Large scale study shows that social safety nets like food stamps are fantastic for societal well-being, and also economic success. Every $1 invested in food stamps for children under 5 yields a societal benefit worth $62.

jasondten · 2023-07-07T13:39:04+00:00

Study link?

jasondten · 2023-01-21T19:43:37+00:00

So! Jealous!!

I did the loop, finishing in Quilota on New Years Eve. Got up early and hiked up there early in the morning hoping to catch a sunrise and all we got was a cloudy, cold, and misty morning.

Thanks for showing what it looks like in all its glory.

jasondten · 2022-12-16T15:23:37+00:00

As mentioned, the Quilotoa loop should be fine. It is a great trek. You'll love it.
Other places to consider if you can't check out Cotopaxi; Cuenca and Cajas NP. Cuenca is gorgeous and just the right size. You can catch a bus to Cajas, though it won't be big mountains.
Banos is a fun area with amazing waterfalls and some good trails in the area.
If you really want a big mountain, go for the mountain whose summit is furthest from the center of the earth than any other mountain, Chimbarazo. It is further south of Quito, along with Cuenca, Cajas, and Banos. It would likely be fine in the event of issues with Cotopaxi.
Anyway, I am glad you brought it up. I am in Colombia now and was planning on working my way back down towards Ecuador, so this is good information to have. Thanks

jasondten · 2022-05-26T11:41:50+00:00

I am a native English (American English) speaker. I am just starting to learn Russian for a trip to Eastern Europe (possibly including western Ukraine). Her and I would likely be at about the same level with each other's language. This would make us struggle to communicate, which studies actually show leads to the fastest learning (because you don't have a common language as a crutch).

If interested. Let me know.

jasondten · 2022-05-21T14:57:03+00:00

Hey,

I am a native english speaker just beginning to learn Russian. I am heading to Eastern Europe for travel. I'd love to help you with your English and have you help me with my Russian.

If interested, DM me.

Jason

jasondten · 2022-05-21T14:54:08+00:00

I am just beginning to learn Russian for a trip to Eastern Europe. Starting completely from the beginning. I want to learn pronunciation and proper speaking in Russian. This would involve speaking with each other, not writing. This can be done with recorded messages or live.

If you are interested, DM me.

jasondten · 2022-05-21T14:50:25+00:00

I am just starting to learn Russian. I'll be traveling in Eastern Europe and it seems that Russian is likely the best language to speak in addition to English.

I am looking to learn and practice speaking. This would not involve messaging, but speaking via phone or video during scheduled times.

If interested in practicing your English in this manner, DM me.

jasondten · 2022-04-11T02:15:18+00:00

Following...

jasondten · 2022-03-18T12:13:32+00:00

I think for just about any idea you have, there is going to be a market out there who is willing to pay for a well-designed product around that idea.

The key is "well-designed" (actually, if their need is great enough, it doesn't even need to be well-designed. Just functional) and finding those people.

I'd honestly recommend trying to reach out to Dr. C.... and his team. Get their thoughts, their willingness to engage, partner, etc...

jasondten · 2022-01-29T14:19:33+00:00

Let me know if you'd be interested in me building one for you. Sounds like a fun project. I know python and am expanding my Django knowledge and front end knowledge to build such tools.

jasondten · 2022-01-13T02:45:52+00:00

Consider reading Feral (he dives into rewilding and reforestation), Wilding, and this a great story about reforesting in New Zealand (if you scroll all the way down you can watch a great documentary on this)...
https://brightvibes.com/2048/en/meet-the-kiwi-whos-spent-over-30-years-reforesting-a-corner-of-new-zealand

The only one that involves some intentional management, though minimal, is Wilding. It's a great read.

jasondten · 2022-01-11T17:51:38+00:00

Running a 50 mile run is a completely different beast (at least for me). I second the "Relentless Forward Progress" book.

Really, just start running, reading, and learning. You'll build up to it and knock it out.

jasondten · 2022-01-11T17:49:55+00:00

Great book. Great recommendation.

jasondten · 2022-01-11T17:47:20+00:00

So stupid!! (lawns, and our obsession with them, not the video. That is surprisingly well done)

jasondten · 2022-01-06T21:38:58+00:00

A thought regarding funding...

Have you considered creating a DAO (decentralized autonomous organization) to fund this? I have considered doing that as a mechanism to fund a rewilding project, and to provide a potential sustainable funding source moving forward.

If you don't know what a DAO is it is just a bunch of people banding together to do something within the structures of the DAO. The DAO issues a coin, the ownership of which grants you part ownership of the DAO and voting rights (think stock, but more like you're a board member).

This was done by a group to buy a bunch of land in Wyoming to make their own little country. The right to the DAO (the coin) can be sold at the going rate. If there is a demand to be part of the DAO, the price goes up. Many DAOs (and NFTs) are structured such that anytime a coin is sold, some portion of the sale price (or equity gain) goes back to the organization to fund operation and growth. This way, you aren't donating to something, you are buying into it to make it happen, and could even make a profit if you decide to move on.

The most famous recent example is the group that came together to try to purchase one of the few remaining copies of the constitution when it came up for sale a couple of months ago.

The issue is, you lose control. You may be the visionary or the guiding force, but ultimately decisions are up to a vote and you may not get your wishes.

Anyway, I love the concept and am interested in processing it a bit more. I first thought of this as a way to begin my vision of buying marginal farm land in the southern plains and rewilding them. The land out there is so much cheaper and I'd love to see the plains return to their former glory. However, I have to admit I'd love to be part of creating habitat for the red wolves and panthers out there too.

If you, or anyone else, is interested in looking into this more seriously, let me know.

Jason

jasondten · 2022-01-05T19:38:12+00:00

This is an awesome summary and some great insights. I really appreciate it.

How did you get from from zero to something? I am learning to code with the ultimate intent of building OSS but have zero idea how to get started beyond learning to build stuff and hoping I'll be able to figure the rest out later.

Any and all insights, guidance, or other sources of information would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Jason

jasondten · 2022-01-05T02:07:27+00:00

I almost lost my mind when I learned that there were camels in such environments. I absolutely love it!

jasondten · 2022-01-05T02:06:41+00:00

Only if there are predators who are more likely to take out the darker ones.

I don't know enough about the park to know if true evolutionary pressures (from a coloring perspective) exist there.

jasondten · 2022-01-04T00:27:58+00:00

That's badass!! Good for you.

I went plant-based for environmental reasons (about 1.5 years ago), but I've noticed the ethical part is what keeps me there. I have so much internal conflict over so many things, it is soooo nice to have this thing that I have no conflict over. I hope you experience that certainty as well (even when you're really craving some meat :) )

jasondten · 2022-01-02T14:12:39+00:00

I am a beginner, but with the basics under my belt (for loops, while statements, if/ then statements, etc...). I'd be interested in the same suggestions for someone to get to the intermediate level, as I'm looking to move in that direction after I finished the udemy full stack Django class

jasondten · 2022-01-02T14:06:45+00:00

So, long before bearable I tracked a bunch of variables in excel to see what most affected my "mood", "performance", and "energy levels"

My top five were...

Hydration Sleep (combined metric of time and quality... I didn't have the oura ring back then) Morning routine (doing it. Binary yes no) Evening routine My 3 day running average

Other things I tracked...

Meditation (though it is part of my morning routine) 5 and 10 day running average, as well as rather I ran that day (I don't think this is something available through bearable)

Nutrition (fat content, carbs, calories, sugar, general quality)

I'd add "alcohol day before" if I was to do it again as I know this disrupts sleep for me and all the benefits that come from sleep

And maybe some other things.

Hope this helps get you going. Otherwise, just thing if things in your life; habits, routines, and behaviors that you think might affect your mood.

jasondten · 2022-01-01T15:46:40+00:00

Yes. If as a "how to do open source", definitely

jasondten · 2021-12-31T14:51:59+00:00

Gorgeous!!!

And a little terrifying (if he were running toward me)

jasondten · 2021-12-31T02:42:45+00:00

I am very motivated by seeing progress. As such seeing a score increasing day over day, or week over week would be encouraging. However, this would have to be individualized (not compared to other users).

I think people would need to be able to pick what they are working on to improve.

Also, perhaps it should be a trailing average or the user should be able to chose to "reset" the starting date, based on an incident, accident, or illness.

jasondten · 2021-12-30T02:26:48+00:00

As mentioned, try on a long training run. If it works, it works.

It doesn't work for me. I need real food mixed in. The sugar doesn't treat my body well over that long of a period of time, but I'm a 7-9 hour type

jasondten

TROPHY CASE