People used to say the same thing about the "luminiferous aether," you know.

Personally, I think "dark matter" and "dark energy" don't really exist. Instead, I think there's something wrong with our understanding of the fundamental forces of the universe. Perhaps gravity doesn't behave with the inverse-square law across vast distances like we think. Perhaps there's a subtle force out there we've yet to discover that only acts over extreme distances. After all, quantum mechanics is only observable at extremely small scales, and a century ago nobody even suspected it existed. What's to say there's not something else that acts in an observable fashion only at galactic scales?

I understand why a company would worry about this. They want to save their business and don't want to be wrapped up in something bad. But here is the thing, it seems to me that in this country where we ask the question "Is this legal?" way too often. This is just one case of it. We have natural rights in this country. The Bill of Rights limits what the government can do that could threaten those rights. Buying a machine to make weapons to defend yourself is a natural right. Note, that making a gun for yourself is different than buying one of the machines to make guns to sell to others. That *is* covered by law. Building guns for others makes you a gun manufacturer. The default position should be for a company to say there is no law that limits an individual exercising their right and until there is, we will ship it.

You're right that Dell laptops are relatively easy to modify and upgrade - for a laptop. But still you can't expect to transplant a motherboard into any but the most closely related model. I upgraded my old M90 to an M6300 by replacing the motherboard, CPU and memory. For the M6400, I believe that the motherboard and case from the M6500 should be compatible (provided you change the CPU and CPU heatsink) but I cannot be entirely sure. The newer 17 inch Dell models have 1920x1080 screens instead of 1920x1200. You couldn't jam the older screen into them because it is physically a different size, even if the connector turns out to be the same.

Update.... Chef 12.0.3 up and running on RHEL7!

To clarify... All the boxes in the project are RHEL7 with the exception of the Chef 12 server. The Chef 12 Server currently runs RHEL6. Chef Server 12.0.3 supports RHEL7, but I have yet to test it. All RHEL7 boxes run chef-client 12 without issues.

I've been working a new new project where we are using Chef 12 and RHEL7. So far no issues. I *like* the systemd service files. We whipped up custom files in no time. SUPER simple. The /var/log/messages file is still there. No difference. My only beef is that Chef 12 server only runs on RHEL6 right now. Chef says that RHEL7 support is coming and it works in the 12.0.3 release. I haven't tried it yet.

Am I the only person that does not have trouble with systemd? I've been using RH since 3.0.3 days. Before that I was running Slackware. Maybe I am a rare sysadmin that doesn't mind some change.

This is pure drivel and has been debunked on numerous occasions. Armstrong was the first out because there was not enough room in the LM cabin for Aldrin to get out first when both were wearing suits. Further, the mission was practiced for months on Earth and every action was scripted and planned down to the minute. To suggest that Mission Control would alter this plan while the astronauts were on the way to the moon -- thus invalidating months of training and safety protocols -- is ludicrous. Armstrong got out first because he had to, and everybody -- including Aldrin -- knew this before they were even strapped into the CM.

As an American, I can say I'm glad the government *doesn't* stop this kind of activity. A functioning society requires its citizens to be at least marginally responsible for their own conduct. If they're stupid enough to be taken in by this crap, they deserve what they get. We neither need nor want a "nanny state" looking over our shoulder all the time, telling us what we can and cannot buy.

Only the copper lines that go to the punchdown block down the street. They sever the connection going all the way back to the CO.

The Techies Who Are Hacking Education by Homeschooling Their Kids

That *used* to be true. If you search around, you will find the number one reason for recent newcomers to homeschooling is "Common Core". There is a lot of dissatisfaction in public schools. Many cannot afford private school. Homeschooling is the only other option for a lot of people. So, yeah, maybe religious people build the road to homeschooling, but these days the appeal is much broader.

So long as it's run by a single clone and his AI robot assistant, I got no problem with this.

(and if you don't know what I'm talking about, go here.)

Actually, you're both right and wrong. You do have the right to drive without a license, as fast as you want, not wearing a seatbelt or helmet, drunk as a skunk...if you do it on private land. Doing the same on a public road is prohibited because you implicitly enter a contract with the State to obey certain rules in order to make use of shared public infrastructure.

The GP's statement remains true and correct. The Constitution does not grant rights to citizens. Indeed, it goes out of its way to do the exact opposite: it limits what the government can do. As a governing charter, it is unique in that respect.

Nothing in your statement invalidates the OP's original claim, mainly that if you consume fewer calories than you burn, you will lose weight. During your anecdotal hospital stay, you consumed fewer calories than you burned and suffered the symptoms you described. You probably lost weight, too. Hence, what the OP said is both true and correct.

Your claims of "up to $12,000 per month" appear to take the absolute worst case scenario. Wikipedia notes roughly 90% of Xyrem consumers get this via insurance, with co-pays under $50 and a significant number get it for under $25. Admittedly, insurance companies are getting stiffed, but one suspects they're negotiating lower than worst-case pricing with the supplier in the first place.

Being an Orphan drug, development costs are amortized over a very few patients, making costs high. It's like saying a B-2 bomber costs billions of dollars to build when, in fact, a huge cost of "building" the plane is the amortized R&D costs. The actual labor and materials is much less. That's why the fewer planes are built, the more expensive each one becomes.

There is no good solution to this problem. If you fix prices such that R&D costs can't be recouped, you remove incentive for pharma to R&D the drug in the first place. If you allow them to recoup the costs, the end user must pay them. There is no other way. Pharma R&D dollars don't just fall from the sky.