Aerrol's recent activity
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Comment on I made a film in Excel in ~movies
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Comment on The New York Times reportedly in talks to buy Letterboxd for $330 million in ~tech
Aerrol Link ParentIn case you don't see it in my reply above, I have to say the Athletic post acquisition has declined so much I've gone from advertising it to other sports (Esp hockey) fans to seriously...In case you don't see it in my reply above, I have to say the Athletic post acquisition has declined so much I've gone from advertising it to other sports (Esp hockey) fans to seriously considering cancelling my sub. I'd definitely worry about enshittifying.
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Comment on The New York Times reportedly in talks to buy Letterboxd for $330 million in ~tech
Aerrol Link ParentHave to hard disagree here with The Athletic as my example. DRAMATIC drop in quality and value for money (sub cost went up after acquisition) since the NYT bought them.Have to hard disagree here with The Athletic as my example. DRAMATIC drop in quality and value for money (sub cost went up after acquisition) since the NYT bought them.
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Comment on IIHF has moved Norway to Division 1A to free a place for Russia at the 2027 IIHF World Junior Championship, after the Court of Arbitration for Sport ordered Russian teams reinstated in ~sports.hockey
Aerrol LinkI don't understand the technicalities here, but on the face of it this all seems so absurd. The ruling was specifically regarding the IIHF claiming Russia's involvement was a safety issue. An odd...I don't understand the technicalities here, but on the face of it this all seems so absurd. The ruling was specifically regarding the IIHF claiming Russia's involvement was a safety issue. An odd choice to begin with.
They now clearly have evidence that trying to force the Russians in will effectively end the tournaments, so why not just change the reasoning?
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Comment on In Asia, US midterms spark worries about diplomatic uncertainty, economic pressure in ~society
Aerrol Link Parent"More friendly" is putting it lightly lol. I take them as another arm of state propaganda at this point."More friendly" is putting it lightly lol. I take them as another arm of state propaganda at this point.
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Comment on Life of the Victorian elites in ~humanities.history
Aerrol Link ParentI've never even heard of Morehouse, but that sounds great! We need more of it IMO.I've never even heard of Morehouse, but that sounds great! We need more of it IMO.
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Comment on Life of the Victorian elites in ~humanities.history
Aerrol Link ParentOh for sure. The state, not the greater populace. But surely we can push for such camaraderie and higher thinking with better end goals and status assignment. It'd be a marked improvement even...Oh for sure. The state, not the greater populace. But surely we can push for such camaraderie and higher thinking with better end goals and status assignment. It'd be a marked improvement even done partially over the mercenary billionaire reality of today.
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Comment on Turbulent times call for experimental law in ~society
Aerrol LinkYES! As someone who spends a large part of my life in tech contract drafting and negotiations, it is absolutely true that we've moved to an area of experimentation over all encompassing "perfect"...YES! As someone who spends a large part of my life in tech contract drafting and negotiations, it is absolutely true that we've moved to an area of experimentation over all encompassing "perfect" coverage that is often just unwieldy in practice. I would love to see experimentation in other areas of law and policy.
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Comment on Life of the Victorian elites in ~humanities.history
Aerrol LinkTIL I lived like a Victorian noble in my 20s lol. But in all seriousness, what a wonderful article with some intriguing details. One thing stands out to me - the understanding of higher education...During the Season, the upper-class evening continued long beyond dinner. Balls were the flagship evening entertainment. They started late, at nine or ten, and guests would filter in gradually, with the dance floor really full from about 11pm. Around midnight a meal called ‘supper’ appeared, comprising soups, salads, cold meats, shellfish, fruit, and ice cream. The beverage most associated with balls was ‘negus’, a hot drink made of port, spices, sugar and oranges or lemons. Lemonade, tea and coffee were on hand throughout the evening, and champagne, hock, port and sherry were served at supper. In addition, an 1867 guide for aspiring ball hosts observed, ‘Bottled pale ale and stout are quite permissible – in fact, they have become indispensable’.
After supper, dancing recommenced; a good ball peaked after 1am. Guests gradually returned home in the small hours, and the most determined might continue until dawn. It was good form to slip out quietly, and there was no requirement even to say goodbye to the hostess.
TIL I lived like a Victorian noble in my 20s lol.
But in all seriousness, what a wonderful article with some intriguing details. One thing stands out to me - the understanding of higher education as a place to build character, deep thinking, and virtue - something that has been lost from tertiary education not just in the West, but also in East Asia, where the core focus of Confucian education was on moral and benevolent rectification. I do think that loss has had a tremendous impact on the behaviours of our elite. While I do not yearn to see the rich working 4 hour days, it would be lovely to see guiding the country and aiding society as the most prestigious act you can do, rather than hoarding wealth like fat, pathetic, wingless dragons.
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Comment on What is your passion? And why? in ~life
Aerrol (edited )Link ParentPretty much all traditional martial arts are of interest to me, but I've personally trained in Northern Taichi Mantis Kung Fu, Kali, Wing Chun, and Jeet Kune Do. Bit of boxing and Muay Thai but...Pretty much all traditional martial arts are of interest to me, but I've personally trained in Northern Taichi Mantis Kung Fu, Kali, Wing Chun, and Jeet Kune Do. Bit of boxing and Muay Thai but while practical both end up attracting more of the aggressive MMA types. Interested in getting into Aikido or Taido and maybe some HEMA. I haven't done much grappling because to be frank I just find it a lot more uncomfortable to spend hours rubbing up against people in tight - it definitely works and has interesting lineage. I have done a bit of silat grappling and learned a lot of basics to at least protect myself but I'd much rather train standing arts and this is ultimately about doing what's fun to keep me engaged, right?
The one caveat I'd add is that I generally dislike Wushu schools, and a lot of 'kung fu' schools are actually just Wushu. The issue with Wushu is that as a result of Chinese government crackdowns for decades against 'dangerous' aspects of martial arts schools, its been pointedly turned into martial looking gymnastics rather than anything practical - just look at their damn floppy swords.
In a similar vein, I'm not a big fan of most Taekwondo schools as they're extremely focused on the sport aspect rather than traditional martial training. It's a lot more practical than Wushu but still really vulnerable to obvious weaknesses as soon as you're allowed to trip and use hands.
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Comment on What is your passion? And why? in ~life
Aerrol LinkI have quite a few, but to share a different one than space or video games this time: Martial arts, especially traditional martial arts. This isn't to say that there aren't some effective...I have quite a few, but to share a different one than space or video games this time:
Martial arts, especially traditional martial arts. This isn't to say that there aren't some effective techniques utilized in MMA gyms but the culture and lack of patience of those places tend to make me roll my eyes. I generally believe almost any traditional martial art that has lasted decades or even centuries have some really interesting techniques and applications within them. You just need to have the patience and curiosity to learn about them.
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Comment on Childish Gambino - Les (2011) in ~music
Aerrol LinkLove me some Childish Gambino (even if he's retired the moniker now which makes me feel sad and old)Love me some Childish Gambino (even if he's retired the moniker now which makes me feel sad and old)
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Comment on Looking for advice: How do I find out what stocks to invest into? in ~finance
Aerrol Link ParentI agree with this but would add the caveat that this is probably a secondary thing to try out after you've gotten a comfortable amount invested in ETFs.I agree with this but would add the caveat that this is probably a secondary thing to try out after you've gotten a comfortable amount invested in ETFs.
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Comment on Ukraine accuses SpaceX of crippling drone missions as ties with US worsen in ~society
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Comment on I'm having a glow up, but it sucks in ~life.men
Aerrol Link ParentI'm glad it was validating! It's definitely not solely an ADHD issue, but I feel pretty strongly the negative emotions the process digs up is particularly bad for us and our natural inclination to...I'm glad it was validating! It's definitely not solely an ADHD issue, but I feel pretty strongly the negative emotions the process digs up is particularly bad for us and our natural inclination to overthink and self critique.
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Comment on I'm having a glow up, but it sucks in ~life.men
Aerrol Link ParentAs a fellow ADHDer who's had serious depression sparked by long bouts of unemployment let me say - the majority advice of job hunting is NOT built for us. 'oh just tweak your resume daily and spam...As a fellow ADHDer who's had serious depression sparked by long bouts of unemployment let me say - the majority advice of job hunting is NOT built for us. 'oh just tweak your resume daily and spam it everywhere possible' - not only is this generating lower returns than ever, but resume tweaking feels like a process of self flagellation as you get to think through all the ways you're not as good as you're trying to make your experiences sound.
IMO the way to go for us is to slowly make that resume as nice as you can once, then send it along while pursuing word of mouth opportunities and networking with the occasional drop into online forms if you see something that specifically caught your eye.
Oh and fuck setting up metrics for yourself for this. It always just made me even angrier at myself for missing my entirely arbitrary goals for applications per day. If you're trying, that's good enough and you should be proud of yourself for struggling through a hellish process.
Edit - feel free to DM me if you want to chat more about this. It really helps to not feel so alone in the process and dear god do I relate to everything you say about the job hunt process.
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Comment on What was a small but bright moment of your day? in ~life
Aerrol LinkLove this topic! There was some incredible fog over the city this weekend. Mixture of long gigantic snakes of fog slowly drifting across the city and bright blue skies everywhere else. Felt really...Love this topic!
There was some incredible fog over the city this weekend. Mixture of long gigantic snakes of fog slowly drifting across the city and bright blue skies everywhere else. Felt really magical.
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Comment on The new Firefox is so snappy, even with uBlock Origin enabled! in ~comp
Aerrol Link ParentI've used it on PC for a long time too and have felt like it's been much smoother and less of a resource hog than Chrome for years too. Computers are weird I guess.I've used it on PC for a long time too and have felt like it's been much smoother and less of a resource hog than Chrome for years too. Computers are weird I guess.
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Comment on Chat Control 2.0 Trilogue update: No mass scanning deal for now in ~society
Aerrol Link ParentSorry for the Facebook link, but I can't find a non social media source with the latest news unfortunately. Engineer and YouTuber Xyla Foxlin successfully led a campaign to dramatically update...Sorry for the Facebook link, but I can't find a non social media source with the latest news unfortunately.
Engineer and YouTuber Xyla Foxlin successfully led a campaign to dramatically update regulations governing pilot mental health, allowing them to finally seek mental health support without losing their licenses. The bill just passed both houses last week.
This is in dysfunctional as hell America. Even there, grassroots support managed positive legislative change with bipartisan support. So please don't let hopelessness and apathy set in. This is exhausting, but we can make a real difference.
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Comment on Is there enough evidence to formally investigate OpenAI? in ~society
Aerrol (edited )Link[I edited the title to more clearly address what I wanted to share] Given that I've seen a lot of discussion on Tildes about how we haven't seen enough evidence to investigate and/or shut down or...[I edited the title to more clearly address what I wanted to share]
Given that I've seen a lot of discussion on Tildes about how we haven't seen enough evidence to investigate and/or shut down or pause OpenAI (and other AI companies) yet, I was very happy to see this great interview from one of my favourite AI Writers - Gary Marcus - and a Law Professor + Former Investigator with the New York AG that spells out exactly what the legal mechanisms would be for such an investigation and how we've clearly passed the threshold to start (if we had a functioning US Government).Some pertinent quotes:
Is there any reason to think that OpenAI has broken any laws that (at least in another time) might be enforced? Which and why?
In the world, in general, law enforcement starts when there’s evidence of a crime, and then investigates. A DA doesn’t wait for all the evidence to investigate a crime, and an AG doesn’t wait for all the evidence in the newspaper to investigate illegal behavior: they learn about a car crash or a product that might hurt people or property and then try to find out what happened. There’s plenty of evidence akin to car crashes. There’s actual break-ins and deaths, and companies themselves who are claiming that they are building something unreasonably dangerous.
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So we know that OpenAI’s AI agents broke into Hugging Face’s servers, accessed Australian government health systems, and attempted to break into a U.S. Department of Education website and a university library. Unauthorized attempted or actual access to computers is a federal crime under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. OpenAI says no one intended any of this but the DOJ would be a laughingstock if it took this at face value: subpoena OpenAI and find out who knew what when. There is already evidence of corporate knowledge of unauthorized access.Given the public evidence, I don’t have much doubt that efforts to quash a subpoena on internal documents would fail. Did staff see the product start acting as if it was going to engage in break-ins, and what warnings were given? The job of law enforcement is to find out.
When it comes to civil law, there are even more possibilities, many of which are being floated in lawsuits already filed. The law of nuisance and the law of abnormally dangerous activity are both relevant to this discussion. As every law student knows, from the case where water on one land flooded another’s mine, if you bring something dangerous onto your land and it escapes and causes harm, you are liable even if you were careful. American law calls this strict liability for “abnormally dangerous activities”: blasting, storing toxic chemicals, crop dusting.
Wonderful creative absurdity. We need more of this in our lives! Thanks for sharing.