So... I've been thinking. {{ posts }} Feel free to reach out: thunkpoorly test @proton mail</...
"The right to copy" feels like a bit of a loaded phrase. I think most of us instinctively feel our hackles raise a little. If you make a thing, you don't want it to be able to be taken from you. The thing is, copying didn't quite used to do that. If you carved a beautiful wooden bird, if I asked to look at it so I could try to copy you, how would you feel? It's different, no? Even if I did manage…
We have virtualized all our knowledge. Sorry, I mean digitized. This should mean that (almost) anyone can access (almost) any knowledge at any time. What an incredible achievement! Yet somehow doesn't that feel hollow? Like I didn't say anything wrong, but in spirit what I said rings false? The knowledge humanity has accumulated over the centuries was not paid for. The ancient Egyptians aren't…
Modern systems are stupidly efficient. This thought popped into my mind when I was thinking about a problem I had with a food delivery order. My delivery driver had accidentally given me someone else's order and I was unable to find a way to get in contact with them or a customer support person to ask them to come back and swap them. The food delivery app had hidden its customer support behind…
Consumer computing is dead. Alright, I'm being dramatic. It's definitely changing though. The quirks of the market, the particular shifts in power dynamics, and the increase in non-expert/enthusiast participants are certainly reasons for this. Certain fairly monopolistic tech companies contributed as well (Thanks, Bill and Steve). It was once incredible to think that you could have a computer in…
I think debate is extremely interesting. Not participating in them or watching them, though I'm sure that can be the case too. I think the concept itself is intriguing. A lot of "sensible" thinkers think that open and free debate is a necessary component of a functional democracy or even a better world. I would suspect this comes from their upbringing, surroundings (in particular academically) or…
The lives of people in "first world" countries are incredibly and amazingly different from the lives of people in the distant past. The cost of these new improvements in life is a mere dollar amount. It's so incredible. We don't think about what had to happen for that phone to end up in our pocket. That shirt on our back. The bag on our shoulder. The ring on our hand. That laptop we use for work.…
I think countries should work together. Yes, yes I know. They already do. Sort of. First, lets address the UN (haha). At this point, it’s practically an American hegemonic tool where "veto power" is just a polite way of saying "we decide." It’s fundamentally defunct. Basically every country has missed or flat-out failed to uphold UN-agreed targets, and we all know it doesn't actually matter. There…
The story they sell us about AI, the magic beans they are peddling, is that AI will be able to do most things for us and people will simply dictate what should be done. While I know you shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth, the word Trojan makes me think of things that aren't horses as well. So, I have some questions. The most important question being: which people? They certainly don't mean…