Steve81

Target audience is basically anyone without a background in science, but interested in learning something new. I'm not a teacher by trade of course, though my wife is. See my avatar for more clarification on how I prefer to operate 😛 Nice experiment btw! My apologies for getting snippy, but it's irritating when someone seems to be disingenuous with their replies. I never said every child would be interested.

On an individual basis, perhaps not. In the aggregate, some kids are going to find science experiments pretty cool, and want to learn more. If that’s something you can’t agree with, clearly you don’t know many kids.

Are you seriously demanding evidence that performing science demonstrations / experiments for kids will tend to increase their interest in science? Buzz off. Thanks for the thought!

While imperfect, the trampoline model can be demonstrated to an elementary school student. Don’t let perfection be the enemy of good. This is the kind of stuff that will get kids interested in science in the first place, and want to learn more.

Never mind, found what I needed.

It's not perfect; clearly an AR-15 is not a deep and abiding need in civilian hands. Then again, I could argue that a Pentium 4 and a 1.5mbps line would be perfectly adequate for most people's purposes as well. The world worked just fine with that kind of capability ~20 years ago. I could presumably enjoy this forum with such a machine. I would also note that the damage a rogue hacker group could bring about is vastly greater than what a madman with a semi-auto rifle can accomplish. And just for the record: yes, I support gun controls.

Seems a great deal like my blanket and weights idea 😀

This was inspired by @TheVat's post on another one of my topics, so blame him if you don't like what I have to say 😛 Suppose conservatives, in order to combat the bolded threat, propose a ban on modern computing power & internet bandwidth. How would you feel about such a proposition? This is to some degree, this is how some conservatives (the halfway rational ones at least) feel about assault rifle bans. I don't know how many of you have spent extensive amounts of time in rural areas, but guns are just another tool in the kit for them to use to dispatch pests, defend themselves against unwanted "guests", recreation, and so forth. For them, going from an AR-15 to a bolt action rifle would be like us going from modern Intel and AMD processors to the days of the original Pentium series. Food for thought.

Perhaps a stupid question and I’m just not observant enough, but is there a forum view that just sorts by the newest posts / updated topics? I saw a shortlist version of what I’m talking about but it’s not exactly adequate for my purposes. Edit: Found it on Edge anyway, but doesn't appear on mobile. Guessing I could request the desktop version of the site as a workaround.

It’s not a matter of positive or negative views. It’s a simple result of our evolutionary arc. One of the major things that allowed us to develop the way we did was our built in capacity to feel shame, and learn new ways to behave. You can explore that more deeply here:

I did so, sorry I wasn't clear. Re: the USB version specs, I'm familiar with that; not sure if you saw the part about the Dexis sensor being USB 2.0 compatible though.

I can generally check the hardware specs in our virtual NOC app, and pull the serial if the info I need isn't in there and check it on the manufacturer's website FWIW. I actually had to recommend him a USB hub for a second ticket he put in since that operatory computer apparently only had 3 USB inputs, and they were all taken. I'm not sure it was a USB version problem though. The Dexis tech didn't mention that it had to do with the version anyway, though I don't recall the precise explanation off the top of my head (basically just amounted to PC manufacturers being cheap 😆). Just checked, and the Dexis Titanium sensor is supposed to be good with USB 2.0.

I asked this question on the transgender athletes forum, and it was suggested I start a new topic on the subject, so here it is. The original post for those interested in the context.

I'm not so lazy that I'd be opposed to starting a new topic on the subject either way 😀

Wasn’t addressed to me, but I’ll add my personal perspective. I never honestly considered one way or the other whether I should identify as a male or a female. I was born and assigned male at that time, and that was that. I will note that I hardly fit the mold of a stereotypical “man’s man”. I don’t care for sports in general, I have 0 skills using power tools, etc. So I guess my question is, how does gender dysphoria develop in the first place?

Hi folks. I recently wrote this up as a sort of reminder to myself of what it takes to successfully solve a problem. A little backstory: I was a network administrator for a company for ~15 years and left my job for personal reasons just prior to the start of the pandemic. I remained out of the workforce (by choice, no sympathy/pity needed) for three years before circumstances required me to find another job. This new job was providing technical assistance to dental offices. Knowing diddly squat about the hardware and software bits dental offices use (practice management software, imaging hardware/software, specialized scanning equipment, and so forth), I was in many senses starting from scratch. Adhering to these steps has helped me not only survive but thrive in my new job. The steps are simple of course, and nothing groundbreaking, but here they are: Step 1: Politely introduce yourself to the client, and if applicable, explain why you are calling them. Step 2: Observe and document the issue. Every scrap of data you gather, from screenshots to logs will help you diagnose the problem. Step 3: Based on the data collected, form a hypothesis on why the problem is occurring, and apply the appropriate fix. Step 4: Test the fix. If it doesn’t work, go back a step. Step 5: If the troubleshooting process is taking a while, make sure to keep the client up to date on your progress. Step 6: Still stuck? It’s time to ask for help. It’s not a sign of weakness, simply an acknowledgement that we don’t know it all. Treat those assisting you with the same level of courtesy you extend to the client. This improves your ability to collaborate. Also, be sure to stay engaged in the troubleshooting process. This will help with ticket notes, and you’ll learn something new in the process. Step 7: Document the resolution, and ensure your team has access to the details of how the issue was resolved. Knowledge not shared is knowledge wasted. Oddly, being a walking, talking, human knowledge base is only a small part of being effective in the technical support role. Attitude and interpersonal skills are vastly more important in my experience. A couple of examples from the past week about how this played out: Case study 1: A client had recently reverted imaging software solutions from DTX to Dexis, after DTX proved to be error prone and lacking in features/functionality. After the reversion was nominally completed on the client's servers and workstations (and Dexis was still installed, never having been removed after the "upgrade" to DTX), the client experienced issues with their X-ray sensors not being properly recognized in Dexis. I did what I could, but ultimately had to turn to third party support. I called Dexis, and was assigned a wonderfully friendly tech. I established a good rapport with her, and we proceeded to call the client to let them know we would be working on their systems. The Dexis tech ultimately reckoned that DTX (which coincidentally is made by the same company) had effectively corrupted the extant Dexis installations, so we would need to go one by one on each operatory, endodontic suite, and hygiene room to uninstall and reinstall the software. We got to work and spent plenty of time chitchatting about various topics to help pass the time. Somewhere during this conversation she had mentioned one of her thoughts was that it might have been an issue with the USB port not providing enough power to the USB sensor; apparently, this was a common issue when using the front ports on a workstation. I filed this tidbit of information away, and we proceeded to have a jolly old time uninstalling/reinstalling and testing out each machine until the client was satisfied. In an odd stroke of coincidence, this little tidbit of knowledge gleaned from the tech would prove to be instrumental in solving another dentist's problem the very next day. The dentist was frustrated that one of his operatories had an x-ray sensor that simply refused to work. Apparently, this had been going on for years; he had called for support, both from the manufacturer of the sensor and his previous IT support company, and no one had successfully resolved the issue. Wanting to test out my new bit of information, I queried whether the sensor was plugged into the front of the workstation. Bingo. The dentist was dumbfounded that such a simple thing could cause so much trouble, and that no one else could figure it out. Case study 2: While working on a relatively simple case for a client with a Dentrix technician, we were stuck on hold with the client waiting to verify a fix we had implemented. We started talking, and the conversation turned to a case that had stymied my team for months regarding Dentrix slowness at another client's office. We had checked everything from workstation performance, network infrastructure performance (servers, switches, firewall), and Dentrix had remoted into the server to run database sweep utilities and had even upgraded versions of Dentrix software. The Dentrix technician asked if we had run their port checking utility and a few other tools related to disabling multicast and whatnot. Nothing like this appeared in the ticket notes (which was spread over half a dozen different tickets). Since we were still remoted into client 1's server, she copied over Dentrix's Level 1 Slowness toolbox, and proceeded to show me how to use it. I thanked her profusely, and the call came to an end when client 1 finally came back on the phone to verify that things were working to their satisfaction. After entering my notes on that ticket, I remoted into the other client's server, and ran the toolkit. The changes it made would require a reboot (to be performed by our after-hours folks) and follow up the next day to see if the fix worked. As you might guess, the kit worked like a charm.

Did they? In most places I'm aware of, it wasn't a matter of following simple guidance; they were following mandates. There is also the simple motive of self-preservation to explain these actions, which is certainly a base human instinct, as opposed to the social altruism you're describing. And while vaccines may not have been legally mandated (at least here in the States), I know some employers mandated them once they were available in sufficient quantity. History is a guide to human nature, and we were absolute barbarians. We've become more civilized as time has passed, but that's nurture, not nature. We learned to better ourselves. Unfortunately, many now disfavor education, specifically on one end of the political spectrum (at least in the US).

I understand your point. When I made my statement on the egalitarian nature of of COVID, I was simply referring to the fact that it was happy to spread and infect whomever it could, up to and including the President of the USA. The disparity in infection rates and outcomes matters of course for other reasons, but my thought was merely a statement of cynicism regarding human nature.

A fine example of engineering a solution to one of life’s great problems…

I don’t believe the initiator is in the center (but I’m open to being corrected). In a modern warhead, the (relatively small amount) of fusion fuel is piped into the pit. Better to store it outside when the nuke is sitting on a shelf, as it makes maintenance easier (tritium decay and all). The pit is encased in low-sensitivity explosive lenses (polymer bonded explosives as an example), and modern weapons utilize a multi-point initiation system setting off those explosives as a fail safe. Explosives go boom, pit implodes, and the fun begins. AFAIK, that was applicable to the second stage of a thermonuclear warhead. They channeled the X-rays down to the second stage which contains far more fusion fuel, and potentially a tamper made of fissile material for even more destruction. A fun fact for those unfamiliar with it, Tsar Bomba, the largest thermonuclear weapon ever tested, utilized a lead tamper to limit fallout. With a uranium tamper, yield would have supposedly doubled.

All I can say to that is that I might welcome our future robot overlords if they improve on the mess we have today. The de-evolution of the Republican Party into what it is these days is just…sad. It’s never been particularly wonderful in my lifetime, but Republicans like Trump, Boebert, Greene, et al. make me pine for at least half way competent Republicans like Bush Sr. Say what you will about the man, but he wouldn’t be asking about injecting bleach into the body to fight disease, nuking hurricanes, etc. Then of course you have fountainheads of knowledge like this:

Indeed. To expand on my tale of woe, I was actually on a road trip when this all went down. Closest hospital was about an hour away, and that was it. I ended up in Spotsylvania, VA which was a giant sh*t show. The reason I developed a bowel perforation is because they assumed I just had gas instead of a bowel obstruction when I complained about severe abdominal pain. Fortunately I was able to transfer out to a far superior facility in Arlington.

I wouldn’t say that was strictly COVID’s fault. It spread where it could, nothing more, nothing less. To wit, even Trump caught it; he just had access to bleeding edge medical care (also not the fault of a virus).

An interesting dive into shame, how it’s integral to human development and civilization, how its misuse causes various problems, and so forth.

@Phi for All On the topic of why should saving lives be based on one’s ability to pay (after pondering this a bit on the drive home 😆). While some may find it odd, I don’t view healthcare as a right, any more than I view food as a right. About the only positive rights that align with my worldview are things like the right to a lawyer, and that’s because the situation has been foisted upon you by the government. That said, I’m not sure ones aptitude for excelling in capitalism is the defining point of their value as a human being either. This is particularly reinforced by the fact that we have unequal opportunities to succeed in the system. Of course there are matters of practicality as well. Diseases like Covid-19 thrive in an environment when there are plenty of incubators for it to take up residence in, and the ability of that virus to mutate enhanced the threat considerably. At least Covid was egalitarian enough not to discriminate between the haves and the have nots. Better than I can say about most humans.