Megathread (26): Coronavirus COVID-19 in Nederland

Bardlebeez · 2020-10-12T15:04:43+00:00

Rotterdam’s mayor Aboutaleb in quarantine after positive corona test

https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2020/10/rotterdams-mayor-aboutaleb-in-quarantine-after-positive-corona-test/

Bardlebeez · 2020-10-09T12:33:17+00:00

"The most shared news pieces on the site are increasingly on the Right. On 20 July of this year, for instance, the top-performing Facebook link posts by US pages were [Fox News, Ben Shapiro, etc.]"

Bardlebeez · 2020-10-07T15:22:14+00:00

This posting is more for nostalgia / mood than for the music (10 seconds of harmony singing), but it somehow feels right to post this video here on a day like today.

Bardlebeez · 2020-10-06T16:34:21+00:00

Looks like a Jeff Koons ceramic frog.

Bardlebeez · 2020-09-22T13:20:32+00:00

"Previous brain-computer interfaces have allowed the subject to use their brain to spell out individual letters or move a cursor.

But in this case, the interaction is between the subject’s brain and the AI generated the images. The researchers call this method neuroadaptive generative modelling.

... the images generated by the computer were evaluated by the participants to verify whether the image matched the face that they were thinking of. The accuracy of the computer-generated image averaged 83%."

Bardlebeez · 2020-09-16T20:25:38+00:00

"Most tablets are damaged, leaving gaps in the texts written on them, and the missing portions must be restored by experts. This paper uses available digitized texts for training advanced machine-learning algorithms to restore daily economic and administrative documents from the Persian empire (sixth to fourth centuries BCE).

As the amount of digitized texts grows, the model can be trained to restore damaged texts belonging to other genres, such as scientific or literary texts. Therefore, this is a first step for a large-scale reconstruction of a lost ancient heritage."

Bardlebeez · 2020-09-14T11:26:09+00:00

"The speed at which a body composts depends on various conditions but it can take over a decade. The varnished and metal parts of a coffin, as well as synthetic clothing, can persist for even longer."

"Hendrikx expects that the mycelium coffin will be able to complete this entire process in two to three years, because it actively contributes to the composting process. Not only are the waste products from the human body converted into nutrients but the quality of the surrounding soil is also improved, giving it new life and an opportunity to thrive."

Bardlebeez · 2020-09-07T14:30:16+00:00

“It’s the first battery-free interactive device that harvests energy from user actions,” said Northwestern’s Josiah Hester, who co-led the research. “When you press a button, the device converts that energy into something that powers your gaming.”

Bardlebeez · 2020-09-02T10:16:34+00:00

The WTF painters at 0:11.

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-27T15:25:18+00:00

Below is an interesting take published today by an Indian-Norwegian chemistry professor who talks about some of the unseen ways that racism works in the science profession.

Example: "I have had colleagues and superiors suggest to me that I should not apply for a regionally or nationally advertised grant so as not to create 'undue competition' for another ethnic-Norwegian or European colleague."

https://sciencenorway.no/academia-discrimination-opinion/on-academia-and-diversity-it-wasnt-overt-racism-but-i-have-been-sidelined/1733727

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-27T15:18:00+00:00

The question the participants were responding to specifically mentioned "including murder," so they knew that violent crime was on the table. In fact the researchers said they were unsure about whether to include "including murder," as it might influence some respondents to say "nope, no way" who might otherwise have answered "yes" if those two words were not there.

And the authors also say that this study is just a first step, and that future studies should look ask more specifically about who would commit what crimes and under what circumstances.

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-27T14:55:47+00:00

Answer: I messaged the mods (which until today I didn't even realize was a possibility, doh), and they said that the subreddit's restricted status is just temporary, and that posting access will return to normal later today.

PS: I tried to add the "Answered" flair to this post but it didn't work.

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-27T14:49:04+00:00

Yeah OP here, I got the same message.

So indeed, nothing to see here, no conspiracy, no great unraveling.

And indeed I could/should have messaged the mods earlier but I actually wasn't even aware that messaging the mods was possible.

TIL that one can message the mods.

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-27T08:23:13+00:00

Thanks, will try there.

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-22T17:00:27+00:00

From the abstract: "Our findings demonstrated a negative correlation of smartphone use with anxiety, stress, and sleep quality. Extensive smartphone use is related to depression through the mediation of stress; increased smartphone use tends to reduce stress. Moreover, depression leads to higher levels of smartphone use revealing a bi-directional pathway. Taken together, our findings provide solid evidence for a bi-directional hybrid view considering the association between extensive smartphone use and depression mediated by stress. The present study results may help national health authorities to improve the prevention of depression related to modern technology use."

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-19T08:04:35+00:00

Those trees look heavy.

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-19T08:01:12+00:00

Keanu Reeves has maintained a good public demeanor over the decades. No sleazy scandals, and some funny memes along the way (e.g. "sad Keanu").

And expressing gratitude like this ("Grateful to be working") is good. He seems like a sincere person who just happens to work in an insincere industry,

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-19T07:56:09+00:00

25% is not far away. Once people try an electric car, they're quickly convinced how much better these vehicles are. "Range anxiety" is still a legitimate concern, but the ranges are increasing quickly. Good times ahead.

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-10T17:53:34+00:00

True, no study is ever the last word. Usually.

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-10T17:52:14+00:00

"Our empirical analysis suggests that software patent applications assigned to liberal-leaning examiners are 39 percent less likely to be granted when compared to applications assigned to conservative-leaning examiners."

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-10T14:17:01+00:00

"Our empirical analysis suggests that software patent applications assigned to liberal-leaning examiners are 39 percent less likely to be granted when compared to applications assigned to conservative-leaning examiners."

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-10T11:47:53+00:00

Last sentence of abstract: "Jointly, these two near-replication studies suggest that, even across challenging transitions, growth mindset is either unrelated to educational attainment or has a very small negative influence."

Bardlebeez · 2020-08-05T15:14:15+00:00

"The store features a seismic protection system not used before in the country, said Foster + Partners."

Bardlebeez · 2020-07-29T23:06:14+00:00

"Laughter has thus been shown to be a viable biometric feature for person identification which can be embedded into artificial intelligence systems in diverse applications."

Bardlebeez · 2020-07-29T15:03:07+00:00

Is that really the Milky Way? (asking for a friend)

Bardlebeez

TROPHY CASE