<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" standalone="yes"?>
<rss version="2.0" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/">
  <channel>
    <title>Meta on Sebastian Spicker</title>
    <link>https://sebastianspicker.github.io/tags/meta/</link>
    <description>Recent content in Meta on Sebastian Spicker</description>
    <image>
      <title>Sebastian Spicker</title>
      <url>https://sebastianspicker.github.io/og-image.png</url>
      <link>https://sebastianspicker.github.io/og-image.png</link>
    </image>
    <generator>Hugo -- 0.160.0</generator>
    <language>en</language>
    <lastBuildDate>Wed, 22 Jan 2020 00:00:00 +0000</lastBuildDate>
    <atom:link href="https://sebastianspicker.github.io/tags/meta/index.xml" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
    <item>
      <title>Hello World — What Is This Blog?</title>
      <link>https://sebastianspicker.github.io/posts/hello-world/</link>
      <pubDate>Wed, 22 Jan 2020 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
      <guid>https://sebastianspicker.github.io/posts/hello-world/</guid>
      <description>An introduction to this blog: scientific ideas too lazy to submit, peer review openly invited, criticism will be posted.</description>
      <content:encoded><![CDATA[<h2 id="why-does-this-exist">Why does this exist?</h2>
<p>I have a folder. It is full of half-finished ideas, speculative derivations, and results that are <em>probably</em> interesting but will <em>definitely</em> never make it through formal peer review — at least not at the current level of polish.</p>
<p>So instead of letting them rot, I&rsquo;m posting them here.</p>
<p>The format is loose. The rigor is variable. The pinky promise is firm:</p>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>Peer review is welcome. All criticism will be posted alongside the original entry.</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>If you find an error, a flawed assumption, or a better framing — open an <a href="https://github.com/sebastianspicker/sebastianspicker.github.io/issues">issue on GitHub</a>. I will read it, respond to it, and append it to the post.</p>
<hr>
<h2 id="what-to-expect">What to expect</h2>
<p>Posts will look roughly like this:</p>
<ol>
<li><strong>An idea</strong> — usually the kind that arrives at 11 pm and seems very important.</li>
<li><strong>Some argument</strong> — math, code, or prose, depending on what makes sense.</li>
<li><strong>Honest limitations</strong> — what would need to be true for this to actually hold up.</li>
<li><strong>Open questions</strong> — what I don&rsquo;t know and am not going to pretend I do.</li>
</ol>
<hr>
<h2 id="a-taste-of-the-math-rendering">A taste of the math rendering</h2>
<p>Since this blog covers scientific content, equations should work. Here&rsquo;s a sanity check:</p>
<p>Inline math: the Gaussian integral \( \int_{-\infty}^{\infty} e^{-x^2} dx = \sqrt{\pi} \) is a classic.</p>
<p>Display math:</p>
$$
\sum_{n=0}^{\infty} \frac{(-1)^n}{2n+1} = 1 - \frac{1}{3} + \frac{1}{5} - \cdots = \frac{\pi}{4}
$$<p>And a block with <code>\[...\]</code> delimiters:</p>
\[
  \mathcal{F}\{f\}(\xi) = \int_{-\infty}^{\infty} f(x)\, e^{-2\pi i x \xi}\, dx
\]<p>If those rendered correctly, we&rsquo;re in business.</p>
<hr>
<h2 id="a-taste-of-code">A taste of code</h2>
<div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-python" data-lang="python"><span class="line"><span class="cl"><span class="kn">import</span> <span class="nn">numpy</span> <span class="k">as</span> <span class="nn">np</span>
</span></span><span class="line"><span class="cl">
</span></span><span class="line"><span class="cl"><span class="k">def</span> <span class="nf">estimate_pi</span><span class="p">(</span><span class="n">n_samples</span><span class="p">:</span> <span class="nb">int</span><span class="p">)</span> <span class="o">-&gt;</span> <span class="nb">float</span><span class="p">:</span>
</span></span><span class="line"><span class="cl">    <span class="s2">&#34;&#34;&#34;Monte Carlo estimation of pi.&#34;&#34;&#34;</span>
</span></span><span class="line"><span class="cl">    <span class="n">x</span><span class="p">,</span> <span class="n">y</span> <span class="o">=</span> <span class="n">np</span><span class="o">.</span><span class="n">random</span><span class="o">.</span><span class="n">uniform</span><span class="p">(</span><span class="o">-</span><span class="mi">1</span><span class="p">,</span> <span class="mi">1</span><span class="p">,</span> <span class="p">(</span><span class="mi">2</span><span class="p">,</span> <span class="n">n_samples</span><span class="p">))</span>
</span></span><span class="line"><span class="cl">    <span class="n">inside</span> <span class="o">=</span> <span class="p">(</span><span class="n">x</span><span class="o">**</span><span class="mi">2</span> <span class="o">+</span> <span class="n">y</span><span class="o">**</span><span class="mi">2</span><span class="p">)</span> <span class="o">&lt;=</span> <span class="mf">1.0</span>
</span></span><span class="line"><span class="cl">    <span class="k">return</span> <span class="mi">4</span> <span class="o">*</span> <span class="n">inside</span><span class="o">.</span><span class="n">mean</span><span class="p">()</span>
</span></span><span class="line"><span class="cl">
</span></span><span class="line"><span class="cl"><span class="nb">print</span><span class="p">(</span><span class="sa">f</span><span class="s2">&#34;π ≈ </span><span class="si">{</span><span class="n">estimate_pi</span><span class="p">(</span><span class="mi">10_000_000</span><span class="p">)</span><span class="si">:</span><span class="s2">.6f</span><span class="si">}</span><span class="s2">&#34;</span><span class="p">)</span>
</span></span></code></pre></div><hr>
<p>See you in the next post.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
  </channel>
</rss>
