ezyang's blog

the arc of software bends towards understanding

Ely Cycles

March 25, 2011

Yesterday I cycled from Cambridge to Ely, and back again. The route is a glorious 38 miles (round trip) of British towns and countryside. The cycling around Cambridge is quite good, because there aren’t very many hills, and in the farmland areas you get to see the tractors rolling by. The longest I’d ever cycled before was the Springwater Corridor in Portland, the segment of which I did was only about 10 miles.

*Non sequitur.* ICFP submission deadline is today! Functional programmers around the world have reported a sharp increase in draft paper sightings.

1 Comment

  1. cyclist

    fellow cyclist: safety is most important. The tractor driver cannot hear you due to the engine. He does not expect you and thus under the ‘psychology of sight’ framework, – does NOT see you.

    Plenty of 'ADD' or attention deficit disorder or lack of attention.

    Demographics means aging and thus loss of peripheral vision.

    Is there instant feedback?  No.  simple google search shows

    few ;‘punishments’ for CARELESS driving.

    Side effects - note: similarity to computer language paradigm -

    there are MANY hidden side effects of medications (legal and non-legal). Even fall in blood sugar - RISE OF metabolic syndrome and diabetes in YOUR IMMEDIATE AREA can have ‘physical side effects.’

    Do you practice for the 'corner cases' or the worst scenario?  Dietching at the 'blind curve' as a speeder car comes your way?

    Or does one prefer coding in dynamic Python and C, with memory leaks?

    ref: psychology experiment of non-attention - gorilla suit walks across crowded basketball court activity, yet VIEWERS do NOT notice this ‘anomaly.’

    of course, it (YOUR AREA) is safer statistically than Florida or California, USA - both tourist areas with attractions like DisneyWorld.