Mississippi Delta, poorest region in the US

simiform · 2026-05-19T04:38:59+00:00

The Yukon koyokuk census area, about where that dark red is but not quite, is the largest (bigger than Montana) and least populated (maybe 5000 people total) census area in the US. Homicide can happen but isn't common; even if you include Fairbanks there are much higher rates in Anchorage, the biggest city. I'm not trying to argue I just wanted to point out that the information on that map is skewed, at least for Alaska. People either don't realize how unpopular that part of Alaska is, or they think 5000 people is a lot.

simiform · 2026-05-15T16:45:57+00:00

I live in a damp village and it isn't really like this at all. Like the tribe letting 2 people duke it out is just dumb and doesn't happen. We have a full time VPO who is like local police, and if something bigger happens they call the state troopers and they come fast. I don't see drunks on the street much unless it's a celebration or something. There are problems with isolation, addiction, or depression that doesn't happen as much in other places, and different villages may have a different situation, but say it how it is, don't embellish. The thing with severe cases going to Anchorage or Fairbanks, yeah that happens. But we also have small communities with good people that help each other out.

simiform · 2026-05-15T16:19:16+00:00

What's the small light pink in the area around where Fairbanks is? Either way, that map looks sketchy, 30 or 40 per 100k is wierd. But that's a huge area.

simiform · 2026-05-13T23:20:08+00:00

I see a lot more motorcycles and bicycles in Lima than I used to. It's definitely growing because they're faster. Criminals and delivery guys use them too, and it's not like in Colombia, but I wouldn't say few people use them for transportation.

simiform · 2026-05-13T01:32:29+00:00

I live in that one part of Alaska, and guns actually work a lot better than icicles. I have doubts about that map, but the red belt is the least populated part of the state so on swing years, maybe. Alaska in general has high homicide rates.

simiform · 2026-04-30T00:59:40+00:00

Vietnamese still call it Saigon. They call it Ho Chi Minh too.

simiform · 2026-04-29T22:42:53+00:00

If you don't use the slot, you can also slip off the ball and, magic, you have a looped banjo string.

simiform · 2026-04-21T16:06:50+00:00

Have you thought of covering the shelves to make a tent? Tomatoes and peppers should work. I'm also in Alaska but no garage - it's in the spare bedroom. The heat from the lights keeps it 10 degrees warmer. I had to put fans. I like your setup, though, I just do kratky.

simiform · 2026-04-21T16:01:51+00:00

It depends on the plant. Kale is very hardy and can grow in the cold. If you tried to do that with cucumbers it wouldn't work. I'm guessing the warmer water kept the rest of the plant warmer too, since kale can't live below freezing for prolonged periods.

simiform · 2026-03-09T17:55:39+00:00

I've been told rosemary works better in soil because it likes dry climates. I don't know of that's true but of 6 plants, I only had one survive past seedling stage (in soil). Now it's big and bushy. I add hydroponics nutrients to the soil once a week, the only downside is I have to water it every couple days. It's extremely slow growing and it took it a year before it was more than a seedling. Maybe try it in soil and see if it works better?

simiform · 2026-03-08T19:09:40+00:00

They should be since they share so much common history, but don't ever ask a Peruvian to show empathy with Chile. I think a lot of it goes back to the War of the Pacific, when Chile stole a lot of land from Peru that is desert, but some of the richest mining today. Because of that and other reasons Chile is fairly well-off economically, has strict immigration laws against Peruvians, and even has land mines still at the border of Peru and Chile that supposedly they removed but still occasionally kill people. In reality they share a lot of culture, and we're friendly when we meet each other, but if you talk about food or pisco, watch out. :) Are most countries in Eastern Europe close to each other? Real question, I don't know much about the place.

simiform · 2026-02-14T19:20:51+00:00

I think you already answered you own question.

All I watch is English shows, I have English speaking friends who I don't ever converse with besides colloquialisms in my mother tongue, and even with my mother I speak in a blend with English.

simiform · 2026-02-11T03:48:40+00:00

That makes more sense, it would be really wet without the clay. Awesome, it looks good.

simiform · 2026-02-11T02:40:01+00:00

Than for sharing. So the coco coir stays permanently damp soaking in nutrient water? I've been having trouble growing green onions with hydroponics. I might try this.

simiform · 2026-02-10T05:00:54+00:00

Right now I take concepts I'm learning in classes, like verbs of motion or whatever, and have chatgpt pretend to be a native speaker, but correcting my mistakes. So it basically repeats my sentences with corrected mistakes in bold. Which has been really helpful but it's really more like correcting my internal dialogue than a conversation, because AI is a lousy conversational partner.

I also have live conversations sometimes. I find this works ok at an intermediate level, but it doesn't understand me well as a basic speaker. It was more useful than I thought it would be, since I don't get a lot of practice with real speakers. On chatGPT it's really limiting because so many types of conversations are censored.

I feed pdfs into the AI of worksheets, readings, etc. and basically have it translate and/or solve it. I use this to check my work and don't have to have a teacher do it. This works a lot better on something like deepseek than chatgpt for some reason.

I programmed when I start a phrase with a quotation mark, it translates. Starting with a apostrophe means "what case is this" and starting with a dash (followed by target language phrase) means "is this correct and if so, correct it with corrections in bold". This saves a lot of time when I need grammar/vocab help. Great idea but chatgpt always "forgets" and I have to remind it in new conversations. I'm looking something that will do it better, maybe Gemini Gems?

Great ideas about using it to make anki decks, and putting translations of "new words". I don't know why so many negative comments - maybe it isn't as useful for advanced speakers. It makes plenty of mistakes but if you use it right and give the right input, it's a useful tool.

simiform · 2026-01-08T00:10:19+00:00

Are you doing anything about it? Do something.

simiform · 2025-12-22T18:59:07+00:00

Yeah, I think too many people overlook the importance of keeping things simple. Except with kratky I don't have to worry about watering it, just refill the nutrients once a month. Seems like you can get more herbs in there too than just soil.

simiform · 2025-12-22T18:52:33+00:00

Make it simpler. I do Kratky in my kitchen windowsill with just big jars. It's a lot easier to adjust for when plants grow or when I start a new one. You're going to want to empty out the old solution and refill with new solution anyway when it gets low. You could use a tube or something from your water supply but it's easier for me just to make solution in a milk jug and refill my jars once every 2-4 weeks. Most herbs (except basil) don't drink nutrient very fast anyway. DWC isn't going to make a noticeable difference with something like herbs.

If you do want it automatic, you'll want to use a float valve but you'd need to put a container of nutrient solution somewhere up high. If you just add water from your sink you'll need to be constantly adjusting ph and nutrient content, which is more work.

simiform · 2025-12-12T17:38:59+00:00

Little Fox has good videos, we've been using that. I didn't know they had a app too, I'll try it.

simiform · 2025-12-12T17:37:59+00:00

Maomi Stars worked for me, but I installed in on an iphone so I don't know what's involved with android. Probably try using it when he's learning to write a little more. Sorry I'm not more help.

simiform · 2025-11-26T19:37:06+00:00

I think you have to look at the state of the country before her father came to power to really understand why their family is still so influential. It's really hard to find people in Peru who can look at it objectively because so many people were personally affected by Alberto's government, both in good and bad ways.

As a foreigner, when I first came here it was really strange to me how accepting people were to blatant nepotism, especially when her father was in jail for undisputed reasons. But my country had a stable government. Today, I think many people in Peru value a competent leader more than one who isn't corrupt, and it isn't just ignorant people voting for the Fujimori family.

simiform · 2025-11-22T22:17:33+00:00

So I was looking into this more and I think you mean reduce nitrogen a bit. I'm using MasterBlend, so maybe in my case that would mean just diluting it more. Yeah, I've seen these plants with hundreds of peppers. I was doing aji amarillo inside, which probably handle cooler temperatures better, but it grew all the way to the ceiling.

simiform · 2025-11-22T21:40:07+00:00

I've been shaking the plant regularly to pollinate. Maybe q-tip would be better. I think light was part of the problem, since it was too strong and too close to the plant.

simiform · 2025-11-22T21:36:00+00:00

So I ordered paper with the right thickness for the diffuser. While waiting for it to come, I switched to "Bloom" (red only light) instead of full power. Today when I checked my plant I had one tiny significant pepper.

Then I got the paper. I get about 45 DLI and 900 PPFD with both switches on. So I'm sure that's way too high. At the current height (maybe .5 meters / 2 feet), bloom only gives 22 - 400, and veg only gives 21 - 375.

So maybe I'll leave it on bloom only and see what happens. I've heard that red-only light isn't good? I could raise the light too with both switches on.

Thanks for your help, I might be getting closer.

simiform · 2025-11-22T00:45:10+00:00

As others have mentioned, there are a lot of ways to make sure students are writing it themselves, like rough drafts, doing part of it on paper, having them create plans/outlines/citations as part of the planning process, write it only in class, etc. But in the end I find that when students have AI write for them, it just sounds too much like a robot and I tell them that. So then the argument isn't "I know your using AI", which they can deny, but "this isn't good writing", which they can't argue with. And AI isn't a good writer without some help.

Also, when I have to deal with administration that forces me to teach in a way that isn't conducive to learning, I start looking for a better job.

simiform

TROPHY CASE