carsonc's recent activity
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Comment on So I'm autistic after all in ~health.mental
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Comment on Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2025 for the development of a new type of molecular architecture – metal–organic frameworks in ~science
carsonc LinkI am excited about the Nobel in chemistry for MOFs, the topic of my PhD thesis back in the day! A Chemistry Nobel for Chemists! Banner day!I am excited about the Nobel in chemistry for MOFs, the topic of my PhD thesis back in the day! A Chemistry Nobel for Chemists! Banner day!
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Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2025 for the development of a new type of molecular architecture – metal–organic frameworks
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Comment on The Stonecutter (1960) in ~humanities
carsonc LinkWeston Woods was acquired by Scholastic in 1996 and would put out VHS cassettes and DVDs of these stories for kids. By far, these are my favorite kids videos. If you scroll down on the Wikipedia...Weston Woods was acquired by Scholastic in 1996 and would put out VHS cassettes and DVDs of these stories for kids. By far, these are my favorite kids videos. If you scroll down on the Wikipedia link, you'll see The Stonecutter, but also many others as well.
Another favorite of mine is Zin! Zin! Zin! a Violin, with original music composed by none other than Marvin Hamlisch. These are great, and even better I'd you have young kids to watch them with.
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Comment on Berkeley engineers develop customizable, 3D-printed robot for tech newbies in ~tech
carsonc LinkThis looks like a must-have for any high school robotics club or program. Thanks for posting!This looks like a must-have for any high school robotics club or program. Thanks for posting!
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Comment on Tildes Book Club Discussion - September 2025 - Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang in ~books
carsonc Link ParentIt's a very different approach from Simmons as well. Whereas Simmons uses Hyperion to level criticisms at the church, Chiang uses Hell is the Absence of God to explore religious themes of devotion...It's a very different approach from Simmons as well. Whereas Simmons uses Hyperion to level criticisms at the church, Chiang uses Hell is the Absence of God to explore religious themes of devotion and suffering. In the notes section, he talks about how he felt that the Book of Job demonstrated a lack of the courage of its convictions, as Job is rewarded for his piety in the end. Personally, I have a different interpretation of the Book of Job, but I enjoyed the way he uses the narrative to try to "one-up" the book of Job.
It made me reflect on how suffering and devotion is discussed in the Bahá'í writings and the parallels there.
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Comment on Tildes Book Club Discussion - September 2025 - Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang in ~books
carsonc Link ParentReading this, it seemed like this was an opportunity to revisit the Gestalt language of Understand. The story captured the sentence summarized at the end, where events are understood not in the...Reading this, it seemed like this was an opportunity to revisit the Gestalt language of Understand. The story captured the sentence summarized at the end, where events are understood not in the context of cause and effect, but as the outcome of a global action minimization phenomenon, wherein all events occur because they minimize a path-dependent propert in both the past and future.
It was in the middle that I realized that the "flashbacks" to your childhood were actually flash-forwards that served to emphasize how a... holistic understanding of a variational principal might be experiences.
It is interesting in that, in the notes section, Chiang discusses the story in the context of a fascination with the calculus of variation and explicitly disregards the aspects of light that pertain to "quantum mechanics". However, the thorny questions of path dependence and interference that arise in QM still plague physicists. In many ways, the same puzzle that Maupertuis addressed in the principle of least action describing it simply as "God's wisdom", with answers just as satisfying.
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Comment on What "one-hit wonder" do you think has a discography worth exploring? in ~music
carsonc Link ParentMy apologies. The loss has been ours, that we have not recognized just how good Crowded House is.My apologies. The loss has been ours, that we have not recognized just how good Crowded House is.
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Comment on The rise of 'conspiracy physics' in ~science
carsonc Link"The Large Hadron Collider, the world’s largest particle accelerator, has delivered fewer breakthroughs than scientists expected when it turned on in 2010." Hilarious. The Large Hadron Collider,..."The Large Hadron Collider, the world’s largest particle accelerator, has delivered fewer breakthroughs than scientists expected when it turned on in 2010."
Hilarious. The Large Hadron Collider, built to test theories about the nature of reality at the deepest levels that could be formulated, is portrayed as a flop because it confirmed the theories of its builders. Those monsters not only had the audacity to be right, but also managed to squander the taxpayer dollar (sorry, euro) proving it.
Did you know that you can buy antimatter from CERN?
So the team at CERN built a two-meter-long portable containment device. On one end is a junction that allows it to be plugged into the beam of particles produced by the existing facility. That junction leads to the containment area, which is blanketed by a superconducting magnet. Elsewhere on the device are batteries to ensure an uninterrupted power supply, along with the electronics to run it all. The whole setup is encased in a metal frame that includes lifting points that can be used to attach it to a crane for moving around. -Ars Technica
Those so called "physicists" have done nothing more than master the laws of nature so thoroughly that they can contain, package, and transport the most energetic matter in the universe. What a fiasco!
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Comment on What "one-hit wonder" do you think has a discography worth exploring? in ~music
carsonc LinkWell, I had a nice post here about Crowded House with some attempts at word play and sappy reminiscence, but it's gone now, all gone. So all I say now is "Crowded House". So there.Well, I had a nice post here about Crowded House with some attempts at word play and sappy reminiscence, but it's gone now, all gone. So all I say now is "Crowded House".
So there.
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Comment on Tildes Book Club - Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang - How is it going? in ~books
carsonc Link ParentI think I have the same audiobook and yeah, the different narrator creates a completely different sense of the story. The second one was a bit of a slog for me, except that I have a good friend...I think I have the same audiobook and yeah, the different narrator creates a completely different sense of the story.
The second one was a bit of a slog for me, except that I have a good friend who, in so many ways, resembles the narrator. The tenor of the interior monologue, even the choice of words, was so familiar, I felt like I was listening to some hyperbolic version of my friend telling me about his most recent epiphanies. I kept wondering, "How much of this will be revealed at the end of the story to be just a chemically-induced episode of mania?"
The eternal struggle between the maximizers and the satisficers strikes again.
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Comment on Is the concept of debate completely useless? in ~talk
carsonc LinkThis is actually two questions, each with different answers. To illustrate, allow me to share with you my own situation. I have a colleague with whom I disagree on virtually every topic....Is there a better way to steer "debates" into something more productive that can actually change peoples minds?
This is actually two questions, each with different answers. To illustrate, allow me to share with you my own situation. I have a colleague with whom I disagree on virtually every topic. Furthermore, my colleague is voluble in the extreme, and I get treated regularly to sort of personalized, wide ranging podcast on a daily basis. However, this colleague and I share a friendship that has covered the better part of the past two decades.
Then for me, every day is an invitation to a debate, after a fashion, in the manner that you speak of. However, as a Bahá'í, I am not allowed to contend with any one and am enjoined to shun conflict and controversy, so I focus instead on inquiry. This result is that I have learned a great deal over the years and have come to appreciate the logic of certain worldviews, even if I do not share them.
To answer the first question: Yes, there is a way to steer debates into something more productive, practice inquiry.
To answer the second question: No, people do not change their minds due to debates. If two people are trying to solve a difficult problem, and one person has the right of it, the other person can be convinced, but debates you speak of are as much about style and perspective as they are about substance (if not more). You can learn much, if you choose, but it's likely that your counterpart already believes themselves to be possessed of the truth. How can you add to a cup that is already full?
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Comment on Greek-American musician George Smaragdis dies tragically in Manhattan in ~music
carsonc LinkOn a lark, I started listening to this and I wanted to say, Thank you for sharing this. I was listening to New Cydonia and I couldn't shake the feeling that this was like a Lionel Ritchie song,...On a lark, I started listening to this and I wanted to say, Thank you for sharing this. I was listening to New Cydonia and I couldn't shake the feeling that this was like a Lionel Ritchie song, but all that came to mind was The Commodores The Night Shift. That didn't quite fit, then my spouse suggested All Night Long and that was it.
Now, the two songs keep frankenmerging as they bounce around my skull:
... And I know you won't remember
memories in ember
Lighting up New Cydonia
All night long (All night)
All night long (All night)
We're going to party, (Ingwe idla ngamambala)
Karamu, fiesta, forever (Ingwe idla ngamambala)...I just mean to say that I have really enjoyed discovering his music. What a loss.
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Comment on Greek-American musician George Smaragdis dies tragically in Manhattan in ~music
carsonc Link ParentMany years ago in New York was the last time that I rode my bike. I was rolling slowly down a hill next to a like of cars, not lane splitting, and a car started to pull out in front of me. I...Many years ago in New York was the last time that I rode my bike. I was rolling slowly down a hill next to a like of cars, not lane splitting, and a car started to pull out in front of me. I squeezed the breaks and went over the handle bars. The driver realized I was there and nosed back into their lane. I picked my self up, went into work, and got bandaged up there.
I enjoyed cycling, but I'm amazed that other people ride around on the streets in US cities. I'll probably never ride again.
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Comment on Could a space traveler accelerate at 1g forever? in ~space
carsonc LinkInfinite fuel is infinite mass in a finite volume. Tiny collisions with intergalactic protons are going to be the least of your worries as your ship collapses into the black hole caused by the...Infinite fuel is infinite mass in a finite volume. Tiny collisions with intergalactic protons are going to be the least of your worries as your ship collapses into the black hole caused by the infinite mass singularity, expanding outwards at the speed of light, consuming the universe in the reaches far beyond the Degenerate Era.
Instead using infinite matter, why not use merely exotic matter? All matter has positive mass and cannot take values of negative mass, according to the laws of physics (as we understand them). But if infinite masses are possible, then so might complex-valued Higgs fields. Suppose then that we had a large (but not infinite) amount of negative mass matter and enough normal matter to form a black hole.
Now we arrive at the Alcubierre Drive. It could probably be designed to accelerate at 1 g indefinitely, although you might still be floating inside it. Plenty of things could go wrong eventually, but if you have the power to make and concentrate exotic matter with negative mass, dealing with the occasional hydrogen atom collision should be no trouble at all.
As for all that pesky blue-shifted radiation: well, the universe is only going to be making visible light for the next 800 billion years, and that's in the rest frame. Once you are twenty eight 9s into your fraction of c, a trillion years will be just another Tuesday. In fact, you'll need the blue shift to make out what's happening out there in the dark. Hydrogen might not slow you down, but a giant, cold, starving black hole gliding through the void would definitely end the cosmic pleasure cruise in the unlikely event of a collision.
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Comment on Tildes Book Club discussion - August 2025 - Cats Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut in ~books
carsonc Link ParentI'd like to ask: what do you think we are reading in Cat's Cradle? The narrator is a journalist by trade and is making a record of the end of the world. It begs the question then, who are we as...I'd like to ask: what do you think we are reading in Cat's Cradle? The narrator is a journalist by trade and is making a record of the end of the world. It begs the question then, who are we as the readers of this narrative?
The book ends abruptly, as he meets Bokonon, who reveals what is last act will be. Are we to believe that the narrator has done the same, and that we are... survivors or aliens that now find this preserved journalist with the narrative of Cat's Cradle as his pillow?
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Comment on Tildes Book Club discussion - August 2025 - Cats Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut in ~books
carsonc Link ParentThe concept of ice 9 is great, and kudos to Vonnegut for staying away from the messy details of how it was first made. At the end though, I had two points to raise. So, from a purely scientific...The concept of ice 9 is great, and kudos to Vonnegut for staying away from the messy details of how it was first made. At the end though, I had two points to raise.
So, from a purely scientific perspective, I didn't think the weather would be hot and I didn't think there would be clouds. Most of the heat that we experience from the air around us is from water vapor that has been heated by absorbing solar radiation. In an "Ice 9" world, the vapor would turn into ice 9 essentially on contact. As a result, the air would turn dry, but there would be no heat, as our primary greenhouse gas would have virtually disappeared instantaneously. Things would get cool and dry in a hurry.
Perhaps things heated up due to the massive latent heat of crystallization being released from the "freezing" of the ocean, but no mention is made of this, and delving into this would also reveal the impossibility of rapidly freezing the ocean anyway. That said, it would be interesting to know what the colligative properties of saltwater would be in contact with ice 9.
Second, because there would be no vapor, there would be no clouds, and there would be no tornados, at least not the "wormy" kind mentioned at the end.
Regardless, it wouldn't be any fun.
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Comment on So was there no song of the summer this year? in ~music
carsonc Link ParentIt's less that I have been listening to it and more that everyone else in my family has been listening to it all summer. In fact, everyone sans yours truly is going to a sing-along showing of KPDM...It's less that I have been listening to it and more that everyone else in my family has been listening to it all summer. In fact, everyone sans yours truly is going to a sing-along showing of KPDM at the movie theater. But yeah, I can't name a song of the summer that would not be off the KPDM soundtrack.
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Comment on Share a book you're feeling enthused about in ~books
carsonc LinkWhen I was a kid, I read an anthology of science fiction short stories called "The Ascent of Wonder: The Evolution of Hard SF", edited by David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer. Although the stories...When I was a kid, I read an anthology of science fiction short stories called "The Ascent of Wonder: The Evolution of Hard SF", edited by David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer. Although the stories stuck with me, I forgot the name of the anthology (along the names of most of the stories and authors).
After dedicating a solid hour to scouring through the internet's recommendations for the same damn books that are not what I was looking for, I finally stumbled across it and am happy to have it again.
Anyway, it's an excellent collection and may actually be as enjoyable to others as it was to me when I was a teenager, "but you don’t have to take my word for it."
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Comment on Guilt and video games in ~health.mental
carsonc LinkI think you are right: there probably is something better you could be doing with your time. However, I might suggest looking at your situation from different perspectives. Suppose you had a good...I think you are right: there probably is something better you could be doing with your time. However, I might suggest looking at your situation from different perspectives. Suppose you had a good friend who played video games when they could be doing something else that, presumably, was more productive. Would you think less of this friend for doing so? Would you be ashamed of your friend or your friendship? Perhaps, but you might also accept this part of them as it is.
While I do believe that dissatisfaction with ones self is an essential prerequisite for growth, kindness to ourselves is also important. Often, the way that we treat ourselves is reflected in our treatment of those closest to us - forbearance with our own shortcomings is excellent practice for being forebearing with others. In addition, there are no guarantees that our bad habits cannot be replaced by worse ones. How unfortunate would it be to curse one vice only to find it replaced with one that even desirable.
For what it's worth, I find that video games are an activity that allows me to be called away to help others without leaving behind a mess of tools in a partially completed project. So, if someone needs something, there's no downside to pausing my Noita run and helping where I am needed.
Hello fellow Autism enjoyer! Congratulations and welcome to the club. You no longer need to feel like an imposter: you're the real deal. However, I would like to take this opportunity to point out some of the features of your newly applied diagnosis. As a diagnosis it is, sadly, very vague, as you may have sensed. So, beyond a kind of social crutch for those plentiful awkward situations where you find out, all too late, what kind of inexplicable faux pas or slight you have just committed, it might have limited value.
The utility of a more in-depth assessment is not to provide some kind of more official-looking document for the occasional Autism Inspector, but rather to help you ascertain what it is that got in return for your particular flavor of interpersonal blindness. That is, you may have recieved a particular gift, which others do not possess. Now, you probably have an idea about what this is because you rely on it for your employment in one way or another. However, a more thorough test, perhaps indistinguishable from an IQ test, will tell you more about which skills of yours are particularly rare and by how much. One in a thousand? One in ten thousand? One in a hundred thousand?
For me I discovered that, yes, I actually am good at math, but I am actually much better at other things. The fact that math was harder for me than other things was not a sign that I was bad at it (as I had erroneously inferred) and I should feel bad about it, rather that I was just really good at something else and I should probably focus on that and leave the harder math to the people who were better at it and enjoyed it more.
It's been great. I tell people what I am good at and focus on being the best at that thing that I can be. They are very happy to know because (1) they have someone who is very good at this thing and (2) they know what it is and know whom to turn to if they need help with it.
So try to find it, then embrace it, then teach those around you to lean on you for it.
Also, communication disorders are real and do have adverse impacts on quality of life and relationships, so make extra efforts to let the people that you love know that you love them, because it will be easy for them to get the impression that you don't, even when you do, because that what happens when you have a communication disorder. "But don't take my word for it..."