Viewing profile — emptybits

His trebuchet launched a 4 gram projectile at 776 miles per hour. That's obviously extremely lightweight for trebuchet payload, but for comparison, his projectile is approximately …

Yes, and I'd include Cory Doctorow in the list of Canadians paying attention and writing about it. Back to 2024: "Holy CRAP the UN Cybercrime Treaty is a nightmare" https://doctoro…

I'm not being flippant but I think part of your answer is in the first two words of the title. IME while LLMs may help delivery utility in a finished work, humans often value the a…

Fast forward... all the computer I need is now in my bag or pocket or least within the room. So what I'd enjoy on my wrist is an entry-level Seiko (or other) quartz with nothing bu…

Buying a used book sight unseen from Amazon or from a reseller who doesn’t have a reputation for reporting used condition reliably … that’s a buyer’s choice. It’s not left to (mis)…

Aside from shallow, uncritical notes, consider that annotating in a margin is evidence that a reader is actively engaging with a text. Very often when I write in margins it's to qu…

Happy Birthday Z80! My first job out of university was in Z80 assembly. (Sega Game Gear.) As a kid, it was all about 6502 micros, but my early professional love was Z80 and it stil…

Perhaps: "If you find yourself re-arranging your life into a [car|AI|...]-dependent life, stop before it's too late?"

It's not clear what a "US-aligned market" is anymore, and I think it's reasonable to question US hegemony on any front because of its mercurial treatment toward its "allies". Examp…

BC resident. I do look forward to not adjusting to a twice-annual time change. BUT, I would have strongly preferred sticking to Standard Time, year round, instead of DST. That opti…

At this point, many readers will be regionally thinking, "Milk ... in ... bags???? What's HE talking about?" But I'm with you, friend. Occlupanida securing the primary containment …

Of all the objective and subjective metrics a home coffee drinker is trying to optimize, never once have I heard anyone care in the least about the watt-hours consumed during the b…

Dunno. Brands definitely change their ingredients to conform to national health/drug regs so I’d inquire via their US site. kinesysactive.com

Bemotrizinol is the ingredient being discussed. If you're looking for a specific product to try, check out Ombrelle and also La Roche-Posay's Anthelios line. I share this as a Cana…

Indeed. The corporation name is literally (in literature !) an example of all-seeing surveillance tools causing harm when (not if ) they fall into evil hands.

Fair enough and thanks for the correction. I think my point may still stand: between the LLM or the Chief ... which decision maker will be most in tune with the long-term common go…

Agreed. But I'm not sure sure which decision maker is more myopic toward the big picture and long-lasting implications of a decision: an LLM, or the top brass at the Department Of …

Yeah, I agree. We have a large and persuasive LNG industry influencing government policy. Not a lot of critical discussion is permitted because of the sheer money at stake. So many…

Sure, but nearly half the population of Canada west of Ontario is in BC (5.0M out of 11.8M west of Ontario), and 92% of BC's electric generation comes from hydro (89%) and wind (3%…

I disagree. Witness western democracies which have seen incompetent majorities lead populist rebellions to control powerful seats in government, including the highest. Incompetence…

Tell gamers how many months, for the advertised price, they will receive a guaranteed level of service and features for. Then let gamers decide. Example: If I'm reminded, at purcha…

Appreciate the pushback, saltyoldman. Yes, we want to respond to credible threats. And, as always, courts and law enforcement can invade privacy when there's reason to believe some…