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Post by wickedmountain on Sept 19, 2021 12:33:57 GMT -5
Glad to see ya back wickedmountain and know we all missed you to! Wish you well and enjoy catching up on our posts! Hey Thanks so much friend
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Sept 19, 2021 18:35:09 GMT -5
Scary stuff!!! In need of some dinner music, my wife and I turn to Spotify. Not being subscribers, we have to endure ads, of course. No big deal. Then I notice that the ads we hear are in French, while the ads I am treated to at work are all in English. Why would that be, apart from the fact that most of my online activities at work are conducted in English and we only speak French at home? So just for a lark, playing a joke on the imaginnary Spotify algorithm supposed to spy on our every word, we switch to English and loudly complain that the ads are in French. Lo and behold, after twenty minutes, the ads switch to English! Let's make a test: we then switch to German and complain that the ads are in English. Ten minutes later, a German song comes up!! I think I'm going to put the iPad in the microwave when it's not in use, from now on!!!
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Post by Icctrombone on Sept 20, 2021 6:07:02 GMT -5
Scary stuff!!! In need of some dinner music, my wife and I turn to Spotify. Not being subscribers, we have to endure ads, of course. No big deal. Then I notice that the ads we hear are in French, while the ads I am treated to at work are all in English. Why would that be, apart from the fact that most of my online activities at work are conducted in English and we only speak French at home? So just for a lark, playing a joke on the imaginnary Spotify algorithm supposed to spy on our every word, we switch to English and loudly complain that the ads are in French. Lo and behold, after twenty minutes, the ads switch to English! Let's make a test: we then switch to German and complain that the ads are in English. Ten minutes later, a German song comes up!! I think I'm going to put the iPad in the microwave when it's not in use, from now on!!! Yeah, we are being followed every where we go.
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Sept 20, 2021 9:25:54 GMT -5
Scary stuff!!! In need of some dinner music, my wife and I turn to Spotify. Not being subscribers, we have to endure ads, of course. No big deal. Then I notice that the ads we hear are in French, while the ads I am treated to at work are all in English. Why would that be, apart from the fact that most of my online activities at work are conducted in English and we only speak French at home? So just for a lark, playing a joke on the imaginnary Spotify algorithm supposed to spy on our every word, we switch to English and loudly complain that the ads are in French. Lo and behold, after twenty minutes, the ads switch to English! Let's make a test: we then switch to German and complain that the ads are in English. Ten minutes later, a German song comes up!! I think I'm going to put the iPad in the microwave when it's not in use, from now on!!! Yeah, we are being followed every where we go. This is why I find it sadly hilarious when people worry about trackers in vaccines as they type furiously on their smart phones.
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Post by impulse on Sept 20, 2021 11:30:37 GMT -5
Yeah, we are being followed every where we go. This is why I find it sadly hilarious when people worry about trackers in vaccines as they type furiously on their smart phones. "They're going to track you with the nanobots!!!" **posted on Facebook from your iPhone you link to your Google account for GPS that has your calendar and the contact info of everyone you know in it**
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Post by MWGallaher on Sept 21, 2021 8:48:19 GMT -5
I say bring it on. I'm ready for a future when we're all equipped with tracking devices, and the coming generations will be even more tolerant and even expectant of it, as technology is rapidly changing our expectations of privacy. If all our movements were tracked, there would be no more kidnappings, no more lost children, no bodies we couldn't find, open-and-shut solutions to most murders and apprehension of fugitives ("Brian, your GPS shows you leaving her at the spot when her tracker signaled her expiration"). No more escaping a hit-and-run accident, no accident victims dying in a ditch 5 days after wrecking their car undetected...yeah, there are plenty of Black Mirror-style negative consequences, but it would essentially solve violent crime and reduce many tragic consequences of accidents and missing persons. And while we're at it, GPS in every car, with monitors detecting the presence of people inside, allowing for immediate response to accidents and the end to accidentally leaving babies in hot cars (windows would automatically roll down and the car would begin honking and send an alarm to authorities and alert anyone in the immediate vicinity to go to the rescue), document the responsible parties in vehicular accidents. That's one heck of a comprehensive solution to a lot of problems...
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Sept 21, 2021 9:25:39 GMT -5
I say bring it on. I'm ready for a future when we're all equipped with tracking devices, and the coming generations will be even more tolerant and even expectant of it, as technology is rapidly changing our expectations of privacy. If all our movements were tracked, there would be no more kidnappings, no more lost children, no bodies we couldn't find, open-and-shut solutions to most murders and apprehension of fugitives ("Brian, your GPS shows you leaving her at the spot when her tracker signaled her expiration"). No more escaping a hit-and-run accident, no accident victims dying in a ditch 5 days after wrecking their car undetected...yeah, there are plenty of Black Mirror-style negative consequences, but it would essentially solve violent crime and reduce many tragic consequences of accidents and missing persons. And while we're at it, GPS in every car, with monitors detecting the presence of people inside, allowing for immediate response to accidents and the end to accidentally leaving babies in hot cars (windows would automatically roll down and the car would begin honking and send an alarm to authorities and alert anyone in the immediate vicinity to go to the rescue), document the responsible parties in vehicular accidents. That's one heck of a comprehensive solution to a lot of problems... I do see the practical aspect, but I 'm pretty uncomfortable with the idea of anyone being able to track me without my consent (which I realize already happens a lot). That's not the reason I don't have a cell phone, but it's certainly why I will never agree to put a bug in my car so that my insurance provider can check how I'm driving! One thing I'd be absolutely in favour of, however, is for everyone's STRs (the genetic markers the police uses to try and identify the source of biological material) to be on record somewhere. Like fingerprints, STRs reveal absolutely nothing about us; they just allow cops to make a connection between an individual and biological material (be it blood, flecks of skin or a whole corpse). It would allow the identification of any John Doe on the spot, it would allow the immediate arrest of any rapist, and while DNA evidence is not enough to condemn someone, it is certainly a good tool to bring inspectors to ask questions to the right people. I also don't really see how such a system could lead to abuse, because even if someone wants to incriminate me by planting fake DNA evidence after having had access to my STR profile, it would be much simpler for them to just go through my trashcan and recover anything that might contain my DNA.
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Sept 21, 2021 9:41:38 GMT -5
I say bring it on. I'm ready for a future when we're all equipped with tracking devices, and the coming generations will be even more tolerant and even expectant of it, as technology is rapidly changing our expectations of privacy. If all our movements were tracked, there would be no more kidnappings, no more lost children, no bodies we couldn't find, open-and-shut solutions to most murders and apprehension of fugitives ("Brian, your GPS shows you leaving her at the spot when her tracker signaled her expiration"). No more escaping a hit-and-run accident, no accident victims dying in a ditch 5 days after wrecking their car undetected...yeah, there are plenty of Black Mirror-style negative consequences, but it would essentially solve violent crime and reduce many tragic consequences of accidents and missing persons. And while we're at it, GPS in every car, with monitors detecting the presence of people inside, allowing for immediate response to accidents and the end to accidentally leaving babies in hot cars (windows would automatically roll down and the car would begin honking and send an alarm to authorities and alert anyone in the immediate vicinity to go to the rescue), document the responsible parties in vehicular accidents. That's one heck of a comprehensive solution to a lot of problems... One thing I'd be absolutely in favour of, however, is for everyone's STRs (the genetic markers the police uses to try and identify the source of biological material) to be on record somewhere. Like fingerprints, STRs reveal absolutely nothing about us; they just allow cops to make a connection between an individual and biological material (be it blood, flecks of skin or a whole corpse). I just want to take this opportunity to point out that fingerprint evidence is voodoo. Fingerprint analysis fails three of the four prongs of the Daubert test for admissibility as scientific evidence. It's almost as subjective as comic book reviews. And yet Courts still admit the evidence (though a few are coming around) based largely on inertia.
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Post by EdoBosnar on Sept 21, 2021 10:16:04 GMT -5
One thing I'd be absolutely in favour of, however, is for everyone's STRs (the genetic markers the police uses to try and identify the source of biological material) to be on record somewhere. Like fingerprints, STRs reveal absolutely nothing about us; they just allow cops to make a connection between an individual and biological material (be it blood, flecks of skin or a whole corpse). I just want to take this opportunity to point out that fingerprint evidence is voodoo. Fingerprint analysis fails three of the four prongs of the Daubert test for admissibility as scientific evidence. It's almost as subjective as comic book reviews. And yet Courts still admit the evidence (though a few are coming around) based largely on inertia. Yep. Much as I like pointing out that fingerprint ID-ing was basically introduced to police/forensics work by a fellow ethnic Croat, Ivan Vučetić/Juan Vucetich, it's actually not a very reliable tool and criminal cases should probably never hinge on them.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Sept 21, 2021 10:19:48 GMT -5
Yep. Much as I like pointing out that fingerprint ID-ing was basically introduced to police/forensics work by a fellow ethnic Croat, Ivan Vučetić/Juan Vucetich, it's actually not a very reliable tool and criminal cases should probably never hinge on them. I don't have much faith in visual testimonies either, I must say! It took me years to tell Matthew Mcconaughey and Woody Harrelson apart!
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Post by Prince Hal on Sept 21, 2021 10:20:42 GMT -5
I say bring it on. I'm ready for a future when we're all equipped with tracking devices, and the coming generations will be even more tolerant and even expectant of it, as technology is rapidly changing our expectations of privacy. If all our movements were tracked, there would be no more kidnappings, no more lost children, no bodies we couldn't find, open-and-shut solutions to most murders and apprehension of fugitives ("Brian, your GPS shows you leaving her at the spot when her tracker signaled her expiration"). No more escaping a hit-and-run accident, no accident victims dying in a ditch 5 days after wrecking their car undetected...yeah, there are plenty of Black Mirror-style negative consequences, but it would essentially solve violent crime and reduce many tragic consequences of accidents and missing persons. And while we're at it, GPS in every car, with monitors detecting the presence of people inside, allowing for immediate response to accidents and the end to accidentally leaving babies in hot cars (windows would automatically roll down and the car would begin honking and send an alarm to authorities and alert anyone in the immediate vicinity to go to the rescue), document the responsible parties in vehicular accidents. That's one heck of a comprehensive solution to a lot of problems... If they'd had this kind of technology when I was a kid, I would have been dead by the age of twelve at the hand of my father.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Sept 21, 2021 10:33:11 GMT -5
Back in Germany they had cameras on traffic light (I don't know how many of them), and if your car stopped a little too far at a red light, they took two pictures at a few seconds interval. If you had stayed there and were on the two photos, no problem; it meant you had really stopped, albeit a little too far. If you weren't on the second picture, however, it meant that you had run the red light, and thanks to cars having plates at both ends, the cops could trace you and fine you.
One of my friends once lent his car to another expatriate (let's call him Paco), and two cops showed up at his door in a matter of hours. They got two pictures out of an envelope, with his car in evidence, a little too far beyond the stop line. My friend felt a little awkward, since he wasn't sure he was allowed to lend his car to someone who didn't have a German driver's license, and said something to the effect of "oh, I see, I'm sorry, I will pay better attention next time". Then the cops produced a blowup of the second picture, showing the face of a puzzled Paco wondering where that photographic flash had come from.
"Doctor B,", they said... "That's not you in the car!"
My friend didn't get a fine or anything, but our whole lab was very impressed by the police's efficiency! (A little spooked, too, I must admit).
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Post by Rob Allen on Sept 21, 2021 11:32:30 GMT -5
Yep. Much as I like pointing out that fingerprint ID-ing was basically introduced to police/forensics work by a fellow ethnic Croat, Ivan Vučetić/Juan Vucetich, it's actually not a very reliable tool and criminal cases should probably never hinge on them. I thought it was introduced by Detective William Murdoch of the Toronto Constabulary. Unless... maybe Murdoch Mysteries isn't a documentary.
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Post by EdoBosnar on Sept 21, 2021 12:23:48 GMT -5
(...) Unless... maybe Murdoch Mysteries isn't a documentary. Of course it isn't, don't be silly. SCTV, though, is documentary footage from an actual television station...
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Sept 22, 2021 14:34:15 GMT -5
Today I learned that the 1961 Chrysler 300G retailed for around $6000 depending on accessories. That's about $55,500 in 2021 dollars. That at a time when there was no way anyone was getting a vehicle loan for more than 36 months. No wonder they were rare as hen's teeth.
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