Learning is Living
This is the digital garden of Nauka, an amateur of Learning. There is a blog.
The same website is also used by me to structure my thought in a private version accessible to family and friends only.
For suggestions or to work with me simply send an email to contact @ this domain.
You are also very much encouraged to send me an email if you simply want to chat, need help with something within my power or want to offer criticisms.
Latest "Blog" updates
- The Harm Of 10 Years Of AGI Doomsday Published: Last Modified: 2023-04-02
4717 words, est. reading time: 23 minutes
There are two petitions on AI safety out right now. If you sign only one, you should support LAIONs. Here’s why
- Media review: The Limits of Realism Published: Last Modified: 2023-02-26
1573 words, est. reading time: 8 minutes
I am currently trying to finish up two long form writeups, but would like to update this blog more often, so I will start a new category: media reviews. Short to not so short summaries of what I liked about a given piece of media - books, movies, papers, YouTube videos etc. Without further ado, let’s start. I have just finished listening to the latest video of Kraut which both introduces and attempts to debunk the internal relations framework of realism, i.
- Day 1: Combinatorial Christmas 2022 Published: Last Modified: 2023-02-02
384 words, est. reading time: 2 minutes
This is a copy of the the index for this series. As my research takes a final pivot over into the land of combinatorial optimisation with a colleague I figured it might be a nice idea to do an advent calendar of blog posts about combinatorial optimisation An idea which I’m of course shamelessly cribbing from the https://adventofcode.com/ . Since I have deadlines to hit, I will have to do this economically so I’m counting this announcement and creating the outline and initial research as the first day.
- Where I Am Aiming to Be and Think I Am (in 2023) Published: Last Modified: 2023-02-02
386 words, est. reading time: 2 minutes
It’s 2023 and my Ph.D. is coming to a close. Despite having an impostor syndrome like all good academics, I am trying to be more honest about my skills and achievments instead of downplaying them. This post is me practicing this. So despite it feeling really awkward, I do think that I am inching towards living up to one of my favourite aphorisms: Jack of all trades, master of none - certainly better than a master of one
- What I Did Instead of Making a New Website Published: Last Modified: 2023-02-02
576 words, est. reading time: 3 minutes
I started working on this website in September of 2021, when I was really struggling during my PhD. I was in the process of getting some mental health diagnoses done and was all over the place mentally - changing labs and topics during COVID19 does not make for the most productivity enhancing start. Working on the website was the first step of tying together all the strewn subprojects I had done over the last 5 years and slowly start organising myself as well.
- Day 4: Linear Programs Published: Last Modified: 2022-12-04
1451 words, est. reading time: 7 minutes
Born from conflict The Simplex algorithm The Simplex algorithm: nitty gritty details Is this efficient? Interior points methods Karmarkar’s algorithm : some details Edit from the future: I got covid on day 4 of writing this, which means I will move the schedule to “as soon as done”. Today we do the first deeper dive into technical details of a method. And given its ubiquity, I think it’s a good thing to start with the lingua franca of combinatorial optimization: Linear programming.
- Day 3: History and fields Published: Last Modified: 2022-12-03
1782 words, est. reading time: 9 minutes
Yesterday I tried to give you a quick intuition on what optimization in general and combinatorial optimization in particular are, as well as hint a bit at the historical developments that brought them to the current form. Today I want to go a bit deeper on this. I should note this specific perspective on the timeline is my own - and thus you might want to compare and contrast with more venerable thinkers in the field, like Prof.
- Day 2: Concepts and Language Published: Last Modified: 2022-12-02
1998 words, est. reading time: 10 minutes
What is optimization? What do we optimize? Why would optimising on a finite set be more difficult than on an infinite set? Edit from the future: I got covid on day 4 of writing this, which means I will move the schedule to “as soon as done”. What is combinatorial optimization? Prof. Schrijver (Schrijver 2003) concisely summarizes it as Combinatorial optimization searches for an optimum object in a finite collection of objects.
- You cannot get the Permis C as an academic Published: Last Modified: 2022-10-06
473 words, est. reading time: 3 minutes
I just received a letter from the Swiss Government telling me that my 5 years of PhD do not count towards the Permis C, according to the rules laid out here on page 22. I had originally taken his to mean that the PhD counts as normal employment, which as an EU citizen means I would be able to ask for the Permis C. This would mean I’d have some security of staying in the country (allowing for startup and other ventures that a normal employment might not permit), as well as taking my first steps towards the citizenship.
- Three parts about anxiety Published: Last Modified: 2022-10-01
4689 words, est. reading time: 23 minutes
An essay I wrote in summer 2018 when I thought I was dealing well with anxiety and trauma, trying to explain what anxiety is to me others I know after a friend mentioned she does not understand it. Status 2022-10-01 I stand by most of it, although a follwup post might be in order.
- Intellectual Gardens Published: Last Modified: 2022-09-30
2572 words, est. reading time: 13 minutes
I have pretty bad impostor syndrome. For a long time I’ve thought about intellectual work, of creative work, of entrepreneurship as something that only very talented people did, not me. I’ve always thought about myself as more of a reader, learner, tinkerer and fixer than a doer, finder,creator and performer. Let’s talk about impostor syndrome and how I’m trying to overcome it it. Other people First, back to the talented people.