Hacker News: whywouldyoucare

New comment by whywouldyoucare in "The Economic Complexity of the Western Roman Empire"

whywouldyoucare — Fri, 16 Oct 2026 22:09:07 +0000

It would be indeed a "misstep" had I not reacted to an open call for the genocide of the Russian people. (Allowed by the way quite liberally on your "social networks" and here.)

As for "false equivalence", you are not a Russian, so it is really not for you to speak.

New comment by whywouldyoucare in "How to Formalize All of Mathematics"

whywouldyoucare — Fri, 16 Oct 2026 18:15:54 +0000

And nevertheless this is what Arnol'd said. Do you also think he was silly?

New comment by whywouldyoucare in "The Economic Complexity of the Western Roman Empire"

whywouldyoucare — Fri, 16 Oct 2026 17:17:58 +0000

Well, the nazis tried it with the Jews, now you are trying this with Russians.

I cannot but wish you the same end as that of your nazi predecessors.

New comment by whywouldyoucare in "The Economic Complexity of the Western Roman Empire"

whywouldyoucare — Fri, 16 Oct 2026 17:10:13 +0000

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monte_Testaccio

It is 35 metres high now, 20,000 or so m^2, after 1500 years, and composed of ancient pottery fragments (the trade went sharply down after the 5th century A.D.)

Caesar reports of a wall more than 20 km long, several meters high, with a canal in front of it, constructed by a legion or two, I don't remember now exactly, in two weeks time. Maybe an exaggeration, but..

And the real question for me, is how they managed to do the logistics, with just the Roman numbers.. So the economical complexity should not be such a surprise, I suppose.

New comment by whywouldyoucare in "How to Formalize All of Mathematics"

whywouldyoucare — Fri, 16 Oct 2026 16:44:40 +0000

V.I. Arnol'd: "Only fools prove theorems."

(The wording may not be exact, though the sense should be.)