I remember being dumbstruck after watching that video for the first time and realizing the power of programming. Karl Sims website still looks a bit like it did back then http://www.karlsims.com
I can relate to the author. I had a hard time passing exams in university due to undiagnosed concentration issues. I knew I was smart, but failing standardized tests left me feeling like an imposter. Regardless of finishing projects and tasks in the 95th percentile.
I am multilingual, an autodidact and I love programming. I also have a gift (your 6th sense) for engineering in that I am able to visualize and analyze machines/systems by glancing over the designs or watching them work. Combined with soft skills and programming experience this has proven of great value in industrial settings where I am able to relate and connect the mechanical, software and other engineering departments.
A couple of years back I started working at a start-up doing robotics and machine vision. Due to lack of time and personal I had to teach myself everything from inverse kinematics, path planning to a solid knowledge of 2D and 3D machine vision. In less than a year I was developing and integrating 3D vision systems and steering industrial robots. Only after delivering that first project on my own did I allow myself to internalize my accomplishments.
I might not have a formal engineering degree, but being a jack of all trades has proven to be a high value asset. It's about finding an environment where your (broad) skills pay off.
Generalizations as the one above make it harder for people like me to start a career as I very much belong to the second group.
Also, I can show you pointer arithmetic in my pet language.
Actually, given the program manager's comments and the Navy's sudden interest in F-18 improvements, the F-35 program looks like it will have large cuts.
With few exceptions the quality of talks, for which I was drawn to TED in the first place, has been in free fall for years.
5 or 6 years ago almost every TED talk was a gem for anyone with a single engineer, science or technology fiber in his/her body.
Becoming more famous is what did them in. Needing to push out more talks on shorter and shorter intervals. Shifting more and more from spreading ideas (i.e. technology), to telling stories and making people feel better or worse. And more importantly promoting whatever product/service they are connected to.
It has become an event where people think they need to be, regardless of interest in actual topics. Something which is reflected in the generic nonsense which is their comments section.
Also, if you are a self proclaimed "thought leader" you are a douche bag.
I agree that there should be an option to reset default settings or at least start with default settings.
However removing most options (and functionality) just for those users and situations where something might stop working, is wrong. Sure (some) settings could be tucked away better, but doing so to the extreme will influence how users view and use software.
This nurtures the sort of environment where users will kick and scream if a setting they altered does influence the usability of an application. The result: fewer and fewer options. Or options with large yellow safety warnings a la "stabbing yourself in the eye with a fork might result in loss of eyesight".
Anything with Microsoft in the title is trollbait I guess.