News: AI will not kill us, says Microsoft

Updated on Sunday, November 6, 2022

Baby tech should let everyone sleep

Updated on Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Baby tech should let everyone sleep

The range of baby technology now available is astonishing. You can load up with a smart sock, smart diapers, smart pacifier, phone connected scales (doppler, ultrasound...), Nespresso for formula, a cry translator and of course a wide range of ultra-sensitive, night-vision stalking, shrieking / vibrating baby monitoring systems.

But all this innovation is mostly being wasted on paranoid first time parents who need to obsessively check that everything is OK every five seconds (not judging, have been there).

What I need is a baby monitor that does one thing: wait a minute per month of age and see if there is still a problem. Stay silent until this threshold is passed.

As usual, billionaire investor readers please call me.

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Every House I've Ever Lived In

Updated on Thursday, November 12, 2015

Every House I've Ever Lived In

Here's a list of every house I've ever lived in. It's 32 across four continents - a different one every 15 months or so which is impressive as I lived in one of them for ten years.

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News: No need to breed like rabbits - Pope

Updated on Sunday, October 16, 2022

GDP, The Music Video

Updated on Saturday, February 19, 2022

GDP, The Music Video

The time on screen for each country is proportional to its Gross Domestic Product.

GDP figures are from the United Nations for 2013 from Wikipedia. Flag images are also from Wikipedia via the handy Google region-flags project. Music is "Money to Burn" by Alex (cc).

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News: The War Nerd: More proof the US defense industry has nothing to do with defending America

Updated on Thursday, November 12, 2015

News: Prototype Companion Cube, 1980

Updated on Sunday, October 23, 2022

Fermi Suicide

Updated on Wednesday, June 2, 2021

Fermi Suicide

One family of solutions to the Fermi Paradox is that civilizations die out before they communicate - natural disaster, nuclear war, etc. This sort of calamity seems plausible some of the time but it would need to happen all of the time. What if any sufficiently advanced society inevitably discovers irrefutable proof that free will is an illusion and just gives up?

Depressing. I prefer this.

(This is a joke. For a more serious consideration please read this.)

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Google PageSpeed Insights hates Google Analytics

Updated on Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Is it safe to open securedoc.html (Cisco Registered Envelope)?

Updated on Friday, February 3, 2023

Cisco's insane securedoc HTML attachment

I last got one of these in 2010 and assumed it must have died by now, but no, otherwise sensible organisations are still training their customers to fall victim to phishing attacks by asking them to open dodgy email attachments.

The product in question is Cisco Registered Envelope and it deals with the lack of security in email by sending you an encrypted HTML file. Opening this file sends you off to register on some website and then runs a Java app to decrypt the message. This is insane. The HTML attachment in insane and the Java applet is insane.

The latest email I got in this format was an appointment reminder from UCSF. I'm sure there is some HIPPA requirement that they can't just send medical information in a plain text email. But they could send an email that lets you know you should login to your account to see the appointment. It's not like the securedoc.html method is magic, you still have to create an account on a website to use it so it buys you literally nothing.

UCSF, shame on you. Look after your patients digital health as well as their physical health. Out of self interest if nothing else, nobody can pay you if their bank accounts have been emptied after falling victim to a real phishing attack.

Cisco, shame on you. This product is so wrong headed it's impossible to believe that you're doing anything right.

​(previously)

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