Comment On GRG's Worst Production Failure

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Abscissa:

Your "Display: Full Article" link isn't working.

It works for me so it must work for everyone!!!!

On Subject: Poor chinchillas....

Yet another reason to always mount a scratch chincilla.

That's why it's very, very, very important to do extensive testing on this kind of apps, where you can't and probably won't find a bug or an error for a large amount of time after the deployment.
People need to learn from the software folks at NASA.

Captcha: doom !

How long before some PETA freak gets on your case? Taking bets now....

Alexander Dzhoganov:

That's why it's very, very, very important to do extensive testing on this kind of apps, where you can't and probably won't find a bug or an error for a large amount of time after the deployment.
People need to learn from the software folks at NASA.

Captcha: doom !

You mean like the ones who wrote the software for the Mars Climate Orbiter? ;-)

awww... that chinchilla is cuter than mine. But then again, mine only has three legs (not my fault).

Alexander Dzhoganov:

People need to learn from the software folks at NASA.

NASA? You mean the people who lost a Mars orbiter due to a data input error?

One could argue that the chinchilla jumped for another reason. :-/

Wouldn't it be more accurate to guide them with sound or something? Meh, whatever.

unklegwar:

How long before some PETA freak gets on your case? Taking bets now....

Nah, they don't read this site. Probably because no one told them to.

Maybe they should use PETA members for these experiments, they are easier to train than rodents.

It doesn`t work for me neither.

Using Firefox 2.0.0.3

Rafael Larios:

Abscissa:

Your "Display: Full Article" link isn't working.

It works for me so it must work for everyone!!!!

On Subject: Poor chinchillas....

It doesn`t work for me neither.

Using Firefox 2.0.0.3

Thomas:

Rafael Larios:

Abscissa:

Your "Display: Full Article" link isn't working.

It works for me so it must work for everyone!!!!

On Subject: Poor chinchillas....

It doesn`t work for me neither.

Using Firefox 2.0.0.3

Worked fine for me
Using Firefox 2.0.0.3

DaveTheWave:

Thomas:

Rafael Larios:

Abscissa:

Your "Display: Full Article" link isn't working.

It works for me so it must work for everyone!!!!

On Subject: Poor chinchillas....

It doesn`t work for me neither.

Using Firefox 2.0.0.3

Worked fine for me
Using Firefox 2.0.0.3

Works for me too, same version... It does rely on javascript though, you sure you haven't disabled it?

No, not that NASA. This NASA:

<url: http://www.fastcompany.com/online/06/writestuff.html />

I'm sure you enjoy telling your story at parties and getting a good laugh at the loss of a multi-million dollar spacecraft. But maybe you should try to remember that no US astronaut has ever died because of a software error. And that's because of people like those described in the article. People that make sure their software is correct because lives depend on it.

This bug resulted in, not a passel of hard-of-hearing chinchillas (awww, how cute!), but a pile of dead ones.

Animal experiments end in the slaughter of the animals. They can't be used again for scientific purposes. Nobody's going to adopt a hundred chinchillas. And even if there were a hundred people out there looking to adopt chinchillas, this batch of 100 would just mean there's 100 more at various animal shelters that have to be euthanized (there's never a shortage of unwanted animals).

I guess making jokes about PETA helps some people avoid thinking about how animals actually do suffer for our thoughtlessness.

I am, by the way, a tinnitus sufferer -- my every waking moment, probably until the day I die, will be spent with loud, high-pitched whines and squeals in both ears -- and I don't want experiments like this one done.

freelancer:

Alexander Dzhoganov:

People need to learn from the software folks at NASA.

NASA? You mean the people who lost a Mars orbiter due to a data input error?

Sarcasm noted and not appreciated sir!

Abscissa:

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Enable JavaScript for worsethanfailure.com.

Full Article is off dy default because most people come to the comments page from the full article (without comments) page and don't really need to read it again.

captcha: craaazy

Jamie McCarthy:

This bug resulted in, not a passel of hard-of-hearing chinchillas (awww, how cute!), but a pile of dead ones.

Animal experiments end in the slaughter of the animals. They can't be used again for scientific purposes. Nobody's going to adopt a hundred chinchillas. And even if there were a hundred people out there looking to adopt chinchillas, this batch of 100 would just mean there's 100 more at various animal shelters that have to be euthanized (there's never a shortage of unwanted animals).

I guess making jokes about PETA helps some people avoid thinking about how animals actually do suffer for our thoughtlessness.

I am, by the way, a tinnitus sufferer -- my every waking moment, probably until the day I die, will be spent with loud, high-pitched whines and squeals in both ears -- and I don't want experiments like this one done.

I understand your point, but I take a much different stance. I look at it from the standpoint of "the greater good", what is better, 100 deaf (or even dead) rodents or 100 deaf people? They are doing these experiments to try to prevent exactly the problem you have.

Now before you call me heartless, take this to note, I would feel bad harming a monkey or even a dolphin, but killing a fish or a rat I have no problem with. Ask me to define the morality line where this is crossed and I can't do it, I simply know myself what I would care about and what I won't. You yourself do this very thing but your line is drawn elsewhere. How many roaches would you kill to keep them out of your home? The question is no different, it just depends on where you, personally draw your line, just don't hold me to your choice.

This sounds a lot like the work done at Big University (think stephenson...).

my old department, in fact.

KattMan:

How many roaches would you kill to keep them out of your home?

I would kill thousands!

RobbieAreBest:

unklegwar:

How long before some PETA freak gets on your case? Taking bets now....

Nah, they don't read this site. Probably because no one told them to.

Maybe they should use PETA members for these experiments, they are easier to train than rodents.

Actually, the rodents are probably easier to train.

PETA: "BE NICE TO ANIMALS!"
TECH: "OK, now when you hear the ..."
PETA: "BE NICE TO ANIMALS!"
TECH: "When you hear the sound,..."
PETA: "BE NICE TO ANIMALS!"
TECH: "Yeah. Got that. Now ..."
PETA: "WE'RE GONNA SUE YOUR TAIL OFF!"
TECH: "Yeah, OK. Now ..."

The high pitched whining is caused by pompous self importance and a missing sense of humor. You should get that checked.

Rafael Larios:

KattMan:

How many roaches would you kill to keep them out of your home?

I would kill thousands!

I would kill Dolphins if they refused to leave my home... you know what they say about guests and fish--Dolphins are both! (practically)

Do you know the "scratch monkey" story? That guy almost went to jail for real. Granted, it was a monkey, but I'd be very careful posting any story that sounds like animal cruelty. To the lawyers reading all these in the future chinchilla lovers vs. GRG, I, for one, do not condone chinchilla deafening.

Jamie McCarthy:

This bug resulted in, not a passel of hard-of-hearing chinchillas (awww, how cute!), but a pile of dead ones.

Animal experiments end in the slaughter of the animals. They can't be used again for scientific purposes. Nobody's going to adopt a hundred chinchillas. And even if there were a hundred people out there looking to adopt chinchillas, this batch of 100 would just mean there's 100 more at various animal shelters that have to be euthanized (there's never a shortage of unwanted animals).

I guess making jokes about PETA helps some people avoid thinking about how animals actually do suffer for our thoughtlessness.

I am, by the way, a tinnitus sufferer -- my every waking moment, probably until the day I die, will be spent with loud, high-pitched whines and squeals in both ears -- and I don't want experiments like this one done.

Well, it a good thing you don't get to decide for us whether animals should be used for scientific research. The head (president? CEO?) of PETA needs insulin to live. If it weren't for scientific research on animals, that person may not be alive now, like millions of other persons who suffer from that disease. This quote pretty much resumes my position on the subject:

If you truly feel that a rat life is worth as much as a human life, or that an hour of rat pain is as bad as an hour of human pain, then it is hard to justify your continued existence. Even if you are as green as you can get, and a hard-core vegan, your ecological footprint is very large (certainly compared to a rat), and responsible for the deaths of many small animals. The fact that you use a computer means that your carbon footprint is not that of a primitive hunter-gatherer. If you eat vegetables and/or grains, you are responsible for the deaths of several small mammals (such as fieldmice) and thousands of insects every week, just from the mechanical harvesting process (even assuming that your food is 'organic' and thus pesticide-free."

Jamie McCarthy:

This bug resulted in, not a passel of hard-of-hearing chinchillas (awww, how cute!), but a pile of dead ones.

Uhmmmm, NO. The bug did not "result in..." killing the chinchillas. Bug or no bug, software or no software, the testing was going to be done, and the chincillas would be disposed of properly. And since the life expentancy of a chincilla is 12 years, I'm guessing all of these chincillas would be dead today no matter what sort of testing as done.

And we don't know how they were disposed. Perhaps they fed them to some snakes?

People make jokes about PETA because the jokes are funny.

Jamie McCarthy:

This bug resulted in, not a passel of hard-of-hearing chinchillas (awww, how cute!), but a pile of dead ones.

Animal experiments end in the slaughter of the animals. They can't be used again for scientific purposes. Nobody's going to adopt a hundred chinchillas. And even if there were a hundred people out there looking to adopt chinchillas, this batch of 100 would just mean there's 100 more at various animal shelters that have to be euthanized (there's never a shortage of unwanted animals).

I guess making jokes about PETA helps some people avoid thinking about how animals actually do suffer for our thoughtlessness.

I am, by the way, a tinnitus sufferer -- my every waking moment, probably until the day I die, will be spent with loud, high-pitched whines and squeals in both ears -- and I don't want experiments like this one done.

As a taxpayer I don't want experiments like this one done.

RP2008:

As a taxpayer I don't want experiments like this one done.

And, as another taxpayer, I want this sort of research done.

CAPTCHA: dubya

Chinchillas are $150+ so I doubt they'd be fed to any snakes. Poor little guys, they must've gone crazy though.

Google ads already solved the chinchallas' problem, the top ad bar is selling digital hearing aids :-D

n/t

As a taxpayer, I want this sort of research done, but preferably not with money borrowed from taxes I'll be paying later.

stationary:

As a taxpayer, I want this sort of research done, but preferably not with money borrowed from taxes I'll be paying later.

Dream on. A politician's favorite taxpayer is one who can't vote yet.

So I draw the line at shooting assholes, just don't hold me to *your* choice. MMMkayyyy?

Yes, there are compromises we all make on a daily basis. But we have also, as a society, decided that it is ok to say this is a line you don't cross no matter where your moral compass points.

These researchers are intentionally harming living creatures, not just killing but what would amount to torture if it was a human. That is unethical, especially considering that animal experiments only approximate conditions in humans. Why not just pick up a hundred or so folks from the slums in latin america or India. No one would miss them, either, and the experiments would actually have more value.

And *they* would be able to answer the "Which is louder?" question.

Anyway... I still had to laugh at the thought of all the confused chincillas...
I'm morally challenged I guess.

The real WTF is that people are discussing politics/ethics. We really should be discussing how GRG was too naive to thoroughly test code that would be used in important research, whether you agree with said research or not.

I have input to give on the whole political/ethical debate about animals in research but they really aren't relevant to the WTF at hand.

SomeCoder:

The real WTF is that people are discussing politics/ethics. We really should be discussing how GRG was too naive to thoroughly test code that would be used in important research, whether you agree with said research or not.

I have input to give on the whole political/ethical debate about animals in research but they really aren't relevant to the WTF at hand.

Fist!

Feel better now?

etr:

Why not just pick up a hundred or so folks from the slums in latin america or India. No one would miss them, either, and the experiments would actually have more value.

You sir are a douchebag.... (and i know you are being sarcastic).

We choose to harm animals for research when the outcome could provide solution for the problems of millions... so if hurting 150 chinchillas could help the millions of unborn children with hearing problems so be it.

off course I disagree completely with hurting animals for pleasure or more mundane things, (killing a shark just for their fins)... but for scientiffic research is completelly plausible.

Sorry for my english and bad grammar.

Just to clarify-- all the chinchillas were "rejects" from chinchilla ranches. They would have been killed by the ranchers if they hadnt been redirected into research. Instead they got to live a lot longer, in nice warm cages.


There was no pain involved in any of the experiments.

Jamie McCarthy:

Animal experiments end in the slaughter of the animals. They can't be used again for scientific purposes.

Actually that isn't true, the Chincilla's had only their hearing affected. You could have shaved off their hair and used them to test makeup, or stuffed their little heads in bags of cigarette smoke or even sold them off to peruvians to make a nice gumbo, though that is more a way of life than an experiment.

I too am a tinnitus sufferer and frankly if the use of a lower animal increases my odds of survival, I'll gladly support those experiments.

And lets all remember the lesson of Reverend Maynard:

"Angel of the Lord, what are these tortured screams?"
And the angel said unto me, "These are the cries of the carrots, the cries of the carrots. You see, reverend Maynard, tomorrow is harvest day and to them it is the holocaust."
And I sprang from my slumber drenched in sweat like the tears of one millions terrified brothers and roared,
"Hear me now, I have seen the light, they have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul. damn you! let the rabbits wear glasses!

Ancient_Hacker:

Just to clarify-- all the chinchillas were "rejects" from chinchilla ranches. They would have been killed by the ranchers if they hadnt been redirected into research. Instead they got to live a lot longer, in nice warm cages.


There was no pain involved in any of the experiments.

Chilchillla ranches? No wonder they're so darned expensive. Have you priced six-inch barbed-wire fencing lately? </goofy>

Wow, i know what you mean about tinnitus. Im getting it right now but its in my eyes via my computer screen.

I will probably suffer from whiney, squealey comments on blogs until the day i die.

Why not just pick up a hundred or so folks from the slums in Latin America or India. No one would miss them, either, and the experiments would actually have more value.

You are an idiot and you totally fit the stereotype of an arrogant American.

Why would no one miss the people from the third world?

Do they have no families just because they don't speak American?

"Thou shalt give equal worth to tragedies that occur in non-English speaking countries as to those that occur in English speaking countries." Scroobious Pip.
http://www.myspace.com/lesacvspip

What you didn't know that it was actually a psychological stress test being done on computer programmers to see how they would react to horrible code.

Alexander Dzhoganov:

That's why it's very, very, very important to do extensive testing on this kind of apps, where you can't and probably won't find a bug or an error for a large amount of time after the deployment.
People need to learn from the software folks at NASA.

The folks at NASA also write 3 lines of code per day. That kind of reliability comes at a very high price.

A chinchilla with no legs is deef.

Ben:

Why not just pick up a hundred or so folks from the slums in Latin America or India. No one would miss them, either, and the experiments would actually have more value.

You are an idiot and you totally fit the stereotype of an arrogant American.

Why would no one miss the people from the third world?

Do they have no families just because they don't speak American?

"Thou shalt give equal worth to tragedies that occur in non-English speaking countries as to those that occur in English speaking countries." Scroobious Pip.
http://www.myspace.com/lesacvspip

Not only that, but if they can't speak American, how would you collect the results of the test?

It doesn't work for me. However, I have found it works if I go to http://forums.www.worsethanfailure.com/. Which is the oddest thing in the world, I would imagine.

Firefox 2.0.0.3.

That is an abbreviation for People who Eat Tasty Animals, doesn't it?

Oh, hilarious pseudo-PETAing in this thread. Those fools are so easy to send up: Like shooting fish in a barrel. Humanely, of course. And only one fish, so as not to peterb the survivors.

Jamie McCarthy:

I am, by the way, a tinnitus sufferer -- my every waking moment, probably until the day I die, will be spent with loud, high-pitched whines and squeals in both ears -- and I don't want experiments like this one done.

Then you're a fool, and you'll remain a deaf fool.

These chincillas would, in their natural environment, be consumed in large quantities by predators. Does PETA intend on disrupting the entire food chain by putting predators on soy-based diets?