I feel like if I needed a quick, ultra-barebones computer in the case of an apocalypse for engineering or planning or something, I'd just pick up a z80 system that's already assembled with...
I feel like if I needed a quick, ultra-barebones computer in the case of an apocalypse for engineering or planning or something, I'd just pick up a z80 system that's already assembled with display, input, networking, interpreters, etc. and runs off incredibly readily available and easy-to-produce power. I'm talking, of course, about the venerable TI graphing calculator.
The person behind this is apparently a legit doomsday prepper. I initially assumed this was just a project for fun that could theoretically be useful in the extremely unlikely event of a total...
The person behind this is apparently a legit doomsday prepper. I initially assumed this was just a project for fun that could theoretically be useful in the extremely unlikely event of a total collapse of the global computer supply chain. But no, the author fully expects "our global supply chain to collapse before we reach 2030", and even complains that the Hacker News userbase isn't "collapse-aware". Which presumably means accepting the overwhelming likelihood of such total collapse within a decade.
I don't know I kind of share his bias though maybe not to the same extent. If you look at things from a cosmological or geological perspective the current "normal", a state that's existed for,...
I don't know I kind of share his bias though maybe not to the same extent.
If you look at things from a cosmological or geological perspective the current "normal", a state that's existed for, what, less then a millennia? a couple centuries? decades? is an extreme outlier. Civilization in its current state is an unfathomably distant anomaly from the status quo and the fact that it feels so normal is probably indicative of a blind spot in our inherent biases.
The current paradigm feels to me a bit like a house of cards and fundamentally unsustainable, but it's such a large complex system it's impossible to comprehend let alone talk about effectively. All one can do is point to one small thing or another and say a few words about how it informs one's model of the word:
The geopolitical context seems fragile at best.
The US public debt to GDP ratio is the highest it's been since World War 2 and projected to skyrocket indefinitely despite, well, the lack of WW2 currently taking place.
The entire economic system and the social, political, financial, and human institutions built on it are based on infinite economic growth, something that seems like a mathematical impossibility given finite resources, carrying capacity, etc.
The world's infrastructure is now essentially entirely digital and dependent on computers powered by electricity connected through the internet.
Grocery stores stock a few days of food, maybe a couple weeks for non-perishable goods, and rely on frequent deliveries.
These are a few examples off the top of my head. With that in mind maybe things continue on just fine for decades or centuries or millennia. That would be nice.
But if there's a hiccup, if the system stalls, if the gears slow to a halt for just a moment, I can't help but feel the social fabric would degrade extremely rapidly and the whole thing could quickly shatter. The whole tapestry of infrastructure we've woven dissolves and we lose so much.
I am spouting off, here, to be sure, but what else are internet forums for? I feel like the us federal government debt is really funny money. For one thing, it’s backed by the us military and...
I am spouting off, here, to be sure, but what else are internet forums for?
I feel like the us federal government debt is really funny money.
For one thing, it’s backed by the us military and statecraft apparatuses, which are extremely powerful. As in, you can refuse to buy us government debt if you really want to, but it’d sure be a shame if pirates took over your primary shipping lanes...
Throw in some stuff about quantitative easing, market regulation, full faith and credit, and you have a system of numbers that mean something very different for the federal government than they mean for you and me, or even for a state government.
I feel like if I needed a quick, ultra-barebones computer in the case of an apocalypse for engineering or planning or something, I'd just pick up a z80 system that's already assembled with display, input, networking, interpreters, etc. and runs off incredibly readily available and easy-to-produce power. I'm talking, of course, about the venerable TI graphing calculator.
HN discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21182628.
Reddit discussion: https://redd.it/dejmvz.
The person behind this is apparently a legit doomsday prepper. I initially assumed this was just a project for fun that could theoretically be useful in the extremely unlikely event of a total collapse of the global computer supply chain. But no, the author fully expects "our global supply chain to collapse before we reach 2030", and even complains that the Hacker News userbase isn't "collapse-aware". Which presumably means accepting the overwhelming likelihood of such total collapse within a decade.
I don't know I kind of share his bias though maybe not to the same extent.
If you look at things from a cosmological or geological perspective the current "normal", a state that's existed for, what, less then a millennia? a couple centuries? decades? is an extreme outlier. Civilization in its current state is an unfathomably distant anomaly from the status quo and the fact that it feels so normal is probably indicative of a blind spot in our inherent biases.
The current paradigm feels to me a bit like a house of cards and fundamentally unsustainable, but it's such a large complex system it's impossible to comprehend let alone talk about effectively. All one can do is point to one small thing or another and say a few words about how it informs one's model of the word:
These are a few examples off the top of my head. With that in mind maybe things continue on just fine for decades or centuries or millennia. That would be nice.
But if there's a hiccup, if the system stalls, if the gears slow to a halt for just a moment, I can't help but feel the social fabric would degrade extremely rapidly and the whole thing could quickly shatter. The whole tapestry of infrastructure we've woven dissolves and we lose so much.
I am spouting off, here, to be sure, but what else are internet forums for?
I feel like the us federal government debt is really funny money.
For one thing, it’s backed by the us military and statecraft apparatuses, which are extremely powerful. As in, you can refuse to buy us government debt if you really want to, but it’d sure be a shame if pirates took over your primary shipping lanes...
Throw in some stuff about quantitative easing, market regulation, full faith and credit, and you have a system of numbers that mean something very different for the federal government than they mean for you and me, or even for a state government.