Arcticllama
@arcticllama.bsky.social
Writer, web developer, cancer, father. Also, I’ll be retiring soon. Multiple myeloma, and some other stuff. Let’s do this.
Look. China. Wind. Who knew?
China brings the world’s first 1-GW offshore solar farm online
China has connected the world’s first 1-GW offshore solar farm to the grid, a plant off Shandong set to generate 1.78 TWh per year.
electrek.co
December 31, 2025 at 12:04 PM
Look. China. Wind. Who knew?
Remember the IRS does not call! The IRS sends letters. Regular, snail mail, letters. If you haven't gotten a bunch of mail from the IRS recently, they are not getting ready to seize anything or garnish anything. Do NOT give info or $$ to anyone claiming to be IRS on the phone.
December 30, 2025 at 11:58 PM
Remember the IRS does not call! The IRS sends letters. Regular, snail mail, letters. If you haven't gotten a bunch of mail from the IRS recently, they are not getting ready to seize anything or garnish anything. Do NOT give info or $$ to anyone claiming to be IRS on the phone.
FFS. I don't need two-factor authentication for my freaking NextDoor account. What's gonna happen? Some Chinese hacker group is going to complain about kids playing in the cul-de-sac under my username?
December 24, 2025 at 4:18 PM
FFS. I don't need two-factor authentication for my freaking NextDoor account. What's gonna happen? Some Chinese hacker group is going to complain about kids playing in the cul-de-sac under my username?
People out here saying the Volkswagen ID Buzz "starts at $60K". Folks, I live in Colorado. I consider AWD non-negotiable in all my cars. It only matters like 20 days a year, but on those days, it really matters. That says $74K and it's not an anomaly.
December 23, 2025 at 8:57 PM
People out here saying the Volkswagen ID Buzz "starts at $60K". Folks, I live in Colorado. I consider AWD non-negotiable in all my cars. It only matters like 20 days a year, but on those days, it really matters. That says $74K and it's not an anomaly.
See, the only thing I end up actually using AI successfully for is when I can't articulate a search properly. Like, I want a pocket blanket, but not to sit on to keep warm. How do I get that kind of pocket blanket? Google doesn't know shit, but AI knows what I meant.
December 23, 2025 at 3:32 PM
See, the only thing I end up actually using AI successfully for is when I can't articulate a search properly. Like, I want a pocket blanket, but not to sit on to keep warm. How do I get that kind of pocket blanket? Google doesn't know shit, but AI knows what I meant.
The reason you can't replicate sourdough from San Francisco in Denver is because we don't have the same yeast in the air. -- I'm sorry. What?! Why is there yeast in the air? And, now that I'm done being shocked, what does our air yeast taste like?
December 22, 2025 at 9:02 PM
The reason you can't replicate sourdough from San Francisco in Denver is because we don't have the same yeast in the air. -- I'm sorry. What?! Why is there yeast in the air? And, now that I'm done being shocked, what does our air yeast taste like?
Psst. Don't tell anybody, but I kinda like Microsoft Edge.
December 22, 2025 at 3:33 PM
Psst. Don't tell anybody, but I kinda like Microsoft Edge.
Most of the time I don't even notice the sort of man-based slant of my favorite deal news websites, but 3 days before Xmas shopping ends it's kinda killing me.
December 20, 2025 at 10:19 PM
Most of the time I don't even notice the sort of man-based slant of my favorite deal news websites, but 3 days before Xmas shopping ends it's kinda killing me.
So, I guess these teams don't have to kick very many field goals, eh?
December 20, 2025 at 6:42 PM
So, I guess these teams don't have to kick very many field goals, eh?
Just me out here having to search it up. Are we doing Ol' Miss? Old Miss? Ole' Miss? The apostrophe, or nah? Is this the only thing we do "ole" with, or do people say, "Ole man Jeffrey at the diner," or something?
December 20, 2025 at 6:34 PM
Just me out here having to search it up. Are we doing Ol' Miss? Old Miss? Ole' Miss? The apostrophe, or nah? Is this the only thing we do "ole" with, or do people say, "Ole man Jeffrey at the diner," or something?
"The phishing alert button is called pab. Be sure to use the pab when you see suspicious emails."
Oh hell no.
Oh hell no.
December 18, 2025 at 2:11 PM
"The phishing alert button is called pab. Be sure to use the pab when you see suspicious emails."
Oh hell no.
Oh hell no.
Ugh. I can't hit NEXT on these trainings until I've sat through the duration of the video. I'm still not going to watch them, but now I have to tune them out instead of skipping to the end and getting a 100% on the quiz like usual.
December 17, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Ugh. I can't hit NEXT on these trainings until I've sat through the duration of the video. I'm still not going to watch them, but now I have to tune them out instead of skipping to the end and getting a 100% on the quiz like usual.
I'd already have permanent, programmable, year-round lighting, but some jackass built this house without eaves.
December 17, 2025 at 4:18 PM
I'd already have permanent, programmable, year-round lighting, but some jackass built this house without eaves.
I finally found a use for ChatGPT. It will take a recipe webpage and just pull out the recipe so I can print the damn thing. $300 billion to Oracle for that, baby!
December 16, 2025 at 8:57 PM
I finally found a use for ChatGPT. It will take a recipe webpage and just pull out the recipe so I can print the damn thing. $300 billion to Oracle for that, baby!
The noise: "AI is going to replace us all!"
AI: "I can't open a spreadsheet."
AI: "I can't open a spreadsheet."
December 16, 2025 at 3:32 PM
The noise: "AI is going to replace us all!"
AI: "I can't open a spreadsheet."
AI: "I can't open a spreadsheet."
Wayfair is like the soft suburban army surplus store. Full of things I didn't even know I needed but now I can't live without.
December 15, 2025 at 9:02 PM
Wayfair is like the soft suburban army surplus store. Full of things I didn't even know I needed but now I can't live without.
Mortgage rates aren't fed rates. 6%ish is still what you'll pay for a 30-year mortgage. Credit card rates are Fed rates. Some HELOCs are Fed rates. They are often prime rate + margin. Prime rate is 0.25% lower, so whenever your variable rate adjusts, you should be .25% lower.
December 15, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Mortgage rates aren't fed rates. 6%ish is still what you'll pay for a 30-year mortgage. Credit card rates are Fed rates. Some HELOCs are Fed rates. They are often prime rate + margin. Prime rate is 0.25% lower, so whenever your variable rate adjusts, you should be .25% lower.
Holy jeebus. Did I pay $200 for my Echo Show? That's crazy town.
December 15, 2025 at 3:33 PM
Holy jeebus. Did I pay $200 for my Echo Show? That's crazy town.
Reposted by Arcticllama
Today in "Don't Trust AI to Tell You Facts": How several different "AI" programs messed up the simple fact of to whom I dedicated a book, and what that means for how much you should trust "AI" to tell you the truth about things (spoiler: not much at all):
whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/13/a...
whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/13/a...
“AI”: A Dedicated Fact-Failing Machine, or, Yet Another Reason Not to Trust It For Anything
I search my name on a regular basis, not only because I am an ego monster (although I try not to pretend that I’m not) but because it’s a good way for me to find reviews, end-of-the-yea…
whatever.scalzi.com
December 13, 2025 at 5:42 PM
Today in "Don't Trust AI to Tell You Facts": How several different "AI" programs messed up the simple fact of to whom I dedicated a book, and what that means for how much you should trust "AI" to tell you the truth about things (spoiler: not much at all):
whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/13/a...
whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/13/a...
Reposted by Arcticllama
it's actually kinda funny in a way to get to the finish line of curing cancer and having the government go eh you know what. never mind
A tiny trial in New York has shown that personalized mRNA vaccines can provoke massive, lasting immune responses against pancreatic cancer, even as sweeping federal cuts now threaten the fragile labs required to produce them.
theintellectualistofficial.substack.com/p/a-breakthr...
theintellectualistofficial.substack.com/p/a-breakthr...
December 13, 2025 at 2:50 AM
it's actually kinda funny in a way to get to the finish line of curing cancer and having the government go eh you know what. never mind
Say anything good about electric cars. Get standard FUD replies.
1) Drives SO many miles everyday
2) Drives across country so many times each year that he could never
3) Tows so much, so often
4) Replacing battery costs are huge
5) Batteries catch on fire
1) Drives SO many miles everyday
2) Drives across country so many times each year that he could never
3) Tows so much, so often
4) Replacing battery costs are huge
5) Batteries catch on fire
December 12, 2025 at 9:22 PM
Say anything good about electric cars. Get standard FUD replies.
1) Drives SO many miles everyday
2) Drives across country so many times each year that he could never
3) Tows so much, so often
4) Replacing battery costs are huge
5) Batteries catch on fire
1) Drives SO many miles everyday
2) Drives across country so many times each year that he could never
3) Tows so much, so often
4) Replacing battery costs are huge
5) Batteries catch on fire
Didn't we just go through that it is bad that the government or whoever can just hold your phone up to your face or use your fingerprint, but now everyone wants me to make a passkey which is just going to be my fingerprint or face scan?
December 10, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Didn't we just go through that it is bad that the government or whoever can just hold your phone up to your face or use your fingerprint, but now everyone wants me to make a passkey which is just going to be my fingerprint or face scan?
Microsoft: We can't make Explorer any faster because we fired all of those guys to keep up with the other tech companies in the Wall Street analysts notes, but you can have headings in Notepad now.
December 10, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Microsoft: We can't make Explorer any faster because we fired all of those guys to keep up with the other tech companies in the Wall Street analysts notes, but you can have headings in Notepad now.
Did I just get an update to Paint with my Windows update? Go off Microsoft.
December 10, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Did I just get an update to Paint with my Windows update? Go off Microsoft.
So, it turns out there is also a YouTube Year In Review. It seems I watch a lot of videos about gate repair... and electric cars. But, #1 is movie trailers. The truth is, I don't really watch that much YouTube, and of most of what I watch, my kid is showing me on his account, so I'm sure it was pret
December 8, 2025 at 9:02 PM
So, it turns out there is also a YouTube Year In Review. It seems I watch a lot of videos about gate repair... and electric cars. But, #1 is movie trailers. The truth is, I don't really watch that much YouTube, and of most of what I watch, my kid is showing me on his account, so I'm sure it was pret