rzt
Joined 13 years ago
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Comment · 10 years ago
Comment · 10 years ago
I have no expertise in any of this, but I was assuming it would be something along the lines of an IDIQ (indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity) contract vehicle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IDIQ
Comment · 10 years ago
In discussion on other HN threads, some commenters suggested that the board was composed that way to grease the wheels of a DoD acquisition of the company's "tech". As OP put it [https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11403165]:
John the more I think about Theranos the more I think this “mess” is actually deliberate. Looking at the history of Theranos and the composition of the board it appears Theranos was designed from early on as a vehicle to defrauded the US military.
The plan appeared to be to use their connection and access to some rather “helpful” high brass to offload the technology for billions and then later sweep the fact that it didn’t work under the rug (this tactic has worked fabulously for the last 20 years). Avoid the FDA altogether.
Who would have noticed another $10 billion misspent on some wizz-bang technology given the $100s billions lost in other frauds? When the wheels fell of this plan (some underling didn’t play along) the idea seems to be to blame the scientists and say “we were misled”. They might be evil, but they don’t appear to be stupid.
Comment · 11 years ago
You are a set of eyeballs or "impressions." Maybe you won't click on the ad, but you were displayed it, which is a success in and of itself.
Comment · 11 years ago
You should read about the "third person effect": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third-person_effect
"The Third-person effect [1] hypothesis or Third-person perception or Web Third-person effect [2] predicts that people tend to perceive that mass communicated media messages have a greater effect on others than on themselves, based on personal biases; additionally, because of this perception, people tend to take action to counteract the messages’ influence. The Third-person effect hypothesis often manifests itself through an individual’s overestimation of the effect of a mass communicated message on the generalized other, or an underestimation of the effect of a mass communicated message on themselves."
Comment · 12 years ago
Neither of those situations you provide above.
As noted in the article I link and quote further down the thread, these companies utilize an often-desperate workforce that will take whatever they can get to work. These companies keep their workers as independent contractors without any benefits. Sometimes that is fine, especially if someone is working as a Taskrabbit during his/her weekend to make some extra money. But the reality is that many of these people are relying on these services for nearly all their income and then leaning heavily on government support to make up the difference (i.e. what keeps a roof over their head or food in their stomach).
I am not making a case for any wholesale policy change on the part of these new services. I am just stating that there is baggage here and that maybe it would be better if benefits were offered through these jobs to their workers/contractors so that the customer pays for the complete cost of the service and that business model, instead of taxpayers.
And I am no economist or expert in the matter ––– all I know is either from news articles or anecdotes. Maybe I'm wrong.
Comment · 12 years ago
I can't rely directly to yummyfajitas, but here is a NYT article that summarizes the issue[1]:
"“They may be able to paint someone’s shed this week,” says Dr. Standing, a professor of developmental studies at the University of London. “But they don’t know what will happen next week.”
He views peer marketplaces as part of a larger global phenomenon, in which labor brokers encourage people to work on contingency without basic employment benefits or protections. The companies essentially channel one-off tasks to the fastest taker or lowest bidder, he says, pitting workers against one another in a kind of labor elimination match.
The flexible timetables of project work are a trade-off for regular employment income and benefits. Retailers, restaurant chains and other employers may require more rigid work schedules than piecemeal gigs, or, worse, keep their workers guessing from week to week about which hours they will work. But many of those employers also offer workers benefits like disability pay or commuter discounts.
Uber, Lyft and TaskRabbit, for instance, do not regard the workers who provide services to their users as employees. The companies say they are simply arenas, like eBays for gigs. They require their service providers to work as independent contractors and, as such, the workers don’t qualify for employee benefits like health insurance, payroll deductions for Social Security or unemployment benefits."
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/17/technology/in-the-sharing-...
Comment · 12 years ago
Also, the companies are deflecting costs back onto taxpayers by ensuring that many of their workers will need to depend on government services for health care, housing and food assistance, etc. Sure, some of these taskrabbits/ubers/lyfters/whatever are making a real wage at this stuff, but many of them are also minimally employed –– and trying hard to get work as they can get it.
In so many ways, we are all subsidizing these companies.
Comment · 12 years ago
Elevation for fitness apps and environmental and weather(?) reporting.
Comment · 12 years ago
Location: Chicago, Illinois
Remote: Yes
Willing to relocate: Yes
Technologies: Communications and marketing management and strategy, content development, branding, copywriting, copyediting, HTML, CSS, Drupal, Adobe Creative Suite
Resume: www.linkedin.com/in/rzthomas/
Email: r.z.t [at] outlook [dot] com
Comment · 12 years ago
It's also model-contingent and sometimes luck. My SAAB has required about $1,600 a year for repairs and maintenance in the past three years I've owned it, but my wife's Honda Element has required only new tires ($500) and brake rotors and pads ($200, DIY install) since it rolled off the assembly line.
Comment · 12 years ago
Yes, there is that limit –– and a good one. You could get around it maybe if you were with some friends doing a klatsch with staggered drinking rates and drink start times, but then you'd just look really cheap.
Comment · 12 years ago
Two in Chicago (Lincoln Park and Mag Mile), but both of those areas are basically outdoor malls in a loose sense.
Comment · 12 years ago
Absolutely agree.
Bitcoin is one of the hottest news stories right now. People want to know more about Bitcoin. A big question about Bitcoin is "who created Bitcoin?" Newsweek answered that question.
This is journalism 101.
Many of you disagree with this premise –– and I sympathize and understand why you're upset –– but this is how the system operates.
That said, I'd love to have an ebike! I have a 26 mile one-way commute (that's a 30 minute train ride) but every once in a while I ride my road bike in. I arrive sweaty and have to clean up in the bathroom. Not ideal. If I had an ebike, I could ride in assisted without sweating all over the place and then on my commute home, turn the motor down and get a workout in.