Fiachra's recent activity

  1. Comment on Cryptocurrency mining as a novel virtual energy storage system in islanded and grid-connected microgrids in ~enviro

    Fiachra
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    I once had a very laborious conversation with a crypto fan trying to pitch his governance-token-based DAO as "cyber anarchism". I'm no anarchist myself but I made a polite, pointless effort to...

    I once had a very laborious conversation with a crypto fan trying to pitch his governance-token-based DAO as "cyber anarchism". I'm no anarchist myself but I made a polite, pointless effort to explain that anarchists are never going to go for a system where people get more votes depending on how many tokens they own.

    This was in a solarpunk forum two years ago so they were probably an early warning of this pseudo-environmentalist branding we're seeing now.

    2 votes
  2. Comment on Cryptocurrency mining as a novel virtual energy storage system in islanded and grid-connected microgrids in ~enviro

    Fiachra
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    Can't help but suspect that this is crypto people adopting the language of environmentalism to promote themselves, the same way they were all into "helping the third world access banking" a few...

    Can't help but suspect that this is crypto people adopting the language of environmentalism to promote themselves, the same way they were all into "helping the third world access banking" a few years ago.

    9 votes
  3. Comment on Students invent quieter leaf blower in ~engineering

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    That's why we have to give it to them for christmas

    That's why we have to give it to them for christmas

    1 vote
  4. Comment on Students invent quieter leaf blower in ~engineering

    Fiachra
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    About a million unpolular neighbours worldwide are getting a surprise christmas present this year.

    About a million unpolular neighbours worldwide are getting a surprise christmas present this year.

    5 votes
  5. Comment on Robert Fico: Slovakia’s prime minister in life-threatening condition after being shot multiple times in ~news

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    The shooter's grudge wasn't with Abe personally, but a cult group Abe happened to have ties with. Still not sure that counts as politically motivated though, like if something similar happened...

    The shooter's grudge wasn't with Abe personally, but a cult group Abe happened to have ties with. Still not sure that counts as politically motivated though, like if something similar happened because Trump University had financially ruined someone, I don't think that would be seen as politically motivated.

    14 votes
  6. Comment on How to tell if a conspiracy theory is probably false in ~science

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    Admittedly in this case they work very similarly, but I would say "just asking questions" is used to obscure a lack of evidence for the claim being pushed, where the Socratic "planting seeds"...

    Admittedly in this case they work very similarly, but I would say "just asking questions" is used to obscure a lack of evidence for the claim being pushed, where the Socratic "planting seeds" method is trying to make a close-minded conspiracy theorist see that there is evidence/arguments outside of their bubble.

    2 votes
  7. Comment on Florida man worries about his ruined reputation after pulling gun on Uber driver dropping the man's daughter off at their house in ~transport

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    I have noticed a subset of the gun-supporting kind of American that seems to greatly overestimate the amount of home invasions, random kidnappings and gangland sieges that happen in the real world.

    I have noticed a subset of the gun-supporting kind of American that seems to greatly overestimate the amount of home invasions, random kidnappings and gangland sieges that happen in the real world.

    14 votes
  8. Comment on How to tell if a conspiracy theory is probably false in ~science

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    Yeah sometimes it seems like people expect a Columbo moment where the perp is stunned into silence by the clarity of the evidence, but I have yet to see it happen in real life or online. Being...

    Yeah sometimes it seems like people expect a Columbo moment where the perp is stunned into silence by the clarity of the evidence, but I have yet to see it happen in real life or online. Being disproven makes people defensive which leads to doubling down and further claims.

    That's why I'm big into pushing this image of "planting seeds". You don't truly know the soil you're planting them in, so you'll never be sure which seed will grow into bigger questions, the one thing you know for sure is it'll start small and grow in its own time.

    12 votes
  9. Comment on How to tell if a conspiracy theory is probably false in ~science

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    The advice I've seen is to avoid contradicting or debunking directly and go with the Socratic method instead. Question how they know X or Y, point out contradictions in their theory and ask what...

    The advice I've seen is to avoid contradicting or debunking directly and go with the Socratic method instead. Question how they know X or Y, point out contradictions in their theory and ask what they think of them, "but have you considered... ", that sort of thing. Planting seeds of doubt that might help them later to start questioning their theory.

    15 votes
  10. Comment on RIP 'Red vs. Blue.' Machinima is gone—but its legacy is everywhere in ~tv

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    As far as I know they would cut together in-game footage with CGI segments to make episodes. CGI was for action scenes and the like.

    As far as I know they would cut together in-game footage with CGI segments to make episodes. CGI was for action scenes and the like.

    3 votes
  11. Comment on The unbreakable Kryptos code in ~misc

    Fiachra
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    I don't think he actually did this, but if I wanted to achieve maximum notoriety for my uncrackable secret code I would make it in four increasingly difficult parts but have the last part just be...

    I don't think he actually did this, but if I wanted to achieve maximum notoriety for my uncrackable secret code I would make it in four increasingly difficult parts but have the last part just be completely random letters. Then swear up and down that it was solvable for the rest of my life.

    8 votes
  12. Comment on The world owes Spider-Man 3 an apology in ~movies

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    I'm not sure most other would even say they're pretty good, just that they're not the irredeemable messes they're said to be. The bad majority doesn't erase the bits that are good, so if you're...

    I'm not sure most other would even say they're pretty good, just that they're not the irredeemable messes they're said to be. The bad majority doesn't erase the bits that are good, so if you're willing to turn your brain off there is something you can manage to enjoy.

    I welcome this more optimistic approach to deeply flawed media.

    2 votes
  13. Comment on The beautiful dissociation of the Japanese language in ~humanities.languages

    Fiachra
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    Picture the reaction you would see in your own country if they required everyone to switch from the Latin alphabet to katakana. Edit: come to think of it, even a spelling reform of English to make...

    Picture the reaction you would see in your own country if they required everyone to switch from the Latin alphabet to katakana.

    Edit: come to think of it, even a spelling reform of English to make it phonetic within the existing Latin alphabet is unthinkable, let alone switching to a whole other writing system

    7 votes
  14. Comment on Saudi Arabia’s 105-mile long Line city has been cut a little short – by 103.5 miles in ~design

    Fiachra
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    Outlandish projects like this always get me speculating about hidden motives. I wonder did The Line already accomplish its true objective? Did it successfully distract from some scandal, or...

    Outlandish projects like this always get me speculating about hidden motives. I wonder did The Line already accomplish its true objective? Did it successfully distract from some scandal, or attract VC investment to the country? Were certain groups of people already removed from that land?

    3 votes
  15. Comment on Saudi Arabia’s 105-mile long Line city has been cut a little short – by 103.5 miles in ~design

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    It feels exactly like a Kickstarter scam but on a grand scale. CGI mockups played over inspirational music and total unearned confidence. Shockingly, I have been served YouTube ads for this thing,...

    It feels exactly like a Kickstarter scam but on a grand scale. CGI mockups played over inspirational music and total unearned confidence. Shockingly, I have been served YouTube ads for this thing, as though it was already completed.

    6 votes
  16. Comment on Tesla recalls Cybertrucks over accelerator crash risk in ~transport

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    It's a strange phenomenon when someone makes themselves the public face of a company and then becomes a culture war figurehead, all that companies products inherit the status of culture war prop,...

    It's a strange phenomenon when someone makes themselves the public face of a company and then becomes a culture war figurehead, all that companies products inherit the status of culture war prop, retroactively. Your phone or car or clothes could suddenly become catnip for people seeking out online arguments.

    8 votes
  17. Comment on A US FDA-approved device offers a new treatment for tinnitus in ~health

    Fiachra
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    I'm so curious why the tongue was so vital to this concept. Is it much more sensitive or linked to a particular part of the brain? Clearly if it would work with any other body part they would have...

    the electrical stimulation "tickles" the tongue, she says. In addition, the device includes a set of headphones that play a series of tones and ocean-wave sounds

    It's the combination of what you're feeling through the nerves in your tongue and what you're hearing through your ears happening in synchrony that causes the spotlight in your brain to not be so stuck on the tinnitus

    I'm so curious why the tongue was so vital to this concept. Is it much more sensitive or linked to a particular part of the brain? Clearly if it would work with any other body part they would have saved themselves the trouble of making the gizmo food-safe.

    5 votes
  18. Comment on ‘Heroes’ reboot in the works from series creator Tim Kring in ~tv

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    A familiar phrase to anyone who played the original Digimon World

    A familiar phrase to anyone who played the original Digimon World

  19. Comment on An honest assessment of American rural white resentment is long overdue in ~misc

    Fiachra
    Link Parent
    I included a link because I was anticipating being asked for a source or context. If you think it's unhelpful to discussion I'll remove it.

    I included a link because I was anticipating being asked for a source or context. If you think it's unhelpful to discussion I'll remove it.

    2 votes
  20. Comment on An honest assessment of American rural white resentment is long overdue in ~misc

    Fiachra
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    Or the related "I want to stop immigration but only to stop right-wing extremism I swear" takes I've been seeing far too much recently. Even here on Tildes.

    Or the related "I want to stop immigration but only to stop right-wing extremism I swear" takes I've been seeing far too much recently. Even here on Tildes.

    4 votes