Side-projects and off-topics

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Side-projects and off-topics Piotr Migdał 5th Offtopicarium 28 Sept 2014, Węgierska Górka, Poland

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“All of my best projects are side projects. And yours?”

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Off-topic this very event is a side-project on off-topics!

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Standards • assuring minimal quality • matching expectations • ...but have their drawbacks

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http://www.economist.com/content/big-mac-index

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Topics (as seen by ofﬁcials) programing physics biology research education entertainment

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Topics (as seen by Nature) programing physics biology research education entertainment

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work-life balance “work”-life balance work-“life” balance work-life “balance”

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The standard approach work fun/life/... do whatever you are paid for do whatever you like

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The ideal* approach work=fun/life/... * for some maybe in academia? now? LOL

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Or maybe in betwen work side-projects fun/life/... website? novel? drone? activism? research paper? game? algorithm?

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Bay Area spirit • changing the world • believing in one’s ideas • focus (!= work/life balance) • a lot of startups • a lot of meetups / co-work groups

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Bars I would do it... even if I had to pay for it! if no costs were involved if I were paid if I were paid a lot

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Incentives • Do things that make sense • Do things that are being evaluated learning vs getting grades (grading shapes things) creative things are left out

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...and then Facebook

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Bell inequality (one of quantum information founding blocks)

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Wolfenstein 3D Doom / Doom 2 “ideas from the depth”

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John Carmack • incredible focus and work ethics • (I would guess - Asperger’s syndrome ;)) • still a programer [oculus picture]

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“In the information age, the barriers [to entry into programming] just aren't there. The barriers are self imposed. If you want to set off and go develop some grand new thing, you don't need millions of dollars of capitalization. You need enough pizza and Diet Coke to stick in your refrigerator, a cheap PC to work on, and the dedication to go through with it. We slept on ﬂoors. We waded across rivers.” John Carmack

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see also: http://crastina.se/theres-no-projects-like-side-projects/