It'd be far more appealing if it were NOT so personalized.

I am fed up with machines categorizing me and my searches, as I am NOT just that.
Just return hits on what I am searching. NOT what you (think) I might like; and then charge another company to post their product to me.

There is a fine line between allowing ME to see everything I search for, and (big brother) suggesting what I want.


This stuff needs to be severely regulated.

Takeaway: Borrow lots more.

I can relate to the Firestick issue.
I had a similar experience. It just started getting slower and slower and buggier and buggier.

I suspect it was a quick-n-dirty design to hit the market ASAP.
I upgraded to the 4K version less than a few months ago and it, too, is beginning to show buggy behavior.

There is probably a considerable amount of crap being caused by the apps that one might install on the Firestick.
e.g. Sling is always buggy now.

It would be nice if these companies would stop throwing crappy devices at us just to be fast to market,
only to force more cost on us in short order to buy the next incomplete iteration of their device.

So it looks like the black hole consumption of matter frees-up the space between atomic particles,
releasing this space to the general void, thus expanding the universe.

Perhaps it also pushes matter along the galactic orbits, thus appearing like dark matter.

There is a fungus found in the greater Phoenix, AZ area that ushers folks to very weakened immune systems - called Valley Fever.

Politicians in the area work hard to deny the existence, for fear of the potential bad stigma.
Yet, I know folks that have "caught" it and died from the indirect pathogenic affects.
Ask the Mayo Clinic.

It gets into people via breathing - especially during and after a haboob (wind storm) that kicks-up dust, uncovering growths and spreading it.
From the lungs, it works it's way into the brain/spinal column where it fosters for a few years.
There is no test for it (yet), except autopsies that look for it.

Amazon is just another poorly regulated behemoth getting away with whatever they want.

We live here in a society where big money does whatever they want - just like past monarchies.

Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss.
So, you say you won't get fooled again?

What about developing a truly universal time?

Perhaps base it on a known, hard fact, like, say, the time it takes for a photon to move 1 planc distance equals the fundamental smallest unit.

All remaining periods are multiples of this unit.

We then decide on a reference point to start counting, perhaps the "big bang".

Ultimately, no matter where you are in the (this) universe, you have the same reference, and the same periods.


The interesting thing here is consistency; since Einstein showed that time passes differently depending on things like gravity.
(Which means that the planc length may vary per the local gravity.)


Okay. How about this: The time it takes 1 photon to cross 1 cm in zero gravity equals 1 centon.

Seems a no-brainer to me to go with renewables:

Coal PROs:
- 24/7 energy - independent of wind or sunshine;
- may employ more people (I think).
Coal CONs:
- unhealthy for workers and the environment;
- more dangerous in general - to mine or use.

Renewables PROs:
- cheaper to start and maintain;
- far better for the environment (including people);
- much healthier jobs.
Renewables CONs:
- the sun is available only 50% of the time on average;
(YET - battery banks and other storage methods are a viable solution);
- The wind is not always blowing;
(YET, again - battery banks and other storage methods are a viable solution);
- may not employ as many people;
(YET - it may. Has anyone done the study? Can we re-train miners, etc...?)

A TRULY smart device will do a great job and remain reliable for decades.
Adding "smart" features is just more stuff that can break.

Just make it work without calling home. I'll know when to fix - or replace - it.

It'll never strike midnight, because the apocalypse will have killed everyone off on the way to set it!

Never happen in the US because this is a capitalist society.

If we can offer 1/10 that at 75% the price of 1Gb, then you will think you are getting a deal.

Yellowstone, et al...

'nuf said.

The dollar has been declining since Oct - down ~10%, and falling.

Beware knock-offs from Asian countries. Or, embedded spyware from Chinese companies like Huawei and ZTE.

Then there is the Fair Trade idea. You know, where you pay a fair price to support an economy where labor is compensated at a non-poverty level.

And you don't think most big corporations have been doing what they want without consulting the public?

I see big corps jumping on this bandwagon hard!

Now that doctors cannot hide behind excuses of ambiguous scribbling, they may actually need to learn how to cure causes rather than throw meds at symptoms to suppress those symptoms!
Western medicine has always been a sham - mostly, that is.