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posted by
cmn32480
on Sunday May 08 2016, @11:49PM
from the I-can't-solve-DiffEq-with-a-computer dept.
from the I-can't-solve-DiffEq-with-a-computer dept.
This just in from the front lines of the War on the Unusual:
University of Pennsylvania economics professor Guido Menzio was solving a set of differential equations on a plane departing the Philadelphia airport when the woman next to him surreptitiously passed a note to a flight attendant telling them she thought he was a terrorist because of the strange things he was writing on a pad of paper. The plane returned to the gate where he was questioned. At least this time the pilot had enough sense not to kick him off the flight.
Remember folks, if you see something say something!
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UPenn Professor Solving DiffEQ on Scratchpad Causes Plane to Return to Gate
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Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle which fits them all.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by legont on Monday May 09 2016, @01:36AM
So, the professor is now in all the databases as was questioned on suspicion of terrorism. He will stay in there forever ever. From now on when he is concidered for a position and a background check run nobody is going to read why and what, but the simple fact he was questioned. Eventually robots who will just match his records against clearance refusals and so on will get enough points on him to put him in yet more interesting databases such as no fly lists. He, of course, will never know. He will just notice that something started going wired, then paranoia will set in and that will be it for his life.
What's more - this is actually rational behaviour from the security point of view simply because if he is smart he will run now while he still can to start a new life elsewhere and never look back. Such a person quickly becomes dangerous.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 09 2016, @02:58AM
citation needed
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 09 2016, @08:09AM
We've mentioned here MANY times [soylentnews.org] how easy it is to get on the list and how difficult it is to get off.
-- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 09 2016, @06:22PM
No evidence that professor Guido Menzio will be added to a watchlist because of this incident, check.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 09 2016, @11:42PM
Just because it can't be proven with 100% certainty does not invalidate the point that it is easily plausible if not highly likely.
If you are having difficulty with this concept, you can overcome that by researching hyperbole.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 10 2016, @02:40AM
Research hyperbole? There is plenty of it on Soylent News.
The law enforcement anon knows what he's talking about.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 09 2016, @08:17AM
As someone who works in law enforcement, just being questioned isn't going to put him on a terrorist watch list or return anything in a background check.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 09 2016, @08:56PM
As someone who works in law enforcement, just being questioned isn't going to put him on a terrorist watch list or return anything in a background check.
Explain how Law Enforcement typically assesses the NCIC query count, does higher count indicate anything to you reflexively?