Showing posts with label technology. Show all posts
Showing posts with label technology. Show all posts

2013-05-21

Arthur C. Clarke's Three Laws of Prediction

Arthur C. Clarke was a British writer and wrote three "laws" about predictions. They are as follows:
  1. When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.
  2. The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.
  3. Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
My summary of the first point is, "the future is possible", "don't discount the future", or perhaps "".

My summary of the second point is, "Don't give up until you try. Then try harder."

My summary of the third point is, "technology is magic."

Source (Wikipedia)

Bonus Quote: "Perhaps it is better to be un-sane and happy, than sane and un-happy." - Arthur C. Clarke

Out of the ~100 more quotes I read by him, here are a few more that stood out:

  • Interesting: "One of the biggest roles of science fiction is to prepare people to accept the future without pain and to encourage a flexibility of mind. Politicians should read science fiction, not westerns and detective stories."
  • Enjoyable: Clarke's Law of Revolutionary Ideas: Every revolutionary idea — in science, politics, art, or whatever — seems to evoke three stages of reaction. They may be summed up by the phrases:
    • (1) "It's completely impossible — don't waste my time";
    • (2) "It's possible, but it's not worth doing";
    • (3) "I said it was a good idea all along."
  • Sounds Good: "I have great faith in optimism as a guiding principle, if only because it offers us the opportunity of creating a self-fulfilling prophecy."

=]
~ Simply Advanced ~

ps - My own quote is "Don't be stuck in a paradigm. Facts change." =b



2013-02-25

Inertia Dampeners

Re: Designing inetia dampeners.

First version would just be changing forward velocity to rotational energy. Or somehow, by moving forward, we could store a negative rotational energy. When stopping, apply a positive rotational energy and overall, not feel the effects of slowing down.

Most people who have heard of inertia dampeners may think of space ships in tv shows and movies. But, I want to apply inertia dampeners to vehicles here on Earth. For example, a car crash would be significantly less fatal if the effects of gravity and Newton's Laws of Motion weren't in play.

(I like to believe that technology and knowledge will eventually allow for great [current-]physics-law breaking.)

~ Simply Advanced ~



2013-01-24

Electronics-Free Zone

I just read an interesting article on Lifehacker about having an electronics-free zone in a home. Even though I am one for having technology and electronics everywhere, I really like the idea of having absolutely no electronic devices or outlets in at least one room at home.

http://lifehacker.com/5977939

And to expand on the idea, perhaps this mentality can added to restaurants, airplanes, workplaces, and Tuesdays 11-2pm. Just throwing ideas out there. That way people have clear their minds by not having to worry about a phone going off or having an email to answer. By clearing your mind, you could potentially achieve a higher level of thinking and creativity.


~ Simply Advanced ~



2013-01-08

Coolest Technology of the Day: Printable Batteries

These batteries, made with research from UC Berkeley, are ultra-thin, flexible, will make other electronics much thinner, and will provide a lot more opportunities for ubiquitous electronics. They will probably be combined with flexible screens.

These new batteries can be printed just microns thick. Read more:
http://gigaom.com/2013/01/08/a-new-battery-that-could-revolutionize-wearables/

~ Simply Advanced ~



2012-12-31

Something New

Lifehacker is probably the best site to find productivity hacks, clever uses for items, and many other interesting topics that tend to make your life better. Today, I am going Lifehacker-diving again. A term that I just made up as I wrote the sentence down. It means that I am going to open up a whole bunch of different articles in different tabs, then just read through them all and possibly follow links to other websites.

Something I thought about doing before is just pasting every single article/link that I read. And, maybe, I'll precursor each of the titles/links with a plus or minus sign as my suggestion, and 0 for neutral (aka depends on reader preference). If the title isn't apparent in the URL, only then will I write it out.

Well, here it goes: (Starting with http://lifehacker.com)
[--] http://lifehacker.com/5941712/how-much-does-your-computer-stress-you-out
[++] http://lifehacker.com/5957553/stop-procrastinating-by-clearing-to-neutral [I do this already =]]
[+] http://www.asianefficiency.com/health/manipulating-bedroom-sleeping-temperature/ [I have performed many experiments with different sleeping arrangements. It is good to try out.]
[+] http://www.asianefficiency.com/habits/morning-rituals-revisited/ [Definitely]
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5971173/three-quick-and-easy-ways-to-quiet-your-mind
[0] http://lifehacker.com/5969720/how-can-i-deal-with-a-slow-internet-connection
[0] http://lifehacker.com/5971740/what-else-can-i-do-with-my-new-ereader-besides-read-and-buy-books
[0] http://lifehacker.com/5971340/how-can-i-get-my-unresponsive-friends-to-actually-return-my-messages
[+] http://blog.getresponse.com/best-time-to-send-email-infographic.html [Summary: Best times are 8-10am and 3-4pm]
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5964285/whats-all-the-fuss-about-evernote-why-do-people-use-it [I am on and off with Evernote. I'm leaning to go paperless receipts with this rather than others though]
[0] http://lifehacker.com/5666954/avoid-everything-buckets-aka-why-i-cant-get-into-apps-like-evernote
[0] http://lifehacker.com/5892905/the-secret-weapon-combines-gtd-and-evernote-into-one-synchronized-productivity-system
[+] http://www.thesecretweapon.org/ and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cE3amWDQ2io (related)
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5955229/why-does-everyone-hate-windows-8-should-i-upgrade [I like Windows 8 and think it's great]
[0] http://lifehacker.com/5967154/what-should-i-do-now-that-google-apps-accounts-are-no-longer-free
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5958893/why-its-worth-it-to-purchase-your-own-domain-name [I would like to purchase more domains. I have a list of excellent names to use.]
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5905702/dropbox-google-drive-skydrive-and-others-pricing-per-gb-and-more-compared-in-convenient-charts [I currently use Dropbox, Box, Drive, and SkyDrive. Eventually, I may dish out for just one of them. I just haven't needed to yet.]
[0] http://lifehacker.com/5959742/how-can-i-turn-my-mess-of-ideas-into-something-organized-and-useful [I've already been doing this, hoping to learn more, but this article can defintely benefit other idea guys]
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5957559/how-do-i-answer-when-im-stumped-by-an-important-question
[+] http://dinosaurs.about.com/od/herbivorousdinosaurs/p/parasaurolophus.htm [I don't typically care for about.com, but this was linked in the article and was a good read]
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5853250/how-to-sound-like-you-know-what-youre-talking-about-even-when-you-dont [Make sure you are confident when you do know what you are talking about.]
[+] http://tribalseduction.com/blog/5-ways-to-act-like-an-expert-in-online-communities/
[++] https://www.google.com/search?q=define+ad+nauseam
[0] http://lifehacker.com/5957605/does-it-matter-where-i-buy-my-music
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5971711/what-they-dont-tell-you-about-promotions
[++] http://lifehacker.com/5967464/treat-your-freelance-work-like-a-stock-portfolio-to-meet-your-income-goals
[+] http://99u.com/tips/7258/Why-You-Should-Treat-Your-Freelance-Portfolio-Like-a-Stock-Portfolio
[++] http://lifehacker.com/5968613/what-lying-actually-does-to-your-brain-and-body-every-day [The article is pretty macabre. Seems like there is a lot of stress involved. I double-plussed this just because I feel others should have the great opportunity of reading it]
[++] http://lifehacker.com/5971473/how-to-tackle-three-of-the-toughest-interview-questions [Bookmarked. I am definitely going to read this at least two more times]
[0] http://lifehacker.com/5971774/zombies-run-turns-your-exercise-routine-into-a-game-is-half-off-right-now [I do like zombies. ..in the way that as long as they don't bother me, then I won't bother them =b]
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5971452/how-i-learned-to-rely-on-my-own-memory-and-stop-depending-on-technology [I've worried about the use-it-or-lose-it regarding our brains. I like the poetry of the article. One thing I know I will forget if I don't write it down is thoughts right before going to sleep. I've told myself many times, "Oh, it's such a huge and awesome idea that I couldn't possibly forget it in the morning", but I do. =/ Then again, maybe I haven't worked hard enough to develop that memory skill yet.]
[-] http://lifehacker.com/5972105/should-i-wait-a-few-months-to-see-if-computer-component-prices-drop-or-buy-now
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5836879/what-stress-actually-does-to-you-and-what-you-can-do-about-it [I've also read a lot about Nirvana and Zen and have been able to reach it; I have experienced complete inner peace before and have been able to train myself to completely clear my mind. If somebody asks me about it, then I don't mind sharing. One of the side-effects for me was that after learning how to reach Nirvana, for a while it was too easy to get in the state of mind again. I could be in the middle of a conversation and suddenly, I'm just free from the world, just, there. I'm getting tingling feelings just thinking about it. I find just regular meditation to be more useful for me (someone with very low stress. (people with higher stress should be able to complete clear their mind)). It allows my brain to wander and wonder. I like having thoughts flowing through my head, and being able to think subconciously. Right now I'm thinking it's kinda like knowing your brain is doing an automatic defrag, it's a good thing. I should write another post on just this one topic..]
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5966433/how-to-get-an-energy-boost-without-caffeine
[+++] http://lifehacker.com/5965826/seven-productivity-myths-debunked-by-science-and-common-sense [This is the only three-plussed article. **hinthint** But, as always, remember to take everything with a grain of salt]
[+] http://lifehacker.com/282544/merlin-mann-presents-inbox-zero [Bookmarked to read later. Hopefully, I will learn something new. I already do my part to achieve Inbox Zero. I spread the word around when I can too.]
[+] http://lifehacker.com/5965334/how-to-motivate-people-to-do-things-they-dont-want-to-do [Good enough to want me to read two Wikipedia pages to read another day: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progressive_disclosure and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-determination_theory only because I'm starting to get tired of all the reading now. Time for sleep soon.]
[Only eight more tabs to go, but it could easily turn into sixteen tabs]

Jk, just made a new folder for the rest of the tabs. I think I will try to do another post like this one. At least until I finish up all the ones I opened today.

=====================

Wow, I haven't done this much lifehackering in a very long time. Feels Good.

And now it's time for sleep. I lost two hours of sleep reading through all of these articles. Hopefully, a lot of REM so that these readings stay stored in my head.

~ Simply Advanced ~

ps - One conclusion that you can draw from this elongated list of links is that, if they all have one thing in common, then it would be that I'm interested in that topic. I'd like to hear other people's thoughts about the list.



2012-12-21

Future: No Time Cards, You're Being Watched

Ever get the feeling you're being watched? It'll pass, because you know for a fact that you are being watched, it is the future after all.

The future of work and productivity will include no filling out of punch cards or time sheets. Cameras with facial detection algorithms can easily recognize different faces. High resolution cameras can even read your fingerprints from across the room. These two technologies will detect entering and leaving of a facility. But, what about actual work? Employers want to know if employees are actually working or sleeping at their desks (sleep may be a good thing, just like watching kitten videos). Many companies (including Toyota, Ford, Volkswagen, Daimler) are working on algorithms to detect when a human is tired, excited, or other range of emotions. This technology can easily be applied to workstations to know whether or not people are facing the proper working direction (computer or assembly line) and if their eyes are closed.

..just saying.

~ Simply Advanced ~