Random Articles (Page 4)
Have a deep view into what people are curious about.
π Overchoice
Overchoice or choice overload is the paradoxical phenomenon that choosing between a large variety of options can be detrimental to decision making processes. The term was first introduced by Alvin Toffler in his 1970 book, Future Shock.
Discussed on
- "Overchoice" | 2023-10-29 | 10 Upvotes 3 Comments
π Ron Conway
Ronald Crawford Conway (born March 9, 1951) is an American angel investor and philanthropist, often described as one of Silicon Valley's "super angels". Conway is recognized as a strong networker.
Discussed on
- "Ron Conway" | 2009-12-23 | 23 Upvotes 2 Comments
π Daimler Reitwagen
The Daimler Petroleum Reitwagen ("riding car") or Einspur ("single track") was a motor vehicle made by Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach in 1885. It is widely recognized as the first motorcycle. Daimler is often called "the father of the motorcycle" for this invention. Even when the three steam powered two wheelers that preceded the Reitwagen, the Michaux-Perreaux and Roper of 1867β1869, and the 1884 Copeland, are considered motorcycles, it remains nonetheless the first petrol internal combustion motorcycle, and the forerunner of all vehicles, land, sea and air, that use its overwhelmingly popular engine type.
Discussed on
- "Daimler Reitwagen" | 2019-11-25 | 31 Upvotes 2 Comments
π Plasma Antenna
A plasma antenna is a type of radio antenna currently in development in which plasma is used instead of the metal elements of a traditional antenna. A plasma antenna can be used for both transmission and reception. Although plasma antennas have only become practical in recent years, the idea is not new; a patent for an antenna using the concept was granted to J. Hettinger in 1919.
Early practical examples of the technology used discharge tubes to contain the plasma and are referred to as ionized gas plasma antennas. Ionized gas plasma antennas can be turned on and off and are good for stealth and resistance to electronic warfare and cyber attacks. Ionized gas plasma antennas can be nested such that the higher frequency plasma antennas are placed inside lower frequency plasma antennas. Higher frequency ionized gas plasma antenna arrays can transmit and receive through lower frequency ionized gas plasma antenna arrays. This means that the ionized gas plasma antennas can be co-located and ionized gas plasma antenna arrays can be stacked. Ionized gas plasma antennas can eliminate or reduce co-site interference. Smart ionized gas plasma antennas use plasma physics to shape and steer the antenna beams without the need of phased arrays. Satellite signals can be steered or focused in the reflective or refractive modes using banks of plasma tubes making unique ionized gas satellite plasma antennas. The thermal noise of ionized gas plasma antennas is less than in the corresponding metal antennas at the higher frequencies. Solid state plasma antennas (also known as plasma silicon antennas) with steerable directional functionality that can be manufactured using standard silicon chip fabrication techniques are now also in development. Plasma silicon antennas are candidates for use in WiGig (the planned enhancement to Wi-Fi), and have other potential applications, for example in reducing the cost of vehicle-mounted radar collision avoidance systems.
Discussed on
- "Plasma Antenna" | 2019-09-10 | 136 Upvotes 54 Comments
π Wikipedia Turns 15
Discussed on
- "Wikipedia Turns 15" | 2016-01-15 | 441 Upvotes 109 Comments
π The Theory of Interstellar Trade, Paul Krugman (1978)
The Theory of Interstellar Trade is a paper written in 1978 by the economist Paul Krugman. The paper was first published in March 2010 in the journal Economic Inquiry. He described the paper as something he wrote to cheer himself up when he was an "oppressed assistant professor" caught up in the academic rat race.
Krugman analyzed the question of
How should interest rates on goods in transit be computed when the goods travel at close to the speed of light? This is a problem because the time taken in transit will appear less to an observer traveling with the goods than to a stationary observer.
Krugman emphasized that in spite of its farcical subject matter, the economic analysis in the paper is correctly done. In his own words,
while the subject of this paper is silly, the analysis actually does make sense. This paper, then, is a serious analysis of a ridiculous subject, which is of course the opposite of what is usual in economics.
Discussed on
- "The Theory of Interstellar Trade, Paul Krugman (1978)" | 2009-09-12 | 21 Upvotes 6 Comments
π GNS Theory
GNS theory is an informal field of study developed by Ron Edwards which attempts to create a unified theory of how role-playing games work. Focused on player behavior, in GNS theory participants in role-playing games organize their interactions around three categories of engagement: Gamism, Narrativism and Simulation.
The theory focuses on player interaction rather than statistics, encompassing game design beyond role-playing games. Analysis centers on how player behavior fits the above parameters of engagement and how these preferences shape the content and direction of a game. GNS theory is used by game designers to dissect the elements which attract players to certain types of games.
Discussed on
- "GNS Theory" | 2023-06-08 | 23 Upvotes 8 Comments
π Scuttlebutt: Decentralised, off-grid, mesh network and self-hosted social media
Secure Scuttlebutt (SSB) is a peer-to peer communication protocol, mesh network, and self-hosted social media ecosystem. Each user hosts their own content and the content of the peers they follow, which provides fault tolerance and eventual consistency. Messages are digitally signed and added to an append-only list of messages published by an author. SSB is primarily used for implementing distributed social networks, and utilizes cryptography to assure that content remains unforged as it is propagated through the network.
Discussed on
- "Secure Scuttlebutt" | 2023-01-22 | 151 Upvotes 82 Comments
- "Scuttlebutt: Decentralised, off-grid, mesh network and self-hosted social media" | 2021-09-22 | 31 Upvotes 3 Comments
π Hitler and Mannerheim Recording
The Hitler and Mannerheim recording is a recording of a private conversation between Adolf Hitler, FΓΌhrer of Nazi Germany, and Field Marshal Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim, Commander-in-Chief of the Finnish Defence Forces. It took place on a secret visit made to Finland by Hitler to honour Mannerheim's 75th birthday on 4 June 1942, during the Continuation War, a sub-theatre of World War II. Thor Damen, a sound engineer for the Finnish broadcaster Yleisradio (YLE) who had been assigned to record the official birthday proceedings, recorded the first eleven minutes of Hitler and Mannerheim's private conversationβwithout Hitler's knowledge. It is the only known recording of Hitler speaking in an unofficial tone.
Discussed on
- "Hitler and Mannerheim Recording" | 2022-06-26 | 11 Upvotes 1 Comments
π Religious Views of Isaac Newton
Isaac Newton (4 January 1643 β 31 March 1727) was considered an insightful and erudite theologian by his Protestant contemporaries. He wrote many works that would now be classified as occult studies, and he wrote religious tracts that dealt with the literal interpretation of the Bible. He kept his heretical beliefs private.
Newton's conception of the physical world provided a model of the natural world that would reinforce stability and harmony in the civic world. Newton saw a monotheistic God as the masterful creator whose existence could not be denied in the face of the grandeur of all creation. Although born into an Anglican family, and a devout but unorthodox Christian, by his thirties Newton held a Christian faith that, had it been made public, would not have been considered orthodox by mainstream Christians. Scholars now consider him a Nontrinitarian Arian.
He may have been influenced by Socinian christology.
Discussed on
- "Religious Views of Isaac Newton" | 2022-02-11 | 13 Upvotes 1 Comments