I think a lot of people here (and the author of the article) are missing the obvious: an engineer is someone who works with engines. An engine is basically just a machine that does work. The question is really whether software can be considered "machines." They're certainly complex devices made up of different parts working in unison that perform work, so I think yes. If a bridge can be considered a machine then surely so can software. Therefore, programmers are engineers. All this talk about rigid specifications, certifications, math, respect for the title, etc. is very odd to me.
I'm not even that old and I completely agree with your point. One would think that easy access to beginner friendly programming languages and environments would be a boon to technically precious children. However I think for most kids, highly addictive and cheap video games and social media end up monopolizing all the time and attention. It's really sad to see all that neuroplastic potential being wasted on TikTok. Personally, I came up around the dawn of Facebook and was only (partially) saved by being too poor to afford many video games or an expensive computer, and being too much of a loner to care about Facebook.
I don't use a password manager and my email account is by far one of my most secure accounts so I actually love signing in to things like this. It beats having to remember another battery-horse-stapler type password. For more paranoid users you could add a 2FA option.
As part of the right routine and exercises, lifting weights can be very pleasant. Personally, I love doing a good set of dumbbell rows.
What keeps me (and I think a lot of people) from getting ripped is the sheer consistency needed. Doing anything that isn't strictly necessary for 1-2 hours 5-6 days per week every week for years is extremely difficult imo. I get knocked off course very easily, sometimes for months at a time, and I have yet to find a solution for this.
That proportions in that analogy seem way off. Every single neuron of the human brain could be utilizing quantum mechanical effects at the same time. Not very much at all like a kid's sand castle against the world's tides. I don't think anyone really understand "thinking" and quantum mechanics well enough for the mechanisms to be apparent. I mean, squirrels convert forest detritus into general intelligence. I don't understand the strong certainty against the idea that there's some physics based piece of the puzzle that we're missing.
Quantum computers don't seem very useful yet, but brains are extremely useful (and they use much less power). Maybe current generation quantum computers would be better if they used quantum mechanics more similarly to the ways our brains use it. The article you linked mentions that entanglement and qubits are being "studied in human consciousness" but I'm not sure what exactly that entails.
Does anyone know if we understand enough about natural, generally intelligent brains to dismiss the idea that they are using quantum phenomenon for computation? Is it unlikely for any reason?
I would also love a ground fish option, even if it's frozen. Fish burgers can be phenomenal when done right! I usually settle for canned, but the canning process definitely seems to have a pretty pronounced effect on flavor.
That's pretty extraordinary. I don't think I've ever heard of someone seeing stuff like that without psychedelics. Have you always been able to see it or was it brought on by something? When did you first notice it?
One thing I've noticed always seems to amaze non-programmers as they're taking their first foray into using computers in more advanced ways (programming, scripting, even just using a command-line) is how little room there is for typos. I've frequently heard things like, "if you forget a single semicolon the whole thing doesn't work!" To me, it just seems obvious that if you make a mistake, the computer won't know what to do with your code. But maybe it doesn't really have to be that way.
So my guess is that a programming language created by a non-programmer would be extremely tolerant to typos. References to non-existent variables and functions would resolve to the nearest existing options. Semicolons, commas, parentheses and brackets would be strictly optional. This seems to be closer to the way people naturally use language.
> Does anyone else kinda feel like videogames look good enough at this point?
Yes, definitely. I kinda wish more resources would be diverted to improved physics, better procedural generation, and especially more realistic AI. When do we get to play a game against AI that is learning from the player and constantly changing its behavior in a truly dynamic way? Or how about a game where you can move and interact with every physical object you see instead of everything being a bolted down prop except for that jarringly different item that you're obviously intended to interact with? That would be orders of magnitude more exciting to me than hyper realistic hair on the player models.
Cars are the worst. Side effects include air pollution, cancer, death of nearby pedestrians, municipal neglect of sidewalks, extreme inefficiency of resources resulting from rolling around a 2000 pound hunk of metal for every 180 pound person that wants get anywhere, sprawling asphalt deserts, weight gain and death. Don't bother contacting anyone if you experience one or more of these symptoms.
That reminds me of this quote from Dick Dale, "I still remember the first night we played it ('Misirlou'). I changed the tempo, and just started cranking on that mother. And ... it was eerie. The people came rising up off the floor, and they were chanting and stomping."
It seems like people really are susceptible to a sort of mass hypnosis if you can make the right noises.
> Please please please don’t think I was mocking you or anything you believe. You’re a wickedly smart person and a talented writer. Those are the only opinions I have about you. Okay???
Why do you sound like you just found out motohagiography has high-level connections to the mob? Honestly this entire thread is starting to trigger my schizoid tendencies because I have no idea what half the people in it are talking about.
There is no "we" that could be like that if it's boltzmann brains all the way down. It could very well be mostly unimaginable agony that exists, it's just that the temporary boltzmann configuration of "posting a thought on HN as a human with human memories" happens to not be a part of that.
You're completely ignoring the fact that just a couple grams of cocaine can kill a person. It might not be particularly easy to take a lethal overdose of cocaine but consider how easy it is compared to other popular substances: nicotine, alcohol, cannabis, coffee, psychedelics, etc. It's an immediately dangerous substance that can cause serious harm in a short moment of disinhibiton, which I think justifies it's illegality inasmuch as any recreational drug should be illegal.