Posts by Tom Hillman 7 publicly visible posts • joined 2 Jul 2007
Anyone who has suggested disabling USB booting is missing the point: the program could as easily be run from a bootable CD. Possibly even a floppy.
Clearing/over-writing the RAM is just masking the problem - certainly not a 'long term solution'. Passwords simply shouldn't be stored in memory. Jeff may be right on this one, Interesting times...
Hi MTT,
I'm just trying to work out exactly what your objection to my post was, or whether you were just trying to get a reaction.
If it makes you feel better, I wrote my physics Master's dissertation on general relativity. However, I really don't see what my expertise or lack of it has to do with the point that many people here seem to be making.
I AM a pedant. But I think that's OK - sometimes it's important to be right. When you're reporting news (or 'news') is one of those times. I don't want to be distracted by Hype. I want to know what the new theory is about.
I also think that the need for scientists to understand the difference between the models that they create and the universe that they represent is more important than my pedantry.
I suppose it would also be pedantic to point out that david was talking about established theories, not facts. I happen to believe he's wrong about the theory being a 'rehash;' it's not a regurgitation either. But if popular science reporting insists on treating every small theoretical advance (on many people's many works) as some completely novel revolutionary and complete understanding of how the world works, it's no wonder that people will start to become cynical.
For instance, you summarize that the model can be 'verified by looking for footprints in the cosmological landscape' - such as? I would hope that you're right; It would be nice even if some possible candidates were mentioned in the article, but they weren't. Let's face it, advertising the fact that a theory (any theory) NEEDS corroborating empirical evidence only serves to undermine the impact of the story.
Instead of the hype, let's have some independant peer commentary. Let's examine what points are important, and how it could develop our current understanding. Let's have some damn criticism, too. Just be honest and say that you're speculating when that's what you're doing.
I wish that the Reg wouldn't descend into those depths of popular science excitement mongering that other publications frequent. In this day and age we need more news sources to cut the bullsh*t and stop wagging our tails, and I'm increasingly wondering if the Reg is still capable of the former.
It's a theory. Its ramifications are very interesting, and it's good that you've reported on the story. But it's a theory. It's not confirmed, it's not proof, the researchers have not actually gone back in time and brought back physical evidence. A model, a theory, no matter how precise is NOT the world it pertains to represent, and any reporter writing an article on a science piece has a duty to remember and represent this. Otherwise you're writing a misleading piece in order to fluff your audience, and to be frank, I can get better oral elsewhere.
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