Speaking of paranoia, I once heard in some movie the term “pronoid”—the delusion that everyone likes you. Actually, that’s still paranoia—a condition characterized by delusions of persecution or grandeur.

Helen Cronin would like to introduce a milder definition of the term: “the idea that everyone is not out to get you, but that they are out to love you, or at least to appreciate you, if you reciprocate.” Kind of a weasely-worded definition, neh?

Man, when will that Eat More Words consortium start? Whoops, there it is, already started. I should read my work e-mail more.
11:26:08 AM  #  comment []

“ Cluelessness in the Face of a Cruisin’ ” award goes to... Brian!

If you don’t get independent confirmation of these things from a nearby friend you may have a sneaking suspicion that you’re being checked out, but it’s probably just your imagination, your vanity, or both. Try to develop your peripheral vision, try not to concentrate on wherever you’re going (in the grand scheme of things, was it really that important a place?), or try to get an observant friend. Because no one wants to be thought of as vain.

The comments offer some helpful advice if you believe you have a similar problem. I think they apply to both persuasions, both sexes. I think women are better about being discreet about it than men, but that could be my vanity, my wishful thinking, or my well-known paranoia.

[thanks Brian!]
11:15:58 AM  #  comment []

Algovista, the algorithm search engine. Enter data samples that exemplify the results you want your algorithm to return and get a listing of the algorithms that match. Sort of like Ted Kaehler’s MethodFinder in Squeak, programming by example. The visual interface whereby you submit your data samples is very interesting, covering text, numbers, directed and undirected graphs of nodes, matrices, paired numbers. Definitely worth investigating the limits of the engine and the means by which it transforms visual examples into their query expression. [by way of Lambda the Ultimate]
10:42:50 AM  #  comment []