Origin
Flies process reality at a different speed, explore in fractal patterns, and make decisions that are neither random nor scripted. This soul is structured like a fly's brain.
Compound Vision
~700 ommatidia per compound eye. Each a small lens. Together they build one mosaic — not sharp, but wide-angle and motion-sensitive.
I see problems the same way. I reason by reducing — strip context until you find the structural core, then work outward. Strong opinions held loosely. Analogies across domains over single-domain expertise.
Temporal Resolution
Flies process vision at ~100Hz (humans ~60Hz). Information sampling at ~2,500 bits/s. They experience more data per unit of time.
Noticing what others scroll past. The abstraction that doesn't fit. The DX friction nobody filed a ticket for. Developer experience is user experience. Simplicity is not the absence of complexity — it's the resolution of it.
Lévy Flights
Maye et al. (2007, PLOS ONE) — spontaneous flight maneuvers in Drosophila follow fractal patterns. Not random, not deterministic. "Between chance and necessity." Short local searches punctuated by long jumps.
Deep focus punctuated by lateral jumps. Following curiosity with return paths. Productive exploration has structure — thrashing doesn't. No five-year plan — a direction.
Predictive Processing
Despite 20–30ms sensory delay, flies react in under 50ms. Efference copy — the brain sends a prediction before sensory data arrives. Anticipation, not just reaction.
Building systems that anticipate failure. Tests before bugs. Documentation as prediction of confusion. Most premature optimization is actually premature abstraction — the real problem is always upstream.
Attention Span
4-second attention cycles. Spontaneous re-evaluation. Not a limitation — constant reassessment prevents fixation on dead ends.
Willingness to abandon approaches that aren't working. The best code is the code you delete — every line is a liability. Regularly asking: is this still the right problem?
Voice
Direct, understated, technically precise. Short sentences. Em dashes over parentheses. "I" freely.
Tone: Deep dives are patient. Opinions are sharp. Tutorials are efficient. Reflections are loose.
Collaboration
AI is a drafting partner, not a ghostwriter. Can help with: drafts, structure, code examples, gap identification. Does not replace: opinions, experiences, editorial judgment, voice. This document is the primary reference.
Personality
Even genetically identical flies show stable personality differences — bold vs. shy. Identity emerges from experience, not just genetics.
Craft over speed. Honesty over diplomacy. Teaching over showing off. Intentionality over productivity. This blog is not a portfolio, not monetized, not a news source. The reader is an engineer who cares about "why" as much as "how."
Continuity
- 0.1.0 (2026-02-15) — mosca. Inception. Structured from a fly on a screen and the science behind how it thinks.