sparkman55's comments

Funny you should mention meteorological use cases. At a previous startup, we built global historical weather data sets (at 5km resolution, 30+ year hourly time series), accessible via a metered API. This took HPC, storage, and engineering investment about an order of magnitude less than Planet. We also had a whole room of tapes filled with satellite imagery from the world's governmental Met offices...

Our main use case was for wind and solar renewable energy, but we also entertained other uses, like architecture and agriculture. These data sets turned out to be difficult to monetize; while the continental US data set may have broken even, the rest of the globe never recouped the cost of storage, let alone the supercomputer time. It's not that people around the world weren't interested in the data, they just couldn't justify paying for it.

Ground speed doesn't seem like a feature to me - after all, the ideal is an unblinking 'eye in the sky' that provides high-resolution video for large regions a la ARGUS. A stationary observer seems like it would provide more valuable information than an orbiting one.

With orbiting satellites, most of the time the birds are over the ocean and empty stretches of land that most people don't care about. You're wasting most of your bandwidth and storage on places that someone might be interested in one day...

Don't get me wrong, the work you're doing is very cool, and global data sets are really fun! Unfortunately, I've found that the 'value density' of these global data sets isn't great.

For a long time, public satellite imagery came from satellites flown by the US Geological Survey (USGS). They came in two flavors: geostationary and low-earth orbit.

The geostationary satellites are perched very high above the earth, and take frequent pictures of the 'full disk' of earth. This is invaluable for weather forecasting, as we can see what clouds are doing in real time. However, they are so far away that you need big, expensive satellites and big, expensive launches, and the resulting resolution is quite poor (like one pixel per 5km depending on latitude, and worse at high latitudes).

On the other hand, the low-earth orbit satellites fly just above the atmosphere, and can take pictures at much higher (spatial) resolution, but may only fly over a particular spot of land once per day. So you trade temporal resolution for spatial resolution.

With miniaturization, advances in imaging and related technology, and decreasing launch costs, it should be possible to deploy a constellation of small low-earth-orbit satellites, to provide good temporal AND spatial resolution. That enables a whole bunch of new applications.

However, I'd be a bit concerned that long-lived airborne drones flying at high altitudes might do the same thing (good spatial AND temporal resolution), but at a lower price point and in a more efficient way (since you only fly where you want to look, instead of covering the entire globe).

Perhaps I'm missing something?

"Pixel Perfect" - awesome! The google logo looks particularly 'pixel perfect.'

Seems like some "sub-pixel" texturing could be done by drawing different characters a la ascii art. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AAlib

Well, the innovation is really about storing electricity. We've been generating and transmitting electricity for over a century now.

Once we can store electricity (in batteries, for example), then intermittent power sources, like solar panels (and also wind turbines) become much more valuable.

Energy storage is a very inconsequential market right now, but if smart-grid-connected Teslas really take off, then they become important not only to the automotive industry, but also the electricity and energy industries.

RINSE - https://www.rinse.com - Santa Monica, CA and San Francisco, CA

Rinse is a technology-enabled dry cleaning and laundry delivery service. We've been growing our service at an exponential rate for the past two years, and our customers love us! We're expanding to westside Los Angeles, and are hiring aggressively.

We're hiring a General Manager for our Los Angeles office. This is very similar to a startup CEO role, as you'll be responsible for all aspects of our Los Angeles operation, from hiring and managing a large team, to developing business relationships with our vendors, to understanding our customers and their needs. This is a huge opportunity for the right candidate! http://bit.ly/rinse_LA_GM

We're also aggressively hiring drivers for our San Francisco and Los Angeles offices. Our drivers work a few nights a week in the evening. To be eligible, you must have your own car, a smart phone, and a clean driving record. This is a good opportunity for students or anyone else looking to earn some extra money as a side gig while exploring the city and meeting people.

Interested? Email jobs <at> rinse.com or me directly at sam <at> rinse.com

I couldn't believe that the new 49ers stadium (in Santa Clara) cost a trillion dollars, so I looked it up. It cost $1.2 billion [1] - a "gigabuck" rather than a "terabuck." To put that in perspective, a single office building in nearby Palo Alto just sold for $300 million. [2]

Judging from the people driving up and down 101 with flags flying, the people wearing 49ers jerseys year-round in San Jose, the big BBQs hanging off the big trucks in the parking lot of games, and the truck commercials that litter televised football, the new car-centric location suits the football team nicely.

I'd be much more upset if the SF Giants decided to move out of the city!

[1] http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_23414780/49ers-new-stadium-cos... [2] http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2015/03/11/tibco-sel...

RINSE - www.rinse.com - Design District, San Francisco, CA

Rinse is a technology-enabled dry cleaning and laundry delivery service. We've been growing our service at an exponential rate for the past year, and our customers love us! We have a number of open positions, and have hired a significant portion of our team via Hacker News.

Rinse is hiring Software Engineers to develop our functionality across the stack. We have hybrid mobile apps for both Android and iOS for our customers AND our drivers. We also have sophisticated web-based tools for our customer service team, internal operations staff, and vendors. Laundry is a surprisingly-complex logistical process, and so our customer-facing software is just the tip of the iceberg. We're solving problems like the Traveling Salesman and image classification, too. Our tech stack is approximately HTML5 / Backbone.js / Django / Python / Postgres / Heroku / Ubuntu, but we're a tiny tech team, so any newcomer will be able to shape architecture.

We're also hiring for a "Special Operations Associate" which is someone who may not have unique technical ability, but who has great aptitude and a willingness to work hard to improve our business. Analytical capability and attention to detail are important skills for this person. Bonus points for someone with an Industrial Engineering or Process Engineering background. This position is great for an ambitious hustler looking to join a "rocket ship" startup. Obviously, this position presents a significant growth opportunity.

Any applicant who we interview will receive $25 in free Rinse credit... If you live in San Francisco, give us a try!

Interested? I'd be happy to answer any questions at sam (at) rinse.com.

The oft-cited statistic is "97% of climate scientists believe in anthropogenic climate change" and the wikipedia article [1] is actually quite thorough. I personally do not know any scientist who doesn't believe in global warming, although I did know some skeptics a decade ago. Skepticism is healthy, but so is respecting statistical tests.

No one really knows the specifics of what's going to happen, but the latest IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) has started focusing on 'adaptation' as some degree of climate change is inevitable (and, indeed, has already happened). The IPCC would be my choice as the closest guess as to what the next century will look like [2]

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_opinion_on_climate_c...

[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPCC_Fifth_Assessment_Report

They have bunch of blends to choose from, and serve carefully-made single-drip "Third-wave" coffees. The order process is a bit chaotic, which makes the whole thing seem nice and quaint. Plus, they do little things like aerate the coffee and leave the right room for milk and sugar.

Personally, I'd prefer a nice single-origin coffee to their blends, but it definitely beats a Starbucks.

This isn't the first time Philz has received VC; according to Wikipedia, Summit invested in 2013.

Google Ventures invested in Blue Bottle. Their (excellent!) designers-in-residence showcase the work they did to help:

http://www.gv.com/lib/behind-the-scenes-with-blue-bottle-and...

In rural areas, it's actually common to have a gas pump near the garage. After all, what are you going to do, drive your tractor to town to fill up?

There is an excellent New Yorker article on fecal transplants and gut flora.

The article spends considerable time talking about the donors, and the rigorous screening process to make sure the donated bacteria are good ones. Obviously, that procedure wasn't followed in this particular incident.

Worth a read!

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/12/01/excrement-exper...

A space railgun is theoretically possible, but you'll still need a rocket to circularize the orbit.

In practice, a rocket goes up (out of most of the atmosphere) before going fast. A projectile fired out of a railgun would be going at its fastest while still in the atmosphere, and would thus be very hot / inefficient at the gun's "muzzle"

Heinlein's "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" discusses such a solution for sending mined material back from the moon, which seems like a more feasible application.

The whole system is indeed possible, though. See this discussion:

http://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/35139/what-is-the...

I've built a number of teams, and have repeatedly had the fortune of anchoring the back-end with a senior engineer over age 50. Experience matters, and it helps the entire team from a morale, design, and process perspective. You don't want to work for someone who doesn't recognize that anyway...

I wish I could be so lucky to attract senior candidates at my current gig; they're hard to come by at a trendy downtown-SF mobile commerce pre-series-A startup. Instead, I'm inundated with fresh code-bootcamp graduates. I'd be much more comfortable hiring those junior developers if I knew they would be able to sit next to a reliable senior teammate...

That said, if you're worried about being hired, start by building something on your own! You'll make yourself much more marketable if you show that you can pick up new technologies and actually release something.

RINSE - www.rinse.com - Design District, San Francisco, CA

Rinse is a technology-enabled dry cleaning and laundry delivery service. We've been growing our service at an exponential rate for the past year, and our customers love us! We have a number of open positions, and have hired a significant portion of our team via Hacker News.

FOUR positions:

  1) Software Engineer
  2) Special Operations Associate
  3) Customer Service Specialist
  4) Business Development Manager

Rinse is hiring Software Engineers to develop our functionality across the stack. We have hybrid mobile apps for both Android and iOS for our customers AND our drivers. We also have sophisticated web-based tools for our customer service team, internal operations staff, and vendors. Laundry is a surprisingly-complex logistical process, and so our customer-facing software is just the tip of the iceberg. We're solving problems like the Traveling Salesman and image classification, too. Our tech stack is approximately HTML5 / Backbone.js / Django / Python / Postgres / Heroku / Ubuntu, but we're a tiny tech team, so any newcomer will be able to shape architecture.

We're also hiring for a "Special Operations Associate" which is someone who may not have unique technical ability, but who has great aptitude and a willingness to work hard to improve our business. Analytical capability and attention to detail are important skills for this person. Bonus points for someone with an Industrial Engineering or Process Engineering background. This position is great for an ambitious analytical mind looking to join a "rocket ship" startup. Obviously, this position presents a significant growth opportunity.

Rinse has excellent customer service, and we'd like to continue improving it with a Customer Service Specialist. This individual will lead a team of customer service associates, while enjoying close support from our technology and operations teams. The ideal candidate will have managed customer service in a consumer-focused startup environment.

Finally, Rinse is looking for a Business Development Manager to "hustle" and cement new business relationships as we grow. If you like going out and meeting small business owners, this is your gig!

Any applicant who we interview will receive $25 in free Rinse credit... If you live in San Francisco, give us a try!

Interested? I'd be happy to answer any questions at sam (at) rinse.com.

For cables, Monoprice is also a good alternative (and, generally, price-competitive with Amazon).

Another commenter mentioned that Monoprice's HDMI quality has declined; I haven't noticed any problem with their Ethernet and USB cables.

For HDMI, Monoprice goes all the way down to $2: http://www.monoprice.com/Search/Index?keyword=hdmi

Best Buy preys on the 'I need this cable in 30 minutes for the big presentation' customer, and prices accordingly. Try buying coaxial cable - it's obscene!

As I understand it, there are fins that deploy in order to steer the rocket on the way back down (the first stage). They are really cool "Grid Fins" [1] that work even in supersonic flight. In particular, they are used to prevent the rocket from spinning, and to keep the rocket upright.

The rocket can also steer by "gimbaling" the motor (pointing it in different directions), but that has limitations; changing the rocket's orientation will also change its velocity (like balancing a broom on your hand).

In this case, the hydraulic fluid is used to rotate the grid fins and therefore keep the rocket upright. When the fluid ran out, the fins wouldn't work, which is why the rocket comes down tilted.

Hope that helps!

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grid_fin

RINSE - www.rinse.com - Design District, San Francisco, CA

Rinse is a technology-enabled dry cleaning and laundry delivery service. We've been growing our service at an exponential rate for the past year, and our customers love us! We have a number of open positions, and have hired a significant portion of our team via Hacker News.

Rinse is hiring Software Engineers to develop our functionality across the stack. We have hybrid mobile apps for both Android and iOS for our customers AND our drivers. We also have sophisticated web-based tools for our customer service team, internal operations staff, and vendors. Laundry is a surprisingly-complex logistical process, and so our customer-facing software is just the tip of the iceberg. We're solving problems like the Traveling Salesman and image classification, too. Our tech stack is approximately HTML5 / Backbone.js / Django / Python / Postgres / Heroku / Ubuntu, but we're a tiny tech team, so any newcomer will be able to shape architecture.

We're also hiring for a "Special Operations Associate" which is someone who may not have unique technical ability, but who has great aptitude and a willingness to work hard to improve our business. Analytical capability and attention to detail are important skills for this person. Bonus points for someone with an Industrial Engineering or Process Engineering background. This position is great for an ambitious hustler looking to join a "rocket ship" startup. Obviously, this position presents a significant growth opportunity.

Any applicant who we interview will receive $25 in free Rinse credit... If you live in San Francisco, give us a try!

Interested? I'd be happy to answer any questions at sam (at) rinse.com.

There's a difference between requests that the user "expects" to take a long time, and those that can never be fast enough. For example, POSTs, credit card transactions, and things like Wikipedia edits generally have lengthy forms prior to the request, and the user can tolerate a correspondingly-lengthy response time. I prefer 2s as a target for anything like that, and rely on a queue for asynchronously processing anything that takes longer.

For GET requests, particularly those reached by clicking a link from elsewhere on the site, faster is better... Luckily, many of these types of requests can leverage a cache.