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Comment Re:true and faithful account (Score 2) 102

You will need an almanac as well, really. I think only Polaris or (possibly) the Southern Cross can be used for fairly approximate latitude without further data or measurement. Sun: noon altitude varies throughout the year. Basically any other body you need to know time and ephemeris. I am only learning astronavigation now but that's how I understand it.

Comment Infinite vulnerabilities (Score 1) 235

I see a lot of objections to the word "infinite" being bandied about.

Bugs are fixed by software developers. And software developers introduced the bugs, unwittingly, into the original code in the first place. Some of the bug-fixes will introduce further unforeseen vulnerabilities. So it's quite probable that the true number of vulnerabilities in a system fluctuates, increases at times, and may only reach zero after an infinite amount of time. The assumption that there is a set of vulnerabilities in a system and this set can be reduced to zero by systematically finding and fixing them all one-by-one is clearly overly simplistic. Add software upgrades into the mix, and I think it's safe to assume that all software is buggy all the time.

Comment Re:Cloud formation albedo (Score 1) 378

Awesome post, chapeau sir. I fear there is much correctness in your predictions, there is a feral and ferocious future awaiting us potentially, or is it almost certainly? But I don't know if there will be an energy solution available to power this strip mining and these underwater cities. Possibly, but also very possibly humans will end up back burning firewood and staring up at the night sky in impotent maudlin despair.

Comment Re:Brits obey speed limits? (Score 1) 278

Speed limit is 70mph on motorways. I read somewhere, a few years ago mind, that the _average_ non-HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) speed was around 80mph. It's not a rule that is particularly vigorously enforced. Over 100mph may get more attention and generally results in loss of licence for a period if prosecuted.

Comment Re:Good advertising? (Score 5, Insightful) 324

Or one day, amazon will be all that's left. You want that? I agree that many small businesses are badly run, and often can't or don't get the service right, but if you end up with only one or two massive impersonal players, you will regret it. That means, noiw, today even, making a choice to stop that happening by buying from the small guys even if that means paying a couple of dollars more.

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"More software projects have gone awry for lack of calendar time than for all other causes combined." -- Fred Brooks, Jr., _The Mythical Man Month_

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