EgoEimi's recent activity
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Comment on Cato Institute - The US Government unconstitutionally labels Immigration and Customs Enforcement observers as domestic terrorists in ~society
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Comment on EU drops 2035 combustion engine ban as global electric vehicle shift faces reset in ~transport
EgoEimi Link ParentDriverless technology means we can have driverless carpooling. The biggest cost component to any public transit is labor. Remove labor and it becomes significantly cheaper and easier to scale up.Driverless technology means we can have driverless carpooling.
The biggest cost component to any public transit is labor. Remove labor and it becomes significantly cheaper and easier to scale up.
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Comment on AI will likely affect administrative and operational jobs in heathcare in ~health
EgoEimi Link ParentThink of it this way: is it really an efficient allocation of economic resources to have so many educated people working in healthcare bureaucracy? As the essay points out, the number of admin...Think of it this way: is it really an efficient allocation of economic resources to have so many educated people working in healthcare bureaucracy? As the essay points out, the number of admin have grown at a 10x rate that of physicians.
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Comment on Your phone is a fake house in ~tech
EgoEimi Link ParentI feel that the phone:house metaphor is kinda labored. Many apps, like dating apps, are not private rooms: they're public spaces. Dating apps are like bars. We're not meeting strangers in our...I feel that the phone:house metaphor is kinda labored.
As I move between apps on my phone, I notice a vague emotion that I am entering different rooms, each with its own character. The settings app is the basement; the dating apps are the bedroom. No matter where I go, though, there is that coziness of being in a nook. This is my corner of the world; I am free to do what I want. I can let my mind relax, for I am safe and secure from the vast, terrifying world.
Of course, phones only give us the illusion of privacy and control. If apps are rooms, then every room in your house has someone peeking through the blinds. And you might be able to customize your experience to some degree, but automatic updates are a reminder that you don’t really have agency over your cute little space.
Many apps, like dating apps, are not private rooms: they're public spaces. Dating apps are like bars. We're not meeting strangers in our bedrooms. We can bring strangers from the bar to our bedrooms, however.
We can't expect privacy in public spaces. Bars have bouncers and rules: if we get inappropriate, other people can report us and get us bounced.
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Comment on Sperm from donor with cancer-causing gene at Denmark's European Sperm Bank was used to conceive almost 200 children across Europe in ~health
EgoEimi Link ParentI imagine that getting desirable donors is even harder. People want donors who are well-educated, physically and mentally healthy, tall, attractive, etc. — a fairly small population.I imagine that getting desirable donors is even harder. People want donors who are well-educated, physically and mentally healthy, tall, attractive, etc. — a fairly small population.
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Comment on How Europe is gearing up to follow Australia's teen social media ban in ~tech
EgoEimi Link ParentThe idea that the Internet should be a place of knowledge, productivity, and progress is a worldview very specific to college-educated liberals... whose values are knowledge, productivity, and...The software should be actively helping people to engage with whatever is out there more productively, but it isn't. The internet is not getting closer to becoming a great library where we can obtain knowledge, go on a grand adventure with our heroes or just have a coffee with a friend, it is getting more and more Black Mirror with our eyes glued to mandatory streams.
The idea that the Internet should be a place of knowledge, productivity, and progress is a worldview very specific to college-educated liberals... whose values are knowledge, productivity, and progress.
That's not the vast majority of humans' values. Their values are: money, family, and pleasure. And the Internet evolved to serve those values.
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Comment on How Europe is gearing up to follow Australia's teen social media ban in ~tech
EgoEimi Link ParentI'm not sure about human agency. The internet as it is offers almost unlimited human agency with little IRL social accountability. On one side, there's advocacy for free markets. On the other...I'm not sure about human agency. The internet as it is offers almost unlimited human agency with little IRL social accountability. On one side, there's advocacy for free markets. On the other side, there's advocacy for privacy.
I think that parental app controls can be clumsy, because you only control what apps the child can install and use, but it still doesn't address the problem that parents are still removed from the behavioral observation and feedback loop.
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Comment on Is OpenAI today’s Netscape? Or is it AOL? in ~tech
EgoEimi LinkThere's one more solution: MCPs. They actually work really well in empowering LLMs to exit their silos — but really only for developer applications: referencing the latest documentation for a...Certainly the tech industry knows about this problem – and it has devised a solution: Agents. The next wave of AI innovation centers on “the agentic web,” with personalized agents that will do our bidding in every imaginable way. Every major AI company has announced agentic products, but unfortunately, they don’t work, because the ecosystem in which they operate is hostile to their success.
There's one more solution: MCPs. They actually work really well in empowering LLMs to exit their silos — but really only for developer applications: referencing the latest documentation for a certain tech, getting designs from Figma, getting and updating tasks and tickets, etc.
Unfortunately, they're a bit too 'technical' for consumers.
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Comment on How Europe is gearing up to follow Australia's teen social media ban in ~tech
EgoEimi Link ParentPeople speak of ban vs. no ban, but I think the primary problem is one of design: online spaces currently allow children to have excessive space and time out of sight of the 'village': parents,...People speak of ban vs. no ban, but I think the primary problem is one of design: online spaces currently allow children to have excessive space and time out of sight of the 'village': parents, relatives, family friends, trusted community members who can see and correct misbehavior. Instead, we effectively let moderation tools parent children online.
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Comment on Illiteracy is a policy choice: why aren’t we gathering behind Mississippi’s banner? in ~society
EgoEimi Link ParentI'd solidly wager that the long term outcomes will be positive. I imagine that not being able to read at grade level harms a student's ability to keep up in their other subjects. That gap only...I'd solidly wager that the long term outcomes will be positive. I imagine that not being able to read at grade level harms a student's ability to keep up in their other subjects. That gap only widens if the student keeps getting passed up without remediation.
Literacy is foundational to learning in all other subjects.
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Comment on Uber and Lyft prices vary for the same rides in ~transport
EgoEimi Link ParentSo that's... on avg $1.77 a ride. Seems quite insignificant.A regular New York City rider who takes 100 trips a year could save about $177 annually by comparison shopping (though actual savings depend on trip lengths).
So that's... on avg $1.77 a ride. Seems quite insignificant.
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Comment on Iran's president says capital must move from Tehran over ecological concerns in ~enviro
EgoEimi LinkIsrael is a study in contrast, as it's also a rather dry place, but it goes to extreme techno-infrastructural lengths to produce, reclaim, and conserve water, like the Fremen in Dune. It gets over...Israel is a study in contrast, as it's also a rather dry place, but it goes to extreme techno-infrastructural lengths to produce, reclaim, and conserve water, like the Fremen in Dune. It gets over half of its water supply from unconventional sources, and the vast majority of its drinking water comes through desalination.
Their agricultural water practices are very efficient: the country pioneered the drip irrigation method en masse: using tubes to slowly deliver water directly to plant roots, instead of indiscriminately watering large areas where a great deal of water is 'lost'. Treated wastewater also gets reclaimed for agricultural use.
It's unfortunate that Iran's leadership has misused its resources and driven away its best and brightest for many years.
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Comment on What are the simple things in your life that you are thankful for? in ~life
EgoEimi Link ParentI always try to take pause and reflect on our incredible material prosperity. I sometimes get a little annoyed over the price of cappuccinos or insurance, and I can lose broader perspective of our...I always try to take pause and reflect on our incredible material prosperity. I sometimes get a little annoyed over the price of cappuccinos or insurance, and I can lose broader perspective of our material abundance. Virtually every single person in the developed world has access to a comfortable, clean bathroom with (hot) running water. Bidets are the best, but soft toilet paper would have been an unimaginable luxury to most of humanity for much of history, who had to make do with... hay, straw, moss, or—can you imagine—a communal sponge?
Tonight at a friend's home I held a jar of Heinz Turkey Gravy and thought about how it cost just $2, the cost of a few minutes of labor. In the end, we probably threw away 2–3 jars worth of gravy, nonchalantly. Once upon a time, that gravy probably cost hours of labor for material and preparation.
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Comment on GPT-5 has come a long way in mathematics in ~tech
EgoEimi Link ParentIn parallel is literacy education. Recently fourth graders in Mississippi have beaten their peers in Minnesota in Reading in the NAEP test. Black students in Mississippi have also seen big gains....In parallel is literacy education. Recently fourth graders in Mississippi have beaten their peers in Minnesota in Reading in the NAEP test. Black students in Mississippi have also seen big gains. All this despite Mississippi being the poorest state.
The main intervention Mississippi has done is... holding back third graders who don't meet reading proficiency + embracing phonics and rejecting whole-language theory. See this article on the Mississippi Miracle.
In liberal states, I think that good intentions around equity have led to corrupting incentives that cause schools to prioritize gaming metrics instead of actually educating their students.
- Schools passing along unprepared students so they can claim good passing and graduation rates.
- Colleges dropping SAT/ACT requirements in order to admit more students of color on the theory that SAT/ACT scores don't indicate academic readiness... but this has led to decreased academic performance, because scores do predict readiness. This train wreck is still in motion: I think it's a disservice to students to admit them into programs they're not prepared to fully utilize, and the consequences will unfold in the years ahead.
- San Francisco school district getting rid of 8th grade algebra in the name of equity.
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Comment on Google must double AI serving capacity every six months to meet demand in ~tech
EgoEimi Link ParentIt's probably a lot but less than we think. They cache AI summaries for many common queries, like "how do i get stains out out of the carpet?" When you input a common query, the AI summary is...It's probably a lot but less than we think. They cache AI summaries for many common queries, like "how do i get stains out out of the carpet?" When you input a common query, the AI summary is retrieved instantly. When you input something very specific and unique, then you can see the LLM output being written word by word.
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Comment on California Forever clears first hurdle in Suisun City annexation in ~society
EgoEimi Link ParentI'm rooting for it. Everyone wants the perfect unicorn solution, but here's a group that's offering a pretty decent solution. If they can achieve that aim, that'd bring some relief to the housing...I'm rooting for it. Everyone wants the perfect unicorn solution, but here's a group that's offering a pretty decent solution. If they can achieve that aim, that'd bring some relief to the housing market here. It'd be immoral to not build housing when tens of thousands of people sleep in Bay Area streets.
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Comment on SAG Awards change name to the Actor Awards starting in 2026 in ~movies
EgoEimi Link ParentSAG is such an unpleasant acronym too, immediately makes you think of “saggy”SAG is such an unpleasant acronym too, immediately makes you think of “saggy”
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Comment on The final straw: Why companies replace once-beloved technology brands in ~tech
EgoEimi Link ParentIt is a big simplification. I think that established players are very aware of this phenomenon, which afflicted companies of yesteryear (IBM, etc.) and try to mitigate it. Organizations within...It is a big simplification. I think that established players are very aware of this phenomenon, which afflicted companies of yesteryear (IBM, etc.) and try to mitigate it.
Organizations within companies are basically mini companies with their own culture. Sometimes companies set up a new org to be culturally separate.
Sometimes companies will acquire a startup or company and give them some autonomy. Microsoft didn't acquire OpenAI, but they did invest in them for access to their AI products because their own in-house AI product people were very meh.
Steve Jobs and Tim Cook both did a very good job of keeping Apple motivated and focused on making great hardware and software, though there is some slippage lately. From what I hear from my friends at Apple:
- Apple gives them lots of responsibility and resources to get things done. They have Directly Responsible Individuals, so people know their heads will roll if they neglect their responsibilities. Usually when companies get super big, responsibilities become diffused, so no one is singularly responsible for X or Y, and therefore no one feels responsible and motivated to make sure they do a good job with X or Y.
- Apple hires and fires carefully. They didn't go on a pandemic hiring spree, and they're the only big tech company that hasn't joined the current wave of layoffs, which is killing morale at other companies. Apple has relatively loyal employees genuinely committed to their mission, compared to other big tech companies like Meta, Alphabet, and Amazon, where employees often job hop around.
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Comment on The final straw: Why companies replace once-beloved technology brands in ~tech
EgoEimi LinkAs Steve Jobs once put it, the product people had the original vision and drive to create the product eventually get replaced by sales/marketing people and bean counters. By picking an upstart,...As Steve Jobs once put it, the product people had the original vision and drive to create the product eventually get replaced by sales/marketing people and bean counters.
By picking an upstart, you’re not just choosing software, you’re choosing culture. You’re choosing a younger company that has to care about what they’re building and are responsive and eager to solve your problems.
The old legacy companies are full of people hired after the product became a mature money printer and are now just there to make incremental improvements, shuffle the deck chairs around, and collect their paychecks and go home.
The young eventually become old and the cycle begins anew.
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Comment on McDonald’s is losing its low-income customers in ~food
EgoEimi Link ParentStock prices reflect, to a degree, expectations of how profitable a company is over the long term. As a case study, look at Amazon. For like 20 years it was unprofitable or barely profitable on...What seems to be the way of investors is to make a lot more money right now and future profits be dammed or more likely we will cross that bridge when we get there.
Stock prices reflect, to a degree, expectations of how profitable a company is over the long term.
As a case study, look at Amazon. For like 20 years it was unprofitable or barely profitable on paper — but that's because Jeff Bezos reinvested most profits back into the company, instead of returning it to investors through dividends or buybacks. But Amazon's stock price kept rising because its revenue grew quickly and investors expected it to eventually become very profitable.
Their investments made sense, now Amazon pretty much serves as the shopping mall of America, selling anything big or small you can think of and delivering it to every corner of the US in 2 days or sooner.
Should we really equate the name of something with its contents? This sounds like the argument that the pro-life movement presses on undecided people: that if you're anti-pro-life, then you're pro-death (or pro-baby-murder or whatever).
There are who take issue with the antifa as the political phenomenon that it has come to be — and are opposed to fascism too.