PepperJackson's recent activity
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Comment on Highguard | Official launch showcase in ~games
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Comment on Massive winter storm expected to dump snow and ice across United States in ~enviro
PepperJackson Link ParentI grew up in the Seattle area and I may have seen lightning on the order 5 times in about 30 years. And probably less than that.I grew up in the Seattle area and I may have seen lightning on the order 5 times in about 30 years. And probably less than that.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
PepperJackson LinkI have been having great fun bouncing between two games that I'm admittedly not very good at! Fellowship This one really brings me back to the glory days of WoW. I have wondered if my fond...I have been having great fun bouncing between two games that I'm admittedly not very good at!
Fellowship
This one really brings me back to the glory days of WoW. I have wondered if my fond memories of running dungeons with my guildmates were colored fully by rose-tinted glasses, or if that kind of gameplay is actually just fun. Turns out, the formula is great. I always played a healer in WoW, and Sylvie fits my style. It's been a lot of fun getting geared up and learning new mechanics in various dungeons. I even got a few of my buddies from back home to spend an hour a week playing. It has been wonderful.
Deadlock
I have played a lot of DotA. But not recently. The game is practically unrecognizable to me nowadays, which is quite sad. Anyways, playing this game, the third person shooter is so well suited for the MOBA gameplay that I'm surprised no one else has tried. I am having a blast, and I am absolute garbage at the game. I feel like I'm always low on player damage for my team, so I think I need to stop farming and start fighting. I've been playing a bunch of different heroes and haven't found my favorites yet. They all seem to have so much character, it is wonderful.
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Comment on Leaving Apple behind after eighteen years in ~tech
PepperJackson Link ParentIn case you are interested, the toggle is under Settings > Apps > Sandboxed Google Play > Android AutoIn case you are interested, the toggle is under Settings > Apps > Sandboxed Google Play > Android Auto
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Comment on What have you been listening to this week? in ~music
PepperJackson (edited )LinkI think it's fun sharing the Christmas albums people listen to. My family has 2 classics we play very often and this year put a third on rotation. First, the classics. Vince Guaraldi Trio - A...I think it's fun sharing the Christmas albums people listen to. My family has 2 classics we play very often and this year put a third on rotation.
First, the classics.
I feel like I've been listening to this one for years. It's fun, jazzy, and feels appropriate to have on in the background no matter the occasion.
This album compliments the steady, coolness of A Charlie Brown Christmas with some fun and pep. It is essentially just Christmas Classics sung by a number of talented Irish guys with a few silly songs sprinkled in. This album always makes me feel jolly. I'm a big fan of Christmas in Killarney.
(Yeah, that Mark Tremonti. The singer from Creed.) This is the new kid on the block. I did a double take when I was recommended the album. Surely the lead singer from Creed would make a Christmas Album a bit too Creed-y? But when the first song came on I think, "Oops, I must have clicked Bing Crosby or Sinatra!". It's a great classic sounding album. The guy can sing!
EDIT:
- Elf Film Soundtrack
This one is also in regular rotation in my household! How could I forget? They nailed it with this one.
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Comment on Without looking, do you have a vague idea of your coordinates? in ~talk
PepperJackson LinkI actually have a good idea to the 0.1 because I regularly use the Merlin bird ID app and it says "Listening from XX.XXXX, YY.YYYY". Before then, no idea at all!I actually have a good idea to the 0.1 because I regularly use the Merlin bird ID app and it says "Listening from XX.XXXX, YY.YYYY". Before then, no idea at all!
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Comment on US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to end all monkey research in ~science
PepperJackson Link ParentVery interesting, thanks for sharing these. I've heard of Evo, but haven't seen it be used in the lab yet, but perhaps it will soon. It's obviously young technology. As I understand it, it seems...Very interesting, thanks for sharing these. I've heard of Evo, but haven't seen it be used in the lab yet, but perhaps it will soon. It's obviously young technology. As I understand it, it seems useful for hypothesis generation, but maybe not so useful for hypothesis testing in it's current state.
I hope we can use machine learning to better categorize large datasets to help patients soon.
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Comment on US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to end all monkey research in ~science
PepperJackson Link ParentI'm not actually familiar with the advances you mention here. Do you mind filling in an old immunologist on what we've learned with AI? In my experience there just hasn't been much of anything...With advancements in AI (not LLMs) we've seen some pretty amazing advances in genomics and understanding the human biome.
I'm not actually familiar with the advances you mention here. Do you mind filling in an old immunologist on what we've learned with AI? In my experience there just hasn't been much of anything that has impressed me.
Ideally at some point we can stop doing most animal modeling because computer modeling will be close enough for the statistical noise and variation it generates to be within the parameters of how well animal models reflect human biology.
I agree this would be ideal, but I'm incredibly skeptical of the ability to computationally model complex biology. At that point we would essentially be stimulating life itself!
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Comment on US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to end all monkey research in ~science
PepperJackson Link ParentThis is an important point; I worked at a vaccine research institute for a number of years and the 3-5 number was what was thrown around for the experiments they were able to afford. I would link...This is an important point; I worked at a vaccine research institute for a number of years and the 3-5 number was what was thrown around for the experiments they were able to afford. I would link to the papers themselves but I don't want to identify myself. With my other comments it would be easy to identify me.
But for the big pharma number, that is based on a degree of separation: the investigators I worked with had collaborations with pharmaceutical companies and they said even the pharma companies didn't do larger experiments. But I can't say if their experience actually represents all of big pharma (likely does not, vaccine regulations are a bit different than new drug discovery).
So that is to say from personal experience for the small academic researchers, but hearsay for the big pharma number, which should be challenged!
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Comment on US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to end all monkey research in ~science
PepperJackson LinkAs someone who has been involved in non-human primate (NHP) research, I actually think this isn't terrible. These experiments are insanely expensive. Even big pharma companies will test their...As someone who has been involved in non-human primate (NHP) research, I actually think this isn't terrible. These experiments are insanely expensive. Even big pharma companies will test their study drugs in experiments with around 5 NHPs. And most academic labs can only afford 3. But then the data from these 3 animals drives all of the experiments in humans. It's a difficult position. I want to say we should have some testing before humans, but I also don't think we necessarily learn that much in NHP studies. Additionally, because these experiments are so expensive, almost all of the NHPs are in multiple experiments, meaning, they will be subject to one study drug, and then a few months later they will be subject to another, etc. So it's actually hard to know which study is responsible for an outcome, which is hard to parse. In the end, I find it difficult to justify many of these studies, though I'm sure there are a number of studies that I'm not aware of that are doing good work and will be affected terribly by this change.
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Comment on What have you been listening to this week? in ~music
PepperJackson LinkI don't listen to music terribly often but I got a new set of headphones (HD 6XX) and it inspired me to seek out some new stuff from the last couple years. Of these, I am digging Geordie Greep's...I don't listen to music terribly often but I got a new set of headphones (HD 6XX) and it inspired me to seek out some new stuff from the last couple years.
Of these, I am digging Geordie Greep's The New Sound. What a wild, beautiful, melodic ride. I recommend the single from that album, Holy Holy, to get an idea of what the album is like. It is both a tune that makes me want to dance, and the musings of a totally deranged man (heads up, rated R). I think it's just about as fun as music gets for me and recommend it to people who like prog rock, jazz, Calypso, tango. It's a good track.
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Comment on Epstein-Barr virus appears to be trigger of lupus disease in ~health
PepperJackson Link ParentI guess I would add, just in case anyone was curious, that the latest research I had heard is that lupus may at its core be the result of lysosomal trafficking dysregulation. I've seen some mouse...I guess I would add, just in case anyone was curious, that the latest research I had heard is that lupus may at its core be the result of lysosomal trafficking dysregulation. I've seen some mouse models of disease that are incredibly similar to lupus (SLE in particular) that are deficient in a lysosomal trafficking gene, but I can't remember which one off the top of my head. Could EBV cause this? Sure, but I wonder if we will eventually subcategorize lupus based on the etiology of this dysfunction
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Comment on Epstein-Barr virus appears to be trigger of lupus disease in ~health
PepperJackson (edited )Link ParentTo your point, it would not be terribly helpful, but could provide some benefit. The best use case for vaccines is, as you suggest, to prevent a primary infection from a pathogen. There are some...To your point, it would not be terribly helpful, but could provide some benefit. The best use case for vaccines is, as you suggest, to prevent a primary infection from a pathogen. There are some indications for secondary exposure vaccines in limited cases. Herpesviruses like EBV do have an example of this in the shingles vaccine, but it is more useful in this case because shingles tends to have very distinct viral reactivation in the context of immunocompromise (typically age and other environmental factors). Does EBV act in this way to cause the secondary pathologies is central to the question of utility of vaccination.
I do feel qualified to speak on this to a degree, I am an immunologist and physician. But I don't do vaccine development or virology in particular, which explains a bit of my hedging!
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Comment on First death linked to red meat allergy triggered by tick bites, researchers say in ~health
PepperJackson Link ParentDefinitely, I'm not sure if the same species of tick would feed on both mammals and dinosaurs though. It certainly seems plausible, but I'm no entomologistDefinitely, I'm not sure if the same species of tick would feed on both mammals and dinosaurs though. It certainly seems plausible, but I'm no entomologist
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Comment on First death linked to red meat allergy triggered by tick bites, researchers say in ~health
PepperJackson Link ParentTo expand on this, the real question would be, are there ticks that bite mammals and also dinosaurs? Which I couldn't even begin to answer.To expand on this, the real question would be, are there ticks that bite mammals and also dinosaurs? Which I couldn't even begin to answer.
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Comment on First death linked to red meat allergy triggered by tick bites, researchers say in ~health
PepperJackson Link ParentIt depends what you mean by " People don't develop it naturally or through exposure to allergens like how bee stings can cause bee allergies.". The reason you get the allergy from ticks is because...It depends what you mean by " People don't develop it naturally or through exposure to allergens like how bee stings can cause bee allergies.". The reason you get the allergy from ticks is because you are exposed to the allergen (galactose-alpha-1,3-galactose) from the mammal blood that the ticks have in a blood meal. So in that regard the sensitization to the antigen is exactly the same.
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Comment on First death linked to red meat allergy triggered by tick bites, researchers say in ~health
PepperJackson Link ParentI would consider it very likely that dinosaurs could get alpha gal allergy because they do not make alpha gal, and the gene that leads to the glycosylation is quite old!Other curiosity, I wonder if alpha-gal be found on older tick specimens? Imagine the dinosaurs being allergic to mammals.
I would consider it very likely that dinosaurs could get alpha gal allergy because they do not make alpha gal, and the gene that leads to the glycosylation is quite old!
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Comment on First death linked to red meat allergy triggered by tick bites, researchers say in ~health
PepperJackson Link ParentI wouldn't classify it as an autoimmune disease. In the medical community it is classified as an allergy, because the type of immune response is the same as typical allergies (i.e., IgE mediated)....I wouldn't classify it as an autoimmune disease. In the medical community it is classified as an allergy, because the type of immune response is the same as typical allergies (i.e., IgE mediated). Unless you consider allergies autoimmune diseases.
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Comment on Is vaping less harmful than smoking, and does it help people quit? in ~health
PepperJackson Link ParentYes, sorry for not responding earlier, these were off market vapes too. So there's even less reason to be afraid of vapes from a medical perspective.Yes, sorry for not responding earlier, these were off market vapes too. So there's even less reason to be afraid of vapes from a medical perspective.
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Comment on Is vaping less harmful than smoking, and does it help people quit? in ~health
PepperJackson LinkA number of my physician colleagues are still reeling from the VAPI/EVALI crisis years ago when vitamin E acetate contaminated vapes were killing young people. I think it's pretty clear that vapes...A number of my physician colleagues are still reeling from the VAPI/EVALI crisis years ago when vitamin E acetate contaminated vapes were killing young people. I think it's pretty clear that vapes are preferable to cigarettes now, though of course not using either is preferable.
I've never really played an FPS besides a good bit of CS 1.6 and a bit of CSGO. The previews for Highguard look like a generic gun game. The guns feel like they could be completely ripped from COD or Battlefield and they would work fine. And that saps from the fantasy aesthetic for me. Conversely, I've been really digging Deadlock, every character feels distinct, with tons of personality. I think the hero shooter genre benefits from the 3rd person shooter style. Though take note, this first impression is certainly colored by how much fun I've been having with Deadlock.