Interesting; things apparently regressed before they could progress. The first paper tape reader for a computer (Colossus) read at 5000 characters/s in normal operation, and could be cranked up to 9700 char/s (85 km/h), but the tape wasn't strong enough to survive that speed for long.
Of course, the Official Secrets Act made sure the Colossus design wasn't available on the open market.
In my country, the police issue ca. 7 million speeding tickets each year. With around 7 million cars registered, every car owner gets one speeding ticket/year on average. To get this many tickets, speed is checked automatically and rigidly, with a margin of only 3% to allow for measurement errors.
This means situational awareness is not enough to avoid speeding tickets. If you rely on situational awareness alone, you end up with a margin of 10% (more on motorways), which is just too much.
Last year I bought my first car with cruise control. One of the big surprises was how much the cognitive load dropped from not having to constantly micromanage my speed and look out for speed cameras. My situational awareness improved (less time spent glancing at the speedometer).
That sucks. Over the past few years I've tripped over my Macbook's power cord several times with no ill effect. Back to watching where I'm going, I guess...
I recently read somewhere (but now can't find, of course) a study that indicated people are less likely to come up with creative solutions/leaps of thought in a noisy environment. This included listening to music.
Do you know how the Lego Minecraft set came to be? Mojang submitted a proposal to Lego Cuusoo (since renamed to Lego Ideas). On this site anyone can submit ideas for Lego sets, when an idea attracts 10,000 votes Lego will look into producing it as a set. We got some cool stuff that way: the Curiosity rover, for instance. The Minecraft set also got lots of votes, and the rest is history.
Damn you for making me read the entire FA
They did do a study that contradicts earlier experiments:
A person's natural circadian rhythm averages about 24 hours and six minutes for women, and 24 hours and 12 minutes for men. It varies for each individual, but doesn't stray very far from 24 hours. At about the time Pathfinder landed, Czeisler and his team began conducting studies at the hospital's special laboratory that shielded study subjects from all outside influences. With their test subjects in isolation, they simulated the Martian sol to see how the test subjects adjusted to the longer day. "What we learned was none of the people adapted their circadian rhythms to the Martian day," Czeisler said.
So either earlier studies were off, or Czeisler's experiment was wrong (having e.g. the HVAC on a 24-h cycle, or background noise etc.).
Living on Mars time is difficult when you're living on Earth and are subject to Earth's day/night cycle.
Sensory deprivation experiments where people live without clocks and daylight for more than a few days show that people tend to lengthen their "day" to much more than a Mars sol (up to 36 hours IIRC), indicating that adjusting to Mars time is feasible when you're actually on Mars.
That didn't work the last time. Remember the '80s? Oh, how we laughed at the KGB, Stasi et al. and their invasive ways. Listening to everybody, having half the population on the payroll and informing on the other half, reading all mail etc.
How superior we felt, with our freedoms.
Now look where we are.
You better not hook up to the amplifier. There's a slight possibility of overload.
While I agree that the prefs interface could use improvement, please don't suggest they reduce the number of preferences. I use VLC because it's configurable to my tastes.
Decent RJ45 cables come with a sleeve that fits over the tab. This should have been mandatory instead of an option.
Passive amplifiers are perpetual motion machines. An echo chamber doesn't amplify, it merely minimizes attenuation.
Do I understand the difference correctly? Transponder = optical receiver, processing equipment and laser which sends a new signal. Amplifier = EDFA?
Well, the electrical and optical conductors are in the same cable, but yes.
Indeed. It seems the word is subject to...
inflation.
"Here's something to think about: How come you never see a headline like `Psychic Wins Lottery.'" -- Comedian Jay Leno
