slashdev

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781.
by slashdev 3y ago
Hitchens sure had a way with words. Yeah, I think that would bother me as well. It's easier if death just kind of sneaks up on you and takes you out. It's a lot harder when the doctor tells you he's coming sometime in 2-5 yea
782.
by slashdev 3y ago
I think everyone faces death differently. I’m not happy about the possibility, but I don’t expect it to bother me after I’m gone. It’s just something I can’t control, and by my nature, I don’t waste much thought on those kinds of things. Al
783.
by slashdev 3y ago
That’s one possibility for the Fermi paradox. We might just be the first technological civilization in our neighborhood. A trillion years from now this place might be packed with them (red dwarf stars, the most common type of star live abou
784.
by slashdev 3y ago
I use it almost on a daily basis now, and I pay for the monthly subscription. It’s not magic, but it can save me a lot of time sometimes. I use it in my job as a software engineer, and I mostly use it to create unit tests. The code usually
785.
by slashdev 3y ago
What marvelous central bank and government work together so perfectly as to have neither inflation nor deflation? Have you seen the central bank and government in the US? They’re both highly incompetent and ridiculed domestically and intern
786.
by slashdev 3y ago
Haha, I did that one year in Vancouver. I was just tired of arriving to my destination with wet feet. The winter rain in the Pacific Northwest is something else. But you really take up a lot of the sidewalk. I’m tall at least, so I could us
787.
by slashdev 3y ago
That’s all great, but it will also shorten your life span. People drive like shit and if you’re on the road with them every day you’re going to get hit sooner or later. The odds aren’t great. I would only do this in a place with separate bi
788.
by slashdev 3y ago
Umm, no. I stand by it, although heat pumps hadn’t occurred to me. But a typical electric heater is probably not going to match the efficiency of a natural gas heater. It matters how much energy is lost in generation and transmission versus
789.
by slashdev 3y ago
True, I forgot about heat pumps. That’s one of the few times physics let’s you “cheat”.
790.
by slashdev 3y ago
When it comes to usage in heating, burning fuel is as efficient as it gets. All the chemical energy (available in that oxidation reaction) is converted to heat. Electricity involves more overheads in generation and transmission.
791.
by slashdev 3y ago
Warren Buffett is a brilliant investor, not a domain expert in AI. He’s just out of his depth here and his opinion doesn’t mean much. When people talk about AI they often mean general AI which doesn’t exist and I think is a lot further away
792.
by slashdev 3y ago
I think they would both be massive discoveries that would shake things up. If it used DNA/RNA it's almost certainly from the same tree of life as us, validating the panspermia theory. If it didn't then we'd get to see a
793.
by slashdev 3y ago
Probably just some single celled life, like a batería analog. But still, that would be the biggest discovery of the century.
794.
by slashdev 3y ago
Assertions are often free or nearly so. On modern out of order processors, it’s a fully predictable branch and a cheap assertion that nothing depends on. So the pipeline is unaffected and there’s usually a cheap test that often is completel
795.
by slashdev 3y ago
It’s usually not though. It’s the exception to the rule. Often it’s subsidized or fossil fuel power.
796.
by slashdev 3y ago
You don’t get that with war robots, the decision to go to war or not is still in the hands of the politicians. But I wonder sometimes what it would take to end war.
797.
by slashdev 3y ago
Higher interest rates in the future are good for Meta, bad for people holding the long duration bonds. And visa versa. Meta bonds would have a very high rating, and a very low risk of default. Not as good as bonds from Apple or Microsoft, b
798.
by slashdev 3y ago
Not really, but there are bonds of many durations, not just 40 years. You also do not have to hold them to maturity.
799.
by slashdev 3y ago
Nuclear would get some serious economies of scale at 2500 units, so those prices aren't a fair comparison of what could be. I've long maintained here on HN, however, that under-investment in nuclear has made it not cost effective
800.
by slashdev 3y ago
If we just had carbon taxes then it would be taken care of. Carbon taxes make so much sense form so many perspectives. it’s a shame it’s not a more popular idea. There’s still some moral issues in my view from ridiculous consumption by rich
801.
by slashdev 3y ago
You’d have to be a billionaire for that math to have a chance to balance. I think it’s mostly a status symbol, like a yacht. Edit: I’m talking about owning a private jet. Renting one is quite different.
802.
by slashdev 3y ago
Often you don’t, you likely have to keep working while also working on a transition plan. I’m still working on my transition plan twenty years later. Some things are just not easy.
803.
by slashdev 3y ago
Seems like a maximum articles / period counter. Could also maybe just use private tabs if it is cookie based.
804.
by slashdev 3y ago
This is interesting, these will be low risk bonds with a better yield than treasuries. It could be a safe place to park money during the coming recession and get paid for waiting. Up to 40 year duration, although long duration bonds carry a
805.
by slashdev 3y ago
Without paywall: https://archive.is/pgyis
806.
by slashdev 3y ago
It’s not the war robots that worry me as much as centralized intelligence with internet connectivity. War robots don’t reproduce, require energy infrastructure, and can be destroyed. While they could run amok, by targeting things they’re no
807.
by slashdev 3y ago
That and the nearly unchecked power of the Canadian executive branch. I think without the oligopoly of banks it would have been too difficult to pull off on short notice. The Canadian prime minister may not rule over much compared to the U.
808.
by slashdev 3y ago
Yes, concentrating all the power and all the risk in a few giant banks that also tend to do risky investments as well seems like a terrible idea for both customers and stability. Canada has a system like this, although it is very well regul
809.
by slashdev 3y ago
No, I think it probably doesn’t make sense. Also people can use the little tanks, like for your BBQ if they really want that. If the building rules allow it anyway.
810.
by slashdev 3y ago
Banning gas for heating has a reasonable climate change argument. In Vancouver heating systems in new buildings will have to be zero emission soon. That makes some sense at least. Banning it for cooking seems to be another case of focusing

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