fractallyte

il y a 3 joursdiscuss

And here's the original, in the mid-Dec 1989 issue of Analog Science Fact & Fiction magazine (at the bottom of the page) on the unparalleled Luminist Archives website:

https://readitfree.org/SF/AN_2.htm

(Luminist is one of the jewels of the internet, right up there with Archive and Wikipedia. Support them!)

fractallyte

il y a 15 joursdiscuss

And yet, 10 years ago this would have passed as a quite respectable article in any glossy magazine.

What changed? The level of paranoia and inquisition. "OMG LLMs!!!"

Was the article readable? Yes. Was it informative? Yes. Exactly what an article is meant to be.

fractallyte

il y a 20 joursdiscuss

Aranet detectors are superb, and – best of all! – made in Latvia.

Support European!

https://aranet.com/en/home

fractallyte

il y a 21 joursdiscuss

Precedent: A 1944 science fiction story accurately described an atomic bomb – so much so that it prompted a visit from the FBI to the NY office of Astounding Science Fiction. Definitely a point of pride for editor John W Campbell.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deadline_(science_fiction_stor...

fractallyte

il y a 21 joursdiscuss

This is a studied and documented propaganda tactic: flood the information space with conflicting accounts, in order to muddy the issue.

This statement summarizes it nicely:

"The purpose of propaganda is not to make you believe something. It is to make you believe nothing.

Then you will do nothing."

https://x.com/DarthPutinKGB/status/1909932857948004738

fractallyte

il y a 29 joursdiscuss

[flagged]

fractallyte

le mois dernierdiscuss

In the early stages of the invasion, the russians had plans for an amphibious assault on Odesa[1]. These were scrapped when they realized they'd be obliterated before even touching shore. Nevertheless, the orcs still talk frequently of "returning" "Odessa" to mother russia.

[1] https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20260610-has-russia-given...

fractallyte

le mois dernierdiscuss

Correction: russia was stopped.

Odesa is still on the cards: one of the most important ports on the Black Sea, and a long-time cultural and historic prize.

And Putin wants control of the entire Black Sea coast, and Moldova. Furthermore there are clear signs of aggression toward the Baltics, which may be interpreted as preparation for a similar invasion.

fractallyte

le mois dernierdiscuss

You don't have to advertise that you're a billionaire. You can live quite normally while quietly changing the world as a "side job".

fractallyte

le mois dernierdiscuss

Only up to a certain threshold – after which you can afford "creative" accounting which reduces the tax burden and restores the compounding effect ;-)

fractallyte

le mois dernierdiscuss

I'm surprised this hasn't received more attention. Pattern memory, morphogenesis, collective intelligence of cells? This is HUGE!

This could be biology's "quantum physics" moment... Direct physical evidence that supports Rupert Sheldrake's "morphic resonance".

fractallyte

le mois dernierdiscuss

I always use a screenshot – reliable, no internet connection needed. Never had a problem so far...

fractallyte

le mois dernierdiscuss

llmzengarden?

fractallyte

le mois dernierdiscuss

Projectors and electronic whiteboards elevated lessons for me. Ever see a science teacher try to draw a galaxy or nebula on a blackboard, and try to describe the awesomeness of it using just words?

Math concepts, especially visualizations, become so much more accessible.

One math teacher in my school used an analog overhead projector as part of his workflow: he would write math on a long transparency roll, sitting at his desk, facing the class, so every student could see exactly how their work should be reasoned-about and laid out properly. He could rewind (literally) to any previous point in the lesson.

As always, it comes down to one's ability to use the tools effectively.

fractallyte

le mois dernierdiscuss

And precisely how is that relevant to soil science?

You're ridiculing subjects you clearly don't understand.

fractallyte

le mois dernierdiscuss

You're basically reluctant to accept the fact that such a calculation is possible. That says more about you than the competence of mathematicians and ecologists...

fractallyte

il y a 2 moisdiscuss

This is covered in the linked article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrying_capacity#Mathematics

Other variables to factor in would include cultural/esthetic ones: how much would a population tolerate a reduction in the idyllic/scenic nature of their landscape, merely to accommodate crops for a rising population?

(This is what I referred to as "quality of life" in another post.)

fractallyte

il y a 2 moisdiscuss

I counter you with soil degradation, which is gradual (over decades, even centuries), and extremely difficult to reverse (millennia).

We may yet discover that Malthus was right.

Then what??

https://eu.boell.org/en/SoilAtlas-soil-degradation

https://earth.org/95-of-the-earths-soil-on-course-to-be-degr...

https://www.fao.org/about/meetings/soil-erosion-symposium/ke...

fractallyte

il y a 2 moisdiscuss

Why would you assume the population cap is arbitrary? There's a calculable limit to the population an area of land can sustain. (Yes, some agricultural practices can mitigate that, but that should also be weighed against culture and history, and how much change is acceptable.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrying_capacity

fractallyte

il y a 2 moisdiscuss

It's being proposed in order to maintain quality of life. No one wants to be overcrowded. This is a sane solution: collectively agree on the maximum tolerable population. Then it's down to individual responsibility to obey the norms of one's society.

Edit: unless you're Swiss, your opinion is irrelevant. Swiss voters have a right to decide how they want to live. They're not beholden to EU laws; they can make their own sovereign decisions, and everyone must respect that.

comments