TonyStark, 10 days ago to random

I saw a post yesterday questioning why the U.S. is investing in projects for electric vehicles but not investing in public transportation. That’s just false.

First, we aren’t getting rid of cars. We are too spread out and it’s doubtful that public transportation will be available in entirely where everyone, everywhere, at every time of day will need it. And we will always need vehicles for emergency services like ambulances and fire trucks and mail delivery and farms. 1/4

appassionato, 11 days ago to KindActions

No fuel. No food. No water.
No exit or entry for people.
Almost 300 thousand #displaced over the last five days.

The UN and partners are facing a completely preventable humanitarian stoppage [read: disaster] in days.

The aid must flow if humanity is to prevail in #Gaza.

Four bakeries (out of 12) that are still operating have reduced capacity and will be out of that stock by Monday.

https://twitter.com/GeorgiosPetrop2/status/1789372493586633120

Georgios Petropoulous
#OCHA

@palestine
#Gaza
#aid

DenisCOVIDinfoguy, 1 month ago to auscovid19

"COVID-19 poses a serious risk to brain health, even in mild cases, and the effects are now being revealed at the population level," clinical epidemiologist Ziyad Al-Aly said

#COVID19 #brainhealth @auscovid19

Source: https://people.com/covid-linked-lower-iq-poor-memory-other-negative-impacts-brain-health-8619254

Al-Aly, who is director of the Clinical Epidemiology Center at the VA Saint Louis Health Care System in Missouri, wrote that he has been studying long COVID since early reports of the disease and before the term was even coined by the medical community. He explained in his essay that "large epidemiological analyses" showed that people who had COVID were at an increased risk of cognitive deficits including memory problems. A study of people with a mild to moderate form of the virus showed significant, prolonged inflammation of the brain and changes that "are commensurate with seven years of brain aging." Al-Aly also cited imaging studies done on people both before and after their COVID infections, which showed "shrinkage of brain volume" and "altered brain structure" after infection. Other research reveals that people who require hospitalization or intensive care amid their COVID infection may develop "cognitive deficits and other brain damage that are equivalent to 20 years of aging."
In addition, Al-Aly highlighted preliminary analysis pooling together data from 11 studies that showed that COVID increased the risk of development of new-onset dementia in people older than 60. He also noted that autopsies performed on people who died with COVID revealed "devastating damage" in their brains. Autopsies of people who had severe COVID but died a few months later from other causes showed that the virus was still present in brain tissue, suggesting that "SARS-CoV-2 is not only a respiratory virus." Studies assessing patients hospitalized with COVID who experienced brain fog indicate that the virus can disrupt the blood-brain barrier, "the shield that protects the nervous system, which is the control and command center of our bodies," Al-Aly wrote. Most recently, Al-Aly said, a study published on Feb. 29 in the New England Journal of Medicine assessed cognitive abilities including spatial reasoning, memory and planning in nearly 113,000 people who had previously had COVID. "The researchers found that those who had been infected had significant deficits in memory and executive task performance," he wrote. The deficits were seen among people infected with the virus in the early phase of the pandemic, as well as when the delta and omicron variants dominated. According to Al-Aly, that same study found that "those who had mild and resolved COVID-19 showed cognitive decline equivalent to a three-point loss of IQ." Those with unresolved persistent symptoms —

dgar, 2 months ago (edited 2 months ago) to random

Do you remember before:

wattdefalk, 3 months ago to random

Never stop looking for ways to improve... even if it's just finding which side is less painful to lie on while waiting for the rescuers to discover you.

dgar, 4 months ago (edited 4 months ago) to random

In the last months of the 2,022nd year Earth Common Era, #Dgar was led to the Mastodon herd by a werewolf from Melbourne, where they climbed up onto the thick matted wool of a beast affectionately known as AusSocial.
Dgar gripped onto the coat and screamed “Hello World!” No one except the werewolf heard.
Dgar began exploring, moving over the beast. So many interesting personalities, such diversity, and although no one seemed to notice them, Dgar noticed the inhabitants. They were being… nice to each other. Courteous and understanding of differing views and perspectives. Dgar was a bit weirded out, but continued to explore.

Explore.

Suddenly the view opened up and Dgar saw the herd for the first time. Beasts just like AusSocial, but all different in their own ways, stretching to the horizons, as far as the eye could see. And there weren’t just Mastodons either. There were all kinds of beasts, all carving out their own little niche. Someone behind whispered “That’s the Fediverse.” Dgar felt the presence of millions of people, working together, competing, evolving, developing… and despairing.

Dgar wandered from feed to feed, community to community, and slowly began to realise that almost everyone was talking about the same things.

Billionaires ruined some place that wasn’t anywhere near as good as where they are right now.
The depressing state of politics and the media that supports it.
Despair over misinformation and the people who believe it.
Gun control.
Climate change.
Natural disasters.
War. Murder. Disease.
Stop!

There’s no jokes.
There’s no shitposting.
There’s no laughter.
There’s lots of love and understanding, but when you look for something funny, there’s a few people asking “Where are all the jokes and shitposters?”

Dgar resolved to fill this niche, and began tooting every joke they could find. For several months, they tooted a joke or meme every twenty minutes while they were awake, and as often as possible while they were asleep. They would traverse great distances, well beyond the herd, to sift through what at times seemed like piles of refuse to find puns and funnies.
After some time, Dgar became known for the funny toots, and many people followed them.

Today, like most days, Dgar climbed up to take in the view of the herd, and a giant smile broke upon his face. There were jokes. There were memes. There were terrible puns. The toots emanating from the very top of AusSocial were light hearted and humorous takes.
It was beautiful.

And so Dgar finds themselves re-considering their place in the community. Does the Fediverse need Dgar to lift their spirit with stolen jokes, old puns, and scavenged memes?
Maybe.
But maybe not so much.

Perhaps the 2,024th year Earth Common Era will be the year Dgar begins concentrating on what Dgar loves.
Making music.

Thank you all for your support. Big love to each and every one of you. ♥️
🫶🎼🎤🎵🎸🎶

#DgarLore

Alice, 4 months ago (edited 4 months ago) to random

Suggestion to minimize smalltalk:

When someone says "Hi, how are you?" run away as fast as possible.

wattdefalk, 5 months ago to random

Did anyone else, when you watched "The Rutles" and/or listened to the album, get a twisted pleasure out of telling yourself: "This is the cold hard real version of my drug-addled memories of the Beatles"?

RickiTarr, 5 months ago to random

HAPPY ART SHOW SUNDAY:
POETRY EDITION

I feel like doing something a little different today, so drop a piece of poetry you wrote! It can be old, new, or written on the spot. It can be funny, sad, dramatic, or challenging, whatever you feel like!

Poetry is nearer to vital truth than history.

-Plato

SrRochardBunson, 5 months ago (edited 5 months ago) to music

I put all of the demo tracks for the upcoming antifascist audio collage into a playlist.

Any feedback is appreciated. I promise. 😅

Listen to "This Cassette Kills Fascists", a playlist by #ArtFED
https://on.soundcloud.com/UDn3K

#AntifaRadio #TCKF #Antifascist #Music #Antifa #Activism #Art #SoundCollage #AudioCollage #Sureealist #Dada

wattdefalk, 5 months ago to random

Some of you may remember sniglets, one TV program's term for words that aren't in the dictionary but should be. (e.g. prndl: The tiny window atop the steering wheel with the needle that moves when you shift an automatic transmission)
Three just now occurred to me:
DETESTELECTATION is delectation that includes extremely mixed feelings.
DELICATESTATION occurs in the best sandwich shops.
DELICATESTANUSION is either obvious to you or best if you don't think about it.

The_Whore_of_Blahbylon, 5 months ago to random

It does a body good.

Photo courtesy of @smurthys

johnshirley2024, 6 months ago (edited 6 months ago) to random

The reason Trump has an edge in the polls now is because this is the new age of web-broadcast misinformation, disinformation, and especially the burgeoning power of internet-magnified lies. A secondary, reciprocal cause is the dominance of the right-wing on radio. Third--Fox News. People armed with guns but not critical thinking are swept helplessly along. Their emotions are being triggered over and over and over. We are failing to find ways to counteract the waves of charged lies.

thor, 6 months ago to random

"breakfast" and "burrito" aren't really words you hear together very often in this country. in America, they'll eat anything for breakfast. 🤷‍♂️🌯

reay, 6 months ago to random

When I’m in charge of the world:

1. End famine
2. End slavery
3. Make sure everyone understands how to use apostrophes properly
4. Also make sure they get that “everyday” means common or standard, while “every day” means something done daily
5. End war

johnshirley2024, 7 months ago (edited 7 months ago) to random

Rolling Stone: 250 greatest guitar players of all time (not including classical). Some infuriates me, some informs me, some of it pleasures me, some of it bugs me. The latter--they left out Buck Dharma (Donald Roeser) of BOC. I was glad to see them include James Williamson of Iggy & the Stooges fame, Ron Asheton of the Stooges, Greg Sage, whom I shared a stage with, Steve Jones, Zappa, Fahey, Lou Reed--but they left out Sterling Morrison...and they left out Buckethead. #rock

wattdefalk, 7 months ago to random

@paninid @SonofaGeorge @davidaugust
Seeking to learn how to develop better relationships, I met with a psychologist who said I first needed to address a painful past with family now either dead or in another continent. Once a week for years I paid him to listen to me talk about this.
When I finally stopped, the pain disappeared, so did the waste of money, & I made better friendships on my own.
Perspective is key. We could all go mad if we obsessed long enough about the fact that we'll all die.

MnemosyneSinger, 7 months ago to random

How to prevent carpal tunnel

dgar, 7 months ago to random