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Comment Static initialization order problem. (Score 1) 427

Hi Mr. Stroustrup, Thank you for C++. It is my language of choice.

Why the static initialization order problem was not addressed in recent reforms of the language ?

It does not seem very hard to fix. Although I am aware of the workarounds I do not like them. In my opinion we need to fix what is broken before adding more features. Thank you for your attention, Mauricio Gomes.

Submission + - The Strong Goldbach Conjecture Proved ? (arxiv.org)

morto writes: "The Strong Goldbach conjecture dates back to 1742. It states that every even integer greater than four can be written as the sum of two prime numbers. Since then, no one has been able to prove the conjecture. ...Additionally, the conjecture has been verified to be true for all even integers up to 4.10^18. In this paper, we prove that the conjecture is true for all even integers greater than 362."

It seems then it is finally proved, right ?

Comment We do not know enough. (Score 1) 421

In addition to the fact that precise numbers needed by the calculation are not available yet we do not know A LOT about the physical reality of the universe. A huge part of it we attribute to dark energy that is basically stuff we have no idea about. Not to mention the possibility of all of this be a simulation which would bring the possibility of changing the parameters of it.
Patents

Submission + - Why USPTO awards so many outrageously stupid patents ? (slashdot.org)

morto writes: "Why USPTO awards so many outrageously stupid patents?

I am always amazed by the ever-growing stupidity of software patents. Why is that so? Is it dumbness, corruption or something else?

Please illuminate me because it is looking pretty crazy from outside (and take into account that I am Brazilian, meaning I should be at this point well desensitized by government agencies stupidity and corruption)."

Robotics

Submission + - Soft-bodied robot leaps 30 times its height (gizmag.com)

cylonlover writes: Most robots are built out of rigid materials, but a DARPA initiative to build soft-bodied robots that can squeeze into hard-to-reach places has led to the development of new types of the mechanical marvels. Harvard's Whitesides Research Group is working on a soft-bodied solution and has produced a squishy three-legged bot that can jump 30 times its height using the power of internal explosions. Embedded pneumatic networks in the robot – channels that course like veins throughout the robot's elastomer body – were fed a mixture of oxygen and methane which – when ignited with an electrical spark – results in an explosion that sends the robot flying into the air. By actuating all three legs simultaneously the team succeeded in getting the robot to leap more than 30 times its height.

Comment Thank God pearls like these have been preserved ! (Score 1) 414

Exodus 21
20: “If a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod and he dies at his hand, he shall be punished. "
21: “If, however, he survives a day or two, no vengeance shall be taken; for he is his property."

Thanks to this scrutiny I can learn from Exodus 21 that it is okay to beat the crap out of my slave as long as I do not kill him and Leviticus 12 teaches me that baby girls leave their mothers twice as dirty as baby boys do. In Leviticus 21 I see that no hunchback or a dwarf, or who has any eye defect, or who has festering or running sores or damaged testicles can approach the altar.

Where would civilization be without these priceless advices!

Comment Re:Lack of tolerance to other religions (Score 1) 412

What you have described is Aristocracy, the government of the elite. The problem is who decides who is best ? Who decides how the tests should be ? The big thing about democracy is not the election of the best but the ability to avoid the perpetuation of the worst. But I know what your mean. Here in Brazil our Democracy is a mix of Kleptocracy (government by burglars - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kleptocracy) and Kakistocracy (government of the worst - http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/kakistocracy). But at least we are free to criticize and change the gang every four years.

Comment FYI: It is ~80K years not 180K. (Score 2) 342

"Studies suggest that anatomically modern humans arose in Africa approximately 150 thousand years ago (kya), expanded throughout Africa ~60–80 kya, and to most parts of Europe and Asia ~40 kya[1]–[6]. Numerous mitochondrial DNA studies support what Foster and Matsumera [5] describe as a ‘remarkable expansion’ from a small geographic region dating broadly to ~60–80 kya." see http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0044926
Image

Theater Professor's Firefly Poster Declared Threatening Screenshot-sm 566

ocean_soul writes "Probably because nothing more threatening was happening and they need to prove their usefulness the school police at University of Wisconsin-Stout decided a Firefly poster with the quote: "You don't know me, son, so let me explain this to you once: If I ever kill you, you'll be awake. You'll be facing me. And you'll be armed," was a threat to the safety on campus. Wasn't that a quote about not killing people?"

Comment Re:Interesting... (Score 1) 472

But in this case Microsoft is not stealing any of their stories or culture. On the contrary, the project is giving them access to more information by translating foreign material to their language.

In my opinion this lawsuit is incredibly dumb because it shuts down a door to keep their own language alive.

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