Random

Y'all, the world is sleeping on what NASA just pulled off with Voyager 1

The probe has been sending gibberish science data back to Earth, and scientists feared it was just the probe finally dying. You know, after working for 50 GODDAMN YEARS and LEAVING THE GODDAMN SOLAR SYSTEM and STILL CHURNING OUT GODDAMN DATA.

So they analyzed the gibberish and realized that in it was a total readout of EVERYTHING ON THE PROBE. Data, the programming, hardware specs and status, everything. They realized that one of the chips was malfunctioning.

So what do you do when your probe is 22 Billion km away and needs a fix? Why, you just REPROGRAM THAT ENTIRE GODDAMN THING. Told it to avoid the bad chip, store the data elsewhere.

Sent the new code on April 18th. Got a response on April 20th - yeah, it's so far away that it took that long just to transmit.

And the probe is working again.

From a programmer's perspective, that may be the most fucking impressive thing I have ever heard.

an article on the subject for the curious:

The programming on Voyager was so cutting edge when it was built. Learning about it was one of the most exciting days in undergrad.

"a degree in the humanities/ arts is useless, as opposed to a STEM degree" oh no no no no, you keep us out of this, stop throwing us like darts at the poor humanities students, we won't participate in this sad exhibition of your ignorance

we're ALL in debt together, you don't get to set us against each other

kind of obsessed with the idea of the rest of the gaang leaving Toph and Zuko to watch over some cooking food and when they come back its burned and Katara starts fuming but Toph and Zuko are like “we’ve never stepped inside a kitchen in our lives and only have one eye between us, if anything it’s your fault”

Top: If it bakes for 15 minutes at 350 degrees than it should only take 1 minute at 5,250 degrees

Zuko: I can do that

Zuko: makes the "one eye, your fault" comment

Toph: YOU ONLY HAVE ONE EYE?!

atla heritage post

via indiarosecrawford

Frog Paints a Water Lily Pond 🪷🎨🐸

𝑓ₒᵣ ⲕᵢ𝑛𝑔 ₐ𝑛𝑑 𝑐ₒ𝑡𝑡ₐ𝑔ₑ

Ok, I adore the Frogs to begin with, but the sheer finesse and dedication of this one boggles my mind.

Fun fact: Falling Fruit has a worldwide map where you can look to see if anyone has noted any fruit trees you can harvest near your location for free 🍎

Just wanted to add a little update because I’ve seen some comments and tags: this map is very much user generated, and it’s been running for a fairly long time!

Sometimes areas get developed or trees get removed or circumstances change which is super disappointing, but please don’t hesitate the map to reflect that so other people know that it’s no longer a viable site! Additionally, if you know of sites that aren’t on the map, adding them is a great way help out other people in your region who come across it.

As well as foragable materials, there’s also the option to add other resources as well such a seed libraries, community gardens, bike pumps, free stores/pantries, food banks, compost sites, guerilla gardens, water fountains, and other community resources.

Projects like this are amazing, but don’t forget that they work best when everyone collaborates!

TOMORROW IS HALLOWEEN!!!

WHAT THE FUCK IT’S CHRISTMAS EVE WHY DID SOMEONE REBLOG THIS

TOMORROW IS HALLOWEEN!!!

TOMORROW IS HALLOWEEN!!!

🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃

TOMORROW IS HALLOWEEN!!!

🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃

TOMORROW IS HALLOWEEN

I had a great interaction on bsky that used the term, "political cicada" and I decided to run with it.

just once I want to see a good post critiquing makeup culture that doesn’t turn out to be made by some janky radfem blog

oh hey!! I’m not a janky radfem I can do it myself!

makeup culture is wack and normalizes a ludicrously high bar as the bare minimum women can do. I saw a “lazy"makeup tutorial the other day that listed 22 separate goddamn products. you’re supposed to buy and know how to use 22 different things on your face just for the privilege of being considered lazy and that’s uuuuuuh what’s the word? bullshit.

Really, five products could work, even 3. Just frame the face, eyes, lips, and you’re done.

0 products also works great

because I’m gonna be real here, the idea that 22 products is a minimum sucks but it’s really upsetting that any amount of makeup is the bare minimum at all

I would really just suggest some powder foundation, concealer, mascara and lipgloss/lipstick, or tbh just mascara works too, but that’s up to you

I’m sorry if I didn’t express this clearly enough in the original post but I’m not really looking for more concise makeup regiments. my intention was to point out how it’s Bad that makeup is considered a bare minimum at all, regardless of individual feelings on the matter

no face should be “required” to have “a minimum” of makeup. makeup has no health benefits and does nothing but fill the pockets of companies that prey on women and our insecurities.

makeup should not be seen as hygiene because it isnt. get that shit out of your head.

this post: makeup culture is ridiculous and 22 products should not be considered a minimum requirement for someones face. no one should have to do that

the notes: so like……. what youre saying is……. we need to make the minimum about 5 or 6 instead… i gotcha

Really the only makeup you need is eyeliner but that’s just my personal opinion

okay

where did we lose you

why are people like this

#nobody survived this post

TIL, the residents of Cheran, Mexico armed themselves and kicked out the ruling cartel as well as every politician and policeman. It now functions as a legal self-governing indigenous community with a crime rate near 0%

via reddit.com

👀

Specifically, it was indigenous women who freed their village from oppressive forces. From loggers to kidnappers to police, all of them were run out because these women armed (and masked) themselves, took hostages, and threatened to kill them.

Since this day, five years ago, they’ve begun to repair the forest that was destroyed by loggers over the decades. They’ve successfully revived 3000 acres! And because there is no more crime, all citizens feel save roaming the streets at night, and exploring the vast forest they’ve become responsible for.

I went looking for an update since it’s now 8 years from the uprising, and it appears things are still going very well for the community. In fact, they’ve been steadily improving: https://www.latimes.com/food/story/2019-10-07/mushrooms-cheran-mexico-indigenous-revolution

“They taught their neighbors to grind onions and guajillo chiles into thick, warming stews called atapakuas and young men to make tortillas by hand, a task historically seen as women’s work. The movement represented a return to certain traditions but, led by women and young people, also meant clearing space for new voices and attitudes.“  

~Michael Snyder  for the LA Times  Oct. 7, 2019

This is an EXCELLENT read! - go check it out.  I needed a happy ending.

This is wonderful. :)

4000cc breast implants :)

I don't know how to tell you this. But the wizard in the picture is canonically Saruman.

#saruman's big artificials vs. gandalf's big naturals

I just reada really good fic but halfway through I realized "oh shit this is really familiar.... didn't I write something like this once?" And as I kept reading I kept predicting what happened next and the further I went the more convinced I was that they'd ripped off my story-

like, copied the ENTIRE plot and re-written it, just better than I had? The characters were more fleshed-out than mine were, and the POV was more interesting, and the pace made more sense- but it was MY STORY?

So close to the end I was like "holy shit.. do I message them? Ask if my story inspired theirs? Should I be angry? Flattered?" Cause their tags and description didn't mention me AT ALL, which, sure, it's fanfiction to begin with, but if you're using my work than at least credit me as inspo, right? Just to be courteous?

But I get to the end of the final chapter, and it's not finished, and I'm kind of disappointed cause I never finished my story and I was really immersed in their version now and had been looking forwards to seeing how they tied up my loose ends- so I scroll to the bottom to leave a comment, and.

It's MY URL.

IT WAS MY STORY THE WHOLE TIME.

THE ONE *I WROTE*.

In *2013*.

And FORGOT ABOUT

BECAUSE I WAS SO INSECURE ABOUT MY SLOPPY, SHALLOW, AMETEUR WRITING

And I'm just sitting here now staring into space thinking about every shitty story I've ever written now like

IT WAS ALL GOOD?

IT WAS GOOD THIS WHOLE DAMN TIME??

I'M A GOOD WRITER?????

you didn't ONCE think to check the url?

I WANTED TO FINISH READING IT FIRST

Europa Clipper is a space mission crafted with one overarching goal: determine if Jupiter’s ocean moon, Europa, has conditions suitable for life. Watch launch live on Oct. 14 as the largest uncrewed spacecraft we've ever built begins its journey into the solar system.

It wrinkles my brain that Jupiter’s moon Europa has oceans that are sixty miles deep, while Earth’s oceans only reach seven miles deep at most. I’m willing to bet good money that there’s life in Europa’s oceans. Like five bucks. You hear me, NASA? I bet you five bucks that there’s life on Europa… Now that there’s money and reputation on the line, I bet they send a mission there real quick.

I have no idea when this was originally posted, but NASA is working on their Europa mission RIGHT NOW to look for alien life! But get this, they theorize that because of the depth, gravity, and composition of the oceans, any organisms that lived there would be waaay bigger than aquatic life on Earth. So far everything’s going well with regards to their Europa mission so they should have a spacecraft on its way to look for giant sea monsters in space in only a few years. (The planned date is in the early 2020s.)

Looks like my negotiations worked. You’re welcome, humanity.

I’ve never been gripped with such cold terror and pure delight in my LIFE

explaining to an 18th century sailor that we’re looking for sea monsters in space. 

The launch date for the Europa Clipper is October 2024.

Please let there be sea monsters in space Please let there be sea monsters in space Please let there be sea monsters in space Please let there be sea monsters in space Please let there be sea monsters in space Please let there be sea monsters in space 

QUEUING THIS FOR OCTOBER 2024 BECAUSE SEA MONSTERS IN SPACE

The launch date is on October 10!

@queer-verse

Europa Clipper will arrive in 2030! time to queue to see where this is at then!

Someone remind me when it lands. We gonna learn about space oceans before learning what’s in our own oceans.

I don't remember what you said but for the rest of my life I will remember the car window was rolled down when you said it.

Some people have "fuck you" money. You know, that amount you have in the bank where you can look at someone, say "fuck you, I quit" or "fuck you, I'm leaving" or anything like that.

This has now taught me that some people have "fuck you" time. and I could not be any happier with this knowledge.

The secret to developing Fuck You Time is developing Fuck You Skills. In the above example, the gentleman had the Fuck You Skills of

1. Being able to track down the superintendent's doctoral thesis 2. How to check it for plagiarism 3. How to notify the relevant people of this fraud without sounding like a crank.

Since he has these skills, it does not take him MUCH time to preform the Fuck You. Hence, his Fuck You time might be only a few hours a week, but because he's so effecient at the Fuck You, that's all he needs.

Learn a new skill and how to tell the universe Fuck You! today!

Homes are expensive because of landlords hoarding them for profit, not because of regulations.

Time to bring back my favorite picture: The reason there have been so many food and consumer good recalls in the past few years. (If you got listeria from cold cuts? Direct result of Trump's actions!) Regulations exist to protect consumers from profit-hungry corporations.

Remember, there is no "lesson learned" from those regulations. They aren't safety procedures where now that people know putting lead in cinnamon is a bad thing that they won't do it even if you take the regulation away. The regulations were created because, when given a chance, these people leapt at the chance to destroy housing, poison food, and blight the planet.

Everytime a regulation like that is removed you should be concerned about who was being "held back" by a law preventing them from selling disease riddled meat.

A salient example, since lead got brought up specifically—

A while ago it occurred to me to wonder how long we’ve known lead is poisonous, since it was so ubiquitous in paint and construction and so many other places until just a few decades ago, so I went on a wiki dive to see when the first alarm bells were sounded about the health hazards of lead.

Want to guess?

Ancient Rome.

People have known lead is poisonous since at least Ancient Rome.

It didn’t stop people using it.

Your safety regulations are written in blood, not by accident, not because people didn’t know there were dangers, but because without them, blood is cheap.

Lead was used as a pesticide in the early 20th century, so I reckon we knew it was poison

Let's not forget that a chunk of workplace safety regulations are owed to the coal wars, when Appalachian miners had to wage an actual civil war against their bosses, police, military and hired goons just to get any rights at all on the job; their employers preferred to hire militias and kill people rather than agree to pay for better safety equipment and give people breaks.

Then there were the "radium girls" in the 1920s who worked at factories assembling products that used radium in order to glow in the dark. They were told to use their mouths to wet their brushes so the company could save more time and material. Their bodies began falling apart, literally, their tissues were dying and breaking off, and the retaliation they led - while any of them were still alive - resulted in a set of laws addressing workplace related illness, setting in motion waves of additional regulation and scrutiny we all still benefit from.

There's more events like these all through history, industries willing to kill people to save money, and all that ever ended any of it was the "government interference" hated so much by conservatives. Almost every single regulation they fight against or already destroyed was a response to a big business damaging human beings over as little as a few cents at a time.

Meanwhile, the rules and red tape conservatives enjoy and enforce are the kind that limit where homeless people can sleep or what food stamps can buy.

THEY WERE LOCKED IN, UNABLE TO ESCAPE THE FIRE, IN ORDER TO "DISCOURAGE UNAUTHORIZED BREAKS AND REDUCE THEFTS."

Businesses like Amazon are doing absolutely everything they can within the law to "discourage" breaks and thefts, but the law says you can't fucking lock your workers in like prisoners. They currently would if they could, and they'd love those rules to disappear.

HUH

in 2017, cards against humanity crowdfunded a bunch of money and bought land on the us-mexico border to oppose trump's plan of building a giant border wall. 150,000 people each gave $15.

the plot was maintained naturally, and had signage that said no trespassing.

six months ago, spacex pulled up to the plot, killed the vegetation, covered it in gravel, and is now using it for equipment and generators. they wrecked the whole area without asking. this is not the first time they have done this, either.

from elonowesyou100dollars

when spacex got caught, they tried to pressure cards against humanity to sell for half the land's value, and gave them 12 hours to accept the absolute dogshit deal.

instead, cards against humanity filed a lawsuit, demanded a trial by jury, and is asking for 15 million dollars so they can redistribute it to everyone who initially helped crowdfund the purchase of the land.

cards against humanity will also accept twitter.com as compensation.

since 2017 was a WHILE ago, CAH's form automatically checks if your email & postal code were registered with this project. If you're unsure if you qualify, there's no harm in going ahead and filling this out to make sure: