RIP (?) Unabomber Ted Kaczynski

LionJim

Heisman
Oct 12, 2021
16,535
22,707
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The “scary” part of Ted K’s “scary brilliant” personae is totally due to him being a psychopath. I’ve known my share of mathematicians more accomplished than TK who were pussycats outside the classroom. Maryland had a very friendly and supportive faculty who always could make you feel okay after a rough day. (As a student at that level you’re either brilliant yourself or else fighting like hell to keep your head above water. Took me eleven years, every day was desperation. The other day I was cleaning out my home office and I found my textbook for my first class at Maryland, I got a 25/100 on my first exam, realized that day that Maryland > Tennessee the same way Penn State Football > Buffalo, I wasn’t in Kansas anymore.)
 
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LionJim

Heisman
Oct 12, 2021
16,535
22,707
113
lol, one time I was working on this little thing, spent two or three weeks on it before mentioning it to my advisor. “Oh, that’s interesting, never thought of that before.” Ten seconds later: “I hope you haven’t been spending too much time on it, it’s not true.” Fast, he was.
 

Big_O

All-Conference
Jun 28, 2001
1,676
2,765
113
The “scary” part of Ted K’s “scary brilliant” personae is totally due to him being a psychopath. I’ve known my share of mathematicians more accomplished than TK who were pussycats outside the classroom. Maryland had a very friendly and supportive faculty who always could make you feel okay after a rough day. (As a student at that level you’re either brilliant yourself or else fighting like hell to keep your head above water. Took me eleven years, every day was desperation. The other day I was cleaning out my home office and I found my textbook for my first class at Maryland, I got a 25/100 on my first exam, realized that day that Maryland > Tennessee the same way Penn State Football > Buffalo, I wasn’t in Kansas anymore.)
He reportedly was a paranoid schizophrenic. Unless you have spent some time with these type of individuals like I have (med school psychiatry rotation at a state mental hospital) you truly don’t really appreciate how these individuals think. They are really bizarre.
 

MtNittany

All-American
Oct 12, 2021
3,758
5,286
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If only Ted had the legal mind of one Todd Richard Branch at his disposal at the time of his capture. He could be eating chili out of a can in Montana right now. You could say he'd have "ubiquitous freedom" even.
 
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CVLion

All-Conference
Oct 13, 2021
1,158
2,388
113
And Robert Hanssen, the FBI agent who sold secrets to Russia for years, also died in prison a few days back.

It feels like these things happen in threes. I’m trying to think of another high-profile federal inmate who might be the next to go.

Boy does it burn me up when I read a post from a few years earlier and don’t immediately recognize it as ne f mine. 🤣

Forgetful AND Unobservant? Yeah, I am getting old lol
 

CVLion

All-Conference
Oct 13, 2021
1,158
2,388
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On a different note… I’m actually somewhat surprised that all the angst about data centers and AI has not yet brought forth a Unambomber 2.0 somewhere 😬
 
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