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Screwed by Square
In addition to making the small bucks as a science fiction writer, I have a day job. I run a game store which hosts events and serves the local community here in Brooklyn, but also sells games and …
Topics /
Society, Policy & Culture
The most popular blog posts about society, policy & culture on Hacker News. 13,065 posts.
7892
Hyperliterature
The vast majority of fiction on the web is nonergodic : stories presented as linear text. Yet, in an age where everyone has a supercomputer in their pocket, literature can take on any shape imaginable. In recent years, some pieces have taken advantage of these capabilities—not as a gimmick, but in a way that is…
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MIT Legal repudiated Xbox hacker too
I am joining three academic research web sites, SIFT and Polyphen (websites for predicting disease mutations) and CRAVAT (a website for predicting cancer mutations), in a moment of silence to mark Aaron Swartz’ passing. On January 25, we will bring down our sites for the day to honor his contributions and mark the…
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Departing the New York Times
I left to stay true to my byline
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Chaos Computer Club saves the German healthcare system 400M Euros
Zur Verbindung mit dem Gesundheitsdatennetz „Telematik“ sind in deutschen Arztpraxen spezielle Router vorgeschrieben. Nach nur fünf Jahren Laufzeit soll nun ein Gerätetausch alternativlos sein – so...
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If you didn’t run code written by assholes, your machine wouldn’t boot
This was passed on to me by Ben Elliston, ex-gcc hacker and good guy. Amusing in context, but the corollary is that working on free software means you'll encounter such people. You may have to work with them. You may have to argue with them (and they may be right). Quite some time ago I was horrified by the private…
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The origin and unexpected evolution of the word "mainframe"
What is the origin of the word "mainframe", referring to a large, complex computer? Most sources agree that the term is related to the frame...
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A White iPhone 4 Is Confronted Regarding Its Inability to Be Shipped
The Great White Nope.
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Hacker News Highlights: January 2017
Here are some of our favorite recent posts on Hacker News. Quantum computers ready to leap out of the lab in 2017 [https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13317716] A handful of quantum computing researchers bump into each other. [https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13317716] A large slab of ice is breaking off an…
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So you want to abolish time zones
Laudable! Let's take a look at some of the changes that arise from this, through a simple case study: making an international phone call to a relative. Before abolishing time zones I want to call my Uncle Steve in Melbourne. What time is it there? Google tells me it is currently...
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A case for ending lockdown
Introduction [DISCLAIMER: The original author is a layperson without medical/scientific credentials and this post represents a best-effort attempt to synthesize relevant research and unpack the policy implications of the “lockdown” approach as compared with the proposed alternative.] [Note: See the very last section…
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The K-shaped recovery
This installment of The Pomp Letter is free for everyone.
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It’s dangerous to think humans have a destiny outside Earth
The President has otherworldly priorities for a potential second term, but colonizing space is a fantasy used to maintain the status quo.
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Wishing for a more orderly disruption may misunderstand government reform
Wishing for a more orderly disruption may misunderstand the nature of government reform
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Pooling and Sharing of wealth makes everyone's wealth grow faster
A central puzzle in evolutionary biology is that of spontaneous altruism. When two creatures interact, why might one sacrifice something of value in order to help the other? Why, if I'm rich, might I want to help the poor? In one view of the problem, there's n
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Falsehoods Programmers Believe About Names – With Examples
40 common false assumptions programmers make about names, debunked with real-world examples from global naming systems and identity practices.
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Health effects of the use of non-sugar sweeteners: a review and meta-analysis
Non-sugar sweeteners have been developed as an alternative to sugars and are widely used both as an ingredient in pre-packaged foods and beverages and added to food and beverages directly by the consumer.
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Globalization is dead and no one is listening
The “tool-in” ceremony of TSMC’s new fab in Arizona drew a lot of attention last week. CEOs from Apple, Nvidia, and AMD attended and spoke. President Biden, along with a coterie of cabinet officials, congresspeople, and local Arizona politicians, came to rally, celebrate, and claim (as we will
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Mars Problems vs. Venus Problems
Posted on Wednesday 23 Sep 2020. 825 words, 7 links. By Matt Webb.
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The News Is Information Junk Food (2022)
Cutting out the news has been one of the best lifestyle decisions I've made in recent years, second only to cutting out social media (though the two are not mutually exclusive). Reducing my intake of what is essentially junk information has significantly reduced anxiety and worry in my day to day life, and has freed…
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What’s the best way to spend $20K to help the common good?
I recently came across the following question posted by Paul Buchheit (the founder of Gmail): Assume that I'm going to get rid of $20,000 and my only concern is the "common good". Which of these is the best use of the money: give it to the Gates foundation, buy a hybrid car, invest it in a promising startup, invest it…
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AI Slop Report: The Global Rise of Low-Quality AI Videos
Kapwing’s new research shows that 21-33% of YouTube’s feed may consist of AI slop or brainrot videos. But which countries and channels are achieving the greatest reach — and how much money might they make? We analyzed social data to find out.
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Tinder’s pricing algorithm can charge users up to 5x more for same service
Tinder Plus users around the world must engage with an opaque and unfair personalized pricing algorithm, according to new research by Mozilla and Consumers International.
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“Multiple personality disorder” probably doesn't exist
TikTok culture can be incredibly toxic, but those on the left refuse to ever condemn it for fear of echoing conservatives