2023-02-04
Readings
Conditions detected for a probable future large-scale non-black-hole supernova capable of producing the heaviest atoms (still not remotely in our lifetimes probably): https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/02/230201134112.htm
Many modern telescopes and microscopes do something more than direct imaging; interesting to see a variant on microscopy here going for depth (although it is imprinting, sort of, so it’s not stunning):
Better, urine-based ways to detect brain cancer (maybe the first in a longer line of similar techniques to be discovered): https://phys.org/news/2023-02-scientists-device-brain-tumors-urine.html
Genetic studies suggest a two-way population flow existed for some time between North America and Northeast Asia in the Bering Strait era: https://www.science.org/content/article/native-americans-and-their-genes-traveled-back-siberia-new-genomes-reveal
Pressure-tunable superconductivity sounds like a useful property for a material: https://phys.org/news/2023-02-unconventional-superconductivity-kagome-metal.html
Lists of logical fallacies and bad argumentative tactics are common and interesting; I appreciate that this attempts to strategise against such tactics:
Some history of China and why bad timing may have prevented them from discovering/colonising the Americas:
Various kinds of runaway truck stops and how they compare:
I doubt the premise that fairness is so easily defined as to meet the unqualified claims of this article, but it is interesting to hear that people are working on algorithms for automated traffic (really, these principles could theoretically be implemented by humans) that grab some definition of fairness and try to meet it: https://techxplore.com/news/2023-02-autonomous-algorithm.html
Thoughts
One of the socio-political intuitions I have is something I’m struggling to add nuance to - the intuition is that in interactions with police, we should just submit to what is asked in the vast majority of the cases, and that if we do not do this we have significant responsibility for the result. I think it’s a good intuition, but it sits uneasily beside another intuition: that the police should make serious effort never to kill or unnecessarily injure people in their course of duty, with a significant personal, professional, and joint-professional responsibility for this. The uneasiness comes from both intuitions creeping into responsibility/blame for when things go south; it’s not intellectually difficult to imagine joint blame in those cases but I think there’s an emotional gravity towards blame/responsibility simply landing in one place rather than at least two. And a lot of our political discourse (slogans particularly, like “don’t blame the victim”) pulls us towards oversimplifying issues. Not every set of particulars merits joint blame (e.g. revealing clothes and sexual assault), but the possibility of joint blame should not be dismissed before we start getting close to a topic or deciding specifics.
I recently woke from a dream pondering the difference between acclimate and acclimatize - I thought they probably were very close in meaning, and some internet searches suggest they have the exact same meaning but are each more common on opposing sides of the British/American English divide. I’m more likely to use both, giving them a subtly different meaning (this is a difference I think I’ve held for awhile rather than something recent) - I would use acclimate to mean “to adjust to something generally neutral” and acclimatise to mean “to learn to bear something negative”. I have no idea where I get these meanings from; perhaps they’re both words I’ve only encountered rarely and it just so happened I learned them from context and the specifics of the context pushed me to these particulars even if they were just particulars I found by chance.
Current Events
The Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, with Russia attempting to take the city of Bakhmut in Donetsk; increased military supplies to Ukraine are hopefully tilting the tide against Russia, if slowly. I continue to be frustrated at western approaches to Russia that don’t seem to be considering entering the war on Ukraine’s side. Fortunately, it appears that Russia’s economy might finally be collapsing enough to endanger its ability to support the war.
Pakistan, like neighbouring India, has been ramping up internet censorship, with the most recent ban being on Wikipedia for things it calls blasphemy.
China has been (apparently) testing its luck by floating surveillance balloons over the US, Canada, and some South American countries; the US investigated and shot down one of them (I was unable to find info on the fate of the other balloons)
Pakistan lost over a hundred people (with many more injured) to a militant’s suicide bombing in a mosque
Reviewlets
Phantasy Star 3 (PC Game through Sega Classics collection) - I’m guessing the whole collection is run through an emulator; I don’t see any effort to touch things up (apart from a fast-forward function for text). The launcher is pretty annoying, but it’s good to be able to play old games from one’s memories like this. Even though more effort for each game in the collection would be really better.
Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 (addendum to earlier review) - The device is indeed flimsy; walking down the hall of my apartment, it caught on something and the over-the-head and headphone parts snapped apart. Fortunately it’s new enough to have full return-and-replace service, but once I get the replacement back I’m going to need to remember to treat it with great care (strange how many high-tech devices people buy nowadays are so fragile)
Laut (Malaysian Restaurant in Manhattan) - They’re one of my favourites, having solid Thai Iced Tea and quite good Rendang Curry Tofu; it’s less sweet and rich than Indian curry, more hearty.
Amusements
This is cute, but the problem I see with this analysis is it omits a reference to the idea that we should expect a significant fraction of these to come from a combination of chance and what’s possible given our efforts to match the pattern:
Interesting to contrast that analysis with this examination of Mise en Schene, which (if we accept the framing) is also unfalsifiable, but provides reference points like “North” and “South” are; I don’t doubt the sensibility of these categories, but I would not enjoy arguing for them with a wily debate opponent:
Giancarlo Esposito, one of my favourite actors, talks a bit about his very active approach to acting in this video (I imagine some directors I also respect would have found it impossible to work with him):
A lot of things I didn’t know about induction stoves:
Recent Music
A fun musical effort - Radiohead’s “In Rainbows” translated to the Super Mario 64/N64 soundbank (if you’re not deeply familiar with the original album, this probably isn’t worth it): https://gizmodo.com/radio-head-super-mario-mario-64-in-raninbows-1850041227
Pumpkin Pie - Lemon Demon - A particularly catchy (if simple) song from a musician mostly known to his internet following
Maine - John Linnell - One of the better solo efforts by one half of TMBG (in their heyday). Not overly musically complex, it’s a form of comfort food (I’ve been involved in hosting a scientific conference over the last week so I’ve been really distracted and busy so this has been perfect)