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One of the most ridiculously unserious ideas I've ever come across is that the "invention" of language is something that can be pinned to a specific point in time, in the very recent past (50k-70k years ago), and that it is what makes Homo Sapiens oh-so-special & superior
Language, culture, complex social structures, and advanced technology gradually co-evolved over *hundreds of thousands of years* (700+k), very slowly. And they were not exclusive to Homo Sapiens. Neanderthals, Denisovans (who diverged from Homo Sapiens 700k years ago) had them.
These furless apes were thriving in harsh environments where you wouldn't last 2 days -- how primitive do you think they were? We have archeological evidence that pre-humans were hunting big game in groups using wooden & stone weapons at least 400k yrs ago en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sch%C3%B6…
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François Chollet
@fchollet
We should not look at such closure orders as a sign of the end times.

These are *positive* developments. It means there are adults in charge willing to take appropriate measures that will be effective at slowing down the spread of the virus.
The US should take similar action right now. Note that the Europe travel ban does not qualify as an appropriately ambitious measure; it will be entirely ineffective. It amounts to political pandering.
Close the schools, ban all gatherings, order anyone who can to work from home.
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François Chollet
@fchollet
*fire starts in the kitchen*

Right now, 99% of the house is intact! Think about that! Life goes on!
"The flu is way worse! Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on!"

What a difference one week makes.
There will be treatments and vaccines for COVID-19. But I'm afraid there's no cure for this level of stupidity and willful ignorance.
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François Chollet
@fchollet
I often hear "ideas don't matter, it's all about execution". How course ideas (the quality of your decision making) do matter -- it's just that the *initial idea* only represents a tiny fraction of your product. A product is made of thousands of ideas aggregated over many years.
You could build 100 different products from the same initial ideas, and perhaps only 10 would be successful. The difference between them would still be the *ideas* that went into them! Just not the very first one.
This is highlighted by the fact that successful products are almost never "executions" of their initial idea. They evolved from that starting point, into a form that is often unrecognizable. Aggregating ideas over time = changing direction
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Masked Mao Balding 大老板
@BaldingsWorld
One question I get is why is China the dominant issue in the US election for you? Two reasons, one bigger than the other. First, and most importantly, China is the dominant issue I consider as a voter because I believe we are living at a point in time where it is conceivable 1/n
China ushers in a very extended period (hundred years or longer) of wide spread authoritarianism. This is clearly their objective. They state it. They want to expand the China model. The actively support and build up authoritarians globally. The methods of governance 2/n
they push on to other countries like the surveillance state are all about limiting freedom and increasing state control. There are way too many people of polite company who still refuse to believe and take seriously what China wants to accomplish. This is not as some believe 3/n
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#Him™ with the #s 🇵🇷
@AmericanNumbers
Ok. The Rewatch begins.
"The taxation of trade routes"
George had total creative control. Lol.
As I remember, Visually beautiful to start but George goes full bore into the Republic Serial racist tropes early.
He's heavily trying to make it feel like a 30s/40s pic in your hind brain.
I love the retro tech within Star Wars aesthetic.
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Nosferatu V. Karenina
@NosferatuVK
It’s #Monday, I’m boozing it up at a 4 seat bar, the #barkeep is a long pourer, and I’m all fucking set if I get something stuck between my teeth.👇🙃 #RandomThoughts #drinking #OutAndAbout
Shooting the shit with a friend, she’s proud to be doing well with her plants - unusual for her.

The key was a #video explaining the benefits of pruning.

She needs REASONS. She got them.

Apparently, pruning in a particular manner stimulates growth hormones.
#RandomThoughts
Of course, this led to me initiating a discussion about the #movie I just watched on Hulu, called “The German Doctor.”

The main character was Josef Mengele. #ThisHappened

People, this is why I’m known in my circles as “The Black Hole Of Conversation.” SMTH
#RandomThoughts
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Dr. Cecilia Tomori
@DrTomori
@sophiejrigney @elizabethmoya @makesmilk @babyfriendly Anthropologist here - I have written about changing ideas about #time and about the regulation of infants quite a bit. These are #culturalideologies that came about in late 19th-early 20th century in response to social changes 1/n
@sophiejrigney @elizabethmoya @makesmilk @babyfriendly the rise of industrial #capitalism changed labor practices and emphasized efficiency and predictability. The #clock was particularly important in this regard.
@sophiejrigney @elizabethmoya @makesmilk @babyfriendly There was a fundamental reworking of #time from a very different understanding - agricultural labor has a very different rhythm (EP Thompson famously wrote about this) jstor.org/stable/649749?…
Read 9 tweets
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Eketi Edima Ette
@eketiette
Are you one of those people who's looked back on 2017 and convinced yourself that you haven't achieved anything? Worried about catching up with your mates who seem to have done much better?

Let me tell you a story about #time.

A thread 👇
A long #time ago, back when I was about twelve or thirteen years old, my parents travelled to Uyo.

Before leaving, my mother asked me to prepare Edikang ikong soup so she and my father would eat when they returned.
When I was finished with the soup, it was supposed to look something like this:

*photo credit: waiter foodies.
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