Not directly an answer, but similar what if thinking got me wondering: wouldn't it be cool to be able to use postgres much like how you use sqlite with python? I implemented this idea as a pip-installable python package, https://github.com/orm011/pgserver, and your feedback would be great :) I use it for my projects.
I have not compared it.
Have you had issues in this front?
If you are asking in human terms, its instantaneous to start, it simply creates a few files etc and starts a process. If you were using Sqlite, there is no extra associated process. But the processes are simply waiting for your input, so normally this is not really extra work.
In benchmark terms, the way I'm using it startup time is not a huge issue, instead being able to use postgres is helpful (has extensions and you know you can eventually move to a hosted postgres if you want)
If startup really matters, the startup can be amortized (if multiple processes want to access the same file, they get a handle to the same already started process, so only the first one would have waited for startup).
In terms of ongoing resource consumption, I can easily have a bunch of separate servers running for different files (it depends on your workload how much work will happen behind the scenes.) I'm not sure how much extra work postgres needs to do vs sqlite beyond what is kind of inherent for a workload (eg index creation, saving a bunch of data etc).
Hm, not exhaustive but I think these are potentially useful to you:
The deeplearning.ai math basics for deep learning, seems self-contained.
MiniTorch repo (implement your own tiny torch) seems also helpful to understand what goes on during training.
MinGPT repo (to understand a basic version of GPT model structure)
Dive into deep learning (textbook avail online, more focused on practical DL)
I have been waiting for weeks, and am still waiting, to get access to Llama2 (released a month+ ago), and access to this model goes through the same form, so I'm not very hopeful. Are you getting it from other methods?
Does anyone know of good tools to practice tone-listening and recognition for cantonese? or tools for drilling jyutping more generally,
I've used https://chaaklau.github.io/cantorocks/, but I would like to also try others, as the audio is not great sometimes and I'd like to listen to different voices.
When studying Mandarin I found that getting the phonetics right early on really helped me, it can be done in a relatively short time and its hugely motivating.
If you have basic Mandarin knowledge, you could try Duolingo's Cantonese course for Mandarin speakers. I think it is helpful to get familiar with how words are pronounced and what expressions people use in vernacular Cantonese so far. As with the Mandarin course, there is little explanation, you kind of have to complement it eg with some drilling for tones.
I really like this idea, though I haven't tried it yet.
Spotify has lyrics for many songs, but for characters the first hurdle is you cannot really sing along even with the lyrics unless you know them.
Is there some easy way one change the font used by Spotify to be this font somehow?
I'm not sure the author will ever read this, but I am also a PhD student, have been one for far too long, and in the past have struggled with similar `time management' issues, though I'm not sure that's really the problem.
As time passes, especially when things go wrong, projects and writing become very emotional. Having memories of looking at something a few years ago and looking at it again a few years later to try to resubmit it tends to trigger guilt, anger etc in me. I've found some strategies to help me, because I'm close to finishing and think the marginal benefit/marginal cost makes sense (benefit is large, finish your phd in 2 years, 1 year, 6 months, depends on where you are).
One tool I use to help me work even when I'm not feeling it is Focusmate (google it). I've found that sometimes, working out my issues is useful , but sometimes the emotions are overpowering and no amount of working them out will make me not regret something. That used to make me stop. Nowadays if I use Focusmate, I tend to think less of such `large picture' issues and instead work on just a little bit, and get a little done. then after a day, a get more done, and so on. I do sometimes get upset and avoid it altogether, but I'm definitely much better at `time management' this way. Also, I don't want to leave a focusmate in the middle of a session, i just need to stick around 25 minutes, and the feelings can pass and i can even enjoy some of the craft of the specific thing I'm doing. I hope it helps someone.
3Blue1Brown videos seem like a good resource to use along any book. My experience as a math major (in the distant past) is that the kind of visualization the author shows you is also something you want to imitate in your head when you are learning new concepts. I find things I learned in this level tended to stick in my head 10+ years later, other stuff less.
I should mention focusing on doing a few interesting problems, rather than many not so interesting ones, is also one way to help yourself understand more deeply.
Lots of easy problems is a good way to build up muscle memory, though. IMO the brute-force method of, say, Saxon Math really makes sense for things like basic elementary school algebra and probably intro calculus, where the student is sort of learning the math equivalent of how to walk. Not sure where the switch over ought to be, though.
we tried "Saxon math", Singapore math dimensions, and Beast Academy.
And my impression was that Saxon Math was the worst.
What I mean by worst is that it just make you practice an algorithm by doing lot of repetition but doesn't force you to have a deep understanding or problem solving skill.
Saxon math worked out for me, although we didn’t shop around as far as I remember, so maybe Singapore would have worked fine as well.
My experience is that I didn’t really feel like I was memorizing an algorithm. Because the problem set includes assignments from all of the old sets, it is hard to memorize all of the algorithms. So you instead memorize the different moves that are allowed and have a general idea of what types of moves might be useful.
I dunno. I went on to do engineery stuff as an undergrad rather than pure math stuff, it seems like a good match because engineering problems are also often in the “no need to be super clever, just don’t mess up” vein, so it could be just a lucky match. This is what I mean by muscle memory — I’ll use the famous names theorems when necessary but sometimes you just need to bash the math until the thing you want is on that side of the equal sign and the other stuff is on the other side.
I think anything that results in
1) actually reading some textbook
2) actually working through problems for a couple hours a week
will compare well to the typical US math education pretty well anyway.
Instant Pot.
Can be used as a rice cooker, slow cooker, pressure cooker (mostly known for this last use)
Though probably not as good for rice specifically as an actual high-end rice cooker,
it greatly increased the range of foods I eat.
Makes it easy to make nice one pot meals overnight for multiple days,
you can make really good broth soups from chickens etc quickly, or slowly if you prefer.
If you like to try tougher cuts of meat, this is also a good reason to get it.
The fact it doesn't occupy one burner is also helpful.
We got an Instant Pot and our Zoji rice cooker has collected dust ever since. It is great for brown basmati rice where the Zoji is weak and slow. Try 360g brown basmati rice (we don't bother rinsing it), 705g water, a quarter tsp of salt, 1 tsp of oil. Cook 23m on high and then let it sit for 10min before venting the rest of the pressure off. Remove lid, fluff the rice, and wait a minute or two before serving.
The one weakness of the Instant Pot is that most models won't go to 15psi and there is the odd recipe where a longer cooking time can't compensate. For example, there is a Modernist Cuisine recipe for pressure cooked root vegetables that uses a bit of baking soda to help bring a caramelized flavor to the party. Works great in a 15 psi cooker but is a disaster in an instant pot: the veggies just taste like baking soda. I suspect that stocks made in the Instant Pot might not be as good as well for similar reasons but haven't tried that yet.
If you're cooking both rice and a meal however, you might need that extra rice cooker (and cook the meal in the instant pot). You could also stack the portions in the instant pot, but that doesn't work for all types of meals.
I'm just the other way: had an Instant Pot for a couple years (which is great) but I bought a Zojirushi rice cooker and LOVE LOVE LOVE it. Japanese medium-grain rice in the Zoji is amazing. I cook 1-2 cups nearly every day to snack on.
Dump in a gallon of milk, heat it up, let it cool, add a couple spoons of a store bought plain yoghurt (if you don't have some started saved from the last batch), put the lid back on and hit the yoghurt button and come back in like 8-10 hours. If you prefer a thicker yoghurt, strain it a bit before storing.
Gallon of yoghurt for the price of a gallon of milk and probably like 20 minutes of active work.
Mine mostly sits because I find the instructions and UX inscrutable. I've made some great ribs, but just as often something goes wrong and the device doesn't warm up enough, or doesn't form a seal and cooks off the liquid or burns the meat.
You don't get any indication that things are going right until the timer starts going down, but that's many minutes after you start it. It also comes with two completely incompatible rice recipes, one of which doesn't use rice mode, and no explanation of why. Just terrible UX.
I do pot-in-pot with 1:1 ratio of water to brown rice. We have a number of small stainless steel bowls that we set on top of the wire trivet (don't forget a small amount of water in the main pot too). I cook for ~15 minutes for most brown rice and then let the instant pot sit undisturbed for another 10-15 minutes while the pressure naturally releases, and the rice has a chance to take up any unabsorbed water.
White rice is the same deal, though I usually go a few minutes less (~12 minutes). I like to add a very small amount of some sort of oil to the inner pot with the rice.
1-to-1 ratio of dry rice to water, by volume. I typically make 3-4 cups (dry) at one time.
Multigrain setting on the Instant Pot, shortest cook time. I believe it is 20 minutes at full pressure. I do not know if the multigrain setting is on every Instant Pot.
20-30 minutes of natural steam release once the pressure cooking is complete.
Turns out soft and minimally sticky every time. Perfect for my palate. I was eating it with just butter and soy sauce for a while.
Me too. Instant pot for the win. Haven't tried meat in it. It's been Indian curries and lentil soups & such. I also bought a 3 quart version for my motorhome!
I've scrabbled together a pot roast recipe I follow loosely that gets praised every time I make it. I get a chuck roast (or something similar), evenly coat in salt and pepper to taste, saute it in the insta pot(about 6-7 minutes each side to brown it), deglaze with red wine vinegar, then put in half a small package of carrots and little red potatoes(onions can be added but nobody likes them here). I also add 2-3 pepperoncinis on this bottom layer, then I put the roast back in, put the rest of the carrots/potatoes/another couple of pepperoncinis on top and around. Then I add a cup of water and beef bullion, and set the pressure cook feature to around 1 hour 10 minutes or so. I use the keep-warm mode and while it's ready to go once the main pressure is done, it just gets better over time (and you can do it before leaving for work and come home to lunch or supper already waiting). I'm really lazy when it comes to cooking, but this has been easy, fast and delicious (plus leftovers!).
An even easier thing is shredded BBQ chicken. They can even be frozen and it's done in an hour. Would write the recipe but leaving for lunch now.
I do a very similar version, minus the pepperoncini. One thing that I've found can really take it up a notch is to add just a touch of soy/worcestershire sauce, maybe about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of each. IMO it adds a nice savory background flavor.
I have a similar pot roast recipe, but I've found it comes out better in a slow cooker, or a dutch oven. I've never really been all that impressed with the results of the Instant Pot. Time savings? Even that depends - building and releasing pressure adds 40+ minutes to cook time.
I just learned that I can make ten potatoes in about twenty minutes in my pressure cooker which has been a huge help for meal prepping. It's so great for so many things!
My Instant Pot-branded Instant Pot is pretty much useless as a slow cooker. Unfortunately, I donated mine upon getting the Instant Pot before realizing this. Maybe newer models have fixed this but the three times I tried, had to end up pressure cooking as it never got warm enough, even on high, to slow cook.
I love our Instant Pot! I keep finding uses for it. The other day I'd forgotten to thaw a 4-pack of pre-cooked chicken sausages. Threw them into the Instant Pot (steam tray w/ a cup of water under them), 5 minutes on low pressure (~10 min total), and they were totally warmed through.
I was using it as well, but after talking to my very knowledgeable dentist, pressure cookers destroy most of the vitamins from foods. Since talking to her I started using my pot without the pressure valve, semi open, and use it as a small simmering device, similar to a pot on a stove, but without needing to remember to turn it off.
What? That's the absolute opposite of what happens. More vitamins are retained in the food in a pressure cooker because of less water/more steam and less oxygen.
The latest revisions of the instantpot do a good job of sous vide. I've tried a sous vide roast [0] so far, 24 hours later I had the best roast I've ever had. Incredible.
I especially like cooking pork via sous vide (in my Instant Pot). Pork is really hard to cook in a regular oven/pan without making it tough, but a couple of hours sous vide, and then quick searing makes it wonderful!
