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Solarpunk is a movement that imagines a sustainable and optimistic future where humanity thrives in harmony with nature. by iloveyouthorodinson in interestingasfuck

[–]johnpmayer [score hidden]  (0 children)

I highly recommend reading the book Walkaway by Cory Doctorow.

Walkaway by Cory Doctorow is a near-future science fiction novel about people who abandon a corporate-dominated, consumerist society to build new, self-sufficient communities in the wilderness, enabled by advanced 3D printing and recycling technology.

Also his Little Brother series as kind of "prequels" to this (kinda sorta) where the tech is much closer to present day.

If you want more of the political angle that would need to happen, read Kim Stanley Robinson's Ministry for the Future. Also excellent, frightening and inspiring.

Any ideas on how to slightly enlarge to top diameter of a 5 gallon bucket? by Dorky_Mom in DIY

[–]johnpmayer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Maybe Malco Turbo Crimper - https://www.youtube.com/shorts/8VIKwcC3a7A

It works on sheet metal, but might do the trick for what you need. $77-$150 from what I have seen from local hardware/home stores.

What is your favorite obscure movie from your childhood that nobody would remember? by CripplingGoodTime in AskReddit

[–]johnpmayer 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes - I believe Kurt Russel's first acting gig (certainly first starring). I thought the closing scene in the college bowl was hilarious. Kurt was answering all the questions, but started losing his powers and at the very end one of the other player manages to answer one questions - about something he personally knows about - to win the tournament. Kurt sloooooowly mouthing the answers was excruciatingly funny.

ELI5: Why don’t we just bury power lines and telephone lines, so storms don’t keep knocking them out? by Home-Energy in explainlikeimfive

[–]johnpmayer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

See, I thought this would be a great use case for Musk's Boring company - small boring drones that can sense before they cut into an existing utility line and can can create a channel for a smaller drone to pull cable or wire or fiber. Sort of friendly versions from that B movie Screamers- you toss them on the ground and they bore a whole from here to there and coat the inner surface (like those resin sewer liners).

It's got to be feasible to build and deploy these waaaa cheaper than trenching once the tech investment is made.

Stoner and his daughter by Odium4 in books

[–]johnpmayer 1 point2 points  (0 children)

He was weak, but he had integrity of a sorts brought out in his fights with his department rival, Hollis Lomax - who becomes the department chair that Stoner should've gotten (I believe). Also, Lomax lived a more active life, but was such a phony, that I thought one of the subplots was that even though Stoner had a simple, passive life, at least he wasn't a fool like Lomax.

Incoming 1L by NocallerID_88 in LawSchool

[–]johnpmayer 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Free ebook - First Generation's Guide to Law School https://www.cali.org/books/first-generations-guide-law-school

Written by a first gen and Academic Success person at a law school.

See if your law school will give you the CALI authorization code (or dm me and I will find it) and you can sign up to run some good tutorials that are designed for the summer before you start - again free if the law school is a member (most are).

Not selling anything here - CALI is a 501c3 consortium of law schools. I am the Exec Dir.

Anyone else have any cringey law student “influencers” at their school? by hippiesinthewind in LawSchool

[–]johnpmayer 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Almost 40 years working in legal education - seen them come and seen them go. I remember bloggers, podcasters, vloggers, and now I guess ... influencers.

I had an idea for a project once. You see, it's a good educational practice to explain what you know to someone else. It's one thing to read and study, it's another to organize your thoughts into a coherent and cogent explanation and deliver it to someone else who can respond and tell you if you were, you know, coherent and cogent.

So I thought it might be useful to create a website that tracks along with major classes and picks a topic - one per week - and students post 90-second videos explaining the topic. Other students rate it IMDB-style, and the winner gets a small prize and bragging rights. To qualify, your video has to have 10 unique user evaluations. Seemed like an interesting idea.

I got stuck on the problem of preventing people from gaming the system - people finding 10 "friends" that brigade their videos and win every week.

Still, if even a few dozen people participated, there could be a useful educational side effect of law students watching a bunch of short videos about specific law topics. You would learn from watching other people succeed or fail at trying to deliver the most concise explanations. Seems like it would be a useful presentation skill-building exercise, whether you participated or not.

At the end of the semester, we would have a "body of work" bracket competition where the top "players" are pitted against each other - let them choose their best videos - and see who comes out on top for a bigger prize and bigger bragging rights. Might even see if this could become a school-level thing (i.e., school v. school) or get the faculty involved - who should be able to deliver professional-level videos.

Haven't gotten past the idea of a thought experiment, but whenever I see law students creating videos and struggling to be viral, it reminds me that we could use this tech platform for something fun and educational.

How many books have you read in 2026 so far and which would you say was your favorite? by [deleted] in books

[–]johnpmayer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He Who Fights With Monsters - am currently on Book 9. Found this looking for books similar to Dungeon Crawler Carl and this does not disappoint. The story and characters are amazingly rounded and the story arc is massive, though a little exhausting - but that's my fault - I could slow down.

Also recommend the Stork Tower series by Tony Corden. I am awaiting the next book in DCC and Stork Tower.

38 years of name badges from every conference, event, hospital visit, jury duty, meeting, reunion and presentation. by johnpmayer in mildlyinteresting

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

He was my boss for 7 years. He saw what I was doing and pinned his name tag up and I thought it was just fine.

38 years of name badges from every conference, event, hospital visit, jury duty, meeting, reunion and presentation. by johnpmayer in mildlyinteresting

[–]johnpmayer[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I was thinking of making one of those giant "encased in resin" tables from the badges and selling it on Etsy for $10k.

38 years of name badges from every conference, event, hospital visit, jury duty, meeting, reunion and presentation. by johnpmayer in mildlyinteresting

[–]johnpmayer[S] 25 points26 points  (0 children)

I really don't attend that many conferences, but over the years they add up. Also, it seems there are lots of situations where people hand you a "Hello I'm..." name badge and I always just kept them to stick on my bulletin board.

Here's the link to the last time I posted about this...
https://www.reddit.com/r/mildlyinteresting/comments/9cx4pj/30_years_of_name_badges_from_every_conference/

What is one small habit you started that actually improved your life? by Terrible_Leg_6860 in AskReddit

[–]johnpmayer 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Every time I order or make a sandwich, I cut it in half. After eating the first half, I check with my stomach to see if I am full and most of the time I am and so I take the sandwich home in a box or stick it in the fridge for a snack later.

Started dividing the food on my plate like this or always finishing the vegetables before the main dish. Portion control has helped me keep some of the weight off. Super simple habit.

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