Percentage of New Years resolutions I have kept:
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Don't make them (Score:5, Informative)
I never make new years resolutions. I don't see the point of them. They're only useful for ridiculing those who fail to keep them.
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I don't make them either.
But hey, a lot of people make the new years resolution never to smoke another cigarette. I had a puff of one in high school, coughed my lungs up, and haven't touched it since.
So, if Its possible to "Keep other people's resolutions" - as the poll states, so long as ONE person, SOMEWHERE across the world makes the resolution to stop smoking, I'm well over 100%.
In short - 100%+ is the most fail poll option ever. I'm sure I've also reached the target weight for some people. Almost all t
Re:Don't make them (Score:5, Funny)
Quitting smoking is so easy. I have done it so many times!
I quit drinking (Score:2)
When I woke up on January 1st I swore I would never touch a drop of alcohol again.
Only problem is, it was a Saturday, so before the sun went down I had a beer in my hand.
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Most people keep it in the can/bottle or use a glass. Beer in the hand is just gross... use a container!
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My new years resolution was to quit my slashdot addiction.
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I think they're talking moreso about you keeping resolutions for other people - not just you keeping it yourself.
IE, your friend makes a resolution to quite smoking, so you keep it to them and remind them if they go to light-up. Your sister makes a resolution to lose weight so you won't go anywhere with her that serves unhealthy food, or reminder her of it if you see her buying pastries.
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Homer: Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is, never try.
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I don't make resolutions because when it's time to do something, it's time to do something. When I'm damned good and ready.
Why hold out for a special date or try to do it all at once?
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ditto. if i want to change any of my habits or start doing something new, i do it. i don't wait for the new year to start.
Msg 8134 (Score:2)
Msg 8134, Level 16, State 1, Line 1
Divide by zero error encountered.
Great job screwing up the poll, dude!
mtbkdtbg (Score:1)
0/0 (Score:2)
Calculus say I could have any answer... I don't make resolutions at new year. What a lame time for making resolutions, there are just too many parties, and too little work to make one think about problems.
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Solution (Score:1)
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Calculus say I could have any answer...
It depends. If both numerator and denominator are differentiable functions [wikipedia.org] then the result is equal to the division of the derivatives.
For instance the function sinc(x) = sin(x)/x has the value 1 for x = 0
undefined (Score:5, Insightful)
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undefined 0/0 division.
I took that to mean 100%. Because if you don't make them then you can't not keep them.
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This is more pure logic than numerical math, but to say that "all A are B" is logically equivalent to saying "no A are non-B", and so is true if there are no A at all. So if there are no new years resolutions made, then all new years resolutions made are kept.
Now that I think about it though, that would seem to suggest, using reals between 0 and 1 to represent fractions of something, that 0/0 should equal 1, as one might think by it being itself divided by itself.
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Division is the inverse of multiplication -- in truth, it represents "how would you solve this incomplete multiplication statement?". Examples:
6/2 means the solution to 2x=6, which is solved by x=3.
35/5 means the solution to 5x=35, which is solved by x=7.
0/0 means the solution to 0x=0, which is solved by any real number. Which is to say there is no single solution, i.e., that it is "undefined".
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Exactly. Where is NaN, you insensitive clods?
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I made a New Year's Resolution not to make any New Year's Resolutions. That way I can answer the poll.
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I used L'Hopital's rule in a wishy-washy, and most certainly wrong way to come up with 100%
Mathematically, the value of 0/0 depends entirely on which series you take the limit of when doing the calculation. That there is no clarity is precisely because (0,0) is not part of the domain of the division operation, so by ignoring that you can get anything you want. (OK, it's meaningful if you use infinitesimals instead of a real zero, but that's non-standard IIRC.)
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Maybe I've had to code a few too many if statements to check if some value got rounded to zero before doing some geometry calculations, but I'd say it's actually the common case when you're describing the universe.
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Maybe I've had to code a few too many if statements to check if some value got rounded to zero before doing some geometry calculations, but I'd say it's actually the common case when you're describing the universe.
I'd say it's common in the models that approximately describe the universe, not an accurate description of the universe. E.g. Newtonian gravity is G*m_1*m_2/r^2, but r is never zero in real life.
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r can be 0 in real life, but since mass never has infinite density the amount of mass at distance 0 from any other mass is not going to be very large.
Or you can look at it this way: it still works when you talk about CG rather than osculating solids.
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since x/0 is infinity (undefined) for all x, shouldn't 0/0 also be infinity (undefined)? Since 0/x=0 for all x shouldn't 0/0=0? If you start using calculus you can make a case that 0/0 "should be" anything you want simply by looking at the right progression of numbers.
Furethermore, 0*0=0 so dividing through by 0 we have that 0/0=0, but if 0/0=x/x (common knowledge) then x/x=0 too. And if you actually found a consistent way to use division by 0 in arithmetics, I doubt it would be very useful in reality.
Actually... (Score:1)
"I don't make resolutions, you insensitive clod" (Score:5, Interesting)
I do precisely what I do, no more, no less. I always found it absurd that people might choose a specific time of year to alter themselves in some way. If you want to quit smoking, why wait until New Years? Just do it. If you want to stop being fat, why wait? It's just an excuse for people to put off doing something useful, and then an excuse for them to forget about it.
If you want to make a change in your life, just DO it. It's worth so much more than trying to make a production out of it, and then failing.
Re:"I don't make resolutions, you insensitive clod (Score:1)
Yeah, reality is beneath you. You never have to choose between conflicting goals. Short term distractions never interfere with your long term desires. Your awareness of the passing time is not influenced by mundane events like seasons or the counting of the Earth's revolutions around the sun. You are the embodiment of "carpe diem", even though that doesn't mean anything to you, because that's just a plan, and you don't plan, you just do it. That, or you've just given up planning because you suck at it and h
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I agree. Why wait until Christmas to give each other presents? Why not do it throughout the year? Why wait until Valentine's Day to give each other chocolates and flowers? Why wait until Veterans' Day to honor veterans? These are all things we should always be doing. These days shouldn't be reminders or requirements for each other.
I wonder about the people who work tirelessly just to make their child's holiday 'perfect'. We should know better than that and should teach our children likewise.
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>>I always found it absurd that people might choose a specific time of year to alter themselves in some way. If you want to quit smoking, why wait until New Years?
Personally, I got food poisoning from eating McDonald's near New Years, so my 2010 Resolution became giving up McDonald's for the year. Successful, too. Wouldn't even drink a soda my wife would hand me from there.
Peeing out your butt will do that for you.
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If you know you want to lose weight, waiting is stupid. But to have a checkpoint to look back and say "here's what I've done wrong and should change" is a good thing. You could do it
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I've heard that before... but where [wikipedia.org]?
A parody T-shirt I like says "Just did it".
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I agree completely! Why do they ALWAYS leave out such an obvious option? We should have a write in option!
1985? (Score:1)
I wasn't alive in 1985*, you insensitive clod!
One year I got a t-shirt that had a ticked check box with 'New Years Resolution: Buy New T-Shirt' on it. Since getting that I have made it a resolution to buy a new t-shirt each new year.
Most New Years resolutions seem to be either "Do X for the whole year" or "Don't do Y the whole year", and rarely single use resolutions like "Get around to doing Z".
* I was yet to be born, if I come across a Flux Capacitator I may yet be alive in that year in the future. Erm
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I started when I was a Uni student so they've generally been t-shirts with a somewhat humorous slogan or picture on it (like the 'New Years Resolution: Buy New T-Shirt' one). I've only been doing it for about 4 or 5 years so it's not too drastic (yet).
Although now I think about if I do carry it on for a bit it would become more of a tradition as opposed to a resolution.
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I wasn't alive in 1985*, you insensitive clod!
Get off my lawn!
No 1984 (Score:2)
Resolved to not make New Years resolutions. (Score:2)
About a decade ago I literally resolved to not make New Years resolutions.* As with most resolutions as I'm sure you can guess there was like literally no time between making and breaking it. Except for that one lapse I've literally kept it ever since, though towards the end of every December I feel the temptation to break it again start building.
* Yes I really did this, I think it was 2001 as I really wanted to make a big resolution for the new millennium**, so save a day it was literally a decade.
** Maybe
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Heh. Though interfering with anyone that makes New Year's resolutions seems a little harsh.
Time is an illusion (Score:2)
The minority report.... (Score:5, Insightful)
And even if no one else appreciates that, at least my waistline appreciates that. Meaning that I might even live long enough to keep workingon the stuff in my resolution / bucket list.
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Well said. Of course it's an arbitrary line in the sand. So is any other day, for that matter, so it's as good an occasion as any.
I've only tried the resolution thing for the past 5 or so years, and every year, it's worked out great. Quite honestly, I was pleasantly surprised and have become ever more resolute in my resolutions.
Re:The minority report.... (Score:4, Interesting)
Something I discovered by accident this year is that it's easier if you start on the resolution one month early. That way, if you fail in the first few weeks you can try again shortly after, and if you're still going then it's good encouragement.
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I still have about a third of the bad habit's I've made resolutions about
Work on that one next year, would you?
Interesting NYR (Score:2)
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Well-written biographies are certainly a pleasure to read and can be very informative (as you're learning about the person, you're also learning about the world of which they were a part) but I don't understand singling them out as a type of book that one should read more of. Did he have a reason for choosing biographies, or was it arbitrary?
New year's resolution... (Score:5, Funny)
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768 vertical pixels? that's like the resolution I was using in 1997!
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My guess is either a netbook or a good tablet.
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768 vertical pixels? that's like the resolution I was using in 1997!
It's a very common resolution on decent notebooks (around 12 inches or so) today, you insensitive clod.
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Here I use 1920 x 1200
The thing with these modern digital LCD monitors is that the picture sux if you don't use the native resolution. (or a integer fraction thereof)
I resolve: no more /. polls (Score:3)
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Still some years to fulfill that resolution (Score:4, Funny)
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You're just waiting for flying cars, hoverboards, etc. Aren't you? :)
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I just want my Mr. Fusion...
I am stuck in 1985. (Score:1)
A girl i used to work with used to call me "Ducky." Now who wants to go dancing to some post-punk, synthpop, and dress new romantic? It was my idea for some friends and me to dress '80s for dancing the last Sunday of Dragon*Con this past year.
Why would I make a resolution... (Score:1)
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Ther's no such thing as "more perfect [wikipedia.org], unless of course you mean he's 6 and you're 28. [wikipedia.org]
News from the gym (Score:5, Interesting)
Newsflash: People who go to the gym regularly hate January. Starting January 1st, there's a new flood of people showing up at the gym. Leaving aside the mobs who don't know what they're doing, especially with the free weights, there's simply *so* many of them that your gym routine becomes a chore because you have to wait for access to each new machine/station, and time limits are put onto the cardiovascular machines.
By February, 95% of these people have gone, and life can return to normal.
So, please. If you want to improve yourself and start going to the gym -- and bully for you for wanting to do that -- do *not* do it in January. Wait until February, avoid the lemming rush.
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Newsflash: People who go to the gym regularly hate January. Starting January 1st, there's a new flood of people showing up at the gym. Leaving aside the mobs who don't know what they're doing, especially with the free weights, there's simply *so* many of them that your gym routine becomes a chore because you have to wait for access to each new machine/station, and time limits are put onto the cardiovascular machines.
By February, 95% of these people have gone, and life can return to normal.
So, please. If you want to improve yourself and start going to the gym -- and bully for you for wanting to do that -- do *not* do it in January. Wait until February, avoid the lemming rush.
I doubt you have to worry about all the people from /. invading the gym. Then again, maybe they're the 95%.
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Ours has a "sign up for the new year!!" marketing campaign. So they actually encourage it.
I just roll in when I find the motivation, so like once every few months...
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6 am is when most working folk show up. You have to get there at 4:45 to see us freaks.
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And i am not talking about walking up and being like hey dumb ass but politely introducing myself when they are between sets, explaining that the current way they are doing the exercise will not not give the results they want and will increase the odds of an injury, etc.
The best gyms have trainers on the floor that will do
1920x1080 (Score:3)
My New Year's Resolution.
(Last year it was 1280x800, and 1680x1050 a few years before that)
Since next year is the year of the Pandora for me, I guess my next New Years Resolution will be 800x480.
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Sticking with the same one I had for last five years, 1920x1200 :)
Although I am spending more time on my laptop lately, so maybe that will bring the average down a little, since its only a 12.1" screen.
My New Year's Resolution Paradox. (Score:1)
My resolution is: "Successfully help prevent *someone* from accomplishing their New Year's Resolution."
I refuse to help prevent *anyone else* from accomplishing their New Year's resolution.
Hence I am helping prevent someone (myself) from accomplishing their own New Year's resolution.
But if I successfully help prevent myself from accomplishing my New Year's resolution, then I have accomplished my New Year's resolution (I am someone).
But if I have accomplished my New Year's resolution, then I wasn't actually
When I make one (Score:1)
100% (Score:2)
100% of zero (Score:1)
1920x1080 (Score:1)
My new year's resolution: 1920x1080
How hard can it be to achieve 100% (Score:1)
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You fool! Your going to divide by zero and destro(*_-saksd8f-a...NO CARRIER...
in the sense of wind something up or end (Score:1)
Resolution: to bring to an end
to wind up
to close the books
to quit expecting
the work you did in 2010 is done
Resolution Judo (Score:2)
Last year, I tried to make chronic new-year-resolution failures work to my advantage.
I resolved to gain 100 pounds, start smoking, and have a heart attack.
I failed, of course, none of those happened.
Somehow, this kind of back-handed success still isn't especially satisfying.
Don't put off until tomorrow... (Score:2)
Well, four years ago New Years day I made a choice (Score:2)
and I stuck to it.
I don't believe in New Years resolutions, but New Years day made it easy to keep track of how long it had been since I made that choice.
I stuck to it.
Does that make it 100% because I only did it once, or 0% since I really don't make New Years resolutions?
way back in '91... (Score:2)
I always make the same resolution as last year (Score:2)
Which is to make the same resolution next year.
I figure I'll only blow it once, and by then I'll already be dead so I won't care.
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I resolve in 2011 to mod down these tiresome soviet russia posts every chance I get.
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Why would you do that, the joke just got a new twist.
Like - "In Soviet Russia the government controls the commerce!" and many more that are so funny, like a meta joke.
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One:
To never make New Year's Resolutions.
I'm batting a thousand.
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to make a first post in 2011
So close and yet so far... Better luck in 2012!
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Hope this isn't premature:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLnWf1sQkjY [youtube.com]
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I really didn't find those guys to be half as funny as any Flight of the Conchords video.
Flight of the Conchords = Overrated twenty-something pseudo-cool crap. They're just not that funny. I'm all for good lowbrow humour but their jokes are just crap