DanBC's recent activity
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Comment on The psychopharmacology of cannabis and its impact on mental health - a primer in ~health.mental
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The psychopharmacology of cannabis and its impact on mental health - a primer
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Comment on Instagram's Nudify [non-consensual fake nude photo generator] ads in ~tech
DanBC Link ParentYou can bet if the datasets had been trained on men, and images released were male politicians, that laws would have been passed rapidly. This feels like Yet Another Thing that men don't take...You can bet if the datasets had been trained on men, and images released were male politicians, that laws would have been passed rapidly.
This feels like Yet Another Thing that men don't take seriously because it's mostly not happening to them.
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Comment on Movie of the Week #26 - Aliens in ~movies
DanBC Link ParentYes! Another detail (but from Alien) to make things look bigger is using children in space suits in the Space Jockey scene.Yes! Another detail (but from Alien) to make things look bigger is using children in space suits in the Space Jockey scene.
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Comment on What have you been eating, drinking, and cooking? in ~food
DanBC Link ParentIf you have a really good loaf of bread, tearing a hunk off and just eating it, maybe with butter, maybe dunked in soup, is really tasty! I do it, but I live alone so I'm the only one who has to...If you have a really good loaf of bread, tearing a hunk off and just eating it, maybe with butter, maybe dunked in soup, is really tasty! I do it, but I live alone so I'm the only one who has to deal with the rest of the loaf.
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Comment on What have you been eating, drinking, and cooking? in ~food
DanBC LinkI am working on a lasagne recipe (lentils and mushrooms) but I want to get a regular lasagne nailed first. I've been watching all the Italia Squisita videos and they're sometimes a little bit...I am working on a lasagne recipe (lentils and mushrooms) but I want to get a regular lasagne nailed first. I've been watching all the Italia Squisita videos and they're sometimes a little bit intimidating. I've started by trying to get the best bechamel. I've never made fresh pasta, so that will be fun to try. Obviously I'm not going to be able to match Michelin star cooking, but it's nice to push my limits.
Here's the playlist of videos I've been watching:
Lasagna (Vincisgrassi): Web Star Benedetta Rossi vs. Two Michelin Star chef Moreno Cedroni
Pesto Lasagne recipe by Pina Beglia
Lasagne in the oldest Michelin restaurant in Italy - Arnaldo Clicia Gastronomica
Lasagna in an Emilian Michelin restaurant with Massimo Spigaroli - Antica Corte Pallavincina
Lasagne: Bolognese vs Neapolitan style with chefs Patrizia Nanni and Antonio Sorretino
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Comment on The internet used to be ✨fun✨ in ~tech
DanBC LinkI sometimes like to post this link to a page about some online systems from 1988, because the costs are pretty high, but also because it talks about what it was like. And the next page is about...on the glory days of the early internet,
I sometimes like to post this link to a page about some online systems from 1988, because the costs are pretty high, but also because it talks about what it was like. And the next page is about BBSs. (The whole book is interesting and Internet Archive have got a good scan.)
Page 75 of Signal, a Whole Earth Catalogue .
$10USD in 1988 is about $26USD today.
Compuserve = $11.75 per hour
The Source $8.40 per hour
Delphi $6.60 per hour
Byte Information Exchange $9 per hour
Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link $8 per month plus $2 per hour
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Comment on Sweden passes law lowering age to legally change gender from 18 to 16 in ~lgbt
DanBC LinkIt's interesting to compare Guardian coverage of trans people when it's written by Guardian staff outside the UK vs Guardian staff inside the UK. This kind of thing - linking the far right to anti...It's interesting to compare Guardian coverage of trans people when it's written by Guardian staff outside the UK vs Guardian staff inside the UK.
The Sweden Democrats, the populist party with far-right roots that support the government in parliament but are not part of the government, also opposed it.
This kind of thing - linking the far right to anti trans activism - wouldn't be written by UK staff.
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Comment on Consumer reports on high levels of sodium and heavy metals in Lunchables in ~food
DanBC Link ParentSome people feel they have this freedom to just condemn in harsh terms anything that a parent does for their child. Often this is based in nothing but feels or tradition. "We didn't do it like...I don't think many people (including me) are going to defend lunchables as a good food choice. However, they provide a useful safety valve for when I get overwhelmed and don't have time for lunch prep. For my daughter, there is a status element to them. (I remember this from my childhood as well.)
Some people feel they have this freedom to just condemn in harsh terms anything that a parent does for their child. Often this is based in nothing but feels or tradition. "We didn't do it like that 20 years ago".
For example, give your child a pain au chocolate and a glass of orange juice for breakfast and you're a nice cosy family. Give your kid a doughnut and a glass of orange squash and people will freak out, saying "But look at all that sugar", even though they're roughly the same.
The problem with early sugars is that they are bad for teeth (tooth decay is the leading cause of preventable paediatric hospital admission in UK), and they can set up expectation for sweetness that can be hard to tackle. There's also a bunch of stuff we're still learning about gut flora.
The problem with salts is that they're super common everywhere and too much salt is harmful for children, and so you either have to trust the manufacturers to be sensible or spend your time scrutinising the packets and keeping a running total and that's exhausting. It also sets up a similar problem of needing more salt. The interaction between salt and health is complex, and there are far too many people saying "salt will kill you" and also "salt is fine it's not a problem".
But these problems develop over time. Eating the same thing everyday isn't great, but eating some junk as an occasional treat or low-stress option is fine.
tl;dr people have strong opinions even though the science is still developing. We need to focus on good enough most of the time, rather than perfect at every meal.
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Comment on Cow magnets in ~science
DanBC Link ParentThere are some disgusting images of cow research where they have a port cut into the side of them allowing researchers to get access to the "stomach" (cow stomachs are complicated and I can never...There are some disgusting images of cow research where they have a port cut into the side of them allowing researchers to get access to the "stomach" (cow stomachs are complicated and I can never remember which bit is called what).
I tend to feel uncomfortable when I look at industrial animal production because I forget the vast scale of it, and what they do to make it affordable. I'm buying less meat, and trying to buy higher welfare, but I haven't looked at what that higher welfare actually means so there's a good chance I'm just believing labels that are mostly meaningless.
I live in the UK and we used to have good standards, but I don't know if those are dropping or not.
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What cooking techniques need more evidence?
There are many tips or techniques that are strongly recommended for cooking, but it's hard to know which are evidence based and which are just passed along because that's what people always do....
There are many tips or techniques that are strongly recommended for cooking, but it's hard to know which are evidence based and which are just passed along because that's what people always do.
Which are the tips that need more evidence?
Here are two that I struggle with, about stainless steel pans:
- Water drop test / leidenfrost
People say that if you get your pan hot enough to get the leidenfrost effect and then add the oil you'll have less problems with sticking. My problem with this is that it means the pan gets very very hot - much hotter than it needs to be for most uses. My other problem is they all say "Look, I'll cook eggs and they won't stick" and those videos either have a ton of cuts, or the eggs stick and you can see the person pushing with a spatula to get rid of the stick, or their "scrambled eggs" is really a chopped omelette.
- Heat the pan before adding oil. I don't understand this. Again, people say it helps prevent sticking, but they use some argument about "pores" which just feels hokey. I add cold oil to a cold pan and bring it up to temperature before adding food so the pan and oil are both at the right temperature, and food sticks and then releases, because that's how stainless pans work.
I'm aware I could be completely wrong here and that there may be a good evidence base for these, but they don't seem to work based on how I cook.
37 votes -
Comment on Cow magnets in ~science
DanBC Link ParentI feel this is tricky because magnets are weird. There's the inverse square laws that mean power drops off quite rapidly with distance from the magnet. For this application we'd need a lot of...You wouldn't even need a person to do it, just a big pasture-roomba with a magnet on the bottom
I feel this is tricky because magnets are weird. There's the inverse square laws that mean power drops off quite rapidly with distance from the magnet. For this application we'd need a lot of magnet - magnets that are large and strong, that get mounted to a bar that gets hitched to the back of a vehicle and dragged over the ground, but without touching the ground. The fields are very large.
I'd be interested to know if the metal is mostly newer stuff dropped when fences are changed, or if it's historic stuff that just got left when farms were being built.
Farm animal welfare is difficult, so having cows outside but exposed to eating metal is possibly better than cramming them into pens, but it's not great.
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Comment on A brief rundown of some of the flaws of the Cass review in ~lgbt
DanBC Link ParentSome more information about "off label prescribing" https://jane-67706.medium.com/nice-but-naughty-53b9048c8bc In the UK there are about 60million people, and at the moment maybe 100 children on...Some more information about "off label prescribing" https://jane-67706.medium.com/nice-but-naughty-53b9048c8bc
In the UK there are about 60million people, and at the moment maybe 100 children on puberty blockers. It's a tiny number. https://x.com/doublehelix/status/1778354243553902926
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Comment on A brief rundown of some of the flaws of the Cass review in ~lgbt
DanBC LinkSorry it's on Twitter / X. If you don't like X / Twitter, here's a good article about the problems of demanding gold plated evidence for trans healthcare but not for any other healthcare:...Sorry it's on Twitter / X.
If you don't like X / Twitter, here's a good article about the problems of demanding gold plated evidence for trans healthcare but not for any other healthcare: https://www.erininthemorning.com/p/the-myth-of-low-quality-evidence
And here's an article talking about problems with Cass review: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/26895269.2024.2328249
We knew it was going to be bad; we didn't think it was going to be this bad; and it's really worrying that the Labour party are fully supporting it. Wes Streeting is a terrible shadow health minister.
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A brief rundown of some of the flaws of the Cass review
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Comment on Hilary Cass: Weak evidence letting down children over gender care in ~lgbt
DanBC Link ParentShe's going very much further than blocking pbs for children. In England people who are 16 or older are presumed to have capacity to make medical decisions, and a core concept of that is that...I would say this report lays out the reasons why. Main reason being that there is “remarkably weak evidence” that they improve the health and well-being of young people.
She's going very much further than blocking pbs for children.
In England people who are 16 or older are presumed to have capacity to make medical decisions, and a core concept of that is that people are allowed to make unwise choices - even if that choice will cause them harm. Cass wants to prevent any trans healthcare (other than conversion therapy) for anyone under the age of 25. This would require a change in the law, and it is an attack on Gillick competence. And that should worry anyone, because attacking Gillick has been an explicit aim of the fundamentalist Christo-right groups
that have funded anti-trans organisations in the UK - it's how they're going to go after reproductive health.There's remarkably weak evidence for a bunch of paediatric meds because most meds are not tested on paediatric populations. Why the double standards? Weak evidence of benefit is one thing (it's not true, she excluded a lot of evidence for bad reasons), but where's the evidence of harm? Regret rates are very low. So far the overwhelming harm we see in gender care is the lack of access to it.
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Comment on If we can't block users can we at least filter out topics posted by those users? in ~tildes
DanBC Link ParentSome people are tedious bloviating cunts and I get nothing useful from their posts. Blocking them would enable me to more easily avoid them. Some people post topics that they do not find...Some people are tedious bloviating cunts and I get nothing useful from their posts. Blocking them would enable me to more easily avoid them.
Some people post topics that they do not find interesting but they think other people may find interesting. But they also don't understand the content matter. This means they often post shallow flamebait, and blocking them is a useful way to avoid this flood of shit topics.
If people are toxic there are Tildes reporting mechanisms that I would use. But there's a range of behaviour between "toxic and "saint" and there are people who are not toxic but I'm just not interested in anything they post ever, and I find it personally a it too tedious or aggravating to deal with, and my Tildes life would be better if I blocked them. Importantly, it would be better for TIldes too because I'd avoid getting sucked into long mildly argumentative discussions with someone who clearly does not understand the nuances of the subject and who is JAQing off.
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Comment on Hilary Cass: Weak evidence letting down children over gender care in ~lgbt
DanBC LinkThe reason Cass says the evidence is weak is that she excluded any study that was not double-blinded. But how do you double blind a study where the treatment is "stops puberty"? She excluded any...The reason Cass says the evidence is weak is that she excluded any study that was not double-blinded. But how do you double blind a study where the treatment is "stops puberty"? She excluded any paper that showed benefit.
Also, it's striking that she demands huge amounts of gold-plated evidence to prescribe puberty blockers, but requires no evidence at all for her proposed changes.
Anyone saying PBs are "experimental" is either anti-trans or is unwittingly pushing anti-trans talking points. PBs have long been used for children, they are licenced for use in children and they are licenced to stop puberty in children with precocious puberty. This contrasts with many meds used in paediatrics which are often not licensed for use in children, and / or are being used for different conditions.
If you read the anti-trans argument you'd get the impression that thousands of children were being given these meds after a single appointment, and that rates of regret were sky high. The reality in the UK was that children had to wait for years to get their first appointment after referral, they then underwent rigorous gate-keeping psychological assessment that was deeply pathologising, they were then referred to endocrinology who'd prescribe. This ended up being very small numbers of children, and the fact that they all went on to fuller transisition after their 18th birthdays, with very low rates of regret (far lower than for eg knee replacement or cancer treatment) is evidence that PBs were only given to people who really needed them
Here's a run-down of problems of the Cass review: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/26895269.2024.2328249
Hopefully this means they if they say that the evidence is weak they will instead run their own (as yet unannounced) studies so we can have some quality evidence on this
It is unethical to force people to take part in medical research in order to access healthcare, and this is what Cass proposes. And the evidence for this form of healthcare is as good as, or better than, a bunch of other stuff we also do in other areas of healthcare that have equally big impact on a person's life: why the double standard? Why force trans people to be part of a trial but not anyone else?
Fuck the BBC.
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If we can't block users can we at least filter out topics posted by those users?
It seems like Tildes is not going to ever get a block user function. But it would be really handy if I could get a filter to auto-ignore any topics started by certain users. Would this be...
It seems like Tildes is not going to ever get a block user function.
But it would be really handy if I could get a filter to auto-ignore any topics started by certain users. Would this be something that Tildes would ever implement?
45 votes -
Comment on Woody Allen’s cancellation is a crime against culture in ~movies
DanBC LinkIt's interesting to see how cancelled has changed meaning from "was held to account and lost work" to "some people made credible allegations but he continues to work at about the same pace as he...- Exemplary
It's interesting to see how cancelled has changed meaning from "was held to account and lost work" to "some people made credible allegations but he continues to work at about the same pace as he did before". If the pace is dropping off, well, he's 80something.
List of films directed by Allen since 2010.
Coup de Chance (2023), Rifkin's Festival (2020), A Rainy Day in New York (2019), Wonder Wheel (2017), Crisis in Six Scenes (2016), Café Society (2016), Gianni Schicchi (2015), Irrational Man (2015), Magic in the Moonlight (2014), Blue Jasmine (2013), To Rome with Love (2012), Midnight in Paris (2011), You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (2010)
List of notable actors in these films.
Melvil Poupaud, Niels Schneider, and Lou de Laâge, Gina Gershon, Wallace Shawn, Elena Anaya, Louis Garrel, Jude Law, Liev Schreiber, Diego Luna, Elle Fanning, Selena Gomez, Timothée Chalamet, Kate Winslet, Joaquin Phoenix, Colin Firth, Emma Stone, Cate Blanchett, and Owen Wilson.
I'm posting this because it's a calm and sensible look at how THC can possibly cause psychosis, and it does a nice job of talking about the problems of the evidence and the complications of causality.
It's a detailed technical document though.