MigL

Nice, simple, understandable explanation, @exchemist . Now, do you want to explain why the price of gold, the other commodity you mentioned, is in free fall ? ( the fact that all commodities are tied to the US Dollar )

I've made it to 67; I'm surprised you made it past puberty.

He's got a plan to get out of Iran too ... He's already drafting plans to distract people with an invasion of Cuba. This is the first Presidency where day-to-day news of the Administration's actions would be a joke if they weren't so seriously affecting the world.

What do you mean ? According to D Trump, this is the second time they've beaten Iran in less than a year. Just last summer they completely destroyed and obliterated ( contrary to his own Intelligence services ) Iran's ability to make nuclear weapons, but Iran is so advanced they were able to rebuild, and threaten the world again, in a few short months !!! Similarly, that little girl will come back to threaten his Presidency real soon.

The term 'dark' is a descriptor signifying we can observe the effects, but we don't know the cause. The effects are accelerating expansion and anomalous gravitational effects that don't fit the Newtonian model. These effects indicate an unknown energy, and an unknown mass other than the visible, as the causes. So, in really simple terms, unknown energy = dark energy, and, unknown mass = dark matter. We do know that matter, with the property of mass, couples with space-time as per GR, and that affects expansion ( no expansion where gravity, or non-trivial space-time curvature, binds masses together ) but I don't see how that equates to 'freedom of movement' or regions of space where relativity does not apply.

Neurogenesis, the addition of new neurons to the human brain, peaks during development, then holds fairly constant until early middle age, then starts declining into old age. Neurons, being the human CPUs and RAM, are a simplistic measure of capacity for intellect. "From Google "Factors Impacting Age-Related Decline Stem Cell Depletion: A decline in the number of neural stem cells (NSCs). Environmental Cues: Older brains offer less support for stem cell maturation (fewer growth factors like EGF/FGF). Increased Neuroinflammation: Age-dependent increase in proteins like VCAM!" and "How to Support Neurogenesis with Age Exercise: Known to encourage angiogenesis (new blood vessels) and neurogenesis in the hippocampus. Mental Activity: High-intensity cognitive engagement and learning new skills. Lifestyle Factors: Healthy diet and avoiding chronic stress." Anything else you wish to know can probably be found with a sensible search, and of course, a little bit of critical thinking. I'm 67, and I don't 'body-build' but I do work out, my job and my hobbies do support a level of mental activity, and while I typically favor a 'Mediterranean' diet, it is a little heavy on bread and pasta ( what can I say; I'm of Italian descent ), and I have a hard time avoiding stress. If there is anything else you wish to know relating to my reading ability, feel free to ask more dumb questions.

I wonder if all the people ( farmers, jobless auto workers, immigrants, soldiers, middle class sick people, etc ) who are now saying "I didn't vote for this" will take time to get the facts and study the issues before the next election. They may be the new 'independents'.

You cannot turm fat to muscle, nor muscle to fat. ( although you can eat a huge 'muscular' steak and get fatter if you don't exercise ) However, when you stop exercising, muscles atrophy through disuse, and your proportion of body fat increases. Further, if you still consume the same amount of calories as you did when you used to exercise, you will not only increase the proportion of fat to muscle, but also add additional fat deposits. ( this is where the common adage that 'muscle turns to fat' comes from, Stringy )

I always thought the Seljuk Turk empire, of which Persia was part of, was Sunni Muslim. The last remaining part of that empire was Rum ( derived from Rome ), present day Turkiye, and the origin of the Ottoman empire. How then did Persia ( present day Iran ) become Shiite Muslim ?

All of those factors may help in slowing decline of cognitive function, but they will not increase any intelligence you start with. I believe the posted article states that "mental stimulation, physical exercise, proper nutrition, and lifestyle habits that enhance cognitive function and protect against decline" You're obviously not a bodybuilder ...

Since you're asking about Democrats/Republicans, I assume you mean Americans. The easiest way is to ask what they think of D Trump; if they 'gush' about him, they are bat-shit crazy, and most likely Republicans. In most other counties where the population isn't rabid about their politics, it is much harder to differentiate between Liberals and Conservatives. We care about the issues, not the party ( or their leader ). I, for example, have voted Liberal and Conservative in Canada, and once even NDP ( Socialist ); I consider myself a social Liberal and a fiscal Conservative.

On the other hand, I don't think the Imams of the Iranian leadership had any fear of being further exposed by the Epstein files. They had enough enriched Uranium to make approx. 11 bombs, but it was only enriched to 60%, not weapon grade: and that is a big step. They admitted this to the American negotiators. There is also the rumor that the negotiators, S Witkoff and J Kushner ( with whose family B Netanyahu used to stay when he visited New York ), were tasked with getting the ruling Iranian Council all together in one known place, so they could all be taken out with one strike. Still, the way they treat their people is abhorrent, and I'm not the least bit sad for their deaths. But I don't actually believe they are 'end of times' religious fanatics either; they are adept at controlling their people with the religious institution, and plenty of violence when that fails. D Trump thought this was a win-win situation. Take control of another country's oil, as he did in Venezuela. Distract his base from Epstein files revelations and the economy, plus avoid impeachment, and possible jail time. Shore up 'patriotism' under a 'war-time' President. Further erode the powers oh House and Senate by showing that he can do whatever he wants to do. But he's stupid and didn't realize how badly things would turn out. B Netanyahu has his own agenda. He's been wanting to do this for 40 years. Hr needs to stay in power to avoid persecution and jail time, and the people keep re-electing him because of his willingness to 'protect' them by going to war. He saw the American President as one who could be easily manipulated, and forced his hand ( as M Rubio let the 'cat out of the bag' 2 days after the attacks. Its too bad American, Israeli, Lebanese, other neighboring countries, and Iranian lives have to be sacrificed as these men try to push their ideologies, hide their crimes, and empower/enrich themselves.

I'll have to agree with @joigus Whereas The Iranian Religious leadership believes the fundamental crap about the 'end times', and tries to convert as many nutbars as they can to their apocalyptic views, The American leadership is only using the ruse of fundamentalist religion to influence as many American nutbars as they can. But make no mistake, American leaders only pretend at religion, fundamental or otherwise; the altar they worship at is the almighty dollar. ( frankly, I'm not sure which is worse )

Today I learned that Studiot bakes bread ...

Well, this does seem to throw a monkey wrench into the Heisenberg Compensators used to enable the transporters in Star Trek. I hope Swansont didn't have any input into the consultations for that explanation ...

I believe R Feynman may have been referring to the demise of Determinism in modern Physics. "Determinism is the philosophical view that all events, including human actions and decisions, are inevitable consequences of preceding causes and natural laws. It suggests that the past and present dictate a single, unavoidable future" Determinism - Wikipedia

But you've already made two posts/comments in this thread. Obviously not a man of your word. I, myself, think there could be a real market for noise cancelling underwear. To avoid those embarrassing situations in meetings, church, libraries, etc. after having beans for lunch.

Did you previously think all science jobs were as glamorous as yours ? There are some poor biologists whose job it is to masturbate race horses and prize bulls to obtain semen for artificial insemination. Thank God I didn't go into Biology ...

Euclid's 'The Elements' lists 5 Axioms ( which can easily be looked up, and related to Geometry ), and 5 'common notions', which are ... Things that are equal to the same thing are also equal to one another (the transitive property of a Euclidean relation). If equals are added to equals, then the wholes are equal (Addition property of equality). If equals are subtracted from equals, then the differences are equal (subtraction property of equality). Things that coincide with one another are equal to one another (reflexive property). The whole is greater than the part Is this what you mean ?

I believe that's what I said.

I thought it was funny. But not because Professor X is wheelchair bound; mostly because you're such a 'geek'. 😄 😆 🤣

Everybody pays taxes; If not income taxes, then consumption taxes. The American people just paid Billions of tariff taxes to a Government that imposed them illegally, and are now being told they can't reclaim them. The old adage is you can't escape death or taxes.

It makes perfect sense for Fascists ...

I believe in an expression made famous 250 years ago in Boston. "No Taxation without representation" IOW, if you pay Taxes, in any form, the Government works for you, and you have a say in how they govern. In a perfect world, this would mean everyone gets a vote. Preferably by choice, and competent electors would inform themselves of the issues before making their voting choices. But we know the world isn't perfect, so neither us Democracy. But it's still better than all other systems.

Kirk and Spock were only good together, either one, in isolation, was insufferable. In any society, the 'good of the many' has to be finely balanced with the 'good of the few ( or one )'. Getting that balance right is very tricky; we ( as a society ) seem to swing from either extreme to the other.