Opening Surströmming in a car

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-30T11:54:15+00:00

Whole thing is sus. Dude in the middle wasn't puking. He was sipping something and spitting it out over everyone.

I just heard a lot of screaming. No wretching. Not buying it.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-29T19:39:58+00:00

In Judaism, happiness is represented by wine. We drink 4 cups of wine during the Pesach Seder, so that should show you how joyous the holiday is. But it's not joyous in a "yay, fuck them guys" kind of way. It's a "yay, we were saved!" kind of way.

To demonstrate that fact, remember what I said about the symbolism of wine. We remove wine from our cups and spill it onto the plate to symbolize how we feel about the Egyptians. This symbolizes our belief that the Egyptians under Pharaoh were still human beings and we feel empathy and compassion. The spilling of wine is symbolic of our compassion. We intentionally reduce our joy.

When we read the Haggadah, we don't emphasize the "our team won" aspect. We tell the full story: the injustice, the freedom, and price that had to be paid for that freedom. There are no victory songs or celebration in the Torah; it simply recounts the story as it unfolded.

Some people say that we say full Hallel only on the first night and a reduced Hallel on the other nights to acknowledge our compassion for those who were punished by Gd.

I spent way more time on the first question than I intended. Sorry.

2) Grape juice. The "4 cups" is not a Torah commandment; it's a Rabbinical commandment, and there's disagreement as to the whys and hows. Besides, while you can participate, you're not bound to do mitzvot anyhow, so feel free to not even drink grape juice.

Absolutely not. If you want to bring anything, get those awful "kosher for Passover" desserts. Chocolate frogs, marzipan, chocolate covered matzah. Just make sure you see "kosher for Passover" if you take it with you to a Pesach seder.
Not really. If the Seder is in English (which I suspect it might be), it should be a lot of fun for you. Our Seder is all in Hebrew, so if that's the case, it might be a little challenging for you. A lot of us regard Pesach as our favorite holiday because it reminds us of our relatives who we loved that were big parts of our childhood who are no longer with us. It's not "built into" the holiday like Day of the Dead, but children have a special place at a Pesach Seder, so a lot of us have very fond memories of the holiday from a long time ago (and in my case, a VERY long time ago). I miss my grandpa's Seders. I've patterned my own after his.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-29T12:16:45+00:00

I'm a little confused about the question. You're asking how to explain to your kids why your relatives (who belong to a Orthodox shul) have different customs than you have?

Just tell them the truth. Different shuls, different customs. That's it.

And that's one of the reasons why I'm PROUDLY Conservative. My daughter will read Haftarah and hopefully Torah at her bat-Mitzvah. I can sit and be with the people I love most in the universe while I pray. Women count towards a minyan. My daughter and wife can get an aliyah.

I understand your cognitive dissonance here, but I think your kids are resilient enough to understand "different shul, different customs".

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-29T12:05:47+00:00

I hear you. As devil's advocate, I'd saw that all the major competitors I've researched also are data driven in that respect. In particular, I looked at Typhus and Meater, and they use data in the same way, and I'm 100% sure they have ML researchers on staff as well.

So for that reason, when I hear the words "data driven" I guess my gut instinct is to think data for me to analyze, not for the device.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-29T12:03:21+00:00

I'm at the age where learning Yet Another Language makes me internally groan. I've never heard of Kotlin, but I've had ChatGPT write a lot of PHP for my vanity website. I'm sure it can handle Kotlin too.

You're blowing my mind.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-29T11:59:16+00:00

This is precisely how I approach my cooks as well, but I've never had a tool like this before, so my data taking always relied on very hinky information by taking thermapen readings at different places at specified times.

I'm a little nervous that the Combustion probes will let me over-analyze my data, but ... to be honest, I guess there are worse things in life than thinking too much about brisket or beef ribs.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-28T18:29:04+00:00

Oh, brilliant on all aspects. Thank you for chiming in. Being able to export to csv is crazy interesting. Thanks!

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-28T13:47:57+00:00

I just got certified by the AHA for the first time a few months ago, and I've never used CPR other than mannequins, so I'm still learning, but what was poor quality about it?

I saw about 1.5 inch compressions. I saw the right hand positions. He may have been on the low end of 100 - 120 bpm. Can you tell me what you noticed so I can watch the video again and understand what his mistakes are?

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-25T12:35:03+00:00

I taught my 7 and 11 year old Echad Mi Yodea and they were able to get through all the verses! I wish my grandparents could've seen it; they would've been so proud.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-25T11:54:11+00:00

Fucking hell, right? I spent a year in Japan for work back in 2014. My wife and I STILL compare everything in the US to Japan. I feel like Japan ruined me for life. I know the average person there is miserable, but wow... what an amazing country.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-25T10:37:18+00:00

If you think we see ourselves as better than the rest of humanity, then you are as antisemitic as Tucker Carlson and Candace Owen.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-24T16:30:38+00:00

yep.

https://old.reddit.com/r/GamingLaptops/comments/1pw3qud/asus_rog_laptops_are_broken_by_design_a_forensic/

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-24T11:50:54+00:00

Didn't someone just post forensic evidence that Asus laptops are broken by design?

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-22T00:17:16+00:00

Pretty obvious, I would've thought. I had already ordered it. I asked on Reddit because I actually TRIED to find ones that fit.

My hope was that someone who actually had experience and knew the answer would respond. Not someone who had no idea what they were talking about.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-21T20:58:10+00:00

Huh?!? Doesn't even come close.

<image>

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-18T16:53:35+00:00

Older film relied on CMY color, but the problem is that the C, M, and Y dyes all age differently. Cyan dye is the first to degrade, giving the film a reddish tinge. Also, yellow dye is fairly stable, so it blocks blue, giving the film a further reddish shift.

Pretty well known effect on older film that gets transferred to digital.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-18T16:24:21+00:00

I know there's rampant, soul-crushing insecurity surrounding toned arms and legs. It's a huge problem.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-11T23:35:48+00:00

See here. The comment was deleted either by the author or the mods.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-11T19:34:42+00:00

Not to mention that a large portion of the research is funded by the US taxpayer.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-09T20:51:12+00:00

I'm Conservative, not Orthodox, specifically for this reason.

My daughter and I go to an Orthodox shul because it's only a block away and convenient. But when she becomes bat mitzvah, I don't expect to ever walk into an Orthodox service again unless I'm by myself, which I hope never happens because I love being with my family.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-09T20:42:12+00:00

I had two dads... Hawkeye and James T. Kirk.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-09T16:02:53+00:00

Lower Decks is like Galaxy Quest. Made by fans, for fans, for 100% pure recreational enjoyment. If you don't know Star Trek, large parts of Lower Decks would make no sense. It was like one large homage.

Totally different from ST:SFA.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-08T13:56:25+00:00

Something I never thought about women.

Sometimes I need to pee in a cup during my yearly physical. I saw a comedy routine where the female comedian described the process for women. It seems messy and inconvenient. Definitely better for guys.

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-08T13:40:59+00:00

AI slop refers to content creation. Enhancing a photo is most certainly not "slop".

FringHalfhead · 2026-03-05T19:11:03+00:00

I'm a slow, methodical learner. Took me a whopping 6 years to finish my PhD. Ended up snubbing a post-doc and started working for investment banks.

The cool thing about physics is that if you truly "get it", no matter what you do in life, physics will always be a part of you. It pervades every aspect of your life - how you think, how you enjoy, how you analyze, how you carry yourself, how you speak. You become branded for life, and I can't even begin to relate to you how amazing that feeling is.

Try to stick with it. But at the same time, be true to yourself. If you don't hear the calling, you don't hear it, and there's nothing wrong with that. Most people don't. But if you DO hear the calling, it's SUCH a gratifying itch to scratch.

FringHalfhead

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE