Readit News logoReadit News
pille commented on Paris Vote Targets SUV Drivers with Parking Fees Set to Triple   bloomberg.com/news/articl... · Posted by u/mfiguiere
ToucanLoucan · 2 years ago
> 2. Tire emissions are more toxic than exhaust [1] and tire wear is dramatically greater on heavier vehicles. This is about air pollution in the city, not climate change globally.

Is there any info on how this impacts the environmental benefits of EVs? Or is the lack of combustion still a net gain?

pille · 2 years ago
I found one write-up investigating this a few months ago:

https://www.sustainabilitybynumbers.com/p/electric-vehicles-...

Trying to summarize: EVs still seem to be a net gain, but non-exhaust emissions are still a significant problem. We don't know how bad that problem really is because there's not enough research yet.

pille commented on Is your phone ruining your memory? A report on the rise of ‘digital amnesia’   theguardian.com/global/20... · Posted by u/cwwc
reaperducer · 4 years ago
People used to easily remember dozens and dozens of phone numbers, because that's just what you did.

Today, people Google phone numbers they use regularly. I've had interactions with people who have a hard time even remembering their own phone number.

pille · 4 years ago
We now have to remember lots of passwords. That’s pretty much the same memorization job.
pille commented on Google Kills YouTube Originals   arstechnica.com/gadgets/2... · Posted by u/nixass
nostromo · 4 years ago
I believe we’re in a content bubble.

All the old television networks, Netflix, Amazon, Disney, Apple, and others are pumping out more mediocre TV than anyone wants or cares to consume. The quality is too low and the quantity is too high.

It’s telling to me that the most-watched shows on these networks are often sitcoms from the 90s and 00s, despite a mountain of newer content going unnoticed.

A shakeout would be a good thing.

pille · 4 years ago
> It’s telling to me that the most-watched shows on these networks are often sitcoms from the 90s and 00s, despite a mountain of newer content going unnoticed.

There was also huge glut of forgettable content back then. Most 90s and 00s shows were low quality crap too. No one is watching those now. The handful of shows that survived and made it onto today’s streaming services are the greatest of that era.

pille commented on Cannabinoids Block Cellular Entry of SARS-CoV-2 and the Emerging Variants   pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/... · Posted by u/leephillips
8bitsrule · 4 years ago
Worth noting that this may or not have any bearing on the conclusions...

"The manuscript presents some new data on, and provides a section of discussion of, the effect of tobacco consumption on patient susceptibility to COVID-19, and cites other studies that claim SARS-CoV-2 infection is less prevalent in smokers or tobacco users." Perhaps reading those other studies would be prejudicial.

I once spend the better part of a day online looking for actual data on the known dangers of second-hand smoke. I found the not-so-surprising answers in a hard-to-find article in Lancet. It ... contradicted the mainstream tale.

pille · 4 years ago
Could you share a link to this Lancet article?
pille commented on Cannabinoids Block Cellular Entry of SARS-CoV-2 and the Emerging Variants   pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/... · Posted by u/leephillips
selectodude · 4 years ago
>I’m not sure what you mean by “politics” here, so I’d rather be explicit and say what it looks like to me.

I mean that they explicitly said they retracted the study (in the journal, the authors haven't retracted anything) because they refuse to take any research from anybody who has ever accepted money from tobacco companies regardless of the rigor of the data or research. Non-academic reasons.

I understand their stance because, as you said, the tobacco companies have a long sordid history of research and it's a journal of lung health with a strong "anti-smoking" bent, but calling the study "retracted" implies that it was somehow false or disproven when it has not been.

pille · 4 years ago
> the authors haven't retracted anything

Why would you trust the authors, though? They really should know better. To me, the omission is either the product of general incompetence (they forgot?), or intent to deceive. Both of those seem pretty disqualifying.

pille commented on Cannabinoids Block Cellular Entry of SARS-CoV-2 and the Emerging Variants   pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/... · Posted by u/leephillips
selectodude · 4 years ago
In fairness, the study was retracted not due to the data but because "The European Respiratory Society, as a leading medical organisation in the respiratory field whose mission is to promote lung health and alleviate suffering from respiratory disease, has bylaws in place that do not permit individuals with ongoing relationships with the tobacco industry to participate in its activities" and in other situations, "The journal editors acknowledge that COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) guidelines state that failure to disclose a potential conflict of interest is not normally sufficient grounds for retraction of a published article."

I understand the journal's actions but I'd hesitate to say the study is wrong or has been retracted for anything beyond politics.

pille · 4 years ago
I’m not sure what you mean by “politics” here, so I’d rather be explicit and say what it looks like to me.

The tobacco industry has a rich history of trying to manipulate public opinion in their favor, and this article and authors’ undisclosed conflict of interest fits that pattern well: a study shows cigarettes are actually good for you in some way, and might even save you from the current pandemic; and then whoops, authors were getting paid by the tobacco industry, and then whoops again, they didn’t mention it when submitting for publication.

If the study was retracted even though the CoPE guidelines don’t require a retraction, it implies to me that this case was more egregious than just some protocol mixup or forgetfulness. The most generous reading is that the retraction was made out of an abundance of caution and concern for the journal’s reputation. I suppose that’s possible, but I don’t see any further evidence in favor of exonerating the article, especially knowing the industry’s history.

pille commented on Cannabinoids Block Cellular Entry of SARS-CoV-2 and the Emerging Variants   pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/... · Posted by u/leephillips
selectodude · 4 years ago
There were some early studies that showed that nicotine had a higher affinity for ACE2 than SARS-CoV-2 and that smokers had a lower risk of catching covid.

I told everybody that while ripping my camels.

pille · 4 years ago
Worth repeating that this study was retracted. Authors failed to disclose a conflict of interest in their funding from the tobacco industry:

https://erj.ersjournals.com/content/57/3/2002144

pille commented on Germany: New government plans 'right to encryption'   tutanota.com/blog/posts/g... · Posted by u/Audiophilip
ospzfmbbzr · 4 years ago
> It was either forcefully vaccinated or forcefully infected by the unvaccinated. I’m thankful we’re making the right choice.

False dichotomy.

Also what if you are wrong? You seem very certain. Why? No meaningful discussion is allowed, so how is it that you feel you have all the information you need to make the decision -- first for yourself, and second, for every other person in your country? It seems like you are just thankful your fears about your neighbors have been tranquilized? Where did those fears come from again?

pille · 4 years ago
It’s been discussed to death, literally. It’s hard to believe you’re asking for a discussion in good faith, when there’s clearly no evidence on your side, and your baseless “skepticism” has been indulged for almost 2 full years by the government and media. The outgoing German government bent over backwards for you Querdenker, and that’s why we’re still in this mess.

You’re simply wrong. You’re entitled to your wrong opinion, but you’re no longer entitled to force the rest of us to suffer for it.

pille commented on Germany: New government plans 'right to encryption'   tutanota.com/blog/posts/g... · Posted by u/Audiophilip
babypuncher · 4 years ago
I used to believe this, until one of our political parties officially adopted the position that the 2020 election was stolen from them, and states like Florida and Alaska put vaccine and mask skeptics in charge of their health programs.

The people who believe this nonsense still aren't a majority, but they are now a large enough constituency to affect actual public policy. They are enabled by another large group who choose to ignore the insanity because it is politically convenient for them. I find all of this beyond terrifying. I stand by my statement: Smallpox could never be eradicated in 2021.

pille · 4 years ago
I think we agree on all of this. I was just pointing to what I think is the mechanism that promotes the stupidity.

It’s certainly worse in the US than it is in Germany. That much is clear.

pille commented on Germany: New government plans 'right to encryption'   tutanota.com/blog/posts/g... · Posted by u/Audiophilip
babypuncher · 4 years ago
If we had to start over on eradicating Smallpox today, we would be completely screwed. The only reason vaccine mandates are necessary is because people are apparently considerably more stupid than they were 70 years ago.
pille · 4 years ago
A vaccine mandate has about 80% support in Germany. OP is axe-grinding for a pretty small minority here.

I don’t know if people are generally any more stupid now. I think it’s just that our media elevates these uninformed voices and amplifies these stupid points of view, treating both sides as possibly right, when one is so obviously wrong.

u/pille

KarmaCake day438June 9, 2013View Original