balooga's recent activity
-
Comment on How has your industry changed in the past decade? in ~life
-
Comment on China population set for 51 million drop as pro-birth moves fail in ~society
balooga (edited )Link ParentAgent Smith was right — humans are a virus. This is a pretty bleak thing to discuss so I want to temper that with some non-fatalism: I love humanity and the richness of this life. If we want to...Agent Smith was right — humans are a virus. This is a pretty bleak thing to discuss so I want to temper that with some non-fatalism: I love humanity and the richness of this life. If we want to survive as a species, we will need to evolve as a virus does.
Take covid, and influenza before it. Both were extremely virulent early on, but faced selective pressure to avoid killing their hosts so quickly; they needed to survive long enough to spread to others. So with the goal of self-preservation they evolved into less harmful variants. (Not to handwave away the factors of vaccination, herd immunity, and medical treatment of course.)
We humans operate on a longer timescale so it's a bit harder to observe this, but I think we're operating like the earliest stage of a novel pandemic. We are rapidly killing our host, the earth. We're not in a position to become an interplanetary species in any meaningful way for a long time — we haven't spread yet. We're still in patient zero. We're going to have to significantly adapt our survival strategy to make it that long. Declining birth rates could be a start.
-
Comment on China population set for 51 million drop as pro-birth moves fail in ~society
balooga LinkI think I don’t understand mainstream thinking on population economics and policy. Maybe someone here can shed some light for me? My thoughts are that the global population is basically a hockey...I think I don’t understand mainstream thinking on population economics and policy. Maybe someone here can shed some light for me?
My thoughts are that the global population is basically a hockey stick graph. Speaking from a geologic timescale, Homo sapiens basically showed up on the scene one day, with their apex predation, agriculture and industrialization, deforestation, global trade, carbon emissions, microplastics, mass extinctions, and so on and so forth. In 1800 there were fewer than a billion humans on the planet. In 1925 there were 2 billion. Today there are 8.2 billion. Just in my own lifetime I’ve seen the number nearly double.
Maybe I’m crazy but I find that a bit alarming. For some reason if the line doesn’t keep going up people start freaking out. I assume this is tied into the capitalist doctrine that prosperity is only possible under conditions of perpetual economic growth — which (in addition to its ravenous resource depletion) would require more and more people to exist in order to be sustainable. Isn’t that a pyramid scheme? Is that why govs are afraid?
I don’t want some horrible systemic collapse. But this model doesn’t seem practical. If the population keeps exploding exponentially, eventually there’s going to be a crash. The more we come up with tricks to prop it up longer (I’m thinking of GMOs to increase food production, fracking to drill more oil, etc.) isn’t that just going to make the damage more catastrophic when it finally comes?
I’m really hoping someone with a deeper understanding than mine will chime in and reassure me that because of X and Y reasons, our current population trajectory makes sense and can continue apace for millennia.
-
Comment on Why is Google Gemini saying we should die? in ~tech
balooga (edited )Link ParentI think that's broadly correct, albeit light on details. Even so, it's good to remember that LLMs don't have any actual insight about their inner workings. They can't tell you specifically why...I think that's broadly correct, albeit light on details. Even so, it's good to remember that LLMs don't have any actual insight about their inner workings. They can't tell you specifically why they outputted anything, and will frequently hallucinate misinformation about how they work.
-
Comment on Why is Google Gemini saying we should die? in ~tech
balooga Link ParentEven if it got through code review, it would be trivial to find that string hard-coded in the codebase, run a quick git blame, and the responsible party is shown the door that same day. You can't...Even if it got through code review, it would be trivial to find that string hard-coded in the codebase, run a quick
git blame, and the responsible party is shown the door that same day. You can't just "sneak" stuff into enterprise software anymore, at least not without being held to account sooner or later. -
Comment on Why is Google Gemini saying we should die? in ~tech
balooga Link ParentThat theory doesn’t fit with my understanding of how LLMs work, or how code is deployed to production in large orgs like Google. I think the more likely explanation (unsatisfying as it is) is that...That theory doesn’t fit with my understanding of how LLMs work, or how code is deployed to production in large orgs like Google.
I think the more likely explanation (unsatisfying as it is) is that this is just the product of some anomalous, improbable conceptual connection in the training data that was arrived at through random chance. There’s probably some dystopian sci-fi story or edgelord chan post about machines killing off old people, that got hoovered up in the data set, and that content lives near enough in latent space to the expected content that it just took an unlucky RNG to nudge the conversation in the wrong direction.
-
Comment on Waymo’s robotaxis are now available to everyone in Los Angeles in ~transport
balooga LinkObligatory link to the How Self-Driving Cars Will Destroy Cities thread that's ongoing. I thought it was a really insightful video from a point of view that's not often considered in these...Obligatory link to the How Self-Driving Cars Will Destroy Cities thread that's ongoing. I thought it was a really insightful video from a point of view that's not often considered in these discussions.
-
Comment on Is the love song dying? in ~music
balooga LinkInteresting read and visualizations. Personally I don't think the "Good Riddance," "Love Song for the Self," and "Sexual Confidence" categories belong under the "Love Song" umbrella. I can see a...Interesting read and visualizations. Personally I don't think the "Good Riddance," "Love Song for the Self," and "Sexual Confidence" categories belong under the "Love Song" umbrella. I can see a case for the other ones, but IMHO a song isn't a love song unless it's about wanting a relationship with another person.
-
Comment on How do people get over enshittification? in ~life
balooga LinkLet's not enshittify the definition of the word "enshittification," which is a great and useful term coined by Cory Doctorow to refer to a specific phenomenon in tech services. That said, there's...Let's not enshittify the definition of the word "enshittification," which is a great and useful term coined by Cory Doctorow to refer to a specific phenomenon in tech services.
That said, there's a very real race to the bottom happening in many consumer goods categories. Shrinkflation has risen to comical levels in the past decade or two. It drives me up the wall too! I don't have a solution apart from "don't settle for cheap, crappy stuff when you can pay more for a quality alternative" but that will only get you so far.
-
Comment on Job offer in a new city -- making friends? in ~life
balooga LinkAs a general rule, I encourage anyone at your stage of life to take the plunge and move somewhere new. It’s the ideal time to do it! You will likely never again have the same amount of financial,...- Exemplary
As a general rule, I encourage anyone at your stage of life to take the plunge and move somewhere new. It’s the ideal time to do it! You will likely never again have the same amount of financial, social, familial, and neuroplastic flexibility that you have now.
In my experience, people who remain in the same place where they grew up tend to grow smaller-minded as they age. Meaning their limited exposure to the broader world gives them a kind of myopia about the range of cultures and experiences they are comfortable with. An intentional Big Move as you begin adulthood can meaningfully impact your willingness to try new things, and your acceptance of others. In short, have an adventure and let it change you! You will be a better person for it in the long run!
Practically, your concerns about making friends are real. I knew someone who attempted a Big Move without figuring out that part, and his life became a depressing morass of workaholism and loneliness; after about a year he returned to his hometown in defeat. I think as long as you’re proactive about putting yourself out there socially, you’ll do fine. Depending on your level of introversion, of course, that could be the most challenging part. I don’t mean to minimize that. Regardless, I still think a move like this can be highly rewarding and is worth doing for most people who are able.
I’ve done a Big Move three times now, myself. None of them were easy but that post-graduation season is a special time when the friction is the lowest it’ll ever be. I say go for it!
-
Comment on Mindless games, preferably mobile in ~games
balooga Link ParentI enjoy Bloons TD 6! It’s a really full-featured tower defense game. It’s part of the Netflix games package, so I guess it’s included for free with a subscription if you have one. There may be...I enjoy Bloons TD 6! It’s a really full-featured tower defense game. It’s part of the Netflix games package, so I guess it’s included for free with a subscription if you have one. There may be other ways to acquire it, I haven’t looked. Really fun and addictive though.
-
Comment on Looking for eclectic and little-known websites that bring joy in ~health.mental
balooga (edited )LinkI was shlubbing around RinkWorks some 20 years ago and it’s still online, basically unchanged. It’s not being updated anymore and the once-vibrant community evaporated long ago… but it’s still a...I was shlubbing around RinkWorks some 20 years ago and it’s still online, basically unchanged. It’s not being updated anymore and the once-vibrant community evaporated long ago… but it’s still a great repository of humor and old-internet charm.
Edit: Fixed URL, I should’ve tested it before posting but it turns out RinkWorks is so old-school that HTTPS doesn’t work!
-
Comment on New 3D Golf Simulation (video game series) in ~games
balooga LinkI’m curious if you’ve ever seen Buick Dimensions, an old Macintosh promotional disk series. They released one annually for a few years. We had a couple of them floating around my house and I’m not...I’m curious if you’ve ever seen Buick Dimensions, an old Macintosh promotional disk series. They released one annually for a few years. We had a couple of them floating around my house and I’m not even sure where they came from… we didn’t even own a Buick!
Anyway these came with surprisingly decent golf sims on them in addition to the marketing fluff. You may enjoy them if you haven’t seen them before!
-
Comment on Plants really do 'scream'. We've simply never heard them until now. in ~science
balooga LinkThis part is interesting to me… I don’t tend plants but my wife does. I know she sometimes has trouble knowing when to water them, or assessing their general health. A gadget like a Raspberry Pi...For us humans, the implications are pretty clear; we could tune into the distress calls of thirsty plants and water them before it becomes an issue.
This part is interesting to me… I don’t tend plants but my wife does. I know she sometimes has trouble knowing when to water them, or assessing their general health. A gadget like a Raspberry Pi with a microphone, nestled in the planter, could be a hugely useful tool for alerting her to issues that aren’t easily visible.
-
Comment on 2024 United States election megathread in ~society
balooga Link ParentWhat Is Trump’s “Little Secret” With Speaker Mike Johnson?What Is Trump’s “Little Secret” With Speaker Mike Johnson?
Former President Donald Trump’s rally at Madison Square Garden in New York City received a lot of attention for its racist comments. Another comment that quietly stood out came from Trump himself. At one point while on stage, Trump turned to Speaker Mike Johnson, who was in attendance.
“I think with our little secret we’re going to do really well with the House, right?” he said, with an air of slyness to himself. “Our little secret is having a big impact. He and I have a little secret—we will tell you what it is when the race is over.” Johnson stirred the pot the following day by confirming some sort of clandestine understanding between the two men. “By definition, a secret is not to be shared—and I don’t intend to share this one,” he said in a statement.
-
Comment on 2024 United States election megathread in ~society
balooga LinkSo when do we find out what Trump and Johnson's "little secret" is?So when do we find out what Trump and Johnson's "little secret" is?
-
Comment on American election mental health thread in ~health.mental
balooga Link ParentIt's true that he only cares about saving his own skin and lining his pocketbook. But it's his advisors and cabinet I'm worried about. A lot has changed in the MAGA world since his first term, and...It's true that he only cares about saving his own skin and lining his pocketbook. But it's his advisors and cabinet I'm worried about. A lot has changed in the MAGA world since his first term, and there is now a whole political apparatus waiting in the wings to get their hands on the wheel.
-
Comment on 2024 United States election megathread in ~society
balooga Link ParentI thought the early votes would be the ones counted first, and those were expected to lean blue? I was primed to expect things to (generally) redden over time, not the opposite.I thought the early votes would be the ones counted first, and those were expected to lean blue? I was primed to expect things to (generally) redden over time, not the opposite.
-
Comment on Reddit is profitable for the first time ever, with nearly 100 million daily users in ~tech
balooga Link ParentHuh, that’s an actual Tildes user. Hmmmmmmmm.Huh, that’s an actual Tildes user. Hmmmmmmmm.
-
Comment on What has case distinction but is neither uppercase nor lowercase? in ~comp
balooga LinkI love this. It calls to mind the classic Falsehoods Programmers Believe About Names. We devs love to define schemas but it's good to remember that the analog world is messy, complex, and...Just another situation where the world is more complicated than you think. You thought you understood uppercase and lowercase, but there’s another case in between that you didn’t know about.
I love this. It calls to mind the classic Falsehoods Programmers Believe About Names. We devs love to define schemas but it's good to remember that the analog world is messy, complex, and unpredictable.
Not to be dismissive of your specialization, but LLMs are a lot more useful when there’s a wealth of relevant training data — and (anecdotally) I’ve never heard of GSON or Lombok, so I presume those are just too obscure to have meaningful coverage. I work with JavaScript and React, which are embarrassingly common these days but the upside of that popularity is that AI is really good at answering questions about those. I hit more issues when I ask for help with TypeScript, and it’s totally unreliable when I need help with specific JS libraries, even ubiquitous ones. By this point I can usually intuit what subjects are safe to ask about, and which are likely to end in nonsense hallucinations.
One surprising use for AI I’ve been leaning into more is Copilot’s terminal integration (in VS Code, maybe available in other ways too?). If there is a specific command or args I’m looking for but don’t know off the top of my head, I just type a couple words explaining what I want and it’ll put the right thing in. Previously I would’ve had to pull up a man page or google around; this has been an unexpected timesaver and for my needs it’s been quite reliable.