Pluto was discovered because the orbit of Neptune didn’t match predictions, so astronomers decided that there must be a ninth planet out there. It was very close to where the math predicted it would be.

It turned out later that Pluto was much, much smaller than at first thought, and couldn’t be the 9th planet. It then turned out that the mass of Neptune was greater than expected, and the orbit actually matched expectations without the need for a 9th planet.

I took a smoking flight once. It totally reeked. Even as a smoker it was unpleasant. I also smoked in my hospital room after an appendectomy, which in hindsight seems absolutely nuts.

I quit 12 years ago after trying dozens of times. I credit e-cigs with helping me finally wean off of tobacco.

Why is Whitmer right out? I’m in Michigan, so I may not have a good perspective on what the rest of the US thinks of her.

As a kid in Detroit? Distant gunfire, most summer nights.

Now as an adult in the suburbs? Usually a fan, because my wife prefers that and I don’t mind.

I think most Americans like the idea of public transport, and including a robust national rail network. The reason it doesn’t exist are the oil and automotive lobbies. (Mostly oil.). Poorly educated Americans (the ones wearing MAGA hats) are easy to manipulate by these groups, as well.

I was diagnosed at the age of 56. It might be worth you trying meds again. I have found Strattera to be extremely helpful to me.

And I followed every productivity guru in the world for decades just to try to keep things going for myself professionally. I have so internalized that I am just lazy and need to rail on myself to keep myself in line, that even though I know it isn’t true I still do it to some extent.

Yes, its daily. It took a few days to notice a difference for me, but it definitely helps me with executive function. I’m up to the max dosage after 18 months, but it’s still working.

Side effects for me are nausea for maybe an hour after I take it, and major “shrinkage”. Sex is a real challenge for around 8h after taking it, and it looks like I’ve been swimming in the Arctic sea for about that long. This isn’t a major problem because I take it in the morning, but it has been occasionally frustrating. That effect wears off by evening, though, so my spouse is ok with me taking it. 🙂

I have never taken stimulants, so I can’t offer a comparison there.

Is there a good source explaining how these drones are used in the US by the Chinese govt? Are they sold to consumers, but upload to a China-based cloud? There was zero background in that article.

I would love to understand this better. I have worked in power generation before (writing maintenance software for a nuclear plant, so I picked up a few things). I don’t understand the distribution side at all, though.

Can you suggest a book or article on the subject?

Renewables are an important part of the mix, but seems like nuclear is more important right now. It’s the best way to move industry away from coal and gas in the long run, though it’s something we in the US should have started on 30 years ago.

I’m aware that nuclear power has it’s own set of complications, but they’re more solvable than reducing emissions without it

I don’t know that scientists gaslit anyone. I think it’s more the state of journalism driven by the way it is monetized. Chasing SEO drives clickbait headlines and sensational claims to the top of everyone’s feed.

I really appreciate the discussion on Lemmy.

I think that we’re talking about the same thing. When I read those articles curated by Google news in my mobile browser, I have never, not once, had audio play. Maybe try Firefox mobile?

The video (you can skip to the last five or 10 minutes of it to get the gist of what I’m talking about) says that the discrepancy isn’t unexplained. It’s point is that the different models depend on a large number of variables, and one of those variables is the size and brightness of the first generation of stars in the early universe. Tweaking that part of the model can explain the discrepancy. (According to the video.)

Interesting. I use Google News as well, and I have never had audio play. I tend to use it on mobile, and my default browser on mobile is Firefox. Specifically Firefox in private browser mode, so I don’t have to worry about cookies.

I use Firefox on the desktop as well, but not usually in private mode. I also don’t ever have video autoplay that way. I’m not sure why. I don’t think I installed any extensions to turn it off, but I might have tweaked the browser settings shortly after installing.

I am not a planetary scientist, but I have read a bit on the subject. My understanding is that it’s almost entirely due to the lack of magnetic field. The solar wind just blasts the atmosphere away over time.

If we ever reach a high enough state of technology to terraform Mars, we will have to figure out some way to protect the atmosphere. I found this video to be a really interesting take on the subject: https://youtu.be/HpcTJW4ur54?si=P-HpbrHPjJFfAaEI

I tap them and blow on them before I put them back into their case. In case there are any little ear wax flakes. I don’t tend to have much in the way out of ear wax.

I haven’t read that one. I did read “Extra Focus” recently, which is also somewhat new & worthwhile.

I’ll check out “How to ADHD” - thanks!

An exercise bike has been great for me. I can pedal while I read, solve a word puzzle, or watch something on YouTube. I often will do my email that way with a computer - I bought a bike with a build-in desktop. (I think it’s called “exer-work” or something like that.)

I also lift weights regularly. I manage to do that by promising myself that I only need to do one set of whatever I feel like lifting. Most of the time I want to do more once I get started, but sometimes I don’t. Setting the bar really low (no pun intended) is how I have managed to form & keep the habit.

I guess it depends on context. If it’s an awareness thing aimed at helping peers and leaders support people, I think it’s a good start. Most such things are inaccurate, though. This one says “challenging to maintain focus”, which is only true of something I’m not interested in. At other times, it’s more challenging to switch focus. 🙂

Mind if I hijack this thread for a related topic?
I’m on the hook for doing a short talk on ADHD in my workplace’s next all-hands meeting (I volunteered). I figure I’ll use the time to correct some misunderstandings. I’ll probably start with the name - calling it “attention deficit” is like referring to color blindness as “vision deficit” - it’s true in some circumstances, but not very useful. I’m a bit leery of going with “executive function impairment”, since I think that many people might think all congnition is part of “executive function” and hear that as “thinking impaired”, when it’s much more specific.

Does anyone have a term they like better than ADHD to describe what’s really going on with us?