leicsmac

Proper "alpha male" bigot (usually against more demographics than simply women) behaviour, yes.

Also related to the above, this is the level of decorum the current US administration possess:

The man is living proof that in this age anything is possible when you lie and accentuate the negative. Unfortunately.

The working paradigm over there is deeply messed up, but then it's been that way for a while. They simply can't figure out a good way to square the circle. Possibly because there is no good way.

Appreciate the viewpoint from "on the ground", as it were. I hope that you're right in that the issue is manageable and is in the process of being managed.

The policy of the current Trump administration is their template. That's about it, really - whether someone thinks that good or bad is clearly up to the beholder.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czjn0pn830ko Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has said the government will "double down" on its environmental agenda and accused those against the move to net zero of "making up nonsense and lies". Political opponents in the Conservatives and Reform UK - and some trade unions – have argued that his agenda is putting jobs in traditional industries at risk and have urged a change of course. The UK is legally committed to moving to net zero carbon emissions by 2050 – a goal set under a previous Conservative government. Writing in the Observer, external, Miliband warned that an anti-net zero agenda would not only risk "climate breakdown" but "forfeit the clean energy jobs of the future". It's not lies to those that tell them, Ed. They genuinely think that our species can continue the way that it is with no consequences that they should worry about. Call it what it is - short term self interested ideology that will bear all responsibility for the loss of a great many lives, both human and otherwise.

Different head of the same hydra, yeah. There needs to be more focus on this particular ideology - that of self-interest and "infamy" - along with the more traditional ideologies that such terrible acts are committed in the name of. While I'd agree, I'm not sure there's ever been a time where there wasn't at least a hint of moral bankruptcy in human society.

Totally agree, though the nuts and bolts of that might be tricky.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crm3x92mpdxo Social media influencers are fuelling an increase in misogyny and sexism in schools, according to a new poll by a teaching union. Almost three in five teachers said they believe social media use has had a negative effect on behaviour in schools, the NASUWT poll of 5,800 teachers in the UK found. Influencer and self-proclaimed misogynist Andrew Tate was named by a number of teachers in the poll. The Department for Education (DfE) said it was supporting the teachers to tackle the "damaging impact" on children caused by "the rise of dangerous influencers". If this isn't dealt with, there will be a really serious incident at a school somewhere, and soon. Exactly how it's dealt with is unfortunately a much more complex question.

Best of luck with that one, mate.

I hope that you're right now, and more importantly that you're still right in, say, a decade.

Given that PhD's (or MDs) tend to rely on scientific citations rather than soundbites and innuendo for their arguments and that is rather ably being demonstrated here, it looks that way.

And then they like to call it "just human nature". As if such a thing is true, and if it is, as if it is in fact immutable or desirable for our species for it to be so.

Not only that, but also make sure those responsible are recorded, for the sake of those future generations that are left to make sure they not only not repeat the errors, but also remember those names in the utmost infamy for eternity.

Tune.

I think on this one the flexibility to change depending on circumstances, rather than nailing colours to one particular mast, is the key thing here. One thing I will say is that the current US administration represents a majority of values that really should be anathema to any civilised nation and the continuity of civilisation, so if the UK chooses to associate with them in any close way, then like it or not those values will likewise be associated with the UK too.

For the moment, certainly. But hopefully, in this case, nothing is inexorable.

Wouldn't be the first time a legal entity has chosen not to fully engage with the full intricacies of a scientific matter for the sake of convenience, tbh. I guess, as per earlier discussion, we'll see where we are in roughly ten years. I just hope it isn't where I think it might be. (Though this is only one of a very great number of matters where that's accurate imo.)

Exactly. Complex and nuanced issues involving scientific matters and people really should be reduced to simple soundbites for the purpose of legislation and subsequent feelgood headlines and Tweets. One size fits all. ... ... ...... right?

Some of the stuff that DOGE have been getting up to is, quite frankly, blatant violation of quite a few different laws.

OK then...for the interest of @foxile5 and anyone else who wants to know - how can we tell that an object 124 light years away has chemical compounds that may have been produced by microbial life? Here's a breakdown of the idea of astronomical spectroscopy. Spectroscopy is the study of electromagnetic spectra - radio waves, visible light, microwaves, X-rays and all the other kinds that come from many different sources. One of the uses of this applies here. For as long as we've had telescopes powerful enough to do it, we've been able to observe the light coming from distant stars all over the night sky. These stars throw out light and other EM radiation at a massive variety of wavelengths - ranging from radio waves at the longest to gamma-rays at the shortest. And here's the kicker - as that light passes through gases that surround a star, or a planet or other object that has an atmosphere or emits such gases, some of that light is absorbed and some of it goes right through and comes to us - or when a particular star burning particular gas produces heat and light, it does it in particular wavelengths. That produces what is called an emission line spectrum - a pattern of EM wavelengths that is as unique to each element or compound as a fingerprint. For instance, the emission wavelengths of hydrogen - the most common element in the Universe - are 410 nm (violet), 434 nm (blue), 486 nm (blue-green), and 656 nm (red). If we see a star emitting light at those wavelengths in particular, then we know it's burning hydrogen. We know the wavelengths, we know exactly what element or compound is out there. In the case of K2-18b, the James Webb Space Telescope noticed light of a particular wavelength passing through it on the way from its companion star. The emission line spectrum indicated the presence of two compounds - dimethyl sulphide (DMS) and dimethyl disulphide (DMDS) - on that planet. The only method - or by far the most common method - of producing either of those two gases is through bacterial or plankton activity - in other words, life. And that's how we think we can tell there might be life on a planet over 120 light years away. I think that about covers it in brief. Would be happy to answer any other questions on the matter.

Freedom to abuse power over minority groups, but not to call the Gulf of Mexico by its internationally agreed name. The hypocrisy is just one part of how loathsome this administration is, however.

Bloody difficult to pick. In terms of legacy and unprecedented, I think it has to be between the CWC 2019 and Murray winning Wimbledon. Chose the latter but I'd happily pick both. Edit: to be honest, the entire 2012 Olympics could be considered a great moment in of itself.

Come on over to the sci thread and sometime soon I'll make a post on spectroscopy and how it can identify emitted gases by electromagnetic spectra alone.