By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 18/09/2026Most of the time, you can treat these things as "smooth," but that roughness *matters*: it's the fracture line the glass cracks on, the place where the ice starts to melt, the grain where the wood starts to warp. 31011
By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 18/09/2026The danger of forgetting that your "smooth" thing only *seems* smooth is that you'll only know how to make it work, and will be totally at sea when it *fails*. 1982
By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 18/09/2026You can scan the night sky with a radio telescope night after night and only find things that fit with our existing theories of the universe. But you *keep scanning*, because somewhere out there is a surprise that will open up a deep mystery: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wow!_si...en.wikipedia.orgWow! signal - Wikipedia 3924
