gpl's recent activity
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Comment on National Institutes of Health ordered by US President Trump admin to enact 'immediate and indefinite' travel suspension in ~health
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Comment on National Institutes of Health ordered by US President Trump admin to enact 'immediate and indefinite' travel suspension in ~health
gpl (edited )LinkIn addition to the headline, and perhaps more chilling, independent journalist Marisa Kabas reports: In addition, it appears that all NIH study sections have been canceled indefinitely (I have not...In addition to the headline, and perhaps more chilling, independent journalist Marisa Kabas reports:
NIH staff learned Wednesday that any public presentations at conferences or meetings must now be cleared by a presidential appointee. They can attend conferences virtually, if there's no additional cost to the dept. And the travel agency contracted to book reservations has been cut off.
In addition, it appears that all NIH study sections have been canceled indefinitely (I have not independently verified this). This is more devastating than it sounds — these are the panels which review and award new grants for basic science and health related research in the USA. This pause will invariable lead to delays in grants, which means established researchers with years of built-up expertise will be forced to leave the field. These grants fund around ~300k researchers across US instititutions. This is already a blaring emergency for US science — this is how brain-drains happen.
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National Institutes of Health ordered by US President Trump admin to enact 'immediate and indefinite' travel suspension
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
gpl Link ParentInteresting, what brings you to use COBOL on a frequent basis?Interesting, what brings you to use COBOL on a frequent basis?
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Comment on What creative projects have you been working on? in ~creative
gpl LinkThere is a risograph studio near where I live that periodically offers workshops in which they teach you to use the risograph and you get to go home with some prints. I finally got a slot in one...There is a risograph studio near where I live that periodically offers workshops in which they teach you to use the risograph and you get to go home with some prints. I finally got a slot in one of these workshops so now I need to figure out what I want to try printing. I have some basic ideas but need to learn some basics of something like photoshop to actualize them.
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Comment on SpaceX says its Starship rocket broke up mid-flight as debris videos emerge online in ~space
gpl LinkThis comes just after Blue Origin's New Glenn spaceship beat Starship to orbit. Not the best week for SpaceX.This comes just after Blue Origin's New Glenn spaceship beat Starship to orbit. Not the best week for SpaceX.
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SpaceX says its Starship rocket broke up mid-flight as debris videos emerge online
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Comment on I need some help with the sciency bit of my short story in ~creative
gpl LinkI'll start with the usual caveat that accurate science does not always make for the most exciting stories, so I agree you shouldn't worry too much about the actual distance. Choose a distance that...I'll start with the usual caveat that accurate science does not always make for the most exciting stories, so I agree you shouldn't worry too much about the actual distance. Choose a distance that works best for the story (how much warning do you want Earth to have, for dramatic purposes) and come up with a reason for detection at that distance.
To get a rough sense of the distances, technically speaking we probably have the ability to measure the gravitational effects of an object that size past the orbit of Neptune (see this article on a hypothetical Planet X for example). However, those gravitational effects 'accumulate' over the course of many orbits of such an object, so probably would not be relevant for an object only recently entering the solar system and heading right for Earth.
In that case, assuming the emissions from the ship, the best chance for detection is via observing it optically through its occlusion of the background stars. We have the capability to essentially image the entire night sky every couple of days, so we can assume that a detection could theoretically occur once the object is large enough to obscure stars in these images.
Using the information here for simulations of upcoming observations from LSST, we can expect it to be able to image around 11 billion stars over what is a little more than half the night sky. Assuming a uniform distribution, this works out to very roughly an angular separation of ~20 arcseconds between stars in these images. Thus, we would want your hypothetical ship to appear large than a few tens of arcseconds to be noticed. Let's say 50 arcseconds. The diameter of your craft is ~19,000 km (Earth's diameter is ~12745km, by the way. your number looks off). For an object that is 19,000km long to appear with an angular size of 50 arcseconds, it would have to be roughly 80,000,000km away. This is about 0.52 Au, or about half the radius of Earth's orbit. For reference, Mars's current distance from Earth is about 0.62 Au, so we probably wouldn't detect this object until it was closer than Mars.
This is assuming that it is noticed as soon as it covers more than a few stars in the data, but given how much data is produced by such a survey, it is likely that this object would not be noticed until it was much closer, but its approach could be traced by looking at archival data. This is all back of the envelope of course, but it provides a starting point for further refinement based on additional properties of the craft. If it emits strongly in any wavelength it could probably be detected from much further out.
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Comment on Gaza ceasefire deal agreed by Hamas and Israel, Qatari PM says in ~society
gpl Link ParentBecause Israel has been responsible for the vast majority of death in the region over the past 15 months, and has been the party most resistant to a ceasefire deal thus far.Because Israel has been responsible for the vast majority of death in the region over the past 15 months, and has been the party most resistant to a ceasefire deal thus far.
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Comment on It's time to abandon the cargo cult metaphor in ~science
gpl Link ParentI always find it interesting that this caricature comes up in discussions involving DEI initiatives as I’ve never really known it to be true. I’m sure there are plenty of people who don’t give a...- Exemplary
I take issue with these behaviors because I do believe things need to be better, drastically so. And in my eyes things like this are an absolute pandering farce and feel like a bunch of clever PR people winning over a bunch of extremists and wannabe revolutionaries who can now pat themselves on the back for a “job well done” when if anything they’ve shown how completely absurd they are.
I always find it interesting that this caricature comes up in discussions involving DEI initiatives as I’ve never really known it to be true. I’m sure there are plenty of people who don’t give a shit and latch on to these recommendations as an easy way to seem progressive. But in my personal experience, the people I know who advocate these types of things are very sincere and also, things like this are typically the lowest effort things they personally do and advocate for. I’ve known two people personally, irl, who have found the master/slave terminology (not only in git but elsewhere in CS comms engineering) of putting and distracting and have suggested to myself and others in the department that we move away from that. So I have, and personally it was not a ton of effort. I agree that steps like this are extremely minor in face of the problems that the field and that industry have. But it turns out that it’s hard enough to
convince people to do the lowest effort things! -
Comment on It's time to abandon the cargo cult metaphor in ~science
gpl Link ParentMy point is that the same culture and practices that make people so resistant to changes like the nomenclature switch from master -> main are typically the same culture and practices that make...My point is that the same culture and practices that make people so resistant to changes like the nomenclature switch from master -> main are typically the same culture and practices that make people who would care about that thing not want to continue in the field. Of course, the number of people who have directly dropped out because git branches are called master branches is probably 0. Even the simplest programs typically contain more logic than that, and society is more complex than even the most complex programs.
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Comment on It's time to abandon the cargo cult metaphor in ~science
gpl Link ParentThere is a reason why this is the case!- Exemplary
because a minority of people who usually aren’t in the industry
There is a reason why this is the case!
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Comment on Merry Christmas, people of Tildes in ~talk
gpl LinkMerry Christmas all! I took the time this year to watch some classics, like the 1999 Christmas Carol with Patrick Stewart. I think that’s just such a great story that captures what I love about...Merry Christmas all! I took the time this year to watch some classics, like the 1999 Christmas Carol with Patrick Stewart. I think that’s just such a great story that captures what I love about the season — the hope of redemption, however you understand that, during the long nights of the year. May we all keep that spirit in our heart throughout the year!
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Comment on Willow - Google's latest quantum chip in ~tech
gpl Link ParentYeah, as a physicist I'll just say, no, this google chip does not create parallel universes in any meaningful way.The parallel universe and AI stuff, afaik it’s a combination of philosophical interpretations of the mathematics underlying quantum mechanics and hype chasing.
Yeah, as a physicist I'll just say, no, this google chip does not create parallel universes in any meaningful way.
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Comment on Is there a way for Donald Trump to run for US presidency for a third time? in ~society
gpl Link ParentHe would be ineligible to be elected, not ineligible to hold. Someone who has won twice is ineligible to be elected again, but they can certainly hold office in their second term despite that...He would be ineligible to be elected, not ineligible to hold. Someone who has won twice is ineligible to be elected again, but they can certainly hold office in their second term despite that ineligibility for example.
Again I’m just pointing out that we are in uncharted territory where the rule of law does not matter unless we make it, and falling back on “they can’t do that so we shouldn’t worry or prepare for it” is not viable (in my opinion).
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Comment on Is there a way for Donald Trump to run for US presidency for a third time? in ~society
gpl Link ParentHave someone run at the top of the ticket with Trump as VP with the stated intention of resigning so he can take office. It's that simple. I'm not saying this is likely or would go unchallenged,...Have someone run at the top of the ticket with Trump as VP with the stated intention of resigning so he can take office. It's that simple.
I'm not saying this is likely or would go unchallenged, but I agree with other commenters that arguments based on the what the Constitution does or does not say fundamentally misread the current moment. The Constitution also says that someone who has engaged in insurrection is ineligible to be president, and all it took was the Supreme Court to say that was not enforceable without Congress (despite the fact that it historically had been without issue) for that to not matter.
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Comment on Lucy Letby lawyer seeks fresh appeal over reliability of expert witness in ~health
gpl LinkI have to say, until now I had thought the appeals here were more or less smoke and mirrors and had said as much on this site. But this new information makes me believe that Letby may be innocent...I have to say, until now I had thought the appeals here were more or less smoke and mirrors and had said as much on this site. But this new information makes me believe that Letby may be innocent and should certainly have another trial.
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Lucy Letby lawyer seeks fresh appeal over reliability of expert witness
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Comment on What long standalone book is worth its page count? in ~books
gpl LinkThe Making of the Atomic Bomb is an excellent, comprehensive, and accessible history.The Making of the Atomic Bomb is an excellent, comprehensive, and accessible history.
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Comment on Bashar al-Assad has left Damascus, senior army officers say; Syria rebels say they are in capital in ~society
gpl LinkHopefully the Syrian people can close this dark chapter in their history, and the many refugees and political prisoners are free to return home and live in peace. Much uncertainty will likely...Hopefully the Syrian people can close this dark chapter in their history, and the many refugees and political prisoners are free to return home and live in peace. Much uncertainty will likely follow, but for now, celebrations.
Covid polarized public health to an insane degree in the USA, such that now many public health agencies and initiatives are political targets in ways that they were not before. The Right in the US views these agencies as an extension of the deep state — unelected officials and bureaucrats making policies that run afoul of people's rights (things like lockdowns, mask mandates, and vaccine mandates). Some part of that coalition on the right genuinely believes this, whereas others probably do not but would like to cut funding wherever they can so as to subsidize tax breaks and subsidies for their pet industries.