Robert Brewer
@manchufu.bsky.social
Principal Engineer, Computation at http://crunch.io.
I bring light to dark systems.
@[email protected]
I bring light to dark systems.
@[email protected]
Pinned
Robert Brewer
@manchufu.bsky.social
· Nov 17
The architectural epiphany is that while freedoms enable features, only constraints produce quality.
Movie you’ve watched more than six times with a gif. Hard mode: no Stars (Wars nor Trek), LOTR, or Marvel, Disney Animated or Pixar.
December 8, 2025 at 5:15 AM
Movie you’ve watched more than six times with a gif. Hard mode: no Stars (Wars nor Trek), LOTR, or Marvel, Disney Animated or Pixar.
Reposted by Robert Brewer
the other question is: why are we being asked to estimate the effort it takes to do something (hard, labour-intensive, unreliable) without any insight into what it's worth to the stakeholders?
if you know what the outcome of the effort is *worth*, estimating becomes super easy
if you know what the outcome of the effort is *worth*, estimating becomes super easy
December 3, 2025 at 4:32 AM
the other question is: why are we being asked to estimate the effort it takes to do something (hard, labour-intensive, unreliable) without any insight into what it's worth to the stakeholders?
if you know what the outcome of the effort is *worth*, estimating becomes super easy
if you know what the outcome of the effort is *worth*, estimating becomes super easy
Reposted by Robert Brewer
I enjoy the "we're more productive in-office" takes from people whose best idea for running distributed teams is the weekly status meeting where everyone sits zoned out on mute for an hour aside from the 30 seconds where they give their own update to an indifferent audience
December 2, 2025 at 4:34 PM
I enjoy the "we're more productive in-office" takes from people whose best idea for running distributed teams is the weekly status meeting where everyone sits zoned out on mute for an hour aside from the 30 seconds where they give their own update to an indifferent audience
Reposted by Robert Brewer
like oh you have five path-dependent tasks you need to prioritize? congratulations, there is one correct sequence to do them in and 119 wrong ones
December 1, 2025 at 5:57 PM
like oh you have five path-dependent tasks you need to prioritize? congratulations, there is one correct sequence to do them in and 119 wrong ones
Reposted by Robert Brewer
Python people, please embrace missing values. I want the output with all the observations, not only the filtered ones without missing values. If I need filtering, I will do it myself.
November 26, 2025 at 8:16 AM
Python people, please embrace missing values. I want the output with all the observations, not only the filtered ones without missing values. If I need filtering, I will do it myself.
@mikeaubrey.bsky.social @jtauber.com got any recommendations for an index of Koine morphemes? any numbering scheme will do...
November 26, 2025 at 4:09 AM
@mikeaubrey.bsky.social @jtauber.com got any recommendations for an index of Koine morphemes? any numbering scheme will do...
Reposted by Robert Brewer
"I'll have a Blue Marjorieta"
"Blended, or on the rocks?"
"Blended, or on the rocks?"
November 23, 2025 at 3:28 AM
"I'll have a Blue Marjorieta"
"Blended, or on the rocks?"
"Blended, or on the rocks?"
Reposted by Robert Brewer
When hiring someone, I would much rather teach someone with a great attitude and curiosity a hard tech skill they don't possess than try (and almost certainly fail) to teach someone with hard tech skills to develop the great attitude and curiosity they don't possess. Every damn time.
November 11, 2025 at 10:12 PM
When hiring someone, I would much rather teach someone with a great attitude and curiosity a hard tech skill they don't possess than try (and almost certainly fail) to teach someone with hard tech skills to develop the great attitude and curiosity they don't possess. Every damn time.
Reposted by Robert Brewer
No one cares about a thin phone.
Now try a smaller phone with a headphone jack.
gizmodo.com/iphone-air-2...
Now try a smaller phone with a headphone jack.
gizmodo.com/iphone-air-2...
The iPhone Air 2 Might Already Be DOA
Well, that was fast.
gizmodo.com
November 11, 2025 at 6:04 PM
No one cares about a thin phone.
Now try a smaller phone with a headphone jack.
gizmodo.com/iphone-air-2...
Now try a smaller phone with a headphone jack.
gizmodo.com/iphone-air-2...
Reposted by Robert Brewer
This one's been in my mind for the past few days for all sorts of reasons:
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." — 1Co 13:13, NIV
Love is the greatest thing.
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." — 1Co 13:13, NIV
Love is the greatest thing.
October 28, 2025 at 1:46 AM
This one's been in my mind for the past few days for all sorts of reasons:
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." — 1Co 13:13, NIV
Love is the greatest thing.
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." — 1Co 13:13, NIV
Love is the greatest thing.
Reposted by Robert Brewer
Or more generally: maybe don’t pile on a researcher based on what you read in a newspaper article about the research!
October 26, 2025 at 10:32 PM
Or more generally: maybe don’t pile on a researcher based on what you read in a newspaper article about the research!
Reposted by Robert Brewer
On a poorly maintained large legacy codebase I finally explained to my manager. "By the time I'm sure what I need to do I'm basically done."
They wanted me to farm the work to other people, but that was MORE time consuming than just doing it once I'd worked out how, which was the hard part.
They wanted me to farm the work to other people, but that was MORE time consuming than just doing it once I'd worked out how, which was the hard part.
Most of these topics are facets of the same root cause: the majority of the work lies in determining what to do, which cannot be estimated, rather than doing it, which can be estimated easily.
To that end, KISS: all work is Small or Large, and if you aren't sure, call it Medium and move on.
To that end, KISS: all work is Small or Large, and if you aren't sure, call it Medium and move on.
October 21, 2025 at 6:24 PM
On a poorly maintained large legacy codebase I finally explained to my manager. "By the time I'm sure what I need to do I'm basically done."
They wanted me to farm the work to other people, but that was MORE time consuming than just doing it once I'd worked out how, which was the hard part.
They wanted me to farm the work to other people, but that was MORE time consuming than just doing it once I'd worked out how, which was the hard part.
Reposted by Robert Brewer
Grammarly is now an enemy of education
"Universities risk putting students in impossible positions where they’re simultaneously told they can use a tool and that using certain functions of that tool constitutes cheating."
Seriously, ban it. It's no friend of education
wonkhe.com/wonk-corner/...
"Universities risk putting students in impossible positions where they’re simultaneously told they can use a tool and that using certain functions of that tool constitutes cheating."
Seriously, ban it. It's no friend of education
wonkhe.com/wonk-corner/...
Some reasonable adjustments may have just become academic misconduct
Lots of universities across the UK permit the use of Grammarly in reasonable adjustment plans for disabled students, and some permit it in some circumstances for those whose first language isn't Engli...
wonkhe.com
October 18, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Grammarly is now an enemy of education
"Universities risk putting students in impossible positions where they’re simultaneously told they can use a tool and that using certain functions of that tool constitutes cheating."
Seriously, ban it. It's no friend of education
wonkhe.com/wonk-corner/...
"Universities risk putting students in impossible positions where they’re simultaneously told they can use a tool and that using certain functions of that tool constitutes cheating."
Seriously, ban it. It's no friend of education
wonkhe.com/wonk-corner/...
Reposted by Robert Brewer
Living in the Future benefit: the combination of Google Maps public transit directions and phone-tap onboard payment makes it SO EASY to take public trams/buses/metros when traveling now. It’s fantastic not to have to resort to taxis just for lack of easy access to the local transit ticketing system
October 17, 2025 at 7:44 AM
Living in the Future benefit: the combination of Google Maps public transit directions and phone-tap onboard payment makes it SO EASY to take public trams/buses/metros when traveling now. It’s fantastic not to have to resort to taxis just for lack of easy access to the local transit ticketing system
Reposted by Robert Brewer
I see a lot of people saying that a person charged with a crime deserves the chance to prove their innocence.
Please stop doing this because you have it backwards and this is really important.
It is ALWAYS the government's burden to prove a person guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Please stop doing this because you have it backwards and this is really important.
It is ALWAYS the government's burden to prove a person guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
October 8, 2025 at 4:45 PM
I see a lot of people saying that a person charged with a crime deserves the chance to prove their innocence.
Please stop doing this because you have it backwards and this is really important.
It is ALWAYS the government's burden to prove a person guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Please stop doing this because you have it backwards and this is really important.
It is ALWAYS the government's burden to prove a person guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
No Alligator Asylum
October 4, 2025 at 1:37 PM
No Alligator Asylum
Reposted by Robert Brewer
It seems that the press generally understands a politician's words as if they are true. Sort of like how the general public treats random output from an LLM.
Both outputs require interrogation to confirm their veracity.
The press fails us by being a mouthpiece for unchecked lies and mistruths.
Both outputs require interrogation to confirm their veracity.
The press fails us by being a mouthpiece for unchecked lies and mistruths.
October 2, 2025 at 1:30 PM
It seems that the press generally understands a politician's words as if they are true. Sort of like how the general public treats random output from an LLM.
Both outputs require interrogation to confirm their veracity.
The press fails us by being a mouthpiece for unchecked lies and mistruths.
Both outputs require interrogation to confirm their veracity.
The press fails us by being a mouthpiece for unchecked lies and mistruths.
Reposted by Robert Brewer
I have moved from the “How am I going to write a paper on this topic” stage of research for my SBL paper and am now in the “How am I going to write a paper instead of a whole book” stage.
September 26, 2025 at 12:42 AM
I have moved from the “How am I going to write a paper on this topic” stage of research for my SBL paper and am now in the “How am I going to write a paper instead of a whole book” stage.
Reposted by Robert Brewer
After speaking with normal people about autism for the last 6-7 years, I have become fully convinced we need to give ASD 1, 2, and 3 separate and distinctive names because most people simply cannot handle the idea of a range of disabilities having a single name.
September 24, 2025 at 3:35 PM
After speaking with normal people about autism for the last 6-7 years, I have become fully convinced we need to give ASD 1, 2, and 3 separate and distinctive names because most people simply cannot handle the idea of a range of disabilities having a single name.
Reposted by Robert Brewer
Sometimes the answer is to delete everything and start over. Sometimes it's to lean into the discomfort and see where it leads.
But the answer is never to pretend the discomfort doesn't exist.
Your words are a mirror. Are you brave enough to look?
7/7
But the answer is never to pretend the discomfort doesn't exist.
Your words are a mirror. Are you brave enough to look?
7/7
September 21, 2025 at 5:41 AM
Sometimes the answer is to delete everything and start over. Sometimes it's to lean into the discomfort and see where it leads.
But the answer is never to pretend the discomfort doesn't exist.
Your words are a mirror. Are you brave enough to look?
7/7
But the answer is never to pretend the discomfort doesn't exist.
Your words are a mirror. Are you brave enough to look?
7/7
Reposted by Robert Brewer
this is the Terminator empathy for better killing
September 9, 2025 at 12:02 PM
this is the Terminator empathy for better killing
Reposted by Robert Brewer
So the LLM synthesizes a result from various sources (that may be made up or misquoted) and then you "double-check" the sources?
Sounds like the LLM is using you as research assistant.
Sounds like the LLM is using you as research assistant.
September 8, 2025 at 1:55 PM
So the LLM synthesizes a result from various sources (that may be made up or misquoted) and then you "double-check" the sources?
Sounds like the LLM is using you as research assistant.
Sounds like the LLM is using you as research assistant.
Reposted by Robert Brewer
Dispatch #26: General Purpose is an Accountability Loophole
If they don't say what it's for, we can't say if it works.
Video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zs6...
Podcast: pnc.st/s/faster-and...
If they don't say what it's for, we can't say if it works.
Video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zs6...
Podcast: pnc.st/s/faster-and...
Dispatch #26: General Purpose is an Accountability Loophole
YouTube video by fasterandworse
www.youtube.com
June 12, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Dispatch #26: General Purpose is an Accountability Loophole
If they don't say what it's for, we can't say if it works.
Video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zs6...
Podcast: pnc.st/s/faster-and...
If they don't say what it's for, we can't say if it works.
Video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zs6...
Podcast: pnc.st/s/faster-and...