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matthen: This animation shows the evolution of a shape, as it grows to become more and more circular. I created generations of these shapes, and simulated each generation creating a new generation. Two shapes produced offspring which looked like themselves, with a chance of mutations, and shapes were more likely to be parents if they…
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In some cases, a large number of interactions can in fact work against the emergence of interesting behaviour, by creating a lot of “noise” to drown out any emerging “signal”; the emergent behaviour may need to be temporarily isolated from other interactions before it reaches enough critical mass to be self-supporting. unknown (via notgames)
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This paper describes a formalism for the justification of texts written in an Arabic alphabet‑based script, within some approved calligraphic rules, that would produce better typographical quality than current publishing systems. Specifically, we improve the optimum-fit algorithm by taking into account the existence of allographic variants and stretched forms with kashida (a feature in some…
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Physical books may seem to be the immediate casualty of the movement towards e-books, but they appear, both empirically and in theory, to have considerable staying power, doubtlessly owing to the impressive range of functions they serve, the symbolism that they embody, and the fierce loyalty they have engendered, not least among university press constituencies…
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Some prominent Internet and publishing figures have spoken out on the importance of making books freely available to the world (Lessig 2004, 2008; Boyle 2007, 2008a, 2008b; Doctorow 2008). Although making books available as free educational resources may be beneficial, an obvious objection to the making of books available for free is that the availability…
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peterfeld: You have to watch the whole 8:34. I didn’t at first, because I couldn’t take any more of seeing UC Davis Police Lt. John Pike (530-752-3989, japikeiii@ucdavis.edu) pepper-spray a row of peaceful students like they were cockroaches. But watching the nonviolent crowd (I never believed that nonviolence is a morally superior tactic, but it is…
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climateadaptation: This is a military perspective on adaptation and sustainability. Fantastic, fast-paced talk. Naval Captain Wayne Porter and Col. Mark Mykleby of the Marines, military strategists working at the highest level of government, present highlights from their paper, “A National Strategic Narrative.” Their ideas—less military force, more social capital and more sustainable practices in energy…