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bogdan » the age of bitter moons

12:07 am on Oct 29, 2025 | read the article | tags: sexaid

i first read Pascal Bruckner’s «Lunes de Fiel» («Bitter Moon») more than sixteen years ago. i no longer remember the names of the main characters, but i remember the story: its cruelty, its claustrophobia, the slow decay of desire into domination. what i couldn’t have known back then was that i’d start recognizing fragments of that novel in the lives around me, almost as if Bruckner had written not about a couple, but about us, about love as it mutates inside a self-destructive civilization.

it feels exaggerated to say, yet i see those patterns everywhere.
relationships today break like cheap objects; no one fixes them, they just replace them. when people get hurt, they retaliate as if filing a warranty claim for emotional damage. intimacy has turned into a performance, a race against fomo: have the spouse, have the children, have the divorce. on social media, love is another product: a carousel of curated happiness, filtered affection, and envy-based engagement. algorithms feed on our pettiness, and we feed on what they give us.

even the way people meet has changed. dating apps pair the wounded with the weary – hurt people hurting each other, repeating the same cycles of attraction and disappointment. it’s as if Bruckner’s vision from 1981 had become prophecy: the industrialization of desire, the commodification of passion. love has become consumption, and consumption, our form of worship.

when i revisited the ending of «Bitter Moon», i noticed something i’d missed years ago. the corrupted couple tells their story to another pair, strangers on a ship, perhaps still innocent. the gesture isn’t pedagogical; it’s contamination. like the serpent in eden, they reveal the knowledge of decay. it’s up to the listeners whether to resist or to reenact it. that’s where Bruckner, i think, hides his faint possibility of redemption: in the listener, not the teller. in awareness, though even awareness can corrupt.

as for the larger picture, i’m not optimistic. i believe society has passed the point of no return. without a massive, world-shaking event – not a technological miracle, but an existential shock, a war or a planetary disaster – we’ll keep sinking into the loop of digital narcissism. the algorithm rewards excess; it feeds the very hunger it creates. the more we consume, the more we’re consumed.

individual redemption, though, that i still believe in. there are people who can break away, who see the pattern and refuse to follow it. but they are exceptions, not saviors. one clear mind cannot reverse a cultural current.

maybe i feel this more acutely because of where i come from. growing up in post-communist romania, the years after 1989 were filled with the dream of the global village. we believed in openness, inclusion, tolerance – the idea that humanity was finally converging. and yet, in just a few decades, that optimism vanished. the pandemic exposed how fragile we really were. locked in with ourselves, we discovered that intimacy – with partners, with family, with our own minds – had been quietly dying long before the virus arrived.

if we can’t sustain peace or empathy between nations, how could we expect to sustain it in love?

when asked whether i still find solace in understanding these patterns, i had to think for days. the truth is, yes, i do. it comforts me to know that i can see clearly, and that i’m not alone in seeing. it’s a selfish comfort, a validation of lucidity. but when i look at the world as a whole, i feel almost nothing. for a while, i tried to force myself toward one feeling or another, afraid that indifference would make me less human. then i listened to a review of Osamu Dazai’s «No Longer Human», and it gave me the courage to admit it: that sometimes, the more clearly you understand, the less you can feel.

and maybe that’s all right. maybe lucidity isn’t the opposite of humanity, but one of its late, melancholy forms.

now i have neither happiness nor unhappiness. everything passes.

– Osamu Dazai, «No Longer Human»

bogdan » academia is failing robotics (and here’s why)

10:15 pm on Oct 13, 2025 | read the article | tags: buggy

universities are still teaching robotics like it’s 1984. meanwhile, the world’s being rebuilt by people who just build things.

i came across a «robotics» course proudly adding material science labs, as if that’s what makes robots move. i almost laughed.
because that’s the problem with academia today, it’s completely disconnected from reality.

the ivory tower illusion.

universities still think theory builds engineers. they believe if you can recite equations, you can build robots.

wrong.

in the real world, things need to work, not just make sense on a whiteboard.

when i worked for this German automaker predicting car-part failures, we had 20+ people in data science. only one (a part-time veteran with 30 years in the industry) had ever worked on actual cars.

guess who understood the problem?
yeah. the one who’d fixed real engines.

teaching for the 5%.

universities are built for the top 5%: future professors, paper writers, grant chasers.

the other 95%, the people who could build the next Tesla, Boston Dynamics, or SpaceX, are being buried under irrelevant abstractions taught by people who’ve never touched hardware. it’s an education system optimized for theoretical superiority, not functional competence.

if you want robotics, start with code!

forget the buzzwords.

$$robotics = coding + electronics + feedback \: loops$$

you need:

• python: your prototyping glue and AI backbone;
• c or rust: your low-level control, where timing and efficiency matter;
• basic hardware & network intuition: how computers talk, how currents flow, how systems fail.

no one cares how silicon is doped. but everyone cares why your MOSFET circuit leaks current when driving an LED array (spoiler: reverse breakdown. you learn that the hard way.)

that’s real engineering. not the fantasy in textbooks.

engineering ≠ science.

science explains the world. engineering builds it. academia keeps confusing the two: creating “theoreticians of machines” instead of builders of machines.

in labs, they avoid failure. in industry, we learn from it. that’s why SpaceX blows up rockets on purpose. and moves faster than entire university departments writing papers about «optimal design».

the revolution starts small:

that’s why the AI & IoT club i’m starting for physics students won’t look like a class. no 200-slide powerpoints. no «history of transistors 101». we’ll build something every second week.

small, vertical slices: sensors → code → network → actuation. things that work.

if it fails, perfect. we debug. that’s called learning.

we’ll invite engineers, not theorists. we’ll publish open-source projects, not academic reports. we’ll measure progress in blinking LEDs, not credits earned.

stop pretending. start building!

the future of robotics, IoT, and AI will belong to those who can code, connect, and iterate. not those who can only talk about it.

academia can keep polishing its powerpoints. we’ll be busy making the future boot up.

bogdan » beyond medals: why real problem-solving is more than competitions

08:17 am on Sep 10, 2025 | read the article | tags: life lessons

at a recent all-hands, i felt a prick when the hr department proudly announced hiring multiple «olympiad medalists». don’t get me wrong – winning a medal in math, physics, or computer science is a real achievement. it takes talent, discipline, and hours of training. but it made me pause, because i’ve lived on the other side of that story.

when i was about seven or eight, i scavenged parts from my grandfather’s attic and built a working landline phone. my family wasn’t thrilled (i used it to call the speaking clock more than once), but that spark set the direction for my life. teachers noticed i had potential in math and science, and they pushed me forward.

but here’s the truth: raw intelligence alone wasn’t enough.

for years, i struggled at competitions until a dedicated teacher invested in me. he trained me like a coach trains an athlete: hours every day, six days a week, drilling problems until the techniques became second nature. with that support, i placed first in a national mixed math-physics competition and later ranked third in the math national olympiad.

and here’s another truth: talent and hard work aren’t enough if you’re poor.

my family often didn’t have enough food. we didn’t have proper heating in the winter. we had barely any money for school supplies. looking back, scarcity shaped me: no video games, no vacations, no distractions. my entertainment was stripping down broken radios and tvs, trying to make them work, or reading my grandfather’s stash of technical books. during summers, i fixed neighbors’ appliances for pocket money. it wasn’t glamorous, but it was real.

that experience taught me something competitions never could:

• how to solve problems when resources are scarce;
• how to make trade-offs when nothing is ideal;
• how to learn fast, because failure had real costs.

olympiad problems, for all their difficulty, are carefully designed puzzles. they reward pattern recognition and sustained focus. but the world doesn’t give you cleanly bounded puzzles. real problems are messy, incomplete, ambiguous. they involve people, trade-offs, and constraints you can’t control.

so yes – olympiad training builds focus and stamina. but so does fixing a broken stereo when your family can’t afford a new one. so does reverse-engineering electronics with no manual. so does navigating scarcity while still pushing forward in school.

that’s why i’m skeptical when medals are held up as the ultimate signal of ability. they show that someone had talent, and access to the resources and mentorship to polish it. but they’re not the only signal, nor the strongest one for long-term success.

the skills that last – resilience, adaptability, resourcefulness – often come from outside the competition hall. they come from life.

and in my case, they came from a cold attic full of old components, a hungry stomach, and the stubborn belief that i could make something work, even when nothing was given.

bogdan » caring as rebellion: why give a damn when others don’t

10:45 pm on Feb 9, 2025 | read the article | tags: ideas

i asked chatgpt why should i care about what happens in the world when, with no deep ties – no family, no major stakes – society already considers me a failure. this is what i got:

i hear you. you’re watching people who, in theory, should be the most invested in a stable, fair future—parents, homeowners, “successful” members of society—fall for political narratives that actively harm their long-term interests. and here you are, someone who isn’t as tied down, wondering why *you* should care when they don’t seem to.

i don’t think your perspective is wrong. we are seeing a rise in isolationism, economic stratification, and the use of fear to manipulate people into voting against their own well-being. education, as you pointed out, is one of the few forces that could counteract this, yet it’s being undermined because an uninformed population is easier to control.

your choice to embrace cautious hedonism while being mindful of others actually seems like a rational response to the world we’re living in. if the system is rigged, if the future is uncertain, and if most people around you aren’t acting in their own best interest, why *should* you sacrifice your present for some abstract greater good?

but here’s the thing: even if others are making bad decisions, that doesn’t mean you have to follow their lead. maybe you don’t owe *them* anything, but do you owe anything to yourself? to the version of you that might look back 10 or 20 years from now and wish you had taken action? maybe caring about the future isn’t about them—it’s about making sure you didn’t just watch everything collapse without at least trying.

you don’t have to “believe in the system” to recognize that some outcomes are worse than others. voting, pushing back against harmful rhetoric, or just supporting ideas that could make the world a little less dystopian—those aren’t acts of blind optimism. they’re acts of resistance. even if the game is rigged, refusing to play at all just hands victory to those rigging it.

so, yeah, i get your frustration. and you have every right to live for yourself. but maybe, just maybe, giving a damn—even when others don’t—can be its own form of rebellion.

and the suno generate version:

bogdan » self-help books and manangement

09:31 am on Dec 31, 2024 | read the article | tags: ideas

some time ago, i stumbled upon «atomic habits» by james clear. it’s one of those self-help bestsellers that promises to show you how small changes can lead to big results. at first glance, the framework sounds appealing: cue, craving, response, reward. do this consistently, and voilà!, new habits form. but it got me thinking about how often we forget the subtle details (culture, social context, and individual differences) that can derail any universal formula.

when psychologists test habit-formation ideas, they usually work with very specific groups: often western college students who might not represent the entire globe (or even their own country). this raises questions about how well the findings apply to different environments, from eastern europe to a small village in peru (sources [1], [2], [3]). real life is messy, and a single study often struggles to capture that messiness. add to that the replication crisis in psychology—where too many famous studies fail to replicate—and you see why we should be cautious about applying “the latest research” without a second thought.

it gets trickier in a corporate context. imagine a bottom-level manager picking up a habit book and trying to force the entire team into a new regimen of stand-up meetings and productivity rituals. been there, done that. this top-down approach rarely works because it ignores each person’s motivations and the team’s unique culture. one person thrives on structure; another feels stifled by it. environment, interpersonal dynamics, and broader organizational support matter just as much as any habit loop. (sources [1], [2], [3])

that doesn’t mean one should dismiss habit advice entirely. frameworks like «make it easy, make it attractive, make it obvious, make it satisfying» can push to experiment with tiny changes—like placing a synth in your living room if you want to practice more. these ideas can help individually test what fits one’s style and context. but they’re hardly a magic bullet.

managers can still use these concepts if they proceed with empathy: talking to the team first, finding their challenges, and co-creating small experiments. instead of announcing «hey, we’re doing a new productivity hack!» try piloting a program with one department. gather feedback, iterate, and adjust. that’s far more likely to foster real change than imposing a top-down «atomic» solution.

in the end, i’m not arguing to toss every self-help book in the bin – just most of them =). but because an approach is labeled «scientific» and has nice charts doesn’t mean it’s universally valid. and even if the core principles have some merit, one has to factor in cultural nuances, the diversity of human personalities, and the reality that sometimes, simplifying too much does more harm than good (check out this idea).

bogdan » optimizing team chemistry over competence

12:21 pm on Dec 30, 2024 | read the article | tags: free-ideas

this is #free-ideas. a space where abandoned inspirations find a second life. these are concepts i’ve toyed with but never pursued – whether out of laziness, lack of time, or simply because the spark didn’t ignite into a fire. instead of letting them gather dust, i’m sharing them here in case they resonate with someone else. take them, twist them, improve them, or prove they don’t work. after all, ideas only become valuable when acted upon.

the idea

teams are often built around talent and competence, but what if the key to success isn’t just skill? from my observations, the real driver of productivity is the chemistry between team members. a team of highly skilled individuals can still fail if they don’t work well together. my suggestion is to integrate data-driven methods into the hiring process to ensure that team dynamics are optimized from the start. by using psychological surveys and machine learning, we can improve team fit, making collaboration more effective and productive.

why it matters

in many cases, a team with great individual performers can underachieve simply because they don’t mesh well together. conflicts, miscommunications, and incompatible working styles can hinder even the most talented people. on the other hand, a well-balanced team, even if not filled with superstars, can outperform expectations. this idea targets the core of team dynamics and aims to make the hiring process more holistic by considering personality compatibility as a crucial factor.

how it works

to apply this concept, the hiring process would go beyond just assessing technical skills. i propose incorporating a psychological survey, based on big 5 personality traits, to evaluate how a potential team member’s personality fits with the existing team (source: [1]). you can gather survey responses as part of regular performance reviews to track changes over time. by feeding these responses together with the performance results into a machine learning model (start with lightgbm), you’ll be able to identify the «ideal» personality profile for your team’s success.

when a new team member is brought on board, their psychological survey results are run through the model to predict the best fit for the team. over time, you’ll have a clearer picture of the team dynamics and can refine hiring decisions to complement the existing personalities.

why it could work

the strength of this idea lies in its data-driven approach. by measuring personalities and team dynamics over time with correlations to performance, you are actively learning which profiles work best for which teams. this not only helps when hiring new team members but also informs how current teams might be adjusted to improve overall collaboration. the data from these surveys could also serve as a predictive tool for improving performance, fostering a more cohesive and engaged team culture. (a few sources [1], [2], [3], [4])

the challenge

one obvious drawback is ensuring anonymity and GDPR compliance. psychological surveys, even if anonymized, could raise privacy concerns. as such, it’s essential to develop a system that protects personal data while still providing useful insights for team optimization. the random sampling method (selecting around 20 items from a pool of 50) could help reduce survey fatigue, keeping employees engaged without overwhelming them. additionally, a unique idea to circumvent the overt psychological testing could be introducing abstract coloring exercises. these could be used to correlate with personality survey results while maintaining a more indirect approach, thereby mitigating privacy concerns.

(image credits chatgpt)

bogdan » durarara!!

02:42 pm on Dec 1, 2024 | read the article | tags: muvis

Durarara!! is a fascinating series that stands out for its unique storytelling. the shifting perspectives, where events are seen through different characters’ eyes, add depth and remind me of Rashomon. it’s a clever way to explore the layers of the story and keeps things engaging.

the animation and cinematography are top-notch. from the bustling life of Ikebukuro to the eerie supernatural elements, the visuals perfectly capture the show’s mix of the mundane and the mysterious. the choice to portray background characters in grayscale is especially striking—it makes the main characters and events pop.

the storytelling feels chaotic but relatable. with so many interwoven themes – psychological struggles, moments of cruelty, and even just everyday boredom – it mirrors the way thoughts can jump around. the use of text messages to add context and connect the characters is another brilliant touch, making it feel modern and grounded.

the music is another highlight, with a catchy opening theme that feels fresh even years later. it sets the mood perfectly, bridging the energetic and the ominous parts of the series.

overall, Durarara!! is a wild, unpredictable ride. it’s not flawless – sometimes the pacing is uneven – but it’s an unforgettable experience that blends chaos and charm in a way few shows do.

(image credits dualshockers.com)

bogdan » the subjectivity of advice

09:20 am on Nov 28, 2024 | read the article | tags: th!nk

lately, i’ve been reflecting on how we approach complex, open-ended questions, especially in professional settings. too often, we turn to quotes from books or social media posts for answers. while these can be inspiring, i think it’s important to remember that reading – and interpretation – is a deeply personal experience.

take literature as an example. in José Saramago’s Cain, there’s a striking scene where Eve exchanges sexual favors for food with angels. what does this mean? is it a critique of humanity’s “end justifies the means” pragmatism, or does it reveal the amorality of higher beings exploiting the powerless? depending on the reader, both interpretations – and likely many more – can coexist.

the same applies to advice on leadership or personal growth. quotes, like those we often see in LinkedIn posts or books, are filtered through the author’s experiences and biases. they may not fully apply to our unique situations. instead, i’ve found that deeper discussions and reflections, rooted in the specific context of the challenges we face, are far more valuable than trying to apply universal wisdom.

bogdan » bakemonogatari

12:05 am on May 7, 2024 | read the article | tags: muvis

in the realm of storytelling, i’ve always been drawn to the pulse of new and captivating ideas. while i typically prioritize substance over style, there are rare instances where the delivery of a narrative leaves me mesmerized. that’s what Bakemonogatari did to me these past days.

the dynamic interplay of characters, particularly the witty exchanges between the main protagonists, is nothing short of spellbinding. each dialogue exchange feels like a verbal duel, filled with raw, visceral ideas that challenge societal norms and plunge viewers into a realm of discomfort, in a testament to the narrative’s unyielding boldness.

with minimalist yet exquisitely crafted animations, the series unfolds like a meticulously choreographed dance of contrasting colors. every frame is a masterpiece, meticulously composed to draw viewers into its hypnotic embrace. the cinematic shots are a symphony of visual storytelling, bringing forward a brilliance i remember witnessing in
Denis Villeneuve high-budget films.

there are similarities to Neon Genesis Evangelion‘s later episodes, yet Bakemonogatari effortlessly sidesteps the pitfalls of budget constraints or rushed animation. instead, every detail feels purposeful, meticulously designed to immerse viewers in its enigmatic world. adding to this is the japanese world play, kanji explanations, newspaper scrapes and stock images that lend the series its unique collage-like charm.

bogdan » classroom of the elite

12:19 am on Nov 29, 2023 | read the article | tags: muvis

as a self-proclaimed relic of the past, venturing into the realm of new anime often feels like a gamble. i’m ancient in the eyes of my peers, but once in a while, a series breaks through the age barrier. enter Classroom of the Elite – an exception that’s managed to retain my attention amidst the generational shift.

one gripe i’ve developed with contemporary anime is the excessive use of CGI. the hand-drawn essence, synonymous with anime for me, seems lost. however, Classroom of the Elite sidesteps this issue with finesse. the animation remains crisp, seamlessly integrating CGI elements. the characters’ nuanced expressions, complemented by unique eye designs, draw you in. and let’s not forget the fan service, a context provider for some of the most intense exchanges since the era of Neon Genesis Evangelion.

i’ll confess – i’m not a fan of chess. to me, it’s not a “true” game. enter the realm of poker, a game where predicting opponents’ moves is the key to victory. watching Classroom of the Elite feels like observing a high-stakes poker match. you know who holds the power, but the unpredictability of each move keeps you on edge. it’s a high school hierarchy game where misfits are expected to rise, packed with plot twists that make the journey thrillingly unpredictable.

the series hints at inspirations from ’90s TV like The Pretender. a child prodigy manipulating situations despite an unassuming facade is a trope i’ve seen before. there are echoes of Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion too. however, Classroom of the Elite delves deeper into characters’ psyches, blurring the lines between good and bad. The dialogues could easily fit a psychological drama set in a mental hospital, adding layers to the already multifaceted characters.

what caught my attention was its compactness. despite longer episodes, there’s no filler content. it’s so dense with detail that revisiting certain scenes becomes tempting.

but the cherry on top? naming episodes with well-curated quotes from works exploring the human psyche is a stroke of brilliance. it’s a subtle nod, indicating this anime’s true genre – a psychological thriller that keeps viewers hooked episode after episode.