ThrowdoBaggins's recent activity
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Comment on Study: essay graders rarely detect AI, give higher grades in ~tech
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Comment on Is there a way for Donald Trump to run for US presidency for a third time? in ~society
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentGiven that the states run elections, what’s to stop loyal red states from saying “no need to run any more elections because the office is already held by the best guy for the job” and then when...Given that the states run elections, what’s to stop loyal red states from saying “no need to run any more elections because the office is already held by the best guy for the job” and then when other states hold a vote, just turn it into “but any outcome is invalid because not every state participated”
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Comment on School smartphone ban results in better sleep and improved mood in ~health.mental
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentPerhaps ironically, given my other wall-of-text comments, I think I agree with you here. I’m not a fan of it, but given the provable harms, I’m not sure what other options there are. For...I'm generally opposed to the government trying to limit screen time or age restrict the internet though
Perhaps ironically, given my other wall-of-text comments, I think I agree with you here. I’m not a fan of it, but given the provable harms, I’m not sure what other options there are.
For comparison, I also think cigarettes and alcohol are harmful, and while I wouldn’t want an outright ban, I think taxes and regulations to mitigate their harms or disincentivise their consumption tend to make the world better off than the freedoms (that would come from lack of regulation) would grant
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Comment on School smartphone ban results in better sleep and improved mood in ~health.mental
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentThat’s a good point that I hadn’t considered, but again that seems to be within the acceptable requirements of other secure authentication that’s already in place. I could imagine the government...Congratulations on passing the system design portion of the interview! I broadly like the 2FA approach with biometrics although I think it'd have to support PINs/passwords as well for accessibility reasons.
That’s a good point that I hadn’t considered, but again that seems to be within the acceptable requirements of other secure authentication that’s already in place.
Here are the problems I see: what's to stop me from using another person's codes? Is there something that uniquely ties my codes to my account on the site? I think that'd be possible with some cryptography, but I'd be worried about how traceable those codes are. Could websites start sharing them as cross-site user profiles for ad data?
I could imagine the government side could do that when it receives the request from the social media site — if the government ID starts off receiving requests linked to the account @Minori and later starts receiving requests linked to the account @ThrowdoBaggins, it could throw up an error or at least a soft flag. If some social media account always sends requests from @ThrowdoBaggins then that means the person who first created the social media account and the govt ID are likely the same person, or that they’re actually pretty good at identity theft.
On the other hand that could be a deliberate feature — maybe on the govt side, you could have one ID flagged as “parent/guardian” for another ID, and therefore the parent account could grant an override for the child account to give extra access or something.
I think as long as most of the trust is happening on the govt side, there shouldn’t be significantly more risk than anything else that requires identify verification.
I'm ignoring all the international issues we haven't discussed because global standards always end up a mess.
I agree, any implementation is going to be messy, but while it’s not easy or convenient, people do move overseas and start a new life (bank account, credit, drivers licences etc) so it’s not insurmountable.
Also I just wanted to finish with a thank you for engaging with my comment and providing genuine critique. I appreciate it.
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Comment on School smartphone ban results in better sleep and improved mood in ~health.mental
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentI’m not the person you responded to, but I can imagine one that’s going to require some setup, but isn’t insurmountable. Starting from the fact that already, there’s a way to verify identity with...I’m not the person you responded to, but I can imagine one that’s going to require some setup, but isn’t insurmountable.
Starting from the fact that already, there’s a way to verify identity with some acceptable level of false positives and/or false negatives — consider a teenager who wants to open their first bank account under their own name. There’s some burden of proof required to verify they are who they say they are. This involves some amount of information being passed between organisations with privacy laws protecting against misuse. Society already accepts that this isn’t flawless, but it’s considered good enough.
Now imagine this same burden of identity being required to verify you are who you say you are, to link your identity to some government identity app on your phone. For example, my banking app has recently switched from using a password login to only allowing login via biometrics. If I lose my phone, or uninstall and reinstall the app, or I want to do the biometric version of “reset my password” then I have to go through the original authentication process to link my biometrics to my account again. Most (all?) smartphones that can be used for social media also have some version of biometrics built in, so the govt ID app can use the same.
This hypothetical government authentication app would have the same burden of biometrics to open the app, and the same authentication requirements to set up your account in the first place. I’m not trying to reinvent the wheel here, just build off existing infrastructure that society already trusts for identification and security.
The way this app would work is that when you open your social media app, it asks for an “age key” in the same way that many apps require 2FA. You’d then log into your govt ID app, get a single-use key, then give that to the social media app. The social media app then checks with the govt service for whether or not that key is valid, and the govt app would respond with something like “this person is allowed X more minutes today” or “this person is now older than the limited age, grant their account full access for the rest of their life” depending on the details.
This way, the social media app still adheres to the limits without ever seeing actual private identifying info at any stage, and this system should only ever get in the way of adults once per account, and then that account is flagged as unrestricted.
I’m not going to try and claim this system is perfect or has no workarounds, but I think if it’s good enough for a bank to open a credit card against your name, it should be good enough for social media verification.
I’m writing this late in the afternoon after a very busy day at work, so if I’m not making sense or there’s something I’ve missed or you’ve spotted a flaw in my idea, please let me know. I’d love to keep exploring this idea, and challenging the stuff I’ve missed helps me reinforce my ideas to be more robust for the future.
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Comment on How to pass the time when you have nothing to do at work and just your phone? in ~talk
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentAlso sexaginta-quattuordle for when you want to solve 64 wordle type puzzles simultaneouslyAlso sexaginta-quattuordle for when you want to solve 64 wordle type puzzles simultaneously
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Comment on In the real world, existing EV batteries may last up to 40% longer than expected from lab tests in ~transport
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentYeah, I think you’re right about the range. I take one roadtrip per year from Melbourne to Canberra, and if I was driving a BYD Seagull (it’s not actually available in Australia, but there are...Yeah, I think you’re right about the range. I take one roadtrip per year from Melbourne to Canberra, and if I was driving a BYD Seagull (it’s not actually available in Australia, but there are rumours it’s on the way) I probably wouldn’t be comfortable taking that trip in the EV, but trips within Victoria should be mostly fine.
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Comment on In the real world, existing EV batteries may last up to 40% longer than expected from lab tests in ~transport
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentI’ve seen people talking about the potential for using an EV’s enormous battery pack as a potential house battery (charge up during off-peak hours or when solar is doing it’s thing, discharge to...I’ve seen people talking about the potential for using an EV’s enormous battery pack as a potential house battery (charge up during off-peak hours or when solar is doing it’s thing, discharge to cover some of the house’s power needs during peak/nighttime) but is this hypothetical future stuff or is there already the equipment required to make this possible?
Also, as an Australian, I think I still want an EV for daily driving (and maybe rent an ICE once per year for my 680km/420mi road trip), but I don’t know if the charging infrastructure is there yet for longer trips, especially considering the kind of car I want to get (small city car, less range than most EVs at the moment). That said, I’m sure the situation is likely to change over the next few years; while Australia is huge, most of the population is concentrated on the east coast, which makes justifying EV chargers a bit easier.
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Comment on Googly eyes uber alles! in ~arts
ThrowdoBaggins LinkI’m a little conflicted — on the one hand, I believe that the adhesives on googly eyes might cause damage to the sculptures, but on the other hand I’ve definitely seen local councils use a...I’m a little conflicted — on the one hand, I believe that the adhesives on googly eyes might cause damage to the sculptures, but on the other hand I’ve definitely seen local councils use a reasonable-sounding excuse like this to just be a stick in the mud.
I think if I lived in that town, I’d be tempted to challenge their claims (that it’s “just because of the adhesives”) by finding a way to attach googly eyes without adhesives, for example buying a cheap headband and attaching googly eyes to the headband, and popping that on the statues instead. Apparently they don’t remove Santa hats or antlers like they’ve been removing googly eyes, so there’s at least something in favour of them not being entirely anti-fun.
That said, I could totally believe they would just shift the goalposts and suggest that googly eyes (even sans adhesives) are “not in the spirit of the artwork” or something boring like that.
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Comment on ‘Unprecedented risk’ to life on Earth: Scientists call for halt on ‘mirror life’ microbe research in ~science
ThrowdoBaggins LinkI had never really thought about the dangers of mirror microbes being set loose on the world, I’m concerned enough about how difficult it is to research prions safely and this seems like a step...I had never really thought about the dangers of mirror microbes being set loose on the world, I’m concerned enough about how difficult it is to research prions safely and this seems like a step further again in potential risk. No thanks, not while nobody yet knows if it’s safe.
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Comment on How do you shave your nose and ears? in ~life.men
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentOh, fascinating! Yeah I hadn’t even thought about armpits but yeah that makes sense to be way too sensitive too. Thanks for your insight!Oh, fascinating! Yeah I hadn’t even thought about armpits but yeah that makes sense to be way too sensitive too. Thanks for your insight!
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Comment on Tildes Demographics Survey, year… uh, it’s 2024? in ~tildes
ThrowdoBaggins Link Parent“Exactly” — to how many significant figures?Distance is also continuous, but it's possible for something to be exactly half a meter long.
“Exactly” — to how many significant figures?
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Comment on How do you shave your nose and ears? in ~life.men
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentOh cool, good to know I’m not the only one! My left eyebrow has I think four hairs that are thicker and less flexible than the rest, and usually pale or silver (the rest of my bushy eyebrows are...for my eye brows since I now have about six hairs that just keep growing long
Oh cool, good to know I’m not the only one! My left eyebrow has I think four hairs that are thicker and less flexible than the rest, and usually pale or silver (the rest of my bushy eyebrows are still dark brown, no sign of greying yet) and they seem to grow just forever! Easily twice the length of the others if I haven’t trimmed or yanked them in a while
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Comment on How do you shave your nose and ears? in ~life.men
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentI’ve only once been curious about removing the hairs growing on my toes, and learned quickly to no longer be curious about that. I’m intimidated by your pain tolerance if you also have (had?)...I can personally attest to these facts, as I regularly epilate my entire body. (Yes, everywhere)
I’ve only once been curious about removing the hairs growing on my toes, and learned quickly to no longer be curious about that.
I’m intimidated by your pain tolerance if you also have (had?) hairy toes
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Comment on Inside the war against excessive headlight brightness in ~transport
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentExcept that it’s not that dark, and your eyes are great at adjusting to the conditions, and by having your lights brighter you make it even harder to see anything that’s not lit, so you’re making...Except that it’s not that dark, and your eyes are great at adjusting to the conditions, and by having your lights brighter you make it even harder to see anything that’s not lit, so you’re making the problem worse for yourself
(Not actually addressed at you, in particular, just creating a rebuttal to that kind of argument)
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Comment on On-scalp printing of personalized electroencephalography e-tattoos - comparison to traditional EEG sensors and overview in ~science
ThrowdoBaggins LinkThe details go a bit over my head, but they kinda sound like OCtattoos (organic circuitry tattoos, a skin interface for controlling electronics etc) from Peter F Hamilton’s Commonwealth seriesThe details go a bit over my head, but they kinda sound like OCtattoos (organic circuitry tattoos, a skin interface for controlling electronics etc) from Peter F Hamilton’s Commonwealth series
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Comment on Microsoft says having a TPM is "non-negotiable" for Windows 11 in ~tech
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentOh, interesting! Yeah that makes sense, I’ve never thought about controllers and Java. But I’m surprised that hasn’t been added yetOh, interesting! Yeah that makes sense, I’ve never thought about controllers and Java. But I’m surprised that hasn’t been added yet
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Comment on What have you spent "too much time" trying to fix or streamline? in ~talk
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentI’ve got the same style of dryer (I think it runs off the same technology in fridges and split system air conditioners, which is awesome!) and there’s a flap on the front under the door that gives...I’ve got the same style of dryer (I think it runs off the same technology in fridges and split system air conditioners, which is awesome!) and there’s a flap on the front under the door that gives me access to yet another lint catcher and behind that is the metal fins that I’m assuming are part of the heat exchanger.
My dad is a refrigeration mechanic so I’ve absorbed a little wisdom, so one thing I’ll say is to do your best to avoid bending the fins. They’re very thin and unfortunately bend fairly easily, so I use a toothbrush (thinking of upgrading to something with longer bristles soon) and only ever swipe along the fins, never across them.
I hope yours is as easy to clean as mine! Best of luck!
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Comment on What’s your “I didn’t know I needed that” item? in ~life
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentJust knowing about the burns possible from superheated water or coffee from a microwave, this terrifies me! But then hearing how power supplies are usually 110V it makes a lot of sense. Thanks for...Just knowing about the burns possible from superheated water or coffee from a microwave, this terrifies me! But then hearing how power supplies are usually 110V it makes a lot of sense. Thanks for enlightening me!
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Comment on What’s your “I didn’t know I needed that” item? in ~life
ThrowdoBaggins Link ParentJust knowing about the burns possible from superheated water or coffee from a microwave, this terrifies me! But then hearing how power supplies are usually 110V it makes a lot of sense. Thanks for...Just knowing about the burns possible from superheated water or coffee from a microwave, this terrifies me! But then hearing how power supplies are usually 110V it makes a lot of sense. Thanks for enlightening me!
I wonder if submitting all the early and intermediate drafts along with the essay might help her case, because at least that way the teacher can see for themselves how some ideas were changed or fleshed out along the way, and might lend some credibility?