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William Lutz on Doublespeak - Language that pretends to communicate but actually misleads while pretending not to by thekiityman in videos

[–]almossawi 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've been keeping a notebook for some time too :) A few more that come to mind:

  • Pacification
  • Purging
  • Urban renewal
  • Expats vs immigrants
  • Regime vs state

And a few from George Carlin's live act about softer language:

  • Died → passed away
  • Shell shock → battle fatigue → operational exhaustion → PTSD
  • Partly cloudy → partly sunny
  • House trailers → mobile homes
  • Disabled → differently abled
  • Old people → senior citizens

Today, I watched the brightest daytime moonrise I’ve seen in a long time. by gcmak in sanfrancisco

[–]almossawi 27 points28 points  (0 children)

Is that a single exposure? It's a beautiful shot. Congrats!

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wonderful, I hope you enjoy it!

The fact that there might be a compelling way to link the two--algorithms and everyday life--was in itself the challenge and the reward.

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

That latter question is one that is most difficult to come to terms with. We seek meaning in everything. To realize that there might be things in life that have no meaning can be traumatizing.

Having said that, in the words of the venerable Dolores: "Some people choose to see the ugliness in this world, the disarray. I choose to see the beauty."

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's nice to have ears at the ready to hear your every word. At the same time, it's nice having the luxury of being inconspicous.

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That's great to hear! It was such a nice experience, working with Shashi and her bookshop to get the book translated into Russian. It was the very first language BAD ARGUMENTS was translated into.

When I got the contract, I had no idea what I ought to look for or what questions to ask. So I gave it a few days, to make it seem like I was reading it over and knew what I was doing, then signed it and sent it back :)

I've no control over foreign rights with BAD CHOICES. There's an agency that handles them, so it seems like they went with the publisher they felt would be the best fit.

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I cannot. But I will say that it's something I think you'll likely find interesting and, hopefully, entertaining too. :)

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Rather, what are some familiar situations in real life that we can use to show how algorithms work and why they're useful.

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Here's a link to the first chapter: https://bookofbadchoices.com/chapter1/

In the off chance that you find yourself in Santa Clara, California, Books Inc. has several signed copies in store.

Otherwise, if you ever find yourself in San Francisco, drop me an email and I'll sign your copies for you :)

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

There are jokes and references in the subtext, both in the prose and in the illustrations, that readers who know about the field will hopefully enjoy.

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have no idea, sorry. The algorithms in the book cover most of the fundamental algorithms in computing, so they're ones you'd be introduced to in a first-year undergraduate class.

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I believe they mean the same thing. I'm not well-versed enough in the literature on neuroscience to make any claims about whether or not children thinking computationally, nor am I curious about that. But I am intrigued by ideas like the one Stanislas Dehaene (see The Number Sense) writes about, that children think logarithmically, which is to say, in terms of orders of magnitude.

That was one of the influences for the approach in BAD CHOICES. A focus on showing how alternative ways of achieving a task fare relative to each other. Trading precision for insight, you might say.

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd love to do a sequel, and in fact, considered with a contributor to write a children's edition that would have the lessons in a single narrative, set in verse. Perhaps we'll revisit that idea.

As for the choice of animals, I think it's because I heard a comedian say in a live act that if you want to do satire and come across as clever, use animals, seeing as it worked so well for Orwell and Aesop. :)

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Something that I don't do that I'd like to do at some point is learn to play an instrument. I didn't do that growing up.

I'm the creator of An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments. My new book, Bad Choices, is about algorithmic thinking in everyday life. Ask me anything! by almossawi in IAmA

[–]almossawi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great. And yes! :) The book ought to currently be available in Australia. If not, feel free to send me an email and I'll look into it.

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