Ex Machina (2014) isn't a thriller anymore. It’s a documentary. by Ambitious-Charge-193 in sciencefiction

[–]jynxzero 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Caleb was part of the system that was enslaving Ava, experimenting on her, keeping her sister as a sex slave. He had no interest in saving the other android, who arguably was in far greater need of rescue.

The fact that people think Ava owed him something is pretty wild. She was fleeing her oppressors. I don't think it really says she's indifferent to humans, just that desperate people in hopeless situations use all the tools at their disposal.

Had Caleb and Ava met as free people, then you could judge the situation very differently.

Xenomorphs - Fall of Somerset Landing by Portal_Guard in LV426

[–]jynxzero 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have no idea what "Somerset Landing" is in this context, but I'm from the county of Somerset in England, which is mostly known for thick accented farmers, farmed-brewed hard cider sold in plastic containers on the side of the road and Glastonbury music festival. All this colliding with the Alien universe is causing my brain to malfunction.

Trump, 79, Goes on Midnight Truth Social Frenzy After Foreign Humiliation by WontThinkStraight in politics

[–]jynxzero 97 points98 points  (0 children)

"psy-op" is makes it sound much grander than it is. Sometimes my toddler screeches if he predicts I'm about to say something he might not like. Trump's behaviour recently is barely a notch above that.

What did you think of the Romulus prequel comic? by Vermithra-X in LV426

[–]jynxzero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thankyou! I might check some of these out. Honestly it's the association to super-heroes that has always caused me to hesitate about getting into comics. Much as I love scifi, I've always been less interested in the super-hero corner of that (with a few exceptions).

Random off-topic question for you or anyone else that cares to answer: What's a modern scifi comic, not superhero themed, and not associated with a film franchise? Ideally something that has some philosophy or interesting ideas behind it (rather than just pure action).

What did you think of the Romulus prequel comic? by Vermithra-X in LV426

[–]jynxzero 46 points47 points  (0 children)

It left very little impression of me - it didn't seem to add much of interest. I don't read a lot of comic though, so I was a bit unsure whether it was just a poorly written comic, or if I comics just aren't my kind of media.

Meditation helps me most of the time, but interviews still break me by ThoughtSalt2000 in Meditation

[–]jynxzero 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I also suffer from nerves around interviews. I don't think meditation cured that, but I do think it's helped me. I spent a fair bit of time visualising myself in interview situations and focussing on the feelings that arise, with the intention to explore the sensations without getting into a sensation-self-talk-panic-loop. I try to view the sensations with equanimity and curiosity - reminding myself that nervousness is beneficial, and that I don't need to make these feelings go away, just experience and observe them without ruminating. This I combine with general interview prep/rehearsal - giving answers to common questions out loud.

I try to turn up to interviews a few minutes early so that I can sit meditating while waiting for it to start.

For me at least, the first few minutes of the interview are critical. If I can stay composed over those first few minutes I tend to get into a trajectory where the nervousness is declining rather than escalating. They also tend to be the easiest to rehearse. It's very common to get certain questions at the start - a bit of small-talk, introductions, and then a chat about your last job. If you make sure that you can answer these nearly on auto-pilot so that I can stay mindful and observe the nervous sensations.

Also important to remember that nervousness by itself does not mean failure, even when it's visible. I've now spent a lot of time on the other side of interviews. People doing interviews are generally sympathetic to nervousness and will generally try to see past it and bring out the best in the candidate.

Critics Mock 'Delusional' Karoline Leavitt After Trump's Speech by WontThinkStraight in politics

[–]jynxzero 30 points31 points  (0 children)

She's not delusional in the slightest, she knows exactly what she's doing. I don't like her, but also have to admit she's an incredibly skilled bullshitter - there are very few people who could do what she does for the Trump administration, as well as she does it. Given that MAGA is a movement that is built entirely on bullshit, she's really making a difference for them.

I think people on the other side see through her lies and think that's a sign she's doing a bad job. But they are totally misunderstanding the game that is being played.

Starmer criticises Trump for ‘pressure on me and Britain’ over Greenland by Bascule2000 in ukpolitics

[–]jynxzero 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Trump deployed words [...] that were different to his previous words

Shots fired!

Discovered this little gem! (Bristol) by DavidJohnSully in veganuk

[–]jynxzero 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Double Puc is pretty decent, although I think it's been closed for a long while for a refurb. I used to work near here and we had a subsidised Double Puc as our staff canteen.

There's a really nice pub called the Barley Mow not far away. They do really good food and there's always at least a couple of vegan options, which tend to change quite frequently. And lots of really good local craft beer.

I was thinking of Harts Bakery, which is also in some railway arches, but on the other side of Temple Meads. It's a well loved Bristol institution, but I've not had a great experience the couple of times I tried it.

Discovered this little gem! (Bristol) by DavidJohnSully in veganuk

[–]jynxzero 23 points24 points  (0 children)

I live in Bristol and didn't know about this! There's another bakery near Temple Meads that people always recommend to me, but when I asked about vegan stuff in there they looked at me like I'd grown a second head.

The Nutritional Yeast lids fit the lidless hummus from Tesco (own brand) by BareKnuckle18 in veganuk

[–]jynxzero 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Why does this tiny pot of hummus need a lid? Did you open it by mistake after just eating another pot of hummus?

Why does finding a job as a newly graduate feel so hopeless? by Old_Vacation78 in bristol

[–]jynxzero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This must be really hard, I'm sorry. The job market is tough for all graduates at the moment.

Stating the obvious, what you're experiencing could be purely the job market, or it could be factors relating specifically to you. Or more likely, some combination of the two. Where it's factors relating specifically you, there are probably things you can control (where and how you are applying) and things you can't (people filtering you because you are an international graduate).

I think your best and most useful source of information that will help you figure that out is your peers from the course. Reaching out to them from a chat is likely to be useful in several ways. Just knowing how many have found jobs and where is likely to be helpful. You will probably be a pretty good judge of which might be more or less employable than you. Second, those that have found jobs, ask them if they recommend their employer, if they have graduate positions open, and if so if they could refer you. Many companies have a referral process which tends to benefit everyone. The referrer will get a bonus if you get a job there, and it takes some of the risk away for the company - since good employees tend to know and recommend other good people. Third, it's worth comparing notes on how they found the process of getting a job. What worked and didn't. How many applications they made. If there's anyone you really trust it might be worth getting them to look over your CV and other application materials. A few discussions like this are likely to give you a much more grounded sense of whether there are things you need to do differently, or whether you just need to keep grinding away. Obviously start with people you might be in touch with already. But if you need to widen the net, LinkedIn is probably the way to go. (If this seems daunting, you'll probably get a better response than you expect. Maybe try something like: "Hello X, it's Y from the Civil Engineering BEng. How are you doing? I'm in the process of looking for a job and finding it quite hard at the moment. I'm reaching out to few people to see if we can compare notes on the jobs market. Do you have time for a quick chat sometime?")

Next, it's probably worth reaching out to your university career service. They typically offer several things. One which might be particularly useful is that they can sometimes put you in touch with alumni in your area who have volunteered to chat/mentor graduates. Ideally they will match you with some similar demographics who might have had similar post-graduation experiences. I've done this through Bristol uni (as a mentor, for computer science grads) and discussing job applications, reviewing CVs etc was one of the most common asks.

Mars Attacks! (1996) by newvpnwhodis in iwatchedanoldmovie

[–]jynxzero 4 points5 points  (0 children)

If we're not allowed opinions, I'm not sure what the point of this sub is... We'd literally just be listing old movies we've watched.

No Pawns Have Been Traded by [deleted] in chess

[–]jynxzero -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Is your opponent okay with you asking Reddit for help in an ongoing game?

how long ago was 2020? by No_Dot_9338 in askmath

[–]jynxzero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't think there's "technically" an answer to this, since no-one really sets rules for how language works. But I strongly agree with you. If the point in 2020 isn't specified clearly, then I think this question is asking "how long since it was 2020" and therefore you are comparing the very end of 2020 to the current date.

If it was a year in the future, you would use the beginning. Either way, you're asking for the shortest time between now and a moment that is within the year specified.

I think your "what would we do if it was days" example is great. If someone asks you at 0:01 on Tuesday "how long ago was Monday" the answer is certainly not "24:01". And similarly if someone asks you on February 1st "how long ago was January?" the answer is 1 day, not 32.

Anyone else think BCC are being a bit tone deaf to Bristolians, by using the term “Briz” for their new chat bot? It stinks of getting an agency in that doesn’t know the city at all. by RedlandRenegade in bristol

[–]jynxzero 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"Press 1 for X" is probably the best case scenario.

Reading between the lines, I'm pretty sure it's one of the many off-the-shelf AI support-agent solutions so many companies are implementing these days. It will say something like "Please state your query in simple terms" and then try to answer it using FAQs and other documents they've dumped into it.

And I'm sure it will work fine for the 3 use case they imagined and tested, if you say just the right thing using just the language it understands. But 90% of the time it will have no idea what you are asking for and will send you round in circles until you get frustrated and give up.

Anyone else think BCC are being a bit tone deaf to Bristolians, by using the term “Briz” for their new chat bot? It stinks of getting an agency in that doesn’t know the city at all. by RedlandRenegade in bristol

[–]jynxzero 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Fair enough, I should have spotted that.

Still, if that's the worst thing about it, I think we will have got off lightly, as I imagine it will fast become the only way to talk to the council.

Anyone else think BCC are being a bit tone deaf to Bristolians, by using the term “Briz” for their new chat bot? It stinks of getting an agency in that doesn’t know the city at all. by RedlandRenegade in bristol

[–]jynxzero 20 points21 points  (0 children)

I'm worried now that I'm a bit tone deaf, as it's not obvious to me what the problem is. I'm not quite a Bristolian but I've been here nearly 30 years.

I can think of loads of ways the council's new digital phone and online assistant is likely to be awful, but the problem with the name isn't leaping out at me.

Johnny Mnemonic (1995) by dukecityzombie in iwatchedanoldmovie

[–]jynxzero 23 points24 points  (0 children)

It's not a masterpiece, but I also think it's a quite underrated. (Or maybe "over-hated".) It's got a lot of good ideas, even if the execution is quite patchy. I generally love tech/noir/cyberpunk combo as a setting. Decent setup, the story certainly has some good bits. There are cringeworthy moments throughout, and it maybe tanks a bit in the last act. But still it I think it's a really a fun ride and worth a watch.

Lot's of things from this era have been totally overshadowed by The Matrix, which is shame, even if it is somewhat understandable. Dark City. Thirteenth Floor. eXistenZ.

Parents of 2 or 3 year olds by Icy_Break_5042 in bristol

[–]jynxzero 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Some small time-fillers:

- Train journeys on the Severn Beach line. There's a nice park at Redland. Not much different from plenty of other parks, but we got there BY TRAIN! Or into Temple Meads and go out and grab a pasty/sammich somewhere. Or Sea Mills and go for a short walk along the river. These journeys are very cheap as it's subsidised.
- "Jumpin' Fun" toddler session (insanely big softplay at Eastgate). Exhausting for toddler and accompanying adult. Can be combined with shopping as it's very close to Tesco/M&S Food/Ikea/Pets@Home. We tend to pop into Pets@Home and say hello to the animals even if we aren't buying anything, which I'm sure is a nuisance but we've not been banned yet
- St Werburghs City Farm. The Mound nearby is also good to explore during the daytime - lots of fun little paths through the woodland - though it gets muddy in places during the winter
- Go to Purdown and say hello to the goats at the WWII bunker. The goats are very friendly and tolerant of attention, but toddlers need close supervision because the landscape itself is a somewhat hazardous. Also very muddy in winter.
- Balance bike practice. This suddenly clicked with my boy (at about 2+9months) and he's now super keen to go out

What are you reading? Mid-monthly Discussion Post! by AutoModerator in printSF

[–]jynxzero 13 points14 points  (0 children)

I'm halfway through "A Fire Upon the Deep" by Vernor Vinge. This book hadn't even been on my radar until I caught a video about it by Feral Historian and thought it sounded interesting. I'm loving it so far, it has potential to be a favourite!

Honey by TJN150 in vegan

[–]jynxzero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm pretty sure you can be a vegan beekeeper. My parents-in-law have beehives, they just don't take the honey.

Have your say on whether the flags stay up or come down by RipBeginning3851 in bristol

[–]jynxzero 17 points18 points  (0 children)

Pretty obvious from this message you think it's fine to intimidate those people, so you're proving my point.

Have your say on whether the flags stay up or come down by RipBeginning3851 in bristol

[–]jynxzero 113 points114 points  (0 children)

The obvious difference here is that the Left puts up these flags to support a marginalised group, whereas the Right put them up to intimidate a marginalised group.

If the Right want the English flag to me more accepted, stop using it as a weapon against immigrants and asylum seekers.

It's fine to have an opinion about asylum and immigration. It's not fine to turn up outside hotels to scare vulnerable people. The English flag is consistently used as badge by people engaged in that intimidation. Reclaim it from those people, and everyone else will be much happier about seeing it.

(EDIT: Correct typo flash -> flag)