TheVat

Immediately following this post, I replied as to why one might not find the witnesses entirely credible. I was hoping to keep the discussion going on that matter, but there was no reply. In a science forum when someone posts a critique (see the linked information in that post) of scientific methodology, especially where data collection is concerned, that seems like a fruitful path towards learning and further research. So that was disappointing. And as I posted I had no settled beliefs or firm conclusions, just a sense that the data was compromised. I share this reviewer's reaction.... https://rogersmovienation.com/2022/10/15/documentary-review-more-proof-of-a-ufo-encounter-thats-nothing-of-the-sort-moment-of-contact/ There is no “concrete” evidence that what happened in January of 1996 in the city of Varginha, Brazil was caused by an alien spacecraft, well, none that’s presented in director James Fox‘s latest UFO documentary, “Moment of Contact.” There are no photographs, no “crash” debris, not even local TV coverage at the time provided much more than what some folks told interviewers then who repeat their stories for Fox and crew 26 years later, about what they saw. Fox has an eyewitness take us to a non-descript piece of land, where, after some hunting around, he shouts (in Portuguese with English subtitles) “It was here! HERE!” Fox interviews the current mayor of Varginha, and asks him the same loaded and pointless question he peppers young people on the street with — “Do you believe” that a UFO crashed here, that there were survivors, that the military perhaps with US help, spirited them away? Absolutely, the mayor of a city with a UFO monument and saucer-shaped museum says, I mean, his nephew’s girlfriend saw things. She did....

Thanks for a big LoL! Areligious seems to be a choice with humans given that we seem to be wired (as Carl Sagan noted in The Dragons of Eden) for supernatural beliefs about mysterious forces in the world. Until fairly recent times, wherever one grew up there were religious/mystical beliefs widely held and taught, so a dismissal of such beliefs usually involved some process of scrutiny followed by rejection. I have no discomfort with religious people if they walk their talk. Really depends on the individual. Some are phonies, and use religion to bash others and feel superior. Some are genuine seekers of spiritual peace, wisdom, compassion, and ways to be their better selves. Nothing bad about PLAU. (just saw this thread, so am sorry if I haven't responded to individual (non pigeon-based) posts)

This is going to get expensive. Sidewinder missiles are not cheap. https://www.npr.org/2023/02/18/1158048921/pico-balloon-k9yo Did a superpower showdown provoke the U.S. into using a fighter jet to shoot down a hobbyist group's research balloon in Canada? That's the question the public — and the FBI — wants to answer, after the U.S. military shot down several unidentified airborne objects last weekend. A military spokesperson tells NPR it's their understanding that the FBI has spoken to the hobbyist group in question — the Northern Illinois Bottlecap Balloon Brigade, based just north of Chicago — in an apparent attempt to determine whether their small balloon might have inadvertently caused a big ruckus....

Can't add much to this fine thread, but will say that I've noticed science forums often seem to provide a space where those with an ASD can interact pretty well. Though my training was in biology/medicine, then information science, my later work was more social work and counseling and sometimes brought me into contact with ASD persons and some of the obstacles they deal with. SFN has a fair number of regulars who are used to communicating with non-native speakers and getting over the language bumps, sans condescension, and I think that skill also maps onto clearing misunderstandings with ASD persons. (And then there are people like Markus, who leave me wondering if the D in ASD really belongs there, i.e. maybe we should just view it as a different cognitive style, and quite an effective one at that. )

I thought this line, in a Washington Post article on polar vortexes and weather, was amusing... "A sudden stratospheric warming ensues when air temperatures in the stratosphere rapidly increase. " And illustrates one of the problems with science journalism when the writer is trying too hard to explain everything clearly. Still, a bit surprised an editor didn't catch the redundancy. Or maybe tautology is the word.

Could we stipulate that personal taste, if not shared callously or translating to prejudicial action, is what it is and best left alone? As for the topic, it seems reasonable to say homophobia is learned. The strongest prima facie case for that has been touched on here: those who aren't raised with anti-LGBT biases in their culture do not seem to be homophobic. (while they may have personal tastes and things they prefer not to do or watch, as is characteristic of all humans) I would speculate that language, in many modern nations, still serves to transmit homophobic memes. C___s___er is still a common term of insult towards men, where I live. Many political forums had posts disparaging male Trump toadies as "s__ing on Trump's d___." Language tends to be a repository of cultural biases.

I've forgotten the original topic, but perhaps this is relevant: Q. What is the difference between a chickpea and a garbanzo bean? A. Donald Trump never had a garbanzo bean on his face. Stupid joke, right? It's funny partly for the wordplay, partly because it references Trump's alleged activity at a Moscow hotel, and partly because there are cultural stereotypes about the decadence of the rich. It's partly driven by the same notion of excess that informs the classic joke that's been around since the seventeenth century usually called "The Aristocrats." I won't tell it (it's filthy), and you've all probably heard it. Both jokes, and others like them, assume that certain sexual acts between people that are less "proper" or "normal" than others are a sort of degradation. The ordinary person, bound by middle-class morality, is invited to look down on this degradation and enjoy a laugh. Maybe some homophobia (and this would definitely be in the category of learned) is a result of social stratification - there's a sort of middling mainstream where you don't have much power, so historically the options for feeling okay with your lot were to look up at the powerful and see their excess and corruption, and look down on groups that have been downtrodden, judged as lazier or deviant or just stupid (or various combinations of those). Classes of people in the middle were in the least secure position, so there developed ways to punch up AND punch down. I don't know, just playing around with this, and dinner beckons (would you believe chickpeas are involved?)

The examples are just used to underscore that some things some people enjoy are gross to others. No one is saying "X is equally gross as Z" in some disparaging way AFAICT. Indeed that's why I posted the example earlier about heterosexual fondling on the Quad, specifically to point out there are many behaviors, including hetero, where I think "getting a room" is a great idea. You are extracting something prejudicial that is not (for my posts anyway) at all there. And I would caution against confidence regarding your knowledge of what's in my head or anyone else's. I think @zapatos has just further clarified the distinction between distaste and prejudice.

Haha! With the preparation I described, perhaps "into the compost pile." (weird nutritional science aside: for Caesarean babies, there is now an emerging line of evidence that such a salad, if the fecal donor is a parent with good digestive health, might have healthful benefit to their developing intestinal microflora colony)

I think the distinction between prejudice and taste has been pretty clear here. If I judge someone taking a shit on a tossed salad with distaste, I don't have to try a bite to make certain of my judgment. Someone may find any act distasteful for them personally on whatever basis they wish, e.g. an extrapolation from their own aesthetic preference. If I don't care for body parts shoved up my asshole, that's not a prejudice against others, just my personal preference. Why would someone who is into that care what my preferences are, when I don't care what theirs are? This just seems like a fairly simple ethical concept to grasp. Everyone just minds their own business in the boudoir. Easy peasy.

This being a philosophy thread, I feel it's worth asking if there is much mileage to be had in determining if distaste (i.e. aesthetic preference) should be grounded in reason. The chat still veers into conflating tastes and prejudices, which are not the same thing. I don't want my face peed on. Not my taste. But I have no prejudicial attitude towards those who do. Nor is there a compelling reason to remedy my distaste or determine if it has a rational basis. Why does @Intoscience have to remedy what seems to be a personal taste that has no adverse effect on society? If this is an ethics thread, that potential effect on others, or lack of, would be the relevant matter.

Bioinformatics is one whose meaning changed quite a bit. In the early 70s it was the study of information processes in biotic systems. Now it's a broad interdisciplinary field that combines biology, chemistry, physics, computer sci, IT, and math/stats to analyze and interpret biological, medical, and health data. IOW, it started out mainly about sequencing then broadened vastly.

Well, yes, it's bad behavior that is noticed. And this points to a real demarcation between homophobia and aesthetic aversion. To silently harbor distaste (because you know it's just your own squeamish quirk or whatever) is what tolerant people do. To express it is to move towards intolerance and inviting others to join in with condemnation (or passive-aggressive variants). Unfortunately a lot of people's morality is little more than an aesthetic leaning (derived from a jumble of childhood impressions) which then someone with an intolerant agenda plays upon and steers towards harsh judgement. In my own aesthetics, I am an equal-opportunity eye-averter. I'm just as averse to see some dude clutching his GF's boobs in the Quad as I am to two dudes tongue kissing. Neither seems wrong to me, I just prefer humans pursue foreplay in rooms or shrubbery. I cannot imagine turning this preference into an ideology or a doctrine. In the words of Groucho Marx: Let joy be unconfined. Let there be dancing in the streets, drinking in the saloons and necking in the parlor.

Licking at a dried residue, perhaps. Bolton is a superhawk, who doesn't believe in international law, the UN, treaties, or much of anything that doesn't involve America annihilating any nation that might get in our way. He is dangerously stupid. And a rabidly anti-Muslim bigot. No wonder Trump appointed him as National Security Advisor. And maybe running for president. LoL!

Doesn't seem weird to me. I find people chewing gum distasteful. I don't think it's wrong or that they shouldn't enjoy. That something may not appeal to my own aesthetics is not a judgment on its moral legitimacy. I think that's where many straight males are, re gay sex. You can find some activity distasteful (golden showers, anyone?) without minding in the least that others enjoy it.

Indeed. Or Sex with Ducks.

Also like some of their raunchier songs, which I will warn may be NSFW.

There will be a Quiz, no?

Too many whiskeys may cause you to miss keys.

The Friday and Saturday objects were around 40,000 ft, an altitude that gets a lot of monitoring due to being in commercial airspace. And heightens risk of an accident that would potentially spark war. I would imagine any intelligence service that deserves the name would terminate that part of the experiment. Female geese are so self-serving.

Delicious! Adding pb to oats is one of my standard foods from youth and student days. The natural kind (no palm oil or other hydrogenated fats) you have to stir, but it's better for you.

Single food thinking is problematic for a healthy diet. Foods operate synergistically. Arterial plaque formation is far more affected by overall intake of soluble fiber, antiinflammatory foods (e.g. omega3 rich oils, berries, avocado, green tea, oranges, almonds, walnuts, olive oil, etc), and moderation on fried foods and animal-based saturated fats (which raise those LDLs @exchemist mentioned). Eat well, in this way, and a couple eggs won't matter. How about for breakfast: an egg, oatmeal with berries and walnuts, and an orange? And go easy on whole milk, or substitute a plant milk.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/09/asia/japan-zoo-gibbon-pregnancy-mystery-intl-hnk/index.html Japanese zookeepers believe they have solved the mystery of how a gibbon became pregnant despite living alone in her cage. Momo, a 12-year-old white-handed gibbon, shocked her keepers at the Kujukushima Zoo and Botanical Garden in Nagasaki in February 2021 when she gave birth despite having no known male companionship. Now two years later, following a DNA test on her baby, the zoo has worked out who the father is – and even has a theory about how the gibbons mated....

The question of genetic predispositions towards personality traits, sociopathy, etc is another thread, right? Most people are not antisocial, and will assume duties of care presented as that society's ethos. Some have an "overachiever" personality trait and may extend their active care beyond what's required, other are "slackers," and will see if they can get away with some neglect (often with justifications along the lines of "I'm just one person, not much I can do" or "that's government's job.") To me, a classic contrast in the US attends the nuisance task of recycling. Some, if their city only has a few centers with dumpsters to take your recyclables to, will be happy to sort their stuff, pack it into the car, and haul it there. They feel good, doing something good for the larger community and environment. Others chuck everything in regular trash, can't be bothered, and say "the city needs to give us all curbside bins, period!" (often the same people who say, "clean air, pfft! I'll get a greener car when Big Auto makes one in my price range and my precise specs. I'll get a bike when they've got their own special pathways and the boss installs showers at work and allows casual dress and blah blah blah...") Some people do seem to have a larger sense of collective action and benefit than others. And this also relates to how much one buys into the way capitalism peddles "convenience" as a commodity. Americans are subjected to pernicious levels of this, as if having everything be as easy as possible were some ultimate virtue.

I have read some speculation that the greater proximity to the surface allows the antenna array to pick up weaker signals - especially short-distance line-of-sight communications that are used by the military. Even if they can't crack the encryption, just knowing the location and duration of the squirts, and their timing, can reveal a lot. (from unidentified Pentagon source that spoke to CNN): The balloon's spyware payload, the size of a regional jetliner, had "multiple antennas to include an array likely capable of collecting and geo-locating communications." There is also this, from David DeRoches, a professor at the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies at the National Defense University in Washington, DC. -- He told Al Jazeera the Chinese balloon shot down by the US could also have been used to “gather information on what kind of signals [the US is] using to track it, so it could possibly identify and classify radar hits … which could be of interest if the Chinese wanted to actually launch an attack.” Stuff you can't get from a Pine Gap + satellites type setup, IOW. And also, obviously, the relatively slow speed of a balloon v LEO satellite, and greater proximity will also yield clearer images of ground objects of interest. (and geosynchronous satellites are at an even greater distance, and so their imaging can be pretty foggy)