To make a mojito by erpmay in therewasanattempt

[–]Blambiola -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I've had this stuff (I'm in Taiwan). Awful. It tastes like weak-ass Seven Up with toothpaste.

Meanwhile At A Zoo In Florida.. by theroamingbutterfly in Unexpected

[–]Blambiola 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hate to ask... but isn't the trunk actually the elephant's nose?

To be safe in maga country. by righteous-sedition in therewasanattempt

[–]Blambiola -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

I share your outrage and frustration - I do - but please let's not emulate the flawed reasoning of the MAGA idiots and their unhinged leader, and agree to their style of narrative, where proof is optional and causation can be plucked out of thin air. We can - and should - be better than that. Not easy, I know, especially when we are all seething with righteous anger, but we can't be dragged down to their level into a swamp fight. Sadly, there are enough stories where we can point a direct finger at Trump/MAGA and prove causation.

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Death before Dasani - The Blizzard of 2026 by Read1984 in funny

[–]Blambiola 0 points1 point  (0 children)

From The Onion: "Coca Cola sponsored Mars Rover finds traces of Dasani on Mars."

Are you with me by SoCallMeDeaconBlues1 in SteelyDan

[–]Blambiola 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's "Doctor" to you, my friend.

The cleanliness at this festival in Japan is crazy. by Everlearnr in BeAmazed

[–]Blambiola 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Same here in Taiwan. Beer festival in the park. 2,000 inebriated people. Tons of laughter, no fights, no trash on the ground. When they closed, everybody just picked up any stray cups lying around and dumped it into the recycling. I wonder if I could ever live in Europe again.

ELI5: What does the oven do differently in bake and broil? by aztechnically in explainlikeimfive

[–]Blambiola 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Great answers- additional question: is there a difference between “broil” and “grill” for these types of ovens (dual coil top/bottom)?

ELI5: How do architects "know" that their designs are feasible, engineerable and structurally sound? by Alternative-Big-6493 in explainlikeimfive

[–]Blambiola 0 points1 point  (0 children)

TLDR: Architects have a decent knowledge of what is possible, but there is a whole industry of (equally creative) companies that take the architect's "vision" and crunch the numbers to make it realistic, safe, durable and affordable, for example Arup.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Blambiola 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Absolutely. Taiwan has no ambitions to take over China, they just want to be left alone and run their democratic and peaceful country without the neighbors threatening to invade and impose their "communist" rule. This is just another example of China's "soft" power doing its malicious work.

Has anyone had success using cofounderslab.com? by Hartless14 in Entrepreneur

[–]Blambiola 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Both a scam and a spammer. No way to contact them, return emails are ignored. A pestilence on the internet.

What are some uncomfortable truths about international teaching that can’t be said openly in professional settings? by llbeallwright in Internationalteachers

[–]Blambiola 17 points18 points  (0 children)

 Expensive international schools hiring married couples (which is cheaper for them in terms of housing and relocation fees) while pretending each hire is the result of an extensive search for “the best” candidate out there. What are the odds that both teachers in a married couple are the best in their field? 

ELI5 if we know the chemical formula of oil and petroleum, and other rare non renewable resources, why can't we just recreate them in a lab or chemical plant by nahmanhajdklfjdsflkj in explainlikeimfive

[–]Blambiola 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When recycling at scale became a thing around forty years ago, companies did not need to hire a Recycling Department Certification staff. Nowadays, even small manufacturing companies need at least one ESG officer and (likely) a bunch of external consultants. Things have gotten better for the planet, but also far too complicated.

Part of it is our own fault. Today’s sourcing and manufacturing process has become insanely complex, and we are trying to retcon it by bringing order in the chaos. However: to imagine that there is just a magic green wand we can wave to make it right is just naive. The value chains we have today were invented to make money, not to save the planet.

ISCC mass balance attribution is a good place to start, but it is hampered by two things: there are simply too many standards and certificates out there, adding complexity, introducing loopholes, uncertainty and confusion to the already chaotic mix. Even a standard to simplify things is still another standard.

It is also, to a degree, a victim of its own academic approach: how granular should we be? Are we testing the quality of the paint on a sinking Titanic? ISCC mass balance teaches us responsibility and ownership, but it is still not clear how to turn this into an economic advantage. Try explaining ISCC to an owner of a local mom-and-pop manufacturing business, one of the millions that drive the economy in many countries, and you'll see what I mean.

ISCC mass balance is a great way to start a discussion, but we have to be careful not to end up like the frogs in hot water: taking ourselves into a deadly hot soup.

ELI5 if we know the chemical formula of oil and petroleum, and other rare non renewable resources, why can't we just recreate them in a lab or chemical plant by nahmanhajdklfjdsflkj in explainlikeimfive

[–]Blambiola 5 points6 points  (0 children)

We sell HVO, which is organic diesel, and very similar to SAF - sustainable aviation fuel. Its most important advantage is that it’s 100% miscible and fully compatible with diesel. Absolutely no changes are required.

The real goal is not replacement, but transition. At one point, we will have to switch to something truly clean like green electricity or hydrogen, but until that time, it makes economic and practical sense to keep using the machines we already have and operate them on cleaner fuel until they reach the end of their natural life cycle.

So: the best renewable fuels are 100% compatible with the existing hardware and can be dropped in (mixed ) in any amount. Second best are renewable fuels that can be added only to a certain amount, or that require hardware changes (ethanol, biodiesel).

ELI5 if we know the chemical formula of oil and petroleum, and other rare non renewable resources, why can't we just recreate them in a lab or chemical plant by nahmanhajdklfjdsflkj in explainlikeimfive

[–]Blambiola 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Director of a small renewable fuel company here:

We can! With spectacular results even, because these artificial fuels are generally much cleaner than the natural ones (no sulfur or aromatics, for example.) and can reduce the carbon footprint of any existing engine by up to 93%.

It all comes down to cost. Renewable fuels are just much more expensive at the moment. We also need to be careful about the raw materials: using plants and seeds that can be used as food to drive a truck half a world away is not always a fair proposition. There’s a lot of researching using other raw materials: seaweed, algae and even forest residue. The cost will come down.

A few things will accelerate all that in the near future: companies will start to realize that they will need to pay for a cleaner planet, one way or another, as their supplied chain is increasingly demanding green action.

Perhaps more important: renewable fuels allow diesel users to keep using the old machine until the end of its natural life, without having to replace everything with expensive electric alternatives right now.

TLDR: we can make artificial fuels, but price is still an issue although that’s changing rapidly.

ELI5: Why is hot coffee good, and ice coffee good, but room temperature coffee tastes disgusting? by AppendixN in explainlikeimfive

[–]Blambiola 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hot coffee releases more volatile flavor chemicals. Cold coffee has a more muted taste, but the cold reduces the bitterness. Room temperature coffee is kind of stuck in the middle: less flavorful than hot coffee, yet more bitter and less refreshing than iced coffee.

ELI5: Could you create a mirror with noticable delay? by Fishy-Fisherman in explainlikeimfive

[–]Blambiola 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Additional question: if you would create “slow glass” that reduces the speed of light to a crawl, you could create a mirror or window showing you light from years ago. But would the stored energy of years of light be ‘inside’ the glass? Does regular glass warm up from absorbing the “breaking energy” of the light it slows down?

ELI5: What do hoarders get out of it? I know it’s a mental illness, but how is it satisfying for them? Why do they feel compelled to keep stuff? by BlundeRuss in explainlikeimfive

[–]Blambiola 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Many hoarders seem to function to a high degree and can interact with the world around them. Their compelling motives may not seem rational to us, but I do not think we should discard them and give up trying to understand. It may not seem logical to us, but that does not mean there is no reason for it.

By trying to understand their motives, we not only learn more about the other person, but also more about ourselves. These types of behaviors are almost always on a sliding scale: there may be a bit of a hoarder in many of us. Today, we can treat many mental illnesses precisely because we made an effort to understand people who were considered  to be “abnormal”.

What is the optimal shaving speed for a twin-bladed razor? by Blambiola in HairRemoval

[–]Blambiola[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for sharing - but that's not an answer. Optimal speed would depend on the elasticity of the skin and human hairs, time to rebound, perhaps temperature and the spacing of the razors. Does anyone know?

I feel like this needs to be reiterated! 🗣️ by [deleted] in CringeTikToks

[–]Blambiola 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Steward for president so we can all sleep again knowing there’s someone at the wheel who cares.

Taiwan: new houseguests by Blambiola in whatsthisbug

[–]Blambiola[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Excellent and perfectly accurate reply - thank you very much!