Interesting Links for 13-07-2017

[andrewducker]

How video encoding works (a very simple introduction)

(tags: video Technology )

The touching effect of putting an autistic hero into a computer game

(tags: games diversity autism )

Overwatch: Bigger than the Premier League? (No. But people are trying...)

(tags: games sports money competition )

Is Decentralized Storage Sustainable?

(tags: design storage internet economics decentralisation )

Greening announces 'evidence champion' for schools

(tags: Education )

Pthalates linked to chronic disease in men

(tags: pthalates plastic disease )

Government refuses to release report into Saudi Arabia’s funding of Islamist extremism in UK

(tags: saudiarabia terrorism politics uk )

Inside the World of Chinese Bitcoin ‘Mining’ (Some great photos)

(tags: bitcoin china )

At 56, a ‘Light Bulb’ Goes Off and a Firefighter Emerges

(tags: fire age life )

The British View the War of 1812 Quite Differently Than Americans Do

As a Brit I have to admit that I had no idea that there _was_ a war with America in 1812
(tags: war uk usa france canada history )

The Facebook Algorithm Mom Problem

(tags: facebook algorithm mother OhForFucksSake fail )

Radiohead releases a surprise ZX Spectrum program for OK Computer anniversary

(tags: music software )

Visa To Pay Restaurants To Stop Taking Cash

(tags: restaurant money Technology )

A Kingdom for a Horse: Kokpar and the Future of Kazakhstan

“There are no Kazakhs,” he says. “Stalin made us up.”
(tags: kazakhstan horses )

Scientists replay movie encoded in DNA

(tags: dna genetics movies )

"I think I am becoming accustomed to the sight of guns."

(tags: guns society UK France Scotland )

Unix Time 1,500M – Friday July 14 02:40GMT

(tags: time unix thefuture )

New corporate criminal offences of failure to prevent tax evasion effective from 30 September

(tags: law tax uk )

Post-apocalyptic Dilbert

(tags: dilbert apocalypse comic )

Comments

[lilysea]

Visa To Pay Restaurants To Stop Taking Cash

Given that

a) waitstaff in the US rely very heavily on tips for their wages

and

b) when customers tip by credit card, instead of cash, the restaurant takes some or all of the tip (even when this is illegal!)

this has the potential to be VERY bad for waitstaff...

Of course, bringing in adequate wages for waitstaff and abolishing tipping would fix this, but that's not easy to accomplish.

How video encoding works (a very simple introduction)

[jack]

This is very similar to what I'm working on. I should actually talk about it at some point.

[mlknchz]

"I think I am becoming accustomed to the sight of guns": I was in the military, so I saw many there, held, and used, by both men and women, white peoples, African-Americans, Latinos, Asian-Americans.
I am a gun owner, so I see them in my home, in the homes of some of my friends, and at gun ranges. I see them used for recreational shooting, and (though I personally don't hunt) for hunting. When at the gun range, I see them used responsibly by men and women, white people, African-Americans, Latinos, and Asian-Americans.
I understand the point the author is making, but I think she's incorrect in her conclusion. The problem isn't the presence of guns in the hands of police, it's the situation that's caused that to happen. She's mistaking a symptom for the disease.

[calimac]

The article on the War of 1812 is quite good, though not entirely purely introductory. The war may not come up much in the UK, but it's a big source of arguments between US-Americans and Canadians. The former think they won it and the latter think the US lost it. In reality it was more of a tie. The US surprisingly beat the pants off Britain at sea, supposedly Britain's specialty, though Britain didn't really try very hard; but on land the US forces were hopeless, except for the Battle of New Orleans, which didn't affect anything since it was fought after the peace treaty was signed (but before the news reached America). It also made the fame and reputation of Andrew Jackson, so there's that.

So the US did not get Canada, which contrary to Canadian suspicions was not the real purpose of the war, but it was thought of as a very big bonus. Essentially the peace treaty provided for status quo antebellum, and that the British would stop impressing American sailors and the Americans would stop complaining about it.