@brent@thecanadian.social cover
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

brent

@brent@thecanadian.social

I like honesty, rigour, and consistency. Also humour. And geometry. And computers. And other things.

I don’t like prejudice or superstition. Or hatred. Or oppression. Or violence. Except cartoon violence.

I am trying to be the best version of the worst thing: middle-aged straight white male anglophone.

I am Canadian. I write code. I have feelings and opinions. The world is full of regrettable tragedy. I wish it would stop.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. For a complete list of posts, browse on the original instance.

futurebird , to random
@futurebird@sauropods.win avatar

I’m old enough to remember professors who said learning CS wasn’t a part of a foundational education any more than learning to use a lathe was a part of interior design. I don’t think this is common today, thankfully. But, what aspects of computer science should be integrated into existing subjects (a word processor in English to write a paper) and the degree to which it is an independent subject remain nebulous.

Thing is, understanding computers changes the way you think about everything.

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@futurebird

“we all know”— I don’t wanna burst your bubble… but what is your definition of “magic”? Last I checked, 90% or more people believed in some crazy shit.

There’s no easy answer to the question: “What is essential knowledge to live and succeed?” It’s probably more than most people can retain.

Most people don’t even know how electricity works. Or where clean water comes from.

brent , to random
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

Bullshit and disinformation are a problem because they damage relationships and lives. I have just learned the term “destructive speech”.

But it seems like the damage flows asymmetrically. Authoritarians are more likely to abuse speech, while democrats and pluralists are more likely to be harmed.

Ideally, responsible people in government would consider this enough to prioritize mitigation. But it may require both sides to suffer by these weapons before there is common will to restrict them.

brent OP ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

I wonder if you could say the same thing about the asymmetric support and abuse of guns, at least in the US (I am not from there).

Americans seem to prioritize freedoms that increase the risk and degree of harm suffered by the vulnerable and innocent.

It often seems like the core value of America is that the strong can (and should) exploit the weak—if not outright oppress them. Even if the worst extremes are outlawed, the overall dynamic promotes abuse.

Does America sanctify punching down?

futurebird , to random
@futurebird@sauropods.win avatar

I decided to find out if any progress had been made on the science behind why some ants are attracted to electrical fields. After filtering out exterminators (it's so demoralizing to search for information on creatures you love and find nothing but people who know nothing about them boasting about how they will kill them all) I found what looked like a blog. But, who the heck is "James Brown"? Never heard of the dude. Maybe he could be my new friend if he likes ants enough to blog about them!

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@futurebird

Bullshit is an existential threat to civil society. "Free speech" is a giant security hole in the body politic. It has to be more nuanced. A sophisticated society would find a way to encourage sincere discourse, while filtering out noise that destroys it.

We cannot function if we cannot communicate.

futurebird , to random
@futurebird@sauropods.win avatar

I've largely dismissed the strain of AI alarmism based on the notion the a computer will be so smart that the danger it poses to humanity is outsmarting us.

There are real dangers in AI, most of them relate to people using these technologies in improper ways due to having a poor understanding of what they really are... and most important the exploitation & degradation of the human body of knowledge creativity represented by publicly available digital information. 1/

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@futurebird “Perpetual motion chimera” is exactly right. Both of these nightmares rely on failure to obey the laws of physics, specifically thermodynamics.

Intelligence requires information processing. Information processing requires time, space, materials, and energy. In short, it creates entropy. There is a minimal amount of entropy involved, proportional to the processing power. Stories of godlike AI seem to always assume that the machine has trascended the physical constraints of reality.

rbreich , to random
@rbreich@masto.ai avatar

813 US billionaires control a record $5.7 trillion in wealth.

The bottom 50% of Americans control $3.7 trillion in wealth.

When ~800 people control more wealth than half a country’s population, we have a very serious problem.

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@rbreich These numbers are noise to most people. Not that they’re even paying attention.

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@rbreich The alternative requires that more people step up to share in the work of running the social and organizational machinery. In fact, in repairing or replacing that social machinery, even building it from scratch. But whether they are too humble, intimidated, lazy, distracted, confused, or overwhelmed—something prevents them (us). Decades of complacency will take a lot of effort, dedication, and a similar length of time to reverse. Not a simple task!

parismarx , to random
@parismarx@mastodon.online avatar

The United States wants the world to choose: either they accept the dominance of Silicon Valley or fall into the hands of scary Chinese tech. But that choice makes no sense.

If we want better tech, it must be rejected in favor of another model that breaks up the monopolies and gives countries more power to shape their own technological futures.

https://disconnect.blog/embrace-the-splinternet/

#tech #politics

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@parismarx False binary! An old rhetorical device, used to scare people into forgetting there are always more alternatives.

In this case, assumes that we have already given up our lives (and governments) to the digital cloud and its masters. Because why wouldn't we want the benefits? What matter the cost?

CelloMomOnCars , to random
@CelloMomOnCars@mastodon.social avatar

Fed Blocks Tough Global -Risk Rules for Wall Street Banks

ECB has been pushing to set requirements
US, European officials differ over approach for new standards

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-04-03/fed-blocks-tough-global-climate-risk-rules-for-wall-street-banks

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@CelloMomOnCars

"WHY is fossil fuel financing still allowed to be at a trillion dollars?"

  • habits are hard to break
  • responsibility is easily shifted
  • FUD is easy to sell; when it fails, fantasies that "technology will save us" usually work
  • people lie to themselves first
  • people highly discount the future, even without rationalizations
  • key positions of power in govs and corps are filled by sociopaths
  • corpts not required to be "ethical"
  • "the system"
  • etc.
Nonilex , to random
@Nonilex@masto.ai avatar

Federal prosecutors said on Fri that #SamBankmanFried, the disgraced #cryptocurrency mogul, should receive a #prison sentence of 40 to 50 yrs for his #conviction on #fraud charges.

Bankman-Fried’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 28, during which Judge Lewis A. Kaplan will decide his fate. He faces a maximum possible penalty of 110 years.

#law
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/15/technology/sam-bankman-fried-sentencing.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@Nonilex How much of that sentence is for his own part in the massive systemic criminal enterprise, and how much is taking the fall for all the others who enabled and encouraged him, without actually crossing the line all the way?

futurebird , to random
@futurebird@sauropods.win avatar

It's this: "boys are cannon fodder and women are property, there is no third option" as @mhoye recently said

It's always mystified me how angry and threatened conservatives are by non-binary people . . . existing and in other ways by asexual people simply . . . living. The anger & hysteria feels out of proportion until you remember the huge threat validation of such choices represents to their ideas of order.

A third choice destabilizes the entire system.

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@futurebird

Any non-conformance is eqivalent to any other non-conformance, and tolerance of one equates to tolerance of all. This is essential to their worldview.

It is enlightening to read up on the psychological studies of these personalities. They can be demystified. There is a kind of logic to it, though it is the product of particular kinds of experiences, and subsequent premises about the world, which conflict with those of people with more open and tolerant worldviews.

pluralistic , to random
@pluralistic@mamot.fr avatar

Uber lies about everything, especially money. Oh, and labour. Especially labour. And geometry. Especially geometry! But especially especially money. They constantly lie about money.

--

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this thread to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/02/29/geometry-hates-uber/#toronto-the-gullible

1/

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@pluralistic The blithe and unquestioned enthusiasm of the typical Uber customer always made me despair. Emblematic of the usual "this works for me now", without any thought to the long-term implications.

Human nature!

A long evolutionary history of radically discounting the future, in favour of trivial gains in the moment, does not engender a great strategy for a long-term civilization.

breadandcircuses , to random
@breadandcircuses@climatejustice.social avatar

Capitalism is not interested.

Millionaires and billionaires don't care about me and you.

Ergo, capitalist politicians don't care either.

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@weaselx86

Don't all hierarchical societies have similar wealth concentration problems?

Isn't the core social dilemma that leaders inevitably defect and renege on their contract with their followers/citizens? We agree to let an elite take over certain matters, to help coordinate things, and then they abuse their power, because no one is watching.

Is not capitalism primarily an optimization and refinement—through legal means—of pre-existing models?

@breadandcircuses @GhostOnTheHalfShell

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@breadandcircuses

I think the reason has as much, if not more, to do with the available energy resources. Capitalism was an essential method for deploying the incredible quantity of surplus energy that fossil energy provided. The goal was always—has always been—to leverage that energy, mostly to the benefit of an elite. Exponentially more energy led to exponentially faster wealth production and concentration. Capitalism was a means to an end.

@weaselx86 @GhostOnTheHalfShell

brent , to random
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

The core of the conservative, reactionary, authoritarian program is to give people a simplified explanation of the world—call it a story or a model.

This model is easy to understand. It also puts the audience in a pre-eminent position, appealing to their innate belief in their own moral righteousness. This is how leaders have been attracting followers for tens of thousands of years.

Selling a more complicated story, where the audience is morally doubtful, will always be an uphill battle.

LeviKornelsen , to random
@LeviKornelsen@dice.camp avatar

An older post, copied over to the new blog:

Huge chunks of early D&D were built using the wrong parts of the fiction they were sourced from.

https://levikornelsen.wordpress.com/2024/02/04/the-wrong-parts-of-the-right-fiction/

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@LeviKornelsen

Sounds like an opportunity for someone to make a new RPG that would compete well, but doing it better. Hope someone takes up the gauntlet!

breadandcircuses , to random
@breadandcircuses@climatejustice.social avatar

What does the system value?

brent ,
@brent@thecanadian.social avatar

@breadandcircuses Capitalism is just one expression of the insatiability of certain people and cultures.

They were razing forests long before anybody heard about capitalism. England razed its forests to build a navy. Mesopotamia raised its forests to build cities and plant crops. Mao razed forests for who knows why. Civilization hates forests.

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