All right, so Skynet becomes a real thing. But it also means your lifelike sexbot can also adjust the clock on your oven for daylight savings time. Some tradeoffs are worth it, people.

I used to be a creative director for a large architecture firm that was known for its airport designs. One of the complaints I got a lot from the general public was "why do you have to make the gates so for apart?" (This was often said in the whiniest way possible.) They never seemed to accept that it was the wingspan…

The biggest thing Snowden revealed wasn't that the NSA was spying on Americans. It was how readily Americans accept living in a police state.

This. This. This. Precisely this.

Interesting idea about living in a post-nation world. I've often wondered about that. In the same way that 500 years ago, it was legally impossible for a European not to be Catholic, it's likewise impossible today for someone (anyone, really) to not be a citizen of some country. I think we have this on a de facto…

I'm eager to see how driverless cars reshape the urban world. Something like 30% of many American cities is given to surface parking lots. Likewise, we have freakishly wide streets. Both things would be made obsolete by driverless cars, especially if we moved from an ownership model to a subscription model. That's a…

I'm going to have to read this based on your recommendation. I've always intuited that entrepreneurial aims were adversarial to livability ones, and here seems to be a thesis that supports this.

This sounds fascinating. I'm curious, though, what is the optimal size? As someone who travels often, I have a soft spot for places like the Czech Republic. The size seems perfect to me, small but not tiny. So long as you don't have any aggressive, expansionist neighbors (which CZ does have) they seem well situated…

That's good to hear. My German has been just falling apart since I don't travel there as much as I used to. I'll have to look into them.

I think you're right. That would account for the Italian in New Jersey, for example. The German, though, surprises me. I grew up in the Midwest and currently live in Colorado and have yet to encounter German spoken in the home. Whereas I've heard a Polish, Italian, Vietnamese, etc., spoken by grandparents and…

They're going to have a referendum about secession. Expect Russian troop ships off the coast any day now.

There's something weird taking place once you remove English and Spanish from the mix. In some states, such as Minnesota where there's a large Hmong population, and California, where there's a lot of Filipinos, the third most prevalent language makes sense. But German in Colorado? Please. This must conflate both…

The ones that got hit by the no-warhead missile? Absolutely. A little Bondo and you're good to go.

Jesus, that is the most brilliant thing ever posted here. Well done.

Right?! The sight of a dead Tacoma/Hilux brings tears to my eyes.

Something-something-science. Wait? Did you say "straight rod through curved hole?" Attention=grabbed.

Ha! So it does! You have no idea...I've been trying to figure this out for years. Thank you so, so much! (I'm 0.7 too.) This is a fantastic pencil, and I'm going to get some leads for it tomorrow.

This is an excellent point. In fact, a lot of writers I know are always talking about how the TV series is the new novel, with all the characterization and depth of great literature. Look at Sopranos or Breaking Bad—they're just as rich and deep and involving as any of the A-list novels, and often more so.

I had this set as well and, just like you, lost the rollerball. Out of curiosity, what size lead does the mechanical pencil take? Oddly, it doesn't seem to be marked on the body anywhere. I have mine just sitting here, empty and sad because I don't know what size lead to use.

Likewise, Cleopatra is closer to our own time than she was to the time of the Pyramids.(69BCE-30BCE)