Recently updated blogs

While distant reading has taught us a lot about the history of fiction, it hasn’t done much yet to explain why we keep turning pages. “Suspense” is the word we use to explain that impulse. But what is suspense? Does it require actual anxiety, or just uncertainty about what happens next? If suspense depends on […]

This is the script for “The charges against Binance”, a video about the legal actions against Binance and its former CEO, Changpeng Zhao. On November 21, the United States announced a landmark resolution to multiple years-long investigations into the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange: Binance. The company’s founder and CEO, Changpeng Zhao, agreed to plead guilty to a felony, pay a fine, and resign. Binance itself pleaded guilty to three charges, …

After 25 years of running this blog under various names — all of which can be lumped under the "Archidose" monicker — I've decided to shut it down, moving this hobby, this labor of love, to Substack, which I have used since mid-2021 and where I will continue to send out weekly newsletters focused on architecture books, but in a new format. (You can subscribe to my newsletter here or …

In this chapter, we’re going to learn about ARIA live regions — the accessible notifications system that enables us to make dynamic web content more accessible to screen reader users. Without live regions, some rich web applications would be more challenging to use for screen reader users. So if you’re building web applications such as Single Page Applications (SPAs), you need to understand live regions so that you can utilize …

We're happy to announce the immediate availablity of [Spark 5.0](https://spark.laravel.com) for both Paddle and Stripe. Spark Paddle 5.0 introduces support for Paddle Billing, Paddle's next-generation billing API. New Laravel applications can utilize Spark to quickly integrate with Paddle's latest APIs. Unfortunately, Paddle does not provide...

I’m here to provide a look at the financial side of Critical Distance. In 2022 we needed to run an emergency GoFundMe to fix our tax status, and that’s not a place I want us to be again. After fixing our tax status, I spent 2023 getting our financial status in order. Our goals are to be stable, and to get a few extra things added to the site to …

That’s it, I’m no longer posting to this site. New blog posts can now be found over on Substack at Andrew Old’s Education Battleground, or sign up to receive them as a newsletter. Details of signing up for paid content can be found here. Since the last time I posted on this site the following […]

The launch of ChatGPT on November 30, 20221 marks the beginning of the new AI era. We’ve had many AI cycles in the past going all the way back to 1966. However, the last year has been particularly exciting. Today, everyone can have a compelling experience for free with ChatGPT 3.5 or Google Bard, with added amazement if you pay OpenAI to get ChatGPT 4 and DALL-E. I expect this …

This post and VLOG detail the writer's first record recon, including the missions to Vortex Music & Movies and Silver Platters. The writer traverses the Cross Kirkland Corridor from Redmond to Bellevue, sharing thoughts on the area's pedestrian unfriendliness. The trips are documented, and the writer recommends exploring the beautiful Cross Kirkland Corridor.

Main Summary 🤔 The north/south divide in England has historical roots dating back to the Viking invasion, leading to suspicion and stereotypes between the two regions. 🏠 The north/south divide in England can have significant impacts on house prices, education, and life expectancy. 🌍 A proper academic study by Professor Danny Dorling took cultural and economic factors into account to determine the north/south divide in the UK. 🌐 The concept …

Finally (hopefully, we'll see) something seems to be happening about the shameful Horizon scandal. Private Eye have made their special report on it free to download. I haven't watched Mr Bates vs The Post Office yet, but this is a great backgrounder on the whole fiasco.How to Fold a Julia Fractal. A fantastic website with great animated visualisations to help explain the beauty of maths. Gave me some new ways …

Following last year, I created a CSS wishlist for 2024.Before I get into the details, I have to say that creating a wishlist almost feels wrong because there are more features in CSS today than I could have ever wished for. So, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who contributed to CSS being where it is today: spec writers, invited experts, browser developers, everyone involved in Interop …

A couple of years ago I worked on a strategic project that was outside my remit. It was an incredible learning experience for me and here is some of what I learned. The problem I wanted to solve The problem for my team was that our tech estate was in contention. I was leading one of a number of engineering groups within a larger organisation; each group had its own …

Silence may indeed be “golden” except when one is trying to maintain some regularity in writing a blog. My silence this past Fall and into the end of the year was not intentional. I actually got as far as starting a new post in November on a “Blouse for Fall” only to have its completion thwarted by more pressing priorities. Such is life, as all of us know. So now, …

Following last year, I created a CSS wishlist for 2024.Before I get into the details, I have to say that creating a wishlist almost feels wrong because there are more features in CSS today than I could have ever wished for. So, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who contributed to CSS being where it is today: spec writers, invited experts, browser developers, everyone involved in Interop …