Ex Bibliotheca

The life and times of Zack Weinberg.

Tuesday, 16 July 2002

# 9:05 PM

A challenge for the readership:

Figure out what this does.
Obfuscate it into an appropriate shape (like this).

The best answer will be posted.

#include <stdio.h>
int main(void) {
 int x, y, k;
 char *b = " .:,;!/>)|&IH%*#";
 float r, i, z, Z, t, c, C;
 for (y=30; puts(""), C = y*0.1 - 1.5, y--;){
    for (x=0;
         c = x*0.04 - 2, z=0, Z=0,
         x++ < 75;){
       for (r=c, i=C, k=0;
            t = z*z - Z*Z + r,
            Z = 2*z*Z + i, z=t,
            k<112;
            k++)
          if (z*z + Z*Z > 10) break;
       printf ("%c", b[k%16]);
       }
    }
}

# 4:40 PM

money

According to GnuCash, I should have $32.04 in my wallet. I have only $28.04. What did I spend those four dollars on? I have no idea.

this could get ugly

Afghanistan risks disintegrating into warring regions.

introducing anna

I've added a new link, to Anna Feruglio Dal Dan's weblog. She writes long chewy articles about the politics of Italy, and related things, every now and then.

# 7 AM

book review

Frank Herbert wrote an awful lot of books besides Dune, which is the only one that anyone remembers him for. One of these other books is The Dosadi Experiment. The premise is simple: a mixed population of two sentient species (Humans and Gowachin) has been isolated on a hostile planet, Dosadi, by parties unknown as an experiment; they've survived, and in fact they've become so dangerous that the experimenters are considering destroying the whole planet rather than let them get out into the more civilized galaxy. The protagonist must attempt to find a better solution.

The book unfortunately does not live up to its premise. The whole issue of whether or not the Dosadi are dangerous to the galaxy is sidestepped, in favor of a lot of tangled stuff about body-swapping and the Gowachin legal system. It reads well, though. In fact, the descriptions of the Gowachin legal system are one of the most interesting parts of the book. It's genuinely different from anything we Humans have ever put together, but coherent and does seem to work. Herbert does not paint a very clear picture of the system, or how it is used in ordinary times — the Dosadi situation cannot be described as ordinary. The glimpses we do get are nifty enough to leave me wanting more.