StringJunky

1 minute ago, Alfred001 said:

The claim about other ABs causing cancer is based on two studies alone. The nurse study and the clarithromycin study. The CLA study looked at all cause mortality, not cancer and the epidemiological studies they reference lack data on dose and duration, so I don't know what the basis is for the claim about the safety of a short course of metro.

Can I ask why you are so invested in this subject? It seems to be beyond intellectual curiosity.

Ranitidine, amoxicillin plus metronidazole  are what discoverer of the H. pylorii cause of peptic used in his pioneering work. It has clearly continued to have efficacy over forty years later.

Quote

SUMMARY
After preliminary studies in 1981, Marshall and Warren conducted a study in
which the new bacterium, Helicobacter pylori, was cultured. In that series, 100%
of 13 patients with duodenal ulcer were found to be infected. The hypothesis
that peptic ulcer was caused by a bacterial infection was not accepted without
a fi ght. Most experts believed that Helicobacter was a harmless commensal infecting people who had ulcers for some other reason. In response, Marshall
drank a culture of Helicobacter to prove that the bacteria could infect a healthy
person and cause gastritis. The truth behind peptic ulcers was revealed; i.e.
very young children acquired the Helicobacter organism, a chronic infection
which caused a lifelong susceptibility to peptic ulcers. Marshall developed
new treatments for the infection and diagnostic tests which allowed the
hypothesis to be evaluated and proven. After 1994 Helicobacter was generally
accepted as the cause of most gastroduodenal diseases including peptic ulcer
and gastric cancer. As a result of this knowledge, treatment is simply performed and stomach surgery has become a rarity.

https://www.nobelprize.org/uploads/2018/06/marshall-lecture.pdf

12 hours ago, Eise said:

That is true. That is the reason that I take 'usefulness' as criterion for a good definition of free will.

How would you call then the opposite of a coerced action?

I agree. AFAIK, from the scientists here over the years, utility is pretty high on the list.

1 hour ago, sethoflagos said:

Yes, but his 'incoming' was 10^oC so 600W is more than enough for him for that room.

 

I guess we're both old enough to remember unheated bedrooms with ice on the inside of the windows. Mine became a town centre car park in the 70's.

Yes, 4c above an ambient of 10c. One of the joys of single-planed windows was 'Jack  Frost's' work on them in the 60's and 70's. My earliest memory was tiptoeing on the stones laid in grass to the toilet (outhouse) at the end of the garden and relieving my bladder on iced water. Bath times were in front of the fire in a galvanized tin bath in the winter,  otherwise it was in the square ceramic sink where Mum did the washing. Kitchen was a single-paned 'conservatory' extension with red tiles laid on dirt. Fun times.,

39 minutes ago, sethoflagos said:

With respect, when I use the phrase 'standard target' I mean the middle of a range specified by the internationally recognised industrial design standards relating to a broad range of HVAC applications that I've been contractually bound to observe in the course of my professional working career. I do NOT mean 'the first bit of bs I found via google'.

These standards are in general not available outside of a paywall, so what source exactly would you wish me to quote? (My employers generally take my CV as sufficient authority. Would you prefer me to attach that? 🤨)

Electronic gear etc is not 'people'. Similarly, I've worked with slightly different ranges for long term paper products storage etc. The OP case is the OP case. @StringJunky is not likely to swell and crinkle when the air gets a little damp I trust.

My knowledge is very limited in this area and this thread is a lesson for me on factors to consider. I very much appreciate everyone's input.

33 minutes ago, sethoflagos said:

Define 'comfort'

Okay, that's an unusally low temperature. Recommended humidity for occupied rooms is 40%-60% RH because reasons.

Air @ 10^oC and 100% RH contains 9.4 g/m³ moisture (calculator here)

Air @ 15^oC containing 9.4 g/m³ moisture is @ 73.3%  RH (same resource)

If its a contractual obligation job, then dehumidification seems obligatory. However, there are other considerations to bear in mind.

Maybe 73% RH is tolerable to you in which case, a modest addition of dry heat would do the job. Same if the initial humidity was more like 85%

If the room is humid only because of your breathing/perspiration and it's less humid outside then maybe all that's needed is a small fan to increase the ventilation rate a bit. Most typical occupied spaces are best served with ~7 air changes per hour or they can get a bit clammy. (Up to double that figure for say a computer room)

People are walking humidifiers emitting 6-7 MJ/day largely as moisture saturated warm air so there's major shifts in emphasis when dealing with small, busy rooms versus large sparsely occupied ones. 

Guess it's down to the individual. Personally, I find 50% a bit on the dry side these days, but it is the standard target for the HVAC industry etc (eg industry source)

600W of dry heat input would make a room this size quite warm quite quickly.

 

I checked the site and it does indeed say that.  Absolute nonsense.

These values are what would be required to prevent condensation on say the inside of a single-glazed window. Following this guidance would be a health hazard for any occupants. 

Thanks, Seth.

42 minutes ago, TheVat said:

GAZA = BAKERSFIELD

Was curious how small Gaza is, given the frequent and quite credible use of the word crammed to describe conditions of the people there.

140 square miles.   So it is the size of Bakersfield CA.  Bakersfield has 400,000 people, who can come and go from there, and is surrounded by accessible open land and a nation which it is part of.  Gaza has 2.2 million people, penned in like animals.  And they are currently confined to about half of that land area, due to the wholesale destruction of North Gaza.  So it is currently a state with about ten times the population density of Bakersfield.  In its better days,  it was five times.

Its largest city, Gaza City, was more tightly packed than New York City, with more than 650,000 people living within its 18 square miles. Gaza City had triple the population density of Washington DC, twice the density of San Francisco.  These other cities, of course, have orders of magnitude more wealth and infrastructure tailored to handling a dense population and robust supply chains bringing in food and amenities.

So this leads me to wonder, as bombing has now resumed by Israel, of the southern part of Gaza, where are all these civilians supposed to flee to while the war continues.

 

And they want to make it even smaller by creating a buffer zone in Gaza from Israel. 

3 hours ago, studiot said:

Yes I agree with your example, with the following caveats.

Initially your free will is employing the materialistic forces of Nature to direct the course of the boat.
At some point your direction ceases and the boat's course is then directed by the forces of Nature alone.

However I would contend that from that point the course is probabilistic, not deterministic.

Yes, I agree  that there are strong probabilistic elements as well.  When a sodium atom meets a water molecule is probabilistic, but what happens with them when they collide, it is deterministic.

I found some numbers from a heating firm on most comfortable humidity levels at given temperatures.

For an outdoor temperature over 50˚F, indoor humidity levels shouldn’t exceed 50%
With an outdoor temperature over 20˚F, indoor humidity levels shouldn’t exceed 40%
Outdoor temperature between 10˚F and 20˚F, indoor humidity levels shouldn’t exceed 35%
For an outdoor temperature between 0˚F and 10˚F, indoor humidity levels shouldn’t exceed 30%
Outdoor temperature between -10˚F and 0˚F, indoor humidity levels shouldn’t exceed 25%
With an outdoor temperature between -20˚F and -10˚F, indoor humidity levels shouldn’t exceed 20%
Outdoor temperature at -20˚F or lower, indoor humidity levels shouldn’t exceed 15%

https://lauryheating.com/ideal-home-humidity/

13 minutes ago, studiot said:

So where exactly does she not have free will ?

And what exactly is the deterministic process by which I can predict that she will fail ?

 

But thanks for the answer.

Imagine being by a pond with a small toy boat. You pushing the boat is your expression of freewill, but once that boat has left your hands, the deterministic, scientific forces takeover. The notion of having freewill needn't be constant. The way I look at free will: it is the ability to intercept ones mental processes that were founded elsewhere outside of cognition.

20 minutes ago, studiot said:

I still don't see anyone taking me up on this and explaining why this is not an example of free will.

Quote

She may be able to pass that exam at the end of the course, but at the beginning  she can only wish.

It is, but the outcome may not be what she wants. Just because you want something, doesn't mean one will realize it. That doesn't negate the free choice made beforehand.

7 hours ago, iNow said:

Of course. The world would no longer be wrong if only they agreed with ME and MY personally preferred definitions of words. The problem is THEY are using the wrong views and need to think MY way.  

"Someone's wrong on the internet".   

On 11/29/2023 at 11:46 PM, TheVat said:

Stopped feeding them - seriously?  You make them sound like stray cats.  If you didn't intend a racist slur on these people, then perhaps you should learn some of their history.

These people owned and ran farms and grew olives and dates and other cash crops.  They sustained themselves for generations and then were driven off their lands and shoved into a tiny space without consent or due process of law.  They didn't go there because Israel "made it nice."  The Naqba ravaged their lives and means of economic autonomy and created a misery and anger that comes from that genuine condition and is amped up by each new round of brutality and heavy civilian casualties that Israel's many attacks  have brought, and the ongoing degradation of being shoved into horrible conditions of overcrowding and restricted rights and various embargos.

It's rather like someone knocking you down, putting their boot on your face and whenever you punch at their leg they cry, Look!  Look how awful a person he is!  He is a vicious leg puncher!  No wonder I have to keep this boot here!  Oy!

"Down with antisemitism!":

There is a short video of a Zionist  railing on two Anti-Zionist (proper Talmud-respecting Jews) Jews in the link.

On 8/28/2023 at 7:56 PM, CharonY said:

There is also globalization, which on the one hand puts great food on our tables, but often on the backs of those who produce them. It is a hugely complicated mess, but this is often the space where folks seek simple answers. 

I think a big driver is also that the industries are building for obsolescence and low cost (e.g. clothing) in order to maximize profit. It is often cheaper to buy rather than to repair (not to mention more convenient). And considering that it is also often cheaper to ship things to different countries to assemble and/or process things, the cost savings add up to a lot of environmental cost that we offload to future generations. And I know that a lot of hypocrisy is involved here as I am sitting in a AC-cooled environment in front of a computer and surrounded by affordable electronics (not to mention coffee).

The obsolescence is inevitable, given the rate of technological change. When society designs things, it should focus more on the inevitable post-service life and reducing the number of processes it takes to make its components useful again. 

13 minutes ago, iNow said:

In large part, this is our own damned fault since we as a culture tend so often in large massive numbers to idolatrize wealth.

Aye. 

In the words of the great social commentator Shania Twain: Ka-ching!

Cash and silicone; the path to influence.

4 minutes ago, John Cuthber said:

Possibly because the reason why that area is misty is because it is cold.
Why else would there be mist there, but not elsewhere?

But what happens when the cold is sustained; it precipitates out and you are left with dry air. Dry-cold air is subjectively warmer than wet-cold air.

31 minutes ago, swansont said:

Perhaps we can dispense with the notion that he’s a genius, and stop paying attention to his nonsensical ramblings. 

Money attracts money and once it reached a certain critical mass, it's gravy all the way. Recipients then become full of their own importance, even on matters where they have no real skills.

I get bored with false dichotomies. But that's the way our minds work, isn't it? We instinctively seek clear delineations (boxes) to explain what we observe. The brain abhors fuzziness and uncertainty.

31 minutes ago, TheVat said:

That seems true for when it's hot.  But it seems like humidity also heightens chill when temps are below a comfortable room temp.  I notice this visiting children in another state where it's far more humid.  10 C there feels colder than 10 C does here.  And in summer 30 feels hotter there than it does here.  

Walk from a clear area into a mist, you feel the heat draining off you. A sustained period of low temps condenses the air from a previously warmer period; temperatures are always in transition and the atmospheric ensemble plays catch up.

1 hour ago, TheVat said:

It's semiarid here, near the Wyoming border, so it's never all that humid and, going by the hygrometer I've got on the piano, the transition is fairly gradual.  It's 18 C atm, in that room, and 22% humidity.  So raising that would be a plus.  Some here opt for humidification built into their furnace.  Though, as pointed out, that can increase perceived chill.   

I think Americans overheat their homes and buildings, by European/UK standards.  The numbers people are giving here as norms would strike many of my compatriots as on the chilly side.  

 

Yeah, 22% would dry out my throat and dry out more my already dry skin. In this country, mould is quite ubiquitous when people warm their houses and don't ventilate regularly. I can't think of many people that have air-con like you seem to have your side.

9 minutes ago, John Cuthber said:

It's complicated but for most people (unless they are doing a lot of physical work, 10 degrees will be too cold.
And that will be the case regardless of humidity.

If you just heat up the air the relative humidity will fall and that will also add to comfort.
The "wasted" energy from a dehumidifier will warm the room and be beneficial anyway.
But a heater is cheaper to buy.

There are books about this.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermal_comfort

Thanks, JC. 

43 minutes ago, swansont said:

From what I’ve read, desiccant dehumidifiers are less energy-efficient than refrigerator types.

Right. I bought it because, apparently, it was the type most suitable for dehumidifying in the lower temperature range; sub 20's. My comfort range is about 12-15c, if the humidity is not too high. Sat down I'll be in a jumper, but if I'm active a t-shirt is fine.

@studiot Thanks for sharing your experience.  Do you think in some circumstances it makes more sense to deal with humidity rather than a low temperature. My thinking is, the heavier the air, the more efficient heat transfer is from skin to the immediate environment, so, making one colder.

4 hours ago, TheVat said:

I think humid air has two benefits in the cool season, one is comfort for skin and upper respiratory tract, the other is that humider air would have a bit more thermal capacity and reduce the number of heating cycles (I think most systems work more efficiently with longer spaced out cycles).  That's a guess, needs fact checking.  And I'm writing from a locale with distressingly dry winter air, where upping humidity is always desirable.  

Do you have a long seasonal transition period of high humidity with low temperatures, where you are, before the humidity plummets?

53 minutes ago, swansont said:

Depends on what’s comfortable. 

90% relative humidity at 10 C will be 50% at 20 C. There’s about 9g/m^3 water; it takes 4.18 J/g to heat the water. Still, 50% isn’t particularly comfortable.

If you want to reduce the humidity, you will have to condense water out of it. That means cooling it a few degrees and having the water condense, the reheating the air. Condensation takes 2259 J per gram. 

Removing the water takes a lot of energy. 

My portable dehumidifier is a desiccant type. The air that comes out is probably 3 or 4c higher in a 15' x 10' space. Consumption is 600w. Would 600w be fairly economical to makew the space what I call autumnal temperature; 14c. I  find it striking that people go through Autumn here with no heating, then come the proper cold, they whack  it up 6c higher or more than they were happy with the prior two months.

10 minutes ago, AIkonoklazt said:

 

What both of you said are true. However, models have this "permanently temporary" status of sorts. You have models that are more or less reliable and useful than others, but ultimately there's no completion.

Nahp, this classical example is a bit more impressive: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/superbowlindicator.asp

If you prefer to use hundreds of words when a simple few seconds of a video will do ... fill your boots.