skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
Consider the last few real-world problems I've solved (or attempted to solve) with math:

If you have a widget (roughly shaped like a cone with the tip chopped off) held at angle a and the widget is tapered at angle b and the tip of the widget has a diameter d, how far is it in x and y from the center of the tip of the widget to the theoretical tip were the taper continued to a point?

If two 14" pizzas feed five people, how many 16" pizzas do you need to feed eleven?

If a gallon of paint covers 400 ft^2 once, how many gallons cover a 12'x36' room with a 9' ceiling twice?

And to counter your claim that it no K-12 math can be fuzzy, if you live in a family-friendly neighborhood of x square miles, how many pieces of candy do you need to be prepared for trick-or-treating children? (This problem could easily be approached by a high school student, has real world application, but is a lot like the kind of interview problems that are often criticized as being irrelevant.)

But even if you feel these problems fit with standardized tests, the more important point is that none of these problems was presented to me the way I am presenting them to you. No one told me that angles a and b and diameter d would be both easily available and sufficient to calculate the necessary x and y. No one told me that comparing square inches would be the best way to determine how much pizza to buy. I was certainly not given multiple choices like a normal standardized test.

The real world mistakes people make with math are often more about knowing how and when to apply math, than doing the math itself. Almost everyone knows that Google can multiply and divide numbers. The real math skill is knowing what numbers to multiply and divide to see how many gallons of paint, or pizzas, or pieces of candy, you need.

Being able to pass a trigonometry test is useless if you can't figure out what to do with your widgets. Likewise for the other examples.

I'm not saying standardized tests have no correlation to real-world math ability. They obviously have some. But it's not exact. And there are lots of real-world situations that are poorly reflected in standardized tests.
> I know here in Canada for decades margarine had to be smuggled into the country

Sounds like anticompetitive political corruption by the dairy industry; I can't imagine how that protects consumers.

Do you also have a problem with ground peanut spread being called "peanut butter"?
I'm guessing its more like battery and target-cost limitations

edit: and the carrier thing as discussed in The Verge
No, not guillable. We argue that there should be no upper limit on reward and equity for startups because they drive wealth / value into society, and without the incentive the startups would not get started.

The same entrepreneurial drive, to find new and better ways to teach over a 40 year career, is evident in the best teachers. And should be rewarded too for the value they drive is arguably greater.

We invented equity and shareholdings to enable rewards of entrepreneurial activity - what should we invent to enable rewards for similar achievements in teaching.
I like this, but could you make it a bit slower? Slowing it down would make it a little bit more accessible for those who have mouse trouble. Also keyboard keys!
"STD-like" virus killing off Borderlands 2 video game characters
Publishers can make profits on closed platforms; in fact, they're almost essential due to the work it takes getting to market on a closed platform.

Middle-man distributors, however, don't typically profit from platforms. Valve's position on platforms that have built-in preferred digital distribution systems isn't surprising, they're using their position as OS vendor to boost their digital software distribution business.
+1 for this, I thought the comments were actual comments about the book. Usually comments are placed on the bottom of the page.
It's not a silly question at all. You can completely parameterize the answer in terms of bus volume and golf ball size, or define a "best guess" by explicitly defining your assumptions on the size of a golf ball or a bus in the question. Finally, you should at least be able to provide a magnitude.

Or, you know, you could always just ask what size a golf ball, and bus is.

It seems to me the only assumption the question makes is that a person could make some logical assumptions about the question, ask some logical questions, or ignore all assumptions and parameterize the answer.
Not all pentiles are equal. I have no real complaints about the Galaxy S II screen. (OK - a bit more maximum brightness and a slightly more natural default colour calibration...)
Sure, I agree that in a general sense just pulling a number out of the air is crap.

Testing isn't wrong, it's just not as correlated to the things we would actually like to measure as we would like it to be. This is an open problem in the world, and solving it (besides potentially making the inventor fabulously wealthy) would dramatically change the world.

How do you decide if someone is qualified for a job, or will be successful at a university? In reality we don't have a very solid way to figure that out, so lots of people that would have done well are passed over and lots of people get into universities and hired for jobs and end up failing.

Testing is correlated to lots of things, and is quite nicely correlated to the quality of the training a student was given. I'm sure there is a better solution out there in the aether, but mankind hasn't discovered it yet.
Tomb of the Unknowns' Guards and Hurricane Isabel
At the end of the day, a social network is, at best, a convenience to you. That you're unwilling to suffer the inconvenience of not having the ability to use their network in the way that you want is an opinion I do not share.

It has nothing to do with whether or not it affects me personally -- it obviously does, but whether I agree or disagree with the choice being made here. I happen to agree, and as such, I use G+ (if only rarely). You disagree, so you don't. I assume that nobody is completely friendless or in complete isolation from their friends/family/colleagues because of their decision to not use Google Plus. A social network is not vital, and even if it were, there are plenty of others to choose from. If your friends aren't on that social network, then you don't get the benefit of it, but that's true of anywhere.

Insisting that Google abide your choice is the sucker's bet in my opinion. For what it's worth, almost every social network excludes somebody. In this case, it is 'people who aren't willing to use their real names', in other cases it might be 'people who are spamming the server' or 'people who are preaching hate crimes' or 'child molesters' or 'people outside of America'. An application has policies that it abides. You happen to disagree with one of their policies, and it apparently matters to you a great deal. You can complain as loudly as you like, and you can certainly hope that Google changes their minds, and you can even hold it against them that they don't. That doesn't make what they're doing wrong in any way other than something you disagree with.

(Note -- I didn't mean to intentionally lump any of the categories of people used in network exclusions together, except to come up with examples of why somebody might exclude somebody.)
It was actually Skilling, at least as much as Lay, who was responsible, but you're right that the corruption existed mostly at the executive levels.

It's probably more likely that Enron's management practices were a symptom rather than a cause of moral depravity, but I tend to think of such things as self-perpetuating. PRC probably didn't do any cultural harm that wasn't already there, but it did no good.
Tech Education Doesn't Happen In the Classroom
"Teachers performance in the US has been terrible for many years."

Terrible at what, exactly?
I haven't dug through this 14-page document yet: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=3044...

But the gamepad API could easily supported. Only problem is the controller now has default behavior (controlling the browser cursor).
Sprawl and Obesity: NYC as a case study
While the article is interesting; the following image may bring tears to the eye: http://i.imgur.com/WOCaQ.jpg
If you're comfortable running unofficial ROMs, I'm pretty sure ROM developers will have multi-user support running on phones as soon as they get the source code.
Take a look at the recently released questions from the 2012 california math standardized tests. Looks like math, not memorization to me.

Here is grade 7: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/tg/sr/documents/cstrtqmath7.pdf

Here is algebra: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/tg/sr/documents/cstrtqalgebra.pdf
Yes, it did just change this morning:

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4712924

Google cancelled their NYC event due to Sandy but appears to still be doing a paper release of the new Nexus devices today.
Sounds more like a workaround, less of a fix :P. Weird stuff!
I wasn't going to, but at this price point the temptation certainly is there.
I haven't had many problems running games on Windows Vista/7, but the times I did have problems were extremely time consuming. I'm talking in the range of 10+ hours. Bioshock 2, for example, was plagued with the Games for Windows Live, which itself would only work with particular .NET runtimes you had to find yourself, plus very subtle sound driver configurations that had to be made (and I still can't get the game to run through Steam). 99% of games work out of the box, as expected. That 1%, though, is quite a headache.
And the new Nook HDs from B&N.
It's already being exposed in CM anyway.
I agree. High quality board-game apps seem to be the biggest gap on android tablets. I love Elder Sign: Omens https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fantasyfli... but that's the only one I've found to be really high quality. Carcasonne and Catan aren't as good as their ios equivalents.

While I'm plugging tablet board game apps, this implementation of backgammon is Awesome. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.njsoftware... It regularly wipes the floor with me on higher difficulty levels, and has a lot of really nice features.
That makes sense. FYI I deleted my comment because I didn't feel like it added anything.

I think you would actually like SF - there are a lot of companies building real software, and if there's any smugness, it's that you can work at what you love, make more money than the Wall St. folks, and do it in a t-shirt and shorts.

I appreciate that you took the time to write, I understand where you're coming from a lot better.
Ok so, 4th generation of Nexus phones is called Nexus 4 and the tablets with 7" and 10" screens are called Nexus 7 and Nexus 10? What..? Also, this greets me when going to the product page (not trying to buy the phone, just trying to look at the phone): http://cl.ly/image/2t2R0L1L0H0F
> No LTE is a deal-breaker for me on the Nexus 4. I would pre-order one right now if it was included. I think I'll wait for the next great Android phone that has LTE.

There's a good explanation of the LTE situation by The Verge[0]. If Google wants to release timely upgrades, they need to break free of carrier control. And since Verizon and Sprint devices require carrier approval, this will never happen. As for AT&T, their LTE coverage is so limited and the frequencies unique, so it doesn't make economic sense.

> The Nexus S is a pretty good phone, so without an upgrade in internet speed I don't see any reason to upgrade.

With AT&T, there will be an upgrade in speed from the Nexus S to the Nexus 4 (or to the Galaxy Nexus, for that matter). The Nexus S doesn't support HSPA+ (what AT&T is falsely claiming in its TV ads to be 4G - it's actually more like 3.5G), whereas the Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 4 do.

0: http://www.theverge.com/2012/10/29/3569688/why-nexus-4-does-...
It's also entirely possible that he's like the Detroit Auto manufacturer higher-ups in the 1970s - 1980s. They got no input from outsiders (a.k.a. their community was in-bred), and mechanics fixed the exec's cars every day while the execs worked. Apparently the auto executives thought that everything was OK, and that the stuff they read in newspapers was just whining.

Maybe Ballmer only uses Windows. He's got a tech support guy that just fixes things, and the support guy is really good. Ballmer lives and works with people who only use Windows, with maybe the token Apple Fanboi in the social circle existing just to provide comic relief.

Communication is only possible between equals, and only MPAA/RIAA C-levels, and Senators are Ballmer's equals. Ballmer exists in a bubble.
Cyanogen has had this for quite a while. I used it on my Gtablet and it worked pretty well.
Testing is only any good if students are assessed at the beginning and end of each year. We care about the difference a teacher makes in the lives and skills of students. Those that make the most difference get the most reward.

But hey - that might be ridiculously easy to game - every which way.

(Personally I would get my whole class pissed out of their brains on the first test, and teach normally for the rest of the year. With any luck I will see an improvement)

And finally - testing is supposed to be about testing the students. Not the teachers. Every Head knows which ones are good and which ones are crap.
Very cool. I like the transitions, especially the last one.
Just a heads up, it doesn't work on chrome 22.
Proust Wasn’t a Neuroscientist. Neither was Jonah Lehrer.
It's been a while since I jumped into Android dev, so I'm curious if you could elaborate more on the things you are finding annoying and/or confusing. Also, are there things about Android development that you like more than iOS development?
> If you like thinking about high availability and how to build more resilient systems, we have many openings throughout the company

Money can't buy recruiting opportunities like these. This is exemplary engineering and marketing.
Making the location visible on your post is optional and off by default; sending the location is not, as far as I understand.
Software developer performance in the US has been terrible for many years as well.

Maybe we should institute some standardized tests?

And if you're gonna complain about how measuring KLOC doesn't make any sense, well, it's not enough to just point out problems. You've gotta point out solutions. Be a team player.
Thanks. It was indeed a typo.
You do realize both Microsoft as well as Apple are trying to separate the consumer market from the high end, professional market. The cheapest Apple device that allows side-loading costs 999 euro's. The cheapest win8 device that allows side loading will be at least 800 euro's.

I understand why. The biggest problem of the convential desktop is the ugly compomize between freedom, power users and professionals on one end, and casual consumer usage at the other end.

But that does mean, many of Valves current customers, that buy midrange devices, will end up on RT or iOS.

And the crowd on this site, will likely find the devices aimed for them moving to a more expensive and exclusive niche.
It is obvious what you are talking about, it is not obvious why you are talking about it. As I said, there was literally zero insinuation of anything to provoke your response. And I do not illustrate your point at all, as I am neither your "political opposition", not do I view you as evil. You are acting in a manner which is consistent with mental instability. You perceive enemies and threats which do not exist, and respond with unprovoked hostility.
Is there anything country specific on the phone? Seriously thinking about crossing the border to buy one. Would I have problems with the store or anything?
We have a brilliant system for determining the quality of teachers - and it is one used throughout the private sector with considerable effect.

Its called a competent boss

Every Head knows which ones to get rid of and which ones to keep. Every Head also knows if they get rid of the bad ones, they will need double the budget to hire in new, also good teachers. Especially if every other Head does this at the same time.
I sincerely hope that with regards to tablets, the next major battleground will be the desktop. I want a tablet that acts as a tablet on the go, but plugs into my mouse/keyboard/monitor at home and just replaces my desktop.

Performance is not quite there yet, but it's getting close. OSes are not quite there yet, but progress is being made there, too. I think it is only a matter of time and it might get there faster than we think.
I thought they were switching back and forth between the HTC and the Nokia...

I wasn't really paying attention, but I'm sure I saw a big yellow phone at some point.
Photo Sphere on Nexus 4
I don't own Crysis 2 to test, sorry. The only program that I had installed that flat-out broke due to the upgrade was actually Media Player Classic Home Cinema, which works fine now after updating to the latest version.

Edit: To expand a little bit on that, I've been a Windows user since the 3.1 days. I've done most (if not all) of the upgrades during that time frame at some point, and there are always programs that break. Games tend to be particularly fragile in this respect, possibly due to relying on undocumented/unsupported behavior to squeeze out extra performance.

Win98->XP (ME? what's that?) and XP->Vista were both particularly bad for games, as I think anyone old enough to be a PC gamer during those times remembers. However, it wasn't because XP or Vista weren't 'viable' for gaming - the games just needed patches to adjust to new OS behavior or remove reliance on deprecated APIs. Win7->Win8 is more comparable to Vista->Win7, judging by my experience so far. There are things that will break and certain games will need patches, but it won't be anything like the days of needing "Vista patches" for 90% of your games.
It was <3 weeks from the time I decided I would be more productive in a different group until the time I was at my new desk. The stages were roughly 1) meeting with my manager and manager's manager to notify them that I wanted to transfer. 2) Meet with other teams to find one that was a good fit. 3) Get all the sign offs from people who needed to sign off. Step 2 took most of the time because I didn't want to make the same mistake that I made the first time.

Others who have run into problems and left might be outliers, but it's difficult to come to a solid conclusion based on anecdotes. People who have bad experiences will have stronger feelings and bring up their experiences whenever possible (E.g. michaelochurch who complains about Google every chance he gets) while those who have good experiences like myself don't mention it as much. I only mentioned my case because it was a counterexample to varelse's case, and this is probably true of many others who have had good experiences and don't bother talking about it.

Just remember that the plural of anecdote isn't data, and negative anecdotes tend to suffer from selection bias because they have a greater emotional impact upon the person.
Maybe they rounded 4.7" down to 4.
If that is indeed what he meant, then I should clarify my position.

Free speech may well be 'whatever you want to say', but I might often say things that I don't mean. I also might say inflammatory things that I regret. I also might say things that are insensitive to others, or are completely horrible to all people, depending on my mood. I believe that with the freedom to say 'anything' I want, I also have the responsibility to say the things that are meaningful and, at least to the ability that I can ensure, accurate.

When I mentioned filtering on things I should say, I meant that while I believe I have the right to say whatever I like, I don't feel I should make those same remarks over the internet. Just as I believe I have the right to make racist jokes, I would not personally want to be held accountable as being a racist, so I would not. If I did, I would not make them on a megaphone at a racial harmony rally. If I did, I would expect to be held accountable. While I would not expect to be the victim of violence, I wouldn't be terribly surprised if I did.

In summation, I understand that 'free speech' is not limited to 'free speech with accountability', I believe as a personal choice for myself and nobody else, that it should be. I believe the old trope goes something like "Live your life as though your mother is watching everything you do" is one that I try to live by. It isn't one that I insist upon others, and I don't want my mother peering into the bedroom often enough, but I believe that accountability adds a fair amount to controversial discussions and makes them far more relevant.

Had Martin Luther King, Jr been 'anonymous' and preached with a V mask, I don't believe we'd have made anywhere near the progress we have on racial equality. That doesn't mean that I require all others to relinquish their anonymity/pseudonymity, but I prefer it personally and I find it to be a good choice for others to make.

Thanks for the attempt at clarification.
Meanwhile at Walmart employees are receiving great treatment.
Very nice.

Stop saying 1 is prime, and it's perfect.

EDIT: There are some interesting design decisions here. In particular, even & odd powers of 2 are handled differently.
720p screens often aren't 1280x720 anyway. Lots of HDTVs and laptops have screens that are labeled 720p and have actual resolutions of 1280x768 or 1366x768.
I agree with all this, but consider that the type of math being tested on a standardized test is a subset of the skills you mention. You certainly can't perform complex word problems unless you can do the algebra or geometry calculations, whereas the converse is not true.

IOW, standardized testing of math is testing the bare minimum, and a successful teacher should be able to teach this bare minimum. If a teacher can do better, great!
I was able to activate the Music account here in Canada via a proxy. Still no access to the Music Store though but free storage for 20,000 songs that sync to my phone is pretty cool.
Wow! Thank you for such a comprehensive reply. Plenty to chew on. I don't use facebook or twitter or google plus.
I think I'll adopt your dual browser, adblock and cookie suggestions immediately and then look into the others. Thanks again for taking the time to answer so well
Yeah, Ballmer is presenting all of the brands at the moment. I noticed that he even pocketed the Nokia, I wonder if that was part of the deal ;)
Changing your body language can help you feel more confident
Not quite the middle east depicted by the media:

At Asal, 120 software developers work in a large, air-conditioned open plan office fronted by a semi-circular glass wall. Twenty percent of them are women.
You thought SQL injection was bad? Schema injection should scare you.
Syncing music from iTunes to Windows Phone now. That's a nice way to help break the iPhone lock in.
Laugh at this guy all you want - the late medieval heralds had much the same problem. See Wikipedia on "Quartering": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quartering_%28heraldry%29 specifically the arms for the Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville family.
Now show me the same test from Alabama, or North Carolina.

Chances are it's not of the same quality. California actually has a relatively good educational system, compared to the rest of the country.
Nexus 4 has a 4.7" screen so the naming convention just about holds true.
You guessed it, a non-compete clause.

The ability to earn a livelihood is an inalienable right, and I don't understand how it's legally enforceable to have a contractual clause that negates that right.

A clause that one does not reveal confidential information though, is another matter.
I was just thinking about that. I've got a 2004 era Mercedes with a built in car phone and was wondering if I was supposed to get a distinct phone number for it, which seems preposterous.