@meltedcheese@c.im
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

meltedcheese

@meltedcheese@c.im

Melted Cheese Hath No Master

The Edge: There is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over.

  • Hunter S. Thompson

#Retired #Science #ComputerScientist #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #Robots #Space #NewsJunkie #politics #Progressive #ClimateEmergency #SocialJustice, #democracy, #humanism #humor #Culture #Jazz #Tornado #SecondLife #ChilePepper #PS5 #Gamer #Sword #HomeAutomation #SciFi

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GottaLaff, to random
@GottaLaff@mastodon.social avatar

You may disagree fervently with Pres. Biden's Israel policies, and that's fine. But if you come into my feed calling him "Genocide Joe" or any variation on that theme, you're blocked.

I've already had to block a few accounts for this.

Pres. Biden is not "for genocide." I will not argue with you on this topic, nor do I discuss the Israel/Hamas war here.

But I will not tolerate accusations of "genocide" by Pres. Biden. He's not "pro genocide."

If that's a prob, it's on you.

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@GottaLaff @birdpoof @Urban_Hermit That’s why I enjoy posts such as this, when the criteria are clear. The post draws trolls like flies. Super easy, if tedious, to block them. So if Laffy’s followers take the hint, we all get the benefit.

dan, to random
@dan@discuss.systems avatar

Yesterday I found myself sitting at 40,000 feet over the middle of the Pacific, miles from any civilization, when my phone popped up a notification that one of my cats had used the litter box.

This is a level of technology I could never have dreamed of. Or necessarily wanted to.

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@dan It is the great transparency of life. Think of the planetary wealth required to get that urgent message to you. I wonder if your cat would be self conscious about bouncing signals off satellites in orbit to get this information to you within a few seconds of it happening, or would it be overwhelmed and hide in a cardboard box until your return? I suspect cats, if they knew, would hack their litter box and spam you for ransom treats.

GottaLaff, to random
@GottaLaff@mastodon.social avatar

🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️ considers move to make presumptive nominee

“While Trump would still need to reach delegate requirements necessary to win the nom, if the resolution is approved, he’d have access to RNC’s data operation, benefit from fundraising w RNC, & have support of all of the committee’s ground ops. It would also mean the committee would be supporting Trump & effectively opposing Haley – an unprecedented break from party’s past approach to nom process”

https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/25/politics/rnc-trump-presumptive-nominee-resolution?cid=ios_app

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@GottaLaff Everything about Trump is unprecedented. Insofar as Trump aims to complete his coup d’etat, the RNC would become co-conspirators. I expect them to do it. The GOP as it was is long gone.

cstross, to random
@cstross@wandering.shop avatar

"Visionaries at NASA identified a futuristic new energy source (space billionaire egos) and found a way to tap it on a fixed-cost basis"— ouch!

The Lunacy of Artemis (Idle Words), or why the Artemis moon program is incoherent, badly designed bollocks that will probably kill astronauts.
https://idlewords.com/2024/5/the_lunacy_of_artemis.htm

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@ovid @glitzersachen @cstross You are on the right track. I was at NASA HQ and involved in early decisions on commercial launch, at that time focused on small spacecraft. The political momentum was for refurbishing and repurposing existing ICBMs (in storage) for civil launch but the cost projections were in favor of commercial launch. I credit Assoc. Admin Scott Horowitz with making the tough call in favor of commercial launch.

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@ovid @glitzersachen @cstross I remember Bush Sr’s “Space Exploration Initiative “ very well. I wasted a year of my life on it at NASA, developing the automation and robotics technology program, until SES was cancelled. It was only an election year political gimmick, nothing more.

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@cstross @ovid This is true. As an executive at NASA, I was deeply involved in (and mortified by) the Constellation program at NASA, later rebranded as Artemis. Sen. Shelby had immense power over NASA’s budget and he got whatever he demanded. There were many machinations to assure that Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville had control of budgets and many tech decisions. It was (and is) pure Shelby Alabama pork. I quit NASA because of it.

Jaden3, to random
@Jaden3@mastodon.social avatar

The thing I am most interested in is time travel. I would be real interested in connecting with people on mastodon that have same interests 👌🏾
I tried writing a book last year but lost interest. Need more inspiration 🙏🏿

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@Jaden3 Here is a great list of stories.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_time_travel_works_of_fiction

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@Jaden3 I enjoyed the “Time Patrol” stories by Poul Anderson, including the novel, “Shield of Time.” I’m not sure if this is where I first heard the idea of time-like vs. light-like vs. space-like trajectories, but if you are going to go then you need to understand the causal implications of messing with world lines!

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@Jaden3 is related to faster-than-light travel from inside to outside the spacetime interval light cone. It makes be dizzy trying to interpret multiple world lines using this chart 👆🏼, but it can be done. Have fun!

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@Jaden3 Here is another diagram that I find helpful in understanding re the speed of light in. It depicts intervals. A cone is positioned on 3D axes. The vertical axis is time, two (for simplicity) horizontal axes are space. The narrowest point of the cone is at the origin; the here and now. inside the cone are called time-like. Outside the cone world lines are space-like. Time travel involves going from time-like to space-like world-lines.

GottaLaff, to legal
@GottaLaff@mastodon.social avatar

Starting a NEW THREAD🧵 here. 1/...

Again, I won't reply to you while live-posting multiple accounts.

Lisa Rubin:

Alina Habba, prowling the well of the courtroom, said this case started before Tish James was elected, pointing at AG. Engoron reminds her to stick to the facts, which she says she is trying to do, but that James’s conduct is part of the factual record.

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@GottaLaff @signalthirteen I agree. He gave Trump his moment in court. I sometimes watch courtcam videos on YouTube and the judges always seem to do this. Next, they lower the boom.

AstroDave, to random
@AstroDave@astrodon.social avatar

Is NASA too down on space-based solar power? - Via Science.Org - a nifty (and expensive) idea that goes way back: https://www.science.org/content/article/nasa-too-down-space-based-solar-power

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@AstroDave Sure does go back. I remember a few technologists at NASA/JPL who advocated constantly for space-based solar power transmission in the late 1980’s. There were technological challenges, but none insurmountable. Space to space transmission — no problem. Space to ground had issues: Big attenuation of power delivered due to atmospheric absorption and beam scattering. The FAA was also disinclined to create no-fly zones above the ground stations. The beam you see, …cough.

michelestrider, to random
@michelestrider@mastodon.social avatar

The American Medical System: before you can reach some of the very smartest people, you must survive a gauntlet of the absolute stupidest

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@michelestrider @MisuseCase For me, the issue is more about how my personal health information will be kept private and secure. I have yet to visit any medical practice that even knows about the HIPAA Security Rule and they certainly can’t tell you how they comply. Hospitals usually have a HIPAA compliance officer to talk to if needed.

https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/security/laws-regulations/index.html

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@michelestrider I’ve had this happen even in a doctor’s office. I ask to read the privacy statement. “I don’t know where it is.” “Please go ask.” “The office administrator is on her break.” …and so on.

chriswho, to random
@chriswho@mstdn.social avatar

I apologize if my posts are somewhat down and grim.

I feel like the folks who haven't been facing the sharp end of injustice in the last 50 years don't understand how close we are to global authoritarian rule.

I'm Canadian. Even if we vote Green or Progressive, being a resource rich, militarily poor nation next door to a failed state is terrifying.

A lot more is on the line than just US domestic issues.

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@chriswho Thanks. I appreciate your perspective. I am a USian and have paid close attention to US politics and society since Nixon, Vietnam and the social unrest of the late 60’s. We have unique challenges today, e.g.; severe inequity, but many challenges we’ve seen before, including charismatic populism, nationalism and racism. It is the same fight since the Enlightenment and throwing off of kings and nobility. We are clearly not done. We will continue to resist and fight together.

StillIRise1963, to random
@StillIRise1963@mastodon.world avatar

I pass on movies which star racist assholes like Mel Gibson and Clint Eastwood.

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@StillIRise1963 and pedophiles like Polanski

meltedcheese, to random
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

Thought for the day: Frank Zappa was a genius and understood exactly the role that rock music played in enabling young people to transgress the socio-sexual mores of society at that time. There are many Zappa videos on YouTube. Please take a look. From his very first appearance on American TV he disrupted convention thinking. People laughed because he was an odd ball, comic relief, but what he did was open minds to what is musically possible. Let me know if you agree!

Jaden3, to sciencefiction
@Jaden3@mastodon.social avatar

I am 💯 obsessed with Sci fi ain gon lie. The biggest wish I would have in the whole world is if aliens from other planets would connect with us . Surely this is a possibility at some time in the future?
Just want to connect with other Sci fi folks to discuss? Tho hope not just fiction 😬

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@Jaden3 If you confine speculation to our current understanding of physics, then the opportunities for extraterrestrial contact are slim to none unless we (or they) can manage to create technology to manipulate local spacetime. This is not theoretically prohibited. The proposed Alcubierre Drive is one such:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcubierre_drive

Skepticat, to random
@Skepticat@mstdn.social avatar

Is this an old person thing, or does my personality no longer care?
I feel like I've turned into some sort of Mazeratti of irritability.
I go from zero to completely over it in seconds now.

Social events
The grocery
Standing in line
Dining out

If anyone is boring or annoying, or God forbid the lethal combination of boring and annoying,there's literally a hole in the door the shape of me.
And I don't even bother with the niceties half the time.
I don't know.
What do you think?

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@bleakfuture @Skepticat 60’s reporting in: live one day at a time, a good day, and let the rest slide. I was in a near plane crash yesterday which the pilot avoided with 1 second to spare. Enjoy life while you can.

meltedcheese, to science
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

So the wants to win a popularity contest by telling people what they want to hear? “The science hasn’t changed” says the WaPo article, reporting that CDC will lift guidelines for 5-day isolation because nobody is doing it anyway. My spouse and I have never contracted and we will continue to follow the science. It has long been clear that “public health” favors economic health over personal health. The CDC is no longer a credible source of -based advice.

meltedcheese, to random
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

“The thing to remember about what happened is that it’s your neighbors that turn you in.”
#holocaustremembranceday #Holocaust

https://babka.social/@dukepaaron/112398031699018581

shoq, to random
@shoq@mastodon.social avatar

ETHICAL INQUIRY:

Should public figures (including published journalists) be allowed to request deletion of Wikipedia articles about them if not defamatory (unless a court rules otherwise?)

cc @dangillmor @jeff @jayrosen_nyu @digiphile

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@lakelady @shoq
I agree — no takedown. Consider: 1. Public figures are, by definition, legitimate subjects of public speech. 2. There exist limitations on that speech, e.g., no defamation. 3. Public statements/discussion are a matter of historical record. 4. When it comes to biographical articles on Wikipedia, the policies and criteria for inclusion are clear, but they also have some wiggle room to allow for editorial debate.

shoq, to random
@shoq@mastodon.social avatar

I seem to have shocked that person by telling them that in the early 20th century, the term “Palestinian” in British policy mostly referred to the Jews being emigrated to Palestine, not the “Palestinian Arabs” in Palestine. (They didn’t really solidify that term for their aspirational nationalist identity until the PLO used it extensively in the early 1960s.) He flatly rejected this and accused me of being a Zionist shill. Oh well.

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@shoq Truth.The term was originally appropriated by the PLO and this has continued with other terrorist organizations since then.

To me, using “Palestinian” alone to refer only to the Arab inhabitants of that region is unreasonable and shows bias (conscious or not).

For a short time, I used the terms Palestinian Arabs (or Palestinian Muslims) and Palestinian Jews to separate the geopolitical and ethnic considerations. As you indicate, some people were very hostile to the idea.

shoq, to random
@shoq@mastodon.social avatar

Think about what numerically controlled tooling and flexible automation did to manufacturing. That’s long past due for software. I am willing to bet that within 3 -5years, AI code generation will get so good that developing a full-featured mastodon or bluesky client would take about a week. If that. I have no doubt that AI itself will be used write those tool kits. I believe it’s not a matter of if, only when.

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@shoq I notice you didn’t say, “error-free” so I must agree. 😁 Automatic programming is a foundation for computer science and the basis for software itself! The obstacles are minimal to the automatic creation of ever-more complex code at higher levels of abstraction. Software engineers could bootstrap this today without AI, but most are still in love with scripting languages. That must change. I don’t think AI can invent this next step on its own.

escarpment, to random
@escarpment@mastodon.online avatar

Given statistics on veganism, you have a 95-99% chance that anyone making a moral claim is a selective ethicist. The low rate of ethical veganism further supports my hunch that everyone is a selective ethicist.

meltedcheese,
@meltedcheese@c.im avatar

@escarpment @shekinahcancook We are on the verge of disrupting the stability of Earth’s climate. Once unstable, there is no guarantee that it will return to the same climate equilibrium in which humanity or other life thrives. The geophysical history of Earth shows multiple climate equilibriums. Many remained stable for millions of years. Earth climate is a multi-stable system, potentially moving now towards a new, inhospitable climate equilibrium.

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