skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
Meanwhile, in response to abuse of the patent system by so-called “trolls,” the House of Representatives has passed a bill called the Innovation Act (details: http://www.gop.gov/bill/113/1/hr3309) to fix the worst abuses. The bill is expected to pass the Senate and be signed into law next year. Significantly improving patent quality is no easy task and would likely require fundamental changes to patent law, to the PTO, and to procedures for examining patent applications. New rules to reduce “smash-and-grab” patent trolling is VERY IMPORTANT and hope our Govt. acts on this bill asap.
Nice post. One small comment: "For taking notes I use a squared Moleskine notebook and a black pen." I used to use Moleskine notebooks, until one catastrophically broke (http://jseliger.wordpress.com/2011/05/11/eight-years-of-writ...). Since then, I've begun using Rhodia "Webnotebooks." The name is stupid but they're incredibly durable.
Lots of people have hang-ups and insecurities when it comes to sex. The easiest way to reconcile those hang-ups is to turn them into moral referendums.
And then..?
"this solution will definitely work in practice"
Thanks for your idea. I am aiming for very specific boundef problems with quality references. A Google app engine app is much too broad. Do you have more specific suggestions?
echoes in the echochamber
T-Mobile $45.00 per month "unlimited" +$5.00 more for HotSpot
He's not saying LISP and the Lambda Calculus are useless. He is saying you can't really use LISP if you're implementing the system software on top of which LISP runs.
Isn't reddit better for geek culture, in general? There's no tagging here, for example. Stories flow through too quickly if this site tries to be everything to everyone.
RatGenius
There are numerous studies into 'night owls' and such a people do exist, I was actually reading about this earlier due to the fact I've always been more active, alert and mentally capable when waking up at 11-13 as opposed to times earlier, and the energy lasted throughout the day.

I think the Wikipedia page on night-owls explains in greater detail the exacts of what is essentially a genetic predisposition, the sources hold up too.

Anecdotally, I've tried many diets, I thought I had insomnia at one point and the doctors did not disagree, taking pills does not make it easier- you feel more disconnected and my usual grumpy demenour is more apathetic.

As with most things YMMV
Author here. JadeNB you've hit the nail on the head! I have found that each language is better suited towards certain problems. This was a key motivation for making a set of problems specific yo Python. Sounds like you have some great ideas. Hit me up (contact is on the page), we should chat!
Book has four million words
Part of it is on Amazon
I very much agree. It's totally okay to be unprofessional by being yourself: if you truly feel strongly about a subject, then by all means showcase that opinion.

However, what made me a bit upset was the last line in the second-to-last paragraph: "... while still being ourselves." Is hating Nickelback really you/your team? So much that you exclude that particular music artist, and not anybody else?

Of course, the 'feature' is a silly easter egg, and no one needs to call each other names over it. Still, stuff like this makes your app seem incredibly childish (not just unprofessional). If it was a clever insertion of your team's opinions, then including something unprofessional is fine. A teenage-old joke however is not remotely clever or funny.

Disclaimer: I actually enjoy a few of Nickelback's songs.
This is a condescending blog post by someone with an (apparently) much weaker crypto background than the telegram people he is ranting about. Of course it's much easier to post something like that than it is to actually get a rock-solid implementation at the first attempt - and we can safely assume that the telegram people do not need such advice.

Would not read again.
> I spent a LOT of time figuring out what doesn't work well in the long run. He's been able to skip those and spend his time more productively on problems that i haven't encoutered or solved yet.

This is one thing teachers are really good for!

I'm sure some students would figure out not to sure GOTO after awhile, but, well, think of all those wasted years! Easier to just explain to them the problems upfront!

> I managed to get another developer with little Perl experience to nearly my level within 6 months by handing him two excellent books and reading his code and pointing out issues in his algorithms and semantics.

Part of this is natural ability as well. I have a friend who much to my dismay is not a software engineer, but who only dabbles.

I was able to explain lambdas and closures to him in a couple of minutes over IM, and he was almost immediately able to see their uses.

Meanwhile, I know experienced software engineers who cannot fathom the purpose of a Lambda, and a few friends I know who are just not intelligent enough (?) to comprehend on a deep level how lambdas and closures work.

Now all this said, the college professor who was supposed to teach us functional programming did such as piss poor job at it that I ended up not understanding basic FP concepts until I started using them in C# and reading about how they are implemented in the CLR. (Part of this is because Eric Lippert is a damn good writer...)

I think the text book we had at the time defined them solely in terms of mathematical constructs. Ugh.
There is also this interview from the National Science Foundation: http://www.livescience.com/40023-james-mickens-microsoft-s-l...

Incidentally, I look forward to the day when Lebron James is called the James Mickens of Basketball.
". We believe that any unbiased user would prefer the Rap Genius version over the alternatives "

I'm actually unbiased and prefer the alternative. When I'm looking for lyrics I just want lyrics and couldn't care less about the annotation. I'm not saying I'm the norm but saying the "norm" would always go for RapGenius is not fair, at least in my case.
Part of it is on Amazon
I think all knowledge workers should note what they did at the end of the day - it helps with accountability and gives a sense of achievement. For example a tool like idonethis.com helps you and everyone stay up-to-date and see quickly where problems are. Or ask everyone to just email you at the end of the day or a fixed period. Always read them and respond if needed.

You note that you feel you are slowing your team down - if it's because you are relied on to be building core tasks, try building mock-ups first so they can work. Another good tool is apiary.io if you work with APIs for example: it combines fleshing out your API with actually providing a functional framework so the front-end guys can get to work.

If it's documentation slowing you down, give everyone some days off or get them on another task and catch up. Use paper and pen or whiteboarding or a design tool like Flairbuilder if you need to really understand your ideas before trying to explain them to someone else.
Didn't think it possible but this sensationalist headline is topped by the image of a mushroom cloud at the top of the article.
That is a different point than the one Thomas was trying to make.
Immutability is not the whole story. There is also parametric polymorphism, algebraic data types and pattern matching (best case analysis tool ever), type classes for type constructors (not just types), etc.
It's not on Chosun Ibo and that is the most reliable source for actual defections and general DPRK instability warning.

http://english.chosun.com/
you mean if you end up cashing out and then unicorning afterward? i can't imagine running a startup being a unicorn job, unless you love doing all sorts of things that aren't remotely related to your side project.
Models (and a little bit of Analysis and Design)
> So, how does that matter in this discussion?

...how does it not?

Are you seriously attempting to make the case that automobile accidents and overabundance of food have made all of our other advancements a complete wash? That is delusional.
That's probably a reference to Steve Jobs declaring "thermonuclear war" on Android - the sensationalism is from Apple, not the article's writers/editors.
The font is not very easy to read on Chrome 31.0.1650.63 on Windows 7. Screenshot: http://i.imgur.com/3hBHzPn.png

edit: Adding -webkit-text-stroke: 0.5px; to the body CSS helps.
For me, solving the problems cemented the concepts. Some problems I couldn't solve, I'd ask another student for help, they'd explain the remainder of the concept that I was failing to grasp, and things would make sense. If they didn't go to prof next day for help.

Basically the professor would show off the technique in various usages, I'd take copious step by step notes, and then try to apply those same techniques to problems given. A really good problem set builds up difficulty and slowly expands upon the initial base techniques.

This is in strict contrast to how CS is taught. Although CS is still largely "throw in pool, hope students figure it out". IMHO I think I learned more in CS from discussions after class with the prof than from most classes, and I also think many other students would agree with me. :)
Stop calling them "Drones".
> Fact of the matter is compulsory schooling originated to instill obedience in the context of the Prussian militarist regime, later becoming adopted by industrial moguls in the USA during the late 19th century, due to the necessity of cheap and easily disposable labor.

If by industrial moguls you mean thousands of locally-elected school boards in rural, agrarian small towns. During the period that public schools caught on in the U.S., the society was still a thoroughly decentralized Jeffersonian republic. Democratic centralism had not yet won any level of government, let alone the present nationalized education swamp.

Autodidacticism only works for people who are highly intelligent, who have attention easily captured by books, and who have strong verbal skills. The other 99.5% of people need teachers. The Sudbury school produces graduates who have gaping holes in their knowledge, on whatever topics did not aggressively capture their attention.
I'm definitely splitting hairs here, but I think there's a distinction to be made between a non-practicing entity (patent troll) and a consortium of companies that pooled together to purchase patents. Rockstar may not make devices itself, but it consists of, and represents, companies that do.

Just saying.
> Which doesn't matter much, because I can also do the exact same comparison to the same group in today's suburbia America.

Compare the lives of minorities and women in America 60 years ago to their lives now. Quality of life for the majority of Americans has undeniably improved. You have massive tunnel vision if you cannot recognize this.

Remember that white American men are a plurality, not a majority.
I also don't break the fast until 1/2pm after I get up at 830/9am and I operate just fine.

com2kid just needs better sleep. Change pillows, change beds. Also, for your sake, take your laptop to bed with you and use something like f.lux to change the hue of the screen, anything but sitting at your desk (although getting that LCD out of your face would be optimal). You could probably use an extra hour of sleep.
I'm basically talking about a generalization of the phrase "guilty pleasure." It's not about being right or wrong in any objective, moral sense; it's just about the experience of "rightness" or "wrongness."
Merry Christmas Carpe diem Things You Can Do Today That Will Make You Happier
That quote made a big impressions to me also. It was from a Q&A session at UW from late 2011. Here is a video: http://www.geekwire.com/2011/its-hamburger-insights-bill-gat...
I am drawn to this type of life, especially when my goal is learning a new skillset.

Only problem is, you end up feeling like just another 'productive asset', squeezing every inch of time to maximize output.

It sounds the author's routine is so closed, almost never leaving time for an open mind or time to reflect.
Might have something to do with this?

http://www.complex.com/tech/2013/01/facebook-messager-app-up...

I honestly don't know. There's been some chatter about Facebook Messenger listening in on your phone calls, and/or requesting access to your phone's microphone, but that information is from very dubious sources.
My guess is the Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delayed_sleep_phase_disorder )
Show HN: Add snowflakes to your iOS app (MIT licensed)
Why I'm Interested In Haskell - iRi
Just like the "there is no limit on vacation" scam that they pull over their employees...

Why do you call it a scam? It certainly can be, but it doesn't have to be. We used to have a fixed-PTO policy (3 weeks per year) at my company, and moved to an unlimited policy sometime in 2012. In the 2013 calendar year I've taken about 4 weeks off. I'm actually not sure of the exact number of days I've taken off, as we don't really track it so closely. I'm perfectly happy with this arrangement.

Do you have any evidence that it's a "scam" at a large number or majority of companies?
How would support for multiple currencies make it harder to avoid floating point arithmetic? That makes no sense..
All the more to my point then.
I am saddened none of the media used the headline, "Turing Complete!"
Cubli
Facebook has a page they maintain that describes why they request the permissions they do.

https://www.facebook.com/help/210676372433246
I don't think that would help in this case since this isn't a patent "troll" but a conglomeration of companies.
A few weeks back I was inspired by "The Night Watch" to write a short systems programming take on Col. Jessup's famous monologue: http://abissell.com/2013/11/22/a-few-good-systems-programmer...
Da fuck are you talking about? Who's going to walk away when Sataya is made CEO?
Perhaps, but I find the end result to be just as vile: a conglomeration of companies banding together to bully a weaker[1] rival. That sounds like anti-competitive behavior to me.

[1] Weaker in relation to the combined power of the conglomeration, anyway.
I'm confused, are you implying it's not okay for these criminals to be brought to justice, in accordance with various international laws, when their parent state acts belligerent and refuses to cooperate? These people hurt others for a living. They deserve punishment.
Absolutely! I love reading Raymond's blog because he will dig way down into kernel issues and other nuggets.

That said, some classic stories of his:

"In order to demonstrate our superior intellect, we will now ask you a question you cannot answer."

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/oldnewthing/archive/2004/04/26/12019...

and

"Don't let Marketing mess with your slides":

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/oldnewthing/archive/2003/10/17/55345...
The Department of Defense's Unmanned Systems Roadmap 2013-2038
GNUsenet seems like a more appropriate name.
Haha, yes of course, i know. The tile was a bit ironic. But still it's a great start i think.
Except Nortel did use many of those patents. They decided to sell it to Rockstar, full of owners who are likely licensing the patents to themselves for use in their products. Yes, technically Rockster is an individual company that doesn't make/sell any products but it's not a troll just because of that. It's a troll if the owners didn't use it in their products.

By this logic, any standard bodies would be trolls as well if they decide to sue any companies that infringe without paying the fees.
Email doesn't need replacing. For insecure iterated text communication, it's just fine. Oh we might quibble about the restrictions it places on us as programmers, but it works from an end user perspective pretty much 'okay.'

However, a lot of communication is not insecure iterated text communication.
Email's not so much broken as it is incomplete and largely inextensible.

From that perspective, even something as simple as having a chat with someone through email seems very odd. I mean why are our replies to each other different messages? Why aren't they just inserted seamlessly into one thread in the same way that IRC works?

Setting up a meeting? Oh I know that there are email setups that can do that in corp-space, and theoretically a civ-space client could use them too. But that's not the way things tend to go. In many ways the use of social media to setup meetings is the direct result of emails lack of extensibility in this regard.

Keeping group photo albums? Should be easily doable without the need for a central server like facebook.

Secure chat? Oh, where will we get a trusted certificate authority from? Well, if you don't want to meet the person you've got that problem whatever you'd doing. If you can see the other person, however, you just generate a short random string on your computer, encode it with their public key and see whether they can decode it at their end. No point exchanging the whole key, just check the thing works.

Varying access levels by trust?

Keeping a persistent contacts list across multiple devices?

Presence-aware communication? (Actually knowing someone's at the other end and available right then.)

So people, to varying extents, use other tools for these things. The major cheerleader for email's borked at the moment seems to be the security aspect, with implications for trusted senders.

I mean heck, that's something that would kill most spam right away there - if you had senders that were verifiable as the same person every time, you could implement something like: 'X wants to send to add you to their contact book, do you know them?' Public-facing email addresses would still get spam but we could just blacklist everyone you said you didn't know for your private address and not bother decoding the messages at all - straight to the bin with them.
I generally have oats and raisins for breakfast, (my boyfriend makes a cooked breakfast sometimes but that's far from a regular thing,) never noted a blood sugar crash.
Apps have different reasons for accessing SMS messages: confirming phone numbers via SMS, SMS bridging like previous versions of Messenger or Hangouts, etc.

The link eco posted is the right place for everything else.
Interesting times. There is no doubt that the legal punches thrown at Android have been anti-competitive and kills innovation instead of what there were meant to protect. For example reportedly Microsoft earns more from Android than selling Windows phone: http://www.zdnet.com/microsoft-is-making-2bn-a-year-on-andro.... If the patents were that useful for innovation, Microsoft would have been ahead of Google by miles.
Dreams Reflected in Bitcoin
I don't believe that there is such a thing as "offensively lazy". The sets "lazy jokes" and "lazy jokes that have the power to cause offense" are not equivalent.

Have you ever seen somebody appear offended by "Why did the chicken cross the road?" "So how about that airline food?" "'Knock knock.', 'Who's there?', 'Banana.'" "Can I has cheeseburger?"

Those are all lazy jokes. As lazy is as is possible. Yet their laziness lacks the power to offend. No sane person is going to become offended by somebody dredging up some lame 10 year old joke about cats that like to eat cheeseburgers. Wherever you find an example of a "joke that is so lazy, it is offensively lazy", there is without fail a more plausible explanation for the offense the joke elicits.

For example, "Australians are upside-down". Lazy, and makes many people upset. Are they upset because it is lazy? No, they are upset because it is picking on other people (themselves or others).
Simple: http://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Netflix-Reviews-E11891.htm

You can filter for just engineers, if that's who you want to pay attention to. Netflix rates very low compared to Facebook, Google, etc. Those companies demand hard work from their employees, but are great places to work. They do a good job with hiring.

Netflix does not, they just grind through people very rapidly .. like they're cheap batteries. Thus the poor glassdoor reviews.

Fact is, Netflix culture is terrible for employees but effective for the Company.

I advise anyone before they apply for a job anywhere to study glassdoor carefully. Ignore ratings, read comments carefully. Reviews which balance positive with negatives are the ones to take as credible.
No, it is a counter point. Demonstrating that all you can glean from someone's personal experience is their personal experience, not some universal truth about the languages.
They 'pooled together' to buy third party patents with which to try and attack a competitor's product as they can't compete against it on the virtue of their own products in the open market place.

Technically you may be correct but I really think the 'troll' moniker is apt in this case.
>The last time I looked chaining collection operations still required unnecessary boilerplate and was not even the default way to use collections. Did they fix that?

I can't even imagine what you are talking about, so I can't say if they "fixed it" or not.

>Additionally, it seems that moving from lists to a different collection type still involves rewriting your whole code due to the insane idea of using different functions by default

"I did something dumb and now I don't like it". So, don't do it? Why were you using map in the first place?

>I just don't have to deal with any of these design mistakes in Scala

I don't have to deal with them in haskell either. But I do have to deal with the hundreds of other mistakes scala made if I use it.
Startup exits don't build economy
Yep I had a very similar experience
@baddox

The "c...j...k" word causes comments on HN to auto-[dead].
Except that Microsoft innovated, got there first and clearly has something valuable if other companies are using it's IP (self evident since companies are paying them licensing fees).
I'd suggest not moving the legend box (2nd chart) but simply updating it with mouse movements. This will reduce distraction & also provide necessary information. The points on the graph are valuable to see values at a particular space in the graph.
Seriously, a horribly biased "article". I don't prefer this style of journalism.
these essays are amazing ... also great for learning about CS systems in general. if you can get all the jokes, then you're well on your way to an applied CS degree!
It really depends on the application. If you're talking about flight, and autonomous-flight at that, keep in mind that airspace is highly regulated. (In the US) The FAA requires RC pilots to be licensed (inexpensive and no test, but still necessary) and RC flight must always be in line-of-sight -- usually in very specific, designated areas. It's quite easy enough to build an autonomous bird, with programmable way-points and such, which breaks all sorts of laws. Start with the AMA: http://www.modelaircraft.org/

There's a lot of specific distinctions between piloted-flight versus autonomous ('drone') as well as size restrictions and such. First-person view (FPV) requires a second pilot using grounded line-of-sight, as well (http://www.modelaircraft.org/files/550.pdf).

I'm by no means trying to discourage you, just know if something might be a federal offense!
A serious question, what was the patent system created for?

> ... gives Congress the power "[t]o promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries;" (Article I, Section 8, Clause 8).

From what I read based on what some legal experts simplified but again, "it's the Internet" but basically, they considered patents as legal rights to monopolize on such innovations.

So, based on that, exactly how is it anti-competitive to disallow other companies to use the said patents unless they agree to pay for the rights?
For basal-bolus therapy, you do want to have a long-acting, "peakless" dose which is then augmented by "spikes" of insulin when needed. So this pill is more likely to replace the long-acting insulins like Lantus/Levemir.

I think any forward progress in oral insulin is worth a close look.