redwall_hp's recent activity
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Comment on What does your computer setup look like? in ~tech
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Comment on The US "Ice Cream Truck Song" is rooted in racism in ~music
redwall_hp (edited )Link ParentMostly northeastern US, but I did also spend a year in AU. Greensleeves was there, for sure. Entertainer is more common in New England. I'm currently in the Southern Midwest. I haven't made...Mostly northeastern US, but I did also spend a year in AU. Greensleeves was there, for sure. Entertainer is more common in New England.
I'm currently in the Southern Midwest. I haven't made conscious note of any ice cream truck tunes yet, but I want to say it's Scott Joplin again.
Some Googling indicates that a company called Nichols Electronics has been the largest maker (in the US, at least) of ice cream truck music players since the 1950s, and the owner added The Entertainer to the catalog in the 1970s. (Jalopnik post) I figured the trends would be set by a supplier like that.
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Comment on The US "Ice Cream Truck Song" is rooted in racism in ~music
redwall_hp Link ParentI've usually heard The Entertainer or Greensleeves. I can't say if I've heard Turkey in the Straw play from an ice cream truck for sure, but it definitely wasn't common anywhere I've lived.I've usually heard The Entertainer or Greensleeves. I can't say if I've heard Turkey in the Straw play from an ice cream truck for sure, but it definitely wasn't common anywhere I've lived.
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Comment on The US "Ice Cream Truck Song" is rooted in racism in ~music
redwall_hp (edited )Link ParentI had a much longer and more thought out comment, but Safari erased it when my finger touched the back button. Before recorded music, sets of lyrics were more loosely associated with tunes than...I had a much longer and more thought out comment, but Safari erased it when my finger touched the back button.
Before recorded music, sets of lyrics were more loosely associated with tunes than anything. It was absolutely the norm for musicians to learn tunes and fit new lyrics to them (Twinkle Twinkle Little Star/Baa Baa Black Sheep/the alphabet song, for a simplistic example). In the Irish tradition, there is also The Wearing of the Green/The Rising of the Moon/the Irish Rovers' newer The Orange and the Green.
Some topical ones I'm partial to:
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Union Dixie — Dixie, a minstrel show original, was widely refit by the North to sing about rolling down to the South to teach them a lesson.
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John Brown's Body/Battle Hymn of the Republic — People nowadays are probably more familiar with lame-ass lyrics about marching saints, but once it was emblematic of the abolitionist movement and the fight against the South, with lyrics about marching with the spirit of the abolitionist John Brown to fuck up the South and hang Jefferson Davis.
I guess I'd be more surprised if a folk tune popular in the 19th century had not passed through the minstrel show circuit at some point. I wasn't aware of the less savory version of Turkey in the Straw until the NPR piece's original publication, but it doesn't really surprise me.
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Comment on Superman | Official teaser trailer in ~movies
redwall_hp Link ParentThere is a major scarcity of protagonists who are as positive and inspirational as Superman or Captain Picard, while I've been complaining about overly cynical antihero-ish takes on everything...There is a major scarcity of protagonists who are as positive and inspirational as Superman or Captain Picard, while I've been complaining about overly cynical antihero-ish takes on everything since The Dark Knight.
What's the point of escapist media, otherwise?
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Comment on Study: essay graders rarely detect AI, give higher grades in ~tech
redwall_hp Link ParentSome of LLMs' most heavily-focused training data is the corpus of published works written by skilled authors, whether it's academic papers, novels or nonfiction books. As something that more or...Some of LLMs' most heavily-focused training data is the corpus of published works written by skilled authors, whether it's academic papers, novels or nonfiction books. As something that more or less just predicts the statistical likelihood of one word following the chain of prior output words, like tapping the word suggestions on a phone keyboard, the biggest distinguishing mark of LLM output is that it's statistically likely to sound like quality writing from a professional.
Thus, this is literally punishing someone for being too good at writing.
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Comment on School smartphone ban results in better sleep and improved mood in ~health.mental
redwall_hp Link ParentSure. Requiring identity information to engage with web sites is an invasion of privacy that hinders anonymity and facilitates government and corporate monitoring. Enforcing a quota would also...Who can, in good faith, argue against a time limit, mandatorily enforced by social media platforms, of say six hours per day for teens?
Sure. Requiring identity information to engage with web sites is an invasion of privacy that hinders anonymity and facilitates government and corporate monitoring.
Enforcing a quota would also require invasive reporting infrastructure to exist. Otherwise how is Instagram going to know someone already spent six hours on TikTok and four hours on YouTube? Never mind, what constitutes "social media?" Is talking to friends on Discord (which I certainly use more than iMessage these days) "social media?" How about WhatsApp? All this requires determining which platforms qualify and building an identity apparatus that can also collect usage data, making it accessible to other companies and governments.
Such limitations would also be an infringement upon the teens' right to freedom of association.
It's dystopian.
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Comment on Finland will review whether to reintroduce antipersonnel land mines for improved defenses against Russia on the NATO defense bloc's longest land border with its main adversary in ~society
redwall_hp Link Parent164 countries have ratified the Ottawa Treaty. I think they should all implement economic sanctions against non-ratifying nations that engage in land mine usage or manufacturing, until there's...164 countries have ratified the Ottawa Treaty.
Besides ceasing the production and development of anti-personnel mines, a party to the treaty must destroy its stockpile of anti-personnel mines within four years, although it may retain a small number for training purposes (mine-clearance, detection, etc.). Within ten years after ratifying the treaty, the country should have cleared all of its mined areas. This is a difficult task for many countries, but at the annual meetings of the States Parties they may request an extension and assistance.
I think they should all implement economic sanctions against non-ratifying nations that engage in land mine usage or manufacturing, until there's global compliance. It should be treated as a crime against humanity.
Also, for fuck's sake, does Europe not already have enough unexploded WWII ordnance problems?
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Comment on What sound did I hear while hiking through Tucson's Pima Canyon? in ~talk
redwall_hp LinkI don't know if they have ruffed grouse in Arizona, or a relative of them, but they make a noise with their wings if you startle them the woods, which definitely sounds like a lawnmower starting.I don't know if they have ruffed grouse in Arizona, or a relative of them, but they make a noise with their wings if you startle them the woods, which definitely sounds like a lawnmower starting.
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Comment on Oatly loses right to call its drinks ‘milk’ in landmark UK ruling – lexical dispute with trade body Dairy UK argued slogan ‘Post Milk Generation’ was misleading to consumers in ~food
redwall_hp (edited )Link ParentHaving worked in retail, many people have basically no reading comprehension. They'll read the bold "free delivery" sign and ignore the slightly smaller "with this obvious prerequisite" part...Having worked in retail, many people have basically no reading comprehension. They'll read the bold "free delivery" sign and ignore the slightly smaller "with this obvious prerequisite" part underneath.
Whether it's their fault they deliberately chose to blow off education their entire life or politicians' fault for kneecapping the public school system for decades (or those same families' fault for voting for the politicians who did that) is a deeper topic. But we're basically at the point that putting a white liquid in a semi-opaque jug in the vicinity of the dairy section is too much for people, labeling be damned.
I'm generally on board with specificity. People colloquially call Kraft's disgusting rubber "cheese," but legally it's some variation of "cheese food product." There's a difference between legal terms and colloquial ones. I enjoy coconut milk, almond milk, oat milk and actual milk for different purposes, but I'm absolutely for requiring specificity for the sale of a product over giving any credence to the ever-shifting morass of colloquial terminology.
I actually grew up mostly having rice milk and not having milk on hand. I'd describe it more as "pressed rice juice," and oat milk seems to fit that sort of idea as well.
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Comment on What’s your “I didn’t know I needed that” item? in ~life
redwall_hp Link ParentI also am a big Zojirushi fan. I have a five cup micom one (about $130 at Target) and it's been great. Besides perfect rice every time, it's also nice that they sell all of the parts you're likely...I also am a big Zojirushi fan. I have a five cup micom one (about $130 at Target) and it's been great.
Besides perfect rice every time, it's also nice that they sell all of the parts you're likely to need to replace, like the inner lid or the nonstick pot.
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Comment on 'Bodies are piling up': Reporter finds some states are hiding abortion ban death toll in ~society
redwall_hp Linkthe Texas Maternal Mortality Review Committee has stated it will not examine deaths in 2022 and 2023 — when abortion became illegal in the state — citing a backlog of cases from previous years to review.
"An analysis published in September by the Gender Equity Policy Institute found that, from 2019 to 2022, the rate of maternal deaths in Texas increased by 56%, compared with 11% nationwide," wrote Rinkunas. "But rather than investigate, the state is essentially admitting that the bodies are piling up faster than the state can address them."
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Comment on Inside the war against excessive headlight brightness in ~transport
redwall_hp Link ParentThis is already a thing on higher trim level cars, sort of. I mentioned this in another thread recently, but I just upgraded my car to pre-owned Civic Sport Touring. In addition to having tinted...It makes me wonder if smart glass which can locally tint a bright light source might be an "eventual" solution.
This is already a thing on higher trim level cars, sort of. I mentioned this in another thread recently, but I just upgraded my car to pre-owned Civic Sport Touring. In addition to having tinted windows, and a lower ride height that puts your line of vision below some trucks' lights instead of right in line with them, it has an auto-dimming rear-view mirror. It electronically measures brightness of light behind you compared to the ambient level and adjusts to compensate before you even notice.
It's basically a gel sandwiched between two pieces of glass that changes color and reduces reflectivity when an electric current is applied.
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Comment on Is the Cybertruck really that bad? in ~transport
redwall_hp Link ParentProbably Jeeps. They're usually the top few spots on Consumer Reports least reliable vehicles...Probably Jeeps. They're usually the top few spots on Consumer Reports least reliable vehicles...
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Comment on European Federation of Journalists to stop posting content on X in ~tech
redwall_hp (edited )Link ParentI've been reading about the feed functionality, and I really like how open it is. You can write an application that subscribes to the firehose of new posts, then you essentially publish a list of...I've been reading about the feed functionality, and I really like how open it is. You can write an application that subscribes to the firehose of new posts, then you essentially publish a list of posts that will be included in the feed, and people can add the feed to their BlueSky account. It appears along the top, right next to the Subscribed and Discover tabs.
Whatever you do to filter the posts you include is entirely up to you. If you want to only select posts that have an image, process the image and ensure it's mostly purple, nobody's stopping you. If you want to do natural language processing and only match posts that seem to be movie reviews with a positive sentiment, go right ahead.
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Comment on Forced to upgrade [from iPhone 8] in ~tech
redwall_hp Link ParentI think I inadvertently found a solution to the truck headlight issue, though I need more drive time to be sure. I got a new (to me) Civic Sport Touring recently, and I think my back window is now...I think I inadvertently found a solution to the truck headlight issue, though I need more drive time to be sure. I got a new (to me) Civic Sport Touring recently, and I think my back window is now lower than a lot of large trucks' lights. :D
It also has a neat auto-dimming rear view mirror, and the front glass seems less prone to glare from behind.
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Comment on The price America paid for its first big immigration crackdown in ~humanities.history
redwall_hp (edited )Link ParentThis sentiment spilt over well into WWII. The Japanese concentration camps represented a massive theft of west coast farm land from Asian Americans, which is now worth fantastic amounts of money....This sentiment spilt over well into WWII. The Japanese concentration camps represented a massive theft of west coast farm land from Asian Americans, which is now worth fantastic amounts of money. Even after being liberated, many lost everything they had.
This sort of happened to the family behind the Kokuho Rose rice (a popular strain of American sushi rice). They were forced to entrust the rice farm to other locals, who looted it and stripped it of everything, though they retained the land and bred that new rice strain after. They were also involved in fighting to overturn a law against "aliens" owning agricultural land or businesses.
The California "wine king" had similar issues with having land stolen by the Alien Land Laws and being imprisoned in the concentration camps.
Note that what the USDA considers to be a very small amount of farmland, anywhere in the US, is easily worth millions of dollars. California farmland at vineyard or rice growing scale is worth far more. How much generational wealth was stolen? We have a whole class of multimillionaires now who have that because the state and federal governments helped steal it all from Asian Americans.
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Comment on Mozilla begs courts to allow Google search deal for Firefox to continue in ~tech
redwall_hp LinkHow about the court requires that they fund Mozilla without anything in return, for at least a decade, as an antitrust penalty?How about the court requires that they fund Mozilla without anything in return, for at least a decade, as an antitrust penalty?
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Comment on Mozilla begs courts to allow Google search deal for Firefox to continue in ~tech
redwall_hp Link ParentThat's why the strongest bulwark against a Chrome monopoly is currently Safari. iOS is big enough nobody can afford to ignore it, and as annoying as Apple's policy against other rendering engines...That's why the strongest bulwark against a Chrome monopoly is currently Safari. iOS is big enough nobody can afford to ignore it, and as annoying as Apple's policy against other rendering engines on iOS is...it's stopping Google from pushing Chrome on iOS and removing the remaining competition.
While Blink technically started as a fork of WebKit, over a decade of divergence probably makes it as different as WebKit is to its KHTML roots.
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Comment on Lilo & Stitch | Official teaser in ~movies
redwall_hp Link ParentWe just had Suzume and The Boy and the Heron last year... Animation is alive and well outside of the Hollywood bubble, and increasingly getting western theatrical releases.We just had Suzume and The Boy and the Heron last year...
Animation is alive and well outside of the Hollywood bubble, and increasingly getting western theatrical releases.
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