papasquat's recent activity
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Comment on The average US college student is illiterate in ~life
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Comment on The average US college student is illiterate in ~life
papasquat Link ParentI don't think this is exclusive to younger generations unfortunately. I'm in my late 30s, and I'm married now, but was dating as recently as four years ago, and had to go through this whole...I don't think this is exclusive to younger generations unfortunately. I'm in my late 30s, and I'm married now, but was dating as recently as four years ago, and had to go through this whole charade a few times.
I've been in situations where we were going on dates, sexually exclusive, and talking to each other all the time, but we weren't "in a relationship", apparently. The thing makes no sense. Besides the fact that we were, objectively, in a relationship (I'm "in a relationship" with my doctor, my parents, my coworkers, and anyone else I interact with on a regular basis, by definition), even in the colloquial usage, I was in a romantic, exclusive relationship.
I think a lot of people prop romantic "relationships" as being a much bigger deal than they are. If we're not married, I can just decide one day it doesn't work for me and never talk to you again, and have no further legal obligations to you. It's not a big deal if you ask someone out, date for three weeks, figure out you don't like them then dump them.
People fear them because they think a relationship is like a mini marriage, but it isn't at all.
The whole "talking=fucking" thing is also equally irritating and confusing, but that's probably the entire point of it. My question was always... what if you are actually just talking to someone now and then and haven't had sex?
The whole exercise of courtship feels like it's just driven by fear and overanalysis, rather than fun now.
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Comment on The average US college student is illiterate in ~life
papasquat Link ParentSomeone looking at their phone while I'm talking to them has to be one of my biggest pet peeves of all time. It's absolutely infuriating to me, and I've just stopped conversations halfway through...Someone looking at their phone while I'm talking to them has to be one of my biggest pet peeves of all time. It's absolutely infuriating to me, and I've just stopped conversations halfway through and walked off when people have done it to me before.
It's one of the rudest things you can possibly do, and I hate how it's becoming somewhat socially acceptable.
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Comment on The average US college student is illiterate in ~life
papasquat Link ParentThe author seems to consistently conflate idea of ability with willingness. I very much doubt that. They could read a "serious adult novel", which are apparently anything written by Barbara...The author seems to consistently conflate idea of ability with willingness.
No, our average graduate literally could not read a serious adult novel cover-to-cover and understand what they read.
I very much doubt that. They could read a "serious adult novel", which are apparently anything written by Barbara Kingsolver, Colson Whitehead, and Richard Powers. They just don't want to. There's a difference there. Being functionally illiterate means they can't read those novels. The fact that they don't, doesn't mean they can't.
If I pointed a gun to the head of most college graduates and told them to read The Nickel Boys, then give me a summary or I'll kill them, I have no doubt in my mind that the vast majority of them would be able to do a somewhat decent job.
The author of the article seems to think that his class has similar stakes, but for most students, it really doesn't. They can pass without reading a book they don't want to read, so they don't read it.
The entire premise of the article is based on this false assertion. I could just as easily make the argument that the author functionally can't ride a pink tricycle 200 feet, simply because he's never done it before and has no desire to.
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Comment on Chimpanzees are really into crystals in ~science
papasquat Link ParentCould be, yeah. Another thing I was thinking about is that having some hard coded, shared appreciation for a certain type of rare, but durable object could be an advantage. I've heard of different...Could be, yeah. Another thing I was thinking about is that having some hard coded, shared appreciation for a certain type of rare, but durable object could be an advantage. I've heard of different animals exchanging things for goods and services. Could there be some sort of innate biological wiring that supports the development of currency encoded into chimps?
It seems like human beings everywhere independently developed an appreciation for gold and jewels which fostered their use as a currency for a very long time. Could it be that that was something biologically encoded for rather than sociologically developed?
If you had a species that all valued some durable, non consumable thing with no real use, they could use that to trade for useful things with one another and that seems like it would be a massive advantage.
I'm talking out of my ass though, I don't know anything about evolutionary biology or sociology.
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Comment on Chimpanzees are really into crystals in ~science
papasquat Link ParentI wonder where that behavior comes from. I can't imagine how being attracted to shiny things would be an evolutionary advantage, so is it some sort of vestigial behavior from when it was? Or is...I wonder where that behavior comes from. I can't imagine how being attracted to shiny things would be an evolutionary advantage, so is it some sort of vestigial behavior from when it was? Or is there just some less obvious mechanism going on?
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Comment on Electricity use of AI coding agents in ~enviro
papasquat Link ParentEnergy is never free. It doesn't matter if you're getting it from solar, hydro, wind, or coal. The demand you're placing on the grid requires more solar panels to be manufactured, more wind...Energy is never free. It doesn't matter if you're getting it from solar, hydro, wind, or coal. The demand you're placing on the grid requires more solar panels to be manufactured, more wind turbines to be built, and more dams to be erected; all of which have an environmental impact.
Renewables have far less of an impact than fossil fuels do, but manufacturing a solar panel is still a very resource intensive process that has a negative environmental impact. If we're spending a ton of energy without much benefit, we're still destroying the environment for no reason.
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Comment on Apple announces Macbook Neo, a new budget Mac in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentYou'll notice it a bit, but disk I/O speeds have grown much faster than ram I/O speeds have in the past decade, and Apple's disks are some of the fastest in consumer computers. Falling back to...You'll notice it a bit, but disk I/O speeds have grown much faster than ram I/O speeds have in the past decade, and Apple's disks are some of the fastest in consumer computers.
Falling back to swap used to mean you were waiting ages for applications to chug along. It's not nearly as much of a performance hit nowadays though.
More RAM would be better, but it's not the end of the world.
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Comment on Living human brain cells play DOOM on a CL1 in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentYeah, I mean... maybe? We don't actually know what human consciousness even is or have a way to objectively measure the presence of it. I think this is a far cry away from an actual human brain,...- Exemplary
Yeah, I mean... maybe?
We don't actually know what human consciousness even is or have a way to objectively measure the presence of it.
I think this is a far cry away from an actual human brain, but it's certainly human at least in some aspect.
I'm not so much horrified at the current iteration, but of the iteration a decade down the road where this stuff gets more and more complex.
If it starts being useful and outperforming silicon based AI, do we eventually get to a point where we're running data centers full of trillions of human neurons to run workloads? How do you verify that something that complex isn't conscious? Where does the line get drawn?
Seems like a potential prototype torment nexus to me.
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Comment on Ayatollah Ali Khamenei killed in Israeli and American joint strikes in ~society
papasquat Link ParentI had a platoon sergeant that thought of himself as a cold steely warrior, and I routinely had to tell him that he was actually one of the most emotional people I've ever worked with, like the...I had a platoon sergeant that thought of himself as a cold steely warrior, and I routinely had to tell him that he was actually one of the most emotional people I've ever worked with, like the emotional regulation skills of a 10 year old. Just much bigger and with a rifle and platoon of armed kids at his disposal.
Warfighters are the most emotional people in the world, but not usually during the most high stress parts. It's the beforehand and afterwards when the screaming, fights, crying, and complete breakdowns usually happen.
I think the most successful people at it are the ones who are able to have their emotional freakout but realize when they're being irrational and biased because of it.
It's really difficult to understand how many of these decisions get made based on almost pure vibes unless you've been in a TOC though. People sitting on the internet and analyzing and criticizing the rationality of it all with the benefit of foresight aren't really saying anything valuable.
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Comment on California’s new bill requires Department of Justice-approved 3D printers that report on themselves in ~hobbies
papasquat Link ParentI'm less of a conspiracy person than that, but it doesn't actually matter, since you're right, that's how laws like this end up getting used either way. I think the mechanism is more like...My theory is that this bill will be designed to do just this. It will be impossible to actually enforce, so it will selectively be applied where useful to the law enforcement.
I'm less of a conspiracy person than that, but it doesn't actually matter, since you're right, that's how laws like this end up getting used either way. I think the mechanism is more like politician A needs some landmark legislation that doesn't actually do anything but sounds good, and later on, police chief B or president C uses that overly broad legislation to trample on people's rights. Even if there's no collusion or grand conspiracy with ulterior motives at first, the rights get trampled just the same.
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Comment on California’s new bill requires Department of Justice-approved 3D printers that report on themselves in ~hobbies
papasquat Link ParentI'm not bringing it up to have a technically correct gotcha, I'm bringing it up because that's exactly the use cases that regulation the post addresses is attempting to target. A career criminal...I'm not bringing it up to have a technically correct gotcha, I'm bringing it up because that's exactly the use cases that regulation the post addresses is attempting to target.
A career criminal isn't going to 3d print a gun. They're going to get a stolen hi point off the street for a hundred bucks that will reliably cycle thousands of rounds.
A normal citizen who wants a gun isn't going to 3d print one either. They'll just go buy one at a gun store.
The only type of person that would 3d print a gun for use in a crime is someone doing an extremely hi profile assassination, where a lot of effort will be put into finding the source of the gun to make a positive ID, or who can't otherwise get their hands on one because they're a felon and also don't have criminal connections.
Those types of use cases don't need a high performing firearm that will reliably fire hundreds of rounds. It only needs to work once or twice and get the bullet into someone's body from a few feet away.
So it's relevant when we talk about how hard it is to machine and harden a barrel. A barrel doesn't need to be properly machined and hardened to be deadly. It just needs to contain the pressures of a round firing one time.
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Comment on California’s new bill requires Department of Justice-approved 3D printers that report on themselves in ~hobbies
papasquat Link ParentRegardless if if you think it's reasonable or not, it's impossible to enforce. Yes, you can force big manufacturers to build the technology into their consumer drones, but you can't force smaller...Regardless if if you think it's reasonable or not, it's impossible to enforce. Yes, you can force big manufacturers to build the technology into their consumer drones, but you can't force smaller ones to, especially ones based outside of the US, and you can't force independent builders to, which a huge percentage of hobbyist drone pilots are. Same goes for people into 3d printing as a hobby.
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Comment on California’s new bill requires Department of Justice-approved 3D printers that report on themselves in ~hobbies
papasquat Link ParentI'll point out that ghost guns != 3d printed guns. The vast majority of ghost guns are built from 80% kits and have no 3d printed parts at all. Besides that, the US is a country that's absolutely...I'll point out that ghost guns != 3d printed guns. The vast majority of ghost guns are built from 80% kits and have no 3d printed parts at all.
Besides that, the US is a country that's absolutely inundated with guns. Guns are more accessible here than anywhere else in the world. Professionally manufactured guns are cheaper, more reliable, and safer (for the operator). If I were doing virtually any kind of crime, it would be a much better option to just go to a gun store or gun show to get one.
It seems a lot better use of our effort to make that part harder before we start instituting authoritarian mandates on people who have no interest in guns at all.
Otherwise it seems like we're just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
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Comment on California’s new bill requires Department of Justice-approved 3D printers that report on themselves in ~hobbies
papasquat Link ParentGood to know, I didn't realize how far the liberator has come. I will say that this still takes a considerable amount of skill and experience to do though. Until someone can go to Walmart, buy a...Good to know, I didn't realize how far the liberator has come.
I will say that this still takes a considerable amount of skill and experience to do though. Until someone can go to Walmart, buy a Bambu printer, download an STL and have a functioning gun the next day, this really isn't a big concern of mine.
For it to matter, you'd have to make it harder to just skip all those steps and buy the gun from Walmart instead.
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Comment on California’s new bill requires Department of Justice-approved 3D printers that report on themselves in ~hobbies
papasquat Link ParentI mean, it'd make it an airgun. If you added a way to hold a cartridge and a firing pin, you'd have a firearm. Zip guns are still guns. It wouldn't be a good or accurate or reliable or safe gun,...I can kill someone with a bit of pipe, a ball bearing, and my air compressor. Doesn't make it a gun.
I mean, it'd make it an airgun. If you added a way to hold a cartridge and a firing pin, you'd have a firearm. Zip guns are still guns.
It wouldn't be a good or accurate or reliable or safe gun, but it would be a gun. The metallurgy in the iron hand cannons used by the ming dynasty was far inferior to modern steel plumbing pipes, and they definitely weren't rifles, but they were still used effectively to kill thousands of people in warfare.
I don't think we're anywhere close to the danger of unskilled laymen being able to produce reliable, high performing modern firearms with cheap off the shelf 3d printers. You can produce something pretty decent, it still takes a good amount of skill though.
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Comment on Magical stones from the mall! in ~talk
papasquat Link ParentPositive thinking works, sure, but that doesn't mean you need to go buy a rock to make your life more positive. If you like rocks, by all means, buy rocks, but the thing that's making you think...Positive thinking works, sure, but that doesn't mean you need to go buy a rock to make your life more positive. If you like rocks, by all means, buy rocks, but the thing that's making you think more positively is your own thought patterns. You don't need rocks for that. If you truly feel like you need a totem or something, you could just go outside and pick up the first interesting looking thing you see.
I have very little patience for woo, not because it's offensive or dangerous in it of itself, but because it opens the door to all sorts of "vibe based" thinking. It's the sort of justifications that make people radically alter their diets due to chakras or not take medicine because it lowers their vibrational energy.
Skepticism and rationality is what brought us out of untold millennia of lynching people that acted differently from us because of demons and all sorts of other nonsense based on what feels right rather than what has been methodically proven right.
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Comment on California’s new bill requires Department of Justice-approved 3D printers that report on themselves in ~hobbies
papasquat Link ParentYou can make reliable guns with 3d printed parts, but you can't print an entire gun that lasts more than a few rounds with a 3d printer yet. At least not without some extremely expensive, advanced...You can make reliable guns with 3d printed parts, but you can't print an entire gun that lasts more than a few rounds with a 3d printer yet. At least not without some extremely expensive, advanced metal sintering printers that are way outside the range of non professionals.
Building a decent gun out of mostly 3d printed parts is still way harder and more expensive than just buying an 80% lower kit as well.
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Comment on California’s new bill requires Department of Justice-approved 3D printers that report on themselves in ~hobbies
papasquat Link ParentThis kind of reminds me of something that went on a few years with my hobby, FPV Drones. A few years ago, the FAA passed a regulation where drones above a certain size (250g, extremely light; most...This kind of reminds me of something that went on a few years with my hobby, FPV Drones. A few years ago, the FAA passed a regulation where drones above a certain size (250g, extremely light; most FPV freestyle drones are around 700g) needed to have a remote ID module. This module hooks into your flight controller's telemetry and constantly announces the drone's position, altitude, speed, the position of the operator, and an ID number that could be read to find who the operator is. These things are broadcast cleartext and can be picked up by phones over wifi.
There's a big fine if you don't fly with the module, but the module adds weight, is expensive, and most crucially, announces your presence to people who have no idea about UAV laws, safety, and what you are and are not allowed to do with a drone, but they just don't like the idea of drones so that information gets used to harass you.
Predictably, virtually no one in the hobby uses them. The FAA is spread far too thin to enforce this regulation on hundreds of thousands of people that mostly aren't causing any problems. Local police don't even know about that regulation, and regulating airspace is out of their jurisdiction anyway. If you buy a prebuilt drone from a big company like DJI, they have them built in, but a lot of the hobby is building your own drones, and no one ever includes a remoteID module in their parts list.
I doubt this will ever change, unless something dramatic like terrorist attacks with FPV drones ever become common.
I see this proposed legislation being the exact same thing if it passes. If I buy a Bambu printer and then jailbreak its nanny gun reporting software, who is going to know that? If I build a printer and don't include the gun reporting module, how would anyone know? Are the police going to go door-to-door searching for illegal 3d printers? Probably not. This is just another law without even an inkling of a realistic enforcement mechanism that gets passed so that a legislator can pat himself on the back. It goes into the endless corpus of state law that no one pays attention to or cares about until it gets used to make some political point one day, but realistically it's just a waste of everyone's time.
I personally think there should be a bar that needs to be passed for legislation; if it's not realistically enforceable, it shouldn't be constitutional. Otherwise it just gets used to selectively persecute people you don't like.
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Comment on California’s new bill requires Department of Justice-approved 3D printers that report on themselves in ~hobbies
papasquat Link ParentI mean... it depends on the barrel. In their most basic form, they really are just a tube with a hole through a middle. You can happily fire shotgun shells out of most 3/4" ID metal pipe, and a...I mean... it depends on the barrel. In their most basic form, they really are just a tube with a hole through a middle. You can happily fire shotgun shells out of most 3/4" ID metal pipe, and a lot of them won't even explode, and it will definitely kill someone looking through the other end. Firearms aren't fundamentally that complicated.
I think urban development patterns contribute to this a lot as well, more than is often talked about.
If your friends live a 45 minute drive away from you, you're not likely to meet up with them on weeknights. If your friends are your neighbors, it's not a huge investment to go to their place for 20 minutes after work, or spend a couple hours getting a beer or playing board games rather than going home to play video games with total strangers.
We pay a huge social opportunity cost in time by living in disconnected suburbs and exurbs, or cities with horrible transit options and development patterns.