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Did You Hear We Got Osama?

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Re: Did You Hear We Got Osama?

#141

Post by [deleted] »

rsanchez1 wrote: post #126
firefoxman1 wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I don't care about politics. I don't care about the tech scene, or gadgets, or games, or celebrities, or sports, or this quarter's fiscal projections for a multinational corporation." Then I think you may be on the wrong news site. I'm not saying that to be a jerk, I'm just saying that HN is a community-curated news site where the stories that the majority of users find interesting gets to the top. If you don't fit…

I think you may be confusing HN with Reddit. Then again, so is everyone else.

[deleted]

Re: Did You Hear We Got Osama?

#142

Post by espeed »

chancho wrote: post #134
wheels wrote: post #97

This is a topic that I've thought some on in that my company is in the recommendations space, and some thoughts on what make news recommendations difficult: The function of news is to facilitate smalltalk. I am reasonably convinced of this. News, as such, is mostly just something that you're supposed to have read so that you can get by in usual social interactions. What we read (and are supposed to have read) is very…

Why is there not a service that tracks news stories and algorithmically relates them into the narrative of history, driven by the singular question of "why?"? Something in between google news and quora/stack exchange (anonymized to avoid embarrassment of dumb questions like "what are Israel and Palestine fighting over anyway?" but with a points/voting system to propagate quality answers.) Whoever makes this, please T…

I am working on this very thing, and in fact it's called Whybase (http://whybase.com).

Re: Did You Hear We Got Osama?

#143

Post by Turing_Machine »

kylemaxwell wrote: post #124
Turing_Machine wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I grew up in Texas, and it matters to me to know that he and my father (or his predecessor) would not have even been allowed to attend school together." Brown v. Board was in 1954. Obama didn't start school until 1967.

You may want to look into the school segregation lawsuits of the 70s, not to mention much of the civil rights movement of the 60s with a particular focus on education. The Supreme Court decision didn't automatically mean integrated schools, which is why my daughter (in an inner-ring suburb of Dallas) attends a magnet school created as part of our desegregation court order. Come to think of it, so did I (though it's,…

"You may want to look into the school segregation lawsuits of the 70s"

I'm quite familiar with the subject, thanks.

Those lawsuits dealt with de facto segregation based on neighborhoods, not de jure segregation based on race. It had a similar effect on the large scale, hence the lawsuits, but that doesn't mean that Obama himself wouldn't have been allowed to attend. Obama didn't live in the 'hood. His grandparents, with whom he lived in Hawaii, were white and well-to-do, and he attended an expensive private school (current tuition: $18,450/year, not including fees).

Re: Did You Hear We Got Osama?

#144

Post by rrrazdan »

wheels wrote: post #97

This is a topic that I've thought some on in that my company is in the recommendations space, and some thoughts on what make news recommendations difficult: The function of news is to facilitate smalltalk. I am reasonably convinced of this. News, as such, is mostly just something that you're supposed to have read so that you can get by in usual social interactions. What we read (and are supposed to have read) is very…

I would tend to disagree. I am an avid reader of history, and having read news about world events and then read books about them, I would say that books usually have an agenda. Even if they are unbiased, you are still at the mercy of somebody else to make an opinion for you. While my greatest joy of reading a new thing is how it adds to or reinforces my mental model of an event.

Re: Did You Hear We Got Osama?

#145

Post by tomhoward »

ryanwaggoner wrote: post #86
epaga wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"the best argument against democracy is a ten minute conversation with the average voter" - reportedly Churchill as well

Yeah, that's the point. Democracy sucks. But what's the alternative?

I was wondering just that a few weeks ago. I found this perspective interesting to think about, even if it's impractical... http://www.see.org/garcia/e02.htm

Re: Did You Hear We Got Osama?

#146

Post by nikcub »

wheels wrote: post #97

This is a topic that I've thought some on in that my company is in the recommendations space, and some thoughts on what make news recommendations difficult: The function of news is to facilitate smalltalk. I am reasonably convinced of this. News, as such, is mostly just something that you're supposed to have read so that you can get by in usual social interactions. What we read (and are supposed to have read) is very…

> Most folks don't actually want news to be too personalized because then it loses its social function.

When Techmeme first started I had a conversation about this with Gabe Rivera - the founder of the site. He realized early on that he had to steer away from personalization because a large part of the attraction to Techmeme was the readers all referring to stories featured on it -for eg. 'did you see this on Techmeme'.

It facilitates conversations within the group of people that read the site as they are all literally reading off the same page. Apparently The Druge Report realized this early on as well which is why they go with one major story per day (or did).

When you are part of an industry or group you want to, or need to, know what everybody else is reading so you can 'keep up' and be 'in the loop'. In silicon valley tech is it Techememe (and HN) and in politics it is Druge, etc.

Re: Did You Hear We Got Osama?

#147

Post by narrator »

wheels wrote: post #97

This is a topic that I've thought some on in that my company is in the recommendations space, and some thoughts on what make news recommendations difficult: The function of news is to facilitate smalltalk. I am reasonably convinced of this. News, as such, is mostly just something that you're supposed to have read so that you can get by in usual social interactions. What we read (and are supposed to have read) is very…

The media narrative of how the world is supposed to work just doesn't match the reality. This is why most news is useless. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a great example of this.

Re: Did You Hear We Got Osama?

#148

Post by curiousfiddler »

Hmmm, some of the ideas to get rid of noise could be: 1. to have some good, fun books that you can pick and read (not a laptop book) when you need a break. 2. to have some real sport / game thing going - could be as simple as a table tennis game or a brisk walk. 3. to have a musical instrument around (of course you should know how to use it).

More ideas?

Re: Did You Hear We Got Osama?

#149

Post by whimsy »

espeed wrote: post #142
chancho wrote: post #134

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why is there not a service that tracks news stories and algorithmically relates them into the narrative of history, driven by the singular question of "why?"? Something in between google news and quora/stack exchange (anonymized to avoid embarrassment of dumb questions like "what are Israel and Palestine fighting over anyway?" but with a points/voting system to propagate quality answers.) Whoever makes this, please T…

I am working on this very thing, and in fact it's called Whybase ( http://whybase.com ).

Got invites for HNers?

Re: Did You Hear We Got Osama?

#150

Post by paraschopra »

kevinalexbrown wrote: post #51

What helps me get off the news pipeline: No one is remembered for being well read. - some blog post I've lost, but the quote is still written on my chalkboard, luckily. when you don't create things, you become defined by your tastes rather than ability. your tastes only narrow & exclude people. so create. _why EDIT: I know it's ironic that these came from online sources. I guess the point is about balance and focused…

Why do you think being remembered is such a big deal? After all, you won't be around to appreciate it.
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