mrbluecoat's comments

On: Scientists Develop Artificial Leaf, Uses Sunlight to Produce Valuable Chemicals

[mrbluecoat]

> a perovskite and copper-based device that converts carbon dioxide into C2 products – precursory chemicals of innumerable products in our everyday lives, from plastic polymers to jet fuel

Star Trek Replicator?

[gus_massa → mrbluecoat]

The device makes ethane and ethylene, oversimplify it's just natural gas. You must put it inside a huge petrochemical refinery to join some of them to make plastic or fuel.

On: First Successful Lightning Triggering and Guiding Using a Drone

[mrbluecoat]

> flying drones into optimal positions beneath thunderclouds to actively trigger lightning strikes, and then guiding the discharge safely away from vulnerable areas

From a military standpoint, I wonder what it would take to discharge into a vulnerable area...

[foxglacier → mrbluecoat]

You could put the wire in the vulnerable area - perhaps using the same drone? But I don't think it would be any use. A lightning strike releases about 1 GJ of energy, mostly into the sky. So the effect at the target would probably be no more than a few kg of explosives which you could have delivered using the wire anyway.

[pixl97 → foxglacier]

Plausible deniability?

People tend to get mad when you bomb them, but if no one noticed the drone in the storm it's just a natural strike...

[kjkjadksj → foxglacier]

Fire it at a transformer, take out power in an entire region and blame God. A perfect tool for the CIA.

[nilamo → kjkjadksj]

A sniper rifle does the same, with a single shot, more reliably and without witnesses.

[ceejayoz → nilamo]

But it leaves pretty clear evidence of human action, which CIA-style actors may not want.

[stronglikedan → mrbluecoat]

> I wonder what it would take to discharge into a vulnerable area

HAARP /s

On: Reworking 30 lines of Linux code could cut power use by up to 30 percent

[mrbluecoat]

Noob question: how do you enable this power saving feature? Is it just upgrading to the latest kernel?

On: US Government imposes license requirement on Nvidia H20 exports

[mrbluecoat]

..and anyone who relies on rare-earth metals, like cough Nvidia

On: Datastar: Web Framework for the Future?

[mrbluecoat]

> Did I mention I hate javascript ... Avoid Javascript ... Javascript makes me queezy ... I broke out in hives because I hate JavaScript

Web development may not be your thing.

On: Show HN: Building better base images

[mrbluecoat]

I'm similarly curious why not just use Alpine or Void rootfs if container size is important?

[akrylov → mrbluecoat]

For the same reason hyperscalers build and maintain their own distro’s and base images – to have complete control over supply chain.

On: The new doping trick – and why scientists fear athletes are already using it

[mrbluecoat]

> run 50 per cent longer and 50 per cent quicker

Sounds like a candidate for army research to me..

On: The chroot Technique – a Swiss army multitool for Linux systems

[mrbluecoat]

Ha, that is funny. Void Linux desperately needs a better installer. (IMHO)

On: Show HN: Coroot – eBPF-based, open source observability with actionable insights

[mrbluecoat]

Can it parse Zeek logs to identify long-running TCP connections and/or identify user attempts to access a DNS blocked domain?

[nikolay_sivko → mrbluecoat]

We could totally add that, but no one's asked for it so far

On: The ADHD body double: A unique tool for getting things done

[mrbluecoat]

I work far more effectively remotely in isolation.

The article is specifically about those with ADD/ADHD, not a generalization.

[firoso → mrbluecoat]

I have ADHD. I doubled my productivity going remote and working from a well curated home office.

Charging station for my phone just inside the room, good sitting/standing desk and chair, good laptop, with a dock, 3 displays. A desktop with a vertical monitor I use for teams chat, technical documents, and work management only. Second laptop used for secure prod access tucked under a monitor riser until needed. Whiteboard. Couch with a small station for engineering journaling. I also take video calls from the couch often. Treadmill and elliptical, TV for watching YouTube tech videos while I'm taking a fitness break, bookshelves for my collected engineering journals and useful books. Roughly 275 sqft. Virtual body doubling helps sometimes but is hardly needed.