Hacker News: littlexsparkee

New comment by littlexsparkee in "Netflix Prices Went Up Again – I Bought a DVD Player Instead"

littlexsparkee — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 05:18:49 +0000

Yep, you also get a quota of 10 suggested purchases for their collection every month - I scour for new books to max mine out and they grant >95% of what I ask for

New comment by littlexsparkee in "Many African families spend fortunes burying their dead"

littlexsparkee — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 03:27:55 +0000

seriously, i've never understood spending so much money on rituals like burial or marriage, might as well set it on fire. i'd just do aquamation or mushroom burial, whichever's the best mix of green/cheap.

New comment by littlexsparkee in "Sam Altman may control our future – can he be trusted?"

littlexsparkee — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 22:31:06 +0000

In this industry, truly anything can be rationalized.

New comment by littlexsparkee in "The Importance of Being Idle"

littlexsparkee — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 21:45:23 +0000

well not only that but the space to think about systems of power and possible realities (like the COVID lull) is antithetical to capitalist aims. leisure is doled out just enough to prop up consumer spending. if you restrain your desires you can buy back your time (FIRE) but that affordance is reliant on the status quo (others consuming so that your investments do well).

New comment by littlexsparkee in "How to get better at guitar"

littlexsparkee — Tue, 07 Apr 2026 21:55:52 +0000

Had a lot of fun contributing tabs to Ultimate Guitar, esp. when folks would write notes of appreciation. The harder the better - not cheating to slow down the track to understand rapid lick in solos (the Steely Dan ones were a gas) either. You lose a little bit of the magic (little is off limits with some practice) but the fact that you can figure out your favorite tracks and imagine yourself up on stage is fun.

Can Sponge Cities Save Us from the Coming Floods?

littlexsparkee — Tue, 07 Apr 2026 17:05:44 +0000

Article URL: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2026/04/13/can-sponge-cities-save-us-from-the-coming-floods

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47678323

Points: 4

# Comments: 0

Global human population has surpassed Earth's sustainable carrying capacity

littlexsparkee — Tue, 07 Apr 2026 04:18:23 +0000

Article URL: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ae51aa

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47670705

Points: 2

# Comments: 0

Researchers Secure NSF Grant to Test Ancient Fern as Carbon Offset Soln (2025)

littlexsparkee — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 20:41:22 +0000

Article URL: https://news.stonybrook.edu/university/sbu-researchers-secure-nsf-grant-to-test-ancient-fern-as-carbon-offset-solution/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47631975

Points: 2

# Comments: 0

New comment by littlexsparkee in "Understanding young news audiences at a time of rapid change"

littlexsparkee — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 19:19:20 +0000

Thanks - I wish it could be drilled into by category, i.e. what are the stats for categories of import (filter out sports, crypto, etc). My worry is the average could appear rosier if the share of trivial events are high.

New comment by littlexsparkee in "Understanding young news audiences at a time of rapid change"

littlexsparkee — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 18:38:58 +0000

The benefit of media literacy is being able to tell apart issues of import vs false alarms. That career ladders could be changing due to AI; food and oil could spike / be unavailable due to Hormuz so stock up ahead of time; financial risks of BNPL, meme stocks, and crypto; and potential recession due to hiring patterns, AI bubble, private credit - those are not actionable?

New comment by littlexsparkee in "Understanding young news audiences at a time of rapid change"

littlexsparkee — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 18:33:31 +0000

Prediction markets miss all the experts, whether academic or laypeople wonks, who simply don't care to have a financial stake in the decision. I can't imagine how it'd be representative. In any case, the people weighing in are getting their information from somewhere and it's not thin air. How can you understand an issue without knowing motivations/vested interests from all sides, history leading up, etc?

New comment by littlexsparkee in "Understanding young news audiences at a time of rapid change"

littlexsparkee — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 18:26:35 +0000

Taking a stance frames results for the writer, such that they are less likely to write about points of the opposing side or express skepticism towards findings on theirs. I'd rather understand the situation regardless of how much it advantages my preference than gain a false understanding. Most issues are nuanced yet interest in covering things in this manner seems to be more rare over time. You have to hope you can cobble this together by looking at both sides, establish what's true, perhaps if lucky run into an insider / impartial sources (which is why I come back to HN).

New comment by littlexsparkee in "Understanding young news audiences at a time of rapid change"

littlexsparkee — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 18:18:55 +0000

That, and being prepared - either let macro phenomena like recession, AI, etc wallop you in the face or be able to spot it in the distance and adapt.

New comment by littlexsparkee in "Understanding young news audiences at a time of rapid change"

littlexsparkee — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 18:15:33 +0000

There's some drawbacks to the news, certainly, but I can't imagine not being aware or interested in what's happening around the world. Surely it's better to follow AP and Reuters and tune the rest.