RE: https://hachyderm.io/@thomasfuchs/117618262979325879

Literally debit burn, heat shield and using not very effective wings to steer.

Main difference is mostly that for the last speed bleed it uses propulsion instead of a runway.

Is it technically impressive? Sure, I guess.

But I just don’t think it’s a huge revolution or an utter new thing.

We’ll see how this thing actually fares in regular use and what the refurb cycle looks like, which is where the real cost was that broke the Space Shuttle from being affordable.

And if they get it to be reliable enough for human-rating.

Oh wow Starship did what the Space Shuttle did… [checks notes] …45 years ago.

@thomasfuchs they are becoming self aware though

PSA: LLMs are not and will never be sentient

Carry on

@thomasfuchs I’m one of those people. I have DDD and DISH and herniated discs from time to time. Getting pain medication so that I can function takes jumping through hoops. It’s ridiculous.

Fascinating social dynamic I’ve been seeing lately: a bunch of younger people have been getting into retro computing, which is very cool! But then they end up in social spaces involving a variety of age ranges and confidently explain how things were back in the day to people who were there - incorrectly.

I totally get how it happens; a younger person is used to being surrounded by people their age who don’t know this stuff and feel the need to explain it. Just gets weird in mixed-age groups.

RE: https://hachyderm.io/@thomasfuchs/117616547257943035

There’s more drugs like these, like opioids and Fentanyl specifically.

The panic around these have led to worsening pain management for people with e.g. cancer or after accidents and amounts to indescribable suffering simply because doctors are afraid to prescribe these medications due to public perception.

The stuff you say has consequences.

Once again, do not use names of medications to make fun of powerful people who abuse them—they will never see your post.

But other people will associate Ketamine or Adderall etc. with bad behavior, addiction and doing evil.

(I’m getting regular Ketamine therapy which saved my life from depression)

RIP Sir Patrick

#RetroSpecs

RE: https://hachyderm.io/@thomasfuchs/117616294974876648

Like they should put that cable in a frame and exhibit it in a museum

So they tried upgrading a router cable on Friday afternoon and it led to about 20,000 cancelled flights?

Truly amazing stuff

CRT dog

#Retrospecs

RE: https://hachyderm.io/@thomasfuchs/117615293771179629

For measles be sure to be vaxxed (get blood test to see if you have immunity).

Screwworm can fuck over your dog, Simparica (sarolaner) which is given for flea and tick prevention should also deal with screwworm (it won’t say in the paperwork because _we had screwworm eliminated until now_)

Thanks Republicans for making measles and screwworm great again

reminder that Musk once said humans will be on Mars by five years ago

since then he’s moved this estimate 8 times, and currently as with the first prediction it’s ten years in the future

it’s all a scam, designed to milk investors (including the public via subsidies and military contracts) to make him richer

that he made a mostly working low orbit Internet service is more of a side effect of the fraud, to keep it going for longer

he’s also merging his other failing scams into the company, the “AI” stuff and exploding car company

RE: https://hachyderm.io/@thomasfuchs/117611406003219616

it’s so funny when this happens and the really weird people with no reading comprehension and only a desire to shit their worldview into my replies come out of hiding

they want $50 billion for a “completely new system”

this will literally never ship, the higher the budget the more likely it is for IT projects to fail

but for 15 years money will go to their cronies

would not put it beneath them to do failures deliberately to generate support for their demands

the only two reasons I don’t think it’s on purpose is 1. that a conspiracy to do something like this would require too many people involved and 2. they’re fucking stupid

RE: https://hachyderm.io/@thomasfuchs/117611981486615269

Is this one of those things where the router people have like 2 field technicians that have to manually update the routers on-site but they have to fly to each airport to do it and well

So this happened _because_ they turned something off and back on

“A failed update to the L3Harris-run network that connects US air traffic control facilities caused the nationwide outage.

The update forced the FAA's telecommunications system to reboot, and it crashed when it came back up.” - CBS News

While you were distracted by our infrastructure failing and ships sinking may I inform you that one half of Musk’s rocket exploded today