Ask HN: How does Google measure programmer productivity? - <AUTHOR> There was an article [1] on Quartz yesterday that says, "Managers are judged on the productivity of their teams—Google has a highly developed internal analytics team that constantly measures all employees' productivity—and the level of productivity that teams are expected to deliver assumes that employees are working on their primary responsibilities 100% of the time."
I'm hoping someone from Google can chime in and say whether Google's really measuring each employee's productivity, and, if so, how they're doing it.
I've been involved in efforts to measure my team's productivity using function point analysis and LoC measurements, but both felt like bogus measures.
It doesn't seem like Google would use either of these measures, given their engineering culture, so I'm genuinely curious as to how they do it.
[1] http://qz.com/115831/googles-20-time-which-brought-you-gmail-and-adsense-is-now-as-good-as-dead/ <comment><USER2> At one company, my boss got talked into trying to count LoC so that the combined QA testing / customer support organization could charge their costs against each development team in proportion to their code size. Our team spent the next week cleaning up and removing code left and right. I think we easily chopped away more than 25% of the lines in our codebase. After the first weekly LoC total report, that effort faded away.

I think the only time I've felt like I could actually show my boss any measure of productivity from our teams is when we were trying to follow SCRUM reasonably closely and it was easy enough to show who had allegedly completed what during each and every sprint. I did have to juggle to make sure that each person showed enough hours, which was a pain because we'd assign a task to a single person no matter how much collaboration it took.

</comment><comment><USER3> I had this same question. I don't think anyone is going to be able to answer because I think the answer is probably political bickering behind closed doors. Productivity is open to interpretation and it determines who gets money and who's boss gets money. The perception of productivity is at the core of politics at a place like Google.

</comment><comment><USER4> I was actually wondering the same. Maybe they have to build X number of features of fix Y number of bugs?

<comment><AUTHOR> I'm genuinely curious. Core premise of the article is that Google is abandoning 20% time because they have these metrics in place and management places so much value in them. If the articles correct, the measurement they're using is having a huge financial and technological impact on one of the most successful software companies around.

</comment></comment><comment><USER5> What happens when someone is underperforming?

<comment><USER6> At Google, they get put on a "Performance Improvement Plan", which is really intended to give you enough to find another job and resign (rather than get fired). I don't think they actually expect anyone on a PIP to have a rise in performance and to stay on board.</comment></comment>


Ask HN:  Where to move my blog now that Blogger is ceasing FTP support? - <AUTHOR>

Blogger, in an attempt to anger everybody who still uses their service for legitimate purposes, is planning to shut off support for FTP deployment.  They claim that only 0.5% of their users use that feature, but seeing as how a full 99% of blogger-hosted blogs are spam or made-for-adsense, it seems like they're cutting off the air to about half their actual user base.
So now we have about a month to find another blogging service that supports FTP deployment, and can import an entire Blogger blog.  It's a golden opportunity for somebody to step up, but hopefully there's already a service out there for refugees such as myself who don't want to 301 their whole site from mydomain.com/blog over to blog.mydomain.com.
Any ideas? <comment><USER2> Blogger had ftp support? I think I'm one of those 99,5% peoples not using it, never heard about it, I guess I was (am) fine with what they offer. Are you offering files to download or anything peoples will be downloading from your blog? otherwise I will just advice you to stay with blogger and migrate the downloading to another plattform, you could use dropbox or even skydrive (25 Gigs, all free) for that, it's not just worth moving to wordpress, as blogger is improving. csomar said Wordpress if you use your own host, I may also add GAE (google app engine) if you still want to use free hosting wth high performance, but it's not an easy going.

<comment><AUTHOR> Yeah. It is really nice.

It will deploy your blog as a set of HTML files to anywhere you want. No server overhead per request, and no installing a bunch of extra software on the server just to host the blog.

Blogger's hosted service requires you to use a subdomain, such as blog.mysite.com. Since that's actually worse for SEO than mysite.com/blog, and since I'm doing it the other way already and don't want to 301 everything across just to support Blogger's whim, I need to find an alternative that still supports FTP deploy.

</comment></comment><comment><USER3> wordpress.

* It import Blogger posts + comments

You should be using this one already instead of Blogger if you want to use your own host.

<comment><AUTHOR> Ah, but Wordpress has dependencies on PHP and MySQL, neither of which I intend to install on the server in question. And Wordpress has CPU overhead for every request, since it needs to run code and query the database to display the requested content.

Blogger's killer feature (until next month) is the fact that it will deploy your blog as a set of static HTML files to any web server via FTP. I'm sure that there are other blogging platforms that offer the same thing, and it's one of those that I'm looking for.

Since Blogger is alienating thousands of people here, I'm hoping that one of them has already done the research, and can point the rest of us in the right direction.</comment></comment>


Doodles in the Margins of Medieval Books - <AUTHOR> http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/medieval-marginalia-books-doodles <comment><USER2> Looks like there a medieval goatse there as well

[http://assets.atlasobscura.com/article_images/lg/41889/image...](http://assets.atlasobscura.com/article_images/lg/41889/image.jpg)

<comment><USER3> Risky click

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> Is there a website where one can read scanned medieval books?

<comment><USER5> Yes: [http://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebogroup](http://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebogroup)

[http://image.ox.ac.uk/list?collection=all](http://image.ox.ac.uk/list?collection=all)

[http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/dept/scwmss/wmss/medieval/browse....](http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/dept/scwmss/wmss/medieval/browse.htm)

[http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/welcome.h...](http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/welcome.htm)

<comment><USER6> [http://corpus.bibliamedieval.es/](http://corpus.bibliamedieval.es/)

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> got medieval? [http://www.gotmedieval.com/category/mmm- marginalia-2](http://www.gotmedieval.com/category/mmm-marginalia-2)</comment>


What If PR Stood for People and Relationships by Brian Solis - <AUTHOR> http://www.slideshare.net/Vocus/vocus-brian-solis-ebookfinal/SolisandGapingvoid

<comment><USER2> Ethos of the piece: PR doesn't stand for press release. Please appreciate that the P in stands for public not publicity or propaganda or publishing. This is about public relations. But perhaps even that doesn't quite capture the essence of the importance or PR. PR symbolizes People and Relationships.

</comment><comment><USER3> Amazon CEO, Jeff Bezos, once said that your brand is what someones says about it when you're not in the room</comment>


Computers can only do what you tell them to do - <AUTHOR> http://oscardelben.com/articles/2009/12/30/computers-can-only-do-what-you-tell-them-to-do.html

<comment><USER2> Sometimes telling a computer what to do feels like telling these two guards what to do (about one minute in).

From Monty Python and the Holy Grail ("the curtains" scene)

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVWH01E2weA></comment>


The Other Kind of Speed: What YCSB Doesn't Measure - <AUTHOR> http://blog.thumbtack.net/the-other-kind-of-speed-what-ycsb-doesnt-measure/

<comment><USER2> A heavily neutered version of the original post is now back on line: [http://blog.thumbtack.net/another-kind-of-speed-mongodb- and-...](http://blog.thumbtack.net/another-kind-of-speed-mongodb-and-time-to- market/)

To see the diffs: [https://gist.githubusercontent.com/stennie/2a2722fc70c77fb2b...](https://gist.githubusercontent.com/stennie/2a2722fc70c77fb2bc5e/raw/95387fc19c6e991164620b703159208448cdc86d/gistfile1.diff)

</comment><comment><USER3> [http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:U_pU17L...](http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:U_pU17LkaZ0J:blog.thumbtack.net/the- other-kind-of-speed-what-ycsb-doesnt-measure/+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk)

<comment><USER4> Funny, why was this removed?</comment></comment>


We have to cut features due to Lion's mandatory sandboxing for 3rd party apps - <AUTHOR> http://newsanchormac.com/wp/kitchen/news-anchor-lions-sandboxing/

<comment><USER2> sounds like the new sandboxed model exists in the twilight between the full blown desktop apps and web apps. It doesn't sound like a good return on investment.</comment>


Financial Times on finance for German startups via corporate VC model - <AUTHOR> http://nicosiamoneynews.com/2012/03/12/in-search-of-outside-inspiration/

<comment><AUTHOR> Sorry for linking to a cut-and-paste site, but the FT's syndication model is rather a nuisance. The original story is at

[http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b0a854f8-6a1b-11e1-a26e-00144feabd...](http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b0a854f8-6a1b-11e1-a26e-00144feabdc0.html)

has title "In search of outside inspiration", and has Chris Bryant's byline.</comment>


Ask HN: Books that altered your view of reality - <AUTHOR> Any recommendations on books that changed how you think about VR/AR/reality?<p>I've been enjoying Ready Player One and Snow Crash lately and am wondering what I should pick up next. Thanks! <comment><USER3> _Neuromancer_ \- William Gibson

 _REAMDE_ \- Neal Stephenson

 _Pattern Recognition_ / _Zero History_ / _Spook Country_ \- William Gibson

 _The Peripheral_ \- William Gibson

Not exactly the same thing, but I'll also throw in _Glasshouse_ by Charles Stross. And since we're talking Charles Stross, also add _Halting State_ to the list.

Oh, and _VALIS_ by Philip K. Dick. Definitely worth a read.

<comment> V-2 I agree, but it's not just VALIS. Probably most of his prose dealt with this theme. Personally I liked "Ubik" better.

<comment><USER3> You're probably right, but as of now, _VALIS_ is the only thing I've read by PKD, so it's the only one I can recommend.

I have a big pile of his other works here, waiting to be read, but just haven't gotten to the rest yet. :-(

<comment> V-2 I know the pain. Well, it would be worth your while once you get to it - as I said, "Ubik" is pretty awesome. "The Man in the High Castle" too, although it's different, not that much of "pure" s-f element, it's political fiction, but still very Dickesque (it depicts a world where nazis won the war - <USER2> certain writer gains fame for his alternative history novel in which they actually lost :) ).

<comment><USER3> Sounds good. I'm on book 12 of the "Wheel of Time" series by Jordan now, plus all the non-fiction I'm reading. But maybe after I finish WoT I'll binge on PKD for a while. I did enjoy _VALIS_ quite a lot, even though it was pretty f'in weird. :-)

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER4> Given what you've just read and a VR/AR requirement I'd suggest either -

Rainbows End - Vernor Vinge

Daemon - Daniel Suarez

They are both more AR, which I suspect will be the next step rather than VR, AR novels have if anything proven to me it's more relevant than VR, for now.

Daemon relies a bit more on AI to make the story.

</comment><comment> mm-typer The Ancestor's Tale by Richard Dawkins... this book starts at human-bonobo- chimpanzee split and goes backward into a LOT of evolutionary history, including scientific discoveries and different branches of the evolutionary tree.

</comment><comment><USER5> Believe it or not: Slaughterhouse V by Kurt Vonnegut and No. 44 The Mysterious Stranger by Mark Twain. The first for the idea of being "unstuck" in time, and the second for introducing the concept of nihilism.

</comment><comment><USER6> The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson. AR plays a heavy role in it (and it is my favorite Stephenson novel).

Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World - Haruki Murakami. I can't say much about it without ruining it.

</comment><comment><USER7> The Mezzanine by Nicholson Baker

A man goes out to buy shoelaces and a cookie during his lunch break, but the story is packed with insane levels of detail about the objects around us and the narrator's imagination about how those details came to be.

One such detail: the way a plastic straw will float in a can of soda until it's horizontal, but sometimes the microscopic burrs in the pull-tab opening will dig into the straw and keep it from doing that.

(Baker is a much more entertaining writer than I am.)

</comment><comment><USER8> _Diaspora_ by Greg Egan will twist the way you think of perception

<comment><USER9> Boom! Another Greg Egan fan, here. Reading through Axiomatic right now and loving it.

One thing I've noticed (& which I'm sure a lot of people have stated) is that his fictional works are mostly just a platform for him to explore ideas. Whether or not they entertain is a side effect. A few stories on Axiomatic for instance end rather abruptly. It is as if Egan just couldn't be bothered with tying everything in a neat little package once he'd already finished exploring the implications of a particular philosophical idea.

<comment><USER10> For more mind altering fiction from Egan, tackle his "Orthogonal" books, which posits a universe where the speed of light is not a constant and builds on that (and Riemannian Geometry).

If you just want the physics behind the books, see his website [ [http://www.gregegan.net/ORTHOGONAL/ORTHOGONAL.html](http://www.gregegan.net/ORTHOGONAL/ORTHOGONAL.html) ]

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER11> Most recently Accelerando by Charles Stross has been occupying an outsized portion of my contemplations.

<comment><USER12> Everyone on HN should read this book - 11/10

<comment><USER13> Same for 1930's _Last and First Men_ , by Olaf Stapledon, which spans 2 billion years and eighteen species of variously augmented humans, [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_and_First_Men](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_and_First_Men)

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER14> The Egg, a short story: [http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html](http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html)

Too short for a TLDR, but it changed the way I look at other people, for the better.

</comment><comment><USER15> Diaspora was pretty amazing [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diaspora_%28novel%29](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diaspora_%28novel%29)

</comment><comment><USER16> Einstein's Dreams by Alan Lightman

</comment><comment> V-2 Obviously not s-f as such, but - quite a few novels by Nabokov. "The Luzhin Defence" (aka "The Defense"), "The Eye", "Bend Sinister", "Transparent Things" \- all very immersing, and posing the question of what's the _true_ reality, its underpinnings and seams. Challenging reads for sure, every detail matters.

Some might recommend Pynchon as well, personally I'm not convinced but to each his own.

</comment><comment><USER17> Walden, not because I want to go and live in the woods, but because it helped me question many of the "truths" I had come to believe.

</comment><comment><USER18> Peter Senge's Fifth Discipline. The chapters on mental models and learning disabilities definitely change the way you look at the world.

</comment><comment><USER19> _The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind_ \- Julian Jaynes

 _Wholeness and the Implicate Order_ \- David Bohm

</comment><comment><USER9> Phantoms in the Brain: Probing the Mysteries of the Human Mind by Dr. Vilayanur S. Ramachandran

Read it around three years ago and I was never the same since. It is non- fiction, and I think VR is only mentioned in passing, but if you see it anywhere, be sure to pick it up. It was a fun and informative read.

</comment><comment><USER20> Daemon & Freedom by Daniel Suarez.

</comment><comment><USER21> Stanislaw Lem: Futurological congress

</comment><comment><USER22> Greg Egan's _Permutation City_ plays some novel games with reality.

</comment><comment><USER23> The Moral Animal: Why We Are, the Way We Are: The New Science of Evolutionary Psychology - Robert Wright.

After reading this, you will understand (and be able to predict) a lot of patterns of human behavior.

</comment><comment><USER24> Taleb - Black Swan

</comment><comment><USER25> Carlos Castenada's _The Teachings of Don Jaun: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge_.

<comment><USER25> Julian Jaynes _The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the BiCameral Mind_

<comment><USER25> Kant, _Critique of Pure Reason_.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER26> Any books from Thich Nhat Hanh.

The miracle of mindfulness, No mud/No Lotus, How to Love ...

</comment><comment><USER27> House of leaves

</comment><comment><USER28> The books of Noam Chomsky altered my political and historical perception very drastically.</comment>


Go Ahead, Raise Your Business's Prices - <AUTHOR> http://www.inc.com/magazine/20101101/go-ahead-raise-your-businesss-prices.html

<comment><USER2> I think this kind of thought also applies to consulting prices, where the "customers" are "clients". Price can be a great filter.</comment>


What sealed Nokia's fate? - <AUTHOR> http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/02/16/nokia_had_choices_but_couldnt_take_them/ <comment><USER2> Was it really bureaucracy?

Nokia didn't seem to have any trouble producing nice looking, well engineered hardware. My N95 was probably the best cell phone I've ever owned. What it really looks like to me is that they were a hardware company whose upper- management didn't understand software very well.

My N95 ran Symbian S60 3rd edition. At some point Nokia decided that they wanted to protect S60 users from malware, and that they were going to do it by requiring all applications to be cryptographically signed. Unlike Apple and Google, Nokia didn't want to shoulder the burden of running their own authentication infrastructure. Instead, the 'Symbian Signed' policy required applications to be signed with a TLS/SSL certificate. Those are typically pretty expensive. If you wanted anyone to use your little free S60 utility for auto-rotating the screen or setting location-aware themes, you had to stump up for a $700 TLS certificate to sign it. Guess what happened to the free- software ecosystem on S60.

Later, Nokia had what seemed to be a pretty good start on a Linux-based OS called Maemo. What the article doesn't say is that Nokia inexplicably joined forces with Intel and sent Maemo on a long and probably pointless integration detour with Intel's mobile Linux solution, Moblin.

Given that Nokia probably wasn't going to start making smart decisions wrt software anytime soon, getting software from someone else was better than being squeezed out of the smartphone business altogether.

<comment><AUTHOR> I think the bureaucracy is right, because Nokia wasn't able to make focused decision. Actually I think this is a classical management problem. Control 132000 people.</comment></comment>


NSA collects millions of e-mail address books globally - k-mcgrady http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/nsa-collects-millions-of-e-mail-address-books-globally/2013/10/14/8e58b5be-34f9-11e3-80c6-7e6dd8d22d8f_story.html?tid=pm_world_pop

<comment> k-mcgrady >> "During a single day last year, the NSA's Special Source Operations branch collected 444,743 e-mail address books from Yahoo, 105,068 from Hotmail, 82,857 from Facebook, 33,697 from Gmail and 22,881 from unspecified other providers, according to an internal NSA PowerPoint presentation."

I wonder if this is any indication of the security of the services (i.e. Gmail much more secure than Yahoo)?</comment>


Ask HN: Best website to get a custom logo? - <AUTHOR> I'd like to pay a designer for the creation of a custom logo. I know how it needs to look. I just need a talented designer to give me the favicon.ico file, PNGs, JPGs etc.
Have you had any experience with having a remote designer create a logo? If so, can you point me to their websites?
Thanks! <comment><USER2> Fiverr is popular on the low end and 99designs in the middle, but quality is very hit or miss. The approach I recommend is going to this page on Dribbble: [https://dribbble.com/search?q=logo&s=latest](https://dribbble.com/search?q=logo&s=latest) and then contacting the designers whose work you like. They will give you a proposal and a quote based on your initial request.

</comment><comment><USER3> There are dozens of cheap logo stores on etsy:

[https://www.etsy.com/shop/easylogo](https://www.etsy.com/shop/easylogo) [https://www.etsy.com/shop/Logolane](https://www.etsy.com/shop/Logolane) ...

</comment><comment><USER4> One option I've found for basic designs is to run a competition on Freelancer (I think Fiverr and others do this too). If you put a reasonable guaranteed payment you'll get a bunch of entries and see the quality people quickly. Also you'll get more variety to chose from.

The added benefit is this gives you a stable of better designers you can reach-out to directly for other jobs later.

</comment><comment><USER5> "I know how it needs to look."

Check Squarespace creator or Logodust. More than good for MVP and from there is much easier to iterate with designer.

[0] [http://logo.squarespace.com/](http://logo.squarespace.com/) [1] [http://www.logodust.com/](http://www.logodust.com/)

</comment><comment><USER6> [http://logoshi.com](http://logoshi.com)

It allows you to draw a rough, color sketch based on which it generates a sample of possible logos for you to pick from and tweak.

For someone like me, who just needs a logo, perhaps based on the project name, but doesn't care about the design so much, this has been perfect.

</comment><comment><USER7> [https://99designs.com/](https://99designs.com/)

</comment><comment><USER8> Happy to do it. You can pay me what you want.

</comment><comment><USER9> What's your budget?</comment>


Erlang Web: open source framework for applications  - <AUTHOR> http://www.erlang-web.org/about.html <comment><USER2> It's a bit unfortunate that there's already an Erlang framework called "ErlyWeb".

<comment><USER3> Didn't people stop developing that?

<comment> a-priori People? It's exclusively Yariv as far as I know.

Last I heard he's gotten hooked on Numenta's approach to AI, so I guess you could say he's on a hiatus. The source is available though -- I maintain a mirror of his repository on GitHub.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER4> What about erlang web frameworks on top of Mochiweb ? Is there any?

<comment><USER5> We plan on integrating mochi web to the erlang-web. So far, it handles inets and yaws. Adding mochi web is not that hard, and help is always welcome :-)

</comment></comment><comment><USER3> Yes!

More Erlang Frameworks!</comment>


NBA suspends season over the coronavirus after player tests positive - <AUTHOR> https://www.axios.com/nba-suspends-basketball-season-coronavirus-5106988a-2fed-48d9-9729-ebe58824f1f4.html <comment><USER2> Between this and Tom Hanks, it may feel a lot more real to a lot of people tomorrow.

<comment><USER3> Tom Hanks is what gets you, not the U.S. suspending all travel from Europe for 30 days?

I don't get people.

<comment><USER4> Celebrity worship in America is extremely powerful. Don't ever underestimate how much it's central to American culture.

<comment><USER5> In this case it actually seems kind of rational.

It's really hard to process all the information that's available about what's going on; it's changing constantly, there's no consensus on a lot of stuff, the numbers and curves are highly unnatural to think about even if they didn't have massive uncertainty in their variables, and on and on.

As an example, instead let's talk about the lottery. If I hear that a movie star won the lottery, that's pretty surprising. I didn't expect to ever even know the name of someone that wins the lottery. The odds are really, really long and I don't know the names of enough people. And oh, an NBA player won the lottery today too? OK, well maybe this lottery doesn't work the way I was thinking.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER6> Hopefully we can still watch the rest of the XFL season.

<comment><USER7> Indeed. It would probably be socially responsible to cancel their season too, but I'm really enjoying their games (at least the ones that air on free TV).

Here's hoping the NBA, and whatever leagues might be affected, are able to reschedule their games once this nasty bug finally dies out.

<comment><USER8> I'm planning on watching the F1 Australian GP this weekend (on tv, not in Australia). So far China is the only race on the calendar that they've "rescheduled". There was news yesterday that 3 F1 team members (not drivers) were in isolation pending test results. But they say everything is going ahead.

<comment><USER9> One big difference between F1 and the NBA is that in the NBA, players are routinely within 2m of each other. If that happens to F1 drivers during the race, they have problems other than coronavirus to be concerned about.

<comment><USER8> An F1 driver will spend 4-5 hours on track during a race weekend. The rest of the time is spent in hotels, with the press, with fans and in the track facilities/garage. I've been around a few F1 tracks on race days, and they are incredibly packed full of people. The drivers don't need to worry about catching a virus on track, it's everywhere else that's the problem.

But the thing that makes F1 actually somewhat unique in terms of Coronavirus risk, is that it's supposed to take place across 22 countries (down to 21 now that China's been cancelled - or "postponed"). Including a number of countries that have high infection rates, like Italy, Singapore and Japan. An F1 team member could theoretically be infected in one country, go to a race in another country, leave and arrive in a 3rd country before they even show symptoms.

So far what the FIA has done is cancel China, prohibit driver > fan interaction at events, limit press interaction, and said that some races will be run without live audiences. They've also said that if a team can't race because of the virus, they won't hold an official GP, but they kinda implied they'd still hold a race.

I'm a big fan of F1, so I'm happy to see the races. But it seems like a disaster waiting to happen. The FIA also have a terrible history of not cancelling events when they really should be cancelled. Last year when Typhoon Hagibis was forecast to arrive onshore in Japan on the Saturday of the Japanese GP weekend, the FIAs plan was "we think Typhoon Hagibis will be gone by Sunday, so we'll just run qualifying on Sunday morning". It did clear up by then, but really just by luck. In 2005 the circuit for the US GP had a corner that was dangerous to take at speed for any car that was using Michelin tires, because they may catastrophically fail. This caused two major crashes during practice. The FIA refused to change the track, refused to cancel the race, and refused to allow the teams to withdraw. The result was that the (7/10) Michelin teams drove one formation lap, and then had all 14 of their drivers retire. In short, they can't really be trusted to make defensible decisions about cancelling events.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER10> The financial hit from this and other event closures, travel restrictions, supply chain disruptions, and lost wages is going to be massive.

Asset prices and employment reports do not in any way reflect what's in store.

<comment><USER11> Asset prices are based on forward looking projections of the business, not on current revenues, or even next quarter's revenues. This is why S&P 500 companies trade at an average valuation of 15X their current-year earnings. If anything, they're way oversold already.

Nothing's fundamentally or structurally changed in the US economy. There were no bad mortgages. We hit the brakes for a bit, but before you know it we'll be back up on our feet and working our asses off, and if we're lucky, we'll get some mandatory paid sick days added to employment law out of it.

[edit] well actually, something has fundamentally changed: the cost of borrowing got _somehow even lower_ meaning an eventual recovery may be turbocharged. The Fed is very unlikely to raise rates as we move past this.

<comment><USER12> This is a global recession, spending is drying up. You may or may not have seen the dot com bust, but this to me looks like that except across the globe. Many companies will die because they rely on cash flow and that will dry up. Restaurants, and entertainment venues will be dead until May 2021, unless we find a vaccine that treats this. As more and more celebrities get infected and possibly die it will hit the psyche a lot more than the financial crisis ever did.

It really is different this time, and it frightens me, not the virus itself but the economic ramifications.

The best case scenario is that summer stops the virus from spreading, panic lessens, and then a treatment is found before September that is effective and quick. Then a vaccine comes out next March 2021 and everyone is happy again.

<comment><USER13> > Restaurants, and entertainment venues will be dead until May 2021, unless we > find a vaccine that treats this.

Just because people over 70 won't be going to them, doesn't mean the rest of us won't be. Besides, once I've had cornavirus - which could well be inevitable - I'll no longer be scared for it and will head back out. So will everybody else.

To be honest, the best way to avoid a severe economic impact is to accept you'll most likely get it, and rather than killing businesses by staying inside, just got on with your life, stay fit and healthy, and hope for the best. You're more likely to be killed driving your car, so carry on living!

<comment><USER14> So in other words: "who cares, the virus only kills old people who were probably useless to the economy anyway, so business as usual."

I sure hope you don't have any elderly family members. Plenty of people in their 40s have died too

<comment><USER13> Not what I said. Those most vulnerable should stay at home. No reason for the rest of us too of we are very low risk.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER15> ESPN is a little more reliable [https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/28887560/nba-suspends- se...](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/28887560/nba-suspends-season- further-notice-player-tests-positive-coronavirus)

<comment><USER16> The NBA's Twitter account is now confirming they have suspended it for now:

[https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1237917831506857989](https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1237917831506857989)

</comment></comment><comment><USER17> All players need to be tested. Thankfully they are young and healthy so the risk is low personally. Think about how many players lick their hands before a free throw and then pass it around, the refs touch the ball for tip off, etc. Damn a pandemic really makes you aware about how many microbes are out there.

<comment><USER18> I'm a little bit sick of hearing stuff related to age. "oh but they are in their 30's they will be ok" etc.

It doesn't change the fact they are now carriers and are potentially going to infect a child, or an elderly, or someone with a compromised immune system.

<comment><USER19> The death rate for everyone under 50 is 0.1%, or 1 in 1000.

The death rate for those over 80 is 12% or higher.

Now, if everyone shuts down their life and somehow society can survive for 3 weeks with nobody allowed to move anywhere, maybe this virus goes away.

But, I think the economic consequences of that will be a lot worse than just continuing on with normal life and making sure people over 80 and people with chronic diseases are cloistered away and cared for.

<comment><USER20> It seems like you're really underestimating the severity of the situation

I implore you to read up on what the situation in Italy is like at this moment, and to look into why the Danish government just declared Denmark in lockdown mode.

Denmark went from 30 diagnosed cases to over 500 in 5 days. This is with an aggressive testing protocol that includes tracking, testing and quarantining every person each new case has been in contact with.

To think that the US with their limited and delayed testing is at anywhere below 20000 actual infections by now seems extremely optimistic

Everyone will get sick -at the same time-. That's a really really big deal

<comment><USER19> Hundreds of thousands die from flu every year in a relatively compressed period.

Only people who need to be in hospitals are those who need intubation.

Everyone will get sick no matter what you try to do. So the government needs to spin up more intubation servers, not block IPs...

<comment><USER21> The death numbers are only one component of the problem.

The other problem is the 10-15% ICU rate. That swamps healthcare systems. Italy's healthcare system has nearly collapsed in the north, from just 12,000 positive cases so far. They're having to let patients die, which is why their mortality rate is so extremely high. The Lombardy region has one of the better rated healthcare systems on the planet and it can't handle what's happening. Unconstrained, Italy's healthcare system nationwide would collapse rapidly as their cases ballooned into the many tens of thousands. I'm not picking on Italy here, merely using them as a clear example of how serious this is. Every country should be treating this like a severe, immediate threat to their healthcare system continuing to function.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER22> Our "market-base" healthcare system is totally unfit for pandemic containment.

Oh you have the disease, and you're part of the legions of people that 1) don't have insurance or 2) have skyhigh catastrophic coverage insurance.

You're first question isn't "should I get treatment", it is:

WHO WILL PAY FOR MY QUARANTINE.

And people will avoid the billing-happy US healthcare system, and large percentages of people stay in circulation.

<comment><USER23> It's a virus, not a disease.

EDIT: Nope, fubar'd this; it's a disease. Thanks hexane360.

There is no medical treatment for most people; there is no cure to administer.

Stay hydrated, manage symptoms, rest, and monitor for worsening conditions is about all that can be done for the majority of people.

EDIT: Edited for structure.

<comment><USER24> COVID-19 is a disease. The virus is SARS-CoV-2. You're not even right at being pedantic. Illnesses don't need to be treatable or curable to be called diseases.

<comment><USER23> I never said they need to be treatable nor curable to be called diseases.

What I am, is wrong about it not being a disease. All these are listed as diseases: SARS-COV, MERS-COV, and nCOV. Even, also, the common flu. I never thought of that as a disease before now, since it's a viral infection. Thank you for making me learn a little more tonight.

<comment><USER25> Not sure where you're seeing those "listed", but those are the names of viruses which are associated with diseases.

[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East_respiratory_synd...](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East_respiratory_syndrome- related_coronavirus)

<comment><USER23> From the WHO: [https://www.who.int/health- topics/coronavirus](https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus)

"Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans."

The naming is actually a bit confusing to me, as the CDC has this to say[1]:

"On February 11, 2020 the World Health Organization announced an official name for the disease that is causing the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak, first identified in Wuhan China. The new name of this disease is coronavirus disease 2019, abbreviated as COVID-19. In COVID-19, 'CO' stands for 'corona,' 'VI' for 'virus,' and 'D' for disease. Formerly, this disease was referred to as "2019 novel coronavirus" or "2019-nCoV"."

I'm not sure where the separation between virus and disease is or was, of if that even matters in the end.

[1] [https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html](https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html)

<comment><USER25> Viruses are the physical thing which makes you sick. The disease is the sickness the virus (in this case) gives you. The problem is that nobody in the media* knows the difference or pays attention to it when reporting it.

Wikipedia calls diseases "medical conditions that are associated with specific symptoms and signs".

<comment><USER23> Thank you for the insight. It's been an interesting night; never before had I thought of chicken pox or a cold as a disease, but that's what they're classified as.

In my worldview, up until tonight, my understanding of a disease was something that won't go away on it's own. Heart disease, Huntington's, etc.

I agree about the media. While I've seen COVID-19 everywhere; I didn't know anything about the nomenclature in this field and have only heard references to a virus, not a disease.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER26> And Rudy is positive afrer mic-touching stunt! Yeesh.

</comment><comment><USER27> NBA gets people seated in front of their TV's. I worry that this suspension means would be viewers go outside more.

<comment><USER28> I wonder how risky just walking outside is if you don't talk to or touch anything and you're not in a crowded area. Certainly more than sealing yourself in a room but I wonder if walking past someone briskly with your hands in your pockets has a significant risk of transmission?

<comment><USER29> It's not particularly risky in itself, but what activity are you proposing? Most people aren't heading out just for a stroll around the block. It's whatever's at the end of the walk that's the problem.

<comment><USER30> Walking the dog?

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER31> I wonder if the NCAA will follow suit. I know they already said the games would be empty

</comment><comment> Munky-Necan The best thing we can do to stop the spread is things like this, unfortunately.

</comment><comment><USER32> A player, Rudy Gobert, tested positive for Coronavirus today.

He recently did this, [https://twitter.com/SomeonesAnIdiot/status/12379197037812940...](https://twitter.com/SomeonesAnIdiot/status/1237919703781294081) claiming something along the lines of 'it's not a big deal'

<comment><USER33> Is it possible he could be sued over this if any of the reporters contract it?

<comment><USER34> Fascinating question...

There's this standard case for law students (here in Germany): A man wishes his wife was dead. He sends her out to the mailbox on rainy day, muttering "I hope you get hit by lightning" under his breath. She does get hit by lightning and dies. Murder?

<comment><USER35> force majeure

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER36> Boy, I'm glad I did my big grocery store today and not tomorrow.

<comment><USER28> Same. Didn't go crazy but got more of the less-perishables that I'm going to eat anyway. Maybe 90% of the rice was gone, ditto for cooking oil and other staples (mid-atlantic us south). Fresh vegetables and meats and everything else really seemed in normal stock for now.

<comment><USER37> I own a canner so can turn perishable stuff into long term stuff. Might just have to start doing it too.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER38> Given the incredible impact this has had and will continue to have. What will the likely consequences be for China given that it is my understanding that the source of the virus was Wuhan China?

<comment><USER39> The same consequences that africa got for ebola or the middle east got for MERS. Nothing. It's not their fault. It's a virus. It happens.

People like you are so obvious. What do you think happened to the region that gave us HIV? Nothing because it's not their fault.

<comment><USER40> Aren't SARS and COVID suspected to be the result of viruses jumping species in wet markets that sell wildlife?

If that is true, I'm not sure you can just say "it happens", as the wet market environments are man-made.

[1] Vox : "Why new diseases keep appearing in China" \-- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPpoJGYlW54](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPpoJGYlW54)

[2] Vox Explained: "The Next Pandemic" \-- [https://www.netflix.com/watch/81062202?trackId=13752289&tctx...](https://www.netflix.com/watch/81062202?trackId=13752289&tctx=0%2C3%2Cad81ab60-7b5f-458f-a116-1c1250e60946-115068166%2C%2C)</comment></comment></comment>


Coursera is now blocking visitors from Cuba, Iran, Sudan, and Syria  - <AUTHOR> http://help.coursera.org/customer/portal/articles/1425714-why-is-my-country-blocked-

<comment><AUTHOR> Screenshot of the warning message:

[http://www.wamda.com/2014/01/coursera-blocks-syria-and- iran-...](http://www.wamda.com/2014/01/coursera-blocks-syria-and-iran-moocs- online-courses)</comment>


Big Data Is Booming but Big Results Are Lacking - <AUTHOR> http://allthingsd.com/20130520/in-media-big-data-is-booming-but-big-results-are-lacking/

<comment><USER2> I think the article hit the nail on the head: data phobia.

It is a very tough sell to tell people that their intuitions are wrong, especially when certain practices and beliefs are long entrenched.

It is hard for me to describe to anyone the resistance to anything you present if you haven't been there. The expectations for accuracy are far beyond what can be realistically accomplished. It is humiliating and frustrating to see people who have no business analyzing your work comb over every last number and if ONE number is wrong, the whole plan tumbles.

In my experience, the communication issue is teaching sales, management, etc, that the point is not to play whack-a-mole and "fix" everything, and that the data is not meant to be used as a hammer (IMO), but that it is simply there to point the company in a direction, or at least, show where things could be improved and encourage good directions that already exist.

I believe that the expectations do not align with reality at this point. Everyone is looking for some mythical Fountain of XYZ, and it simply does not exist.

"Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics" is so ingrained in our conscience that the expected reaction to Big Data is a knee-jerk mistrust to whatever is presented. It is a serious issue, and we that have to analyze data have to be cognizant of the fact that we are pushing back against a century (centuries?) of idiots who have used statistics to lie, justify false information, and push agendas.

<comment><USER3> This reaction can vary heavily depending on the traits of the executives, and unfortunately, the kind of personality that gets to the top in embedded corporate hierarchies tends to be people who are excellent at the image of productivity rather than true productivity. To these people, there is nothing more threatening than objective facts. They can manipulate and hide from reality with the subjective. The objective is a new world where they are exposed for the frauds that they are.

The U.S. Federal Government is packed with these types.

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> In the corporate world, this is because the purpose of enterprise data is less to drive decisionmaking, and more to justify decisions that the executives were going to make anyway, which will usually just be whatever has the greatest benefit to their own careers.

In the public world, though, it seems to me like big data has had pretty huge results. The most commonly cited example probably being Nate Silver predicting the 2012 US presidential election results correctly for all 50 states using big data sources and techniques--this degree of predictive statistical analysis was previously unheard of in politics.

<comment><USER5> The dilbert strip in the article was hilarious

<http://dilbert.com/strips/comic/2012-07-29/>

Is there some kind of gene which predisposes people to throwing around buzzwords? How is it that human behaviour gave rise to "big data" and "the cloud"?

<comment><USER3> The "gene" you speak of is a desperation to prove relevance when a person has a sneaking suspicion in their heart that they don't add value.

Ever notice how the people who throw around the most buzz words are those who think of, and refer to themselves as "big picture" thinkers? They have conveniently tricked themselves into thinking that focusing on and mastering any true skill is a distraction from understanding the broader landscape in which they operate.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER6> Fears and phobias never helped coping with reality.

The stream of data that we and our environments create(d) is an reality since the moment we made them digital (vs. analog) and started processing them with computers. As soon as you are able to process the data you are often just one switch / flag away to also store it.

When telephone systems and backbones started to become digital on a broader scale in the 1990, the at that time already existing surveillance or data collection expanded massively because data became accessible and usable on a large scale. First huge processing farms were built for the FBI, NSA ea. and the congress appropriated hundreds of millions for them. For the next version of those server farms U.S. congress already provided dozens of billions 4-5 years ago. Follow the money and you can find out since when this is going on.

With every step our world is becoming more digital these "virtual images" of us will become more complete and we will become more dependent on them. Ask yourself how often you are still using a paper map today vs 10 years ago, soon there will be a generation of people living that will only navigate with digital maps and GPS leaving a trace of their every movements - for them it will be the norm and they will not know another way. If you prefer a more positive image think about people living with a heart disease and how many of them will survive because of 24/7 surveillance.

One key element with all that data often overlooked is that once we depend on it within many areas of our lives, falsification of "data elements" or blocking access to "data services" has substantial impact on the person herself. Thinking about finding a new job so that you can pay your rent - almost every step within that is already digital. And faking email conversations, phone interviews etc today only requires limited resources for "someone" having mandatory access to the mail servers and internet infrastructure. Putting incriminating material on computers of your business / political / life "opponents" might already be a drag and click activity for some of those. Falsificating / sabotaging financial transactions have been reported from various political activists since years and are for years already part of Hollywood folklore / films. In short - soon "some" will be able to completely change our real lives by "working the data" - if we are economically successful, whom we meet, what we think about others / products / politics, if we die from diseases or not...

It would be too easy to say that what happens with all the data about us, our activities and interactions is a matter of what society we are living in, if it's a true democracy with civil rights or an oppressive state. This per se is an illusion. It is denying how the majority of people are living their lives, they want to be part of a community, be safe, have no problems, enjoy incentives (or things you can buy). And it is denying how governments work, because the sole existence of such a feedback / control / surveillance / oppression mechanism is changing society itself and the way we are governed.

Think along the lines - what can be done will be done. And if powers of "some" in our societies continue to be expanded day-after-day - it certainly will.

</comment><comment><USER7> The example given of Big Data use is that Netflix allegedly checking its user data to decide whether to buy House of Cards.

It's not evident that such Big Data was useful in the way described. Anyway, the data described could easily be collected - likely at the same cost and accuracy - in an old-fashioned focus group type of way.

Deciding to buy House of Cards required insight - outside of the data and statistics - to ask the right questions and come to a conclution.

Has using 'Big Data' here led to a more accurate or better value results? Is this even really what 'Big Data' is? Absolutely not clear.

'Data phobia' might be an issue but is not the major issue. The issue is using phrases like 'Big Data' which don't actually mean anything: this phrase alone doesn't create value for business.

</comment><comment><USER8> Big Corp, that are known to have actual big data are also hardly known for being early adopters... It will take much more time than expected to see data- driven companies and I actually think the finance industry will be the first to do real, sensible big data analysis.

It will also take something more than Hadoop and the like to do something real... Don't like to be that guy, but please, stop rewriting yet another query language and try to write efficient engines instead. ;)

<comment><USER9> I worked at a financial software startup from 2005-2007, and the financial industry was _already using_ big data pervasively. Hell, LTCM failed in 1998 because they were doing big data analyses of small spreads and forgot about some of the holes in their analyses, namely what would happen if a "black swan" event moved currency prices out of their historical norms. Quant hedge funds like DE Shaw, Citadel, and RennTech have been around since the 80s.

Heck, back in high school one of the math competitions I won was sponsored by INFORMS (the Institute For Operations Research and the Management Sciences), and I asked my dad "What's operations research?" and he said that it's where people with math Ph.Ds go to make big bucks. Companies like FedEx, Safeway, and WalMart have relied on their massive amounts of operations data to do things like minimize transportation costs or ensure that they're stocking items with maximum demand for decades.

The thing is, everybody who gains a competitive advantage from big data has reason to keep that fact secret, so that their competitors don't start doing the same thing. What's changed now is that the media itself is facing competitors that use big data themselves to make themselves more relevant than traditional media, and so suddenly it's a Story Of Consequence. It's not that big data is the next big thing - it's that big data was the _last_ big thing that you are only hearing about now, and suddenly a bunch of folks that had never heard of it are now trying to play catch-up.

</comment></comment><comment><USER10> For me this is the key: "when you ask your data the right questions you can find hugely valuable insights"

Many people treat data as the Oracle of Delphi hoping to just make an offering (investment) and wait for knowledge to be dropped. This idea that you can just shift through endless data and pull out insights is just plain wrong. Frist start with the decisions you can or have to make, then look at the data to see if it gives you insight into the best choice.

</comment><comment><USER11> They should be outsourcing it to kaggle, problem solved.</comment>


Little Alchemy - <AUTHOR> http://littlealchemy.com/ <comment><USER2> I love this game. I had it on iPhone for a while.

I created life, and man and some other cool stuff. It got too hard though!</comment>


Facial scrubs polluting Great Lakes with plastic - <AUTHOR> http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2013/07/31/tby-face-wash-beads-plastic-fish-consumption-great-lakes-thunder-bay.html <comment><USER3> > It's possible fish are eating the pellets, believing them to be eggs, he > added. That's worrisome, because plastics tend to absorb pollutants such as > PCBs, pesticides and motor oil. The pellets could therefore be poisoning the > small fish that larger fish then prey on, and the larger fish are consumed > by humans, posing a human health risk.

Sometimes the plastic doesn't move through, causing animals to become stuffed with plastic. ([http://pacificvoyagers.org/midway-atoll-the-plastic- plight-o...](http://pacificvoyagers.org/midway-atoll-the-plastic-plight-of- the-albatross))

Good that manfs were quick to say that they'll remove micro-plastics from their products.

<comment><USER4> "remove by 2017."

Wow, how kind of them. How about we stop politely asking our Manufacturer Overlords to stop their destructive activity in 4 years and instead get legislators do their job and ban their use _immediately_?

A local or state politician in the Great Lakes area should have no interest in protecting a manufacturer of these products who is likely in another state or country. Their interest is entirely in favor of protecting the Lakes.

And who are these people scrubbing their faces with microscopic plastic beads? What's wrong with good old fashioned coarse salt or sugar? Why do we need _more_ plastic? Can this plastic be inhaled accidentally? Can it leach into the raw scrubbed skin? Who asks these questions?

<comment><USER5> They're probably sitting on a stockpile of material, and would have to write it off as a loss. Either that, or they're committed to contracts with suppliers.

Note the following from the article:

      we took science ... to the companies and, without
      having to spend time and money involved in a policy
      solution, the companies themselves chose to solve it on
      their own.

This means that, since the behavior is voluntary, they get to do it on their own timeline. In order to force anything to go faster would require some cattle-prod of a law or regulation, with punitive measures that hurt the bottom line through fines and injunctions.

Which points to another possibility: They know how long it would actually take to get those kinds of laws enacted and enforced, and they'll only go as fast as that.

And don't forget, two years is enough time to forget about this. So in two years, maybe they'll simply do nothing at all.

<comment><USER6> It's just a particular kind of plastic that could be melted down and used for any purpose. There's no stockpile.

<comment><USER7> I can't imagine they are making their product on an order-by-order basis. Nor would they be buying supplies for their product that way, and selling back supplies is not a frictionless process. Of course there is a stockpile.

<comment><USER6> It's plastic. They sell it in the form of "hurdles" ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_particle_water_pollutio...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_particle_water_pollution)), small plastic particles, which are mostly standard sizes. These are then processed into their final form as required by simple machinery. Typically these are fed into an injection molding machine to make plastic parts, but could be used to produce plastic bags or sheet plastic for thermoforming.

Unless they're adding something to the plastic, or coating it in something, they could absolutely just ship it back as smaller than usual nurdles, or make use of it for something else in their manufacturing process, like making bottles or caps.

In any case, do you really think they have a two year supply of this stuff? That'd be crazy.

<comment><USER7> > _or coating it in something_

Toothpaste and facewash?

I find it very plausible that they have a two-year supply of particular products, that can easily happen if demand does not meet expectations, or if they planned limited campaigns of particular products.

<comment><USER6> These micro particles of plastic are used by the _train load_ which is why it's horrifying they're still being used. Where would you keep a two year supply if you needed that much of this sort of material? A plant the size of Wyoming? Secondly, they do not have warehouses of toothpaste sitting around. It's perishable.

This isn't the 1920s. Most major companies run on much leaner inventory, and it's not uncommon to turn over your entire warehouse several times a month.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER8> I don't think enough is being done to protect the Great Lakes. They are the largest source of fresh water in the entire world.

They've been over-fished, the industries of the surrounding area polluted the living hell out of them up until the 1970's, they've been invade by Zebra mussels and the water levels are at record lows. Places I swam as a kid don't even exist any more - the water has moved out a hundred yards from the old shore.

<comment><USER9> Lake Baikal is actually a bit bigger... 5700mi^3 versus 5400mi^3 for all the great lakes. It's a good bit smaller in surface area, but it's extraordinarily deep...over a mile in places.

<comment><USER6> Baikal has a volume of 23,615.39 km³, the Great Lakes is 22,671 km³ for those that use standard units.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER10> > L'Oreal, the Body Shop and Johnson & Johnson all committed to phasing out > plastic microbeads by 2015, and Proctor & Gamble said it would do so by > 2017.

Unfortunately there's no mention if "phasing out" means production stops or if consumer sales stop. If the production line at PG is running till 2017 they could have tons of this stuff stockpiled for later sale that could take months or years.

<comment><USER11> With the associated cost of inventory. Unless the replacement formula is significantly more expensive, it doesn't make sense to have years of product sitting there collecting dust.

<comment><USER10> They themselves might not have years worth but it could take a while to flow through the supply chain, get off store shelves, and be out of consumer's hands.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER12> For those of you inclined to a good skin grinding, an alternative is St. Ives Apricot Scrub. Made from biodegradable ground apricot cores. Also, it feels amazing. There are several off-brand mimics available.

<comment><USER13> Actually it's a small point but the exfoliate in Apricot Scrub is ground walnuts and corn meal. There is only apricot fruit extract in there.

Source: [http://www.stives.com/Facial-Products/Fresh- Skin/Invigoratin...](http://www.stives.com/Facial-Products/Fresh- Skin/Invigorating-Apricot-Scrub/)

Full Ingredients: [http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/st.-ives-fresh-skin- invigor...](http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/st.-ives-fresh-skin-invigorating- apricot-scrub/ID=prod5564510-product) Water , Juglans Regia (Walnut) Shell Powder , Glyceryl Stearate , Glycerin , Sodium Laureth Sulfate , Zea Mays (Corn) Kernel Meal , Cocamidopropyl Betaine , Cetearyl Alcohol , Cetyl Alcohol , PEG 100 Stearate , Prunus Armeniaca (Apricot) Fruit Extract , Cetyl Acetate , Polysorbate 60 , Ceteareth 20 , Acetylated Lanolin Alcohol , Carbomer , PPG 2 Methyl Ether , Phenethyl Alcohol , Triethanolamine , Methylisothiazolinone , Fragrance , Titanium Dioxide

<comment><USER12> Ah, nicely found! Interesting, I guess the apricot is only there for the scent.

<comment><USER13> According to St. Ives "Apricot Oil is known to hydrate and nourish the skin." Using fruit and other essential oils on the skin is a very very old practice. It might or might not have any actual merit to it. There is some science of the benefits of the topical application of at least one essential oil, tea tree oil [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_tree_oil](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_tree_oil)

<comment><USER14> Tea tree, Manuka, is so great. Grows fast, looks good, smells great, makes excellent fire wood and the honey is showing more and more interesting properties. I need to buy a few more!

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER15> If plastics absorb PCBs and pesticides, couldn't we use big (so they can't be swallowed), porous (to increase the surface) pieces of plastic to clean the water?

<comment><USER6> Don't use one toxin to clean up another.

<comment><USER16> Why not? The things can be removed from the water, and even if they weren't, there could still be a net benefit in having one toxin over another.

<comment><USER6> History is filled with examples of well-intentioned solutions like this going horribly awry.

Talk to an Australian about cane toads, for example. ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cane_toads_in_Australia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cane_toads_in_Australia)).

<comment><USER16> Maybe so, however that is a fully general counterargument that applies to any attempt to solve any problem ever.

<comment><USER6> Let's say you run a barber shop. You could always set the hair on the floor on fire, right? That'll clean it up! What could possibly go wrong?

...or maybe you could just sweep it up.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER17> I had no idea! I've just checked my Gillette pre-shave scrub, and while nowhere on the packaging does it mention microbeads, on the contents it lists Polypropylene and Polyethylene. In the bin that goes then, and I won't be buying it again. Shame, I quite liked it.

<comment><USER18> It's more environmentally friendly if you use your current supply and not buy any more than if you just throw it away where it'll end up in the water supply in any case.

<comment><USER19> If the contents of his trash can are showing up in the water supply we have bigger problems than microbeads.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER20> I never realized that the small beads in hygiene products was actually plastic. How many times have I ingested these over the years and if they are killing fish, what are they doing to my body?

I wonder how much pollution these are causing in smaller lakes and rivers?

</comment><comment><USER5> Grey goo scenarios will start like this.

This is like the preview version of a grey goo crisis except with training wheels, where the particles are rendered inert and dead by the time they become pollutants, and don't actually self-replicate in the wild.

But the real thing will probably start with some stupid little innocuous product like this, and then explode and catch everyone by surprise in a very short amount of time, instead of this slow-burning sleeper pollution that takes decades to accumulate. (two full decades? was this stuff around in 1993?)

</comment><comment><USER21> This is one thing I hate about most cleaning products. Whatever you're using, it eventually goes to a lake / something. Treatment is great and all, but if it's not _designed_ to be broken down quickly by nature / the treatment, _it stays in the lake_. That drain cleaner? Meds? Micro-bead face cleanser? It all goes to the same place, often still intact (chemically speaking). And even if you don't add much, millions do, and it does add up.

It's enough to drive me to buy as many biodegradable / compostable products as possible. Now if only they weren't so crazy expensive...

</comment><comment><USER22> So if it's so difficult to change all of these products - from soap to toothpaste - why not attempt changing how water-treatment plants work so that they _do_ screen out floating matter?

</comment><comment><USER23> I really applaud the companies' commitment to phasing out the plastic beads within a few years time.

</comment><comment><USER24> dumb question... why don't they just put sand in this stuff?

</comment><comment><USER25> What I don't understand is why anyone would want to rub their face down with BPA. My girlfriend makes and sells 100% natural face and body scrubs - <USER2> salt, natural oils and bases, no additives. My skin has never been so good. Oh, and the ingredients are much cheaper than their synthetic equivalents.

I suppose it all comes down to shelf life. Decentralise or die.

</comment><comment><USER26> Why is this on HN?

<comment><USER27> The article is listed under the _Technology & Science_ heading and deals with exactly those fields and the environment. In addition, the following key trigger words are present : pollution, plastic, research, science, scientists, PCBs, pesticides & money.

Therefore, it matches a Bayesian pattern of interest within the HN community.

Happy?</comment></comment>


Ask HN: What laptop to choose now? - <AUTHOR> I agree with all the articles saying Apple let us down. I've been a fierce Apple user for more than 8 years, bought MacBook Pro 17", MacBook Air Original, MacBook Pro retina 15", MacBook 12", 5 iMacs (for my startup) and a Mac Pro.
I am exploring alternatives now, I am typing on a Lenovo Thinkpad Yoga X1 with an Oled screen. It's nice machine, but Windows 10 is still lagging behind in term of OS integration. An example, to change a setting about the screen, you have 4 different places you can look. Windows settings, Lenovo setttings, Intel HD settings and the bios! Plus the Windows registry! Probably a Microsoft Surface Book will have less issues like this.
I am wondering what are the best laptop option now if we are leaving the Apple ship? <comment><USER2> I am just beginning to look. Two machines that I've been impressed with are the Acer Predator 17 and the Asus Republic of Gamers GL702VM.

Sadly no one offers desktop replacement machines anymore. If you want to get a high end machine, especially one with a high resolution 17 inch screen, you must look at machines built for gamers which means you have to deal with garish color combinations.

When will it dawn on PC makers that there is a profitable niche in catering to programmers with tasteful high performance laptops?

</comment><comment><USER3> Hi there, I have been back and forth Apple for the past 10years (mainly because of Excel). I felt in love with the Thinkpad x200 back in the days, same story with the x240. I'm now working on a Thinkpad t440 (8gb, i5 2.26ghz, ssd) and I must admit it never let me down. It is super strong and extremely fast. Also the after sale for Thinkpad is amazing. The Gpu is crap though. If I had to buy a new one I'd not hesitate but probably use Linux. Hope it helps.

</comment><comment><USER4> Laptops are tools. What you want depends on what you do.

I'm also unhappy with modern offerings, though I come from the Linux side. Whilst I use Macs, I've never been a fan of either the hardware (keyboard and touchpad aren't my thing). I've been exceptionally disappointed by Lenovo's products and behaviour of the past few years.

My druthers would be a lightweight, portalble, Linux-friendly system with a trackpoint-type pointer control.

I've been using an Android 9" tablet which is mostly good hardware, and an absolute obscenity in terms of the OS, vendor (Samsung) lockdown, and apps.

This with a folio-type self-supporting laptopable keyboard case is close to the perfect form-factor system, most especially for reading printed material (many many many ebooks and articles, most in PDF form).

But nothing about this system is built for privacy, creation, complex interaction, or organising and managing large quantities of content. As a Linux box it might work.

Laptops fail to offer the flexibility of keyboardless operation (and bending keyboards back ... tends to break them), and stink for reading online content generally.

I've also noticed that large-format tablets (9" \- 10") don't seem to be offered by anyone.

A decent userland, rootable / ROMable system (Samsung's BDSM lockdown basically means I'm fucked in terms of Rowhammer), and sane hardware (the Logitech keyboard's also been sheer failure mostly due to the company's failure to honour its warranty in any meaningful fashion, and the tightly- coupled HW binding of tablet and keyboard).

I've about had it with hardware, period.

<comment><USER5> A trackpoint is an absolutely non-negotiable requirement for me, so I bought several lenovo bluetooth keyboards, set them up for all the desktops I use, and kept a few spare in case they are discontinued.

<comment><USER6> What do you use trackpoint for? I' always had trackpoint but never found any need for it when you already have nice touchpad.

<comment><USER4> Not leaving home row is hugely useful.

Trackpads on laptops have _always_ for me attracted stray an unwanted interactions. Trackpoints not.

I find using a mouse far less distracting. The fact that it can be placed _well away_ from the keyboard helps.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> I use a Surface Book at home mainly because I was seduced by the dGPU and a real keyboard. However if I was in the market right now for a laptop I can't see how I'd pass on a Surface Pro 4. Much cheaper than the book and pretty much as good, type cover is not too bad at all.

</comment><comment><USER8> PSA: if you're going to post a "Wah Apple has jumped the shark, what laptop should I buy now" at least have the common decency to highlight the specific issues that make you want to look elsewhere.

<comment><AUTHOR> I think my main grief if that the Touch Bar is just ridiculous. Watch the Keynote demo about people trying to use it for DJ or Photoshop. It just doesn't make sense.

If it's where Apple is heading, I am not sure I want to be part of this. It's like they are forcing me to not buy it. But, I might be wrong and, in person, it might be awesome.

<comment><USER8> some of the demos seemed a little weird, sure, but most software demos do to me, because they over explain things.

That doesn't make the thing not amazing IMO. The most use I get from my f-keys right now is media/display brightness/volume. I _cant_ use it for eg debug step though or refactor symbol in my IDE without holding down function.

Hopefully with the new hardware Jetbrains apps will show the context appropriate buttons automatically.

Do _you_ use the f-keys a lot, without looking at them? (Ie find them by touch alone)

<comment><AUTHOR> It's not really about the fn keys, we can get rid of them completely. I will just miss the esc. It's more about the Touch Bar itself. I would rather see engineering time spent elsewhere. They just added a huge burden for developer to morph their application is a smart way while not adding anything that it's not just a shortcut. Apple is not even able to commit completely to it with one the new MacBook 13" that doesn't feature it.

It's a gimmick and will probably more an annoyance than anything. My main thoughts about it is "I hope it won't be too distracting.".

<comment><USER8> Apps don't _have_ to support the ToucbBar, and if they do, they're not meant to come up with brand new functionality for it, they simply make functionality available through an additional method (multitouch).

So while that may take some dev time away from other things, it's not like all developers must spend 50% of their time dedicated to developing awesome touch- bar only functionality. Apple specifically tells them NOT to do that.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER9> well, this question is rather "how long is a piece of string", but if you've got the cash, this looks nifty [http://www.razerzone.com/gb-en/gaming- systems/razer-blade](http://www.razerzone.com/gb-en/gaming-systems/razer- blade)

or, at the other end of the spectrum, you could always get a ThinkPad T60 from eBay with 1600x1200 display -- at least that one has a TrackPoint.

<comment><USER4> To quote Linus: "Nvidia: Fuck you."</comment></comment>