InevitableList
@InevitableList@beehaw.org
- Submitted 1 day ago to technology@beehaw.org | 0 comments
- Comment on Ideas coming down the track 2 days ago:
Trains are designed to operate for 30 or more years so the turnover is slower than cars, which have an average age of 12 in USA.
- Comment on Ideas coming down the track 2 days ago:
12 foot ladder- archive.ph/iZqnd
- Submitted 2 days ago to technology@beehaw.org | 9 comments
- Comment on China has built the world’s largest bullet-train network 3 days ago:
12 foot ladder- archive.ph/XRppG
- Comment on China has built the world’s largest bullet-train network 3 days ago:
A somewhat shallow look at China’s HSR network that nevertheless provides some insights into how new lines are transforming some regions.
I don’t understand why western media is so reluctant to acknowledge the broader social, economic and political benefits these lines are intended to provide. Failing to consider such questions means they will never understand China.
- Submitted 3 days ago to technology@beehaw.org | 15 comments
- Comment on The train that never came; how maglev technology was derailed 3 days ago:
I read an article about China’s HSR that stated that a line with a top speed of 350km/h was 90% more expensive to build than a line built for 250km/h. The trains don’t spend much time at top speed during short journeys either. economist.com/…/china-has-built-the-worlds-larges…
A cubic meter of air weighs 1kg according to a Big, Bigger, Biggest episode about France’s TGV. Japan’s new Maglev is significantly smaller than the Shinkansen and the tunnels it runs through are 20% bigger since standard HSR already has problems with tunnel boom that can be mitigated at the tunnel entrance and exit. I also wonder how trains traveling in opposite directions will handle passing each other at 1000km/h given China is already working on next gen trains with that speed as a goal.
- Comment on The train that never came; how maglev technology was derailed 4 days ago:
Doubling the speed turns a 4 hour journey into a 2 hour journey saving you 2 hours. Double speed again and it drops to 1 hour so you only save 1 hour, double again and you save 30 minutes. So the time saving is cut in half each time.
- Comment on The train that never came; how maglev technology was derailed 4 days ago:
Concorde only flew 2 routes; NYC to London and NYC to Paris so in exchange for training pilots and engineers and securing supply chains for the aircraft you got a tiny return on investment. BA also kept a spare aircraft permanently parked in New York that could step in if there were any problems with the primary craft, another significant expense.
Installing lie flat beds and suites in standard jumbo jets provided similar profits with way fewer headaches.
- Comment on The train that never came; how maglev technology was derailed 4 days ago:
I feel that even if someone succeeds with Maglev it will at best be the Concorde of the railways due to the higher costs and inconvenience of using a niche technology with a limited supply chain and limited number of engineers available to build and maintain lines. Proprietary tech also limits your ability to shop around or negotiate better prices. Remember that Concode was profitable but was retired because it was uneconomical.
I also wanted to draw attention to the diminishing returns higher speeds deliver: 100km/h train = 4 hour journey 200km/h train = 2 hours 300km/h train = 1 hour 20 mins 400km/h train = 1 hour 500km/h train = 48 mins 600km/h train = 40 mins
This ignores acceleration and breaking times and the faster your train the sooner it has to start decelerating in order to avoid overshooting it’s destination. One overlooked time saving that HSR delivers is that the need to build straight tracks and skip stops to maintain speed means a more direct route to your destination delivered at the expense of the places in between. High speed service is actually a downgrade for many communities as the trains no longer serve local stations.
- Submitted 4 days ago to technology@beehaw.org | 22 comments
- Comment on The inarguable case for banning social media for teens 3 months ago:
I was expecting a much stronger argument based on the headline.
Personally I’d prefer regulation on how social media is structured and how algorithms operate. First thing I’d do is ban infinite scroll, which corporations like because it increases ‘engagement’ whilst harming the quality of the experience for their users.
- Comment on The inarguable case for banning social media for teens 3 months ago:
They only want to ban social media and even then only the big ones with an exception for youtube.
- Comment on OpenAI's viral Studio Ghibli moment highlights AI copyright concerns 4 months ago:
These AI models require huge amounts of electricity. If governments wanted to they could destroy their ability to operate, like when China banned bitcoin mining.
- Comment on Why can't we go back to small phones? 5 months ago:
The crash at Charles de Galle contributed along with 9/11, the sonic boom limiting flights and the inability to fly across the Pacific. Also the plane is super narrow making seating uncomfortable.
- Comment on Why can't we go back to small phones? 5 months ago:
My favourite example is Concorde, which remained profitable throughout its service life but was cancelled because bigger profits can be made with slower planes.
Patents expire after 10 years so technology being locked away isn’t the biggest concern. The bigger problem is the dismantling of supply chains and loss of skills and experience when the workforce moves on.
- Comment on On May 5, Microsoft’s Skype will shut down for good 5 months ago:
Some of us live overseas and need to make official calls to government agencies and companies from time to time.
- Comment on TikTok Ban Fueled by Israel, Not China 5 months ago:
I like how the article presents this as some super secret conspiracy when Mitt Romney and others made public statements openly admitting to this.
- Comment on ‘Mass theft’: Thousands of artists call for AI art auction to be cancelled 5 months ago:
There are cases progressing through the courts. If the courts rule that copyright has been violated by the AIs under current laws then we won’t need to create a new offense or expand IP laws currently on the books.
wtf are people actually buying
A unique work of art I guess since it’s unlikely anyone would be able to replicate the prompt in order to get the same results.
- Comment on ‘Mass theft’: Thousands of artists call for AI art auction to be cancelled 5 months ago:
When someone makes use of a service and doesn’t pay afterwards that is considered to be theft even if the provider hasn’t been deprived on anything. For example, if I snuk into an art gallery without paying I won’t remove anything tangible since the gallery’s overheads and running costs were fixed long before I arrived.
A better word would be copyright infringement if the AI is making use of other works without a license or other permission. Based on my reading of the article it appears those involved only fed the AI works in the public sector or works that they had created themselves. The letter of complaint appears to be signed by artists who are unaware of these circumstances.
- Comment on Marvel game, developed with the Chinese firm NetEase, ‘bans’ the words ‘free Taiwan’ and ‘Winnie-the-Pooh’ 6 months ago:
They ban reporting on the stock market if it closes 64 or 89 points lower than it opened. france24.com/…/20190604-8964-china-stocks-referen…
- Comment on With a TikTok Ban Looming, Users Flee to Chinese App ‘Red Note’ 6 months ago:
The BBC spoke to someone who acquired a large following shortly after signing up.
Some social media users tell the BBC that they find themselves scrolling on RedNote more than TikTok.
“Even if TikTok does stay I will continue to use my platform I’ve created on RedNote,” Tennessee tech worker Sydney Crawley told the BBC.
Ms Crawley said she got over 6,000 followers within 24 hours of creating her RedNote account.
- Comment on Albania declares one-year TikTok ban over stabbing 7 months ago:
The thread is about tiktok being banned in Albania. I thought you might be familiar with Australia’s threats to ban tiktok whilst ignoring the crimes other tech companies commit and making no effort to protect Australians from them.
Did you miss the comment I made about Instagram? That was specifically about the content of the site having a negative impact on users.
- Comment on Albania declares one-year TikTok ban over stabbing 7 months ago:
I commented on your post so yeah I think I managed to click on it. Did you bother to read mine and think of a coherent response before typing? Nah just ignore my efforts to put this in a wider context and dismiss me as a tankie. I’ll just dismiss you as racist since you only complain when it’s a Chinese company doing it.
I’m all in favour of robust privacy protections like GDPR. I don’t support yellow peril bullshit when a Chinese company successfully operates in the same space that US companies do.
- Comment on Self-experimentation: How TikTok radicalizes Austrian teenagers 7 months ago:
Is it a bad thing when political leaders have a presence on social media? Would you prefer it if the leaders of the 2 biggest economies in the world were actively censored and suppressed by these platforms?
Seems like a weird complaint to make.
- Comment on Albania declares one-year TikTok ban over stabbing 7 months ago:
Everything TikTok is accused of is either just a true for other social media/ website or more so. Thanks to Edward Snowden we know for a fact that US tech companies forward your emails and data to the NSA. There is no evidence of Tiktok sharing any data with any government. Yet it’s tiktok that get’s threatened with bans rather than facebook and gmail.
Instagram is notorious for making girls feel bad about their appearance and pushing them to anorexia and self harm yet no one’s proposing to ban it.
- Comment on Albania declares one-year TikTok ban over stabbing 7 months ago:
Because the tail doesn’t wag the dog.
You may as well ask why Toyota sells right hand drive cars in Japan and why it sells left hand drive cars in USA?
Why do you think that is?
- Comment on Albania declares one-year TikTok ban over stabbing 7 months ago:
The truth, duh
- Comment on Albania declares one-year TikTok ban over stabbing 7 months ago:
Not at all. When google operated a search engine in China it looked nothing like the Google you can access in other countries.
Why would google or tiktok handicap themselves and operate a less profitable, less competitive version of their service when that isn’t required by local regulations?