Spyke

Replies

world

Comment on

Sweetener used in chewing gum and jam linked to strokes and heart attacks

It is important to note that this was an observational study, meaning it can only show an association between higher xylitol levels and cardiovascular events, rather than proving that xylitol directly caused them, and further research is needed. But it is not a green light to have more sugar instead, as we still need to reduce our free sugar intake

Correlation vs Causation caveat is strongly needed here

privacy

Comment on

Passkeys are a trap. Do not use them

Reply in thread

My background is very much not in this world so caveat my questions/response below with that mind set. I do however try to practice decent personal opsec such 2fa (TOTP), password manager with random generation, etc.

I feel like a lot of what you stated was covered in the article. For example the article states that problem isn't the number of stakeholders, it's that none of them are consumer advocacy groups.

I understand that the author maybe leaned on the password sharing example too much but I think that was in an effort to present the material in a friendlier manner to the average reader. The closing statement makes it clear it's not really about Netflix, etc. The main concern is that attested passkey requirement will now be the easiest way to force specific software and hardware upon user. The GraphenOS example is a good one.

You might not use the attested flag in that manner but I have zero doubt that once passkey adoption rate passes a certain threshold Google will be more than glad to miss-use that flag to lock people out of their gmail account unless they have the most recent phone and software.

Do you have any examples of any public service requiring attested keys? No, because it really doesn't make sense. But because the protocol supports it, people shouldnt use passkeys? Shitty hot take.

I think this is a bad take. "Because this potential is not being misused right now it won't be a problem in the future" has not really served us well thus far.

My understanding is that the article is saying that passkeys are giving away too much control to the second party. That can and will be abused.

But again, layman's understanding from my end.

Comment on

User destroys local habitat so they can walk barefoot beside "their" lake

Reply in thread

Note the text below was based on the assumption this was a natural lake. Please see the reply comments below providing further clarification. The homeowner cleaning up his shorelines is a drop in the bucket compared to the fact that an entire swamp was replaced with an artificial lake. Leaving my original comment intact for posterity inspire of it being incorrect in this context.

I think the problem is that this is NOT the natural state of this specific shoreline. If being left alone resulted in trees and grass growing then a sandy "beach" shoreline is not in balance with the local ecosystem. Trimming the grass and clearing a small path for access would have been okay but nuking that span of shoreline has now introduced significant erosion risk. Grasses, shurbs, and roots play an important role in preventing erosion. Maybe the 50-100m stretch won't be a big deal in the long run but if all the homes in the area follow suit then long term large scale problems will arise. Even still at a small scale, I can already see how close this shoreline is to their home. They have eliminated a decent bit of erosion preventing vegetation that served as a buffer from the back yard of their homes. A few seasons of high and low tide cycles will, at best wash away their "pretty walking area", and at worst undermine the stability of the soil near the building foundation. There is no easy "undo" for the damage they have done, the closest thing is artificial erosion preventative measures which will be concrete, metal, or some other manufactured system that will be much more of an eye soar then the original condition they apparently hated so much.

Comment on

AI Is Creating “Doom Loops” All Over the Economy: The AI industry is destroying its own incentive structure.

Reply in thread

You underestimate how many people have just forgone the usage of search engines. Most people these days just go to their preferred AI site or app and just take at face value whatever slop it spits out. No one reads or verifies anymore. It would be something if they were using that "saved time" on something productive but alas it's just to go back to doom scrolling or something else just as meaningless. It's depressing :/

Comment on

Jensen Huang Is Begging You to Stop Being So Negative About AI

Reply in thread

Friendly rebuttal. I don't like this version either because of two reasons. First is that it is still using stolen material to do any of this "creative work". Second: the knob twiddling, mixing colors, and all versions of that are integral to the creation process. Happy accidents are why we have a lot of what we have in the creative world. Somone chasing a specific sound might discover their own sound while twiddling away for hours. They will be able to do that in a much more replicable and modifyable way than the black box that is "AI". But that's just my opinion as an amature creative.

videos

Comment on

Christa Pike at 18 years old when she was sentenced to death. She is now 50 and they are supposed to kill her this week

Reply in thread

The video doesn't "try" to show her as anything it just captures a moment in court. You can attribute to it what you want. What I see is the extreme results of bipolar disorder after a lifetime of abuse and lack of treatment. It is a stark example of a society that failed their citizen. Here is someone who had enough humanity somewhere in their system to just cry and want a hug from someone they loved before facing the consequences. I'm not even bipolar but I don't know what kind of human being I would be if I literally faced abuse since infancy.

To me the video doesn't take away the heinousness of the crime, it just brings into the focus how these types of situations aren't always some cut and dry stereotypical "evil person does evil things".

Comment on

Japan tightens rules for foreigners wanting permanent residency

Wow the old "foreigners on welfare are draining your country" lie works over in Japan too huh. It's kind of sad to see the populace and now the government turn back towards more xenophobia even as their country is on track for population collapse. I know they have had some terrible experiences with foreigner tourists, but I would think directing that frustration towards people willing to immigrate, work, and support their economy is not the right move. Guess it's better to die off as closed country than open your doors.