Hacker News: fearmerchant

New comment by fearmerchant in "Fired 60 Minutes Scott Pelley: CBS told to inject 'falsehoods' into reporting"

fearmerchant — Thu, 04 Jun 2026 13:36:04 +0000

Without examples of the lies it's hard to take his word for it as a disgruntled employee.

New comment by fearmerchant in "A message from President Kornbluth about funding and the talent pipeline"

fearmerchant — Thu, 14 May 2026 15:14:44 +0000

Elite human capital isn't normally distributed.

New comment by fearmerchant in "Heritability of human life span is ~50% when heritability is redefined"

fearmerchant — Wed, 13 May 2026 18:26:05 +0000

This comment reads as if it were dropped into a generic "genetics of lifespan" thread,. The Dynomight article is already making a much more sophisticated version of some of these same points. The article's central argument is precisely that heritability is a contingent observational statistic, not a Platonic form. This particular article isn't conflating heritability with genetic mechanism at all. It's interrogating a simulation model and its assumptions. The warning about "unqualified instruments" and "retrospective observational data" feels off as this paper isn't a straightforward observational study. it's a parametric simulation fitted to twin registry data.

This comment might be very useful in a Reddit thread full of people saying "50% of lifespan is in your DNA," but it's a bit off-target as a response to this particular article.

New comment by fearmerchant in "Driver accused of DUI tracks missing laptop to Illinois State trooper's house"

fearmerchant — Mon, 11 May 2026 15:27:11 +0000

And really it's just a few.

New comment by fearmerchant in "It's official: Utah is the U.S. state closest to banning VPNs"

fearmerchant — Tue, 05 May 2026 16:42:19 +0000

That and we can observe how certain policies play out. I used to be a big decriminalize drugs guy but watching it play out in a few states has had me rethink that idea. I haven't done a 180 or anything but it is something I'd be more cautious about implementing.

New comment by fearmerchant in "I've sold out"

fearmerchant — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 12:10:46 +0000

And yet somehow it works...

New comment by fearmerchant in "The American Healthcare Conundrum"

fearmerchant — Tue, 17 Mar 2026 14:53:26 +0000

I pay cash for a medication because the insurance won't pay for the 90 day supply and it's a hassle to deal with it every month. It's $70 for me to pay for 90 days out of pocket versus paying a $20 deductible each month. I'm only paying $10 extra to avoid the hassle. Worth it.

New comment by fearmerchant in "Tesla publishes analyst forecasts suggesting sales set to fall"

fearmerchant — Thu, 01 Jan 2026 02:28:19 +0000

It appears you're using a Vanguard total market fund. Nothing wrong with that, it's clearly broader than the SP500, but I suspect more folks are familiar with the latter. In that spirit folks might be interested to know it's not much different. If Tesla disappeared tomorrow with would be 2.4% of the SP500.

New comment by fearmerchant in "Factor 0.101 now available"

fearmerchant — Fri, 12 Dec 2025 16:43:33 +0000

https://concatenative.org/wiki/view/Concatenative%20language

New comment by fearmerchant in "Alibaba's new AI chip: Key specifications comparable to H20"

fearmerchant — Wed, 17 Sep 2025 12:45:51 +0000

China's corporate espionage might have surpassed France at the winners podium.

New comment by fearmerchant in "Ontario set to begin construction of Canada's first mini nuclear power plant"

fearmerchant — Thu, 08 May 2025 19:33:28 +0000

Nuclear advocate here. I'd also note that while natural gas is a reliable power source; the price can be very volatile.

I trade options and natgas is called the widow maker.

New comment by fearmerchant in "First American pope elected and will be known as Pope Leo XIV"

fearmerchant — Thu, 08 May 2025 19:18:29 +0000

South American

New comment by fearmerchant in "Apple iMac M4 review: who is this for, exactly?"

fearmerchant — Mon, 25 Nov 2024 14:32:13 +0000

My parents in their 70's.

New comment by fearmerchant in "The EdTech Revolution Has Failed"

fearmerchant — Tue, 12 Nov 2024 17:50:39 +0000

As an aside, I'm not really sure whether equity in the schools is simply being used as a buzzword folks think they need to include in their statements about various topics, or whether people really adhere to what it means and entails. Probably a little from column A and a little from column B.

New comment by fearmerchant in "The EdTech Revolution Has Failed"

fearmerchant — Tue, 12 Nov 2024 16:53:25 +0000

I work in education and you're probably right that it's not THE thing, but it does enter the conversation. Teachers are supposed to provide what's called differential instruction but the quality and fidelity really depends on the teacher.

New comment by fearmerchant in "Employment rises by 254K in September; unemployment changes little at 4.1%"

fearmerchant — Fri, 04 Oct 2024 13:40:59 +0000

My apologies, I haven't finished my coffee yet this morning and overlooked that issue. Give this a try:

https://archive.ph/okmpC

New comment by fearmerchant in "Employment rises by 254K in September; unemployment changes little at 4.1%"

fearmerchant — Fri, 04 Oct 2024 13:36:24 +0000

Great if it holds up. Unfortunately, they have had some rather large revisions to the initial estimates lately.

One of many sources you can find on this issue: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/21/business/economy/us-jobs-...

New comment by fearmerchant in "What the photographer who’s taken philosopher portraits thinks of philosophers"

fearmerchant — Tue, 01 Oct 2024 16:15:58 +0000

Using a lens with a shallow depth of field to create a bokeh effect.

New comment by fearmerchant in "California bans legacy admissions at private universities"

fearmerchant — Tue, 01 Oct 2024 16:06:46 +0000

A large part of what makes elite schools elite is the people you meet. That legacy kid whose dad is well connected or is a VC, is just as important as the smart kid that invents the next great thing. These institutions brought together the brains and the money. It'll be interesting to see how this plays out.

New comment by fearmerchant in "Hacking Kia: Remotely controlling cars with just a license plate"

fearmerchant — Sat, 28 Sep 2024 02:12:06 +0000

Forty-nine states recklessly allow florists to sell flowers without a license. Only the good people of Louisiana are safe from dangers of unregulated flower purchases.