Dan Drake 🦆
@ddrake.mathstodon.xyz.ap.brid.gy
Former #softwareengineer, current #mathematician, college #math, #computerscience and #datascience lecturer in #stpaulmn #Minnesota at #Macalester College.
Here, have […]
🌉 bridged from ⁂ https://mathstodon.xyz/@ddrake, follow @ap.brid.gy to interact
Here, have […]
🌉 bridged from ⁂ https://mathstodon.xyz/@ddrake, follow @ap.brid.gy to interact
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Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
I was excited to use ranked-choice voting / instant runoff to vote for Saint Paul mayor yesterday. I was also excited to see it go to a second round of counting -- with traditional voting, we would have a third term with Carter, but RCV yielded the city's first female, and first Hmong-American […]
The other evening I started reading Daniel Temkin's "44 Esolangs":
https://danieltemkin.com/Esolangs
I just read the introduction and skimmed a few of the languages.
In the following eight hours, I thought of three esolangs of my own!
This book may be slightly deadly to my productivity […]
https://danieltemkin.com/Esolangs
I just read the introduction and skimmed a few of the languages.
In the following eight hours, I thought of three esolangs of my own!
This book may be slightly deadly to my productivity […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
December 18, 2025 at 4:44 PM
The other evening I started reading Daniel Temkin's "44 Esolangs":
https://danieltemkin.com/Esolangs
I just read the introduction and skimmed a few of the languages.
In the following eight hours, I thought of three esolangs of my own!
This book may be slightly deadly to my productivity […]
https://danieltemkin.com/Esolangs
I just read the introduction and skimmed a few of the languages.
In the following eight hours, I thought of three esolangs of my own!
This book may be slightly deadly to my productivity […]
Reposted by Dan Drake 🦆
Second derivatives in the news:
December 18, 2025 at 10:43 AM
Second derivatives in the news:
One thing about being a human using the internet in 2025 is that you have to prove that you are a human all the time, often by doing a CAPTCHA.
One interesting thing I realized about proving you are human: it can be good to make mistakes!
Today I was proving my humanity by clicking on all the […]
One interesting thing I realized about proving you are human: it can be good to make mistakes!
Today I was proving my humanity by clicking on all the […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
December 16, 2025 at 12:20 PM
One thing about being a human using the internet in 2025 is that you have to prove that you are a human all the time, often by doing a CAPTCHA.
One interesting thing I realized about proving you are human: it can be good to make mistakes!
Today I was proving my humanity by clicking on all the […]
One interesting thing I realized about proving you are human: it can be good to make mistakes!
Today I was proving my humanity by clicking on all the […]
Reposted by Dan Drake 🦆
@ddrake here’s our education policy! https://wizardzines.com/education/
Education
wizardzines.com
December 14, 2025 at 1:30 PM
@ddrake here’s our education policy! https://wizardzines.com/education/
New Yorker magazine should have a diaresis over one of the zeros in its 100-year anniversary logo.
December 14, 2025 at 1:07 PM
New Yorker magazine should have a diaresis over one of the zeros in its 100-year anniversary logo.
@b0rk I have your debugging zine and it's great! I want to give it to my students as a reading / resource in my intro programming class. Your zines store mentions teams and companies -- what are your thoughts on use in educational settings?
December 14, 2025 at 1:04 PM
@b0rk I have your debugging zine and it's great! I want to give it to my students as a reading / resource in my intro programming class. Your zines store mentions teams and companies -- what are your thoughts on use in educational settings?
How do you pronounce hexadecimal numbers?
You just say the "digits", right? But that sounds a bit weird, in English, especially the letters -- for example, 0xAC, 0xCD, 0xCF match up with acronyms for alternating current, compact disc, and the Latin "conferatur" for "compare".
In the middle of […]
You just say the "digits", right? But that sounds a bit weird, in English, especially the letters -- for example, 0xAC, 0xCD, 0xCF match up with acronyms for alternating current, compact disc, and the Latin "conferatur" for "compare".
In the middle of […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
December 13, 2025 at 2:50 PM
How do you pronounce hexadecimal numbers?
You just say the "digits", right? But that sounds a bit weird, in English, especially the letters -- for example, 0xAC, 0xCD, 0xCF match up with acronyms for alternating current, compact disc, and the Latin "conferatur" for "compare".
In the middle of […]
You just say the "digits", right? But that sounds a bit weird, in English, especially the letters -- for example, 0xAC, 0xCD, 0xCF match up with acronyms for alternating current, compact disc, and the Latin "conferatur" for "compare".
In the middle of […]
Neat paper on statistics and medical conditions, and the danger of round numbers:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41746-025-02079-y
You have, say, a condition you can treat. There's some test or biomarker you can examine to determine the risk from the condition. You have a treatment which […]
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41746-025-02079-y
You have, say, a condition you can treat. There's some test or biomarker you can examine to determine the risk from the condition. You have a treatment which […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
December 4, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Neat paper on statistics and medical conditions, and the danger of round numbers:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41746-025-02079-y
You have, say, a condition you can treat. There's some test or biomarker you can examine to determine the risk from the condition. You have a treatment which […]
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41746-025-02079-y
You have, say, a condition you can treat. There's some test or biomarker you can examine to determine the risk from the condition. You have a treatment which […]
@divbyzero @JenJen now you've got me experimenting with square twist tessellations. The pattern on this paper looks neat with the twists.
December 4, 2025 at 12:40 PM
@divbyzero @JenJen now you've got me experimenting with square twist tessellations. The pattern on this paper looks neat with the twists.
I want to combine my usual geeky topics with my political ones, specifically my disapproval (to put it very lightly) of Trump's racist insults of the Twin Cities' Somali community.
Last summer I read "Don't Teach Coding Until You've Read This Book", which makes a strong case that programming […]
Last summer I read "Don't Teach Coding Until You've Read This Book", which makes a strong case that programming […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
December 4, 2025 at 12:23 PM
I want to combine my usual geeky topics with my political ones, specifically my disapproval (to put it very lightly) of Trump's racist insults of the Twin Cities' Somali community.
Last summer I read "Don't Teach Coding Until You've Read This Book", which makes a strong case that programming […]
Last summer I read "Don't Teach Coding Until You've Read This Book", which makes a strong case that programming […]
Having just replied to @pixelate on actual good uses of chatbots and AI, here's another: agriculture. Cool article in Communications of the ACM on this: https:/dx.doi.org/10.1145/3760437
Agriculture is (ahem) ripe for AI applications -- think of things like taking sensor data and using that to […]
Agriculture is (ahem) ripe for AI applications -- think of things like taking sensor data and using that to […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
December 3, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Having just replied to @pixelate on actual good uses of chatbots and AI, here's another: agriculture. Cool article in Communications of the ACM on this: https:/dx.doi.org/10.1145/3760437
Agriculture is (ahem) ripe for AI applications -- think of things like taking sensor data and using that to […]
Agriculture is (ahem) ripe for AI applications -- think of things like taking sensor data and using that to […]
Today I learned another way in which Macalester College takes its Scottish heritage very seriously.
When you get tenure here, the way you find out is...bagpipes.
Typically there's some department meeting or other gathering, where, unbeknownst to the newly-tenured professors, members of the […]
When you get tenure here, the way you find out is...bagpipes.
Typically there's some department meeting or other gathering, where, unbeknownst to the newly-tenured professors, members of the […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
December 2, 2025 at 8:23 PM
Today I learned another way in which Macalester College takes its Scottish heritage very seriously.
When you get tenure here, the way you find out is...bagpipes.
Typically there's some department meeting or other gathering, where, unbeknownst to the newly-tenured professors, members of the […]
When you get tenure here, the way you find out is...bagpipes.
Typically there's some department meeting or other gathering, where, unbeknownst to the newly-tenured professors, members of the […]
A tiny thing that you only will know if you live in a city where you get lots of snow:
The first time you get a good snow that completely covers lawns and roofs and so on, your bedroom at night suddenly is not as dark.
It's the reflectivity of the snow and all the streetlights -- before the […]
The first time you get a good snow that completely covers lawns and roofs and so on, your bedroom at night suddenly is not as dark.
It's the reflectivity of the snow and all the streetlights -- before the […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
November 30, 2025 at 11:52 PM
A tiny thing that you only will know if you live in a city where you get lots of snow:
The first time you get a good snow that completely covers lawns and roofs and so on, your bedroom at night suddenly is not as dark.
It's the reflectivity of the snow and all the streetlights -- before the […]
The first time you get a good snow that completely covers lawns and roofs and so on, your bedroom at night suddenly is not as dark.
It's the reflectivity of the snow and all the streetlights -- before the […]
Reposted by Dan Drake 🦆
November 29, 2025 at 11:24 PM
Git folks: I'm looking at @b0rk's Oh Shit, Git thing for when you commit to the wrong branch and want to move the top commit elsewhere.
For a commit to main, you have:
# create a new branch from the current state of master
git branch some-new-branch-name
# remove the last commit from the […]
For a commit to main, you have:
# create a new branch from the current state of master
git branch some-new-branch-name
# remove the last commit from the […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
November 29, 2025 at 4:39 PM
Git folks: I'm looking at @b0rk's Oh Shit, Git thing for when you commit to the wrong branch and want to move the top commit elsewhere.
For a commit to main, you have:
# create a new branch from the current state of master
git branch some-new-branch-name
# remove the last commit from the […]
For a commit to main, you have:
# create a new branch from the current state of master
git branch some-new-branch-name
# remove the last commit from the […]
Thinking of a comment from @inthehands on this Black Friday -- "I never thought I'd say this, but I miss consumer capitalism."
I agree -- right now, I could sure go for an economy and culture relentlessly promoting spending and consumption.
Instead, we have a few AI-related companies sloshing […]
I agree -- right now, I could sure go for an economy and culture relentlessly promoting spending and consumption.
Instead, we have a few AI-related companies sloshing […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
November 28, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Thinking of a comment from @inthehands on this Black Friday -- "I never thought I'd say this, but I miss consumer capitalism."
I agree -- right now, I could sure go for an economy and culture relentlessly promoting spending and consumption.
Instead, we have a few AI-related companies sloshing […]
I agree -- right now, I could sure go for an economy and culture relentlessly promoting spending and consumption.
Instead, we have a few AI-related companies sloshing […]
Ugh, I hate bad UI like this: I'm ordering some energy-efficient stuff and I get a discount through my local electrical utility. On the checkout page, I have to enter my account number to get the discount. The field for that has this text below:
"Your utility account number is shown in the red […]
"Your utility account number is shown in the red […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
November 28, 2025 at 1:30 PM
Ugh, I hate bad UI like this: I'm ordering some energy-efficient stuff and I get a discount through my local electrical utility. On the checkout page, I have to enter my account number to get the discount. The field for that has this text below:
"Your utility account number is shown in the red […]
"Your utility account number is shown in the red […]
I really like the old-school, text UI style of this cookie popup on the JetBrains website.
II usually click reject cookies -- or even click "manage" and decline them there, which surely puts me in rare territory -- but I liked this enough that I accepted the […]
[Original post on mathstodon.xyz]
II usually click reject cookies -- or even click "manage" and decline them there, which surely puts me in rare territory -- but I liked this enough that I accepted the […]
[Original post on mathstodon.xyz]
November 28, 2025 at 12:43 PM
I really like the old-school, text UI style of this cookie popup on the JetBrains website.
II usually click reject cookies -- or even click "manage" and decline them there, which surely puts me in rare territory -- but I liked this enough that I accepted the […]
[Original post on mathstodon.xyz]
II usually click reject cookies -- or even click "manage" and decline them there, which surely puts me in rare territory -- but I liked this enough that I accepted the […]
[Original post on mathstodon.xyz]
A while back I wrote about how anyone who cares about their digital data and access to it (which is, basically, everyone these days, right?) should choose tools that cannot be taken away, and to use data formats that can be used by many tools:
https://ddrake.prose.sh/choosing_tools […]
https://ddrake.prose.sh/choosing_tools […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
November 27, 2025 at 2:51 PM
A while back I wrote about how anyone who cares about their digital data and access to it (which is, basically, everyone these days, right?) should choose tools that cannot be taken away, and to use data formats that can be used by many tools:
https://ddrake.prose.sh/choosing_tools […]
https://ddrake.prose.sh/choosing_tools […]
There's an old joke about emacs users and foot pedals to help them handle the crazy key combinations used by emacs.
I just discovered that you really can get foot pedals! Check out the Duckypad Pro:
https://www.tindie.com/products/dekunukem/duckypad-pro-macro-scripting-beyond-qmkvia/
I have a […]
I just discovered that you really can get foot pedals! Check out the Duckypad Pro:
https://www.tindie.com/products/dekunukem/duckypad-pro-macro-scripting-beyond-qmkvia/
I have a […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
November 26, 2025 at 7:07 PM
There's an old joke about emacs users and foot pedals to help them handle the crazy key combinations used by emacs.
I just discovered that you really can get foot pedals! Check out the Duckypad Pro:
https://www.tindie.com/products/dekunukem/duckypad-pro-macro-scripting-beyond-qmkvia/
I have a […]
I just discovered that you really can get foot pedals! Check out the Duckypad Pro:
https://www.tindie.com/products/dekunukem/duckypad-pro-macro-scripting-beyond-qmkvia/
I have a […]
Waymo started testing their autonomous taxis in Minneapolis...today:
https://www.startribune.com/driverless-ridesharing-company-waymo-expanding-to-minneapolis/601527735
https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/waymo-driverless-taxi-fleet-coming-to-minneapolis/
https://www.startribune.com/driverless-ridesharing-company-waymo-expanding-to-minneapolis/601527735
https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/waymo-driverless-taxi-fleet-coming-to-minneapolis/
Waymo announces driverless taxi fleet is coming to Minneapolis
Get ready to see self-driving vehicles cruising across Minneapolis.
www.cbsnews.com
November 20, 2025 at 9:47 PM
Waymo started testing their autonomous taxis in Minneapolis...today:
https://www.startribune.com/driverless-ridesharing-company-waymo-expanding-to-minneapolis/601527735
https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/waymo-driverless-taxi-fleet-coming-to-minneapolis/
https://www.startribune.com/driverless-ridesharing-company-waymo-expanding-to-minneapolis/601527735
https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/waymo-driverless-taxi-fleet-coming-to-minneapolis/
Yesterday I gave a presentation at a nearby senior center called "AI for the confused" -- I've been inspired to do some outreach to educate less-technical people on just what AI is these days, how to use it, what to know about it.
An interesting thing: one of the attendees was deaf. She had an […]
An interesting thing: one of the attendees was deaf. She had an […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
November 19, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Yesterday I gave a presentation at a nearby senior center called "AI for the confused" -- I've been inspired to do some outreach to educate less-technical people on just what AI is these days, how to use it, what to know about it.
An interesting thing: one of the attendees was deaf. She had an […]
An interesting thing: one of the attendees was deaf. She had an […]
RE: https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csHC_bot/115575733396796885
This looks really interesting -- how can you present code in a way that reduces cognitive load for blind and low-vision users?
Of course, in the spirit of universal design, my first suspicion is that if you can reduce cognitive load […]
This looks really interesting -- how can you present code in a way that reduces cognitive load for blind and low-vision users?
Of course, in the spirit of universal design, my first suspicion is that if you can reduce cognitive load […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
November 19, 2025 at 12:42 PM
RE: https://mastoxiv.page/@arXiv_csHC_bot/115575733396796885
This looks really interesting -- how can you present code in a way that reduces cognitive load for blind and low-vision users?
Of course, in the spirit of universal design, my first suspicion is that if you can reduce cognitive load […]
This looks really interesting -- how can you present code in a way that reduces cognitive load for blind and low-vision users?
Of course, in the spirit of universal design, my first suspicion is that if you can reduce cognitive load […]
🧵 1/N
Imagine a graphics/paint program that worked with 24-bit RGB values, and which had a color selection where you could type in the numerical values for the three channels.
Now imagine that program would let you type in numbers bigger than 255, or negative values. And it wouldn't tell you […]
Imagine a graphics/paint program that worked with 24-bit RGB values, and which had a color selection where you could type in the numerical values for the three channels.
Now imagine that program would let you type in numbers bigger than 255, or negative values. And it wouldn't tell you […]
Original post on mathstodon.xyz
mathstodon.xyz
November 16, 2025 at 12:49 PM
🧵 1/N
Imagine a graphics/paint program that worked with 24-bit RGB values, and which had a color selection where you could type in the numerical values for the three channels.
Now imagine that program would let you type in numbers bigger than 255, or negative values. And it wouldn't tell you […]
Imagine a graphics/paint program that worked with 24-bit RGB values, and which had a color selection where you could type in the numerical values for the three channels.
Now imagine that program would let you type in numbers bigger than 255, or negative values. And it wouldn't tell you […]