This is good. I've really enjoyed my Pebble 2 and can see the potential for a smart watch that has more functionality, and a long battery life by not needing energy intense screens. It's too bad Pebble went under.

I have a math minor and work in software. It's not particularly useful in my day to day job, but it is a useful tool when I indulge my curiosity about other things. I built a 3D game engine once, and I had a basic knowledge in vector / math. I used that to go and learn further, the base made it feasible.

I do not think english is particularly good at unambiguously specifying the steps necessary for algorithms. I do not think that making computing languages resemble english is intrinsically good.

One of the first optimizations you learn when writing Java in a moderate load environment is to use StringBuffer or StringBuilder when concatenating Strings. There is probably a similar construct in Python. The test was not written from a place of experience or was purposely constructed this way to prove their pre assumed point.

Quantum computing is the only thing I could imagine altering software development drastically.

I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of CGI Artists for science documentaries suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced.

If the FCC doesn't have power to regulate the internet, then it shouldn't have power to prohibit people from transmitting on any crazy frequency they want.

The book "Demon under the microscope" looks at the creation and popularization of the first widely used antibiotic, sulfa. It does a good job of describing all the horrible problems society was dealing with before sulfa came about. It's pretty scary to imagine a scenario where antibiotics don't work anymore.

I don't have the background to judge the novelty of this approach or not. But the quote from the Sante Fe institute fellow would imply that the chaos/complexity folks find it interesting.

I would like to see a pro plankton platform.

This is very true.

My experience has generally been positive with standing desks. I have the 'IKEA' solution at home and in the winter months I turn my work desk into a standing desk. This helps keep my core and back strong enough for biking in the constructions months. But I can't do it for eight hours, I usually end up sitting on a tall stool at the end of the day. Remember that a lot of people HAVE to stand all day at work and have a myriad of problems from doing so. Damaged knees and joints are probably at the top of the list of problems you might incur. Make sure you have a gel standing mat, good shoes, and a way to turn your desk back into a sitting desk quickly or a tall stool.