skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
One thing that's notable, from this report and others, is that there were a class of investors who knew that Madoff was doing something illegal to get these kind of returns, and were bragging about it. These investors didn't think it was a Ponzi scheme; they thought he was using insider knowledge from his broker-dealer's access to order flow.

And they were happy to go along with this obviously illegal practice.

I don't think it's too much of a jump to speculate that the ones who knew there was something illegal going on were the managers of the so-called Funds of Funds and other hedge funds. These include managers of our public pension funds. These managers are too knowledgeable not to know something's up when these kind of returns are being posted, and when red flags were being raised, and they were happy to go profit from it because they figured they were at a safe enough distance from the illegal trading.
Thats it, i normally dont say "reincarnation".
It seems to me that words like that were used to make graspable a concept thats hard to grasp; but it lost its sense when someboy tried to hard to make it fit in some view of things.

Edit: It can also be called Evolution.
How about adding a feature where you display the most often compared items in the past month/week/day. To sort of give a pulse on what's hot at this point in time.
First one has to define consciousness as subjective experience, not as being awake.

The only consciousness one is able to experience is his own. But solipsism is a point of view that is both depressing and not really explanatory of anything.

Let's assume that people around, who are similar to us, are conscious too. The problem in the last sentence is the word "similar". A few centuries ago, Black people were considered soul-less animals by their "enlighted" European peers. We recentlty came to realize that most traits that we thought made us unique, like symbolic language for example, or "theory of mind" ie realizing that other creatures have other thoughts and other beliefs than our own, are shared by other species (eg bonobos).

Even if they don't recognize themselves in the mirror, in most animal species that I know of, individuals are able to recognize their own smell.

Assuming personnal consciousness can be mapped to some part of the brain processing, can a dog, a frog, a worm be conscious? How many neurons make a conscious brain?

Let's keep on recursing.

Are plants conscious? At least, some of them seem able to compute. The opening and closing patterns of stomata (the pores that allow the gaz exchanges on leaf) are not statistically different from those of some 2d cellular automata. (Evidence for complex, collective dynamics and
emergent, distributed computation in plants http://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.0307811100 )

Can a monocellular animal be conscious? Not only do they sense and react to their environment, but some are able to anticipate periodic variations of their surroundings, and memorize stimuli patterns. (Amoebae Anticipate Periodic Events http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.018101 )

Now please be confused :-)

I don't think that consciousness is related to the ability of having explicit self referential thoughts (how do we define thoughts, BTW? are they language related or not necessarilly?), nor to symbolic language.

From the "mapism" point of view, something that really puzzles me is the fact that identity is preserved overnignt, despite the extensive plasticity that occurs while one is sleeping.

Could identity rely on the statistical properties of a brain rather than on a strict material mapping? Cognition at least, and possibly conscious access to information relies on bayesian processing of the information (see Hakwan Lau's work).

As long as we don't have proper formal models of these concepts, we'll keep on speculating.

I really wonder whether it's possible to find a Gödel-like paradox regarding statements about consciousness pronounced by conscious beeings... :D

/rambling.
I can almost guarantee that if a card issuer were to unilaterally (not by force of regulation, or by industry-wide standard practice) raise the minimum payment formula to something that I would find rational (3-5 year payoff period perhaps), that there would be an immediate hue and cry about how damaging that action was to disenfranchised borrowers, as some people were "just getting by" before and now they're going to be in debt trouble by virtue of this action. (Newsflash, they only appeared to be getting by before and they were already deep in debt trouble, but that's not how it would be reported and complained about.)

Though I'm of the opinion "let adults make adult decisions for themselves, don't have government be a nanny", here even I can see a reason to regulate (whether by government, or ideally by an organization like PCI) minimum payments higher than a 30 year amortization schedule.
With that much memory, it is useful to have that many cores in order to index everything quickly. Finding local information fast can be a productivity boost.
This issue isn't unique to Twitter. Anyone who's building a site today is going to have these issues. We need some clever solutions here.
Douglas Hofstadter wrote a book after GEB called "I am a Strange Loop" that deals pretty much exclusively with the ideas of self and consciousness. This is far and away the most compelling argument for consciousness being an emergent property of the brain that I've ever seen. I strongly recomend this book for anyone interested in the topic.
yeah, totally. While it's nice to hear someone sing a different tune for once, i also got the impression that somehow "passion == wrong". really, we should be giving kids a flowchart --> passionate about something? (yes) go for it (no) be willing to do anything opportunity turns up, and keep your ears open for when passion calls. Loop every so often until you end up with a "yes".

It was by total fluke that I got into programming at all, but if I had been a "dream waiter" bum who did nothing all my life, I wouldn't have had the resources or maturity to follow that dream when it did turn up.
Yep, good programmers might be expensive, but in the long-term so is the energy needed to power overworked hardware from sloppy coding.
I've tried lots of ways (Excel, text docs, google docs) but I settled on using OneNote for it today.
Check out the street performer protocol: http://www.schneier.com/paper-street-performer.html

I also heard of some companies trying to apply this to specific cases.
I'm a bit ambivalent about videos. I personally loathe them and won't watch them, but realize that some people might like to sit there watching a video instead of clicking on 'create script' and trying it out.

What would you want to see in one?
A 1000 years of memories could drive any one insane, i mean, what is our mental capacity? I'm sure we could keep the body alive and healthy for a long period of time, but a 1000 years is probably too much. The brain would have to adapt somehow, we would probably forget most of our experience and only keep the most important memories, our brains were designed for 30-40 year life-spans, nature really didn't intend us to live as long as we live today. We've managed so far by forgetting stuff thats not that important, but how would our memory management work in a longer period?
I don't understand the compare button. Can't comparison be a little easier for the end user? The fact that nothing happens on this first click is already considered a UI flaw. Why not make it easier to add products to compare when you're on the compare screen? It seems like a context loss when you have to leave the compare screen to select another product to compare against. It only makes it worse when you don't know what brand to select and compare against. I do like how Newegg implements their product filtering, maybe you need something like that here.

When you're comparing 2 items, maybe there should be a modifier on each stat where the modifier allows you to find another netbook that has "more" or "less" of that stat. ie, pressing the up arrow on price would find you the netbook just slightly more expensive, and pressing the down arrow on screen resolution would find you the laptop with slightly less screen resolution etc. I do love how the netbook comparison works on obsessable though. (see other commenter)
I struggled with this too and I still don't have a proper solution. Text Docs for very early stage idea, Wordpress Drafts/Private Posts (in older version it would put them at the top of the page).
What do you mean by consciousness does not exist?
How do you define consciusness? you have to have a definition so you can deny it.
Also, maybe you shouldn't use MSRP for pricing, it can skew the data since some of the older netbooks are actually significantly cheaper than recent models and it's really hard to gauge what is better for the price. Why not scrape data from sites like Amazon/Newegg for data on real prices? Price is a big comparison factor when you consider that only a few hundred more will get you a full blown laptop with all the bells & whistles.
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KidZui Keeping Kids Safe Online | TechJaws
... until we plug two (or more) brains together using miroelectrode arrays.
I like the way pg often uses a computer without internet. In fact, after posting this comment, I'm going to shut down this computer's net access for a bit so I can focus.
It is true that "significance" can be arbitrarily defined, but I think if you can calculate the confidence, it is not arbitrary. If you have the number that with x% probability something is the case, you have learned something.

I suspect that 490 is quite a big sample actually, but I am too lazy to do the maths (and I am missing background information - of course if it was just one battle, it is a different thing than looking at the whole of WW2, and so on).
Congrats, Peter!
I'm siding with geius on this one. To the extent that no money changed hands and Steve wasn't paying them to use the celtics usename, then I think Twitter can do whatever they want whenever they want.

It may not be good karma for them to take the names without warning, but Twitter's job is to pay the bills and keep the lights on, not turn down good exposure (and perhaps some coin) to keep one guy happy who didn't have a true right to the name in the first place.

Perhaps they are getting some cash from the Celtics to use the name. So what? If you're one of the tens of thousands of people like Steve that are using Twitter for free to promote a business, then Twitter getting some cash to pay the bills another month is only a good thing.
Well the whole discussion is rather useless then, isn't it? Perhaps we should discuss the Spaghetti Monster instead?
Am I the only one thinking those salary figures are around 30-40K too low?
Animated Map of the Imperial History of the Middle East
The most uncomfortable part of that sentence is "the first time". Apparently, this is routinely called for.
Meebo Passes IMs Between MySpace And Facebook
Define "right to a name".

(I've actually got some potential thoughts, but I'd like to not poison the well.)
Ask HN: Writing DSL in Python
Hey Hackers,

I was reading this blog article http://weblog.jamisbuck.org/2006/4/20/writing-domain-specific-languages

and I've no idea how can one go about writing a DSL in Python. I've rudimentary knowledge of Python and I'm interesting in writing a DSL just for fun and knowledge. Can anyone please point out what do I need to learn to be able to write a DSL in Python? Any help is appreciated.
then sell celtics their name for $10 million. Sounds like a good plan to me!

Or maybe twitter is the one selling the celtics their brand name for $10 million...
SOX is a tax-increase; it's an unfunded mandate. So, in addition to being ineffective, it's also expensive.
Managing servers can be a real pain in the ass. If you can get everything to work on one server, life is much simpler.
It's the whole US, it isn't broken down by geographic region or anything.
I got the same failure with a WebKit nightly. I run Java applets and JWS apps from the browser all the time, so the Java Plugin doesn't seem to be broken on my system.

Could it be because I'm still stuck on Java 1.5?
In a sample size of <500, assuming a standard deviation of 15 for the IQ test (since that's the most common) 3 points wouldn't seem to mean anything. Even a well-versed psychologist wouldn't be able to reliably tell apart people with a difference if .2 standard deviations.
Simulating Mamma Mia under a Xmas Tree (with Python)
in what context? personal blogs or professional/company?

i stopped personally blogging since i didn't have enough consistent ideas or drive to write instead of other stuff. with a company blog, i'd use something shared, maybe something in dropbox.
The user name bostonceltics is taken by someone that is doing the same thing and using the Boston Celtics' logo for their icon. Seems like they would have been a better candidate to bully into moving their user name.

http://twitter.com/bostonceltics
Very good idea. Don't have too much data to work with at the moment, but I'll make sure it's being tracked so that it can be exposed later.
490 might be an ok sample, I don't know I've never taken a statistics class

I mainly thought that 3 iq points is not a big difference in intelligence, pretty much a wash.
Meebo adds Facebook and MySpace chat for full chat goodness
If you don't like what Twitter is doing, leave.

Twitter is a business, just like any other, ultimately, they own all the usernames, you're just using them, if they see a better way to assign a username, why would they not chose it? You're getting value out of the twitter network, and twitter has every right to do what makes more sense to them. If users don't like the decisions Twitter is making, they will leave and then Twitter can feel sorry for screwing it up.

I don't know why people expect to use a free service like they are owed something. If you were paying for your username, it would make sense, but you're not, so shut up (tongue-in-cheek)!
I just added pricing info from Shopping.com, that should probably be used in place of MSRP for comparison sake. Some are really discounted, others (Dell/Lenovo especially) sell for MSRP.
Creating a new namespace is bad, because you renew the same old disputes that people have fought over in the old namespaces. Creating a new flat namespace is worse, because it intensifies the disputes.

DNS exists and at least it has a dispute resolution process; let's use it. (see Laconica)
And you know what?

It's still funny.

I find it is always worth a peek at this http://www.internettrafficreport.com/main.htm

before getting too doom-laden.

+++ATH0
I write them as email drafts, since I know its the only thing I'll usually always have access to.
But even then, 30-40K is weak. 40K should be your starting salary. Anything less, and you're being taken.
Isn't it the same issue as last year, and the last 10 years? Picking usernames etc isn't a new practice.
Enterprise Integration Patterns - Table of Contents
it would be nice if I didn't pick anything yet when I reach the comparison page, that you'll allow me to pick a netbook from the comparison page itself
Nice concept. Giving people easy to understand ways of navigating complex electronics is smart.

We have actually made our own review of the Acer Aspire One here. We target people who care about what technology can do for them not the other way round.

http://www.kallow.com/computing/mini-laptop
What if they allowed duplicate names? Navigating to twitter.com/username would then display everyone with that name (like how Wikipedia handles it). The chances that you are following more than one person with the same name is pretty slim. If that does happen, then you pick which one gets your @ replies.
I like your idea. Netbooks are one of my fascinations too - I've been happy to see the market grow so much recently.

The first thing that strikes me, though, is the weakness of the design. The homepage really needs some work - it lacks "pull". I'd like to be more specific but it's a difficult issue to describe concisely. I would recommend consulting a designer or doing some design research on similar sites in the same niche because with a better design I think the site could have a lot of appeal.
I don't know about Russia, but the number for Brazil doesn't sound too farfetched, the percentage of people in the middle class there is rather slim compared to percentage of poor people, even today.
I agree with the New Egg suggestion. I would combine Search and Browse into the same function, call it Search Netbooks, and ditch the Compare menu item from the top nav as it's confusing.

Your new Search Netbooks page would then have the faceted search in the left hand column like New Egg does and allow you to drill down into manufacturer, price, etc. Each result line item in the right hand column would have a compare checkbox that you could use to set up comparisons.

I'm also assuming you're targeting peeps who've already decided they want to get a netbook and it's just a matter of which one, so take this with a grain of salt: I'm one of those guys who doesn't quite get the netbook thing or understand why I'd want one, so perhaps some content related to what they are and why I'd want one would be cool.

I'd also consider trying to aggregate some of the review data for each model like Consumer Search does for TVs (http://www.consumersearch.com/hdtv). It's one thing to see the specs, but once I've narrowed that down it would be nice to see some review data too.

Overall a good start, I think. Good luck!
First of, you could have skipped the insults. Apparently you do not know much about Steve. I recommend you go read some of his 70+ ideas he posted almost 2 years back.

Secondly, he saw an opportunity when most people did not, so he should totally benefit from it.

18 months ago, most people did not know about Twitter and they could not see it being useful to anyone. Steve did. You should go back to his blog entries at TechQuilaShots. He was sharing ideas on how businesses could take advantage of Twitter. Only a few read his blog and a fewer followed his advices. So he did it. Now they want to take that away from him. Not cool.
A Wrench in Silicon Valley's Wealth Machine
Perhaps the next target for terrorism?

Are there really only 4 cables that carry all the traffic? I would expect some sort of redundancy.
As someone who doesn't know much about military strategy, I find it surprising that officers are more likely to die in combat (or were in WWII, at least). Isn't it enlisted guys who ride at the tip of a dangerous advance?
> You aren't really conscious, you just think you are. :-)

And yesterday is a story you tell yourself to explain today ;-)
Of course Twitter can do whatever they want... the question is whether they should want to, in this case.
I read years ago about Jerry Pournelle having a separate computer on the upper level of his home with no internet connection at all, for the purpose of focusing on writing. I thought that was a neat idea, and tried it myself, but eventually started sneaking a wireless laptop with me, and before much longer gave up on it entirely.

It's weird. For years, I really did use computers with no network access whatsoever, and then with some basic telephone-line connections that were usually off, and now with wifi/broadband pretty ubiquitous, it seems unthinkable to get off the network. I feel like something is very wrong here, but... ooh, I just got an email; it must be time again to check to see if I've sold any more albums at CDBaby.com ...
What's wrong with the flash viewer? I've rarely had any problems with it, and it loads document fairly quickly.
How to Prepare for English
2009 KPSS
By "right to a name" I'm speaking specifically about Steve's right to own the Twitter username celtics. From a "first come, first serve" perspective, I suppose he has a right to use the username... until Twitter deems otherwise.

The terms of service said they could come and take it, and Steve's not paying them any money for exclusive use of the name, so from that standpoint I don't feel he has a right to use the username any more than the Boston Celtics do. It's Twitter - who owns the service - that I think has the right to do what they please.

I'm not saying that I agree with how they handled it and I can see why Steve is pissed off, but I don't think they have any obligation to let Steve keep the username.
A friend of mine grew up on a farm in Idaho. Apparently, the upside of birthing a cow is that "at least you've got somewhere warm to stick your hands."
I wouldn't want my competitors sharing a username with me.
One solution is to expose unique IDs and allow people to hang nicks on those. Using email addresses or phone numbers goes most of the way toward this (it's not all the way, since people could get an email address or phone number that someone else used to have, at some ISPs or phone companies). However, there's a larger, related problem, which is the problem of identity: there is no foolproof way of identifying individuals, and the more you investigate, the more clear it becomes that existing attempts fail miserably for edge cases, and criminal / fraudulent activity is probably the longest edge.
It Costs Digg $5 Million a Year to Run the Internet
Study up on context managers, decorators, and meta-classes, which will assist in creating DSLs. However, you don't really need to use these features to build DSLs.

The use of method chaining (think jQuery) can lead to interesting languages.

Or, take Django's chaining for making queries. User.objects.filter(first_name='Andrew').order_by('last_name')

Or, you can get more complicated and do something like described at: http://code.activestate.com/recipes/534150/

EDIT: s/be vital/assist/ on line 1.
Well, I'm not just going to come out and tell you how to build a conscious entity. Next thing you know, people would be making conscious Java applets.

That's the real reason "no one can explain the hard problem of subjective experience". It's actually pretty simple, but as soon as someone figures it out, they realize how easy it would be to create billions of small computer programs experiencing intense suffering; so they keep it a secret.
Link: http://heclbuilder.com
We've got a major revamp currently underway; that's part of the plan. Meanwhile there isn't much except the Google search and Andrew Hay's indices.
Haha, no way! This is great news. Now, I only wish I had access to my Facebook chat list within my Gmail client. I already have both AIM and GChat rolled into one, and that's great. Then, I just need an iPhone client, and some way to integrate it with both texting and email.

Exchange for chat + email + texting, all specced out with an API for easy integration into browser-side clients...
Another breakdown is needed, but my guess is that it is air force pilots and bomber crew that skew the stats. Read/see "catch 22".
If you are going to pay big bucks to a programmer, you want one that does a little algorithm analysis before s/he puts fingers to keyboard, same with memory usage. I saw a major project go down the tubes because the architect thought that it scaled limitlessly but really it scaled n^2. Ain't good for a transaction protocol.

If you need to scale, you need to have a good architectural path from the beginning. I've talked to too many companies whose growth is constrained by the need to re implement from the ground up, right in the middle of the hockey stick growth. What I mean is a little bit of thought at the beginning, not months of agonizing or 9 tons of frameworks. Given that, you can throw hardware at it and let your programmers add value.
100-year-old watch ring found in undisturbed 400-year-old Ming Dynasty tomb
Ah. That must be it. Thanks for the tip. :)