything up to an automatic rifle, and any random person they stop ma
166.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Hmmm. Very cool project… But the last thing I want for my kid is for them to learn that active trading is fun, lest they try doing it with real money.
167.
by rgmerk 2y ago
The company I work for runs a wrap platform [1]. Not one developer in the company has ever mentioned that they find the area intrinsically exciting to work on. There is a sense of collective responsibility that we are the custodian for the
168.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Put it this way - a Toyota Camry, which these days is a big sedan with heaps of legroom in the back - is 4885mm in length. So the length difference between the Corolla and Camry is less than the difference between the Seagull and Camry. Kei
169.
by rgmerk 2y ago
And despite the handwringing, air source heat pumps can work fine in pretty cold places (eg Norway). You can, right now, buy air source heat pumps rated to -28C (-14F). While not enough for record lows in, say, Chicago or Toronto, it'
170.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Sure, but your cascade of turbines isn't free. The capital cost of just the turbines is enough to make it hard to compete with solar and batteries in many situations.
171.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Turbines are indeed very well understood and mature technology, and even where the fuel is almost free and the reactor (a coal burner) is cheap, steam turbines are too expensive to compete with solar electricity in most places now.
172.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Without getting too far into the weeds the current top-selling vehicles (Ranger, Hilux, Amarok etc) in Australia, though usually referred to as "utes" here in Australia, are very similar in design (though smaller) to F150s, Silver
173.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Sorry, I was trying to make it easier for Americans to understand (there are a lot more Americans than Aussies here, obviously). As for the sales charts, the top four selling vehicles on the list are utes/pickups: https://ww
174.
by rgmerk 2y ago
The Seagull is very cool, and I'm sure they'll sell plenty in Asia (and Europe if they get the chance). But very few people buy cars of this size in Australia. Kia is about the only manufacturer left offering them, and it's
175.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Sure. But, globally, you're the exception, not the rule.
176.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Yep, sure. And that's great.
177.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Indeed, though in colder climates you do have the problem that peak electricity demand is precisely when you get minimum solar production. But in sunnier, warmer parts of the world (which notably includes India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indone
178.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Cool. But even if you have a working stellarator that's a very long way from an economically viable energy source. You've still got to a) figure out how to cheaply convert the released energy into electricity (and the baseline way
179.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Because mutation testing (should) generate a lot of mutants, which you then need to run your unit tests against.
180.
by rgmerk 2y ago
Depends on your definition of “serious”. You see a lot of “just take the train” in centrist and left-leaning British media (example provided below). Easy to imagine in the UK. Not so easy from, say, Perth, Western Australia. https:/

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