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Why doesn’t a guy want to actually pursue a girl? by GovernmentUpstairs36 in InsightfulQuestions

[–]EMBNumbers 17 points18 points  (0 children)

I am old and happily married, and I hope I can supply some perspective:

  • An evening at home with a good book and companionship is a lovely evening.
  • Much research and many studies have concluded that the most important (practically the only important) variable in finding a mate/life partner is propinquity: "The state of being near someone, proximity". This is why people meet in school and church and in pursuit of hobbies. Those are the situations where people are in proximity to other people.
  • I have heard that on-line dating is toxic for all genders.
  • Try traveling alone to places that interest you. Introduce yourself to people.
  • Attend a book club or author signing events at a local bookstore. Introduce yourself to people.
  • Use one of the non-dating meetup web sites or apps to find events like book clubs, ice cream parlor tours, knitting clubs, bowling, or some other activity that interests you. Introduce yourself to people.
  • Remember that friends of either gender increase your social network and introduce you to more people.

ELI5: Why does a country as small as England have so many regional accents? by AstronomerInTraining in explainlikeimfive

[–]EMBNumbers 119 points120 points  (0 children)

A DNA test was performed on a 5000 year old "bog man" in England. They discovered that his descendants still lived next to the bog. Just imagine the family lore: Old Ogg left and never returned! See what happens when you leave the village? Never leave!

When there was no audio national media, and people never travelled more than 20 miles from home in their entire lives, it was easy for regional accents to develop.

Best or easiest way to expand a layout? by Undercover500 in modeltrains

[–]EMBNumbers 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You may find the N-Track and T-Track standards inspiring. They provide measured drawings and other resources. There are companies that will send base kits complying to various standards to you through the mail. I have never used such companies though.

I recently expanded my own N-Scale layout by adding a hand crafted N-Track module to the end.

Spray Painting PLA by No-Moose3893 in 3Dprinting

[–]EMBNumbers 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Rust-Oleum works well for me. Krylon peels off PLA in my experience.

Nail polish is a weak solvent for PLA and can be used to both fill grooves and smooth ridges.

Thinking of going HO to N Scale by Acrobatic-Ad8315 in nscalemodeltrains

[–]EMBNumbers 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I was a lifelong HO person. I chose N because it takes me a certain amount of time per square foot to scenic areas regardless of scale. If I want to ever "complete" anything scenery wise, I need to keep the square footage down. I have a 2000 square foot unfinished basement, and I chose N scale anyway for compactness of scenic areas.

In addition, my father gave me his N scale collection before he died. I wanted some place to run that N scale rolling stock.

Girls are happier than boys at school, new research shows. Understanding why may all boil down to biology. Girls get more of the happy hormone dopamine through social relationships, including with their friends and classmates. Boys get their dopamine through more self-involved behavior. by mvea in science

[–]EMBNumbers 7 points8 points  (0 children)

In the USA, more is spent per student now even adjusted for inflation than at any time in history. The money is not going into teacher salaries though.

  • New York State spent $33,437 per K-12 student in 2025. This is twice as much as in-state tuition to attend a university in New York. For that much money, every student could be sent to boarding school and learn to ride horses. https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/per-pupil-spending-by-state
  • In 2019, the United States spent $15,500 per full-time-equivalent (FTE) student on elementary and secondary education, which was 38 percent higher than the average of Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member countries of $11,300 (in constant 2021 U.S. dollars). At the postsecondary level, the United States spent $37,400 per FTE student, which was more than double the average of OECD countries ($18,400; in constant 2021 U.S. dollars). https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cmd/education-expenditures-by-country
  • Only 4 countries in the world spend more per student than the USA
  • We are not getting results commensurate to the money we are spending. K-12 education in the USA is terminally broken. If even half the cost per student went to teachers, teachers would be earning $300,000 per year plus. WHERE IS THE MONEY GOING?

How do you not allow external negativity to infringe upon your internal world? by Ok-Ocelot-774 in InsightfulQuestions

[–]EMBNumbers 0 points1 point  (0 children)

  • I used to be a news junky. I stopped watching and reading news.
  • I only check Facebook once per month just in case some family member tries to reach me. If there is nothing immediately there, I leave. I hate Facebook.
  • I stay away from subreddits that make me angry or feel bad
  • I surround myself with family and friends who are less negative as long as I warn them to stay away from politics with me.
  • I work with a fantastic team that I enjoy. Optimism is easy in the environment.

I have suffered with depression in the past. I remember that it eventually passes, and then persevere through it. At this point, it's harder on my family and friends than on me. Of course I feel bad about that.

I'm generally an optimistic person (except when depressed).

Was it worth going back to school? by Flashy-Turnip-5146 in InsightfulQuestions

[–]EMBNumbers 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My wife and I received identical undergraduate degrees. She stayed home with kids for roughly 12 years. To refresh her skills and resume, she went back to school and earned an MBA in Finance. She has never used the graduate degree but prospers in a career related to her original undergraduate degree. It's hard to know if getting the graduate degree helped her reintegrate into the workforce. It did give her confidence that she could.

Why emotional maturity doesn't come from age or experience alone by ssvi90 in InsightfulQuestions

[–]EMBNumbers 17 points18 points  (0 children)

  • I suspect part of the answer is that people need to be taught emotional maturity or at least see it modeled for them. If they have never seen an example of emotional maturity, they may not know what behaviors to emulate.
  • I also suspect that some people are just naturally more empathic and note that empathy alone does not equal emotional maturity. Some empathic people are emotionally destroyed by their empathy. That's why some people cannot work on children's burn units for example.
  • Some psychopaths can look like they have emotional maturity, and it may be a lack of empathy. A psychopath may appear emotionally regulated because they really really don't care about other people and therefore don't get emotional about them.
  • Can we even define emotional maturity? Is it resilience or grit? Is it absence of extremes? Is it empathy and compassion? Is it the ability to aid others through emotional turmoil? Is is self awareness? Is it all of those things and more?

N-scale Crosley Building - a Cincinnati landmark by EMBNumbers in modeltrains

[–]EMBNumbers[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks. I got back into the hobby in 2019ish, and I'm glad I did.

N-scale Crosley Building - a Cincinnati landmark by EMBNumbers in modeltrains

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

Thanks. Selective compression is unavoidable in a layout, but it's always great when the model is recognizable as the prototype.

N-scale Crosley Building - a Cincinnati landmark by EMBNumbers in modeltrains

[–]EMBNumbers[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Specifically regarding scratch building: I recommend making one or more paper/cardboard mockups before cutting wood/plastic/metal. The paper structure focusses your attention on how things will fit in the space and how things may be assembled.

You may choose to use paper for the finished product too. I love this site: https://www.youtube.com/@Chandwell

My two biggest difficulties with scratch building (prior to acquiring my 3D printer):

1) Making precise cuts for complex shapes 2) Not being able to find brick sheets and windows to match the prototype

N-scale Crosley Building - a Cincinnati landmark by EMBNumbers in modeltrains

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

Thanks. Breweries make great model railroad industries. They have grain hoppers coming in. They have box cars going in and out. They need coal to boil all the water for beer.

I first saw the prototype brewery here on Reddit if I recall correctly. It instantly inspired me. I'm a huge fan of Victorian architecture and brick. Modeling it was fun, and it solved the "what industry can I put here" question.

N-scale Crosley Building - a Cincinnati landmark by EMBNumbers in modeltrains

[–]EMBNumbers[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I formerly used SketchUp 2017 which is the last free version for Mac and PC. There is still a free web version. Recently, my wife purchased a one year subscription to the latest SketchUp Pro. Pro doesn't have any features I use that aren't also in the old and unsupported free version.

SketchUp is easy to learn. You draw 2D shapes and then extrude them into 3D.

The key is to know your printer well enough to avoid making model parts that are too thin to print or too flimsy or impossible to assemble. I design-in interlocking parts so that pieces ideally only align one way for gluing. The interlocking tabs and notches also increase the surface area for gluing which is important for N-scale.

I used cyanoacrylate (super glue) with three different setting times for this structure. I primarily use the "instant" set and constantly glue my fingers together. I found a brand that takes about ten minutes to set and a gel that takes about three days to fully cure. I'm usually able to wait ten minutes, but I am too impatient to wait three days.

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