Rants about Linux, technology, data, and science
In their article “Moment of Reckoning“, the Guardian reports what really happens to “recyclables” like plastic, paper, and even electronics. As China has gradually cut off the import of scrap materials from all over the world, that has left waste management officials with a dilemma: what to do with all of those materials? The answer? Read More …
In a misguided attempt to provide a user with a newer version of zlib on a CentOS 6 server, I installed a zlib-1.2.5-codice rpm. This then impacted every single application updated or installed that relied on the libz libraries. Later, I discovered that the codice install was causing issues with compiling some software due to Read More …
Ironically, the yum test to find the “fastest mirror” can often times bog down, resulting in slower package install times. I’ve mostly disabled this feature to improve performance. To disable “fastest mirror”: vi /etc/yum/pluginconf.d/fastestmirror.conf Then change the line: enabled=1 To: enabled=0
Twitter (aka Twatter) demonstrating their double standards policy with one simple experiment, presented in one simple screenshot:
Can a belief in God be reconciled with scientific thought? Richard Feynman (the great explainer) thought so – by acknowledging the power of uncertainty. Uncertainty and skepticism are cornerstones of good scientific practice, regardless of your metaphysical leanings. When one abandons skepticism and doubt, one devolves into a “tyranny of ideas”, and that’s not good Read More …
To recursively compare files quickly between 2 directories: diff –brief -r dir1/ dir2/ The “–brief” flag only shows files that differ – not the details of those differences – and the “-r” flag makes the diff recursive.
I had a command inside a screen session lock up on me. Here’s how to kill it from a detached shell: screen -X -S 33474 quit Where: -X denotes that we want to execute a screen command -S denotes the socket or screen number (here 33474) “quit” is the command to send to the screen
Electricoconvulsive-therapy (ECT) – better known as “shock treatment” – is attempting yet another comeback. This time, it’s being hailed as a potential breakthrough to treat veterans suffering from PTSD. I remember my dear old mummy wanted ECT, since the other patients she knew in the loony bin said that it “helped them to forget”. Her Read More …
I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass – and I’m all outta bubblegum!
Australians who embraced the “solar revolution” with relish are faced with aging and damaged solar voltaic panels. When those panels are no longer serviceable, they go to the landfill. Now the Aussie’s are fretting on what to do with the mass of waste. The end state of “green” technology is rarely considered. Nor are the Read More …