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Programming Language Inventor or Serial Killer? (2003)

vole.wtf

101–110 of 153 posts

Re: Programming Language Inventor or Serial Killer? (2003)

#101
I just chose "serial killer" for everyone. In my experience, when programming language inventors encounter all the comments and requests and criticisms from the users of their languages, there is a very thin line separating them from becoming serial killers...

Re: Programming Language Inventor or Serial Killer? (2003)

#102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another interpretation is that the portraits communicate essentially zero information about the subject. No information means no way to differentiate beyond the absolute basic facts: male, age such and such, seems to be wearing western clothes, things like that. No information means no way to shade probabilities. You might as well flip a coin. Or this way: Serial killers look like random people, just as programming l…

Facial asymmetry, testosterone (thick eyebrows, baldness), weight, piercings, tattoos, unnatural hair colors etc. surely have some correlation with being a serial killer?

Any measurable characteristic will allow to establish some correlation, but it doesn’t necessarily will be a high correlation.

Re: Programming Language Inventor or Serial Killer? (2003)

#103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm just glad the game isn't "File system creator or killer"

That was my first thought too! OTOH, wouldn't it be "File system creator and killer"? :-(

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Reiser for those who might wonder

Re: Programming Language Inventor or Serial Killer? (2003)

#104

I just chose "serial killer" for everyone. In my experience, when programming language inventors encounter all the comments and requests and criticisms from the users of their languages, there is a very thin line separating them from becoming serial killers...

We need additional button, thats appears after wrong choice. "I wish...".

And resulting statistics, of course.

Or is it too dark?

Re: Programming Language Inventor or Serial Killer? (2003)

#107
post #36

I like this because I like to flatter myself that I have a good intuition about people after seeing them, and this shows that I’m completely wrong about that—barely better than random.

It turns out with the trappings of how serial killers are presented in media (bad black and white photos from odd angles), everyone looks like a serial killer.

There's a security camera monitor displayed prominently in one store near where I live that makes everyone look dodgy — something about the frame rate and fuzzy image just looks like shoplifting footage you'd see on the news.

I see myself on the screen as I enter and think "yeah, that guy's going to hold up the shop or something".

Re: Programming Language Inventor or Serial Killer? (2003)

#108
post #56

I like this because I like to flatter myself that I have a good intuition about people after seeing them, and this shows that I’m completely wrong about that—barely better than random.

Probably you are still right. Seeing a photograph is different from seeing a person in real animated life. I guess there are micro expressions, the way people laugh, and the exact point at which people laugh and such that some people are really good at reading, but it is hard to articulate what exactly the process of interpretation is.

Like Chris Watts was investigated and arrested for behaving a little off about his family's disappearance.

Re: Programming Language Inventor or Serial Killer? (2003)

#109
post #86

Related: Programming Language Creator or Serial Killer? - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25878602 - Jan 2021 (139 comments) Can you tell a programmer/language inventor from a killer? - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1455383 - June 2010 (12 comments) Programming Language Inventor or Serial Killer? - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=135299 - March 2008 (1 comment) (I put 2003 on it because of https://we…

Interesting how it became more popular recently

Re: Programming Language Inventor or Serial Killer? (2003)

#110
post #34

I know it's a silly game, but I'm slightly uneasy with it. If you remember a time when programming computers was considered nerdy, in a socially discouraged and mocked kind of way (until it became big money)... a game of guessing whether a photo is of a serial killer or a computer programming nerd... might seem a little abusive.

I agree with this sentiment, but I’ve always wondered about a person’s face or appearance and how that might correlate to other traits.

I think we could all agree that a person’s face might indicate ‘shiftiness’ or ‘meanness’ and that there is a decent probability that you’d be right in your assessment.

Has there ever been studies that correlate face types with personality traits?

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