2020 Taylor G. Lunt
. . . I don’t agree with the pro-life opinion I expressed in this essay. This was a thought exercise: take on a position I disagree with, and try to make it as strong as possible.
Author: David
Kamala goes full commie with video praising “equality of outcome.” Let me show how horrid this idea actually is.
2020-11-02 Joel Abbott
“Equitable treatment means we all end up at the same place,” said Harris, finishing her idea of a utopia on earth.
This all sounds nice. It sounds great on the surface. It doesn’t even sound socialistic to the untrained ear. This language of “equity,” however, drives at a core idea of socialism: the uniform equality of outcome for all people.
https://notthebee.com/article/kamala-goes-full-commie-with-video-praising-equality-of-outcomes
The Most Famous Paradox in Physics Nears Its End
2020-10-29 George Musser
In a series of breakthrough papers, theoretical physicists have come tantalizingly close to resolving the black hole information paradox that has entranced and bedeviled them for nearly 50 years. Information, they now say with confidence, does escape a black hole. If you jump into one, you will not be gone for good. Particle by particle, the information needed to reconstitute your body will reemerge.
https://www.quantamagazine.org/the-black-hole-information-paradox-comes-to-an-end-20201029/
U.S. court: Mass surveillance program exposed by Snowden was illegal
2020-09-02 Raphael Satter
(Reuters) – Seven years after former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden blew the whistle on the mass surveillance of Americans’ telephone records, an appeals court has found the program was unlawful – and that the U.S. intelligence leaders who publicly defended it were not telling the truth.
Strong humming for one hour daily to terminate chronic rhinosinusitis in four days: a case report and hypothesis for action by stimulation of endogenous nasal nitric oxide production
2006-01-10
Rhinosinusitis is an inflammation or infection of the nose and air pockets (sinuses) above, below and between the eyes which connect with the back of the nose through tiny openings (ostia). Rhinosinusitis can be caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi (molds) and possibly by allergies. Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is an immune disorder caused by fungi. The immune response produced by eosinophils causes the fungi to be attacked, which leads to damage of the sinus membranes, resulting in full-blown rhinosinusitis symptoms. Gaseous nitric oxide (NO) is naturally released in the human respiratory tract. The major part of NO found in exhaled air originates in the nasal airways, although significant production of NO also takes place in the paranasal sinuses. Proper ventilation is essential for maintenance of sinus integrity, and blockage of the ostium is a central event in pathogenesis of sinusitis. Concentrations of NO in the healthy sinuses are high. Nasal NO is known to be increased 15- to 20-fold by humming compared with quiet exhalation. NO is known to be broadly antifungal, antiviral and antibacterial. This case report shows that a subject hummed strongly at a low pitch ( approximately 130 Hz) for 1h (18 hums per minute) at bedtime the first night, and hummed 60-120 times 4 times a day for the following 4 days as treatment for severe CRS. The humming technique was described as being one that maximally increased intranasal vibrations, but less than that required to produce dizziness. The morning after the first 1-h humming session, the subject awoke with a clear nose and found himself breathing easily through his nose for the first time in over 1 month. During the following 4 days, CRS symptoms slightly reoccurred, but with much less intensity each day. By humming 60-120 times four times per day (with a session at bedtime), CRS symptoms were essentially eliminated in 4 days. Coincidentally, the subject’s cardiac arrhythmias (PACs) were greatly lessened. It is hypothesized that strong, prolonged humming increased endogenous nasal NO production, thus eliminating CRS by antifungal means.
Memristor Breakthrough: First Single Device To Act Like a Neuron
It combines resistance, capacitance, and what’s called a Mott memristor all in the same device. Memristors are devices that hold a memory, in the form of resistance, of the current that has flowed through them. Mott memristors have an added ability in that they can also reflect a temperature-driven change in resistance. Materials in a Mott transition go between insulating and conducting according to their temperature. It’s a property seen since the 1960s, but only recently explored in nanoscale devices.
The transition happens in a nanoscale sliver of niobium oxide in the memristor. Here when a DC voltage is applied, the NbO2 heats up slightly, causing it to transition from insulating to conducting. Once that switch happens, the charge built up in the capacitance pours through. Then the device cools just enough to trigger the transition back to insulating. The result is a spike of current that resembles a neuron’s action potential.
A Brief History of Neural Nets and Deep Learning
2020-09-27
The story of how neural nets evolved from the earliest days of AI to now.
Franklin Graham reflects on ‘absence of God’ at DNC ahead of DC prayer march
2020-08-21 Caleb Parke
this year, the Democratic caucuses are taking God out of the pledge of allegiance. The Black community is a faith community … they’ve got a real problem ahead.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/dnc-god-2020-election-christians-prayer-march-dc-franklin-graham
How to be helpful online
2020-09-10 Ned Batchelder
https://nedbatchelder.com//blog/202009/how_to_be_helpful_online.html
Why has college gotten so expensive in the last 30 years? Probably because the government handed them a blank check in 1993.
2020-09-01 Andrew Ghobrial
the federal government pays the universities/colleges up front, and the student then owes the government that money.
This represented a large shift in the alignment of incentives. When the loans come from the federal gov, there’s much less pressure on schools to compete on price.