Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yep. It’s odd to see classic third world dictator antics in the most powerful country in the world, but not at all unexpected given who’s running it.
> the most powerful country in the world. For now, I live in the former most powerful country in the world prior to the rise of the US.
Terence Tao on the suspension of UCLA grants
71–80 of 328 posts
Re: Terence Tao on the suspension of UCLA grants
#72The feds are forcing the universities to either protect the freedom of speech by banning peaceful protests against the genocide, or to have the universities research funding cut.
Given that so far we (U.S) have been unmatched in science and tech research, this is probably the biggest case of "self own" in recent memory.
Re: Terence Tao on the suspension of UCLA grants
#73Maybe it's time to move to Europe or China
There is nowhere to run and hide. Europe is worse than the US on this front. China also demands party loyalty. In a sense this is just the human condition. The ruling faction demands loyalty. Only a very advanced human civilization could move past that and allow criticism of the ruling class. Maybe the US had achieved that for a brief movement in the past or maybe it was just an illusion. EDIT: For people wondering w…
Re: Terence Tao on the suspension of UCLA grants
#74- Australia
Re: Terence Tao on the suspension of UCLA grants
#75This really has very Germany 1930s vibes even if the direction of the anti is flipped.
Re: Terence Tao on the suspension of UCLA grants
#76If they predicted this, then their actions would make a lot of sense. It is notoriously difficult for scientists to change careers after years in research. For people cut off from US funding like this, a EU-guaranteed middle-class income will appear much more attractive than hoping for this newly unpredictable US situation to turn out well.
Re: Terence Tao on the suspension of UCLA grants
#77Earlier quoted context omitted.
They just fired the commissioner of Labour Statistics. The great thing about autocrats is that they neuter their own country pretty quickly. When you make it risky for people to give you bad news, you end up with missiles that don't work and capital ships that sink.
The US BLS does seem to have a bit of a history [0] with their job reporting though. The process they've been using appears biased to over report initially and then get revised down over time. I'm sure there are a lot of political considerations, but from a raw statistical perspective there is a pretty easy path to getting better results. They could eliminate the optimistic bias and aim for accuracy. If it were me I'…
Moreover, do note that all published numbers come with standard errors [2] and 90% confidence intervals, which did include the corrections of -133k and -120k that were made for May and June. The current interval for July is -63k to +209k [3]. Anybody who understood high school stats knows the meaning and implications of this.
[1] https://www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cesnaicsrev.htm#Summary
Re: Terence Tao on the suspension of UCLA grants
#78Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yep. It’s odd to see classic third world dictator antics in the most powerful country in the world, but not at all unexpected given who’s running it.
> but not at all unexpected given who’s running it To be fair, this has felt like the natural consequence of the "maximize capitalism without regarding the downsides" maxim the US seems to have been operated under for a long time. Corporations have been (indirectly) running the country for some decades at this point, it's just way more obvious and in the face now when a "businessman" sits as president.
The US drifted far from any form of pure open market laissez-faire capitalism or balanced regulated capitalism some time past.
Re: Terence Tao on the suspension of UCLA grants
#79Maybe it's time to move to Europe or China
There is nowhere to run and hide. Europe is worse than the US on this front. China also demands party loyalty. In a sense this is just the human condition. The ruling faction demands loyalty. Only a very advanced human civilization could move past that and allow criticism of the ruling class. Maybe the US had achieved that for a brief movement in the past or maybe it was just an illusion. EDIT: For people wondering w…
Re: Terence Tao on the suspension of UCLA grants
#80[flagged]