cdb's recent activity
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Comment on Stellantis to sell small Fiat Topolino electric vehicle for $13,995 in US in ~transport
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Comment on Physical disc production ending in January 2028 for new games releasing on PlayStation consoles in ~games
cdb Link ParentYeah, I bought physical discs for my first few games on PS5, then I decided that it's just a worse experience, so I've been buying digital-only since then. I don't like having to go find the disc...Yeah, I bought physical discs for my first few games on PS5, then I decided that it's just a worse experience, so I've been buying digital-only since then. I don't like having to go find the disc to start playing a game, it's slower to install and load disc-based games while you're playing, the drive makes extra noise that I don't appreciate, and most (all?) of the game is just downloaded anyway.
I was using it as a player for my physical Netflix subscription, but since they discontinued that I don't have much use for a DVD/Bluray player.
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Comment on I'm looking for an adage or "law" (like Conway's law), but for dealing with AI slop in ~tech
cdb LinkGood is good and bad is bad. I don't think the main reason we find books trustworthy is because a person spent effort on it. There are many human-written books that are full of nonsense. I think...Good is good and bad is bad.
I don't think the main reason we find books trustworthy is because a person spent effort on it. There are many human-written books that are full of nonsense. I think the main reason we have trust for books is because most of the ones we encounter have been vetted by a significant number of people. Not that we don't also have popular books that are full of nonsense. But the point is that in most cases we don't read a book without having some kind of recommendation, whether it's from a friend, number of stars in a review system, or a decision by a trusted bookstore to carry it. I don't think most people are picking up all their books on a whim these days, and if you ever were the type to do that, you'd know that it's a bit of a gamble.
So, if people at work are often sending poor quality emails and documents, that's a performance issue that their manager needs to know about. I'm not that concerned whether it was written by an AI. Again, the main issue is lack of vetting. Anyone who writes or forwards a poor quality human-written draft is making more work for the next person just the same. Blaming it on AI is just pushing responsibility away from the person who submitted the shoddy work.
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Comment on How to make the world's best black shirt in ~life.style
cdb (edited )LinkFun video, although it probably could have been 10 minutes shorter. I've enjoyed a few of their other videos on t-shirts too. It seems like the fabric ought to be great. I found myself wishing I...Fun video, although it probably could have been 10 minutes shorter. I've enjoyed a few of their other videos on t-shirts too. It seems like the fabric ought to be great. I found myself wishing I could touch the materials throughout the video, especially the final product.
From the beginning I noticed that I didn't like the fit of the t-shirt he was wearing, which was clearly well-fitting in the upper body and loose from the armpits down. It just looks kind of uneven and incongruent to me. I don't mind the oversize trend where the whole shirt is a bit large, but I felt like I couldn't buy a shirt that fits like this. Then I got to the end of the video and it turns out that tight upper body and loose torso was a deliberate design decision. Kind of disappointing how this seems to be the trend. I basically stopped buying any shirts at all for several years because everyone seems to be switching to a boxier fit, even when labeled "slim fit".
My rationale is that for something simple like a t-shirt, the main thing that differentiates a good looking t-shirt and a bad looking t-shirt is fit. A lot of the things that people nitpick t-shirts about like small differences in weight and fabric quality can't really be seen from a normal distance, and stuff showing wear like fading, holes, or "bacon collar" could even be considered a fashion decision. However, If the whole thing looks like it's the wrong size or wrong shape, then to me it just looks bad, regardless of other factors. Well, "bad" if I'm nitpicking my appearance and evaluating expensive clothing purchases for myself. I'm not really judging people that much. It's just a t-shirt, after all.
Sorry that this turned out to be kind of a negative comment. I guess it's a pet peeve of mine.
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Comment on Do you cook with cast iron? Is it the hassle everyone says it is? in ~food
cdb LinkI went from mostly non-stick to mostly cast iron to mostly stainless. Nowadays I only use my cast iron for searing steaks, but that's mostly due to shape and size rather than something like heat...I went from mostly non-stick to mostly cast iron to mostly stainless. Nowadays I only use my cast iron for searing steaks, but that's mostly due to shape and size rather than something like heat retention.
Stainless is probably a bit less work than cast iron, when you balance scrubbing vs seasoning. Also, I like to flip my food with the pan, and cast iron is too heavy for that. I've also occasionally had issues with the seasoning flaking off the cast iron, which can be avoided if you're careful, but I'd prefer not to need to be careful.
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Comment on Around twenty drown in France as French seek relief from heatwave in ~enviro
cdb Link ParentI have a coworker who bikes to work most days, and he jokes about how driving is cheaper and he can't afford the fuel for biking. Well, it's only kind of a joke because it's actually true that...I have a coworker who bikes to work most days, and he jokes about how driving is cheaper and he can't afford the fuel for biking. Well, it's only kind of a joke because it's actually true that it's more expensive to eat enough to bike 2 hours a day (1 hour each way) than it is to buy the gas for the same trip by car.
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Comment on Nvidia announces liquid cooling system that promises to reduce electricity consumption and cut water use by up to 100% in ~tech
cdb LinkEverything described in the article just sounds like normal closed-loop liquid cooling. I wonder what's actually new about this solution. Seems like it's just a new reference design for this type...Everything described in the article just sounds like normal closed-loop liquid cooling. I wonder what's actually new about this solution. Seems like it's just a new reference design for this type of cooling setup. I guess closed-loop liquid cooling is just less common than I assumed?
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Comment on German retailer Thomann is suing Fender over recent cease and desists in ~music
cdb LinkInteresting that Fender has somehow gotten a court to side with them about body shape (not just headstock shape) when they haven't been able to defend this for decades, with many clones having...Interesting that Fender has somehow gotten a court to side with them about body shape (not just headstock shape) when they haven't been able to defend this for decades, with many clones having been around for quite some time now. On one hand, I kind of get it that you'd want to defend your company's iconic designs, but the ship sailed on the ability to defend a trademark on this body shape like 50 years ago. I doubt they'll be successful this time around, but I'm not a lawyer. Seems like a big waste of money all around.
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Comment on We can fix the future, Star Trek shows us how in ~humanities
cdb (edited )Link ParentI watched the whole video, and I found it pretty light on specifics on systems. One specific suggestion is a multi-layered delegate democracy, but right before explaining the idea, she claims that...I watched the whole video, and I found it pretty light on specifics on systems.
One specific suggestion is a multi-layered delegate democracy, but right before explaining the idea, she claims that the electoral college is not democratic. The type of system she describes has even more layers of delegates before reaching the top, so wouldn't that be even less democratic?
As far as motivation, I feel like the analysis is not in agreement with history or current events. There's a ton of selection bias for those who are involved in Starfleet, because only those who are most motivated to do science and exploration would join. Then we have the focus on the main characters, which has bias towards the most motivated and exceptional among this already-motivated bunch, the top 1% of the top 1%. So, we already know that some percent of the population are inherently motivated to do cool stuff, and some smaller percent are hyper motivated, but what about the majority who aren't? This is what I found a bit more realistic about The Player of Games by Banks, where most of the post-scarcity population just plays games, takes drugs, and socializes all day, while a smaller proportion are out having adventures and pushing boundaries. This is the only "Culture" book I've read, so sorry if I've misrepresented it as a whole.
I also think that the idea that people would do jobs that advance society is not that well rooted in reality. History shows that we haven't been very good at predicting what kinds of work technology will be able to automate in the future. Current AI models are showing us that in the near future we're more likely to automate the kinds of thinking jobs that people find fulfilling and less likely to automate the menial jobs that people don't like doing. While it's true that we do have enough food and enough space for everyone, we don't necessarily live in such a post-scarcity world that people don't have have to do shitty jobs. We also currently have plenty of room for jobs that pay well, require technical knowledge, and work towards the advancement of humanity, and most people aren't educating themselves for those now, so why would they in a future where working harder doesn't buy you a significantly better lifestyle?
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Comment on Not so empty nesters: record-high number of US adults under 35 live at home, new data says in ~life
cdb Link ParentI'm not sure how Trump stopped proper unemployment reporting. There's a few things going on. After Trump fired the BLS commissioner, the person filling the role since then has been the next person...I'm not sure how Trump stopped proper unemployment reporting. There's a few things going on. After Trump fired the BLS commissioner, the person filling the role since then has been the next person in line, not a Trump appointee. The former-head of the BLS says that she still trusts the data. I haven't seen any critiques of the current data by reputable economists, just in internet comments. So, this leads me to believe that the statistics are fine, but that Trump was successful in casting doubt on the statistics, which was probably the point to begin with.
As mentioned by the other reply, U-6 does include those who are underemployed or have stopped searching in some ways. It has increased since 2019, but it's also still below average compared to most other years on the chart. (https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/U6RATE). Unfortunately, I don't think we have this figure broken down by age group.
We don't have labor force participation rate for ages 25-34 either, but we can look at ages 25-54, which is near all-time highs (https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LNS11300060). So it seems that we're not seeing a broad issue with prime working age people leaving the workforce. Overall LFPR has been trending down for a while, which suggests that people 55+ are leaving the workforce, but I guess that's getting a little far from the original topic.
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Comment on Not so empty nesters: record-high number of US adults under 35 live at home, new data says in ~life
cdb Link ParentI went to find the salary information for this age group, and it seems like between 2019-2024, the median salary for individuals aged 25-34 have gone up 35%....I went to find the salary information for this age group, and it seems like between 2019-2024, the median salary for individuals aged 25-34 have gone up 35%.
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CXU900000LB0403M
Unemployment has gone from 3.7 to 4.3% in the same period (also 4.3% in 2025). So, that's something different, but it's also fairly low compared to most historic values.
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LNS14000089
While it does seem like it's particularly hard to buy a house these days, most young adults moving out of their parents' house would likely be renting to start anyway, and it seems like salaries have generally kept up with rents, although just looking at medians and averages might not represent individual locations very well. While finances have to be a major factor, all this leads me to think that just focusing on financial statistics (like the article does) might be missing some other important factors.
There's some cultural shifts that have to explain at least part of this shift in living arrangements. People aren't getting married so early or even at all, which is the traditional milestone for moving out. Related to that, it seems like intimate relations and partying are at an all-time low with young people. Maybe there's a little chicken-and-egg here, where moving out might enable some of these activities. However, if you're not desperate to get some privacy and your idea of socializing is getting on discord with your friends, you're less likely to move out. I think for all ages, staying in instead of going out in general has been pretty normalized. Covid gave us new habits, and even though we're not in lockdown anymore, I feel like it changed us permanently in some ways. Add in modern screen addiction, and it seems inevitable that we'd have at least some increase in people staying home with their parents.
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Comment on Caught the cycling bug. Anyone else? in ~hobbies
cdb LinkI've been riding an electric bike to work 3-4 days a week for the past 2 months. It's an Aventon Aventure 2, which has a throttle up to 20mph and otherwise a torque sensor that assists up to...I've been riding an electric bike to work 3-4 days a week for the past 2 months. It's an Aventon Aventure 2, which has a throttle up to 20mph and otherwise a torque sensor that assists up to 28mph. I just use the throttle uphill, but there's a ton of hills on my commute, so it's pretty often. I'm still pedaling on the uphills because many are steep enough that the motor can't hit 20mph on its own. On the flats and downhills I'm just pedaling, though that still gets motor assist. It's about a 13 mile ride, which takes me 35-45 minutes on the bike.
It's kind of cheating, but only in the same way that driving a car is cheating. I track my rides with my smartwatch, and I usually spend ~70% of my time in zone 2 heartrate, which is basically perfect for sustained cardio workouts. In any case, I'm just trying to commute, so there's not a lot of serious working out involved. Although some would consider 3-4 hours of zone 2 per week to be a pretty good workout.
The only thing I miss about driving is all the audiobooks I would listen to while sitting in traffic. I tried the bone conduction thing, but the wind is just way too loud at the speeds I'm riding to consistently hear narration without cranking the volume to dangerous levels.
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Comment on US battery industry cuts losses, shifts to new ventures amid electric vehicle bust in ~transport
cdb Link ParentAnother factor is gas prices. Despite the recent increases in gas prices, the truth is that gas is still just way too cheap for what it is. It's about half the price compared to many parts of...Another factor is gas prices. Despite the recent increases in gas prices, the truth is that gas is still just way too cheap for what it is. It's about half the price compared to many parts of Europe, and the gas taxes aren't enough to cover the externalities like road maintenance and environmental damage. I bet if we had to pay twice as much for gas, we'd have a lot more demand for EVs.
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Comment on If you are asking for human attention, demonstrate human effort in ~comp
cdb Link ParentAn outage is a reasonable excuse for a delay but not for shoddy work. I think the more appropriate analogy would be if the fax machine garbled some text, you didn't bother checking and asking for...An outage is a reasonable excuse for a delay but not for shoddy work. I think the more appropriate analogy would be if the fax machine garbled some text, you didn't bother checking and asking for a resend, then you submit the report with garbled text to your boss. Sure, it's the machine that gave bad output, but it's your fault for pushing it forward without fixing it. "It's the fax machine's fault" is a poor excuse in this situation.
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Comment on Fox is buying Roku in $22 billion deal in ~tv
cdb Link ParentI just bought an AppleTV device a few months ago. I've actually seen a few app crashes lately. Even so, it recovers pretty quickly. Even with the crashes it's miles better than my Samsung TV's...I just bought an AppleTV device a few months ago. I've actually seen a few app crashes lately. Even so, it recovers pretty quickly. Even with the crashes it's miles better than my Samsung TV's Tizen OS, which recently started showing popups while I'm viewing content. So, I was forced to disconnect my TV from the internet.
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Comment on If you are asking for human attention, demonstrate human effort in ~comp
cdb Link ParentI'm not understanding where your comment is coming from. It seems like you're implying the opposite of what I've said. The accountability is the normal accountability for work submitted by people....I'm not understanding where your comment is coming from. It seems like you're implying the opposite of what I've said.
The accountability is the normal accountability for work submitted by people. There's no "AI screwed up" excuse because AI is not allowed to be the author responsible for the work, just people.
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Comment on If you are asking for human attention, demonstrate human effort in ~comp
cdb LinkThe policy where I work is that you do not label AI generated content for internal work, which I'm in agreement with. The premise is that as long as it's not going out to the public, work is work,...The policy where I work is that you do not label AI generated content for internal work, which I'm in agreement with. The premise is that as long as it's not going out to the public, work is work, and you're responsible for whatever you send out. Then you don't get the situation where people are sending unreviewed documents and pawning the responsibility off on AI. Well, they still might be unreviewed, but they have your name on it. I know some people feel more strongly about disclosing AI use wherever it's used, but if the premise is that people use AI often in their work, the disclosure would just end up on everything anyway.
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Comment on Our workplace LLM mass delusion in ~tech
cdb Link ParentDo you have a source for this? I'm not a linguist or anything, but this statement goes against what I've read lately about learning. For example, in the book Moonwalking With Einstein the whole...I disagree. The nonsensical sentences do nothing to aid learning and can be detrimental
Do you have a source for this? I'm not a linguist or anything, but this statement goes against what I've read lately about learning. For example, in the book Moonwalking With Einstein the whole premise of the title and a significant portion of the book is about how using bizarre sentences/imagery can help with retention. I haven't reviewed the literature a ton myself, but just a little googling suggests there is at least some evidence that this idea works. An example from one of these articles is "The clowns laugh at the witch." I guess that's technically possible sentence, but it's hardly an everyday kind of scenario.
I'm not sure why you're putting the idea into a scenario where it's less likely to work. It's not like duolingo only uses bizarre sentences, just occasionally. Obviously if you don't know any of the nouns in the sentence you'll have trouble guessing at a bizarre sentence. That's not the use for bizarre sentences I was describing. If you have already been exposed to the nouns, it might be good for reinforcement to bring them back to you in a different way. I feel like this comment is like if I said that hammers are good for driving in nails, and you responded by saying that hammers are useless tools because they don't work for driving in screws.
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Comment on Our workplace LLM mass delusion in ~tech
cdb Link ParentThe examples remind me of some complaints I see about Duolingo sentences sometimes. Sure, some sentences seem random sometimes ("The horse ended his relationship with the fish."), which makes...The examples remind me of some complaints I see about Duolingo sentences sometimes. Sure, some sentences seem random sometimes ("The horse ended his relationship with the fish."), which makes people say that the app is teaching nonsense. It seems like people often don't have vision about how we can extend the things we learn. We're not specifically trying to learn how to talk about inter-species dating habits. If we already know the words for "woman" and "man" well, we might as well drill some animal vocabulary along with verbs and sentence structure.
If the demonstration is to ask the schedule for what's for lunch or interpretation on a simple email, it's to simplify that we can ask questions about a more relevant data set or a more complex document. Today I asked copilot to explain why a certain project was delayed in favor of another project, and it gave a good answer, providing relevant sources from files I have access to for verification (either I didn't attend the meeting when this was announced or I forgot). A coworker sent me a cryptic message with three parts I didn't understand (very brief response, probably because she was busy in a meeting). So, I asked copilot to explain, and it was able to interpret each statement and associate them to internal documents that helped me to learn about a process and advance the project without having to wait for a clarifying response or bog down a busy coworker with dumb questions.
So yeah. To echo, it's far from perfect, but it's also far from useless.
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Comment on Recommendations for e-ink tablets? in ~tech
cdb LinkI haven't tried newer e-ink stylus devices, mostly because of potential for dropped support. I don't really trust the vendors to exist a year or two from now or to support their old devices...I haven't tried newer e-ink stylus devices, mostly because of potential for dropped support. I don't really trust the vendors to exist a year or two from now or to support their old devices properly. Amazon will be around, but device support might not be in the future.
Although an e-ink tablet might resemble paper a bit more, is it possible you could use an iPad or Samsung tablet? I have a Samsung Tab S10+ that I really like for handwritten notes.
I think you could be ok in a lot of cities if it were capped at 45 but didn't struggle to hit that speed. You'd annoy people on 50 or 55 mph limit roads, but those aren't THAT common.
I just can't think of a lot of places this can go if limited to 25 mph. I can't legally leave my neighborhood in this vehicle since most non-residential roads around here have limits at 40 mph. At 25 mph and only 2 seats, you might as well just e-bike it.