Almer S. Tigelaar
A Little Bit of Everything
Recent Posts
Huffman Encoding
In this post we take a look at Huffman encoding. A way to efficiently compress sequences of characters by making use of their frequency.
Tenet
Tenet was the first major blockbusters to hit the theaters since the start of the corona pandemic. Delayed several times, it served as litmus test to see if people could be drawn back to the big...
Quicksort
Some people put their things in a pile, for example clothes. When they need something they search through that unorganized pile. That approach makes me cringe. I like my things to be organized, whether it comes...
More Recent Posts
Run-Length Encoding
A brief look into run-length encoding, one of the data compression techniques that is easiest to understand, and permeates many modern applications.
The Magic of the P2000T
A brief overview of the origins, history and fate of the Philips P2000T computer, as well as my experiences with this fantastic icon of the eighties.
What Westworld and The Thing Have in Common
A brief exploration and analysis of the thematic intersection between the movie The Thing and the television series Westworld
Featured Posts
Chronoception
I was once took part in a class where the instructor performed an interesting experiment. He asked us all to close our eyes, and then raise our hands and open our eyes when each of us...
The Machine Learning Myth
“I was recently at a demonstration of walking robots, and you know what? The organizers had spent a good deal of time preparing everything the day before. However, in the evening the cleaners had come to...
Sleep
If you do not sleep you will die within months. Though, it’s unlikely that you would voluntarily stay awake twenty four hours for days at a time, modern society with its many distractions, makes it tempting...
Random Posts
Puzzle #3: Boys and Girls
Assume a country where every family wants to have a boy and continues having babies until they actually have one. We consider only one generation. The probability of having a boy or a girl is always...
Total Recall
A good science fiction story is not easy to write. Total Recall is loosely based on a short-story by famous science-fiction writer Philip K. Dick, the mind behind "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?", the basis...
Best Documentaries 2018
I like documentaries as much as I do (fiction) movies, particularly if they make me think, are well crafted and have a coherent narrative. Here are my recommendations based on documentaries that I have watched in...
Popular Posts
Designing a Thesis
A while ago I spent quite some time to research the best options for designing my thesis. I used ideas from various sources, and in this brief article I will explain some of the choices I...
How long would it take to read Wikipedia?
Wikipedia has become the de facto encyclopedia on the Internet. A traditional encyclopedia spans many textbook volumes which would take any normal person ages to read. Few people would likely engage in such an endeavor. However,...
Social Networking Services – Part II: Usage
From the Oscar-winning movie "The Social Network" to the recent introduction of Google Plus, no-one can deny it: on-line social networking services are here to stay. But, what does it mean for you and me? [part...
