Programming/Math/Science roundup: June 2018
Somehow, a lot of interesting stuff this month: * For Emacs enthusiasts, version 26.1 is out, with support for generators and threads * A new fundamental particle (?!) * You probably didn’t know t…
Learning about local budgets
On a weekend-stay-over in Monterey recently, I saw some poster mentioning changes in the county budget and realized I had no perspective of the "order of magnitude" of this. Looked it up, a…
On writing with pen and paper
Very quickly: I love Baron Fig notebooks, both the larger, hard-cover Confidant, and the smaller, soft-cover Vanguard. After a few years of trying different styles, I realized I vastly preferred whit…
General interesting links: May 2018
Last month’s bunch of random stuff: * A look at how both Apple and Star wars have come to dominate our “tech aesthetic” in a very deep sense * Something about Nirvana (not the band) * Michael Pola…
Continuing adventures in Tinderbox
Been using Tinderbox, in fits and starts, for a bit over a year now. I use it for all sorts of different stuff and the crazy bit is that I haven't even scratched the surface, I've used it for…
Monthly recap (May 2018)
Major updates: * Australia trip! * Walked around Sydney * Great Ocean Road * Fed some kangaroos and wallabies (not yet sure about the difference) * Saw the Penguin parade * Ate lo…
Programming/Math/Science roundup: May 2018
* I haven’t been on Facebook in a while, but if you are, you might read this rant * Indeed, C is not a low-level language * Mixed feelings about this, but mostly agree: intuition is not always help…
A history of personal (static) blogs
I’ve accumulated a few static blogs over the years, each starting out, running for a while, and then petering out. The first version, with Hakyll The second version, with Jekyll The third version,…
On the death of Stalin
I believe I’ve just watched the funniest movie in at least a few years. Every single scene, every single interaction, is shot through with dark humor. It really doesn’t get any darker than this. It’s…
General Interesting Links: April 2018
Bunch of random stuff that I liked this month: * Crazy tall palm trees in Colombia (this one made the picture above) * A “golden oldie” by Bill Joy (of Sun) on the future of technology (from 18 yea…
The un-happened future
Regular readers may have noticed my fondness for historical advertising (of a very specific kind). Here are some old advertisements by Bohn Aluminum that I came across, and here is a bigger list. This…
Starting new C++ projects
I wanted to have a playground to try out new idioms and concepts (hah!) in C++, and it became an excuse to figure out what the right way (in my opinion) would be, given the enormous range of choices e…