Untimely meditations
One man's thoughts, observations and rants
Welcome to the personal blog of Joop Beris. I blog about a wide variety of topics, ranging from atheism to information security and lots in between. I welcome feedback on my articles but there are some guidelines. Feel free to share articles you like by using the sharing buttons but please give me credit if you want to share something. Also, check out my privacy policy and other legalese.
Please note that the things I write here do not represent the views of anyone else but me. I do not represent an organization or a business and I have nothing to sell. My views do not necessarily coincide with or represent those of my employer. Just throwing that in there for legal reasons.
Below you’ll find the most recent things I’ve written. Feel free to check them out, leave a comment and share them with others who might be interested.
Latest posts
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Geoblocking
I recently took a one month trial subscription to Amazon Prime to see what it is like and to decide if I should become a member. And, admittedly, I wanted to see “The Grand Tour” because I enjoy the antics of Clarkson, Hammond and May. The Grand Tour was no problem to watch and greatly…
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Book review: Atheism for Muslims
Several weeks ago, Adam Wadi, the author of “Atheism for Muslims: A guide to questioning Islam, religion and God for a better future” contacted me through my blog. He wanted to alert me that his book was available for free for a limited time because he felt I might be interested in it, considering other reviews…
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The lure of Google
I’ve been using smart phones for a long time, in particular the top range Samsung Galaxy line of phones. As most of you will probably know, these phones are Android based and come pre-loaded with lots of software from Google. You pretty much need a Google account to use them. Google software is generally pretty…
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We Just Created an Artificial Synapse That Can Learn Autonomously
A team of researchers has developed artificial synapses that are capable of learning autonomously and can improve how fast artificial neural networks learn. Source: We Just Created an Artificial Synapse That Can Learn Autonomously What if an A.I. could learn as fast as we can, or even faster? Soon we may be able to answer…
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A fresh look
After a few years running the WordPress Twenty-Fifteen theme, I decided it was time for a fresh look of the blog. So I spent some time tweaking the new Twenty-Seventeen theme and quickly came to like it. So starting today, when you look Random Musings, Rambling Opinions in your browser, you get the new look.…
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Without privacy, you lose your ability to have an identity of your own
I believe that privacy is something that humans need. Being able to do things and to speak about things without being watched or recorded is essential to growth and identity formation. How do you know who you are or what your values are if you are not free to explore those? Without privacy, we are…
Recent comments
I have a question. I believe life is valuable because you have a soul and are a unique person, precious.…
I used to believe in god until my life went downhill. Your reasons are actually good.
Joop, Hope you are well. It is amazing to me the gullibility of people. How can educated people believe in…
Those analogies don’t hold up, I’m afraid. Like marriage or choosing to have children. Or moving to someplace new because…
“What can be asserted without evidence may be dismissed without evidence.”
Christopher Hitchens
Author and journalist
You seem to have multiple questions but let’s take them one at a time, shall we? I believe life is…