2761
High U.S. Health Care Spending
Administrative costs, prescription drugs, and physician and nurse wages may contribute to excess health spending in the U.S., compared with peer nations.
New
The latest blog posts to take off on Hacker News. 13,065 posts.
Society, Policy & Culture
Any year
2762
What's next for Tor and privacy online?
Ten years ago, Edward Snowden shared documents with the press that exposed the extent of the U.S. government’s mass surveillance program – and used Tor to protect himself while doing so. How has the perception of privacy changed since then, and what are the Tor Project’s challenges for the year to come?
2763
The Inner Ring (1944)
When Boris entered the room, Prince Andrey was listening to an old general, wearing his decorations, who was reporting something to Prince Andrey, with an expression of soldierly servility on his purple face. “Alright. Please wait!” he said to the general, speaking in Russian with the French accent which he used when…
2764
RFC 9518 – What can internet standards do about centralisation?
RFC 9518: Centralization, Decentralization, and Internet Standards has been published after more than two years of review, discussion, and revision.
2765
Why do programmers need private offices with doors?
The case for giving programmers private offices with doors — why open offices destroy deep work, how interruptions cost far more than floor space, and what the research actually says.
2766
New PFAS discovered with novel testing method
The “forever chemicals” found in the Cape Fear River were detected through a non-targeted testing method developed at UNC-Chapel Hill that broadens researchers’ abilities to identify the hazardous compounds.
2767
Mickey, Disney, and the public domain: A 95-year love triangle
Center for the Study of the Public Domain2023368 points208 commentsSociety, Policy & Culture details
Mickey, Disney, and the Public Domain: a 95-year Love Triangle by Jennifer Jenkins, Director, Duke Center for the Study of the Public Domain On January 1, 2024, after almost a century of copyright protection, Mickey Mouse, or at least a version of Mickey Mouse, will enter the United States public domain. The first…
2768
The Final Speech from The Great Dictator (1940)
I’m sorry, but I don’t want to be an emperor. That’s not my business. I don’t want to rule or conquer anyone. I should like to help everyone - if possible - Jew, Gentile - black man - white. We all want to help one another. Human beings are like that. We want to live by each other’s happiness - not by each other’s…
2769
The origin of the law of torture: A cautionary tale
+ Ordeals and Plea Bargaining
2770
The falling nutritional value of crops
The mineral content of wheat and rice is lower today than sixty years ago. Why is that and what does it mean for how we eat?
2771
Rising Temperatures in the Netherlands
Visualizing the weather anomalies in rainfall, sunshine and temperature in the Netherlands using data from the Dutch Meteorological Institute (KNMI).
2772
September 11th That You Have Never Seen
In 2001, digital cameras were a rare commodity. They were expensive, bulky and captured images that were inferior to the organic look of…
2773
Canadian internet bill S-210 is a step closer to becoming law
After years of battles over Bills C-11 and C-18, few Canadians will have the appetite for yet another troubling Internet bill. But given a bill that envisions government-backed censorship, mandates age verification to use search engines or social media sites, and creates a framework for court-ordered website blocking…
2774
The AI Trust Crisis
Dropbox added some new AI features. In the past couple of days these have attracted a firestorm of criticism. Benj Edwards rounds it up in Dropbox spooks users with new …
2775
The Long Shadow of Checks
A lot of more modern financial infrastructure follows the paths blazed by checks, at least in the U.S.
2776
2777
AI’s big rift is like a religious schism
The cult-like battles between e/acc and doomers
2778
Forget spaceships; I just want my music
A couple weeks ago, as my kids settled into the car, I asked like I always do, "what songs do you want me to play?" They have a range of favored earworms, from Baby Shark to Babaloo, and usually the songs are tolerable, at least. But a few albums, like Bluey's soundtrack, transcend the children's genre. They're…
2779
Today Is One of the Biggest Surveillance Votes. Will the FBI Stop Spying?
FISA Reform §702 Is a Threat to Democracy At Home and Abroad.
2780
The House Intelligence Committee's Surveillance 'Reform' Bill Is a Farce
Two bills reauthorizing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act are headed to the House floor. Meanwhile, FBI agents have used Section 702 databases to conduct millions of invasive searches for Americans’ communications, including those of protesters, racial justice activists, 19,000 donors to a…
2781
FISA "reform" bill would greatly expand the entities forced to surveil users
Yesterday the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence unanimously approved the FISA Reform and Reauthorization Act of 2023 (FRRA), which would reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA 702). The full House is expected to vote on this bill next Tuesday. Like other competing…
2782
The surprising connection between after-hours work and decreased productivity
Slack’s Workforce Index uncovers new findings on how to structure the workday to maximise employee productivity, well-being and satisfaction
2783
Trust-based moderation systems
master's thesis research into subjective, trust-based moderation systems
2784
Amazon Has an Honesty Issue
We recently ordered a high-value item from Amazon (for Prime delivery), but it was stolen from within their delivery chain. Amazon initially accepted that there was an issue but have staunchly tried t
2785
Deadweight Loss as a Service
The truth is that the best ideas are often psychotic, obscene, and unoriginal.
2786
If buying isn't owning, piracy isn't stealing
20 years ago, I got in a (friendly) public spat with Chris Anderson, who was then the editor in chief of Wired . I'd publicly noted my disappointment with glowing Wired reviews of DRM-encumbered digital devices, prompting Anderson to call me unrealistic for expecting the magazine to condemn gadgets for their DRM:
2787
A connection between after-hours work and decreased productivity
Slack’s Workforce Index uncovers new findings on how to structure the workday to maximize employee productivity, well-being and satisfaction
2788
TACF is no longer supporting development of D58 American chestnut trees
In December 2023, The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF) withdrew its support for SUNY-ESF’s Darling transgenic chestnut project. Since then, we’ve received questions about the decision and what’s next for the Darling line. We appreciate those questions because they indicate a deep interest in our mission and reflect…
2789
The pro-Israel information war
Israeli gov-led Zoom calls, WhatsApp chat logs, and other docs provide a window into the massive effort to shape online discourse and silence pro-Palestinian voices.
2790
Double Standards
Once people had recovered from the shock of seeing both a power button and a real-time clock on a Raspberry Pi, one of the most commented-on features of the new platform was the small, vertical, 16-way FFC (Flat Flexible Cable) connector on the left-hand side of the board, which exposes a single-lane PCI Express…