2023-12-23
(I don’t know for sure if I’ll do a post next week, as it’s very near the end of the year and I may be busy, particularly if I am able to walk again after my cast comes off)
Readings
LLNL has replicated, on the path to nuclear fusion, earlier net-positive-energy-release experiments a few more times: https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/20/climate/nuclear-fusion-energy-breakthrough-replicate-climate/index.html
Improvements in 3d printing shapes that have deformation-reached variant shapes: https://phys.org/news/2023-12-swift-d-shape-memory-polymers.html
I’ve noticed when I speak another language, particularly Japanese but also some others, my speech patterns change; interesting to see an explainer on this. The way I think of (my) Japanese speech production is that it’s packing mora into a queue whichget some final blending and then rushed out; I pause more mid-sentence in English.
Swallowable vibrating capsules to produce feelings of fullness and combat obesity (not yet tested in humans, but promising): https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-12-vibrating-ingestible-capsule-obesity.html
A better understanding of the progress of Alzheimer’s: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-12-alzheimer-dementia-oldest.html
Why use of Chinese characters in Korea and Japan took different directions:
Cold-weather outfits for a city in Siberia:
A breakdown of some common beginner-level Chinese phrases:
Historical human settlements and geography of northwest Australia: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277379123004663
Thoughts
I’m not sure if this (
) is actually North Korean propoganda, but assuming it is, while some bits of it are funny, some (few) of the critiques of American society actually are true, namely the policy on homelessness, which is where a lot of the images come from. If we’re to actually look at the US (and some other western countries) through a look at the very least well-off, it doesn’t look great - the homeless live badly here, and while they are a small percentage of society, they’re not a negligible percentage. The path out of that state is not short or simple.
I recently decided to stop using Wikia/Fandom sites entirely, and to actually make sure that I do, I installed a browser extension called Ublock Origin, writing a custom policy blocking *.fandom.com - this does the job, because I often reach wiki sites via a google search and fandom often gets first billing even for wikis that have migrated elsewhere; the rump site remains prominent in search engines.
Current Events
The Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, with western funding for Ukraine’s defense uncertain due to politics. EU countries are looking to sell Russian confiscated assets, as the US increases financial sanctions. Military forces continue to trade blows over former cities in zones of contention.
Israel continues to pummel Gaza in the flare-up of violence over the Israeli-Palestine conflict, as casualties mount and international pressure rises for a second ceasefire or cessation. The IDF claims to have dismantled several Hamas facilities over the last week
The results of the “elections” in Egypt were announced, with el-Sisi reelected with 90% of the vote
The civil war in Yemen may be over as the government and the Houthis have agreed to a UN-managed ceasefire process; it’s unclear how this will impact recent attacks on shipping from the Houthis (related to the current Israeli operations)
China has sent naval vessels near the Republic of Taiwan to intimidate voters for upcoming elections, while its attempt to illegitimately claim waters near the Philippines has lead to increased tensions over specific clashes
Voters in Chile rejected another attempt at a new constitution, likely putting and end for now to attempts by various right and left wing groups to do so
Pope Bergoglio has instructed the Roman Catholic church to permit offering in some circumstances a blessing for same-sex partnerships, offering what looks from the outside to be a compromise on gay marriage
Serbia held parliamentary elections, with slight gains for the largest party SNS (right-leaning populists) taking them to almost half of parliament, and consolidation of the opposition behind SPN (wide coalition) getting them to about a quarter of parliament
A presidential election was held in DR-Congo, with no results in but the current president expected to retain office
Content
Recently I’ve been streaming some Noita and Minecraft on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/pgunn01
Polls
Marist did a poll about American views on the future ( https://maristpoll.marist.edu/polls/outlook-for-2024/ ) ; while I’m less concerned about my finances, I am pessimistic about the political future of the United States because the state of our democracy and society is very unhealthy, significantly due to populism on the right and the left. The dangers are different and not equal, but both are significant and very worrying. Right-leaning populism seems enthused about revenge, unenthused about voting and democracy, and infatuated with an unworthy hero. Left-leaning populism seems enthused about elevating unhealthy social ideas in workplaces and elsewhere, from hatred of police to love of drag queens and policing language. Finding ways to curb both negative impulses is difficult, and important international norms really could use us defending them rather than us being distracted by soul-searching
Unsurprisingly, Palestinians and Israelis are both depressed ( https://news.gallup.com/poll/547760/life-israel-oct-charts.aspx ) about their futures too, with formerly popular two-state routes now as chances for peace seems unlikely. I don’t know what to do about this except hope to lower the temperature of conflict and to minimise conservative voices on both sides of the conflict (what I call conservative may not line up with what others do)
Some bright news - Pew shows that apparently a majority of Americans have a friend of a different religion ( https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/12/19/a-majority-of-americans-have-a-friend-of-a-different-religion/ ), which I think is healthy; bonds of friendship or family are often the easiest route towards mutual understanding, which doesn’t and shouldn’t always mean agreement but at least makes disagreements less stupid and often less vicious.
Reviewlets
The Last Ringbearer (parody fantasy novel) - This is a parody/sequel to Lord of the Rings that’s easiest to find online (due to intellectual property issues), of the “let’s offer a morally inverted and justified critique of a celebrated work of fiction” variety. It’s surprisingly deep in its critique of Tolkien, and well worth reading.
Sofia Pizza Shoppe (Manhattan pizza shop) - Another great pizza place in Manhattan that I stumbled across while looking for more places to try, they offer delicious deep-dish pizzas that sadly often don’t survive the delivery process (when refrigerated and reheated, the quality goes down to just good)
Noita (video game) - I’ve been playing this off-and-on for awhile; it’s a die-often semi-randomly-generated sidescrolling game with deep physics simulation that despite not resembling true roguelikes at all, shares a lot of their difficulty-and-learning DNA. I don’t know if I’ll ever beat it, but I’m slowly getting better (and further).
Amusements
Sheep seem badly misdesigned:
Wassail, an apple-based holiday drink and tradition from earlier times (I first heard about this as part of KOL, a parody/meme based video game, and didn’t realise it was real):
Funny watching people review Everclear (go find other videos for some laughs):
Digging into the design of a very small microphone:
Flying robots to fight fires: https://techxplore.com/news/2023-12-scientists-flying-dragon-robot-distance.html
Recent Music
Dark Ocean Summoning - Old Gods of Asgard - Another song from Alan Wake 2, it’s a power ballad used for the ending of one side of the game and, for someone like me who’s not normally into this kind of music, a good argument for why this musical genre is fun.
beLIEver - Rezodrone - Not a complex song, but it feels like a good take on mid-90s goth-industrial tunes.
La Seine - Vanessa Paradis - Chanson with western vibes, an even simpler song that I think is a traditional tune