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Comment: Re:Keep the kids longer and don't send homework (Score 1) 157

by twistedcubic (#48680813) Attached to: Boston Elementary, Middle Schools To Get a Longer Day
No, he/she IS on the spot. Remember, the slide rule was mainly a source of inspiration, which help the GP understand relationships between numbers and motivated GP to learn more. Choice quote:

I did a 180 on math subjects - even without using the slide rule.

It is not a "learning styles" issue. Learning styles is a fiction.

Comment: Re:The Obfuscation of Easy Computer Science (Score 1) 141

I think Knuth's "made-up" assembly code looks generic to anyone who knows any assembler at all. I first saw assembly language in a Commodore 128 book decade ago, and reading the first few pages allowed me the grasp the big picture for Knuth's MIX language.

And I think you're incorrect about TeX vs LaTeX. Try to write your resume in LaTeX. TeX takes the pain out of LaTeX when you want to exercise good taste.

Comment: Re:Using Non-ECC Ram is Unacceptable (Score 1) 138

by twistedcubic (#48668355) Attached to: Many DDR3 Modules Vulnerable To Bit Rot By a Simple Program
This is true. However, getting a laptop with ECC RAM straight from the manufacturer is never an option, and impossible when RAM is soldered onto the motherboard. I think if Apple started using ECC RAM, and advertised it, others might follow suit (like with the "retina" displays).

Comment: Re:A Brand New World In Which Men Ruled (Score 1) 222

by twistedcubic (#48664923) Attached to: Tech's Gender Gap Started At Stanford
It was the class of 1994, which entered college in 1990. So the article is correct. I was in the class of 1994 at a different college, and saw my first web browser in early 1994. Before that I used Wais and Gopher. Most of my classmates learned about IRC sometime in 1991-1992, not before. AOL was not a household name before 1990.

Comment: Re:C# (Score 1) 641

by twistedcubic (#48562455) Attached to: How Relevant is C in 2014?

Here's one of countless reasons why you should learn C++.
std::thread([&](){ do_something(local_arg1, local_arg2); }).detach();
Write me the equivalent in C.

Wow! You should mention this on the Linux Kernel Mailing List. The Linux kernel is LOADED with threads, all written in C. You will certainly save the kernel developers lots of time when they switch. Please write back and tell me how it goes.

Comment: Re:C had no real successor (Score 1) 641

by twistedcubic (#48560049) Attached to: How Relevant is C in 2014?
C'mon, now. C++ needed the relatively recent "move constructor" to solve a serious inefficiency when doing, say for example, complicated matrix arithmetic using classes (created in the most obvious way). Before this, there were hacks, like template metaprogramming. The reputation of C++ is well-deserved, even if all of that stuff is fixed now.

Comment: Amateur Mistake (Score 1) 246

by twistedcubic (#48407607) Attached to: Big Talk About Small Samples
I read your long essay. You can only make inferences about the population you survey here ("Mechanical Turk"), not the general population. (Are people on "Mechanical Turk" representative of the general population?) So the best you can do here is draw conclusions about people using "Mechanical Turk", but alas, your sample wasn't random. It takes hard work to do a statistical study well, especially if taking random samples is too hard or too expensive. Unfortunately, nobody believes this.

Comment: Re:City life (Score 2, Insightful) 459

by twistedcubic (#48361755) Attached to: Black IT Pros On (Lack Of) Racial Diversity In Tech
I am so tired of this simple-minded shit getting modded +5 Insightful. Please stop psychoanalyzing an entire race if your primary experience with members of that race are just one real-life person (who will never get invited to your home), and a bunch of fools on television. You don't know what the hell you're talking about. You're not that amazing. Get over it.

Keep your boss's boss off your boss's back.