2024-01-06
Readings
Tools to do targeted genetic studies in microbiomes: https://phys.org/news/2024-01-genomic-tweezer-ushers-era-precision.amp
Reading on a social problem in the US: indentured servitude for nurses: https://amp.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/dec/29/nurse-contract-fees-stay-or-pay-communicare
Disgusting and cool (haha) “icebergs” on Titan: https://phys.org/news/2024-01-titan-magic-islands-honeycombed-hydrocarbon.html
Long musings by Katy Barnett, an Australian academic, on academic paths, plagarism, and scandals that have knocked over Harvard’s president:
The history of leggings as an industry: https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/style/gym-leggings-billion-dollar-industry/index.html
Inhalable sensors for lung cancer detection (I suspect we’ll be slowly testing technology-in-the-body of this sort for centuries to come): https://phys.org/news/2024-01-inhalable-sensors-enable-early-lung.html
There’s some sound-similarity across species vocalisations, I suspect: https://scitechdaily.com/cross-species-communication-humans-crack-the-chicken-clucking-code/
It’s cool to see ML advances work their way into microscope controls (a former colleague of mine is involved in this research): https://www.nature.com/articles/s41592-023-02126-0
Thoughts
I see it as an important development in personal jurisprudential reasoning when we see the need to and perform a bifurcation of our advocacy, between our direct values and our metavalues. In its most primitive form, this comes from “I want this but won’t do absolutely everything else I can to get it”, but it eventually develops towards a belief in “neutral” principles like rule of law that can sit between our advocacy and those of others, in the form of treaties and wants “for a referee”.
Personal, easy mythologies: as I’m waking up from a dream, there are times when I realise it and want to make sure I wrap things up for the dream characters. Had a moment between sleep and wakefulness this week when I dipped back into the dream to finish returning two misplaced backpacks and a fancy calculator to two of a group of five I was travelling in on the subway who stepped off the car at a stop and missed getting back on. I think I didn’t wake up enough to have the usual “they’re not real, it’s not a problem” reasoning kick in fully (or half-asleep me is more sentimental)
There was a recent-ish topic of public discussion on whether music schools should eliminate sheet music as a requirement, in the name of equity; my judgement on this is the same as most chasings of intuitions of this kind - it’s misguided. Sheet music provides part of a common vocabulary of talking about music, and taking that away harms the field. Equity is ultimately not that important, and it doesn’t compare in importance to the utility of knowledge and practice that most fields have. If these were things that are mostly useless and hard to acquire, for example if there were universities that only taught mathematics in Latin, then there would be a pretty good argument to change that because latin is a dead, complex language that has little special to offer maths. Here, for those concerned about opening the doors to music school to more people, they should work to help more people learn to read music at an early age so they’re ready by the time they’d want to apply. There’s even a good case for that. Lowering standards, by contrast, makes for problems.
Current Events
Russia gave Ukraine a year-end gift of large bombardments of Ukrainian cities, straining anti-rocket systems; Ukraine has had success at destroying Russian naval and air units, but has lost part of Maryinka, a former town in the east
Israel’s attacks on Gaza continue, with large-scale deaths due to use of large munitions on a refugee camp, providing ample reasons for the next generation of violent responses from the Palestinian side; Bibi has now called for “voluntary” ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from Gaza, following his fascist finance minister Smotrich’s lead. Meanwhile, Israel’s courts struck back against Bibi’s power grab, annulling laws that would’ve limited their annulment powers and setting up a possible future constitutional crisis. Cross-border strikes may widen the conflict.
Brazil is attempting diplomacy to cool Venezuela’s plans for invasion of Guyana, as the UK sends a warship for joint military exercises with the latter
Chad appointed a former opposition leader to the role of Prime Minister as part of a transition government back from its illegitimate coup leadership to elected rule
North Korea is taking a more aggressive tone with South Korea, ceasing to talk about reunification as a possible future, instead talking about exterminating its neighbour if provoked
Taiwan’s election in a week is leading to further provocations from China,
Bangaladesh is set to have an election tomorrow with the current administration’s finger heavily on the till: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/6/vote-doesnt-count-bangladeshs-bizarre-election-tests-ties-with-west
Burma’s illegitimate government has lost control of a border city to ethnic minorities unhappy with the dictatorship: https://apnews.com/article/myanmar-laukkai-shan-china-ethnic-armed-group-33f93dcfb43b23fd3364378d9044a81b
Content
Recently been streaming some Nier: Automata on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/pgunn01
Polls
One result of New Years Resolutions is that some Americans attempt to give up alcohol for the new years ( https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/01/03/10-facts-about-americans-and-alcohol-as-dry-january-begins/ ); I’ve never had an issue with alcohol addiction, neither having ever had a craving nor usually being able to drink it without risking a migraine, although when I’m feeling far enough from a headache I like a good bourbon. I wonder how well New Years Resolutions help people change their lives. I’m a fan of being deliberate with how we live, and maybe some people benefit from doing it on a schedule.
Gallup confirms that most Americans are unhappy with the state of our Democracy ( https://news.gallup.com/poll/548120/record-low-satisfied-democracy-working.aspx ); I suspect some of this is simple immaturity of bad expectations and allergy to nuance/compromise, but things are definitely working worse. Misinformation is part of it too - people who are antivax are likely to be permanently alienated and while they’re a thin minority on the right, any sizable population that’s entirely given up on society is a problem. Excitingly bad politicians are a problem too - the more swagger and warpath, the worse for our politics. It’s unclear whether this might just fade on its own or if we’re doomed for it to get worse
Policy Focus
The city of Jamshedpur in India may be about to be legally managed by a steelworking company, Tata Group, due to (what I see as) a deficiency in the Indian Constitution; this would eliminate local democratic checks on the company’s power (which given the degree of local power is already limited). I think this is bad for democracy and bad for India; while governments are often far too deferential to companies out of fear that the latter would pick up and move elsewhere, they at least have the theoretical ability to reign in abuses and set ground rules. This would remove one of those few remaining safeguards.
Mickey Mouse and a number of other things had their first iterations enter the public domain as the (grossly and unfortunately extended) American copyright expiration window finally started to move forward again after so many extensions. In my view, intellectual property protections are dramatically overdone in the US, stifling creativity and noncommercial culture and we’re overdue for dramatic reductions in their scope (as politically difficult as that would be). In the meantime we can enjoy a few iconic ancient bits of culture freed from commercial control and their incorporation into new things
The Wall of Shame
Apparently some Amerindian tribes think they should be consulted on missions to Luna because of concerns over desecration, and NASA was unwise enough to apologise to them. https://www.knau.org/knau-and-arizona-news/2023-12-28/navajo-nation-president-asks-nasa-to-delay-moon-launch-over-possible-human-remains
Reviewlets
Bocca Di Bacco (Manhattan restaurant) - The presentation of the food (delivery context) is nothing special, but the food is excellent
Limca (Indian soda) - Quite good! Made with real sugar and fake lime flavours, there’s a nicely subtle mix of flavours in there (I think some ginger maybe?)
Robo Quest (video game) - Like Borderlands, without the plot (and annoying characters). A nice looter-shooter that’s admirably difficult in hard mode. I’m a little over an hour into it and having a good time. I wish there were a dash ability (I’ve been spoiled by a lot of other games in this regard), maybe some mantling, but it otherwise feels good to move around in the game. There are interesting tradeoffs to navigate between sniping (which I prefer) and aggression (which can net you healing, Doom-2016 style)
Turbo Overkill (video game) - A modern descendant of Marathon (or the original Doom, for those who never played Marathon), it has a lot of style, weird controls, and a bit of cyberpunk flavouring. Kinda fun. I’m not going to prioritise it, but I’ll go back to it eventually
Amusements
Enjoying this in what I promise is a non-social-justice-y way:
A dolphin playing ball with a toddler:
The benefits of a low-center-of-gravity:
Attempts at replicating the impossibly cool folding sword from the Dishonored video game series:
Cool luxury sleeper car experience in Japan:
Pre-email use of the at symbol on typewriters:
Interesting use and justification for fake bus stops:
Recent Music
We Come Alive - Feels like goth-industrial music ground down into its statistical average, which is interestingly uninteresting
Mission Bells - Armistice - A visit to a market in a small village, where children are dancing; these are the images this song suggests
Obey the Moderator - Optimus Rhyme - An old nerdcore number - I find the rhythms this band plays with often pretty hypnotic; good rap (ideally without dumb lyrics about sex and street violence) is about this kind of word-based lyrics.