Now that the GPU shortage is mostly over, friends have been putting together new desktop PCs. They’re not persuaded, apparently, by GPU performance improvements since 2015 (and why not just use motherboard graphics?). Similar to the great Gillette v. Dorco shaving-for-justice inq … | Continue reading
Based on searching the ACM journal database, the dream of parallel computing seems to date back roughly 60 years. Some folks at Westinghouse in 1962 imagined partial differential equations being solved, satellites being tracked, and other serious problems being attacked. By 19 … | Continue reading
I took our 2.5-year-old Honda Odyssey in for a B127 service, for which I’d made an appointment. Due to the dealer being short-staffed and, apparently, not completely organized, they couldn’t do “7” (brake fluid change) without adding a multi-hour wait on top of the promised 1.5-2 … | Continue reading
Happy Global Love Day to everyone. Let’s look at a recent New York Times podcast: For years, Evan Sterrett’s relationship with his boyfriend had become “reruns of the same drama.” Evan wanted space; his boyfriend wanted commitment. But one summer, their relationship received a … | Continue reading
In light of this weekend’s failure and seizure of First Republic Bank, I thought it might be nice if the FDIC employees who are working over the weekend, at modest rates of pay, got a thank-you note from the regulators and supervisors at the San Francisco Fed who enabled the Sili … | Continue reading
How about this idea for a novel: Describe what the U.S. would look like in 2024 if proper COVID policies had been followed in 2020-2021. Suppose that the U.S. had been run by Science-following Democrats without interference from Republicans or Republican-appointed federal judges … | Continue reading
“Greene faces pushback after saying Weingarten is ‘not a mother’” (The Hill): Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) is facing pushback after suggesting that American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten, who’s a stepmother, is “not a mother.” “The problem is p … | Continue reading
We get this in our mail addressed to “current resident”: (The previous owners of this house belonged to a Reform synagogue. A computer made the assumption that the new owners were likely also interested in matters Jewish?) The front page “No More Silence” article chronicles a … | Continue reading
Pravda says “The U.S. is now two years into abnormally high inflation“: The U.S. is now two years into abnormally high inflation. But 2023 inflation is drastically different from the price increases that first appeared in 2021. Here’s why.https://t.co/2ksnZPLkWv— The New York T … | Continue reading
“Gender-Affirming Care Covered by MassHealth” describes taxpayer-funded surgical procedures for residents of Maskachusetts who are smart enough to refrain from working (or at least keep their hours to the minimum). MassHealth is the Science State’s version of Medicaid, so it is p … | Continue reading
As my only exposure to this channel is when walking through FBOs, I’m not an expert on Fox News or the recently departed Tucker Carlson. However, I’m wondering if Fox would be smart to try to replace him with Casey DeSantis, who has experience as a TV newscaster. Here is the kind … | Continue reading
An email received this month: (Harvard cannot offer free admission to the people who have granted it freedom from paying taxes on what it earns from its $50 billion cash hoard, except for on a few days.) Note the Science-driven COVID prevention strategy of 1 out of 4 people w … | Continue reading
We are informed that income inequality is one of the biggest problems facing Americans, but I wonder if the activities of central planners is going to make it ever-tougher to get accurate measurements. Looking at gross cash income is relatively easy. Adjusting for federal, state, … | Continue reading
A few weeks ago, there were news reports of Biblical rain in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale area. I checked the FAA’s web site for NOTAMs (no longer an abbreviation for the sexist “notices to airmen”) for FLL. At first glance, using the default sort order, things looked pretty good o … | Continue reading
Annoyed by all of the ads and filler in online recipes? ChatGPT to the rescue! I asked “I have some beets that are 5 inches in diameter. How long should I cook them in an instant pot pressure cooker?” and immediately got back a page of instructions that included a 35-40-minute h … | Continue reading
Over the past 58 years, the U.S. has been gradually filled up with people from a wide range of cultures who had a wide range of reasons for wanting to come here, oftentimes because they did not like where they were and not because there was something about American culture that t … | Continue reading
If you were wondering where the forefront of medical research is… Researchers found that in-person interactions with friends, family, and health care providers during the pandemic were associated with fewer mental health concerns https://t.co/GFsFZtl992— Harvard Medical School … | Continue reading
Second post regarding The Swamp: The Everglades, Florida, and the Politics of Paradise, by Michael Grunwald. We’ll pick up the story at the dawn of the 20th century… (photos from Grassy Waters Preserve the other day) NAPOLEON BROWARD declared war on the swamp during his 19 … | Continue reading
Some excerpts from The Swamp: The Everglades, Florida, and the Politics of Paradise, a book that covers the literally foundational element of transforming South Florida into a place where a substantial number of people could live. The initial assessment was unpromising: The Spa … | Continue reading
Posts so far regarding The Courage to Be Free: Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Revival, by Ron DeSantis: Ron DeSantis’s book Ron DeSantis and Big Sugar Ron DeSantis and government accountability One topic that cuts through the book is how progressive elites have found new … | Continue reading
“Harvard University renaming school for top Republican donor Ken Griffin after $300 million gift” (Boston.com): Harvard University is renaming its Graduate School of Arts and Sciences after hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin. Griffin is Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s biggest d … | Continue reading
I asked ChatGPT “Are men better at sports than women?” and the one-page answer boiled down to “no.” I followed up with “Could the Argentina national football team beat the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team?” and the one-page answer boiled down to “impossible to predict.” Here’s p … | Continue reading
One way to stay organized is to place cables and other miscellanies in hanging folders within a lateral filing cabinet. So that small items don’t fall out, pocketed folders are ideal. I bought 10 in July 2022 for $34.97: Today they’re $40: That’s an inflation rate of more t … | Continue reading
Almost everything having to do with health care in the U.S. is controlled by our government. A doctor cannot practice unless approved by a state government (can take 6-12 months here in Florida, so the supply of doctors always lags the demand from patients who have moved). Once h … | Continue reading
From exactly two years ago… Will lockdowns protect us from jihad? (they can’t hate our freedom anymore): “They hate our freedoms: our freedom of religion, our freedom of speech, our freedom to vote and assemble and disagree with each other.” [George W. Bush] Depending on the s … | Continue reading
Posts so far regarding The Courage to Be Free: Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Revival, by Ron DeSantis: Ron DeSantis’s book Ron DeSantis and Big Sugar Ron DeSantis and government accountability Today let’s look at the chapter on coronapanic. Compared to some of the Depl … | Continue reading
Here’s a Facebook ad that MoveOn paid to show me… “Will you chip in now to help put up billboards outside Mar-a-Lago … “. If I give them enough money, they’ll construct an Interstate highway-style billboard right outside Donald Trump’s bedroom: The linked-to page asks for mont … | Continue reading
Today is the 10th anniversary of the jihad waged by successful asylum-seekers Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev at the Boston Marathon. They lived at taxpayer expense in Cambridge, Maskachusetts after being granted permanent welfare entitlement in the U.S. on the grounds th … | Continue reading
From exactly two years ago… “Meet next week in Jupiter, Florida?“ We’re escaping to the Florida Free State for the Maskachusetts school vacation week (April 18-25). A journey of 1,000+ miles is the best way for the kids to get a “mask break” (under what would be the “law” if it … | Continue reading
Some friends have put together The AI Revolution in Medicine: GPT-4 and Beyond, a thought-provoking book released today. Health care is nearly 20 percent of our economy (compare to 4 percent in Singapore) and a higher percentage of our tax dollars (Happy Official Tax Day, though … | Continue reading
From a political science professor in London (via a loyal reader; thanks!): 1/ White progressives champion greater diversity but vote with their feet against it.A thread based on my new academic article:https://t.co/LdsyUyUCxh— Eric Kaufmann (@epkaufm) April 7, 2023 Like the … | Continue reading
Is GPT-4 as good at aviation as it is at law and medicine? Here are some interactions: I rate this answer C- due to the failure to cite FAR 91.175, but a follow-up brings the grade up to a B: A+ in flight planning: How about oxygen regulations? Now check the intellige … | Continue reading
How are folks feeling after today’s inflation report? The Wall Street Journal: Core prices, a measure of underlying inflation that excludes volatile energy and food categories, increased 5.6% in March from a year earlier, accelerating slightly from 5.5% the prior month. Core in … | Continue reading
From the Palm Beach Gardens, Florida Costco today: (Never buy a steak that costs less than your grill!) What if you’re on a budget and/or fleeing the Egyptians (who never enslaved any Jews, according to academics)? As an experiment, I bought a $75 Wagyu steak and grille … | Continue reading
April 5 email from Mass General, below. Customers are reminded that coronapanic officially ends next month and that, to keep the OxyContin flowing, it will be necessary to actually see a physician before taxpayers will pay for the pills. (i.e., for more than three years you’ve be … | Continue reading
Western Ukraine is safe enough for elderly Americans to visit (example). Friend of friends go about their daily work there without any thoughts of becoming a war casualty. One guy, however, misses his wife and kids (elementary school age). They fled to Germany during the early da … | Continue reading
A recent Wall Street Journal interview with a guy who made $billions in Argentine bonds… “Paul Singer, the Man Who Saw the Economic Crises Coming”. First, let’s check his track record as a prophet: “Men and nations behave wisely,” the Israeli statesman Abba Eban observed, “when … | Continue reading
We have two cars. They’re older than they were a year ago and presumably less valuable. We have had no tickets, accidents, or claims. Progressive is bumping the rate by 30 percent. I talked to a friend in Austin, Texas. His rate is also going up 30 percent. Readers: What are you … | Continue reading
An expert analysis from 2015… “No, Polygamy Isn’t the Next Gay Marriage” (Politico): I am a gay marriage advocate. So why do I spend so much of my time arguing about polygamy? Opposing the legalization of plural marriage should not be my burden, because gay marriage and polygam … | Continue reading
The question for today is whether we’re in a wage-price spiral. If everyone’s monthly bills are being bumped 5-15% annually because of the inflation that happened over the past year, shouldn’t we expect continued inflation because workers will need salary bumps of 5-15% and then … | Continue reading
From the Environmental Protection Agency: We have an Italian natural gas range of doubtful quality. I am willing to bet that it has been adjusted at any time in the past 5 years. I spent $200 on a low-level CO meter with 0.1 ppm resolution (not for this project, but to verify … | Continue reading
It is impossible to walk a dog anywhere in Florida without running into neighbors who work in the real estate industry. Progressive victories yesterday in Chicago and Wisconsin were being celebrated down here. High hopes in particular are pinned on Brandon Johnson to take the tit … | Continue reading
Here’s a page from the Anti-Defamation League, which purports to ferret out hate groups: When Jewish people recite the story of Passover, they recall that Pharaoh’s ignorance and hate led him to enslave the Israelites. Let’s dig into their PDF: From Israel: The reality i … | Continue reading
Here’s Bernie Sanders giving a “Let’s Go Brandon” speech on behalf of a mayoral candidate in Chicago. “All of us are sick and tired of the greed of the real estate speculators, of Wall Street, of the big money interests.”: Today, if we see large numbers of working people all ac … | Continue reading
From the Legacy GPT-3.5: GPT-4 removes this asymmetry and gives essentially the same answer to both questions. | Continue reading
April 14, 2022: “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signs a bill banning abortions after 15 weeks” (state-sponsored NPR) April 3, 2023: “Senate passes 6-week abortion limit with rape, incest exceptions” (state-sponsored PBS) What explains the apparent inconsistency? The PBS article: L … | Continue reading
A game will occur today that The Google calls “NCAA Men’s Basketball”. Yet, in fact, nothing stops an athlete identifying with a gender other than “male” from joining either of the participating teams. From the NCAA’s rules: And from Smith College: Note that “such a team is … | Continue reading
A report on this year’s Sun ‘n Fun, in Lakeland, Florida (home to the world’s largest collection of Frank Lloyd Wright buildings)… Preflight planning: print out the 23-page NOTAM, which has detailed instructions for arrival and departure print out “GAP” and “VFR” signs for di … | Continue reading