Hacker News: bspn

New comment by bspn in "Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level"

bspn — Mon, 06 Jan 2020 07:22:02 +0000

Yeah, the public perception (mostly created by the company) of SAS is very different from reality. The work is mostly boring, the pay is just ok and the lifestyle balance - while better than the Bay Area - is definitely not 35 hours a week on average. Historically the COL in the RDU area has been a major selling point but even that is changing as property prices continue to rise across the Triangle.

This plane can fly 500 miles, powered entirely by hydrogen

bspn — Wed, 14 Aug 2019 19:47:50 +0000

Article URL: https://www.fastcompany.com/90388931/this-plane-can-fly-500-miles-powered-entirely-by-hydrogen

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20699245

Points: 3

# Comments: 0

From Global Heroes to Rates Near Zero, Rock-Star Economies Flop

bspn — Thu, 08 Aug 2019 03:09:25 +0000

Article URL: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-08-07/from-global-heroes-to-rates-near-zero-rockstar-economies-flop

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20641508

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

New comment by bspn in "Insured price $2,758, cash price $521"

bspn — Fri, 02 Aug 2019 23:54:36 +0000

In short, liability. So much behavior within the US medical profession is driven by a fear of getting sued for malpractice. Even though the patient would be sitting in the ER with treatment close at hand, if the situation did worsen and the patient suffered complications there will be the inevitable questions asked as to why the triage nurse didn't admit them in the first instance. For hospitals it's just not worth the risk of potentially expensive and lengthy lawsuits/settlements.

You could make $125 by filling out this Equifax claim form

bspn — Sat, 27 Jul 2019 21:39:21 +0000

Article URL: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/26/you-could-make-125-by-filling-out-this-equifax-data-breach-claim-form.html

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20544354

Points: 6

# Comments: 1

New comment by bspn in "McKinsey Advised Johnson and Johnson on Increasing Opioid Sales"

bspn — Thu, 25 Jul 2019 20:52:26 +0000

And in reality, it's really only the US. Even though pharmaceutical ads are legal in NZ, they are pretty rare and most GPs won't just write a script because a patient asks for a particular drug unless there's a clear need for it. The role of Pharmac (NZ's central drug purchasing agency) also tempers the effectiveness of drug advertising so you just don't see it like you do in the mainstream US media.

New comment by bspn in "Heat Wave to Hit Two-Thirds of the U.S. Here’s What to Expect"

bspn — Wed, 17 Jul 2019 23:25:00 +0000

The humidity amplifies the effects of the heat. I remember the first time I travelled to Arizona and was expecting to suffer when I saw the forecast temperatures were 100+, but the dry heat was - I hesitate to say comfortable - but very different from a 90 degree day on the East Coast with high humidity. An extended period of extreme heat + humidity can be brutal on the body, particularly those already vulnerable or without adequate air conditioning.

New comment by bspn in "Lee Iacocca Has Died"

bspn — Wed, 03 Jul 2019 03:36:37 +0000

Outside of the US, the Falcon continued to be mass-produced in a number of international markets (and in some, like Australia, became wildly popular) and one of those markets was Argentina where it was used by both the police and paramilitary death squads which I assume is what the reference was to.

Do transportation network companies decrease or increase congestion?

bspn — Fri, 10 May 2019 22:51:16 +0000

Article URL: https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/5/5/eaau2670

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19883009

Points: 66

# Comments: 78

The Homogeneity of Instagram Travel Photos

bspn — Tue, 30 Apr 2019 21:23:56 +0000

Article URL: https://hyperallergic.com/457945/alarming-homogeneity-of-instagram-travel-photos/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19792084

Points: 93

# Comments: 54

New comment by bspn in "Slack S-1"

bspn — Sun, 28 Apr 2019 01:18:21 +0000

> Part of the lock-in is their brilliant multi-org client

While not quite as fully-featured as Slack, Keybase offers this. I'm a member of multiple orgs and seamlessly change between conversations (both group and 1-on-1).

Facebook are 'morally bankrupt, pathological liars' – NZ Privacy Commissioner

bspn — Sun, 07 Apr 2019 23:25:35 +0000

Article URL: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12220247

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19600629

Points: 102

# Comments: 9

New comment by bspn in "On-Demand Startups Are Hemorrhaging Tens of Billions a Year"

bspn — Wed, 03 Apr 2019 03:44:43 +0000

Almost all of them. They manage their portfolios like most other large fund managers albeit with a slight preference towards lower risk assets to ensure their short/medium term pension obligations are met, but they will almost always have an alternative investment bucket which VC will be a part of. They're also not interested in doing direct investments, so they'll diversify their early stage risk by investing in a couple of the more successful, established VC funds who spread the bets for them.

A Centuries-Old Idea Could Revolutionize Climate Policy

bspn — Thu, 21 Feb 2019 00:25:21 +0000

Article URL: https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/02/green-new-deal-economic-principles/582943/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19213412

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

New comment by bspn in "Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage"

bspn — Wed, 06 Feb 2019 20:03:06 +0000

Technically LPs, but they're more-often-than-not large, faceless funds only interested in returns and mostly insulated from any blowback so moral considerations don't always concern them.

New comment by bspn in "Zillow CEO: startups trying to disrupt real estate commissions will fail (2012)"

bspn — Wed, 16 Jan 2019 21:20:38 +0000

> Don’t you pay TurboTax?

Yes, but the cost is significantly less. When I first moved to the US I used a tax accountant because I didn't know any better and it cost me ~$500 a year (this was in New York). I now file using either TurboTax or TaxAct and my costs are typically in the $60-70 range depending on which tier of service I select.

Is it more work? Arguably yes, but I enjoy the freedom of being able to do it all from the comfort of my sofa and the tools have improved to such an extent that it rarely takes me more than half an hour start-to-finish.

Real estate is obviously a very different proposition to tax filing, but if disruptors can cut out some of the fat/overhead to bring the costs down I think it would be appealing to a wide range of people.

New comment by bspn in "It will become easier to buy a house"

bspn — Mon, 07 Jan 2019 04:02:38 +0000

> I'm really skeptical of this claim without good market data, because whenever I've looked at this for my own personal reasons the headline monthly cost of renting is 10-20% higher than mortgage payments

In sane markets, yes. However, in markets experiencing property bubbles the opposite is often true.

I recently moved to a new city where prices have doubled in the last 10 years as a result of foreign buyers sending prices skyrocketing, and we currently rent a house worth $1.8m (valuations are public here). Assuming 20% down and a 30 year mortgage at 4% interest, we'd be looking at a monthly mortgage repayment of ~$6.9k with ~$4.8k of that being interest if we were to buy the house. Instead we rent it for $3.2k a month and happily save the $1.6k we'd otherwise be paying to the bank.

Friends look at me crazy when I tell them I have no interest in buying, but until the math is flipped and I start losing money by renting I'll happily let the landlord worry about maintenance and continue to enjoy my free time.

The Walter White of Wichita (2016)

bspn — Sun, 16 Dec 2018 07:44:35 +0000

Article URL: http://interactive.fusion.net/death-by-fentanyl/the-walter-white-of-wichita.html

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18692192

Points: 81

# Comments: 49

New comment by bspn in "Google Tried to Patent My Work After a Job Interview"

bspn — Fri, 30 Nov 2018 09:18:11 +0000

NDAs generally aren't worth the paper they're written on, but holy hell is that one a piece of work. The "residuals" concept basically gives them an open invite to copy anything they like so long as they didn't "intentionally memorize" it. Establishing intent is no easy task.

New comment by bspn in "Starting a Business in Silicon Valley"

bspn — Fri, 30 Nov 2018 02:16:19 +0000

It would also crush all-comers in a game of buzzword bingo!