106 pointsby Natfan14 hours ago6 comments
  • pinkmuffinere11 hours ago
    > The reason this library was initially written was to optimise the layout of inflatable space habitats which may one day be constructed on the Moon and Mars.

    Wow, they even deliver on the “in a vacuum” bit

  • borborigmus14 hours ago
    The concept of a spherical cow was also part of Chris Morris’ comedy oeuvre. Possibly in the Brasseye episode “Animals”.
    • wolfi12 hours ago
      I know this joke since the 90s and one has to assume it's even going way back
  • bruce5119 hours ago
    >> "I have the solution, but it works only in the case of spherical cows in a vacuum".

    I get the joke, but that's not really what modeling means. There's no "only" determination here.

    So sure, the researchers devised a model, in which the cows were spherical and in a vacuum. That produced a solution, but there's nothing to show that solution would work less in an air environment with regular cows [1].

    I bring this up only because elsewhere here is a discussion of computer fundamentals (and their lack in juniors / self taught folk, and AI output). The quote above is logically flawed (likely on purpose to create the joke) but understanding that it is a logical joke may not be obvious to everyone.

    [1] to show that they would have to build a model with air and meat to show the solution fails, at which point the original model would be discarded.

    • Etheryte3 hours ago
      This trail of thought is not logically sound. The whole argument is built on the notion of what modeling is and isn't, but the original quote doesn't make the assumptions you imply. Sure, they might have a model that assumes cows are spherical and etc, but it might also very well be that they have hard constraints that make it work only for spherical cows and nothing else. There isn't enough information in the quote to make the argument you're trying to make.
    • littlestymaaran hour ago
      > [1] to show that they would have to build a model with air and meat to show the solution fails, at which point the original model would be discarded

      You only have to show that it fails for square (or any non-spherical shape) cow in vacuum or for spherical cow in air.

  • dwattttt12 hours ago
    Did not over-promise
    • jesse__11 hours ago
      I came for spherical cows. I left with spherical cows
      • gchamonlive11 hours ago
        In a world full of deception, the spherical cow is a cup of fresh milk.
        • squigz10 hours ago
          Is the milk spherical too?
          • vardump5 hours ago
            Yes, if it's floating in space in a pressurized spaceship.
            • bell-cot3 hours ago
              Cylindrical straw not included. Limited time offer. Warranty may be void if spaceship uses any reaction wheel or propulsion system. Other exclusions and limitations apply, see ...
  • oh_nice_marmot4 hours ago
    Why not call it SpheriCOW?
    • NoiseBert693 hours ago
      This will confuse all Copy-On-Write FS developers.

      Moooow!

    • bell-cotan hour ago
      An improvement - but to get gov't funding, it has to be a straight-acronym name.

      Maybe "Space Performance [something ... something] Optimization for Weightlessness"?

  • mos874 hours ago
    An ideal allegory for Rewrite Everything in Rust Syndrome^WDrive