unkz's recent activity

  1. Comment on Robert Munsch, Canadian children’s author, approved for medical assistance in dying in ~books

    unkz
    Link Parent
    It’s “Berenstain Bears” but you aren’t the only one spelling it wrong. Or… are you? Or are you an unwitting visitor from an alternate reality?

    It’s “Berenstain Bears” but you aren’t the only one spelling it wrong.

    Or… are you? Or are you an unwitting visitor from an alternate reality?

    5 votes

  2. Comment on Robert Munsch, Canadian children’s author, approved for medical assistance in dying in ~books

    unkz
    Link
    Here’s a tragedy that will resonate with any Canadian who has ever read a children’s book. Munsch was, of course, the author of The Paper Bag Princess and Mortimer, among others. He has been...

    Here’s a tragedy that will resonate with any Canadian who has ever read a children’s book. Munsch was, of course, the author of The Paper Bag Princess and Mortimer, among others.

    He has been diagnosed with dementia, and has opted to die while he still has some of his faculties intact — one of the slightly more controversial applications of MAID, where death is foreseeable but not particularly imminent.

    14 votes

  4. Comment on Light pollution is causing birds like the Australian magpie-lark to sing for longer in ~science

    unkz
    Link
    An interesting discovery about an unexpected consequence of human behaviour, but also the means of discovery itself is interesting -- crowdsourced data from the BirdWeather database. I'm excited...

    An interesting discovery about an unexpected consequence of human behaviour, but also the means of discovery itself is interesting -- crowdsourced data from the BirdWeather database. I'm excited to see what other discoveries will result from curious parties getting their hands on this massive and constantly growing dataset.

  6. Comment on Bill under consideration by US Congress would make it easier to revoke or deny US passports to citizens in ~society

    unkz
    Link
    One of the defining hallmarks of totalitarian states is border control in the outward direction. The US shouldn’t be following the lead of places like Iran, North Korea, East Germany and the USSR.

    One of the defining hallmarks of totalitarian states is border control in the outward direction. The US shouldn’t be following the lead of places like Iran, North Korea, East Germany and the USSR.

    31 votes

  7. Comment on ‘The Pitt’ wins Drama, ‘The Studio’ wins Comedy, and ‘Adolescence’ wins Limited Series at the 2025 Emmy’s in ~tv

    unkz
    Link Parent
    What does classical structure mean here? Like it’s episodic rather than season arc, or?

    What does classical structure mean here? Like it’s episodic rather than season arc, or?

    1 vote

  8. Comment on How Honeycrisp apples went from marvel to mediocre in ~food

    unkz
    Link Parent
    For those who want to know,

    For those who want to know,

    “divisive? Is that even a real word? The best apple on the plant was the golden delicious. But what happened to that breed of apple? Now I know they were cross-breeding it. Can’t they just leave well enough alone? That’s like how “they” want to cross-breed women with dogs…..to see if they give birth to a large litter of live puppies!!! For God’s sake, what type of sick demonic presence overtakes a person’s abillity to rationalize one’s own actions. Hey, let’s implant another dog’s head on this other dog’s body so we can see if they will eat their dry doggy food together!! Oh wow! Success! That’s just sick! Bring bag the original golden delicious apple without the cross-breeding will ya please? And while you’re at it, I’d like my Milani creme to powder foundation, medium beige, 07 back! There are no other similar tones; you can’t always substitute one for the other. Is the consumer always right? Oh, that’s the customer. And quit the damn comtrails will ya? No, you can’t force me into getting one of your Covid vaccines; not now. Not ever! GO TRUMP!!!!!!

    12 votes

  9. Comment on People with severe diabetes are cured in small trial of new drug in ~health

    unkz
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    Anecdotally, my wife briefly had diabetes and is now on immunosuppressants, and the immunosuppressants are less irritating than the daily insulin and glucose monitoring were. I’m not sure what the...

    Anecdotally, my wife briefly had diabetes and is now on immunosuppressants, and the immunosuppressants are less irritating than the daily insulin and glucose monitoring were. I’m not sure what the relative costs are since in Canada we don’t directly pay either way.

    4 votes

  10. Comment on Deportation fears are fueling money transfers to Latin America in ~society

    unkz
    Link Parent
    This is just regular money that people are earning and paying taxes on, isn’t it?

    This is just regular money that people are earning and paying taxes on, isn’t it?

    4 votes

  11. Comment on How Honeycrisp apples went from marvel to mediocre in ~food

    unkz
    Link Parent
    True, but -- I remember early honey crisps and they were legitimately delicious. It makes me want to visit Minnesota during the right season just to get that original taste.

    True, but -- I remember early honey crisps and they were legitimately delicious. It makes me want to visit Minnesota during the right season just to get that original taste.

    10 votes

  12. Comment on People with severe diabetes are cured in small trial of new drug in ~health

    unkz
    Link
    Pretty amazing results from moderate sized human trials of a stem cell treatment for type 1 diabetes. 10/12 were cured completely, and the other 2 had significant improvement. The downside being a...

    Pretty amazing results from moderate sized human trials of a stem cell treatment for type 1 diabetes. 10/12 were cured completely, and the other 2 had significant improvement. The downside being a lifetime of immunosupressant drugs instead of insulin.

    7 votes

  14. Comment on How Honeycrisp apples went from marvel to mediocre in ~food

    unkz
    Link
    Interesting article about how and why honeycrisp apple quality has degraded over time. The main points are: being grown in bulk in climates different than before (warm Washington instead of cold...

    Interesting article about how and why honeycrisp apple quality has degraded over time. The main points are:

    • being grown in bulk in climates different than before (warm Washington instead of cold Minnesota)
    • being available out of season means degradation during storage
    • the reason honeycrisps are so good is also what makes them degrade in storage (thin skin, large juicy cells)
    23 votes

  16. Comment on Sweden's employment agency has been tracking the online locations of thousands of citizens claiming unemployment benefits in an effort to crack down on welfare fraud in ~tech

    unkz
    Link Parent
    I don't really believe in a trustyworthy government for one thing. Once a government has data on a person, it will eventually be weaponized. For example, look at what's now happening in the USA...

    I don't really believe in a trustyworthy government for one thing. Once a government has data on a person, it will eventually be weaponized. For example, look at what's now happening in the USA with the government with voter registration data, medicaid records, and IRS filings to effect ICE raids. And, that's with a currently still nominally democratic and free society -- how long will that still be the case?

    The other thing is I don't really believe in data security. Just because it starts out in the hands of the government doesn't mean other actors won't gain access. Not to beat a dead horse, but again, look at what has been happening with DOGE in the US where random children are being granted unlimited access to exfiltrate supposedly private data. That's to say nothing about the endless vulnerabilities being exploited by foreign governments and random hackers. The only way to prevent personal data from being stolen is to not record it in the first place.

    1 vote

  17. Comment on Sweden's employment agency has been tracking the online locations of thousands of citizens claiming unemployment benefits in an effort to crack down on welfare fraud in ~tech

    unkz
    Link Parent
    I feel like I have a right to privacy that includes my location, and a right to leave at any time from any point of departure. If I can only leave the country through approved portals and by...

    I feel like I have a right to privacy that includes my location, and a right to leave at any time from any point of departure. If I can only leave the country through approved portals and by filling out specific paperwork, that seems like a huge restriction on my right to free movement.

    4 votes

  18. Comment on Sweden's employment agency has been tracking the online locations of thousands of citizens claiming unemployment benefits in an effort to crack down on welfare fraud in ~tech

    unkz
    Link Parent
    You’re looking at it backwards. If you can determine they aren’t on a VPN, then you can then rely on the geolocation data.

    You’re looking at it backwards. If you can determine they aren’t on a VPN, then you can then rely on the geolocation data.

    6 votes

  19. Comment on Sweden's employment agency has been tracking the online locations of thousands of citizens claiming unemployment benefits in an effort to crack down on welfare fraud in ~tech

    unkz
    Link Parent
    This is half true, but VPNs have generally identifiable IP addresses. Even residential proxy providers like Brightdata/HolaVPN are detectable by competent parties, and they have certain...

    This is half true, but VPNs have generally identifiable IP addresses. Even residential proxy providers like Brightdata/HolaVPN are detectable by competent parties, and they have certain characteristics that would make them stand out versus the typical profile of a traveller.

    I would have to see their implementation before having a strong opinion either way about how reliable it is.

    6 votes

  20. Comment on Sweden's employment agency has been tracking the online locations of thousands of citizens claiming unemployment benefits in an effort to crack down on welfare fraud in ~tech

    unkz
    Link Parent
    Really? I’m kind of opposed in principle to the government monitoring my activities and travel. Even if they pinky swear to only use it for things that I personally agree with.

    And if they're not gathering data on who's leaving and coming, they should implement it regardless of side uses like this.

    Really? I’m kind of opposed in principle to the government monitoring my activities and travel. Even if they pinky swear to only use it for things that I personally agree with.

    3 votes