Elon’s Brilliant Gambit

On November 18th, Tesla stock surged on news that Trump would ease regulations around self-driving cars. And for November 2024, it’s on track for one of its strongest months ever surging yet again. It cannot be stopped. Elon is smarter than he even lets on online. He’s always a few steps ahead. Even in regard… Continue reading Elon’s Brilliant Gambit

Prison is worse and is a more effective deterrent than caning

Lately on Twitter/X there has been a lot of discussion about caning. Singapore, the posterchild of caning, is held up as a role model of criminal justice reform by using caning, which the U.S. also ought to adopt. It sounds good in theory and seems to have worked for Singapore. Such as: Canning does genuinely… Continue reading Prison is worse and is a more effective deterrent than caning

Chris Langan, the CTMU, and the process and pitfalls of developing research

Chris Langan – The Interview THEY Didn’t Want You To See – CTMU: The problem is the CTMU does not meet the criteria of being science. In the video, he appropriates concepts of general relativity (e.g. the manifold) with attempts at tying it with concepts that arise in the context of quantum mechanics (e.g. temporality,… Continue reading Chris Langan, the CTMU, and the process and pitfalls of developing research

Predictions: Trump’s ‘crypto reform’ is DOA; Tariffs not a big deal

For some reason, the media has convinced itself or spun a narrative that the incoming Trump administration will enact major pro-crypto reform. Somehow, Congress will have no trouble passing major legislation that will help crypto; nevermind that Trump’s track record at legislation is poor. Bitcoin has surged in recent weeks in anticipation of a more… Continue reading Predictions: Trump’s ‘crypto reform’ is DOA; Tariffs not a big deal

Sports betting, crypto gambling, and lottery-like systems of wealth

I saw this going viral: The Three Pillars of the Bro-Economy: Day-trading, sports betting, and crypto are about to get bigger. The growing popularity of sports betting and crypto gambling is related to the rise of lottery-like systems of wealth. For those who cannot make it in tech or other high-status or high-paying jobs, they… Continue reading Sports betting, crypto gambling, and lottery-like systems of wealth

Rational loss aversion explains why healthcare spending is so high

It’s not news that Americans spend a lot on healthcare. Nothing has seemed to work at changing this. Preventive care and technology, such has AI, has not put a dent in this spending. Same for the push for healthier lifestyles. There is much blame to go around–from drug companies, to insurance companies, or people being… Continue reading Rational loss aversion explains why healthcare spending is so high

The meritocracy is still intact, even if we don’t like it

An epic-sized article by David Brooks: How the Ivy League Broke America: The meritocracy isn’t working. We need something new. The good test-takers get funneled into the meritocratic pressure cooker; the bad test-takers learn, by about age 9 or 10, that society does not value them the same way. (Too often, this eventually leads them… Continue reading The meritocracy is still intact, even if we don’t like it

The Computer Science (/CS/) section of arXiv is out of control and needs pruning or to be spun-off

The paper Taking AI Welfare Seriously was published to arXiv on November 4th, 2024, and went viral, which motivated me to write this post. It’s evident over the past few years that the Computer Science (/CS/) section of arXiv has far surpassed the other sections: The problem is /CS/, once contained, has now become a… Continue reading The Computer Science (/CS/) section of arXiv is out of control and needs pruning or to be spun-off

The Daily View: 11/14/2024: DOGE, Crime and Prisons, Conspiracy Theories, Crypto Regulation, IQ

Item #1: Trump Unveils DOGE: pic.twitter.com/Vnk4MCAofY — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 13, 2024 What better way to reduce government waste than to create a government agency tasked with that. This is like something pulled strait from Idiocracy. Also, DOGE will have to seek committee approval before it can actually cut anything. Nothing will change. Nothing… Continue reading The Daily View: 11/14/2024: DOGE, Crime and Prisons, Conspiracy Theories, Crypto Regulation, IQ

In Praise of the Cybertruck

I saw this going viral Why Is the Tesla Cybertruck So Depressingly Ugly?, by Ted Gioia. Regarding the part about the Eiffel Tower, this logic would only apply if his was the only Cybertruck, similar to there only being a single Eiffel Tower, instead of being a mass-produced automobile. But overall, this whole article comes… Continue reading In Praise of the Cybertruck