comforteagle's recent activity

  1. Comment on Weekly US politics news and updates thread - week of September 9 in ~society

    comforteagle
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    His response wasn't reasonable. He was anti-mask for a long time, despite all the historical evidence of their effectiveness, encouraged people to take chloroquine and follow random disproven...
    • Exemplary

    His response wasn't reasonable. He was anti-mask for a long time, despite all the historical evidence of their effectiveness, encouraged people to take chloroquine and follow random disproven advice instead of actual tested medical advice, and as @PelagiusSeptim said, repeatedly claimed that it wasn't that much of a threat despite both evidence that that wasn't true and that he knew otherwise. There were some side effects to the vaccine, that's true, but there were exceeding rare, no different than any other vaccine.

    As far as Jan 6, he actively did nothing during the attack is pushing the whole "Ashli Babbitt shouldn't have been shot" narrative despite her being a former MP who should've known better than to keep trying to climb through that window (Wikipedia link, I know, but it's got a lot of sources). The "evidence" behind any manipulation against Trump is also so flimsy that literally every case about it was thrown out, several of the lawyers who submitted cases were disbarred for it, and every single third-party audit determined that there was no fraud (I couldn't find a good single source here, but if you look up the results there's quite a few). The biggest evidence of any sort of election fraud is the numerous emails from Trump's team about the plan to claim there was fraud as well as the emails about planning and then executing the fake elector plan.

    Edit: since I already posted one Wikipedia link, screw it, just read through the article on the attempts to overturn the election. It covers pretty much everything.

    29 votes

  2. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    That sounds great too. At least for the ride up quick stops are perfect.

    That sounds great too. At least for the ride up quick stops are perfect.

    1 vote

  3. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    Will do! Once finals are finished I've got quite a few places to look for info!

    Will do! Once finals are finished I've got quite a few places to look for info!

  4. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    That'll probably be a day-of call. You right though, that I35 traffic can be awful.

    That'll probably be a day-of call. You right though, that I35 traffic can be awful.

  5. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    If I remember correctly the other two recommended routes added about an hour. Which isn't much, but that cuts into my stopping time. That sounds wild lol. I actually love small museums, so...

    It looks like the default route on Google maps is Dallas to Texarkana via I30. instead, you can take I20 to Marshall then 59 north, and there is more tonsee and do along the route. If I am reading it right, the drive time is the same.

    If I remember correctly the other two recommended routes added about an hour. Which isn't much, but that cuts into my stopping time.

    You'll pass through Kilgore, which is where I grew up. Kilgore College (aka "Harvard on the Highway") has the East Texas Oil Museum, which includes a re–creation of main street from the 1920's complete with animatronic figures, and a ride to the center of the earth. (This is not really a serious recommendation). Excellent barbecue at Bodacious Barbecue or Mexican food at T Blancos. Unfortunately not a ton of vegetarian food in East Texas. Maybe cheese enchiladas at T Blancos.

    That sounds wild lol. I actually love small museums, so depending on how we're feeling on the drive back we might stop by. We'll see about T Blancos. As a San Antonio native I've been spoiled in terms of Tex-Mex.

    Pittsburgh has a ton of museums. Natural history, art, the science center, the Roberto Clemente museum and the Andy Warhol museum. Nikki's Thai Kitchen is amazing Thai food, lots of veggy options.

    Pittsburgh is sounding more and more like somewhere we'll stop on the way back. There's so much there and neither me nor my fiance have ever been.

    I once did Pittsburgh to Kilgore – 21 hours – without sleeping. I definitely do not recommend it. Two days is still pushing it, and your trip is about five hours longer. If you can make it 2.5 or 3 days, that is much more comfortable

    Oh yeah, doing it all in one shot is not something I want to do. Years ago an ex of mine and I drove back from Grand Mesa, Co to San Antonio in one shot after a night of drinking at a wedding. The whole trip we alternated between chasing and being chased by massive storms. The ~16ish drive up that we did in one shot turned into a terrifying ~19-20 hour drive. I've never been more terrified driving, never again.

    If I need to turn it into a 2.5 day drive I'm sure my new boss will be fine with It.

  6. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    Ooh, Falling Water would be really cool. Definitely adding that, along with Snake Mound, to the trip back.

    Ooh, Falling Water would be really cool. Definitely adding that, along with Snake Mound, to the trip back.

    2 votes

  7. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    I'll look them up as well, thanks!

    I'll look them up as well, thanks!

  8. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    Oh yeah, it's going to be a long drive. Unfortunately that's how the timing worked out, so that's how its going to happen. I hadn't thought of looking up trails along the route. That sounds like a...

    Oh yeah, it's going to be a long drive. Unfortunately that's how the timing worked out, so that's how its going to happen.

    I hadn't thought of looking up trails along the route. That sounds like a perfect stop to stretch my legs.

    2 votes

  9. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    Unfortunately 4 hours is a bit too much of a detour. I'll have to check out DayTripper though. I've driven quite a bit on West and North Texas, but East Texas is not an area I'm familiar with.

    Unfortunately 4 hours is a bit too much of a detour. I'll have to check out DayTripper though. I've driven quite a bit on West and North Texas, but East Texas is not an area I'm familiar with.

    2 votes

  10. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    I'll have to give it a look! It'll probably need to wait until my return trip, but thanks for the recommendation!

    I'll have to give it a look! It'll probably need to wait until my return trip, but thanks for the recommendation!

    1 vote

  11. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    Thanks for the food and hiking recommendations! My finance and I are actually big into hiking and are planning on going to some local parks when she comes up. It's been a hot minute since I've...

    Thanks for the food and hiking recommendations! My finance and I are actually big into hiking and are planning on going to some local parks when she comes up. It's been a hot minute since I've actually looked at each park online, but I'll have to give those a look.

    Speaking of food, though, do you happen to know any good vegetarian restaurants? I'm not vegetarian (looking forward to trying that stir fry) but my fiance is.

    1 vote

  12. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    That sounds perfect! I'll need to look at the time I'll likely be there, but it's definitely tempting.

    That sounds perfect! I'll need to look at the time I'll likely be there, but it's definitely tempting.

    2 votes

  13. Comment on Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania in ~travel

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    People I've talked with have also mentioned Memphis, and that's currently my planned halfway point. Unfortunately, at least for the drive up, I only have a couple days so I don't have too much...

    People I've talked with have also mentioned Memphis, and that's currently my planned halfway point. Unfortunately, at least for the drive up, I only have a couple days so I don't have too much time. I might take a longer drive back though so I can better enjoy the route.

    2 votes

  14. Stops along a drive from Texas to Pennsylvania

    ~travel Ask (advice)
    Hey y'all! In about a month I need to drive from San Antonio, Texas to State College, Pennsylvania. The current plan is to take I35 to I30 and I40, which will take me through Dallas, Little Rock,...

    Hey y'all! In about a month I need to drive from San Antonio, Texas to State College, Pennsylvania. The current plan is to take I35 to I30 and I40, which will take me through Dallas, Little Rock, Nashville, Louisville, Cincinnati, Columbus, and just outside Pittsburgh.

    It's a long drive, so I'm looking for a few places to stop along the way and stretch my legs. I know it's a large area and this is a very vague question, but does anyone know any particularly interesting places to stop?

    15 votes

  15. Comment on Polyphia live at The Factory in Deep Ellum, Dallas, Texas (Full concert, 2023) in ~music

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    I'm going in November! So freaking excited.

    I'm going in November! So freaking excited.

    1 vote

  16. Comment on The first US nuclear reactor built from scratch in decades enters commercial operation in Georgia in ~enviro

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    So you're probably very interested in the superconductor stuff going on right now, and definitely understand it more than most of us. Interesting that you're doing software instead of hardware....

    PhD in theoretical condensed matter physics
    I had to look that one up.

    So you're probably very interested in the superconductor stuff going on right now, and definitely understand it more than most of us. Interesting that you're doing software instead of hardware. I'm guessing you're writing/working in the software that runs simulations?

    I was anti-nuke back ... gave a presentation at a conference on thorium energy

    So you made a complete 180, interesting. Although I do feel like more environmentalists are pushing for nuclear these days. It's much cleaner than coal (as far as I understand).

    given the large amount of land necessary, storage that is not yet a bird in the hand, and the difficulty of permitting and constructing long range power lines I'm concerned renewables might become a disappointment in the 2030s the way nuclear was in the 1980s.

    I hope it won't be a disappointment, at least not utterly. I feel like I see a lot of talk online about how we need multiple solutions and multiple sources of renewables, so I think if that sentiment grows and becomes more mainstream we might be able to keep goodwill alive enough to solve the bigger problems I'm renewable energy. Or at least let it grow to a larger scale.

  17. Comment on The first US nuclear reactor built from scratch in decades enters commercial operation in Georgia in ~enviro

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    So it seems like it's a mix of policies and just general newness of building reactors. I bet COVID supply issues didn't help either. Pretty cool, thanks for the detailed response! This seems...

    So it seems like it's a mix of policies and just general newness of building reactors. I bet COVID supply issues didn't help either. Pretty cool, thanks for the detailed response!

    There still are orders being taken for AP1000s which can't be said for any other western design that's already been built.

    This seems promising. If AP1000 keeps growing in use maybe we (here in the US) can learn a little and decrease the cost of building them here. Would definitely help the future of nuclear energy.

    They are expecting to make the pressure vessel in Canada and as a simplified version of the Boiling Water Reactor they might be able to delete some parts to get the cost down.

    A closer and more allied manufacturing partner also seems pretty good. Nuclear's future is looking brighter and more, uh, glow-y. Makes me happy.

    You seem to know a lot about nuclear reactors; is it just an interest of yours, or do you work in energy?

  18. Comment on Teaching myself calculus at sixty-five in ~humanities

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    I'm halfway-ish through a mechanical engineering degree after taking a 10 year break from college. To try and catch up a bit, since almost all the classes delve into calculus to some degree, and...

    I'm halfway-ish through a mechanical engineering degree after taking a 10 year break from college. To try and catch up a bit, since almost all the classes delve into calculus to some degree, and some quite deeply, I watched through most of this playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZHQObOWTQDMsr9K-rj53DwVRMYO3t5Yr

    Full disclosure, I haven't finished watching all of it, but I thought it did a great job of explaining the theory of calculus.

    1 vote

  19. Comment on The first US nuclear reactor built from scratch in decades enters commercial operation in Georgia in ~enviro

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    I feel like it's always like that. X reactor was $Y over, and then no further details. Why they went over is just as, if not more, important than them actually going over.

    I reread the article again but I'm not seeing any reasons given for such a huge budget miss.. (was it lawsuits from NIMBYs? Material overruns due to COVID? Profiteering? Embezzlement?)

    I feel like it's always like that. X reactor was $Y over, and then no further details. Why they went over is just as, if not more, important than them actually going over.

    3 votes

  20. Comment on The first US nuclear reactor built from scratch in decades enters commercial operation in Georgia in ~enviro

    comforteagle
    Link Parent
    I hope so too. It's been a consistent enough trend of reactors being over time and over budget, someone has to be analyzing what's off in the initial estimates. Maybe it's just a million random...

    I hope so too. It's been a consistent enough trend of reactors being over time and over budget, someone has to be analyzing what's off in the initial estimates. Maybe it's just a million random things that cause it to go over budget and there's no real trend?

    4 votes