stray

"Spiders can detect danger coming their way with an early-warning system called eyes."

Really fantastic book. I did have some notes though. Firstly, if honeybees have such low dpi vision, how can they see each other dance? I assume it's because they're experiencing the dance some other way, but how? (Also it's hella dark in there, isn't it?)

He says many times that humanity's umwelt is dominated by sight, but I very much disagree. To lose my hearing or sense of touch would make me feel quite blind, as I use them to perceive things outside my cone of vision constantly. Being in deep water is unnerving for this reason, because I can't "see" what's around me, and I have this whole new area below that I can't hear either. So I have to wonder whether other people feel the way he does or whether my usage is more unique.

He really blew my mind when describing exafference and reafference because these things are reliant on a sense of self in the first place, which means that even the worm in his example must have some form of ego.

1000 calories of pizza and 1000 calories of broccoli is the exact same from a weight gain point of view.

They are not the same because different bacteria eat different things, and some of those bacteria are associated with weight loss and gain. We can quite literally feed mice akkermansia muciniphila and cause them to lose weight without changing their caloric intake.

Also 2000 calories of pizza is doable in one sitting, and you won’t feel very full so it would be easy to eat more, but good luck eating 2000 calories of broccoli in a day, the volume of food is much higher.

With this you admit that there's more to it than just CICO. If you eat 2000 calories and still feel like you're starving then of course you're going to fail your diet. What you eat is extremely important for a variety of reasons.

I'm not sure I've ever encountered a dietician that recommended counting calories for weight loss or health. They all say to eat healthy foods, avoid junk, and to eat when you're hungry, stop when you're not. And it turns out eating healthy is exactly what fosters the gut bacteria associated with healthy body composition.

It isn't just what you're saying with not counting soda, etc, though. CICO is pretty complicated, especially with newer research about how gut bacteria can alter body weight without changing caloric intake. Burger and pizza calories really aren't the same as broccoli and lentil calories.

It's not really possible to accurately count calories burned either, as metabolism is all over the place. People with energy to spare will engage in more NEAT, and people in a deficit will conserve energy.

A comma can be used to improve readability, but it can also indicate a pause while talking. I feel a pause after "and that" is as common as no pause. That said, I cannot know if that was the poster's intent; it's only my interpretation of the usage.

They are unfortunately being used by children, who understandably think they look sick as shit, to murder each other. Here are some "highlights":

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czddg1zvl34o

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-birmingham-66187503

It's not legal to carry a water pistol full of acid either.

If they're blunt or made before 1954, you're good.

yeah, decoration/recreation (or do you want to ban the bow and arrow too? maybe ban boxing gloves?)/historical preservation

Blunt weapons and historical items are not banned per this legislation.

Hope he remembered his seeds.

This is pretty obviously satire.

Sounds like The Stand. Are they any good?

Okay, but now I need to know how long room temperature and refrigerated semen are safe to eat. How's the flavor and texture upon reheating from the freezer?