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schackbrian

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Talented analyst with strong project management and technical skills

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This reminded me of a Scientific American article from nine years ago about the evolutionary roots of depression. It says that depression is a useful adaptation:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/depressions-evolu...

Dr. Stephen Ilardi from the University of Kansas takes the opposite position. In his book, The Depression Cure, he says that depression is a disease of modernity. "[O]ur bodies were never designed for the sleep-deprived, poorly nourished, frenzied pace of twenty-first century life."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drv3BP0Fdi8

Luke's essay reminded me of Aaron Swartz's essays when he dropped out of high school and my own experiences when I dropped out around the same time. We knew something was wrong, and by the size of the "education reform" section at the library, we're not the only ones.

Sudbury Valley School was my first thought as I read Luke's essay, so I am very excited to read your contribution to this discussion. The readers of Hacker News want a startup to fix education. But what if this startup was already founded forty-seven years ago in Framingham, MA?

For anyone who is interested in learning more about Sudbury Valley School, I recommend reading some of their articles at the following location:

http://sudval.org/05_articles.html

You suggest that the modern vilification of hackers (such as Bradley Manning) is analogous to the medieval burning of witches. I assert that hackers and witches also have something else in common.

The spells that witches cast are analogous to the code that hackers develop. They are both writing in esoteric languages that can create things and cause actions. Witches' power is magical, but hackers' power is virtual. Neal Stephenson uses the Sumerian word namshub to describe this idea in his novel Snow Crash.

What a stupid idea 13 years ago

You make an interesting point about the shorter lifespans when tobacco was first smoked. Wikipedia says cultivation sites in Mexico date back to 1400-1000 BC or possibly even further [0].

On the other hand, you say, "This is the WORST type of comment on HN...I'm just sick of reading comments like this." Please try to be civil -- Hacker News normally has such a positive community.

[0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_tobacco

> But Valve is (a) fanatical about hiring, and (b) rolling in so much money that they won't have to make any tough decisions in the near future, e.g. laying off part of the staff to keep their company afloat (which can destroy the sort of culture necessary to sustain the model you're describing).

Several out of work as Valve makes 'large decisions' about its future (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5215891)

IIRC, Trader Joe's has delivery but not online orders. You go to the store to shop, and then they deliver to your apartment. That way you can walk or take the subway even if you buy a lot of groceries.

Stuff 16 years ago

I used to collect books, and then I donated them to the library. Now, I have more space, they keep track of them for me, and I can check them out whenever I want.