shiruken's recent activity

  1. Comment on Reddit introduces new "Start Chatting" feature across many subreddits, AskHistorians goes dark for 1 hour in protest to broken promises in ~tech

  2. Comment on Reddit introduces new "Start Chatting" feature across many subreddits, AskHistorians goes dark for 1 hour in protest to broken promises in ~tech

    shiruken
    Link Parent
    It's actually even more complicated than that and technically the third "chat" product they've introduced to the platform. They first launched the chat feature in subreddits last year. This...

    It's actually even more complicated than that and technically the third "chat" product they've introduced to the platform. They first launched the chat feature in subreddits last year. This allowed subreddits to create subreddit-specific chat rooms and lightly moderate them. This is an opt-in feature, so many larger subreddits have chosen to keep it completely disabled. This feature did not change with yesterday's announcement.

    They also launched the "chat view" commenting feature last year in certain subreddits to provide real-time comments during live threads (e.g. sporting events, TV shows). This feature is also entirely controlled by the moderators of subreddit since it requires creating a submission with the "chat view" comment sort.

    What they announced yesterday uses the direct chat interface to completely bypasses the subreddit, its rules, and its moderation. They're just throwing random users into direct group chats based on where they clicked the "start chatting" button. As many have pointed out, this undermines a subreddit's rules because there is no mechanism for moderation and misleadingly associates itself with the subreddit when no such affiliation exists.

    I think this implementation is actually worse than if they had just forced all subreddits to enable the chat rooms feature. At least then we could have locked down the chat to prevent the spreading of misinformation or abuse/harassment. Instead we're guaranteed to receive modmails complaining about private discussions in these group chats where we have absolutely no control.

    12 votes

  3. Comment on SpaceX to test Starlink “sun visor” to reduce brightness in ~space

    shiruken
    Link Parent
    It's remarkable that a single company can unilaterally obstruct the night sky and potentially ruin the future of ground-based astronomy.

    He predicted that the visors would have a “massive effect” on the brightness of the satellites.

    It's remarkable that a single company can unilaterally obstruct the night sky and potentially ruin the future of ground-based astronomy.

    10 votes

  5. Comment on White House, Senate agree to $2 trillion coronavirus rescue package in ~finance

  6. Comment on White House, Senate agree to $2 trillion coronavirus rescue package in ~finance

    shiruken
    Link Parent
    Senate Democrats had to endure a single day of conservative politicians and media accusing them of torpedoing the bill in order to gain almost every concession they wanted.

    But good to see the two sides can briefly ignore their constant bickering with each other to try and actually help the country out.

    Senate Democrats had to endure a single day of conservative politicians and media accusing them of torpedoing the bill in order to gain almost every concession they wanted.

    15 votes

  7. Comment on Democratic National Committee nixes audience for Phoenix debate over coronavirus concerns in ~news

    shiruken
    Link
    There shouldn't be audiences at debates anyways. The inability of the hosts and moderators to prevent the audience from reacting to the candidates' comments/jokes/fights distorts the viewer's...

    There shouldn't be audiences at debates anyways. The inability of the hosts and moderators to prevent the audience from reacting to the candidates' comments/jokes/fights distorts the viewer's experience. See: The Bloomberg supporters who were booing everyone during the last debate.

    6 votes

  8. Comment on Brands can now purchase an ad in the #2 slot of Reddit's "Trending" sections in the Popular page and Search dropdown in ~tech

    shiruken
    Link Parent
    Wouldn't exactly be that appealing to advertisers if it was for "Gamer Girl Bath Water" now would it?

    Wouldn't exactly be that appealing to advertisers if it was for "Gamer Girl Bath Water" now would it?

    9 votes

  9. Comment on I've received a school project where I need to read a book but I've never really wanted to read a book and don't know many books at all. What book should I read? in ~books

    shiruken
    Link
    Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man Ernest Hemingway, A Farewell to Arms Just for reference, is this for a high school or college class?
    • Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man
    • Ernest Hemingway, A Farewell to Arms

    Just for reference, is this for a high school or college class?

    5 votes

  10. Comment on How do we stop the polarization/toxicity filling the web? in ~tech

    shiruken
    Link Parent
    Another aspect to consider is the fact that more people are using the internet now than in 2010. The Internet many of us so fondly remember was largely homogenous and composed of predominantly...

    I think it just so happened that people used to use forums dedicated to their niche more often and any drama was usually small in scope and contained.

    Another aspect to consider is the fact that more people are using the internet now than in 2010. The Internet many of us so fondly remember was largely homogenous and composed of predominantly white affluent males. The democratization of the internet in the intervening time has allowed many other voices to join the discourse, frequently against the sensibilities of the OG internet users.

    3 votes

  11. Comment on Ten years after vaccination was introduced, no HPV16/18 infections were found in sexually active 16-18 year old females in England according to public health data in ~science

    shiruken
    Link
    The prevalence was over 15% prior to the vaccination program that began in 2008.

    The prevalence was over 15% prior to the vaccination program that began in 2008.

    2 votes

  13. Comment on A detailed walkthrough of the process to determine the location shown in photographs released by Europol to help investigate child sexual abuse in ~misc

    shiruken
    Link Parent
    Knowing when and where the photographs were taken could also be used to identify suspects based on known travel histories. Strangely enough, I was actually in that town at a hotel just down the...

    Knowing when and where the photographs were taken could also be used to identify suspects based on known travel histories.

    Strangely enough, I was actually in that town at a hotel just down the street this summer and definitely remember walking past the remains of that development. I actually have a photo that shows the white sign they using during the location verification.

    10 votes

  15. Comment on The Trump administration is preparing to significantly limit the scientific and medical research that the government can use to determine public health regulations in ~news

    shiruken
    Link
    The new EPA proposal requires scientists to disclose all raw data, including confidential medical records, before the agency could consider a study's conclusions during the policymaking process....

    The new EPA proposal requires scientists to disclose all raw data, including confidential medical records, before the agency could consider a study's conclusions during the policymaking process. The Trump administration is using "scientific transparency" to undercut public health in the United States.

    The measure would make it more difficult to enact new clean air and water rules because many studies detailing the links between pollution and disease rely on personal health information gathered under confidentiality agreements. And, unlike a version of the proposal that surfaced in early 2018, this one could apply retroactively to public health regulations already in place.

    For instance, a groundbreaking 1993 Harvard University project that definitively linked polluted air to premature deaths, currently the foundation of the nation’s air-quality laws, could become inadmissible. When gathering data for their research, known as the Six Cities study, scientists signed confidentiality agreements to track the private medical and occupational histories of more than 22,000 people in six cities. They combined that personal data with home air-quality data to study the link between chronic exposure to air pollution and mortality.

    3 votes

  17. Comment on The Trump campaign has held at least 15 contests since 2018 offering the chance to win breakfast, lunch, or dinner with the President. There is no evidence anyone has ever won. in ~news

    shiruken
    Link Parent
    Oh nice find, I'll make sure to use that in the future.

    Oh nice find, I'll make sure to use that in the future.

    3 votes

  19. Comment on Reddit’s automoderator is the future of the internet, and deeply imperfect | The good: AutoMod saves time and prevents potential mental health issues. The bad: Humans still have to clean up after it. in ~tech

    shiruken
    Link Parent
    His reaction from the r/science chat:

    His reaction from the r/science chat:

    I don't think I agree with the title of this piece 😞 but there you go!

    8 votes

  20. Comment on What editor/IDE do you use? in ~comp

    shiruken
    Link
    Visual Studio Code! Swapped from Atom last year.

    Visual Studio Code! Swapped from Atom last year.

    3 votes