In the aftermath of the great Sichuan earthquake, we’ve seen a hopeful glimpse of China’s future: a more open and self-confident nation, and maybe — just maybe — the birth of grass-roots politics here.

Earthquake and Hope - New York Times

Astronomers have been able to capture and record the first moments when a massive star blows itself apart.

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Exploding star caught in the act

Ministers are to consider plans for a database of electronic information holding details of every phone call and e-mail sent in the UK, it has emerged.

I swear it's a game of who can come up with the most Orwellian proposal

maybe if we shoot everybody then there won't be any crime or any terrorists!!!

BBC NEWS | UK | Phone calls database considered

Observations of the cosmic microwave background might deal blow to theory.

Written in the skies: why quantum mechanics might be wrong

Here I report on code quality metrics I collected from four large industrial-scale operating systems: FreeBSD, Linux, OpenSolaris, and the Windows Research Kernel (WRK). The main contribution of this research is the finding that there are no significant across-the-board code quality differences between four large working systems, which have been developed using various open-source and proprietary processes. An additional contribution involves the proposal of numerous code quality metrics for objectively evaluating software written in C. Although these metrics have not been empirically validated, they are based on generally accepted coding guidelines, and therefore represent the rough consensus of developers concerning desirable code attributes.

A Tale of Four Kernels

The separation between the sexes in Saudi Arabia is so extreme that it is difficult to overstate.

fighting the tide of history

Love on Girls’ Side of the Saudi Divide - New York Times

Stefanie wrote:

David Brooks:
The central political debate of the 20th century was over the role of government. The right stood for individual freedom while the left stood for extending the role of the state. But the central debate of the 21st century is over quality of life. In this new debate, it is necessary but insufficient to talk about individual freedom. Political leaders have to also talk about, as one Tory politician put it, “the whole way we live our lives.”

That means, first, moving beyond the Thatcherite tendency to put economics first.

In other words, their conservatives are becoming... liberals. Although, it's interesting to note that Brooks associates a concern for individual freedom with conservatives, not liberals. Of course, he's referring to economic freedom more than social freedom, but economic freedom is the key to a healthy democratic society. Thatcher was right, and both the U.K. and the U.S.A. could use more of it, not less.

While I think Brooks is correct in assuming that American conservatives would not accept the new British conservatism, he seems to ignore the fact that the Republican Party has already moved closer to the left. That's why so many real conservatives are dissatisfied with the Republicans.

what is regarded as conservative, liberal or socialist has morphed over the decades and centuries
describing any political position as "real" conservatism seems to me simply to indicate a relative idealogical position rather than an objective set of facts

the contempory British Conservative party has certainly moved it's rhetoric to the left and more to the perceived centerground of British politics mostly as a result of its perceived extremism -- failing dramatically electorally will do that -- and as a reflection of Tony Blair's success in moving the Labour Party to the perceived right equally as a result of electoral failure

in British politics first for the left then right there has been a marked shift away from clearly defined idealogical positions and towards pragmatics -- a shift which has caused levels of horror in both major parties -- what has resulted is a softer more amorphous idealogical vision from the ruling elites

it is a real danger for any political movement/philosophy/meme stack when arguments break out about "true" this or "real" that -- the great rallying cry of legitimacy -- the internal struggles within communist parties eg the Chinese; who particularly love these sort of labels with rightists, leftists and splittists; demonstrating a particular sequence almost like a dance sequence or to use a metaphor of something you're more familiar with than I am - chess.

on a personal note i think the assertion that "economic freedom is the key to a healthy democratic society" is dubious when stated as fact

a level of economic freedom goes hand in hand with democracy but the relative levels of economic freedom -- the economic merits of varying levels of unregulated markets and the social effects have been at the center of political discourse since before Adam Smith (1723-1790)(who formalised much of the thinking on the subject) and this discourse completely dominated the history of the 20th century

but there is no such thing as a purely unregulated market - pure economic freedom -- no contract law etc no property -- not much economics would take place in such an enviroment

regulation -- law and the stability it provides is a prerequisite but the optimum level of law and regulation is only provable by time: the success levels of different economic and political models as future and history unfolds
is the only judge

we can argue for different levels but it is a matter of discourse rather than objectivity

RE: The Conservative Revival - New York Times

For years, American and British politics were in sync. Reagan came in roughly the same time as Thatcher, and Clinton’s Third Way approach mirrored Blair’s. But the British conservatives never had a Gingrich revolution in the 1990s or the Bush victories thereafter. They got their losing in early, and, in the wilderness, they rethought modern conservatism while their American counterparts were clinging to power.

The Conservative Revival - New York Times

England is an irritating and insular country full of overweight, binge-drinking, reality TV addicts, a new guide warns tourists.

But in the new Rough Guide to England, the English are also hailed as a nation of animal-loving, tea-drinking charity donors who love nothing better than forming an orderly queue.

English self-important and irritating | Oddly Enough | Reuters

I have “software architect” on my resume, and it pains me. Wikipedia has a great article on what a software architect may or may not be. But, in my world, a software architect has the knowledge, insight and responsibility to make educated decisions about the scope and direction of a team-developed software project.

That was a mouthful.

Software architects pick frameworks. They find previously existing packages for functionality just before the rest of the team realizes they need it. And, they plan and communicate how all the moving parts will come together. They’re really-really smart.

Everyone wants to be a software architect. At Seattle’s Startup Weekend, no less than a third of the developers signed up as architects. And why not?! The act of creation - from art to programming - is egotistical. If you’ve ever referred to yourself as a “software engineer” with a straight face, then you’re advertising the capability to plan non-trivial projects.

You’re a liar.

I will never be a software architect