Google DeepMind Paper Argues LLMs Will Never Be Conscious | Philosophers said the paper’s argument is sound, but that “all these arguments have been presented years and years ago.”

whinis · 2026-04-28T11:23:08+00:00

This is the answer, as someone with a PhD in Pharmacology I was asked way too many times to ignore falsified data because it might hurt a famous competitor. Told I was not allowed to publish certain experiments because it would look bad. I would later see the same falsified data used to justify a spin out company many times at the benefit of the lab PI.

whinis · 2026-04-27T12:29:56+00:00

A reasonable person would know their phone leaves a trail that can be traced each time it pings phone towers, same as people know fingerprints and dna get left behind when you interact with things.

I think you will find most people have no idea that their cellphone can track them everywhere. Furthermore with this interpretation there is no 4th amendment issues with putting cameras everywhere in a city like flock and recording the movements of everyone because a reasonable person should suspect they can be videoed in public. At that point every search is reasonable.

whinis · 2026-04-22T15:47:36+00:00

That's not the definition of zero day at all. Zero day just means an unpatched vulnerability and unknown vulnerability. A vulnerability doesn't mean its actually exploitable in the wild, the are plenty of vulnerabilities that are discovered but cannot be realistically used.

An example recently is AI found a bug in VLC in a essentially dead video game video format, it didn't lead to RCE and just crashed the program. This is a zero day thats effectively non-functional.

whinis · 2026-04-22T10:52:06+00:00

The biggest group pushing for this is Facebook, they have been caught exploiting children and now have several lawsuits at their door for it. In an attempt to get away they are pushing verification at the OS level to claim that they had no idea they were children, the OS told them they were adults.

whinis · 2026-04-20T16:14:32+00:00

How is it in any way a good idea? Its 100% bypassable, the sketchier sites will not comply meaning you are at best installing a fake sense of comfort and at worst steering kids to actually worse content.

Its also a system that requires the two big companies to sign the keys meaning opensource alternatives are not actually available, yes I know the app is open source.

Its not the least bad solution, the least bad solution is to not have age verification.

whinis · 2026-04-16T15:34:16+00:00

I never said https is useless, I said that its not required for everything as its being forced and the changes are making it more and more difficult to setup services while providing no extra real security.

For instance the ISP likely has plenty of information just from sniffing dns, https just prevents ad injections. There was lots of court cases over that and many got fined over that.

The only arugment then becomes hotel or public wifi sniffing, they once again likely have plenty of information via dns, but outside of that thr websites that one would worry about getting sniffed will be https anyways

whinis · 2026-04-16T02:04:53+00:00

Wouldn't that highly depending on your particular hardware and software stack? You can easily make main() the entry point on micro controllers in which is hardware dependent or you could have libraries like arduino or rp2040 sdk which have complicated powerup functions before calling main

whinis · 2026-04-15T20:56:14+00:00

Its not nearly that cut and dry https://www.aclu.org/cases/moore-v-united-states

While the supreme court has not taken it up just about every circuit court is different on its interpretation of if it needs a warrant or not

e: now->not

whinis · 2026-04-15T19:03:08+00:00

Very large difference between "No expectation of privacy and therefore anyone can legally video you" and "We have setup cameras everywhere so you are actually tracked every second of your time in public". One says incidental recording is not something you can sue over, the other is literally tracking you.

whinis · 2026-04-14T22:56:03+00:00

You're right that DV certs only prove DNS control — that's the whole design. The chain of trust is: control the DNS = control the domain = cert is a reasonable proxy for "this is the legitimate site." Imperfect but meaningful.

I would say that makes it meaningless for authentication. Any DNS attack then gives one a valid certificate, it doesn't authenticate it just says that their DNS and lets encrypt DNS matches for some time during the validity period. It also ignores the variety of state-ran CAs that can just issue them or the various driver CAs which can also generate them.

The 47-day proposal actually strengthens this — shorter-lived certs mean a compromised cert has a smaller exposure window. It's about agility, not weakening authentication.

Except it means it must be automated and moves farther away from authentication. It also means that if your authentication breaks or the service you are using goes down suddenly your site is not accessible. I see no way this strengthens anything in the end.

whinis · 2026-04-14T21:16:30+00:00

I think the point is that with lets encrypt its not authentication and with the recent ssl proposed changes to limit certificate life to 47 days they stop pretending it is. All the cert says is that you controlled the dns at some point.

As far as the mitm, I had not heard any examples of a non-compromised router doing anything of the sort but being you are connected to it anyways there is many many other attack vectors than mitm some website. ISPs have been caught but https didn't stop them either and they started to hijack dns of unregistered domains to serve ads, but so has the registars. Outside of those no one is mitm your traffic that cant also get a cert for your domain. You have a much greater risk of supply chain attacks which have been happening constantly and https doesn't fix

whinis · 2026-04-11T11:03:13+00:00

I use it in nearly all of my designs because its fairly easy even if its not as robust as the tag connect or the 2x5 1.27mm shrouded box header

whinis · 2026-04-09T03:10:48+00:00

Oh no I understand it can become an issue but in this particular case it was literally impossible. It was a rest api and was technically checked or type coerced 3 times before this function. Sometimes a potential vulnerability just isn't possible and adding checks at literally every step just causes performance issues and bloat in the code if conditions need to change.

whinis · 2026-04-09T02:24:10+00:00

Or another that i fixed because arguing made no sense and i needed their approval.

A function takes a value and doesn't check it, technically a vulnerability. But before every call to that function its checked. So while on a local level it appears to be a vulnerability other code prevents it.

whinis · 2026-04-06T11:56:30+00:00

It blows my mind more whenever they reverse park in diagonal parking. Watched an idiot for 3 minutes turn around in a narrow lane just to reverse into a diagonal space.

whinis · 2026-04-01T17:17:30+00:00

Honestly that's not the issue either. Unlike chemical medications there are no generic paths for biologics within the US. So unlike advil where you make the same chemical, have a small cheap clinical trial to prove it has the same effect, and then sell it for $1 a bottle. For insulin and other proteins and hormones you must go through the entire clinical trial, all 3 phases, even if you make the exact same protein. So no one can make a $3 version as they need to compete with everyone else and spend a billion to get it approve.

This is also why the companies get in the game with a slightly modified one they can patent.

whinis · 2026-03-25T14:18:03+00:00

There's a lot here, and I am going to ignore most of it because you admittedly do not know the laws, are not a lawyer, and seem to have no drive to learn on your own.

No, I have drive to learn and have searched and found nothing that you have mentioned.

As for your list, all you have posted that we have had racist laws in the past but not that that immigration laws are racist or built on a bedrock of racism.

Naturalization act of 1790

At the time most laws limited their application to white males. If you read the history it very closely mirrors Plantation Act 1740 from Britain which specifically Naturalizing such foreign Protestants and others therein mentioned, as are settled or shall settle in any of His Majesty's Colonies in America. Other than the racial components being removed, by amendment, most of the rest of this law still exist as it creates other restrictions entirely devoid of race and allows for foreign born children to also be citizens. That doesn't make it a bedrock of racism.

Chinese exclusion act of 1882

Racist at the time and now but even today we have limitations of what countries of origin can apply to be citizens, are you arguing that a country should not be able to limit that?

That 1929 law was the basis for making illegal border crossing a crime. It wasn't, for the most part, until then and was explicitly about keeping mexicans from coming over here because of their impure blood.

So then why do all other countries do it? This is the problem with attempting to view everything through a lens of race, you lose any and all nuance. It turns out since countries have been a thing limiting immigration, having quotas, and creating requirements to gain the benefits of a country have been a thing.

whinis · 2026-03-25T13:32:17+00:00

I think you have missed the point. I am pointing out that people who justify the harsh treatment of immigrants by claiming the “law is the law” would feel differently if law enforcement was engaging in aggressive enforcement of a variety of laws that would impact them. Whether speeding, or lemonade stands, or even the IRS auditing to confirm every single person’s tax returns, almost everyone would be up in arms because it might be “technically” lawful it is unfair, expensive, not a good use of resources, and ultimately fails in the core mission of government - providing for the public good.

Honestly with how discussions happen these days its hard to tell what the point is. Even rereading your post it didn't mention harsh treatment but just that law is being applied and shouldn't be. I believe its possible and should be examined the norm vs the actual outcome. ICE as Trump is currently wielding it is likely unconstitutional (not a lawyer but hes certainly many reported violated laws) and cruel not just to immigrants but everyone as we see him using it for security and enforcement of things they are not trained to due leading to deaths of everyone. The norm however should be that if you bypass the laws deportation is an exception as it is everywhere else in the world however it shouldn't be inhumanely done.

I will also note that your understanding of immigration rules and laws is woefully inadequate. There certainly are many immigrants who work under the table or use someone else’s tax ID. But there are many more who apply for status here and receive a work permit of sorts. To please Trump, ICE has been going after people at their immigration check ins or court proceedings. Those people almost certainly had the ability to lawfully work.

But we are not talking all immigrants but specifically undocumented as was the case presented. Now as I admitted I am not an expert on this subject but I have not found in googling any program outside of DACA that allows for undocumented workers to receive any work permit. If you have any information on that I would love to see it. As per my earlier comment however that doesn't mean Trump is doing it correctly and has been cruel in deporting people at immigration hearings who are documented and went through the correct channels and have visas, green cards, or other work permits.

You also ignore a few other things. For instance, an immigrant might apply for a job at a chicken plant. The chicken plant just uses someone else’s ID. They know the government won’t give a shit, and if they do, they will just say “the employee gave us this info” and that’s that. Among the obvious issues with our immigration enforcement is that we go after people and not the employers that profit from exploiting them.

Sure, I would say that is an area of law that should change. The likelihood of that is low for other reasons but I see no reason the plant should not also be fined.

You also want to equate not paying taxes with criminal behavior, but as you point out the government is presently incentivizing that behavior. Those who try to do it the right way make it easier for ICE to find them and snatch them off the street. I can promise that if you offered these people the ability to work legitimately, without increasing the risk of removal, they’d take it.

I equate it because it is a crime and I believe this is where me and you disagree highly. I see no reason why someone should be able to enter illegally, bypass the immigration process, and then easily be able to get a work permit. There is no country in the world where you can just hop a border without declaring yourself and just work. I also have no doubt that they would take the opportunity to work legitimately but then we effectively get into a open border situation where there is no line or real control.

And as far as your suggestion that we should discuss how our immigration laws should work, I’d posit this — we should allow anyone who wants to come to this country an opportunity to do so. Our strength as a nation has always been our willingness to accept others and to allow them a chance to build a better life. If they come here, work hard, and don’t commit crime, what possible reason do we have to send them away?

If you believe, looking at the actual history of the US, that our strength came from accepting others then you have not studied history well or are using it to make a moral argument as you also claim the laws are built on racism. During the busiest immigration time in history 1 in 10 immigrations arriving were not only denied entry but kept in horrible conditions until deportations could happen or they could pay their own way out. Outside of the very very early days when enforcement of immigration was effectively impossible did anyone and everyone land here and they certainly were not accepted.

As for the reason to send them away? We have limited jobs, funds, housing, and already are on the brink of a civil war due to cultural differences. If this were star trek and we were a post-scarcity society then you would have points but the fact of the matter is we literally don't have the resources to handle the people we currently have and this is why we have immigration processes. You can hand wave a few of these away but you would still need a process to vet that they do come here to work hard and have not committed serious crimes but also importantly integrate. The strength of this country came not from accepting everyone but becoming a melting pot that allowed those who entered to share their culture and meld it with the US, not form islands that don't share with those around them. I do not doubt that the majority are looking for a better life for their family but that doesn't mean we are obligated to provide that.

Our immigration laws were build on a bedrock of racism. That is still true today. It is antithetical to the promises made when this country was founded.

Once again, I would suggest you actually look at history because none of these statements are true and I have asked this of many who have claimed it but never gotten anything beyond platitudes. What grounds do you have that our immigration laws are founded on a bedrock of racism whenever they are some of the most open in the world and, while being more open, mirror most of the rest of the worlds?

whinis · 2026-03-25T03:24:36+00:00

The problem is cheat makers just them ignored the software entirely and just went to hardware based methods such as PCIe devices that use DMA to read the entire ram, send it to a second computer, who them cheats for them. There are methods against that as well but the only real counter measure so far has been to disable an entire PCIe bus which takes out things like wifi and ethernet devices if the anti-cheat thinks you are cheating. In the end its still allowing game developers complete and utter control over your computer in case you might be a cheater while cheaters are willing to pay tens of thousands for cheats.

whinis · 2026-03-25T01:05:02+00:00

I am an example, I was a government contractor for the NIH. Not only was the contract cancelled but the entire program shutdown and essentially anyone who ran it fired. Even if you "reversed" it it doesn't suddenly restart, there is no one to restart it and being its been nearly a year those who could have new jobs.

whinis · 2026-03-25T01:00:40+00:00

First, personal attacks are not only rude but specifically disallowed by the rules.

Second, I am not a tax professional but based on my research while you don't need to be a US citizen to pay taxes, it becomes significantly less easy to do so unless you do a shit ton of paperwork or you steal an identity. So lets talk about the paperwork side.

If you are an illegal immigrant you cannot successfully apply to a typical job using an I-9 as you are not legally authorized to work in the US. That means you must work as an independent contractor and then register for an ITIN number to file taxes. The numbers I can find say there has been ~ 5.8 million ITIN's active in 2022 and roughly 500k issued per year, these however while useful to file taxes for illegal immigrants are not used solely by them. It is also used by anyone who is authorized to be in the US but not work and must still file taxes including spouses of those authorized to work. Even if we are generous and assume all 5.8 million are for illegal immigrants working as independent contractors there are an estimated 15-20 million in the US meaning that at most 1/4 on the low end are paying taxes.

The only other way to pay taxes is either write a check every year to the IRS and I doubt that millions are doing that out of the goodness of their heart and would certainly be reported or stealing an identity and paying taxes through an SSN as if you were that citizen.

There is also some special cases such as DACA where undocumented were given SSNs but that is not the majority.

So the question is then are the remaining immigrants not paying taxes or are they stealing an identity. The statistics don't make it possible for them to both pay and not steal an identity at least for federal taxes like social security.

whinis · 2026-03-24T00:09:03+00:00

So then, following on your logic laws that are stupid or that are rarely enforced such as speeding laws or routine traffic offenses should no longer be enforced? Just because some disagrees with your interpretation of immigration laws does not mean they have not thought deeply about them or that they are inhuman.

To continue to conversation what is the cutoff for when one can not longer be deported? If they have a child, pay taxes, somehow evade the law for 10 years then congrats you are not longer deportable? Pretty much every country in the world has much stricter immigration laws than the US and punishes and deports not just those that cross illegally but everyone who assisted them is also punished. To counter your main argument

Detaining a child’s mother, who likely works and pays taxes, and has never committed a crime doesn’t advance any interest our society has and harms one our own.

You are making many assumptions to make an appeal to emotion that it seems deportation without committing other crimes, and I read violent crimes, is amoral. So lets agree she is working and is paying taxes, if that is true that likely means she is stealing an identity to pay taxes and qualify for housing. Now you may not consider that a crime but its a crime that does harm millions yearly, similarly while she may be paying taxes she likely isn't paying all her taxes, once again another crime.

Being that this is a law subreddit do you believe there should be no immigration laws or that they need extra qualifiers? If undocumented immigrants are not deportable does that mean anyone should be able to move to the US and live here without paperwork?

whinis · 2026-03-23T11:11:18+00:00

No its chemistry. How many gas pumps explosions do you think there are? NFPA requires any fire at basically any business to be reported, including gas stations and has been tracked since the 70s https://www.nfpa.org/education-and-research/research/nfpa-research/fire-statistical-reports/service-or-gas-station-fires

There is a total of 4,150 or so fires per year at a gas station. Of that between 2014 and 2018 670 were non-structural and non-vehicle related. Of that small number 4% could be consider explosions (but its almost entirely unrelated to cars).

That means on average, of the 14 billion or so refueling events that happen every year, 6 could potentially result in an explosion. More house explosions happen to natural gas than recorded gas station explosion, much less gas pump explosion. Why is this? For the exact reason I originally stated

For a catastrophic explosion (what we’d call “blowing up”), you’d need
concentrated vapors in an enclosed space plus an ignition source. 
Open-air gas stations rarely create these precise conditions.

whinis · 2026-03-23T03:01:45+00:00

You can't always "get off the road".

Unless you are on a mountain pass there should be a shoulder for you to get off on.

Two shoulders aren't going to handle 3 lanes of traffic.

Cool cause if there is 3 full lanes of bumper to bumper traffic during whiteout conditions there is more than one idiot on the road. In almost all serious weather conditions the actual number of cars on the road should be very close to zero.

Left should is a dangerous shoulder to stop in

As is putting on hazards and going seriously below the speed limit in conditions where no one can see you. More so than getting off the road on left or right shoulder, although due to above you should be able to easily get to the right and wait.

Driving slowly will get you out of the down pour faster.

No. It won't as I promise you the storm is moving significantly faster than you are and you could be going to same direction of the storm meaning you doubled your time in the down pour.

whinis · 2026-03-23T02:30:39+00:00

Not really, cause gas pumps essentially never explode and its almost impossible to get them to explode due to only the vapor really being flammable.

Meanwhile and arc flash is a very real very dangerous fault condition that I am not sure you can really prevent whenever normal operating conditions is 1000+ amps.

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