Hacker News: BostonFern

Study: Childhood egg allergies fall as early introduction becomes more common

BostonFern — Mon, 08 Jun 2026 18:10:26 +0000

Article URL: https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/08/health/egg-allergies-early-introduction-wellness

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48448956

Points: 2

# Comments: 1

New comment by BostonFern in "Can the stockmarket swallow Anthropic, SpaceX and OpenAI?"

BostonFern — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 05:14:27 +0000

Then present your evidence, so we can have a substantive debate and draw informed conclusions.

New comment by BostonFern in "Air France and Airbus found guilty of manslaughter over 2009 plane crash"

BostonFern — Thu, 21 May 2026 16:05:15 +0000

See retired test pilot Robert Johnson’s analysis of what led to the crash for a different perspective: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrtfUZRk5h4&ra=m

New comment by BostonFern in "Three Inverse Laws of AI"

BostonFern — Wed, 06 May 2026 09:55:37 +0000

In Scandinavia in particular, there’s a tendency of pescatarians to refer to themselves as vegetarian for social convenience, but that hasn’t changed the definition of “vegetarian”.

New comment by BostonFern in "Three Inverse Laws of AI"

BostonFern — Wed, 06 May 2026 09:42:22 +0000

No idea? Really?

You’re an intelligent mammal, your biological makeup encoded in DNA. So are all other people, who largely share that same DNA. You’re conscious. It’s not a big leap to conclude that so are other people, too.

This kind of solipsistic sophistry is not productive. It might be entertaining if you’re contemplating the underpinnings of epistemology for the first time in your life, but it’s not an honest contribution to the debate.

You might as well claim that you have no idea if gravity will be in effect tomorrow.

New comment by BostonFern in "I won't download your app. The web version is a-ok"

BostonFern — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 17:18:36 +0000

Tougher adblocking is the best argument I’ve heard.

New comment by BostonFern in "Sweden goes back to basics, swapping screens for books in the classroom"

BostonFern — Thu, 02 Apr 2026 18:46:34 +0000

Are we talking about laptops in grades advanced enough for students to waste time on Reddit, or smartphones in the hands of young children?

My contention is that it's feasible to use laptops in classrooms productively, especially considering the value in applications like word processors. Of course it's necessary to balance the educational value with the potential for distraction. A way to minimize the latter is to extend classroom management to address device use, e.g., instilling discipline. I've personally seen it done well and done poorly (often not attempted at all), and given an otherwise healthy classroom setting, it comes down to discipline and ethics that address device use. That comes after tailoring the specific device format (e.g., tablets lending themselves more to entertainment, socially and habitually) to the appropriate grade level (maturity, responsibility, and technical potential increasing with age).

Some classrooms are too disruptive for device use, but that's not inherently a tech problem, even if you blame disruptive classrooms on broader cultural problems stemming from tech's role in society. Other classrooms exist in cultures that reject the necessary classroom management strategies.

It's not my contention that any device format should be used at any grade level and that distractions can be managed by simply saying "don't" and expecting success.

To address your other point above, yes, reading a book is different, often better, than reading on a screen, even for adults, so I'm also not arguing that devices should replace books.

New comment by BostonFern in "Sweden goes back to basics, swapping screens for books in the classroom"

BostonFern — Thu, 02 Apr 2026 12:14:05 +0000

That anecdote sounds like a problem with discipline and ethics, not with technology.

Push to close data broker "loophole" in upcoming FISA 702 reauth. bill

BostonFern — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 10:21:57 +0000

Article URL: https://text.npr.org/nx-s1-5752369

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47515467

Points: 4

# Comments: 0

New comment by BostonFern in "The Future of AI"

BostonFern — Sat, 28 Feb 2026 22:40:02 +0000

That’s a fair objection. Having ruminated on it some more, I’ll admit it might be tenable.

As for achieving an effective ban, occupational collapse might be the stronger motivator once workplace adoption broadens and accelerates, but risk of epistemic collapse might register sooner among the general public, already broadly suffering slop.

Like Bill Gates, I wonder why it’s not yet become a theme in mainstream politics.

New comment by BostonFern in "The Future of AI"

BostonFern — Sat, 28 Feb 2026 19:10:26 +0000

Get this point across to those leading the charge, if not every person everywhere.

New comment by BostonFern in "The Future of AI"

BostonFern — Sat, 28 Feb 2026 19:04:54 +0000

The challenge is that enforcing a ban would presumably require strict incursions into personal freedoms organized at a scale where AI-based solutions would be particularly effective and thus tempting, paradoxically.

On the other hand, assuming the dangers are real, you lose by default if you do nothing.

New comment by BostonFern in "OpenAI fires an employee for prediction market insider trading"

BostonFern — Sat, 28 Feb 2026 16:20:35 +0000

That's interpreting a failure to fight to preserve ethics as an internal rejection when it could be explained by a lack of fighting spirit, either because the fight seems impossible or the given hill not worth dying on. Another interpretation would be a comfort-oriented, avoidant, and possibly cynical culture facing a power imbalance.