I think even if you got him to stay, you'd just be disappointed again - he's not going to see anything traumatic. Even if you feel noticeable pain and discomfort (which, depending on what kind of pills you're talking about here, and what kind of system you have etc, you may not), if he's not emotionally connecting to the problem, he won't see it as you do. He'll just think of it as you having cramps; he'll try to get you to watch TV to get your mind off it, he'll go on about how great it is... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 2:09 PM on June 7, 2008

My 14-year-old sk8r punk wears a helmet when he rides a bike, no convincing is necessary because if he doesn't wear it, he doesn't ride. I choose my battles and this is a big one for me ...sometimes "because I said so" is just how it is. This is one of those you'll-thank-me-for-it-later deals.

She already did this. The point is, he chose not to ride. She's asking for help to get to him to enjoy riding even while wearing safety gear.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 12:09 PM on June 7, 2008

fascinating. It really makes clear how much social norms affect the way populations think, even when everyone's sure that it's their purely individual internal opinions they're expressing...
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 11:55 AM on June 7, 2008

I love eggs with veggies for breakfast, as it's a good source of iron & protein, plus I have seven grain toast and usually some avocado & salad or something, but I'm a vegetarian, so don't need to worry as much about fat (but if you're eating organic eggs, it's all good fats anyway - just make things fresh and add lots of fresh veggies - mushrooms, spinach, etc). I sometimes like some salsa on the side or a little hummus

But if you really want to avoid eggs,... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 10:56 AM on June 7, 2008

British people often say "let's go to market", just like they say "let's go to hospital" - they tend to drop the article more often (as discussed in this thread). We do that with common nouns, usually things which are broadly understood as not needing to be distinguished (so not "let's go the school where Mr. X teaches" but "let's go to school").

If the farmer's market is understood as entirely common, the article could get... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 9:45 PM on June 6, 2008

I'm always surprised when people seem to still believe that IQ's are static. It's been shown many times that IQ scores change depending on education, and the basic test is a simplistic early 20th c / eugenicist notion of intelligence to start with...
anyone studying intelligence or neuroscience in more depth already assumes this. That some portion of the general population still has a love affair with the mensa threshold is just unfortunate.
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 4:44 PM on June 6, 2008

I'm waiting to hear there's a Timmy Hitler and a Skippy Hitler too.

I know, it's like Ted Hitler
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 11:47 AM on June 6, 2008

If you care about your friend, you will no longer be his friend. Sounds fucked up, but it's true.

Making decisions for another competent adult "for their own good" is almost never a good idea. It's also disrespectful.

eh, the thing is, there are people who want to "just be friends" but somewhere in the back of their mind are thinking, "well, hm, I wonder, I mean, we really are so compatible in so many... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 11:41 AM on June 6, 2008

It's not anti-semitic to suggest that the jewish population of the US has something to do with our alliance. 40% of the world's jew's are in the US. 40% are in Israel. And the rest are scattered around the rest of the world, in very small numbers. Anti-semitism is more common in most of the world than it is in the US. It's much more normal to see swastikas or to hear random anti-semitic talk in europe than it is in america. European philosophers even write about "the jew as... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 11:19 AM on June 6, 2008

"weed" is kind of all-purpose. Some plants are more voracious so if you let them grow, they could sorta take over, and make it harder for you to keep things trimmed, etc. But when my family lived in maine, we had three fields and a lawn area, and we mowed the lawn area regularly, while the fields just got plowed & baled for hay.

So the fields were long grass for hay, but our "lawn", such as it was, was whatever grew there, and that certainly... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 10:15 PM on June 5, 2008

One of the depressing results of misogyny is that if women start to excel in a field, rather than that raising people's general impression or opinion of women, it will often cause people to devalue the field. So if there's one woman who can rise out of the ordinary womanfolk and be a doctor, then she's special, but once lots of women are doing it, maybe it's not that impressive to be a doctor after all. We see this in ordinary skills too - carpentry is an impressive ability, and a woman who... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 12:53 PM on June 5, 2008

Measurement might mean something entirely different to you than it does in the context of QM. If you want to discuss QM, you are going to have to put aside your common-sense definition of measurement.

well, I don't think it's just bad journalism that gives this understanding of "measurement". Einstein apparently understood it this way. It seems as if some portion of scientists have interpreted observation to include specifically conscious... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 9:53 AM on June 5, 2008

Unless you want to believe that dinosaurs sprung into existence the moment the first human laid eyes on a fossil, somehow sending a signal back in time that it was OK for that particular dinosaur to live and die...the entire conscious observer thing is worse than wrong. It's worse than string theory.

Right - this was exactly Einstein's problem with QM! And he argued with the top QM scientists of his day, so I don't think it was just bad journalism.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 11:22 AM on June 5, 2008

if they really insist on paying you, why not suggest that they donate that amount to a local animal rescue organization?

Or, why not graciously accept the money so that they no longer feel obliged toward you, and then donate it to the animal rescue organization yourself? The passing of money between hands can just be to make everyone more comfortable, so who 'insists' can be a silly game. Let them lead on that.

As for what... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 4:13 PM on June 2, 2008

we had a thread about that book fiercecupcake linked. (this was my response)

Basically I think you're thinking too much about lying and not enough about what you actually want from the relationship. If someone isn't direct with you about something, don't take that as an automatic wall between you. Perhaps they even perceive it as evidence of a deeper relationship where you understand perfectly well what is going on, that they don't want to see you right now, but do... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 2:31 PM on May 29, 2008

When free will is exercised by a person/soul/cell for honesty - the world is filled with more light.

It is seriously not anywhere near this simple. You may think you're being noble to tell some woman she's hard to work with, but it may turn out that she knew she wasn't getting along with people, that you were the one misperceiving who was getting along with whom, that when you state it aloud it comes off as far more bitter and resentful than you had... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 3:14 PM on May 29, 2008

I'm not saying there's anything wrong with needing encouragement and getting off on the passion of others. But haven't you ever been rapt by a subject? That's what SHOULD happen in school.

If a class is so good that the teacher helps you find such rapture, you won't be the only one in class that finds it.

That's grad school. I really think the excitement is largely self-selecting, because most of the time it's the texts... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by mdn at 9:08 PM on May 27, 2008

Bottom line: babies pop out of the womb as learners. They love learning.

ok, but not everyone is going to love shakespeare - that's all i meant. Yes, if we expanded education to seriously include all forms of learning, and didn't require classes... but on the other hand, sometimes it's the required class that turns out to excite a student who didn't know how much they'd like something. I feel like one part of the problem is the social agreement that... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by mdn at 11:09 AM on May 28, 2008

My final claim is that we mostly have bad schools. So we usually end up with the 10%. In my mind, that's a fail (when we COULD wind up with the 40%).

Or we could teach something else that more people would love, or we could stop trying to make love/hate a distinct and absolute fact...
Some people will "love" it in college because of the awesome funny professor or the cute girl who's into it, and some will hate it because they... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by mdn at 1:52 PM on May 28, 2008

While I think it's tragic that people have to work in cubicles, it sounds like you're linking education to vocation (correct me if I'm wrong). I would argue that's part of the "box."

no, I think I'm saying the opposite. i'm just saying what's the point of learning to love subjects for their own sake if then you have to forget it all and learn how to climb the corporate ladder. I'm just saying, the whole notion of education for its own sake... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by mdn at 3:30 PM on May 28, 2008

Dislike -- if it's real dislike, not a stance -- is a feeling. One doesn't need a legitimate reason, and, in fact, a reason (legit or not) won't likely change the dislike. One dislikes something because one dislikes it. Because it gives one an unpleasant sensation. I don't understand how a sensation can be right or wrong. That's like saying feeling cold is wrong or feeling tired is right.

So then perhaps some people dislike reading and writing and... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by mdn at 8:33 AM on May 29, 2008

grumbebee, I don't really know how I ended up on the opposite side of this argument from you, as in general I agree with what you're saying, except that, basically, I think that reforming schools to the extent that students can honestly choose any path and learn anything they like, and not need to "get the basics" at all, would require an entire restructuring of the way our society works.

Here's how I see a HEALTHY system working: teachers choose to... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by mdn at 12:32 PM on May 29, 2008

ok, I don't know that we disagree - my point is that the goal of the american educational system is not to teach students to love reading or understand algebra. It is to teach them to become motivated, ambitious members of our society. They learn to follow instructions, compete with classmates, earn grades. Along the way, they learn to handle basic levels of reading, writing & arithmetic and gain familiarity with our shared cultural story. But this just allows them to become more... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by mdn at 1:20 PM on May 29, 2008

Are there any small or medium sized cites that are producing a disproportionate number of famous, ambitious, or motivated people?

You say "producing" here but then say you don't want people who are born there but people who are working there. So why is the city "producing" anything? Isn't it just the nexus where all the already motivated people go?

As people have been saying, there are... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 12:20 PM on May 29, 2008

ancient coins are not very expensive - you can easily get something a couple thousand years old for less than $100 because they were so common. You can even get something that old for a few bucks if you want...

If you become a collector, you would be looking for rare coins, well preserved examples, etc. To get anything old would not take much money, but you could find examples that would cost what you are willing to pay. But it would make more sense to be familiar... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 8:28 AM on May 29, 2008

I quit drinking last year, for medical reasons as well, and it was a lot easier than I expected. I would just consider it a temporary thing to see if it helps, and then if in a few months you don't think it's had a beneficial effect, you can reassess. That's what I did, and I was both convinced by the results and also not really interested in going back to alcohol. You may have a totally different experience, but why not give it a try?

And don't worry about what to... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 10:02 PM on May 27, 2008

If you are reluctant to give it up, that's a problem. This means you are past "take it or leave it".

This is silly. Why even indulge in something at all if you are completely indifferent to it? The fact that she enjoys something and is disappointed that she can't have it anymore doesn't mean she has an unhealthy relationship to it. Especially given that some people seem to be overly suspicious of alcohol, it isn't completely crazy to... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 4:48 PM on May 28, 2008

birthday cake isn't woven into life, though. What about coffee? Would you be disappointed if you were told you could never have coffee again? Or what about tea or kittens or Metafilter? :) Would you be sad if you were told you could never have these things again? Does that mean you have an unhealthy addiction to these things? Maybe you just enjoy your daily coffee and consider it a good start to the day. I don't think that has to be indicative of something bad. It... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 7:16 AM on May 29, 2008

it's not worth having as a post because it won't be a big story next week, and the readership here has already made clear their distaste for HRC. It isn't worth going through it every time something happens. Personally, I must suffer from the same tone deafness Miko suggests is at fault for Clinton here, as I just don't understand the uproar, and honestly that Olbermann video seemed liked a parody.

He is literally getting himself worked up into a crazy outrage knot... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by mdn at 7:54 AM on May 24, 2008

Many of Clinton's more vehement supporters not only denied it, they bizarrely accused Obama and his supporters of doing the same or worse.

Like your previous comment, you don't seem to realize this is an opinion. Obviously Clinton supporters don't see it the same way. It is tough to read personality, motivation, intention and character from mass speeches and media reports; it is hardly surprising that competing versions come out... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by mdn at 9:24 PM on May 26, 2008

Katherine Dunn wrote two short novel/novellas before Geek Love (Attic & Truck). There were certainly at least strange or macabre moments in them, though they weren't as well structured and defined.
Life of Pi [Martel] might fit your criteria, and perhaps The Moor's Last Sigh [Rushdie]...
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 4:53 PM on May 26, 2008

Based on that and your unsure feelings, I'd say breakup and start dating within a few months,

just remember than any "should I stay or should I go" AskMe will end up with the majority answer being "go". The reason is that it's a simpler answer, because there's at least a theoretical outcome that if you "go" you will fall head over heels for someone else who is perfect for you and live happily ever after, whereas if you... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 3:54 PM on May 26, 2008

But I'm wondering if there is also a cultural reason - do Americans/Brits see wearing shoes as a necessary part of being presentable, like wearing shirts and pants

I think much more so - there are theories of the foot being considered phallic, and some people just think feet are kind of gross (just as it is also fetishized by others, but that is something of a "two sides of a coin" thing). In "higher" society, shoes are often very... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 3:24 PM on May 26, 2008 marked best answer

Propaganda is now officially hip.

You say this like it's a new thing. THe 'hipness' of exactly this style of propaganda dates back to early this century. The basic hip aspect of advertising in general has been a niche of design/marketing as long as i can remember as well. The only thing specific here is that a presidential campaign is trying to use 'hip' propaganda instead of general, everyday, good ol' US flag style propaganda. This will only work... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 11:45 AM on May 24, 2008

Holy crap that a big ass brush you got there.

You're assuming caring about this is "good" and it is demeaning to say people won't care about it. But there are people out there who actually don't care much one way or another how "hip" the posters of a candidate are.

And I didn't say there couldn't be hipster schoolteachers and millworkers, just that there do exist those... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 1:44 PM on May 24, 2008

And I think this is solid presentation, and that you're wrong. I love that you said "making trouble" though, like somebody will read over the policies on the website and think, "that's pretty good, but whoa, I don't like that shade of Melon. Oh Barack...you're in trouble with me."

Well, maybe images and graphics have no impact, but people are often slightly affected by symbolism even if they won't admit it or even notice it... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 2:13 PM on May 25, 2008

I hope someone makes the still at .10 into a poster for same sex marriage. It's too bizarre & non-linear not to be on some college kid's wall...
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 8:40 AM on May 25, 2008

I think you're bleeding together the sci-fi application of multiple universes with what it would actually mean scientifically if it's true. Quantum effects aren't really happening on the macrolevel in this way -- quantum uncertainty doesn't kick in when you flip a coin, for example -- but sci-fi writers have generally run with the concept as if they did.

They have to "bleed together" - they're part of the same universe. Some people try to... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 8:12 PM on May 24, 2008

I found this really cute, somehow - really weird, but also cute in a very surreal kind of way. I dunno, it was interesting. The way it was described here (also links to hi-res plus ad people's comments) seemed fairly on-target to me , especially as "curiously infectious", as at first the stills just seemed kind of insane, but the more I see the more I kind of think they're fun.

The sexiness is weird because it's anthropomorphized,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 9:44 AM on May 24, 2008

these seem like the most ordinary of quirks to me.
I can only imagine that your friends are trying to make you feel comfortable and fit in by taking notice of things that they assume you do in order to be noticed. If you wear unusual and brightly colored shoes, people may assume you would like for them to be a topic of conversation. I wear red and eat spicy food and have never noticed people comment on it specifically. In middle school / high school my favorite shoes were a pair... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 8:09 AM on May 24, 2008

It depends how detailed you want to get - ethiopia and afghanistan look more convex but there are certainly parts where it wouldn't work. Even among US states it looks like only the rectangles (WY & CO) would pass your test, and they aren't technically convex, just not concave anywhere. I think the problem is that real borders are often quite messy and zig zaggy... even tiny places like kuwait and vatican city seem to fail. Borders that were all convex would probably have to be imposed... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 6:25 PM on May 23, 2008

When the war started, the polling approval rating for going in was something like 75%. We have a two party system rather than a parliament, so that a winning effort has to be able to capture 50% of the population. This means having a middle-of-the-road platform in most respects. Supporting an outsider position can only be a media event, not an actual political action. Green party or Libertarian party nominees are attempting to start conversations, not get elected. They can't get elected,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 12:43 PM on May 22, 2008

a- a good set of headphones / speakers can make a difference

b- take time to listen rather than just have it on in the background

c- most of all, look around until you find something you actually like. I didn't get excited by music listening to the popular stuff when I was a kid, or the oldies my parents played. It wasn't until I heard the intensity of the guitars of pink floyd in 7th grade that I personally "felt" music. After that... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 10:33 AM on May 21, 2008

So Einstein - as an agnostic or aetheist - is someone impoverished of thought and appreciation of the Universe?

odd choice. Einstein often spoke of his religious understanding, a belief in Spinoza's god, deism, pantheism, Nature's God or however you want to describe it. He was usually quite dismissive of atheists who did not appreciate what he believed to be the unity and manifest harmony of the universe, and quite sure of a true order or original... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 12:33 PM on May 20, 2008

It makes no difference what Einstein thought.

No, of course it doesn't make a difference in terms of what you ought to think, but the point was simply, it is possible to have a more complex opinion than just "Jesus is real and he loves me" vs "religion is bullshit & we have everything figured out". You can be scientifically minded without rejecting all notions of god. Einstein's a good example because he's recent enough that... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 7:19 PM on May 20, 2008

Why is talking like Yoda "funny" in this post?

Talking like Yoda in every post funny is.

I think that's the real answer, because the original phrase wasn't even really yoda-esque:

Ze Frank asks when the first time you saw your parents as just being human was.

That's "Ze Frank asks when X was", not "Ze Frank, when X, he... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by mdn at 5:54 PM on May 20, 2008

I just try to remember that emotionally compelling ≠ factually accurate.

It may help you to keep in mind that most religious people don't turn to religion in order to factually describe the world. The majority are turning to it for that emotionally compelling part too, and only get defensive about the "facts" because they're told it's all or nothing. But integrate scientific advance into religion comfortably, and have respect for the ritual,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 1:57 PM on May 19, 2008

people have always done this, to varying degrees... Of course a)people who are really invested in living naturally and not being attached to money may never get stuck in a blackberry-world to start with, so don't so much "give up" a lifestyle as never really get caught up in it to begin with; and b)the more completely someone has left the world behind, the less likely the worldly papers are to catch up with them and write about them. But this story seems to be just about people... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 1:22 PM on May 19, 2008

it's nanny-state liberalism at its absolute worst; precisely the kind of thing that makes me uncomfortable about the left - thoughtless dictation of what's "best for you"

god forbid that people should have a CHOICE of what to eat at one of america's major political party conventions - because after all, they're not SMART enough to CHOOSE the right thing, are they? - not as smart as the DNC and their pal,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdn at 12:26 PM on May 19, 2008

It's the eternal question...
posted to Ask Metafilter by mdn at 10:45 AM on May 19, 2008