partial_accumen

I like the end result that ISPs are pushing back on this, but don’t mistake this for altruism on their part.

Their businesses make money selling internet service. Were they to support cutting off those accused of piracy, they would be losing paying customers. Further, the business processes and support needed for this to function would be massively expensive and complicated. They’d have to hired teams of people and write whole new software applications for maintaining databases of banned users, customer service staff to address and resolve disputes, and so much more.

Lastly, as soon as all of that process would be in place to ban users for piracy accusations, then the next requests would come in for ban criteria in a classic slippery slope:

• pornography
• discussions of drugs
• discussions of politics the party in power doesn’t like
• speaking out against the state
• communication about assembling
• discussion on how to emigrate

All the machinery would be in place once the very first ban is approved.

The rate isn’t too bad actually, but when your household is a larger consumer anyway and you’re charging 2 EVs consumption gets up there. We have also switched to an induction stove, heat pump water heater, added a heat pump dryer, and just recently had our gas furnace ripped out and a cold climate heat pump put in for the HVAC.

With all of that the electricity usage the bill goes up, but we can wipe it out with solar and now we don’t have natural gas bills or gasoline costs for transportation. The up front costs can be high with this approach, but the monthly bills are nearly non-existent.

The rate around here is now down to $0.22/kWh. We were occasionally getting electricity bills around $400/month at worst, but we haven’t had an electrical bill since April of this year with our solar panels on the roof now.

Yep, for decades. They used to be much larger consuming the space of a large table. Now they are small units like this:

Just search for “surface mount rework” or the nickname “hot air pencil”.

Immortality

Immortality seems like a good idea, but there’s going to be a LONG time from when the last living thing dies out to the heat death of the universe where you’ll finally join non-existance. EONs of nothing to do likely floating in a vacuum or being trapped on all sides by rock/debris. No thanks.

I always thought the “fix” to a traditional soldiering iron was a hot air pencil.

Sorry for the long story, just sitting here late in bed not knowing what I should do.

First, don’t put much weight in what me, as an internet stranger, is saying.

I do see a psychiatrist

That’s a much better source of advice.

However, if it were me, I would not have him in my life. You have your own family and likely career. Imagine what he might do to both of those things. You said he has accused you of physically abusing him. Could you imagine him showing up at your employer saying those things and how that would affect your life? From what you’re describing he hasn’t changed a bit over all of these years. If you feel absolutely driven to do something for him, offer to pay for him to see a therapist. However, I don’t recommend even this. I’m reminded of the quote:

“When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.” - Maya Angelou

He’s chosen his path in life. Don’t let his poor choices negatively affect your life and your wife.

On multi-lane merge ramps is the guy in the right lane signalling his left blinker because his steering wheel is turned or is he planning to dive into your lane before the merge?

Only 4% of marketers overall think X ads provide “brand safety” — certainty that their ads won’t appear alongside extreme content —

The 4% may represent lumpy pillow manufacturers, sellers of freeze dried survival food, random cryptocurrency products, and Trump 2024 flag/tshirt providers.

The spokesperson added that X’s “brand safety rate is on average 99%, as validated by DoubleVerify and Integral Ad Science,” companies that analyze the value of digital advertising placements.

“But that 1% remaining will have your products featured next to ads denying the holocaust, hate speech against LGBTQ+ communities, and ads discrediting proven science in favor of, oh I don’t know, phrenology or something” -the spokesperson probably

I thought exactly the same thing. If they’re not a 3D printed rocket company then they’re just another of a field of rocket companies? Why would a customer choose them. The article enlightened me to who:

In a private letter to “investors, advisors, and friends” summarizing the company’s operations after the first half of 2024, Relativity said it currently has a backlog of $2.6 billion in commercial launches and is in discussion or has signed a contract with many major megaconstellation providers (but not SpaceX). Ellis would not confirm this, but multiple people have told Ars that Relativity recently signed a deal for multiple launches with Amazon’s Project Kuiper constellation.

There is at least $2.6 billion worth of customer that wants a SpaceX like launch product, but is unwilling to buy from an Elon Musk company. With how toxic Musk’s behavior is these days, I could see that customer market growing. The US government is putting LOTS of payloads into orbit in SpaceX’s Falcon 9 because there’s nothing even close to it in price and performance. If Relativity can even get close to Falcon 9, they’ll almost certainly pick up a large chunk of US payload contracts as the government doesn’t like to have a single supplier for nation security reasons.

To people joining this thread later asking where a commercial product of this is, or pointing out that 10% solar efficiency is way below other existing products, you’re missing the point.

This is basic research to prove one single aspect of solar panel construction. That question apparently was: “We currently know that PET backsheets work for solar panels, but can we use a different material which may have less CO2 impact and still produce a working solar panel?” The answer being “yes”. That is a big step that other people doing other research and product development can build on. It may be years (or never!) that a product comes to market with sisal fiber backsheets, but the answers from the work done here are integrated into the body of knowledge that will produce the next improvement in solar panels.

Anyone advocating for Palestinians is better served finding pro-Israeli voters and showing them the brutality of the IDF.

I worry that showing the brutality of the IDF would actually encourage those voters to double down because they like what they see. Perhaps a better way is show the humanity of the Palestinian civilians.

I remember when I was growing up, tech industry has so many people that were admirable

Perhaps you were too young to understand who these people were:

• Bill Gates dominated the PC world with aggressive business tactics and vendor lock in.
• Larry Ellison bought up his competitors and jack up prices on databsae products owning the industry for more than a decade.
• Steve Jobs lied and cheated his investors, his family, and his closest friends to benefit himself.

Tom was a good guy, but possibly because he took his fortune and left tech. There were very few admirable leaders.

Soap is just “vaccine-lite”. /s

• Your body is now “out of warranty”. When it breaks in a significant way, it may never get fully better. Don’t do stupid stuff that will break it in those ways.
• If you haven’t figured out yet that you can’t drink, party, or skip sleep like you did earlier in life, learn it quick. Each of these will have a much larger impact on you.
• If you don’t have your retirement savings on track now, you have a VERY VERY short window to correct that. Its going to be much harder now to put the money aside than it would have earlier in life, but you’re in the prime earning years of your life. I would think you will earn more now in the next 10-12 years or so than you will/would have in any 10-12 years of your life.
• Hopefully you’ve learned by now to be comfortable with yourself in your own skin. This means not doing things/buying things to impress other people. You are who you are. This doesn’t mean stop learning or improving yourself, but nobody is going to be impressed with a 40+ year old driving an amazing car. It doesn’t matter how amazing the car is.
• Support younger people. You didn’t get where you are on your own. You had help, advice, and your mistakes were forgiven by those older than you because of your youth. Now its your turn to do that for the younger people. You grew up seeing heroes around you. You are now the hero in a younger person’s eyes. Hold that duty sacred. Be their hero in how you act.
• Embrace change! No, things aren’t like they used to be. No, they shouldn’t necessarily go back to those things just to make you comfortable. Its not our world anymore, it belongs to the younger generations. Understand your ways could be out-of-date or backwards. Your old ways worked for you in that old world. That old world is gone. Be part of the new. You’ll have to do this two or three more times before you die if you live into your 80s or 90s.
• Stay fit. That doesn’t mean body builder or supermodel. It means be moderately active so that picking something up doesn’t cause a strain injury that will take you 6 months to a year to recover from. You shouldn’t be out of breath walking up stairs. If you are, make changes. You’re likely already seeing the difference in your peers with those that stayed fit vs those that didn’t. Be part of the first group, not the second. If you are in the second group, you can change to the first by taking care of your body and eating properly.
• Make a will. You will die and there is nothing you can do to stop it. Dying without having a will makes some of your assets evaporate in probate and may mean your money/assets go to people you may not want.
• Go to the goddamn doctor for wellness checkups! You’re entering the time of life where conditions found early are treatable. Don’t dying/become disabled because you were too lazy or afraid to go. Yes, some of the things are going to be uncomfortable, but I can tell you its much more comfortable than debilitating pain or death.

You might look at the list above and think it negative for you now. Its not at all. This is the prize for living to this age. You likely have some friend or family that died before 40. You are here to see this part of your life. Make sure you’re still here to see 50, 60, 70, with as much of your body and mind as you can.

Good luck!