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After some inspiration from the guys on the Accidental Tech Podcast the other day, I had to make some meatballs and sauce for myself!

I cruised a few different sites looking for a good recipe and most of them were something along the lines of “beef, with enough egg to bind them, and flavours, so I went with what looked good on the shelf.

It definitely worked out well, the smoky paprika was a freaking tasty addition to the meatballs, and the combination of ingredients suffused the house with a delightfully rich aroma, perfect for a “chilly” winter night in Brisbane.

Kurt Vonnegut’s letter to the people of 2088 is, as you’d expect, incredibly well written.

It has been suggested that you might welcome words of wisdom from the past, and that several of us in the twentieth century should send you some. Do you know this advice from Polonius in Shakespeare’s Hamlet: ‘This above all: to thine own self be true’? Or what about these instructions from St. John the Divine: ‘Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment has come’? The best advice from my own era for you or for just about anybody anytime, I guess, is a prayer first used by alcoholics who hoped to never take a drink again: ‘God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.’

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This open letter from Robin Williams’ wife to the neurology community about the story behind her husband’s death is truly shocking. Not because it’s full of the usual hollywood sordid trash, but because of the love she obviously feels and harrowing experience they went through together.

I am writing to share a story with you, specifically for you. My hope is that it will help you understand your patients along with their spouses and caregivers a little more. And as for the research you do, perhaps this will add a few more faces behind the why you do what you do. I am sure there are already so many.

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It was only the most recent event in a fake-news crisis that’s seized India, which in recent months has seen dozens of mob lynchings sparked by rumors that have spread virally on social media. According to Business-Standard, over the past 18 months, there have been 33 people killed and at least 99 injured in 69 reported lynchings.

This article on Sophos’ Naked Security Blog shows we still have a long way to go as a society. When large groups of people blindly accept information without any validation, and KILL others, wow.

As someone who’s had significant hearing damage from a variety of things throughout my life, the upcoming feature “Live Listen” brings hope for affordable, accessible aids in the future.

Last month, it was reported that Apple would add Live Listen, a feature that allows people to hear conversations in noisy settings, to AirPods later this year. The feature has been around since 2014. It uses the iPhone as a mic and connects to Apple-certified hearing aids to amplify hearing. When the next version of Apple’s key mobile software, iOS 12, is released, AirPod users will have access to the feature, though it’s recommended that those who require hearing aids still use them and not simply rely on AirPods for clarity and amplification.

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You’ve come to this page because you’ve reported a problem, for which you want a diagnosis and a remedy, but have not answered one or more of the questions in the standard litany.

Any problem report must provide

• a description of your actions,
• a description of the specific symptoms, and
• a description of why those symptoms are adverse.

A perfect page to send people to.

I love this article in IEEE spectrum about a new robot behaviour that people had to design.

..they designed an abuse-evading algorithm to help the robot avoid situations where tiny humans might gang up on it. Literally tiny humans: the robot is programmed to run away from people who are below a certain height and escape in the direction of taller people. When it encounters a human, the system calculates the probability of abuse based on interaction time, pedestrian density, and the presence of people above or below 1.4 meters (4 feet 6 inches) in height. If the robot is statistically in danger, it changes its course towards a more crowded area or a taller person.

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Nanette, By Hannah Gadsby.

Sit down, shut up and watch it until the end. I don’t care what you think, but you have to watch it.

I found her accent and her performance style grating and hard to watch.

That’s my problem, and if you feel it too, deal with it.

Watch it until the end.

This tumblr post, where an entomologist rates emoji ants, really made my day.

I’m not even using hyperbole. It’s so lovely and an example of the innocent whimsy we all need more of in our lives.

emojidex

This ant… makes me sad. All of her legs are broken. The MS Paint art style and gradient abuse convey distress. She has a duck beak. Despite this, her expression suggests perseverance and determined cheerfulness. I want this ant to have a better life. I am rooting for her. 3/10

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This is just so perfect, and a great explanation of what I regularly struggle with…

Someone will ask me a series of really strange questions, which leads me to ask “So.. what are you actually trying to achieve?”

Put down the chocolate-covered banana and step away from the European currency systems.

What you are asking for makes no sense.

All that you are going to receive by way of responses are bodges that attempt to do the nonsensical task that you have set, from people who are either making wild guesses as to what you are actually trying to achieve, or who don’t understand enough about the tool that you have chosen to know that what you are asking makes no sense. In both cases, that isn’t going to help you.

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